The Nelson Mail
Nelson is to further increase its ethnic diversity with the arrival next month of four families from the small South Asian nation of Bhutan.
They are part of an allotment of 27 refugees arriving in the region as part of the annual quota.
Refugee Services Aotearoa New Zealand coordinator Gabrielle Humphreys said refugees from Bhutan had been settled in Christchurch and Palmerston North previously.
The new arrivals are from the ethnic Nepali community who were living in the southern Lhotshampa region of Bhutan.
In the early 1990s the Government began putting pressure on the group to assimilate into Bhutanese culture.
Instead of conforming many fled to Nepal, where they were forced to live in camps and were denied property or citizenship rights.
They are currently at the Mangere Resettlement Centre and will arrive in Nelson on April 24.
Ms Humphreys said two of the families were related.
Another one included a grandfather who was an orange farmer, and his daughter who taught accountancy.
She said Bhutanese valued education and were "respectfully assertive".
After settling into their homes the adults would attend English language classes at the Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology, and the children would attend Victory Primary School, Nelson College or Nelson College for Girls.
Ms Humphreys said she thought there may be one person of Bhutanese origin living in Nelson, but these would be the first refugees from there to be settled here.
There would also be some more Chin people from Burma arriving, most of whom already had family in Nelson.
Ms Humphreys said donations of blankets and duvets for the new arrivals would be appreciated.
Sunday, April 5, 2009
Nelson new home for Bhutanese refugee
Friday, March 13, 2009
Far from Bhutan: A Refugee’s Life
Source: Scoop
By Bhumika Ghimire
On November 6th, 2008 Bhutan crowned a new King-Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck. The day was a bitter reminder to almost 103,000 Bhutanese refugees living in Nepal that their country has moved on without them. The new monarch did not mention the refugees in his first speech to the people and the nation was immersed in festivities, no one spared a thought for the 103,000 missing.
After my blog post on the coronation event in Bhutan was published, a young lady asked me if I could help tell her side of the story. Seeta Ghimire is a Bhutanese refugee who grew up in a camp in Nepal. For 16 years, a mud hut with no electricity or running water was her home.
Here is her story.
I was born in Bhutan. The government forced my family to flee my home land. After leaving the country, we arrived in Nepal as refugees. For 16 years we were housed in a camp in south-eastern part of the country.
I could not visit my birth place for all those 16 years and, if we had done that we would have been arrested by the Bhutanese army. Bhutanese government never tried to take us back. There were many meetings between Nepalese and Bhutanese government on the refugee issue but they failed to reach an agreement.
United States of America resettled us in the country to end our stateless and homeless status.
The campaign against Nepali speaking Bhutanese started in the late 80s and early 90s. Schools and place of employment with majority Nepalese were closed in 1990. After a year the schools were opened but we were not allowed to join the schools. The government asked us to produce a Non Objection Certificate(NOC) to go to school, to work, to open Business etc. We were never given NOC because my father supported peaceful demonstration in 1990s demanding democracy and respect for human rights.
We were not allowed to collect the harvest. Government gave different citizenship status to the members of the same family. The army burnt all our documents. They took all our cash crops and food crops. They pasted a paper in our home to leave our place and threatened to kill us if we disobeyed.
There are seven Bhutanese refugee camps in the eastern part of Nepal. Six of them are in the Jhapa district and t one is in the Morang district. Caritas Nepal, a non governmental organization supports the education of the Bhutanese refugee children up to the 10th Grade. United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees(UNHCR) supports the refugees for food, shelter and health care.
We are a family of six ,I am the youngest . We lived in a small thatched hut made of mud that had a size of an average living room . There was no electricity and gas facility in the camps.
At present I am in the United States. When we first arrived, it was very difficult for me to communicate with people around. I could not understand American accent. Now I am a sophomore at a local high school and hope to go to college in future.
When some body asks me about my country, I cannot say much because I left Bhutan as a baby and I was a refugee in Nepal. But I don’t think much about it. I am in America now and I love this country. I can become a U.S citizen after 5 years. That will be a proud day for me.
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Refugees in Dallas struggle to find their place as jobs dry up
Source: The Dallas Morning News
By JESSICA MEYERS
jmeyers@dallasnews.com
A Bhutanese refugee died recently in his Vickery Meadow apartment in Dallas, within walking distance of Lal Subba's home. The family had no money for a burial, so Subba and the other Bhutanese families in the complex took up a collection to ensure the elderly man received appropriate honor for the life he led.
"If we live, too much difficult. If we die, too much difficult," said the 21-year-old who grew up in a Nepal refugee camp and came to Dallas in October, only to find a flailing national economy instead of the idealized American dream.
That reality is now hitting Texas, where laid-off workers and legal – and illegal – immigrants are vying for a declining number of jobs in blue-collar industries.
