Tibetan exile dies two days after self-immolation protest

A Tibetan exile, whose self-immolation in Delhi on Monday was caught in harrowing photographs, died yesterday.

Jamphel Yeshi set himself alight in protest against Chinese rule in Tibet as the Chinese President Hu Jintao visited the Indian capital. Mr Yeshi, 27, ran past other protesters before falling to the ground, and suffered 98 per cent burns. "The martyr Jamphel Yeshi's sacrifice will be written in golden letters in the annals of our freedom struggle," said Dhondup Lhadar, of the Tibetan Youth Congress. "He will live on to inspire and encourage the future generations of Tibetans."

About 30 people have set themselves on fire in the past year in Tibetan areas of China in protest at alleged heavy-handed rule. Beijing has blamed the Tibetan Buddhist spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, for inciting self-immolations.