India calls China to ensure its citizens will not be ‘selectively targeted or detained’ at airports
By Anjali Sharma
WASHINGTON – India on Monday sought assurance from Chinese Government that its citizens travelling to the country or transiting through its airports will not be harassed.
Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said Indian travelers are being advised to exercise due caution while travelling to China or transiting through its airports.
The remarks came in the wake of an incident last month when an Indian citizen living in the United Kingdom was detained at the Shanghai airport.
Jaiswal said “Following the recent incident at the Shanghai airport, we expect the Chinese authorities to provide assurances that Indian citizens transiting through Chinese airports, will not be selectively targeted, arbitrarily detained, or harassed, and the regulation governing the international air travel would be respected by the Chinese side,”.
“The MEA would advise Indian nationals to exercise due discretion while travelling to China or while transiting through the country,” he added.
Pema Wangjom Thongdok, who hails from the northeastern state of Arunachal Pradesh, was detained by immigration officials at the Shanghai airport while travelling from London to Japan via China. Thongdok was detained because her passport mentioned Arunachal Pradesh as her birthplace.
China disputes India’s sovereignty over Arunachal Pradesh and claims it to be its own territory, referring it to as “South Tibet”.
India has maintained that Arunachal Pradesh is an “integral and inalienable” part of the country.
Thongdok was kept in detention and “humiliated” for 18 hours despite getting in touch with Indian embassy authorities in Shanghai and Beijing. She was allowed to go after Indian officials reached the airport.
The MEA had then also described the detention as “arbitrary”.
“Chinese authorities have still not been able to explain their actions, which are in violation of several conventions governing international air travel. Their actions also violate their own regulations that allow visa free transit up to 24 hours for nationals of all countries,” Jaiswal said in a statement.
China’s foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning had refuted the detention and harassment charge, added border inspection authorities had only “carried out checks in accordance with laws and regulations”.