This leaves even fewer opportunities for Dallas' expanding refugee population – people from Myanmar (formerly Burma), Bhutan and Iraq who already struggle to find employment and housing with limited language skills, no support network and only a basic understanding of American culture.
The release of President Barack Obama's federal budget on Thursday outlined a nearly 10 percent increase, to $51.7 billion, in funding for international development and diplomacy. That has further ignited debate over the nation's ethical and political responsibilities to those who can no longer claim a homeland – and whether the refugee stream should be trimmed.
Refugees, unlike immigrants, leave their home country not by choice but out of fear of persecution. The Iraqis – the most educated of the three major groups currently coming into the U.S. – are a prime example. They have left their lives as lawyers, doctors and professors for political reasons and have been designated refugees by the United Nations.
The U.S. president determines how many refugees to accept annually. Last year, former President George W. Bush authorized a cap of 80,000 refugees for 2009; the actual number of arrivals is usually less.
"The way the program is set up, we are bringing people in but leaving them high and dry," said Anne Richard, the International Rescue Committee's vice president of government relations and advocacy, who believes the financial crisis has threatened the resettlement process. And the increased allotment may not salvage it, she said, as the money could end up going to other State Department programs when details are announced in April.
Texas has suffered less than its Midwestern counterparts and has no plans to slow its refugee influx. It took in a little more than 5,000 refugees last year, an increase of almost 800 from 2007. Texas generally places in the top four states for the number of refugees it accepts annually from the federal government.
"We are at the beginning stages of feeling the impact in Texas," said Caitriona Lyons, the state's refugee program coordinator. She said it's now taking longer than a month to place refugees in jobs, thwarting the adjustment process and lessening their ability to become self-sufficient.
Subba is one of more than 1,000 refugees who arrived in Dallas as the nation began its financial nose dive. A teacher by trade, he found a part-time job as a dishwasher after three months of searching. He makes $64 a day, sometimes working only one day a week. That barely covers the $555 in rent and utilities each month for himself and his mother. Food stamps leave enough for rice and vegetables. They choose sweaters over heat.
The $445 he receives monthly from the International Rescue Committee will trickle to $187 next month and stop in July, along with the Medicaid for his sick mother.
"I see people under the bridge and I think, 'Will that be me?' " he said in the halting English he learned in the camp. His Nepali ancestry put him at risk in Bhutan, and his refugee status left him shunned in Nepal.
"We are in the right place at the wrong time. This is a good country, but when we arrive here, it's too much difficult to get a job for all people, not just us."
About 60,000 refugees arrived in the U.S. last year – 8,000 more than in 2007. The number is expected to grow in 2009.
The State Department provides each refugee a $900 initial resettlement grant, intended to cover expenses for the first 30 days after arrival. About half goes to the overseeing agency for case management, travel and other logistics.
The solution is not to decrease the flow of refugees but to overhaul the entire system during the new administration, said Lavinia Limón, president of the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants and the former head of the Office of Refugee Resettlement under the Clinton administration. She wants more resources channeled toward housing assistance as well as programs that focus on the increasingly diverse pool of refugees entering the United States.
"This is a decision to rescue people in extraordinarily dire circumstances," she said, citing the nation's longstanding history of moral obligation.
The U.S. took in more than 90,000 refugees in the early 1980s when the economy teetered just as precariously as now, she said.
But Limón worries that the resettlement process will remain on the back burner with a housing crisis to solve and pending confirmation of a new secretary of health and human services.
The stimulus package will affect refugees the same way it does lower-income Americans, but that still won't significantly help them, said Debi Wheeler, the IRC's regional director in Dallas. The search for jobs and housing is compounded by a culture shock that includes anything from buying a DART ticket to learning how to tell the difference between a $1 bill and a $20 bill.
"There is just not enough money for what we are required to do, and the recession is bringing to light the challenges that are faced by these programs," she said.
"Imagine finding an apartment in America for one person, and we are looking for hundreds."
Area caseworkers say it's even more difficult to find employment for refugees. Last May, IRC job developer Jim Stokes placed 11 to 12 people a week in positions. Now, he hopes for two to three a week.
Dallas hosts three federally funded refugee agencies: IRC, Catholic Charities and Refugee Services of Texas. From the $6.2 million allocated through the state, a little more than $1.6 million will go to Dallas this year. The agencies lobby for funding from the state government.
Roy Beck of NumbersUSA said refugees are too dependent on that money. The executive director of the immigration-reduction group based in Arlington, Va., argues that a decrease in foreign workers is critical to restoring the economy.
"Bringing in any new working-age adults during this time really makes no sense," he said. "Unemployed Americans, including a growing number of refugees already here, need jobs. Why bring anybody in unless there really is no choice?"
Paw Htoo didn't feel there was a choice when she left her bamboo hut in a Thai refugee camp and brought her mother, 10-year-old son and 5-year-old daughter to Dallas in August.
