Handicrafts are among Nepal´s favorite exports to China. The Federation of Handicraft Associations of Nepal (FHAN) has said that the restriction has directly placed handicraft exports to China at risk.
Worse, it will not only hit the manufacturers and exporters, but also further widen the country´s already wide trade deficit with China, which now stands at over Rs 22 billion.
Traders said that the announcement of the restriction reached them through a notice that Chinese officials have posted on the other side of Tatopani customs. They also said they do not have details about the items restricted and the notice has left them just about a week to deliver orders already in hand.
“The notification is in Chinese. Hence, we do not have exact details,” said Dilip Khanal, executive secretary of FHAN. He informed myrepublica.com that FHAN has requested the Chinese Embassy to provide the notification in English so that one could be sure about the items that have been put in the restriction list.
The federation has also approached the prime minister and the major political parties to request the Chinese government to waive the restriction for Nepal.
While FHAN has managed to take these steps, officials at the Ministry of Commerce and Supplies (MoCS) said that they only learnt about the notification on Tuesday through the Nepali Consulate in Lahsa. "We are still to check the details," said a senior MoCS official.
Traders said that the notification has not cited any reason for imposing the restriction, but they surmise that the move could be aimed at discouraging religious feelings and activities among Tibetans.
Religious handicraft items made by traditional craftsmen in Nepal are highly valued by Chinese consumers, particularly Tibetans.
Statistics of FHAN show that Nepal exported over Rs 8.35 million worth of handicraft goods to China in the first nine months of the current fiscal year. Ten percent of that export comprised religious handicraft items, such as idols and figurines of gods and goddesses, prayer wheels, incense sticks, thanka paintings and other metal, silver and stone items.
Moreover, traders elaborated that there is a high degree of disparity between official and unofficial figures for religious handicraft items exports to China.
Even though records with FHAN suggest that Nepal exports about Rs 800,000 worth of religious handicraft items to Tibet, traders said their exports in fact exceed Rs 50 million, as Tibetan buyers take orders through various delivery points where the presence of the security forces is sparse.
“So, the impact of the Chinese decision will be much larger and deeper than appears in the books,” said the trader, requesting anonymity.
milan@myrepublica.com
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