(TibetanReview.net, Aug22’20) – China has made significant inroads into Nepalese territory in seven border districts and the communist government of Nepal is simply looking the other way, reported the ANI news agency Aug 22, citing the Survey Department of Agriculture Ministry of Nepal.
The districts where China’s land-grabbing had taken place and was still continuing have been named as Dolakha, Gorkha, Darchula, Humla, Sindhupalchowk, Sankhuwasabha and Rasuwa.
The department was cited as saying in its report that in Dolakha, China had pushed the international boundary 1,500 meters towards Nepal. Boundary pillar Number 57, which previously stood on top of Korlang, was now stated to be located within the Korlang area in Dolakha.
On the pillar issue, China was reported to have pressured Nepal not to sign the fourth protocol on resolving and managing border disputes between the two countries as it wanted to maintain the status quo and further transgress the boundary arrangements.
China was also stated to have occupied Nepali villages in Gorkha and Darchula districts. Like in Dolakha, it was stated to have relocated Boundary Pillar Numbers 35, 37 and 38 in Gorkha district and Boundary Pillar Number 62 in Nampa Bhanjyang in Solukhumbu.
The first three pillars were stated to be located in Gorkha’s Rui village and areas of Tom River. Nepal’s official map shows the village as its territory and the villagers have been paying taxes to Kathmandu. However, China occupied the region and merged it with the Tibet Autonomous Region under its occupation rule in 2017.
The report also cited Nepal’s Human Rights Commission as having reported that a portion of the Jiujiu Village of Darchula had also been occupied by China.
Numerous houses that used to be a part of Nepal have been now taken over by China and assimilated into the Chinese territory, the report noted.
Besides, a report by Nepal’s Ministry of Agriculture was stated to refer to China’s occupation of Nepali land in at least 11 other places falling under four Nepali districts. Most of the areas occupied in these districts were stated to be catchment areas of rivers, including areas of Bhagdare river in Humla, Karnali river, Sanjen river, and Lemde river in Rasuwa; Bhurjug river, Kharane river, and Jambu river in Sindhupalchowk, Bhotekoshi river and Samjug river in Sankhuwasabha; Kamkhola river and Arun river.
The report noted that Nepal had refrained from going ahead with the border talks with China since 2005 as its government did not want to offend China by reclaiming those territories and also in order to avoid domestic criticisms on account of it.
Nepali was also stated to have suspended the 2012 border talks in order to save itself from getting into an indecisive situation.
Meanwhile, nothing has come of a resolution moved in Jun 2020 by members of the opposition Nepali Congress in the House of Representatives, the lower house of the Nepalese Parliament, asking the KP Sharma Oli Government to restore the country’s territory encroached upon by China.