An American flag now hangs on one side of their cramped Vickery Meadow apartment. A Karen flag with the same colors is tacked on the other. A mattress in the corner serves as a makeshift bedroom for the six people who occupy the apartment's three rooms.
The Karen are one of Myanmar's ethnic minorities persecuted by the military government for their heritage, some for their Christian beliefs. The Burmese family fled to the Thai border soon after Htoo's mentally disabled uncle was arrested.
Htoo's daughter, who sings and dances the ABCs next to her mother, was born a "stateless citizen" in the camps. Once inside, they weren't allowed to leave.
It takes Htoo, 25, an hour and a half to get to her job packaging meat at Tyson Foods in Sherman, where she makes $11.05 an hour four days a week. She pays $150 a month for transportation.
Her increasingly Americanized children ask for pizza and fried chicken, indulgences she said she can't afford. Her 17-year old brother works weekends at a florist to help with the rent and begin to pay IRC back for the plane tickets.
Now that Htoo is working, the $440 in food stamps for herself and her children has dropped to $150.
On a recent morning, mustard greens peeked out of a pot on the stove. Htoo, wearing a vivid purple Karen sarong, had several hours before her trek to Sherman. She looked at the wall that her daughter had turned into her own drawing board and smiled.
"We are still so surprised by this," she said, rubbing her feet on the carpet. "I started work, and I feel OK."
Her daughter spelled her name in the background – in English.
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
First Bhutan refugees arrive
Around 160 political refugees from the tiny Asian country of Bhutan arrived in Denmark on Tuesday, reported public broadcaster DR.
The refugees are part of a group of 107,000 Bhutanese refugees who are in the process of being relocated after living in Nepal for the past 17 years. Most of the refugees are of Nepalese descent and were persecuted by the Bhutanese government, which believed that the ethnic minority was growing too quickly in Bhutan.
Denmark has agreed to accept 150 Bhutanese refugees annually for the next few years, with the US agreeing to grant asylum to approximately 60,000.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Situation of resettled folks in New Hampshire
Source: APFANEWS
New Hampshire (USA), January 13: Doug Hall, an American volunteer who has been helping some of the Bhutanese as they settle into their new homes in New Hampshire, told Bhutan News Service that adults who have no English speaking skills are mostly finding difficult to get a job.
"The first Bhutanese refugees to arrive here came in April 2008. Many of the adults in the families that arrived in April, May, June, and July were able to find jobs in only a few weeks or months", told Hall.
He said that the resettled families that have arrived since July are having a more difficult time finding jobs.
"Economy in the USA is in a recession and many Americans have lost their jobs in the past six months," said Hall adding, "This means that the refugees face more competition for fewer jobs than they did only six months ago."
According to Hall it is not impossible for a 'refugee' to get a job. But it is much more difficult now.
Hall has even observed that refugee adults who do not speak or understand English will have a much harder time getting a job than those who have good English.
He said that those who have prior work experience, for example as a teacher, a shopkeeper, a social worker, a news reporter, will be able to get a job more quickly.
"There are some cities in the US where the refugees may find it easier to get jobs than other cities. But, everywhere in the US it is more difficult now than it was six months ago."
Last month, Jon Greenberg from here reported to National Public Radio that majority of the Bhutanese in New Hampshire were jobless. Bhutan News Service
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
Over 60,000 Bhutanese refugees want to resettle - U.N.
Source: Reuters
KATHMANDU, Jan 7 (Reuters) - More than half the Bhutanese refugees living in camps in Nepal for over 18 years want to resettle in Western countries under a scheme started last year, the United Nations refugee agency said on Wednesday.
More than 103,000 people of ethnic Nepali origin in southern Bhutan fled or were forced to leave in the 1990s after demanding greater rights and representation.
Bhutan says most of the refugees were illegal immigrants and left voluntarily.
Several Western countries, including the United States began resettling them last year after many rounds of ministerial meetings between the two South Asian nations failed to repatriate the refugees.
The U.N. said more than 8,000 refugees had already been resettled in the U.S., Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Norway, the Netherlands and Denmark so far.
Another 18,000 were expected to find new homes this year, it said.
"We are pleased to see so many refugees starting their lives afresh after living in difficult conditions in the camps... and to learn that those resettled are adapting well in their new country," Daisy Dell, UNHCR representative in Nepal, said in a statement.
Since the programme started last year more than 60,000 refugees have expressed their interest to find new homes in the West, a U.N. statement said.
The U.N. also advocates voluntary repatriation to Bhutan for those refugees who wish to do so.
The Western offer for resettlement has left the refugees split with some wanting to go back to Bhutan while others want to look for better education and job opportunities in the West. (Reporting by Gopal Sharma; Editing by Bappa Majumdar)
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Refugee leaders ask Nepal to solve Bhutanese refugee crisis
KATHMANDU, Dec 17 - Bhutanese refugee leaders, living exiled life in Nepal, on Wednesday welcomed the assurances made by the Nepali government to form a taskforce to resolve the Bhutanese refugee crisis.
