On July 2, 2026, Tibetan activist Lobsang Palden, also known as Lobga Rangzen, died following a self-immolation protest against Chinese rule in Tibet outside the United Nations Headquarters in New York. This took place one day after China’s repressive new “Ethnic Unity and Progress” law entered into force.
Lobsang Palden’s self-immolation is the first by a Tibetan on US soil. Over 170 Tibetans are known to have self-immolated in protest against the Chinese Communist Party, the vast majority of them inside Tibet. In a video message he posted online, he lamented that China is denying the Tibetan people “human rights, freedom of speech, freedom [even] to display a portrait of His Holiness the Dalai Lama.”
It is imperative that the international community, and the United States, heed his message and hold the Chinese government accountable for its policies of repression and forced assimilation in Tibet.
We’re asking for your help today: sign our petition to Congress calling on our leaders to publicly condemn China’s policies of forced assimilation and co-sponsor new legislation that supports the Tibetan people.
