As part of a worldwide event to be held on February 8, 2012, a candlelight vigil will take place in San Francisco in front of the Chinese Consulate.

Last week, 7 unarmed Tibetans were shot and killed by Chinese police. As a tragic sign of growing desperation in Tibet due to the increasingly brutal Chinese repression of religious freedom and other basic human rights there since the Chinese invasion in 1959, 17 monks and nuns have resorted to self immolation in the last year. Twelve have died.

The Tibetan government-in-exile has called on the international community to express its solidarity with the people of Tibet on Feb. 8th. Prime Minister Lobsang Sangay added, "I want to tell my dear brothers and sisters inside Tibet that we hear your cries loud and clear. We feel your pain and will not allow the sacrifices you have made to go in vain."