The Olympic stadium sits near a park in Beijing

The 2008 Olympic 'bird's nest' sits in the background of the Chinese Ethnic Cultural Park in Beijing April 4, 2012. Tibetan self-immolations are rising as China tightens its grip on Tibet. The authorities in China's capital, alarmed about the threat to stability in a region seething with discontent over religious and cultural controls, have responded with heavy-handed measures against Tibetans. UPI/Stephen Shaver