US embassy cable - 02KATHMANDU1903

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 KATHMANDU 001903 
 
SIPDIS 
 
BEIJING PASS TO CHENGDU 
 
STATE FOR SA/INS 
LONDON FOR POL/REIDEL 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/29/2012 
TAGS: CH, NP, PGOV, PHUM, PREF, PREL, Tibetan Refugees 
SUBJECT: CHINESE PRESSURE STIFLES TIBETANS IN NEPAL 
 
REF: A. BEIJING 9871 
     B. KATHMANDU 1332 
     C. KATHMANDU 1694 
     D. KATHMANDU 1443 
 
Classified By: Ambassador Michael Malinowski for reason 1.5 (b)(d) 
 
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SUMMARY 
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1. (C) There have been increasing restrictions on the 
Tibetan refugee community in Nepal.  Celebrations and 
cultural events have been canceled on short notice by 
government authorities, press conferences interrupted by 
police and the Office of Tibet Representative detained for 
a day.  Although many Tibetan refugees are still able to 
enter Nepal and transit to India, post has received 
credible reports of an apparent increase in refugees being 
turned back at the border by Nepali immigration 
authorities.  The Government of Nepal (GON) has repeatedly 
declared that they will have no tolerance for 'anti-China' 
activities, and Prime Minister Deuba has confirmed that 
Chinese pressure is behind the shift in policy toward 
Tibetans.  End summary. 
 
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"POLITICAL" EVENTS CANCELED; 
MONASTERIES LEFT ALONE 
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2. (C) Kathmandu ref cables report incidents in which 
Tibetan gatherings have been halted by police or canceled 
by Nepali authorities with short notice to the 
coordinators.  Office of Tibet Representative Wangchuk 
Tsering has directly attributed the incidents to Beijing, 
 
SIPDIS 
stating in a letter to the Embassy that the Tibetan 
community has been "prevented by the concerned authorities 
of Nepal from organizing any cultural or social gatherings 
on numerous occasions because of China's interference." 
 
3. (SBU) Tsering's assertions are supported by the common 
theme of the canceled events: a link with the Dalai Lama or 
the Tibetan government-in-exile.  In April, a cultural 
program sponsored by the Tibetan Youth Association to 
celebrate the thirteenth birthday of the Dalai 
Lama-recognized Panchen Lama was called off by police.  In 
July, three separate events planned for the weekend of the 
Dalai Lama's birthday had to be canceled on short notice 
when the GON issued an official order to the Radisson Hotel 
not to accept any business from any Tibetan refugee groups 
for the duration of the celebration (ref B).  Earlier this 
month, a Tibetan Democracy Day religious gathering was 
interrupted by police, and Tsering himself was detained in 
police custody for most of the day (ref C). 
 
4. (C) Conversely, purely religious events such as 
liturgical dances are allowed to continue with no 
interference from the GON as long as they are confined to a 
private location.  Tibetan Democracy Day religious 
ceremonies were allowed to continue, once they were moved 
inside.  "The monasteries are left alone," confirmed 
Matthieu Ricard (protect), a French citizen and Buddhist 
monk well-connected to the Tibetan community, "but when the 
(Office of Tibet) Representative lifts his little finger, 
if the government knows about it, they stop it." 
 
5. (C) Tsering has characterized GON interference with the 
Tibetans' freedom of assembly, which he says has been on 
the rise for the past two years, as increasingly frequent, 
persistent, indiscriminate and immediate; and he has 
related statements from government and police officials 
fingering China as the motivating force behind the 
crackdown.  His sources "say that the Chinese Embassy tells 
them something, and it gets done," Tsering told PolOff in a 
September 25 interview. "We have a religious activity or a 
cultural event, but the Chinese Embassy tells the MFA it is 
an 'anti-China' activity, and the MFA informs the 
authorities that it must be stopped without looking into 
the background." 
 
--------------------------------------------- ------------ 
PM, GON OFFICIALS CONFIRM CHINESE PRESSURE; 
KING REITERATES NO TOLERANCE FOR 'ANTI-CHINA' ACTIVITIES 
--------------------------------------------- ------------ 
 
6. (C) The fingers pointing north are not simply a reflex 
response.  Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba confirmed to 
Ambassador Malinowski earlier this month that the GON is 
under pressure from China about the Tibetans.  Both UNHCR 
and the Office of Tibet indicate that GON officials of 
various ranks and positions have told them directly that 
Chinese pressure is behind the shift in treatment of 
Nepal's Tibetan community. 
 
