An Indian woman from Arunachal Pradesh was recently stopped and detained at Shanghai Pudong Airport for almost 18 hours.
Her name is Pema Wangjom Thongdok. She was travelling from London to Japan and had a short stop in China.
During the immigration check, Chinese officials said her Indian passport was also “invalid.” They had also claimed her birthplace, Arunachal Pradesh, which is part of China, so they also refused to accept her passport.
Pema has also said that the officers took away her passport and did not even allow her to board her next flight, even though she had a valid visa for Japan.
She had also said she was not given food or access to basic facilities.
According to her, airport staff even mocked her and told her to “apply for a Chinese passport.” She felt very scared, even confused and helpless because she had no proper information about what was happening.
She was also forced to buy a new ticket on another airline, which also caused her a big financial loss. Her boarding pass for the original flight was cancelled, and her hotel bookings in Japan were also wasted.
Pema said the experience was humiliating and very upsetting.
Later, she managed to contact the Indian Consulate in Shanghai through a friend in the UK.
Indian officials have recently spoken about the whole matter to the Chinese side and even helped her get her passport back. Only after that was she allowed to leave the airport and continue her journey.
The Indian government has strongly protested this incident.
India has also now clearly said that Arunachal Pradesh is an integral part of India and will continue remain so.
Officials have also said China’s actions were against international travel rules and even the idea of basic human rights. The incident has once again highlighted the tension between India and China over the Arunachal Pradesh border issue.
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