Jeevan Bahadur Shahi, Nepali Congress lawmaker of Karnali Province, had reportedly led a team to investigate the encroachment of Nepal’s land by China on the Nepal-China border in Humla. In his report, he has accused China of encroaching the territory of Nepal in the said district.
In his statement, he said that eight pillars on Humla’s northern border were damaged, namely Pillars No 9, 10, 11, 12, 5 (1), 6 (1), 7 (1) and 8 (1), and 12. He confirmed that the Chinese side had replaced Pillar 12 so that a large chunk of Nepal’s land is now under the control of China.
He said, “Our watches showed Chinese time deep into Nepali territory — up to one-and-half kilometres from Pillar No 12.” Shahi said Pillar 6 was once a Nepali pillar, but now it was on the Chinese side. As these pillars are in a remote area, the Nepali administration does not visit the location very often.
Shahi asserted that a team of experts should be sent to Nepal-China border to confirm and estimate what China had done.
Chinese security personnel pelted stones on Nepal’s armed forces and fired tear gas
According to Shahi, when the Armed Police Force of Nepal went to inspect Pillars 6(1) and 5(1) a few days ago, the Chinese security personnel pelted stones on them. He further added, “Chinese security forces have a heavy presence on the northern border, but our security forces are nowhere to be seen in those remote areas.”
हुम्लाको सीमा क्षेत्रमा काँग्रेसको टोलीमाथि चीनतिरबाट आश्रुग्यास प्रहारhttps://t.co/vW78sv0jSU
— PahiloPost (@PahiloPost) October 9, 2020
He alleged that they fired tear gas canisters at his team members when they were inspecting pillars at the border. He was not affected by the tear gas as he was at some distance. “However, the Vice-chair of Namkha Rural Municipality who was in our team said he felt a burning sensation in his eyes and suspected that it might have been caused by tear gas canisters, “ Shahi added.
China and Nepal’s government denies encroachment
Luan Xiutan, a media liaison officer at the Chinese Embassy in Nepal, said that the two countries do not have any land dispute and have friendly relationships. He added, “China has always respected Nepal’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” he further added.
Shahi said while Nepal’s government claims China has not encroached land, “We had constructed our road some kilometres beyond where China has built these structures. I am not sure why the government says China has not intruded our territory.” He alleged that China had manipulated GPS so that the 2-3 KM land that they have intruded shows as China’s territory on the map.
Encroachment was reported in September
Chinese encroachment of Nepalese territory was reported in September 2020. In September, it was reported that China had constructed structures in Nepal’s territories. Humla’s Assistant Chief District Officer Dalbanhadu Hamal informed the central administration about the encroachment. Local Nepali people have also complained about the harassment they have to face in the hands of the Chinese military.
