10. Mar 2010
Tibet under clampdown
(RFA) Chinese authorities in Lhasa have sealed off key tourist areas and Buddhist temples ahead of sensitive political anniversaries. Police have "completely closed Potala Palace and the Jokhang" temple, one Lhasa resident said. In the run-up to the second anniversary of the deadly riots in Lhasa on 14 March, police have slowly built up a large security presence in the city and surrounding countryside, sources said. This year, the anniversary of the 1959 uprising falls on a Wednesday, a weekday considered particularly auspicious for the Dalai Lama.