CHINESE PRESSURE NEPAL TO DEPORT TIBETANS

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 KATHMANDU 000984

SIPDIS

STATE FOR SA/INS AND PRM
LONDON FOR POL - GURNEY
GENEVA FOR THOMAS-GREENFIELD

E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/28/2013
TAGS: PREF PHUM PREL NP CH
SUBJECT: CHINESE PRESSURE NEPAL TO DEPORT TIBETANS

REF: A. KATHMANDU 0753

B. KATHMANDU 0715

Classified By: CDA ROBERT K. BOGGS. REASON: 1.5 (B,D).


1. (C) Summary: On May 29 Office of Tibet Representative
in Kathmandu Wangchuk Tsering reported that the Department of
Immigration was preparing to hand over to representatives of
the Chinese Embassy 18 Tibetans detained for immigration
violations. The Government of Nepal (GON) has also asked the
UNHCR to hand over three Tibetan minors, originally detained
with others in the group but later released into UNHCR
custody, for deportation as well. Emboffs have intervened
with both the Department of Immigration and the Home Ministry
to press them not to deport the Tibetans, who have been
declared "persons of concern" by UNHCR, but prospects of
non-deportation appear bleak. Most alarming is the direct
intervention by Chinese diplomats, who had heretofore applied
discreet pressure on the GON to dissuade refugees, in
attempting to secure the Tibetans' deportation. End summary.


2. (SBU) On May 29 Office of Tibet Representative Wangchuk
Tsering reported to poloff that a member of his Office had

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run into Chinese diplomats at the Department of Immigration
when he went there to pay the fines for 18 Tibetans detained
in a Kathmandu jail since April 15 on immigration violations
(Refs A and B). According to Tsering, the Chinese had
apparently already paid the immigration fines for the 18
(plus a 19th Tibetan who had been arrested separately on
similar charges),and the Department of Immigration was
preparing to hand them over to the Chinese for deportation.
Tsering said he had already informed UNHCR, and asked the

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Embassy to raise the issue with the Ministry of Home and the
Department of Immigration.


3. (SBU) Emboff contacted Home Ministry Joint Secretary
Niranjan Baral (the Secretary was out for the day),who
professed to know nothing of the matter. She stressed the
importance of abiding by internationally respected norms and
established past practice by handing over the detainees to
UNHCR, who has declared them "persons of concern." Baral
undertook to look into the matter and asked poloff to call
back later. Poloff then contacted Immigration Director
Subarna Lal Shrestha, who confirmed that the Tibetans would
be summarily deported, "as per our regulation," to China. He
was unable or unwilling to describe what regulation mandated
their deportation (there is no extradition treaty with
China),nor would he disclose who had ordered their
deportation or paid the fines. In response to poloff's
urging that the detainees be turned over to UNHCR, he
redirected her to the Home Ministry. In a follow-up
conversation, Home Joint Secretary Baral advised that the
intervention by the US and other embassies had made the
Ministry reconsider the matter. He and his colleagues were
thinking carefully about what to do, he said, and would most
likely defer deciding until the following day. Poloff
reiterated the above-mentioned points and added that
deporting Tibetans (eight of whom are minors) to China would
be certain to elicit strong negative international reaction,
including from the U.S.


4. (C) UNHCR Protection Officer Cecilia Becker, who spent
several hours at the Department of Immigration in an effort
to fend off the deportation order, told poloff that she had
observed several Chinese Embassy cars throughout the day in
the parking lot. While at the Department, she was confronted
by the Chinese DCM, who demanded that UNHCR turn over three
Tibetan minors (two aged six and one aged nine) originally
arrested with the 18, to him for deportation. He reportedly
told her that he "had been waiting all day" for the Tibetans
to be turned over, and insinuated that UNHCR was to blame for
the delay. Becker said that the the Department of
Immigration also asked that the three children be turned
over. She told poloff that she will ignore the order, but
since the Home Ministry knows where the children are staying,
she fears they may be picked up anyway. (She also confirmed
that her understanding was that the immigration fines had
been paid by the Chinese Embassy.) She said she was
pessimistic that the Tibetans would be able to avoid
deportation, but urged the Embassy to continue its efforts.


5. (C) Comment: High-ranking Government of Nepal (GON)
officials have indicated to us in the past that pressure from
the Chinese Embassy was responsible for their stricter
application to Tibetans of immigration regulations. That
pressure heretofore had remained discreetly, if no less
effectively, behind the scenes. The actions today of Chinese
diplomats--paying immigration fines to speed deportation and
confronting UNHCR representatives with a demand that they
hand over minors to the Department of Immigration--should
remove any doubt of the extent of their efforts to ensure a
more draconian interpretation of immigration laws for
Tibetans attempting to transit Nepal. The Embassy will
continue to urge the GON to respect international norms and
practice--and avoid international censure--by turning over
these "persons of concern" to UNHCR.
BOGGS