China Expels British Citizen of Tibetan Descent

By Jill Drew | The Washington Post
July 10, 2008

A British citizen of Tibetan descent was expelled from China this week as police clear the capital of anyone they believe might draw attention to political tensions during the Olympic Games next month.

Dechen Pemba, 30, who had lived in Beijing since September 2006 studying Mandarin and teaching English, held a work visa valid until November 2008. But on Tuesday morning, seven or eight police officers confronted her as she left her apartment. They forced her back inside, told her to pack a bag and, after searching its contents, escorted her to the airport.

Police also seized her bank account book and demanded her PIN number. They confiscated her cellphone, returning it once she had boarded the flight to London.

"Everyone living in Beijing has noticed the security crackdown, but it sends a worrying signal that they would do this to someone," Pemba said in a phone interview from London. "I think about my Tibetan friends, who don't have the protection of a British passport."

Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao said Pemba was not deported because of the Olympics, but because she was involved in "separatist activities" and had admitted breaking Chinese law. He did not specify which law.

Pemba denied the charges. "I am completely shocked at these baseless, fabricated allegations," she said.

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