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US to Nepal: Respect ‘gentlemen’s accord’
KATHMANDU, AUG 18 -
The United States on Wednesday called on Nepal to honour its commitment in relation to Tibetans fleeing from Tibet. In his meeting with Home Minister Bhim Rawal, visiting US Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs, Atul Keshap, raised the issue of free passage for Tibetan refugees. Keshap is said to have reminded Rawal of a UN-brokered “gentlemen’s agreement” in 1989 to allow Tibetan refugees a free passage through Nepal to Dharamshala in India, according to government officials.
This is not the first time that US officials have raised the issue of safe passage for Tibetans with Nepali officials.
During her visit to Nepal in June, US Deputy Under-Secretary for Population, Refugees and Migration Kelly Clements had made a similar request to Foreign Minister Sujata Koirala and Minister Rawal. Nepal had made the so-called “gentlemen’s agreement” in 1989 with the UN and Western countries. ‘Gentlemen’s agreements’ are informal accords between parties or government, which rely on the honour of the parties, but are not legally enforceable.
In June, at least three Tibetan refugees were sent back to Tibet from Lamabagar in Rasuwa district, triggering a diplomatic tug-of-war between western countries and China, a government source said.
Nepal is home to more than 20,000 Tibetans but there has been no census for more than two decades, according to the Home Ministry. Tibetans continue to take arduous trans-Himalayan trails to cross over to Nepal, a prickly issue in Nepal-China relations.
To discourage Tibetans from entering Nepali territory, Nepal has set up three new security outposts along its northern border.
In his talks with Keshap on Wednesday, Rawal reiterated Nepal’s commitment to the ‘one-China’ policy while admitting that the Nepal-China border remained “porous”.
“Minister Rawal expressed reservations about the activities of some Nepal-based Tibetans, pointing out how Tibetans cross the Nepal-China border and enter India without visa,” said a government official, quoting Rawal. “Then they come back to Nepal and champion the Tibetan cause. Can we allow such activities and let them demonstrate here?” an official present at the meeting quoted Rawal as saying.
In a press statement, the Home Ministry said Keshap talked with Rawal the political and security situation in Nepal and promised additional US support for security and counter-terrorism efforts, including assistance in reducing the risk of natural disasters. When asked, a US Embassy official refused to give details. A government official who is privy to Rawal-Keshap talks told the Post that Western countries have expressed “concern on the violation of the gentlemen’s agreement.”
Posted on: 2010-08-19 08:34
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