There are frequent reports of Tibetan refugees being shot at on both sides of the Nepal-Tibet border but the recent shootings are the most serious known attack in recent years. The fact that many Tibetan traders frequently cross the Nangpa Pass to sell goods in a nearby market without attracting the attention of the border patrol suggests that this was a calculated attack. Click on the links below to read personal accounts from Tibetans who managed to escape the shootings and cross into Nepal.

• Human Rights Watch interviewed two of the survivors of the Nangpa Pass Shootings. Click here now to read their testimony.
• Associated Press reporter interviews survivors of the shootings after they have arrived safely in Dharamsala, India
• Radio Free Asia report documents accounts of Tibetans and Westerners who witnessed the shootings
  

The following are eye-witness accounts from mountaineers who saw the shootings occur from nearby Cho Oyu advanced Everest base camp. The story first broke when climbers posted new reports on the popular trekking website MountEverst.com.

"On Saturday morning, September 30, I was sleeping in the tent and suddenly was woken up by the sounds of shooting. At first I didn't realize that the sounds were gunshots, as I never heard shooting before. After five to ten minutes I had changed into my clothes and walked out of my tent. The first thing I saw is that some 50 meters from our tent, some Tibetans tried to run fast, and they all seemed like children. Many Chinese soldiers began shooting at them. I saw the person at the very front of this group shot and fall down,"
   
"At that time I could not comprehend what had happened. Everything just seemed so unbelievable,"

"They told me that Tibetans are usually not allowed to cross the border, and they cannot obtain permission to leave Tibet. Only a few Tibetans are allowed to sell goods in Nepal."

"Later, when I was talking to a Romanian from another tent on this issue, I realized that I had become a witness. This was a massacre, but the victims had no weapon and no ability to fight back. They could only try to run. However, on a wide, open, glacial terrain, there is no place to hide. The majority of the fugitive Tibetans were young people. I was told that two of them were just teenagers."

"From the clip, you could see that the Chinese communist soldier stood up and fired. Why did he stand up? If you were being shot at, you would hide, not stand up. You can clearly see that the Chinese soldier stood up and opened fire. From the video, there is no evidence to prove that Tibetans were attacking the soldiers,"

"Before, I heard that the human rights problem is very serious in China. But in Western society, many people are saying China is becoming better. This time I witnessed how the Chinese communist regime treats Tibetan refugees. I was very shocked. I realized that the situation in China has in fact not improved." - Pierre Maina, Danish Mountaineer

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"The Tibetans were running on the snow. The soldiers shot maybe 15 to 20 times. It was difficult to see if people were getting hit. A number of Tibetans seemed to be lying in the snow either protecting themselves or shot."

"A lot of people were watching in horror. The Tibetans seemed to be defenseless: A group of poor people with a number of children. There should an official enquiry of this tragic affair." - Ives, Canadian Mountaineer

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"As we watched, first I heard a shot, then I saw one [guard] stop and there was a second shot and a third,"

"The rearmost of the group fell to the ground. Someone helped them up and they continued for another 30 meters. Then there was another shot and someone fell and they left that person behind in the snow. Through the telescope we could clearly see it was a body."

"We were shocked…You expect to encounter death on the mountain. But you don’t expect to see someone shot in the back when they’re posing no threat to anybody." - Steve Marsh, British Mountaineer

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"A few hours after the shooting that left dead bodies on the glacier, 25 Chinese soldiers entered the base camp armed with automatic weapons,"

[The following day they returned, this time with ten Chinese police officers.]

"They went out to the dead bodies on the glacier. As far as I could see they tried to bury the bodies, but they failed,"

[The next day the bodies were removed. At the same time the base camp was searched in pursuit of more refugees.]

"11 children were found and taken away by the police in full public view."- Jan Arve Andreson, Norwegian Mountaineer

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