China's official death toll from the Tibet riots has now been increased to 22, but Tibetan exile groups says the real toll is now more than 100.
"This really seems to be a battle of PR -- who to believe," CTV's Steve Chao told Newsnet on Saturday from Beijing.
He notes that foreign journalists such as himself are not allowed into Tibet, which makes it very difficult to independently verify the two sides' claims.
One difference could be that China appears to only be counting those who died as a result of violent demonstrations in Lhasa, Tibet's capital, he said.
Xinhua, China's official news agency, said 18 people were burned or hacked to death there.
Tibet's government in exile has claimed that 80 Tibetans have been killed in Lhasa and another 19 in Gansu province, which has a sizable Tibetan population, as a result of clashes with police.
"They have shown a lot of photos of people who have apparently died of gunshot wounds," Chao said.
The current unrest, the worst since 1989, began on March 10 -- a day that marks an unsuccessful 1959 uprising against Chinese rule in Tibet.
The People's Daily, the official newspaper of the Communist party, pointed at the supporters of the Dalai Lama, the exiled spiritual leader.
"We must see through the secessionist forces' evil intentions, uphold the banner of maintaining social stability ... and resolutely crush the 'Tibet independence' forces' conspiracy," it said in an editorial on Saturday.
Chao said Chinese officials have tried to paint the Dalai Lama as a "wolf in monk's clothing" and his followers as violent.
The Dalai Lama has threatened to quit if the violent protests in Tibet don't stop.
A major issue is Tibet's status within China.
"The feeling here is that Tibet belongs to China," Chao said, with the Chinese feeling Tibet should be grateful for the economic development poured into the region.
From perspective of many Tibetans, China has flooded Tibet with ethnic Chinese from elsewhere, making them feel like a minority in their own homeland.
"It's clear (to them) their culture is being lost," he said.
Some of the violence has been directed against ethnic Chinese and their businesses in Lhasa, Chao said.
The Dalai Lama has said he only wants more autonomy within Tibet for China, not an independent country.
With files from The Associated Press
