Anurag Acharya

Nepal's treatment of Tibetans violates not just international covenants, but also our own constitution

Tibetans have been living as refugees in Nepal for half a century following the Lhasa uprising of 1959-60. At least 20,000 Tibetans were officially registered until 1989, when the government stopped registering them after adopting the "one China policy". However, Nepal entered into a "gentleman's agreement" with the UNHCR and promised to provide safe passage to Tibetans who cross the Himalayan passes to its territory en route to India and beyond.

Two decades since, Nepal has neither been gentle on Tibetans living in Nepal, nor kept its word on safe passage. Instead, unknown numbers of Tibetans, possibly in their thousands have been barred from crossing over or forcibly deported back to China. In May 2003, 18 Tibetans who had crossed over to Nepal were forcibly sent back, leading to a national and international condemnation. Nepal has been criticised by Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and the International Commission of Jurists, for its poor human rights record not just towards its own citizens but also for the way we have treated Tibetans over the years. This week's visit by US Deputy Under-Secretary Kelly Clements was the latest expression of international concern.

But there is hypocrisy in some of the European and American outrage over Nepal's policy on Tibetans. One hasn't seen the same degree of outrage about refugees from Bhutan in Nepal, nor has there been pressure on Thimphu to take the 100,000 refugees back. And since many of those OECD countries themselves have been known to buckle under Chinese trade or diplomatic pressure from time to time, how do they expect the weak and fractious governments of tiny Nepal to stand up to the fire-breathing dragon next door? Nepal has tried to balance its geopolitical need to keep Beijing happy with its international human rights obligations towards refugees. The zeal with which successive governments have deported fleeing Tibetans goes to show that there is an undeclared unanimity on the issue, across the political spectrum in Nepal. The political elites of this country must take note that our geo-strategic interests cannot over rule fundamentals of universal humanitarian values.

The violent crackdown on monks holding peaceful protests in 2008 were beamed around the world, tarnishing this country's image. Every Lhosar or Dalai Lama birthday police makes pre-emptive arrests and suppresses celebration. Last July three Tibetans were deported back to China, and in March police prevented Tibetans from holding an election to choose their leader in exile. Even the monks travelling to Namo Baudha were detained by the police.

For its unjustified restriction on Tibetans, Nepal stands in violation of Article 18 (1) and 19 (2) of International Covenants on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) which mandates that the states respect rights of an individual or a community within its territory to exercise freedom of opinion and expression in any medium and form within the law of the land. Nepal has also violated "principle of non-refoulement" inscribed in Article 33 of 1951 Refugee Convention which states: 'No Contracting State shall expel or return ("refouler") a refugee in any manner whatsoever to the frontiers of territories where his life or freedom would be threatened on account of his race, religion, nationality,membership of a particular social group or political opinion.' Even as a non-party to the convention, Nepal has an obligation to respect principle of "non-refoulement" as a part of customary international law.

Not only has the government shown a complete disregard towards its international obligations, it has also violated Article 33( c) and 34 (2) of the Interim Constitution of Nepal 2007, which mandates adopting a political system that fully abides by, protects and promotes universally accepted norms of human rights.

Nepal must now clearly demonstrate that its domestic and foreign policy is in consonance with international commitments, and get the message across to Beijing that while it is committed to the "one China policy" and gives importance to its bilateral relationship, we cannot allow the basic values on which this country has been founded to be undermined.

Published on: 10-23 June 2011 | Nepali Times