Self-immolation acts condemned by deputies

Officials from Tibetan-inhabited areas around China have condemned self-immolation as "inhuman" and have urged people to treasure life.

"Although some cases of self-immolation have happened in Tibetan-inhabited areas recently, such as Sichuan and Qinghai, we haven't witnessed any case in Tibet," Padma Choling, a deputy of the National People's Congress and chairman of the Tibet autonomous region, said on Wednesday.

"The act is inhuman and goes against Buddhist teachings," he said. "Life is precious and it's painful to see that such things keep happening. No one should set themselves on fire."