Nepal Warns Tibetans against Anniversary Protests
Nepalese authorities have warned Tibetan groups against holding protests to mark this week's anniversary of the 1959 rebellion against China's rule in Tibet, an official said Sunday.
Extra security will also be deployed on the capital's streets to shut down any protests on Tuesday for the 56th anniversary of the failed uprising, Kathmandu's chief district officer Ek Narayan Aryal said.
"We have told them (Tibetan groups) that such activities will not be allowed," Aryal told Agence France Presse. "It is against Nepal's commitment to (the) one-China policy."
Nepal, home to around 20,000 Tibetans, is under intense pressure from its giant neighbour China over the exiles, and has repeatedly said it will not tolerate what it calls "anti-China activities".
Karma Dawa, manager of Kathmandu's Tibetan Refugee Centre, said it was not planning any protests at this stage given the security crackdown in recent years.
"Security is tighter... right now we are only planning a prayer service for our martyrs in the morning," Dawa said.
Some nine Tibetans were arrested last year near the Chinese consular offices in Kathmandu during the run-up to the March 10 anniversary of the failed uprising that led Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama to flee his homeland.
In 2013, a Buddhist monk in Kathmandu set himself on fire in the lead up to the anniversary over perceived persecution of ethnic Tibetans in China.
Source: Agence France Presse
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