[4]<\/sup><\/span><\/p>\nThe atmosphere in the Tibetan community was tense over the weekend, with many choosing to stay at home rather than be at risk as security was intensified in locations where Tibetans live in Kathmandu, particularly around the Boudha Stupa, Swayambhunath and Jawalakhel.<\/p>\n
Last month, apparently at the request of the Chinese authorities, airport immigration authorities in Kathmandu refused to admit a US citizen of Tibetan origin and deported him. The Tibetan had the same name as Penpa Tsering, the former speaker of the Tibetan parliament-in-exile in Dharamsala. According to the Tibet Sun, immigration officials said that the Chinese Embassy had written to Nepal\u2019s Ministry of Foreign Affairs to restrict a person named \u2018Penpa Tsering\u2019 from entering the country, \u201clabelling him a campaigner of the Free Tibet movement, as well as a strong advocate of Tibet\u2019s exiled spiritual leader the Dalai Lama. The officials were unsure whether the same person was the one black-listed by China or not. But wanting to be on the safe side they deported him to the US via Doha.\u201d[5]<\/sup><\/span><\/p>\nA visit to Nepal by then-Chinese Vice Premier Wang Yang in August 2017\u2014the highest-level Chinese visit to Kathmandu since Premier Wen Jiaobao visited in 2012\u2014further strengthened economic and political ties with the new Kathmandu government. Wang Yang, now a Politburo member with broad responsibility for religion in his role as head of the Chinese People\u2019s Political Consultative Conference, the government\u2019s top political advisory body, has consistently emphasized tightening controls over Tibetan Buddhism and has been a central figure in the systematic political campaign against religious practitioners in Tibet.[6]<\/sup><\/span><\/p>\nCombined with an agreement between Nepal and China to ensure cooperation in border law enforcement, and Nepal formally joining China\u2019s Belt and Road Initiative, the developments point to a contracting space and dangers for Tibetans in Nepal as Nepalese authorities deepen their relationship with their more powerful neighbor. The direct correlation between the deepening investment and aid from China and the vulnerabilities of Tibetans in Nepal, was acknowledged openly by Beijing when it described its investment as a reward to Nepal for its \u201cimportant role in guarding against Tibetan separatists\u201d according to Chinese state media.[7]<\/sup><\/span> There has been a dramatic decline in Tibetan refugee arrivals and continued inaction on the status of Tibetan refugees. Thousands of Tibetans remain stateless and in political limbo in Nepal.<\/p>\n\n\n