Govt to deport illegal Tibetan refugees
A day after reports claimed that the government is preparing to send back Tibetan exiles living illegally in the country following strong directive by deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister Bamdev Gautam to stop their "anti-China activities", the immigration office on Thursday handed over 106 Tibetan protestors to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) for verification of their refugee status.
Home Ministry spokesperson Modaraj Dotel said that the protestors had remained silent during police interrogation and added that they will not be allowed to stay in Nepal after the verification.
Home Ministry officials had yesterday said that the detained refugees won't be released since their demonstrations had not only affected traffic movement but also country's foreign relations.
"If they continue to remain silent even during the verification by UNHRC, we will conclude that they are illegal immigrants," Dotel told the Kathmandu Post, hinting that they may have to leave the country after that.
The Post had "intelligence sources" speak of reliable evidence that many of the protesting refugees have come here from Dharmasala, India. The report also said that the Home Ministry has received reliable intelligence that some European and American NGOs are supporting the protests by the refugees.
The recent move by the government is said to have come under growing Chinese pressure on Nepal to curb the "anti-China protests" largely centered at the Visa and Consular Section of the Chinese Embassy in Kathmandu since March. Till now 10,000 Tibetan protestors have been detained by the police for agitating in and around the embassy building, often to be released the same night or the next day. nepalnews.com Sep 12 08
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