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Commentary: Facts about Tibet should not be distorted
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Regarding some western media coverage of the violence in Lhasa, we must say, the facts should not be distorted and a sense of justice is common to all people.

In the violence that erupted in Tibet's capital, Lhasa, on March 14, rioters injured many and even killed 13 innocent people on the street, with extremely crude methods.

Official figures show that rioters set fires at more than 300 locations, mostly private houses, stores and schools, and smashed vehicles and damaged public facilities.

However, some western media neglected the facts and presented distorted reporting for more than 10 days. Numerous western newspapers, broadcasts and websites were full of reporting on the Chinese government's "crackdown" and "tyranny" against the Tibetan people and suspicions of a worsening situation in Tibet.

Some western websites published a photo with a caption saying "Chinese troops parade handcuffed Tibetan prisoners in trucks", while the photo actually showed Indian police dragging a man away.

Some western websites used a cropped photo of Chinese military trucks, cutting off the half of the picture showing a crowd of rioters throwing rocks at the trucks.

More notably, some websites used pictures of baton-wielding Nepalese police in clashes with Tibetan protesters in Kathmandu, claiming that the officers were Chinese police.

These western media, which acted as moral arbiters, neglected the facts of Tibet's economic, social and cultural development and the Chinese government's efforts to restore order in Lhasa, and repeatedly accused the Chinese government of "depriving the religious freedom of Tibetan people" and committing "cultural genocide in Tibet".

These media associated the riots with the country's human rights record and the Beijing Olympic Games and were determined to boycott the upcoming Beijing Olympics.

Facing these distorted and dishonest reports, Chinese people couldn't help asking:

Do they really understand the history and culture of Tibet? Do they understand how much Tibetan people value the current situation of harmonious nationalities, economic growth, social development and cultural prosperity?

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