( CNN ) -- A Tibetan man protesting China 's rule of the region set himself on fire Saturday , his death believed to be the first case of self-immolation this year -- but one that adds to a grim , growing toll . The death took place in Gansu province in northwestern China . It was reported by Free Tibet , a London-based organization that campaigns for self-determination for Tibetans , and by the U.S.-based Radio Free Asia . Free Tibet said the man was 22 , while Radio Free Asia put his age at 19 . Details of the death -- as has been the case with other such incidents -- are sketchy and difficult to verify . Internet content controlled by local authorities makes reliable information almost impossible to come by . Self-immolation is a common form of protest for Tibetans , who want genuine autonomy from China and accuse Beijing of repression . China began a gradual occupation of Tibet in the 1950s . Tibet 's spiritual leader , the Dalai Lama , fled for India in 1959 after a failed uprising , and many ethnic Tibetans followed him . Beijing rejects accusations of oppression , saying that under its rule , living standards have greatly improved for the Tibetan people . It makes centuries-old historical claims on the region . Self-immolation as a form of protest by Tibetans began in February 2009 , when a young monk set himself ablaze . In March 2011 , another young monk followed in his footsteps , becoming the first to die . 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 . At least 81 of them died , according to the International Tibet Network , a coalition of some 150 pro-Tibet groups.. In his first speech as Communist Party leader , Xi Jinping stressed the need for unity in a country where the Party was becoming too distant from the people . This followed predecessor Hu Jintao 's comments to Congress delegates in November that the Party `` should consolidate and develop socialist ethnic relations of equality , unity , mutual assistance and harmony so that all ethnic groups in China will live and develop together in harmony . '' But activists warn that if the Chinese government continues to tighten its grip on the Tibetan people in the name of stability , it will only create more resentment . They point to the growing list of young victims prepared to take such extreme action , which they say reflects a desperate and painful state of mind for many .
Details of the death are sketchy . Self-immolation as protest started in December last year . By 2009 , At least 81 Tibetan had carried out the act . Beijing rejects accusations of oppression .