Speaking at a programme organised here, on the day Bhutan was celebrating its National Day, Chairman of National Democratic Front (NDF)— the front of three major political parties of Bhutan—Bala Ram Poudel said that the international community and the Nepal government should take initiatives to resolve the Bhutanese refugee crisis in Nepal. "Being the host country, Nepal should take initiatives to repatriate the refugees," said he, adding, "And, the Nepal government should talk to India also to find the solution to this crisis."
The land-locked Himalayan Kingdom observes its national day on December 17 every year to mark the accession of the first king of Wanngchuk dynasty, Gongsar Ugyen Wangchuk, to the throne.
Poudel, who is also the president of the Bhutan People's Party (BPP), further said. "Refugees have been observing December 17—the National Day of Bhutan—as a day of plight."
He demanded that the Nepal government should implement the commitment it made in its annual programmes and policies mentioned in its 85th point apropos to the resolution of the refugee crisis. "Miraculous change has occurred in Nepal," said the president of the BPP, the largest Bhutanese party in exile, adding, "But, the refugee problem has stuck at the same place where it was earlier."
While speaking about the newly promulgated constitution of Bhutan, the Bhutanese leader remarked that it has bestowed a special right to the king which clarifies the fact that the he is above the constitution. "A drama of change is being staged in Bhutan," he said.
Likewise, another Bhutanese leader DK Rai, who was recently released after spending 17 years in a Bhutanese dungeon, on the initiatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), spoke about the torture inflicted on him in the jail.
Rai, who was arrested in November 1991 and detained at the police headquarters in the Bhutanese capital, Thimphu, said that the prisoners of conscience were forced to work in road construction. "We had to bring stones from the river and crush them into pebbles with hammer," he recalled.
According to him, there were altogether 32 political detainees in two blocks in the jail he was confined at before his release. "Some of them have been sentenced to life imprisonment, while others for five to 10 years," said Rai, the former General Secretary of Druk National Congress (DNC). Currently, Rai is under treatment with the help of Center for Victims of Torture(CVICT).
His family, residing in the southern parts of Bhutan, was chased away in 1994 while he was in the jail. They ended up at Khudunabari refugee camp in Jhapa district, Nepal, via India seeking asylum. There are over 100, 000 refugees residing at seven different camps of Jhapa and Morang districts run by United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). Among them, around 8000 have been resettled in third countries after seven different western countries, including the US, came up with the proposal for resettling around 80,000 refugees.
Of them, 7500 have been resettled in 33 different states of USA, while 365 in Australia, 134 in New Zeeland and the others in Denmark, Norway and the Netherlands. Canada has pledged to resettle 5000 refugees, 24 among them have started to settle at St Jerome, Quebec in Canada recently.
Majority of the leaders claim that the resettlement process will help the democratic movement in Bhutan. "The refugees will support our agitation, wherever they go," said Poudel. He added that the refugees have been divided into two categories—favouring resettlement and willing to be repatriated.
What is more, Rai opined that unless it is not launched from Bhutan itself, the movement cannot succeed. "There is no real democracy in Bhutan. To set up democracy, a movement should be launched from the country," said he.
Meanwhile, Bhutanese refugees residing in Nepal protested the National Day of Bhutan today by organising rallies and demonstrations at various places in Jhapa district.
The refugees living at camps staged demonstrations at three refugee camps today. They said that it is useless to celebrate the national day by Bhutan, their country of origin.
These refugees, mostly ethnic Nepali speaking groups from the southern plains of Bhutan, began entering Nepal in 1990. They fled their country fearing the enforcement of new citizenship laws and the "one nation, one people" policy of cultural assimilation in the late 1980s.
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Canada Welcomes First Group of Bhutanese Refugees
MONTREAL, QUEBEC--(Marketwire - Dec. 8, 2008) - The first of a large group of Bhutanese refugees will be arriving in Canada today, announced Jason Kenney, Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism.
The group of 24 refugees will be living in Saint-Jérôme, Quebec. They are the first of up to 5,000 Bhutanese who will be resettled in Canada after living in camps run by the United Nations in southeast Nepal since the early 1990s. Canada has been working with members of the international community to find solutions for the long-standing situation of some 100,000 Bhutanese refugees of ethnic Nepalese descent who were forced out of their homeland and have been living in exile for the past 15 years.
"This is truly the start of a momentous journey for the Bhutanese refugees, who are finally in a place where they can be assured of safety and security," said Minister Kenney. "These individuals, and those still to come, bring with them hopes, dreams and skills that build an even richer and more prosperous society. I am proud of our country's long-standing humanitarian tradition of providing protection to refugees, which helps to make Canada respected and envied throughout the world."
