A conference on Tibetan studies scheduled to be held this month in Nepal was called off at the request of government officials who gave no reason for the decision, organizers said Thursday.

The International Association for Tibetan Studies seminar was scheduled to be held in Nepal Aug. 23-26, to be attended by delegates from many countries and hosted by the Himalaya Centre for Asian Studies at Kathmandu University.

Prof. Sagar Raj Sharma of the Center confirmed they made the decision to cancel after top government officials asked them not to hold the conference. No specific reasons were given.

There was no immediate comment from the government, but Nepal has long maintained good relations with China and has disallowed any pro-Tibetan activities.

China has ruled Tibet since 1951, when Communist forces occupied the Himalayan territory. Decades of political repression followed, including the demolit...