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Nepal to deport illegal Tibetan exiles: Report

IANS

A file photo from 10 September 2008 of Nepalese police arresting a Tibetan protester in front of the Chinese consulate in Kathmandu, Nepal. The Nepalese government has started investigating the legal status of exile Tibetans with the view to returning them to China.Tibet Sun/Lhuboom/Nepal

The government said it would investigate the status of Tibetans involved in anti-China protests and deport them if they were staying in the country illegally, Kantipur newspaper reported.

Police and the immigration department began investigating their status following a directive from Home Minister Bam Dev Gautam to stop activities by the Tibetan refugees, the newspaper said.

“More than 100 Tibetans arrested during anti-China demonstrations outside the Chinese consular office earlier this week were handed over to the immigration department to verify their status in Nepal,” Kathmandu’s police chief Surbendra Khanal told the newspaper.

“If they are refugees, they must not be involved in political demonstrations. If they are not refugees and living in Nepal illegally, they will be deported,” Khanal said.

However, officials did not say where the illegal Tibetans would be sent.

Home Ministry officials said the new measure was put in place because the growing anti-China demonstrations were affecting the country’s foreign relations.

Earlier this year, the Nepalese government banned demonstrations near the Chinese embassy. However, protests have continued.

Nearly 20,000 Tibetans in Nepal are officially classified as refugees. Many more are living in the country illegally as the Nepalese government stopped giving refugee status to Tibetans arriving in the country after 1989.

There have been frequent anti-China protests by Tibetan exiles in Nepal since March despite the police breaking up demonstrations and detaining protestors.

Nepal has come under growing criticism of its handling of the protests by rights groups accusing the police of using excessive force to disperse protestors and arresting more than 9,000.

The government denied the charge but says it will not allow anti-China protests in the country because it would affect relations with its northern neighbour.

Nepal says it recognizes Tibet as an integral part of China.

Copyright © 2008 Indo-Asian News Service (IANS)

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