THE CHINESE HAND IN NEPAL

Until May, the Chinese ambassador to Nepal, Hou Yanqi, was mostly known for her ‘social media diplomacy’. Wishing success for the proposed ‘Visit Nepal Year 2020’ tourism campaign, Hou posted pictures of herself on Twitter visiting the country’s heritage spots, winning herself tremendous goodwill from Nepalis.

However, things changed in May when Hou met three leaders of the ruling Nepal Communist Party (NCP)—Prime Minister K.P. Oli, Pushpa Kamal Dahal and Madhav Kumar Nepal—in a bid to stave off a possible split in the party. Since then, she has come under scrutiny in Nepal, especially since she met with the three leaders again after the NCP’s internal power struggle erupted earlier this month. “China wants the NCP to remain united since it has put in a lot of political capital to unify the [leftist] parties,” says Akhilesh Upadhyay, former editor of The Kathmandu Post, and senior fellow at the Institute for Integrated Development Studies, a think-tank in Kathmandu.

Before Kathmandu, Hou was deputy director general of the department of Asian affairs of the ministry of foreign affairs in Beijing and the focal person for South Asian affairs. She has previously served at the Los Angeles consulate and in Pakistan. NCP insiders point out that foreign ambassadors, including Indian ones, have always been interested in Nepali politics. “But that does not mean ambassador Hou is directing policies. Like all other envoys, she wants stability in Nepal,” says Bishnu Rijal, deputy chief of the foreign relations department of the NCP.

Nonetheless, Hou’s meetings with Nepali politicians at a time when the government is unstable has raised eyebrows, especially since China has only recently begun to display an active interest in Nepal. “There was a time when Chinese ambassadors used interpreters to speak with the

ENVOY EXTRAORDINAIRE Chinese ambassador to Nepal Hou Yanqi (left) with Nepali prime minister K.P. Oli

Nepali public. But the last three ambassadors have spoken in English,” says Upadhyay “They want to send out a clear message to both Nepal and the world that China is now a power to reckon with.”

China has become the largest source of FDI in Nepal, with more than half its new investments in the tourism sector. Over 170,000 Chinese visited Nepal in 2019; only India sends more tourists. Although India remains Nepal’s largest trading partner, trade with China has grown to $1.5 billion, and China ranks first among Nepal’s foreign aid partners.

The key infrastructure projects currently under development by Chinese companies are the $215 million Pokhara international airport, the Bheri-Babai Diversion Multipurpose irrigation project and the Rasuwagadhi hydropower project. However, none of the nine projects listed under China’s Belt and Road Initiative have seen much headway.

One example of China’s new approach came in February 2019, when the US deputy assistant secretary of defense for South and Southeast Asia, Joe Felter, said that Chinese investments in Nepal should serve “the interests of Nepal and not just China”. Hou countered such critiques about Nepal falling into China’s ‘debt-trap diplomacy’ in a press conference, saying, “The support...China has offered has no political strings attached and [China] does not interfere in [Nepal’s] domestic affairs.”

Hou’s new-found interest in Nepali politics is now underscored by partyto-party ties between the NCP and the Communist Party of China (CPC). A virtual meeting with the CPC in June, at a time of heightened tensions between India and China, drew flak for its timing.

In February this year, Hou faced criticism from the Nepali media after the Chinese embassy issued a statement castigating The Kathmandu Post for republishing an opinion piece blaming ‘China’s secrecy’ for making the pandemic ‘worse’, and called the editor-in-chief “a parrot of some anti-China forces”. It was the first time China had issued a public statement against the Nepali media.

Hou’s activities have provoked comparisons with the overt involvement of Indian ambassadors in Nepali politics, from the political transition of 2008 to the 2015 blockade.

The Indian media’s sensationalist and sexist coverage of Hou aside, her meetings with Nepali leaders confirm China’s proactive interest in Nepal. “China had been a non-meddling power in Nepal, unlike India,” says Upadhyay. “Now, it clearly wants to project its power.” ■

Amish Raj Mulmi has written for Al Jazeera, Roads and Kingdoms and Himal Southasian, among others. He is currently working on a book on Nepal-China relations.

Hou’s meetings with Nepali politicians at a time when the government is unstable has raised eyebrows