In mid-March, just as the United States dropped China from its list of the world’s worst human rights abusers, police in Lhasa enacted a brutal crackdown against pro-Tibet demonstrators and monks.

The protests, which started as a series of peaceful marches by Buddhist monks, called for Tibetan independence from decades of tyrannical Chinese rule. Once police began gassing and arresting monks, the rallies quickly spiraled into a citywide riot in which stores were looted and burned and cars set on fire.

The Chinese government blamed the Dalai Lama for inciting the violence, which it said killed 18 citizens. Representatives of the Dalai Lama deny involvement and say that the unrest caused 140 deaths. Several witnesses cited at least 100 deaths. Many groups are now calling for boycotts of this year’s Olympics in Beijing (for more information, please see Ethical Traveler’s special Olympics section).

Continued security checks in Lhasa at the end of March have sparked further tension in Tibet’s capital, despite the assurance by China’s Premier Wen Jiabao that Lhasa was “basically stable” and “social order has returned to normal.”

The unrest has spread to neighboring Nepal, where protesters in Kathmandu were beaten by police during rallies against the Chinese consular office on March 31. More than 280 people were detained. The Nepalese government has threatened to take further action against pro-Tibetan demonstrations because of a pledge made to Beijing to ban anti-China activities in Nepal.

But protesters in Nepal and elsewhere will not be swayed.

“We want full freedom for Tibet,” one demonstrator told Reuters. “Until then we will continue to protest and make the world listen to our voice.”