China closes Everest's Tibet side to foreign climbers

PanARMENIAN.Net - China will bar foreigners from climbing the Tibetan side of Mount Everest during the coming autumn season after a Polish traveller was accused of illegally crossing into Nepal last month, AFP reports.

The China Tibet Mountaineering Association (CTMA) declared in a notice on Wednesday, June 7 that it will suspend climbing permits for all of Tibet, including other popular summits such as Cho Oyu and Shishapangma.

The association said the ban was decided after Polish climber Janusz Adam Adamski "illegally scaled (Everest) from the north side" and entered Nepal in the south.

The notice, issued in English, said rules and regulations must be "adjusted and improved" following Adamski's trek.

"In order to solve the series of above problems in time, and provide a good condition to all expeditions in 2018 ... the climbing permits will not be granted in autumn 2017," the association said.

While the notice did not specify that the permit freeze only applies to foreigners, an association spokesman told AFP that Chinese climbers will not be affected.

Two large climbing operators confirmed that authorities have indicated permits will not be given for the coming season, though one noted that the situation is often fluid.

"Sometimes they are very quick with their decision and can change it as well," Mingma Sherpa, a renowned Nepali mountaineer and the managing director of Seven Summit Treks, told AFP.

Climbers online bemoaned the news, with one blogger blaming Adamski for his "selfishness."

South African Ryan Sean Davy was caught on Everest two weeks ago attempting to climb the mountain without paying the $11,000 permit fee.

Davy was given a 10-year climbing ban but a $22,000 fine, which he said he could not pay, was waived.