Whenever possible, refugees are settled in communities where they have relatives or friends, but they may move to other cities in Canada as they choose. Under the Canada-Quebec Accord, the Province of Quebec is responsible for providing settlement and integration services for all immigrants living in the province, including refugees. Quebec was involved in selecting these refugees and will be providing them with initial settlement funding covering basic requirements such as clothing and household items. All resettled refugees are also entitled to access various integration services, such as language instruction, to help them adjust and adapt to life in Canada.
There are an estimated 11.4 million refugees in the world today. Every year, 19 countries resettle about 100,000 refugees. Of that number, Canada annually resettles 10,000 to 12,000 refugees, or one out of 10 globally, through its government-assisted and privately sponsored refugee programs. In 2007 alone, Canada resettled refugees of about 70 different nationalities.
The next group of Bhutanese refugees are scheduled to arrive in early 2009 and settle in various cities across Canada.
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Nepal: US Offer to Resettle Bhutanese Refugees Sparks Tensions
Source: Human Rights Watch
A US offer to resettle 60,000 Bhutanese refugees has given hope to many of the 106,000 refugees living in Nepal for more than 16 years, but has also heightened tensions in the camps, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. Refugees who insist on repatriation as the only acceptable solution have been threatening and intimidating those who voice support for resettlement in the US.
The Bhutanese refugee crisis began in 1991 when Bhutan began to expel ethnic Nepalis, a policy that resulted in the expulsion of one-sixth of the country’s population. But since the announcement of the US offer in October 2006, groups of refugees who insist that the only acceptable solution is return to Bhutan have threatened refugees favorable to resettlement.
“Refugees fundamentally have the right to return to a country that expelled them,” said Bill Frelick, refugee policy director at Human Rights Watch. “But all refugees also have the right to make essential choices about their lives without threats and intimidation.”
The 86-page report, “Last Hope: The Need for Durable Solutions for Bhutanese Refugees in Nepal and India,” discusses the possible solutions to this protracted refugee situation and the choices the refugees now face. It describes conditions of the ethnic Nepali refugees who have languished in exile in Nepal and India, and also documents continuing discrimination against the ethnic Nepalis still living in Bhutan, who live in fear that they too could be stripped of their citizenship and expelled from the country.
“While repatriation would be the best option for most refugees, it can only be viable if Bhutan upholds its duty to guarantee the returnees’ human rights,” said Frelick. “Until then, repatriation to Bhutan cannot be promoted as a durable solution for the Bhutanese refugees in Nepal.”
So far, Bhutan has not allowed a single refugee to return. Consequently, the refugees have endured years in cramped camps with no prospects for solutions. The report documents life in the camps and domestic violence and other social problems that have come after protracted periods in closed camps.
“We don’t want to be dependent on others,” a Bhutanese refugee told Human Rights Watch. “Half our lives have been spent as refugees. We don’t want that tag on our children’s forehead. We want them to be proud citizens.”
Since the announcement of the US resettlement offer, tensions in the camps have been building. Partly, this is because of rumors and misinformation about the nature of the offer itself. It is also due to intimidation by groups militantly opposed to resettlement who insist that the only acceptable solution is return to Bhutan.
“People feel insecure,” said a young man. “If others hear you are looking for other options than repatriation, they will condemn you as not favoring repatriation, or diluting the prospects for repatriation. Others will accuse you of having no love for the country.”
Human Rights Watch called on the Nepalese government to prosecute intimidators who threaten or harm those who exercise their rights to freedom of opinion, expression, and association.
“Before any solutions can be achieved, Nepal must provide sufficient security in the camps to enable refugees to express their opinions and exchange information freely,” said Frelick.
The report discusses the possible solutions to this protracted refugee situation and the choices the refugees now face.
“To be effective, the US resettlement offer cannot operate in isolation,” said Frelick. “The Bhutanese refugees need genuine choices.”
This requires a three-pronged strategy. First, resettlement should be a real option for as many refugees as want it. This means that other countries should join in a coordinated effort to maximize the number of resettlement places. Bhutanese refugees living outside the camps in Nepal and India should also be eligible. Nepal should cooperate on the resettlement option, in particular, by issuing exit permits without delay to refugees accepted for resettlement.
Second, Nepal should grant citizenship to those refugees who express a preference for local integration over resettlement or repatriation. Finally, the United States, India and other countries should redouble their efforts to persuade Bhutan to allow refugees who want to repatriate to do so under conditions that are compatible with human rights law.
“The possibility that many refugees may now choose other options should make it much easier for Bhutan to accept repatriation,” said Frelick. “Resettlement countries should press Bhutan for a genuinely comprehensive solution to this protracted refugee situation.”
