Summary More than 90 Tibetans reportedly have set themselves on fire since March 2011.
BEIJING: An overseas rights group says a Tibetan man has died after setting himself on fire, marking the year s first self-immolation in protest of Chinese rule.
London-based Free Tibet says the man, who was in his early 20s, set himself on fire Saturday in Xiahe county in western China s Gansu province and that his body was carried back to his home village nearby. The group did not provide the man s name.
More than 90 Tibetans reportedly have set themselves on fire since March 2011. Tibetan activists say the protests stem from frustration over China s stifling security presence, restrictions on religion and the demonization of their spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama. China has accused the Dalai Lama of inciting the self-immolations.
