P20,

This is done at the behest of our piss-pot government who will go to any lengths to ensure that Chinese sensitivities are not inflammed to the extent that trade might be affected. The police do what they are told to do - they don't act independently.
It's all about money, and Tibetan corpses don't even count in the equation.
Saddam Hussein's human rights violations were not tolerated because the West wanted control of Iraqi oil. Chinese human rights violations are tolerated lest valuable trade co-operation be endangered. We contribute to these injustices by voting for bums like Blair and Brown.