Details of the practice are sketchy . Self - immolation as protest started in 2009 . By the last decade , some Tibetans had carried out the act . By December 2012 , 95 Tibetans had carried out the act , with 28 self-immolations in November alone when China 's political elite ushered in its next generation of leaders during its Communist Party Congress . China rejects claims of genocide .
Details of the practice are sketchy . Self - immolation as protest started in 2009 . By the last decade , some Tibetans had carried out the act . China rejects claims of genocide .