Flights Of Fantasy
[ M Panging Pao ]
Recently, the government of India cancelled the participation of the Indian Wushu team at the World University Games to be held in Chengdu, China. This was caused by the Chinese issuing stapled visas to three participating athletes from Arunachal Pradesh – Nyeman Wangsu, Onilu Tega and Mepung Lamgu.
The Chinese have regularly resorted to issuing stapled visas to officials and athletes from Arunachal. Earlier, in 2011, the Chinese issued stapled visas to five karate players from Arunachal for a championship in Quanghou, China. In 2013, two archers, Maselo Mihu and Sorang Yumi, were stopped from participating in the Youth World Archery Championship for the same reason. China began the practice of issuing stapled visas to residents of Arunachal in the mid-2000s and extended the practice to residents of Jammu & Kashmir in 2009.
I was also a victim of these Chinese antics in 2012. As group captain in the Air Force, I was part of a 30-member official delegation planned to visit China. At the last minute, problems developed related to our visas. It was reported that the Chinese said that, since I belong to Arunachal, I don’t require a visa to visit China. Thereafter an emergency meeting was held under the aegis of the external affairs ministry. In the meeting, it was decided to drop 15 members of the delegation, including me. Later, the remaining delegation went ahead with the visit. The then government could not stand up to China’s antics by calling off the entire delegation. However, in the present case, the government has taken a strong stand, calling off the entire team participation. The government also has announced appropriate retaliatory actions against China.
China’s regular antics include objecting to visits by central ministers or senior officials to Arunachal. In April 2023, China audaciously renamed 11 places in Arunachal with Chinese names. This was the third time that China has renamed places in Arunachal after similar actions earlier in 2017 and 2021. The renamed places include mountains, rivers and places like Mechukha, Manigong, Tawang, Sela, Walong, etc. China also falsely claims Arunachal as part of China, terming Arunachal a southern Tibet or ‘Zangnan’.
Arunachal is mentioned in the ancient Indian epics Ramayana, Mahabharata, Kalika/Bhagavad Purana (10th century AD). Having studied Chinese language and hailing from Arunachal, it may be firmly stated that people of Arunachal, comprising many tribes, are culturally, traditionally, linguistically, and racially different from Han Chinese. Can China claim Arunachal without asking the people of Arunachal? Arunachalees are patriotic Indians and have never been part of China.
Why does China continue these antics, especially with respect to Arunachal? Isn’t it time for us to give back to China? The government of India should also start issuing stapled visas to Chinese officials and athletes from Xinjiang, Beijing, Tibet etc, In addition, more Arunachalee voices are needed at national/international media to tell the Chinese to lay off Arunachal.
(The contributor is retired Group Captain, Indian Air Force)
