Stapled Visas

Why in news?

• India has withdrawn its eight-athlete wushu contingent from the Summer World University Games beginning in China after China issued stapled visas to three athletes from the team who belong to Arunachal Pradesh.

About Stapled Visas:

• A stapled visa is simply an unstamped piece of paper that is attached by a pin or staples to a page of the passport and can be torn off or detached at will. 
• This is different from a regular visa that is affixed to the passport by the issuing authority and stamped.
• The Chinese government began issuing ‘stapled visas’ to Indian citizens from Arunachal Pradesh in 2009.
• It says the visas are valid documents but the Government of India has consistently refused to accept this position.

Why does China issue Stapled Visa?

• Passports and visas reinforce the concept of a nation-state’s sovereignty. It ensures that its citizens can travel with legal protection across borders.
• China disputes India’s unequivocal and internationally accepted sovereignty over Arunachal Pradesh.
• It challenges the legal status of the McMahon Line.
• Hence, in this context, China makes periodic efforts to assert its unilateral claim over Indian territory and undermine the sovereignty of India over its territory by taking steps such as issuing stapled visas.

What is the McMahon Line?

• The McMahon Line serves as the de facto boundary between China and India in the Eastern Sector.
• It specifically represents the boundary between Arunachal Pradesh and Tibet, from Bhutan in the west to Myanmar in the east.
• China has historically disputed the boundary and claims the state of Arunachal Pradesh as part of the Tibetan Autonomous Region (TAR).
• The McMahon Line was drawn during the Simla Convention of 1914, officially described as the Convention Between Great Britain, China, and Tibet.
• China was represented at the convention by the government of the Republic of China, which was in power in the mainland from 1912 to 1949, when its leaders were driven to the island of Taiwan during the civil war that established the communists in Beijing and led to the proclamation of the People’s Republic.
• The McMahon Line delimited the respective spheres of influence of Tibet and British India in the eastern Himalayan region in what is today India’s Northeast and northern Myanmar.
• The border in this region was undefined prior to the signing of the convention. ???????

PRACTICE QUESTION:

‘McMahon Line’, often mentioned in news, is a boundary between India and

(a) Pakistan

(b) Afghanistan

(c) Bangladesh

(d) China

Answer