Reported by Kelsang Jinpa
Edited by Pema Tso
Translated by TenGyal
Tashi Thondup, who hails from Chamba district, Himachal Pradesh,India was stopped by authorities at Shanghai airport, on the allegation that “his face did not look like an Indian.” He was deported after being detained and interrogated for more than six hours.
On December 1st, Tashi Thondup arrived at Shanghai Pudong International Airport. Although, there were many other Indian travelers, he alone was singled out, stopped and prevented from continuing his travels. Furthermore, the airport police detained and interrogated him for more than six hours. Speaking to Tibet Times, Tashi said, “They were asking me questions while looking at my face. They asked me, ‘ How did you get an Indian citizenship card?’ I answered that I was born in India. Then, they asked me if I had any family or relatives in China. I told them that I did not. Still, they continued to question me, asking if I had any connections with Dharamshala. I replied, ‘I have no connections with Dharamshala. My home is in Chamba. All my family members are in Chamba.’ They even asked me strange questions such as ‘ How did people like you come to be in India?’ ”. The authorities searched through every photo on his cellular phone, demanding explanations about each and every person in the photos. His backpack, camera and even his Facebook and Instagram accounts in his phone were thoroughly inspected.
He went on to recount, “ After being interrogated for more than six hours on a chair, I told them that I was thirsty and hungry. They were not willing to give me food or water at all.Only after the interrogation ended did they give me a little bit of water in a very small cup. They brought a dry bread and told me to eat it. They seemed to want film me eating it to show to show that they had fed me. Since the bread was stale, I did not eat it. They way they worked and behaved was very deplorable. I felt very afraid-truly terrified.” He also said that when he told the authorities there were no direct flights to India, they made him from Shanghai to Thailand. He was held and escorted on either side by two policemen, like a criminal, as he was put on the flight.
With the launch of direct flights between India and China in October, Tashi Thondup applied for and was issued a tourist visa to China. Yet, upon landing in Shanghai airport yesterday, despite the presence of many other Indian travelers, he alone was profiled and stopped by the Chinese authorities. He was further questioned about possible connections with Dharamshala, the seat of the exiled Tibetan government in India, in an exhaustive interrogation that lasted more than six hours. Eventually, the authorities claimed that his documentation was “not proper” and deported him. Today, in a post on the social media platform, Instagram, he warned about the strict restrictions imposed by Chinese authorities on people with Tibetan facial features. He urged those from northeastern India, Spiti, Nepal and the broaderHimalayan region to exercise caution and vigilance when traveling to China.
According to information gathered by Tibet Times, Tashi’s father is Tibetan, and his mother is from Chamba in Himachal Pradesh, India. As a chid, studied at the Central Tibetan School in Dalhousie. In his daily life, he has close interactions and maintains good relationships with many Tibetans.
Even with the launch of direct flights between India and China, similar incidents have occurred. On November 21st, Shanghai airport authorities detained a woman named Pema Wangjom for more than 18 hours. Pema, originally from Arunachal Pradesh, India and currently residing in the UK, was traveling to Japan via Shanghai in transit. During her detention, the Chinese authorities told her that since Arunachal Pradesh is Chinese territory, she must obtain Chinese citizenship. The incident has further strained India-China relationships.
