China’s centrality in Nepali foreign policy is hard to deny. As Nepal’s one of only two humongous immediate neighbors, China is that vital counterbalance to an often overbearing India. Beyond that, the second largest economy in the world is a potentially boundless export market for our products. The landlocked country also has a lot to learn from China in terms of (timely) infrastructure-development. Many think Nepal should be wary of China as it is an authoritarian country. But I have always held that in foreign policy conduct, democratic and non-democratic countries often act alike, as both follow narrow-minded national interests. Therefore, the ultimate objectives of the policies pursued by the likes of India and the US in Nepal are no different to those pursued by China. But, then, can Nepal afford to increase its dependence on China indefinitely?
As political scientist Krishna Khanal warns in this week’s APEX interview, “With China, we made a leap forward. But do we have the capacity and preparations to sustain this new level of engagement? If we do not, it could be counterproductive.” The fear is that as the communist government increases Nepal’s dependence on China, the Chinese may want greater assurance for the safety of their investments of all kinds. And what better way to do so than by harmonizing Nepal’s governance with China’s? The Chinese have thus been more and more vocal about the developments in Nepal that even remotely threaten their interests.
The latest example of this is the statement by the Chinese Embassy condemning an article on coronavirus and an accompanying photograph published by The Kathmandu Post. The statement did not stop at that. It also issued a veiled threat to its editor-in-chief Anup Kaphle (who, incidentally, was to leave The Post a day after the article’s publication). Without the statement from the Chinese Embassy, few in Nepal would have read the article that was originally published in an international outlet. By publicly condemning the article and the editor, the Chinese Embassy ensured that both would get an inordinate amount of attention.
We can understand that coronavirus is a sensitive topic in China, as it struggles to contain the contagion. The language of the article is also rather harsh (by Chinese standards), as is the depiction of the Great Helmsman in a facemask. But so what? Nepal is a sovereign, democratic country with a vibrant press. It’s hard for our own government, even one with a two-thirds majority, to tame the raucous Nepali press. An outside power like China has no chance. It is not new for employees of embassies, ambassadors included, to call up editors and publishers to register their complaints. Yet for a country to issue a public statement against an opinion-piece is a blatant breach of diplomatic norms and a shocking show of lack of knowledge of Nepali society.
The Nepali media have traditionally been appreciative of China’s role in Nepal, especially after the Indian blockade. It would be dangerous for China to see this as a blind support for it. A word of advice in the end: Why doesn’t the Chinese Embassy employee Nepali political and press advisors, as do the missions of other big countries in Kathmandu? Perhaps they could offer some timely advice that would forestall a repeat of such hara-kiri acts.