King Kesar, President Obama and The Tug of Refugees
By Govinda Rizal
In the first week of November, 2008 when Barack Hussain Obama was being elected President of colossal USA, the people of tiny Bhutan were celebrating the coronation of a new monarch. The two newly destined rulers have many things in common and many things uncommon. While president elect Obama is elected for the next four years, Monarch Kesar can chose to rule as long as he wishes or lives. Both leaders are young in their respective peoples' expectation and people of both countries are more hopeful about them than they were with their predecessors.
The issue of Bhutanese refugees is the single string that ties the two and yet keeps them in a distance. Hundreds of thousands of Bhutanese refugees who make up more than one sixth of Bhutan's population, were chased from the country by the former monarch, the present monarch's father, for opposing his rules. These people who were unable to live under the former king's brutal administration, to save their lives fled under the cover of darkness. They lived in exile in India and Nepal for two decades, hopefully waiting for the king to think like them. The king did not change his mind nor could the people change him.
The people who have their citizenship and nationality at stake, who on charges of opposing the king's rule had their citizenship revoked and were made stateless, expect a change in the law to make it accommodative for them. More than the law, the reality is that the land and property owned by them were usurped by the king. All possible allegations have been made against them, to make the already repressed fugitives unable to return and claim their lost legacy. For decades, these people languished in camps, scraped a living with the UNHCR providing food. They always have had an expectation; an international body to see and understand them, talk on their behalf to their monarch to allow them back home. Their expectations were never met.
Their plight in the refugee camps, in the subhuman conditions, won the hearts of American people who graciously invited them to stay in America with them. Today there is a long chain of Bhutanese people and their relatives, right from Bhutan via the refugee camps to the United States of America. At the two ends of the human chain there are new leaders. The Monarch Kesar is in the source and President Obama in the end of the long line of refugees.
For both the leaders to be clear, all these people want to return to Bhutan, but not all may return. As long as all the willing people are not allowed to return, the wound of Bhutanese society will remain cancerous. The expectations from the new leaders are high. Despite his intricate responsibilities, President Obama is expected to listen to sixty thousand Bhutanese minorities being settled in USA, and say to the new monarch of Bhutan to take back his people from exile, win their hearts, earn their appreciation, respect and fulfill a royal obligation.
Will a day come soon, when the two leaders will meet somewhere in the world, talk of these people who connect them, who bind them and who expect from them?
Friday, November 14, 2008
Bhutan’s forgotten citizens
By Bhumika Ghimire
West Lafayette, IN, United States, — Bhutan celebrated the coronation of its new king last week. The 28-year-old Oxford-educated bachelor Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck assumed leadership of a nation that is just beginning to take baby steps toward modernization. The country held its first democratic elections in March 2008 and only recently allowed satellite television and Internet access.
Bhutanese call their country “Druk Yul,” which means “Land of Thunder Dragon.” The country has been described by many as the ultimate tourist destination, untouched by the hazards of the modern world, with a perfectly preserved environment and undisturbed ancient culture.
Unfortunately for the new king, integrating Bhutan with the modern world while keeping its natural and cultural heritage is not the only challenge on hand. For the last 17 years, the country has been wrestling with a major issue, which surprisingly was not mentioned or discussed during the lengthy and lavish coronation celebrations.
King Jigme Khesar’s father, Jigme Singye, came up with a plan for a more homogeneous Bhutan during the 1990s. He wanted Bhutan to have one culture, one language and even imposed a dress code. The problem with his ideal was that his country was not homogeneous. Significant numbers of ethnic Nepalese were living in the country. They had their own language, culture and religious beliefs.
Not to be deterred, Jigme Singye decided to throw out the “undesirable Nepalese” and create a perfect Bhutan. As a result, more than 100,000 ethnic Nepalese were left stateless.
Nepal and Bhutan don’t share a border; the two countries are separated by the Indian state of Sikkim. Indian authorities allowed safe passage for the refugees to enter Nepal. The circumstances under which the refugees were escorted into Nepal are often disputed, but it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to understand that the scene was definitely neither pretty nor peaceful.
With India’s help, Bhutan successfully got rid of more than 100,000 of its ethnic Nepalese citizens. Those refugees are now living in camps funded by the United Nations in and around Nepal’s Jhapa district.
For more than a decade, Nepal and Bhutan have been wrangling about the refugee issue. India has refused to get involved. Not a single refugee has been repatriated and all the diplomatic efforts have produced almost zero results – except for protracting the debate.
It was disheartening to see that Bhutan’s new king did not make any move toward reconciliation or show any concern toward his citizens suffering in a foreign land. In his message to the nation after coronation, King Jigme Khesar promised to keep Bhutan safe from “outside influences” and emphasized preserving the country’s heritage, but he chose to forget about the refugees.
Bhutanese refugees have urged their new king to allow them back home. They have asked the Nepalese government for help. But the Maoist-led government is in no position to save the Bhutanese; in fact, it is in no position to save itself. Bitter fighting among various political parties over the issue of integrating former Maoist fighters into the Nepalese Army could very well cause the government’s collapse.
