From Phayul.com by Kalsang Rinchen

Lhasa, the capital of Tibet, which saw one of the deadliest protests against the Chinese government in 2008 has been turned into a virtual fortress with several checkposts and armed personnel on alert twenty-four hours a day.

An exile Tibetan living here who has talked with his family in Lhasa yesterday said the authorities have arrested several people since March 2 when the Chinese government launched the infamous “Strike Hard” campaign. The usually bustling areas of the city have now become quiet and tense with Chinese security forces keeping a watchful eye on “trouble makers”, he said.

China has geared up its security in the Tibetan capital in view of the sensitive anniversaries of the Tibetans rising up against the invading communist forces on March 10, 1959; deadly protests by Tibetans on March 14, 2008; and the ‘Serf Emancipation Day’ of March 28 that China created last year to commemorate its “liberation of the Tibetans from serfdom”.

Bharkor area, one of the busiest points of the city, now wears a deserted look with only a handful of people coming to circumambulate or prostrate at the great Jhokhang temple. Shops which usually remained open till 8pm or 9pm now get shut down by 4pm.

Residents of Lhasa who go on their daily chores are frisked at various checkpoints and asked for identity cards. People from outside the capital are more prone to searches and questioning, the source said. As of March 6, China had put nearly 500 Tibetans behind bars in Lhasa. The number may well have doubled by now, he says, if his family’s account of events are anything to go by.

Though there were no protests and demonstrations reported on the two anniversaries it is believed that the situation will continue to remain tense throughout March as the authorities fear the Tibetans might use the March 28 Serf Emancipation Day to launch anti-government protests.

China on March 2 launched the “Strike Hard” campaign to maintain “social order and stability” but exile rights groups say the campaign is designed to crush any form of dissent ahead of the sensitive anniversaries, and the annual session of Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPCC).