By Vanessa Lynn

When Tsewang Dechen moved in with some fellow Tibetan immigrants in a Queens apartment after he arrived in New York in 1998, he thought his roommates would serve as his guides to a new country. But they were so unfamiliar with New York that they told him they lived on 30th Street instead of 30th Avenue – and his mail was never delivered.

Lacking guidance and a support system, Dechen, 32, missed the one-year deadline to apply for political asylum.

More so than many other immigrants, Tibetans face barriers that force them to live in a long-term limbo. Their community, clustered in Elmhurst, Sunnyside, Jackson Heights and other Queens neighborhoods, is still small and new, and the Tibetans, whether identified as stateless people or considered Chinese citizens, most likely do not have a legal identification.

The Tibetans say they lack Chinese passports because the Chinese government treats them as second-class citizens. When they go to India, they are in exile and cannot gain Indian citizenship. Their hazy status often complicates their efforts to become U.S. citizens.

“The problem is the U.S. immigration,” said Dechen. “If I go to Canada, I can say I’m a refugee because I don’t have a country but for America I’m Chinese. So I’m not Chinese in China, I’m Tibetan, always discriminated against. Outside of China, I’m Chinese.”

* * *

April 1, 1997 was a turning point in refugee law, as the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996, signed by former President Bill Clinton, allowed asylum seekers already in the United States to file their asylum applications, but only within one year of their arrival in the U.S.

Tibetans are often granted asylum on the basis of political persecution but are unable to master the logistics needed to pursue a claim successfully through the immigration courts, according to Jennifer Kim, director of the refugee assistance program at the City Bar Justice Center in New York. Kim said that that Tibetans miss the one-year deadline in 40 percent of their asylum cases.

“When they come to a new country, they do not know the language and don’t know how to go about the city,” said Tashi Dorgee, a freelance interpreter for immigration and civil courts. “They don’t know how to apply. They have so much distress about the problems they faced in Tibet that it takes some time to learn about a new country.”

Immigration attorneys advocate abolishing the one-year filing deadline, says Kim. Attorneys spend their energy appealing the deadline, “but it diverts the attention away from the main inquiry, whether … applicants were persecuted in their country or if they there is a fear of future persecution.”

An asylum application filed after the one-year deadline will not be accepted unless the applicant can establish changed circumstances that affected the applicant’s asylum eligibility, or extraordinary circumstances that prevented the applicant’s timely filing.

Dechen appealed. “I don’t think I have an option. It’s not easy but it’s not that bad because a lot of people are suffering everywhere.”

If he is denied asylum Dechen can appeal if there are significant changes in his country, if he fears he could be persecuted based on his social group, political group, and religion. “For me, everything applies: religion, social, political,” said Dechen.

* * *

Tibet is located in Asia between China and India. In 1950, China invaded the region, asserted control over the people, and occupied the country. The Tibetan resistance of 1959 did not push the Chinese out, but led hundreds of thousand Tibetans to flee in exile in India.

According to the government in exile, there are 111,170 Tibetans in exile, disseminated throughout the world. The largest community is in exile in India, but Tibetans seek refuge in Europe, the U.S. and Canada, Taiwan, and Nepal.

The government of Tibet in exile says that generations of Tibetans are living without having a legal status. They consider Tibetans to be stateless; a small percentage gains citizenship in their host countries, and most in India hold Indian registration certificates.
The Refugee Act of 1980 provides for the resettlement of refugees and determines asylum to be granted to aliens who are already in the country and cannot go back to their home country because of a well-founded fear of persecution on account of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group or political opinion.

The U.S. State Department’s 2008 country report on human rights says that respect for human rights vastly worsened during 2008 and prior to the Olympic Games taking place in China: “Authorities continued to commit serious human rights abuses, including torture, arbitrary arrest, extrajudicial detention, and house arrest. Official repression of freedoms of speech, religion, association, and movement increased significantly following the outbreak of protests across the Tibetan plateau in the spring.”
The report also mentions concern over the ability of Tibetans to preserve and practice their religion and cultural traditions.

* * *

Tibetans living in New York either come with a student visa if they meet the financial requirement, but most of the time they arrive at JFK with a refugee status or with the intention to apply for asylum.

“I’m not an immigrant, I didn’t immigrate, you know, it was not a choice I made, I was forced out, sort of, I would still live in my country if China didn’t come so I’m more like a refugee,” said Dechen.

Dechen moved from Tibet to Nepal in 1993 and arrived in New York in 1998. That is where Dechen wants to finish his journey and he has made New York his home. “I love New York City,” said Dechen. “I might not be American, but I feel like a New Yorker because I’ve been living here more than 10 years. That’s a long time.”

Dechen, as other asylum seekers, is caught in the immigration process and has a future filled with uncertainties. Still, he settled down, working in the service industry, and has earned a bachelor’s degree in computer system technology from New York City College of Technology.

* * *

There were about 100 people wearing white T-shirts that said: “50 years of resistance,” waving black flags or the blue and red stripe, with a sun, flag for Tibet. They were chanting “shame, shame China,” “we want Free Tibet” for hours at a time at a corner in Times Square on a Sunday afternoon. Dechen, who attends all the Tibetans’ demonstrations in New York, was among the protesters.

Dechen also started the website ww.tsewang.com to have a greater role in the struggle for Tibet’s autonomy and independence. He wants to document Tibetans protests that take place in front of the Chinese embassy, in Times Square, or Union Square. Living in New York has given Dechen and other Tibetans the liberty the express their hope to have a free Tibet.

Dhondup Shampbell, who lived in the New York with a student visa and travels back and forth for business between India and the U.S., said the exiles have a responsibility. “This is the only way I see Tibet being free. Tibetans in Tibet have been doing the same thing, to sacrifice their lives, go to jail, and get killed,” said Shampbell. “In exile we have a different way of fighting. This is what our fight is, common protests.”

“No matter what passport we got, in the heart we are Tibetan. Getting citizenship anywhere in this world, especially in a free country, it house our cause,” said Dhondup.

During spring 2008, Dechen was demonstrating against the growing repression against Tibetans before the Olympic Games in Beijing started. Dechen’s political activities are grounds to his appeal to reopen his case. “My lawyer said since I’m more visible in the community, the Chinese are more likely to persecute me if I go back,” said Dechen.

* * *

Marking this year’s 50th anniversary of the Tibetan uprising against China, the Dalai Lama released a statement in New York addressing the case of Tibetans in exile across the world. It underscored Tibetans’ need for asylum.

“Due to the great generosity of our host countries, especially India, Tibetans have been able to live in freedom without fear,” he said. “We have been able to earn a livelihood and uphold our religion and culture. We have been able to provide our children with both traditional and modern education, as well as engaging in efforts to resolve the Tibet issue.”