Indian Woman Detained at Shanghai Over Arunachal Passport

A woman from India's Arunachal Pradesh state was detained for nearly 18 hours at Shanghai Pudong International Airport on November 21, 2025, after Chinese immigration officials refused to recognize her Indian passport because it listed Arunachal as her birthplace, which China claims as its territory.

Prema Wangjom Thongdok, an Indian citizen residing in the United Kingdom and working as an IFPR reporting specialist at ACA London, was transiting through Shanghai en route from London to Japan. She had a scheduled three-hour layover but faced immediate scrutiny at immigration. Officials declared her passport invalid, confiscated it, and prevented her from boarding her connecting flight despite her valid Japanese visa. Thongdok recounted that multiple officers and staff from China Eastern Airlines repeatedly asserted that Arunachal Pradesh belongs to China and mocked her nationality. One official suggested she apply for Chinese citizenship, according to her account shared on social media and with news outlets.

Confined to the airport's transit area, Thongdok said she was denied access to food, basic facilities, and updates on her status. She was only returned her passport after...