Nepal forcibly repatriated a Tibetan refugee after he escaped from China, a Tibetan exile group said today.

The refugee, a 20-year-old known as Tashi, crossed into western Nepal with five other Tibetans in September but was separated from them en route to Kathmandu, according to the International Campaign for Tibet. “Tashi had been detained by Nepal police after crossing the border and handed over to their Chinese counterparts on the Tibet side,” the group said. It added that it believed he was being held in the Tibetan capital Lhasa.

When the last deportation was reported in June 2010, the United Nations refugee agency in Kathmandu had said it was ‘extremely concerned’ about the move. 

Hundreds of Tibetans make the difficult and dangerous journey to Nepal every year, fleeing political and religious repression in China.

Published on: 25 November 2011 | The Himalayan Times