Who is going to stand up and fight for the refugees then? At this time the answer is, sadly, no one. The international community, including the United States, has decided to take the easy route. They have decided to resettle the refugees in a third country. Already, some refugees have been taken in by the United States and Australia, and some will be going to Europe.
It is better to provide a stable home and citizenship to the refugees instead of leaving them to languish in camps for years without any legal status. But if we keep ignoring abuses like the one committed by Bhutan and keep cleaning up their messes, aren’t we empowering the abuser?
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(Bhumika Ghimire is a freelance reporter. Her articles have been published at OhMyNews, NepalNews, Toward Freedom, Telegraph Nepal, Himal South Asian and ACM Ubiquity. She is also a regular contributor to News Front Weekly, in Kathmandu, and Nepal Abroad, in Washington D.C. She can be reached at bhumika_g@yahoo.com. ©Copyright Bhumika Ghimire.)
Monday, November 10, 2008
Bhutanese refugees find new life beyond the camps
Source: IRIN News
KATHMANDU, 10 November 2008 (IRIN) - Thousands of Bhutanese refugees in Nepal have been successfully resettled in seven countries, including the USA, Australia, New Zealand, Netherlands, Norway, Denmark and Canada, according to the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR).
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| Thousands of Bhutanese refugees who are Nepalese origin, after having lived in camps in Nepal for as long as 20 years, have been resettled to the United States and six other countries with the assistance of UNHCR and IOM |
After several years of failed bilateral talks between the Nepalese and Bhutanese governments to repatriate them, the refugees are now opting for third-country resettlement with the help of UNHCR and the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
Since March 2008, 6,200 Bhutanese refugees have been resettled and more are in the process of leaving the camps every week, said UNHCR officials in Nepal.
UNHCR said the USA had offered to resettle 60,000-plus refugees from Bhutan over the next five years, with another 10,000 hosted by the other countries listed.
Norway, which has a quota of barely 1,000 immigrants from all over the world, has provided settlement for nearly 200 Bhutanese refugees, according to the Bhutanese Refugee Rights Coordinating Committee (RRCC).
New beginning
"After so many years of suffering and leading miserable lives as refugees, they now have a chance to live in dignity," Ashok Gurung, senior member of the RRCC, told IRIN in the capital, Kathmandu.
Gurung, himself a refugee, explained that refugees had now been happily living in host countries.
"I have a strong degree of respect for the courage it must take for refugees to make the decision to resettle and begin their new lives upon resettlement," Daisy Dell, the UNHCR representative in Nepal, told IRIN.
She added that the resettlement process was a huge cultural and social adjustment for refugees who have been living in harsh camp conditions for nearly two decades.
The resettled refugees are adjusting to their new environment and have found jobs that pay as a high as US$8 per hour working on farms, in hotels and other jobs, according to RRCC.
"They have to struggle initially and have to start from scratch as most are not highly educated,” said Gurung. “It’s the children who benefit the most." He added that local charity agencies and Christian missionary organisations were helping to sponsor or find financial support to enrol the children in school.
Breakthrough
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| Over 6,000 Bhutanese refugees have already been resettled in USA, Europe, Australia and Canada |
The agency has met resistance from some groups of refugees who have been advocating for repatriation to Bhutan and protesting against third-country resettlement.
According to some refugees, there are 13 different armed groups still opting for repatriation and the Nepal government has stepped up security with the help of armed police in the refugee camps. UNHCR's position is that resettlement is an individual choice.
"Without the support of the refugee community, the government of Nepal and the international community, the possibility of resettlement for some 100,000 refugees from Bhutan would not have become a reality," added Dell.
Friday, November 7, 2008
Bhutanese refugees find little to cheer about in king's coronation
"There is no happiness in the refugee camp as the new king ascends the throne," said SB Subba, chairman of the Human Rights Organization of Bhutan. "It is meaningless for the people in refugee camps as the monarchy is the sole cause of our suffering."
His organization has been fighting unsuccessfully for more than a decade for the right of the refugees, most of whom are ethnic Nepalese, to return to Bhutan. They began arriving in Nepal in the early 1990s, accusing the Bhutanese government of persecution based on cultural, lingual and religious differences.
"The new king can only win the hearts and minds of people if he allows all exiled Bhutanese to return home," Subba said.
Bhutan's internal politics has undergone a major change since Jigme Khesar Namgyel's father, Jigme Singye Wangchuk, promised to introduce a parliamentary democracy and constitutional monarchy in December 2005.
He abdicated a year later, and in March, Bhutan held its first parliamentary elections.
But refugee leaders argued that Bhutan's recent political transformation is not democracy in the real sense.
