NEW DELHI, India, Sep 4, 1995 (AP) -- Fifty exiled Tibetan women started a 12-day protest Monday, accusing the United Nations of not helping Tibetans denied visas by China to attend the U.N. World Conference on Women.

The women staged a peaceful demonstration outside U.N. headquarters in New Delhi.

"The refusal of the United Nations to intercede on our behalf, despite the fact that China is only playing host to a U.N. conference, will set a bad precedent," said Youdon Aukatsang, a member of the India-based Tibetan Women's Association.

She said 21 Tibetan exiles from a number of countries, including the United States, were refused Chinese visas.

The association asked U.N. Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali and other officials to take up its case with China. The U.N. did not respond to their request, they said.

China annexed Tibet in 1951 and maintains it has had sovereignty over it for centuries.