Hong Kong ( CNN ) -- When a downtrodden Tunisian street vendor set himself on fire in protest after his vegetable cart was confiscated by officials , this desperate act of self-sacrifice was seen as a catalyst for a revolution that became known as the Arab Spring . Contrast this with China , where almost 80 people -- men and women -- have self-immolated since 2009 in protest against Beijing 's poor treatment of Tibet , according to rights groups . Yet details of these cases are often sketchy and difficult to verify , such is the stranglehold China has over the region . As a result the issue has yet to gain real traction internationally . Beijing has consistently rejected claims it is guilty of oppression in the region and insists Tibetans enjoy religious freedom and better living standards under its rule . Yet the self-immolations continue . This week , a 34-year-old father of two burned himself to death in front of a mine in the western province of Gansu , while another 25-year-old man set himself alight near a monastery in neighboring Qinghai province -- which borders Tibet , known by China as the Tibet Autonomous Region . Both cases were confirmed by China 's state-run Xinhua news agency . According to the Tibetan government-in-exile and Tibetan rights groups , the victims died chanting slogans calling for freedom for the Tibetan people and the return from exile of their spiritual leader , the Dalai Lama . This brought the number of deaths by self-immolation to 15 in November alone -- the same month that China 's political elite ushered in its next generation of leaders during the 18th Party Congress . In their keynote addresses , leaders , both old and new , appeared to strike a conciliatory tone . In his first speech as Communist Party leader last week , 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 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 . The Tibet Autonomous Region is heavily policed by Chinese security forces , with Internet content controlled by local authorities and access by foreign media largely prohibited , making reliable information almost impossible to come by . Pro-Tibetan groups such as the International Tibet Network , say thousands of people have died over the years under China 's tenure , through torture , execution , suicides and starvation -- though CNN can not verify these claims . The groups also claim Tibetans have gradually become the minority population in their own homeland , as Han Chinese -- China 's main ethnic group -- have migrated to the region . London-based Free Tibet says the construction of a rail link to Tibet 's capital , Lhasa , in 2006 -- part of China 's Western Development Strategy ( WDS ) -- was intended to cement its control over the restive western regions of China , particularly Tibet and Xinjiang , where separatism remains strong . `` The incidents are a clear indication of the genuine grievances of the Tibetans and their sense of deep resentment and despair over the prevailing conditions in Tibet , '' Tibetan leader in exile , Lobsang Sangay , said earlier this year . His government-in-exile has repeatedly called on the international community to intervene to prevent further bloodshed . Chinese authorities insist that self-immolations are isolated incidents and most Tibetans do not sympathize with or support such actions . A senior official from Sichuan , a province with a large Tibetan population that has seen the most self-immolation cases so far , says he knows exactly who 's to blame -- the Dalai Lama : the man Beijing calls a `` terrorist . '' `` They plot , incite and instigate -- the root cause for such acts is the Dalai Lama clique , '' Li Changping told CNN . `` His loyalists have called those who committed self-immolation national heroes or freedom fighters , vowing to build them monuments and rewarding their families with lots of money . '' The Dalai Lama has long denied China 's assertion that he 's seeking Tibetan independence , saying he wants only an autonomy that would offer protection for their traditional Buddhist culture . During an address to Japanese lawmakers in Tokyo earlier this month , he blamed `` narrow-minded Communist officials '' for seeing Buddhist culture as a threat . He then called on Chinese authorities to investigate and address the causes of the recent surge in self-immolations . `` I always ask the Chinese government : Please , now , thoroughly investigate . What is the cause of these sort of sad things ? '' Beijing 's claim over the region is rooted in history . It says Tibet has been a part of China since the 13th century , when the Mongol empire , which conquered China and formed the Yuan dynasty , also conquered Tibet . Western and central parts of Tibet are administered by China as the Tibet Autonomous Region , while eastern parts of the region fall under China 's Sichuan , Qinghai , Yunnan and Gansu provinces . After several decades of de facto independence beginning in 1912 , Tibet was over-run by China 's People 's Liberation Army in 1950 to enforce the newly-formed People 's Republic of China 's claim of sovereignty over Tibet . In 1959 , thousands of Tibetans surrounded the Dalai Lama 's palace in Lhasa â€ ” the Tibetan capital -- to protect him against what was rumored to be a plot by the Chinese military to abduct him . The gathering turned into an all-out revolt against Chinese rule , which was suppressed by the PLA . The Dalai Lama fled to India , where he has remained in exile ever since . CNN 's Steven Jiang contributed to this report .
Two more Tibetans self-immolated in the past week in protest against Chinese rule . Almost 80 people have set themselves alight in China since 2009 , rights groups say . China says its rule has brought economic stability to the Tibetan people . Activists warn China 's tightening grip on the Tibetan people is creating more resentment .