DANGEROUS CROSSING: - International Campaign for Tibet

INTERNATIONAL CAMPAIGN FOR TIBET
China activities in Nepali territory. He assured of further cooperation and as-
sistance from the Government of TAR to Nepal’s socio-economic develop-
ment.” 88
The timing of meetings has also been used to increase pressure on Nepal.
For two years running, China held meetings with Nepal in the month before
March 10th – the anniversary of Tibetan uprisings in Tibet in both 1959 and
2008. The timing meant that Nepal’s standard supportive statement of com
mitment to a ‘one-China’ policy included direct reference to preventing ‘anti-
China’ activities around the anniversary day (see March 10 section for more
information).
The largest amount of hype in Nepal regarding these meetings was around
what was to be the highest ever Chinese delegation to Nepal – Chinese Pre-
mier Wen Jiabao’s planned visit in December 2011. A political coup for Nepal’s
Maoist Party, who held the leadership, Nepal’s political elite were on tenter
hooks as to the outcome, with a substantial aid increase expected and the
signing of a formal trade agreement a distinct possibility. China seized the op-
portunity to rack up the pressure on Tibetans through its hold over Nepal by
cancelling the trip at the last minute over apparent concerns that Tibetan ac-
tivists would present a ‘security risk.’ Nepali Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai
was left to face the flak of the public and politicians, including elements of his
own party.
i. The case of Lharkyal Lama
The extent to which China can now exert its political muscle inside Ne-
pal was made clear on April 18, 2011, when “a diplomatic row erupt-
ed” over the appointment of Lharkyal Lama, a Nepali of Tibetan ethnic
origin, to the position of Minister of Finance by the United Marxist Len-
inist Party (UML)-led government of Prime Minister Jhala Nath Khanal. 89
According to media reports, officials from the Chinese embassy met
with Nepali political leaders after Lama’s appointment caused them to
have concern about Nepal’s commitment to the ‘one-China’ policy. 90 By
April 22, Nepali media was reporting that Lama had resigned from
his position after multiple charges had been levied against him – namely,
that he held three sets of documentation (Indian and Nepali passports,
and Tibetan refugee documentation) and that he had been involved in
“free Tibet” activities. 91 The high-level panel that the Nepal govern-
ment set up to investigate the charges found Lharkyal Lama guilty of
possessing multiple identification documents in July 2011. 92 Interest-
ingly, Lharkyal Lama remains a Member of Parliament, suggesting that
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