Dharamshala’s Tibetan tide ebbs, arrivals fall steeply amid China’s strict border vigil
Only around 10 to 15 Tibetans trickle into Dharamshala annually now, down massively from nearly 3,000 a decade ago
Once abuzz with Tibetans arriving in India from their native land after crossing the Himalayas, the Tibetan Reception Center at Khanyara, Dharamshala, has seen a sharp decline in arrivals in recent years. Only a handful Tibetans trickle in now, a shift that most Tibetan government-in-exile officials attribute to stricter border control imposed by the Chinese government.
Originally built as a transit point for over 2,500 Tibetans who annually made the clandestine journey from Tibet into Nepal and then to Dharamshala — home to the Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama, since his escape from Tibet — the facility has seen significantly reduced activity now.
The officials at Central Tibetan Administration (CTA), based in Dharamshala, say surveillance around the border and mountain passes was amped up by the Chinese in 2008 following a major demonstration in Tibet.
According to CTA officials, in 2021, only four Tibetans arrived in Dharamshala while five had arrived a year ago. The numbers did not improve much, with 10 arrivals in 2022 and 15 in 2023.
The same figure stood around 2,500 to 3,000 around the 1990s or the early 2000s. CTA officials said the number of arrivals has gone up in the last couple of years, but is nowhere close to what it was a decade or two ago.
CTA spokesperson Tenzin Lekshay says, “The situation has changed dramatically after the massive Tibetan uprising in 2008. In response, China took measures to prevent information about the situation in Tibet from reaching the outside world. They tightened border controls to restrict movement and stop people from leaving Tibet. China aimed to obscure the reality of conditions in Tibet, promoting a positive image that contradicts the actual situation.”
He adds that China has also been restricting access to Tibet for outsiders, “Visiting Tibet is not like travelling to China; foreigners need special permits to enter. This tight control suggests that there are aspects of Tibet that China wants to keep hidden.”
The CTA operates three Reception Centers in Nepal, Delhi, and Dharamshala. New arrivals first enter Nepal, then transit through Delhi, before ultimately arriving in Dharamshala.
Namkyi, a former political prisoner who recently arrived from Tibet, had testified her experiences before she decided to leave Tibet for Dharamshala. She and her sister, who had participated in a march calling for “Free Tibet” in October 2015 were detained by police. “In November 2016, after our detention period had lasted for 13 month, the court of Trochu County called us to the courtroom and we were put on trial. We were sentenced to three years each on trumped-up charges of undertaking ‘separatist acts against the nation’ and supporting ‘the Dalai clique,” Namkyi, who speaks in Tibetan, said in her testimony published by CTA.
After their release in October 2018, the family was put on a blacklist. “Our expressions and movement were severely restricted, putting anyone we were in contact with at risk,” Namkyi, who began her journey to India with her aunt Tsering Kyi in May 2023, says.
Tenzin Tsundue, Tibetan writer and activist based in Dharamshala, said the Tibetan uprising during the 2008 Beijing Olympics that rocked Chinese control was found to be inspired by Tibetans who returned from India.
“So, the Chinese border guards tightened the Tibet-Nepal borders and started to pay Nepalese border guards to stop Tibetans escaping Tibet. Since 2010, the number of Tibetans escaping Tibet drastically fell from 3,500 a year before the uprising to just 20 to 30,” he said, adding that Tibetans now have to report departure and arrival every time they travel from one district to another.
“Many passports have been revoked, ID cards, including ration cards, mobile numbers, and bank accounts, are rolled into one number with DNA personal details. With such a sophisticated mechanism of control, China has turned Tibet into a police state,” he added.
Tsundue says China now also uses paid western YouTubers to create a false image of Tibet as a tourist destination, but in reality is very strict in giving visas to foreigners. He adds that visas are not being given to Indians since the 2020 Galwan valley clash.