If they exhibit or are found carrying a picture of the Dalai Lama, they will be arrested. They will be assigned a sentence of one to three years in prison. Or, perhaps a sentence of hard labor. They could be sentenced to death. In sneakers and thin jackets they scale the Himalayas subsisting on wheat granules and melted snow.
Refugees are farmers, nomads, monks and nuns.
The journey in its entirety takes between two and twelve months, contingent upon the point of origin. Those departing from the Kham and Amdo provinces in Northeastern Tibet face a year-long journey, while those departing from other regions face a shorter, but equally grueling trip. None of the travelers are immunized against diseases like tuberculosis and dysentery, while scabies, worms, typhoid, and cholera are rampant in India and Nepal. During and at the termination of the long excursion, the Tibetans, especially the children, are highly susceptible to any one of these ailments. Finally, almost all of these children and adults crossing the mountains will be victims of frostbite.