05 June 2008
Police alert for unrest at Lhasa festival
A local official has said that police in Lhasa were on alert for potential unrest as Buddhist pilgrims flocked to the city for a traditional religious festival, the month-long Saga Dawa, the most important Buddhist festival. "The deployment of armed police was increased because of the coming of a religious festival and as a response to some threat remarks made by Tibetan separatists recently", a government spokesman surnamed Fu told Agence France-Presse (AFP) by phone. "Tibetan separatists have said publicly that they were preparing to 'take some actions'. We certainly have to increase police deployment in response to ensure people's safety at the festival".