Former monk Tenzin Khedup, 24, and Ngawang Norphel, 22, torch themselves in Dzatoe township, Tridu county, in the Yulshul Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture on 20 June 2012. An eyewitness said " Both of them were carrying Tibetan flags in their hands at the time of the self-immolation," 155 Tibetans have set themselves on fire inside Tibet to protest against Chinese‘occupation’ since 2009. Self-immolation protests peaked in 2012 when more than 80 took place. Tibetans claim that their genuine aspiration for basic freedoms, and the preservation of Tibetan culture and identity has been met with extreme measures of repression within Tibet. In the absence of space for conventional forms of protest, Tibetans resort to the drastic measures such as self-immolation to voice their resistance. Although many monks and nuns have set themselves alight, most self-immolation protesters include teachers, students and herdsmen. Their slogans include call for the Dalai Lama’s long life and return to Tibet, for the liberation of the designated Panchen Lama, for human rights, and freedom in Tibet.