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Nepalese police block vote by exiled
Tibetans
AFP, KATHMANDU
Armed police have blocked thousands of Tibetan exiles in Nepal from voting for a
new government-in-exile by forcibly seizing ballot boxes, police and activists
said.
Witnesses said police stormed three separate voting centers in the Nepalese
capital Kathmandu, home to almost 9,000 Tibetan exiles, as the election was
being held on Sunday.
ˇ§This was in total violation of our human rights,ˇ¨ said one exile, speaking on
condition of anonymity. ˇ§We believe everybody should be allowed to vote.ˇ¨
Thousands of Tibetans living in India, Bhutan, Nepal, Europe and the US took
part in Sundayˇ¦s vote, a preliminary election for a new prime minister and
parliament in exile.
Kathmandu police chief -Ramesh Kharel confirmed the seizure of ballot boxes and
said the action was taken to prevent what he termed an ˇ§illegal vote.ˇ¨
ˇ§The Tibetans are living in exile in Nepal. It is illegal for them to carry out
elections here, so we seized the ballot boxes,ˇ¨ he said.
Nepal shares a long border with Tibet and is home to around 20,000 exiles, who
began arriving in 1959 when a failed uprising against Chinese rule forced their
spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, into exile.
However, the Nepalese authorities are under mounting pressure from Beijing to
clamp down on what it calls anti-China activities, and the government has said
it will not tolerate demonstrations against Chinese rule in Tibet.
Mary Beth Markey, president of pressure group the International Campaign for
Tibet, criticized what she called ˇ§an unwarranted intrusion by the Nepalese
police against Tibetansˇ¦ exercise of their democratic right to a free and fair
election.ˇ¨
ˇ§In respect of the democratic process, the ballot boxes must be returned to the
Tibetan community in Nepal as a matter of urgency,ˇ¨ she said.
A final round of voting will be held in March and is expected to elect more
young members to the Tibetan parliament-in-exile.
Tibetans believe the new generation of leaders will be particularly important
given the advanced age of the Dalai Lama, who is 75.
He has been in hospital twice in recent times and there is concern that his
death would damage the cohesion and momentum of the Tibetan movement that has
relied for so long on his leadership.
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