By Balmukunda Regmi
On Aug. 26, a glacial collapse in Nepal’s border area triggered a severe transboundary mudslide , causing devastation on both sides of the Nepal-China border.
According to the latest data released by Nepal’s National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority, as of 9 a.m. local time on Aug. 30, the mudslide had claimed 734 lives in Nepal, with 2,498 people still missing.
Data released by the Information Office of the People’s Government of Xizang Autonomous Region in China showed that, as of 6 p.m. on Aug. 29, the disaster had left 16 people dead and 546 missing on the Chinese side. Rescue and relief operations are being intensified.
Nepal and China are close neighbors, linked by shared mountains and rivers, and bound by a common destiny. The two countries have a long history of cooperation in areas including culture, economy, and ecological and environmental protection.
However, as global warming increases the risk of glacial instability in the Himalayas, local ecosystems are becoming increasingly fragile, and the threat of geological disasters is growing.
The region’s unique mountainous hydrological conditions also mean that ice avalanches, glacial lake outburst floods and mudslides often have cross-border impacts. These risks are challenges that Nepal and China must confront together.
Following the disaster, China promptly shared relevant information with Nepal, including satellite imagery, hydrological monitoring data, and assessments of the affected areas.
According to expert analysis, the disaster unfolded with extraordinary speed: the ice-rock avalanche took only six to seven minutes to travel from its origin point to the border, leaving an extremely narrow window for evacuation and emergency response.
Local authorities in Nepal leveraged available information to arrange evacuation for riverside communities. However, the suddenness of the disaster, combined with limited local capacity for disaster prevention and response, led to the tragic loss of many lives, including both residents and tourists.
The two countries’ coordinated response to transboundary risks deserves deeper reflection among those working in the cultural sector and carries far-reaching significance for advancing cultural and educational exchanges between Nepal and China. It also reflects the goodwill and friendship that exist between the peoples of the two countries.
Communication and cooperation among people from all walks of life — including communities, young people, think tanks and business circles — can build a shared understanding and promote peaceful coexistence, mutual benefit and win-win cooperation.
In today’s complex and shifting international environment, bilateral relations inevitably experience ups and downs. Broad-based people-to-people ties can help cushion differences and strengthen the social foundation of those relationships. This holds true for Nepal and China as well: diverse forms of people-to-people cooperation provide solid support for the steady and sustained development of bilateral friendship.
Looking ahead, the education sector has an important role to play in consolidating the relations between the two countries. Young people in Nepal and China already hold each other in mutual respect and goodwill. During this disaster, the younger generation witnessed firsthand how the two countries worked together in response to a crisis.
Post-disaster reconstruction should become a key focus of the next phase of bilateral cooperation. With an emphasis on youth development and people-to-people ties, the two countries could jointly rebuild schools, hospitals, roads and other public facilities in affected areas, benefiting young people and ordinary residents in need.
Education, media and academia also have an important responsibility to provide students and the public with objective, comprehensive and unbiased information, helping society develop a sound understanding of history, social issues and international relations.
The majestic Himalayas bind Nepal and China closely together. The pain caused by the transboundary disaster has given us a deeper understanding of what it means to share one another’s joys and sorrows and stand together through adversity.
Passing objective and truthful accounts of reality on to the next generation and fostering greater understanding and mutual trust — this is precisely where the most practical value of Nepal-China people-to-people and cultural exchanges lies.
(Balmukunda Regmi is the president of the National University Teachers’ Association of Nepal.)
