A Tibetan origin US national Penpa Tsering was in a shocking incident, deported back to New York from Tribhuvan Internation Airport in Nepal last week. While Chinese influence being the cause of deportation has been admitted by the Nepalese officials, the victim has been traumatized by the incident. He has warned all foreign nationals to think twice before visiting Nepal.
Penpa Tsering, 53 was flying from New York to Kathmandu via New Delhi when he was denied entry into Nepal on arrival at their airport. Although the officials at the airport had no clue about who he was, they were following directives by the Chinese Embassy in the country to deny entry to a person named Penpa Tsering.
According Penpa Tsering’s ordeal, the airport cops had received an instruction from the Chinese embassy and they were looking Mr. Penpa Tsering, the former speaker of Tibetan Parliament in Exile, sharing the same name. Tsering was travelling on a US passport and despite his effort of clarifying that he was not the Penpa Tsering they were looking for, the officials mishandled him and harassed him. He even revealed that he paid for the return tickets for his deportation while the officials claimed they deported him on government expenses.
“I was shocked to learn that I was being deported. I was frightened and feeling harassed,” he said, “I paid for my return ticket but authorities later claimed that I was deported at Nepal government’s expense. I felt sorry for the Nepali people because Nepal seemed to be under China’s control like Tibet. Moreover, one can easily assume how innocent Tibetans are suffering under China’s occupation.”
He has in the end warned other Tibetans and foreigners planning to visit Nepal to think twice. “Check with the Nepali embassy in your country so that you won’t get deported from airport in Nepal.” he cautioned in an interview.