100 Tibetan separatists nabbed in Nepal

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2008-07-19 11:26

KATHMANDU -- Nepali police on Friday afternoon detained about 100 Tibetan separatists involved in anti-China activities in the Nepali capital of Kathmandu.

The separatists tried to throng the visa office of the Chinese Embassy beside a street choked with heavy traffic, shouting anti-China and "Tibet Independence" slogans.

Nepali police blocked the rally, but some leaders of the separatists climbed up onto the wall of a nearby cinema, instigating the others to ignore the police's attempts at dissuasion.

The traffic soon was jammed and the reinforcing traffic policemen had to evacuate some vehicles on the one-way street.

Around 100 Tibetan separatists were detained, Kathmandu Police Control Center told Xinhua.

The detainees are supposed to be released after questioning in police stations.

Tibetan separatists are taking advantage of Nepal, the youngest republic in the world, at its historic turning point, to carry out anti-China activities.

Although Nepal was declared a republic on May 28 by its Constituent Assembly, a republican government has yet to be established.

The Nepali government has repeatedly said Tibet is an inalienable part of China and it will not allow anti-China activities on its territory.

Sarbendra Khanal, Metropolitan Police Range Office chief in Kathmandu, said in April that Nepali police were simply performing their duties when assaulted by the Tibetans.

Tibetan separatists have staged frequent anti-China protests in Kathmandu since mid-March. The activities often turned ugly, leading to disruptions of city traffic and clashes with police which injured Nepali policemen.

Chinese Ambassador Zheng Xianglin said last month that there were criminal acts of beating and smashing by Tibetan separatists in Kathmandu against other Tibetans who either refused to take part in anti-China activities or held different positions from the separatists.