By Choekyi Lhamo
DHARAMSHALA, Dec. 28: The Nepalese police have reportedly detained five Tibetans including an RFA journalist and the settlement officer in Boudha region on Sunday morning. Radio Free Asia reported that the Tibetan community in Nepal were holding elections in a low-profile manner on Dec. 25th and 26th. RFA journalist Dorjee Gyaltsen Gurung and SO Choejor with the other three Tibetans were released on the same day around 6 pm.
A representative of the Human Rights Organisation of Nepal (Huron) confirmed their release from the police station. The elections were held early in secret in view of the deteriorating situation for Tibetan refugees in Nepal. Tibetan community held the 2011 elections openly which resulted in local police confiscating the ballots. In 2016, the elections were held successfully by the Tibetan administration without any arrests.
On the other hand, the Kathmandu administration on Sunday received China’s high-level delegation of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to bridge the differences between the two factions of the Nepal Communist Party. Vice-premier Guo Yezhuo will be in Kathmandu for the next four-day visit to all political factions and leaders in Nepal’s ruling party. Recent reports noted that China is offering large amounts of money to Nepalese politicians to patch-up.
The recent arrest of Tibetans in Nepal has sparked conversations online over the suppression of Tibetan people’s rights by the Nepalese authorities. The upcoming Sikyong (Presidential) and Chithue (Parliamentary) elections to be held on Jan 3 2021, will determine the top rung of the Tibetan exile polity for the next four years.
3 Responses
Shame on the Nepalese government! Gone are the days when Nepal used to be the capital of tourist in these part of the region, where the government was relaxed and welcomed everyone including the Tibetans. Now the current politicians just want to get rich and dance to the tunes of the CCP. It is not even like they are helping their own people. All they care is for themselves to be rich. Shame shame Nepal government shame.
Preventing Tibetans from having their own community elections is a violation of the Nepalese Constitution & int’l law. The United States should protest these human rights violations by the Nepalese police.
Nepali people are fooled by these politicians, they are just making themselves rich not the people of Nepal. Nepal has to obey their master’s order to suppress the Tibetan refugees. Some NGO of Nepal are courageously helping the Tibetans on the humanitarian grounds.