Another member of the banned Falun Gong spiritual movement has allegedly burned himself to death in Beijing.
Chinese State Television showed pictures last night of what it claimed were the charred remains of a man who had set himself alight in a suburb.
The incident is alleged to have happened near the homes of several Communist Party leaders three days before the arrival of the International Olympic Committee on an inspection visit before deciding the host city for the 2008 games.
According to the television report, the man left a six-page suicide note. It identified him as a 25-year-old shoe polisher.
On January 23rd five people China claims were Falun Gong members set themselves ablaze in Tiananmen Square. One woman died of her burns and the four others, including a girl aged 12, were critically injured.
China claims the burnings are proof that the Falun Gong is a doomsday cult. Falun Gong spokespeople maintain the five were not members.
It was reported yesterday that the Bush administration, in its first major decision on China, will sponsor a UN resolution condemning Beijing's human rights record.