By Phuntsok Yangchen
DHARAMSHALA, May 7: The Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy has expressed concern over the restriction imposed by the Chinese government on Tibetans from travelling abroad. This, the Tibetan right group said, was done by confiscating their passports since 2012 following an official notice.
On April 29, 2012, the Secretariat Office of TAR Party Committee issued “guiding opinions” on implementing passport regulations to impose substantial restrictions on the ability of Tibetans to obtain passports.
Copies of same notice were also sent to Political Department of TAR Military and Air Force Command Post of TAR Party Committee, Lhasa.
The notice requires that all passports, even those that are still valid, be withdrawn and new electronic passport be obtained after “strict investigation” including review of each application for a new passport 10 times.
TCHRD further noted that the application is reviewed by Public Security Bureaus at the county, township, prefecture, and regional level after delivering the application to the local Public Security Bureau (PSB). In some cases, the application is reviewed once by the local PSB office in charge of travel and then again by the head of the office. Governments at the village, county, prefecture, and regional level must also review the application.
Those who are given a passport must sign a contract promising not to harm China’s security or interests. Any involvement in criminal acts will result in the passport being revoked.
The notice further required that all people who return from travel abroad must within seven days of their arrival give their passports back to the authorities that issued them.
“The existing passport regulations along with the ‘guiding opinions’ violate the right to travel internationally. Revoking all passports and making people apply for new passports to severely restrict their ability to travel is not necessary to fulfilling any government objective. The PRC could have accomplished the same administrative task of introducing electronic passports by waiting for old versions to expire and issuing electronic passports when people apply for new passports,” said TCHRD.
“This would have been easier for people hoping to travel abroad and the authorities in charge of issuing new passports would not be required to process additional applications. Additionally, Tibetans in Nepal were required to give up their passports. As a result, they were unable to return to Tibet or leave Nepal until they received a new passport.”
In 2014, China further imposed restrictions on Tibetans from travelling to religious ceremonies and sacred sites.