7. (SBU) King Gyanendra clearly stated Nepal's stand on his 
state visit to Beijing in July.  "(Nepal) will not allow 
the emergence of elements running against the development 
of Nepal-Chinese ties," he was quoted as saying in the 
local press. "It will not permit within its borders any 
activities that undermine China's interests."  Newly 
appointed Chief of Army Staff Pyar Jung Thapa reiterated 
the statement this month.  The crux of the problem, 
according to most Embassy sources in the Tibetan community, 
is that the GON is applying too sweeping a definition to 
"anti-China" activities, probably at the behest of Chinese 
officials and possibly in an effort to support the 
"one-China" policy. 
 
8. (U) In July, for example, police closed down a press 
conference organized by a Nepali Buddhist organization to 
refute a widely publicized statement by the Dorje Shugden 
Society that the Dalai Lama was a terrorist and that 
Tibetan monasteries in Nepal were used for "anti-China" 
activities (ref D).  Police interrupted Tsering as he read 
a prepared statement contradicting the claims, arresting 
two organizers and halting the conference.  Newspaper 
reports stated that police had acted on a warrant issued by 
the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and two high-ranking GON 
spokesmen attributed the incident to support for the 
"one-China" policy. 
 
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CHANGES AT THE BORDER 
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9. (C) Additional problems exist at the China-Nepal 
border.  Refugees arriving at the Tibetan Reception Center 
(TRC) have reported increased Chinese security at the 
border, including undercover immigration officers dressed 
in village clothing as well as armed patrols.  Many state 
that they were stopped by the Chinese on their first or 
second attempt to cross into Nepal and either imprisoned 
for a short term or sent to forced labor for up to two 
years. 
 
10. (C) In addition to increased Chinese security, the 
Embassy received reports earlier this year that Nepali 
border guards were handing Tibetans back to the Chinese, 
despite a "gentleman's agreement" with UNHCR that would 
allow them to freely transit to India.  According to Roland 
Weil (protect), UNHCR Protection Officer, sporadic reports 
have come from refugees arriving at the TRC who claim to 
have been turned around by Nepali immigration officials on 
their first try.  Initial news came from sympathetic police 
at border posts who phoned UNHCR offices to report that 
they had "had to" turn Tibetans over to Chinese 
authorities. 
 
11. (C) Weil does not believe the GON has issued a 
comprehensive order to turn people back, since police still 
occasionally escort groups of refugees to the TRC, and he 
added that no new reports of forced repatriation have been 
received since early this year. "That doesn't mean it 
doesn't happen, however," he cautioned, stating that 
information flow from the border has been hampered by the 
destruction of communication infrastructure. "Police can't 
call us even if they would want to, and we can't call them 
to ask what has been happening." 
 
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PROPAGANDA IN THE PRESS 
------------------------ 
 
12. (SBU) In early September, a series of editorials by the 
usually well-respected Kathmandu Post editor-in-chief 
Yubaraj Ghimire were published following a trip to Tibet 
for Nepali journalists sponsored by the Chinese government. 
From the opening line, the intent of the articles was 
clear. "China values Nepal's unequivocal support on the 
one-China policy," the first article began, before 
launching into a catalogue of possible benefits of 
cooperation, ranging from increased cross-border tourism to 
Chinese investment in Nepali industry and even the 
possibility of linking Nepal into railway service to 
Shanghai.  Further articles stated that "even if the Dalai 
Lama decides against getting back to Tibet... the Chinese 
government seems determined to protect (his position as 
religious leader) in deference of the religious faith and 
wishes of the Tibetans."  But despite the parroted prose, 
the series captured the current situation in microcosm: 
struggling Nepal can benefit from a cordial relationship 
with China, and China's cordiality apparently has a price. 
 
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COMMENT 
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13. (C) In general, agreements between the GON and UNHCR 
are still functioning as intended, and the GON's 
relationship with the Tibetan community is tolerant on a 
day-to-day basis. However, Chinese pressure is changing the 
nature of that relationship.  Though it is unclear whether 
the pressure is coming from the Chinese Embassy in 
Kathmandu or from the central government in Beijing, the 
effect is the same: freedom of expression and freedom of 
assembly have been compromised and a long-standing 
agreement with UNHCR appears to have been unilaterally 
altered by the GON.  The Embassy has raised this issue at 
the highest levels of the government, including with the 
Prime Minister, and will continue to stress the value that 
the USG places on individual rights. 
MALINOWSKI