Faces of the Tibet Protesters

The fifteen Tibetans who staged the independence protest in Lhasa’s main Barkhor Square on March 10 must have known that they faced torture, arrest, and imprisonment at the hands of the occupying Chinese forces. They or their supporters arranged for their photos to be smuggled out of Tibet, so the world would know whom the Chinese security forces had arrested.

The brave fifteen monks and two laypersons range in age from 15 to 32. Here is the youngest, Lobsang, age 15, and the eldest, Gelek Pel, age 32. All these protesters, including children under 18, haven been arrested by Chinese security forces and are at serious risk of torture.

The other marchers can be seen here, courtesy of the Tibetan Center for Human Rights and Democracy. And of course, there were many other monks, nuns and lay persons arrested or hurt during several other protests in Lhasa and other parts of Tibet over the past few days.