"One-fifth of the country's population is living in Nepal and has been ignored and the king didn't allow them the right to register political parties," said Teknath Rizal, a prominent Bhutanese refugee leader. "Many people inside Bhutan didn't get to vote."
"The king of Bhutan may also bear the same fate as the king of Nepal if he turns a deaf ear to our problems," warned Rizal, who served as adviser to the royal council in Bhutan for four years before he fled the country in the early 1990s.
Nepal's former king Gyanendra was forced to abdicate as the country's parliament voted for the abolition of the monarchy in 2007.
According to the United Nations refugee agency, about 107,000 Bhutanese refugees were living in seven UN-run camps in eastern Nepal at the beginning of the year.
Last year, the United States announced that it was willing to resettle more than 60,000 refugees. Other countries - including Norway, New Zealand and Canada - also said they would resettle refugees.
The resettlement programme began earlier this year, and about 5,000 refugees have left so far for the United States and other countries.
Several rounds of talks between Nepal and Bhutan to resolve the crisis and repatriate the refugees have so far failed.
Friday, October 24, 2008
Not all Bhutanese can get resettled
Source: The Kathmandu Post
POST B BASNET
BELDANGI (JHAPA), Oct 23 - Like many of his countrymen, Hom Bahadur Dahal, 50, a Bhutanese refugee from Beldangi camp in Jhapa district, rushed to sign up for resettlement in the United States earlier this year. He felt his days of hardship were finally over.
His neighbours in the camp are now all set to fly abroad for resettlement but not Dahal. His hopes suddenly ended two months ago when he was rejected for resettlement in the United States.
"My family had opted for resettlement to begin a new life in the United States, but my application was rejected," says Dahal, a former corporal in the Bhutanese Army. However, the applications of his son's four-member family and daughter were accepted.
For Bhutanese refugees, the reason why U.S. officials rejected Dahal seems bizarre at best. The paper handed over to Dahal explaining why he was rejected reads: You are ineligible for refugee status because it has been determined that you ordered, incited, assisted, or otherwise participated in the persecution of others on account of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion.
"You were a member of the Bhutanese Army that was involved in the persecution of ethnic Nepalese in Bhutan," Dahal quoted U.S. Homeland Security officials telling him.
"I am myself a victim of ethnic cleansing. I cannot even think of committing atrocities against my people," says Dahal. He appealed for revision of the decision, but to no avail.
According to Dahal, he had been serving in the Bhutanese army at Paru Guincha, northern Bhutan, when Nepali speakers were being evicted from Bhutan.
Three months after his parents were evicted from Bhutan in 1991, Dahal was sacked from his job and asked to either leave Bhutan within a month or face persecution.
In the chilly winter of 1992, Dahal and his family joined a refugee caravan flocking to neighboring India. A few months later, he ended up in the refugee camp in Jhapa.
He is now separated from five members of his family, including two grandsons -- five-year-old Manish and nine-month-old Anish. They are soon leaving for the U.S., leaving Dahal, his wife Lilamaya, 45, and one of his sons behind in Nepal.
The U.S. embassy here said that it does not have a policy of commenting on individual cases.
According to Ram Bhandari, a refugee activist at Beldangi, refugees have been rejected on the grounds that they made material contributions to the Bhutan People's Party (BPP) or supported the underground Bhutan Communist Party (Marxist-Leninist-Maoist).
"I don't get why they reject settlement for BPP supporters as the party's youth wing - Youth Organization of Bhutan (YOB) is operating from the U.S. itself?" Bhandari said.
Bhutanese refugees say resettlement forms of some three dozen Bhutanese refugee teachers who sang revolutionary songs during Tihar festival last year have not been processed.
"Generally, we do not grant resettlement permission to individuals that have been affiliated to groups involved in acts of violence or have serious criminal convictions," said Nicole Chulick, U.S. embassy spokesperson.
According to her, about 8,400 Bhutanese refugees have been interviewed and around 20 have been refused permission to resettle in the U.S.
The U.S. had initially announced resettlement of 60,000 refugees, but said this number could increase if there is interest among refugees.
Kimberly Roberson, senior durable solutions officer at UNHCR, said the UN office cannot question why a host country has rejected resettlement of a particular person.
"Every country has its own laws," she said.
She said that those who have been rejected for resettlement by any country should tell the UNHCR about themselves and it would direct them toward resettlement in some other suitable country.
Besides the US, New Zealand, Australia, Denmark, Canada, Norway and Netherlands are also resettling Bhutanese refugees.
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
More than 5,000 refugees resettled from Nepal
Source: UNHCR
KATHMANDU, Nepal, September 23 (UNHCR) - More than 5,000 refugees from Bhutan have left their camps in Nepal for resettlement countries so far this year. The United States has accepted the largest numbers, followed by Australia, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Norway, Canada and Denmark.
The resettlement programme in Nepal began only this year but quickly became one of UNHCR's largest and most promising.
In total, 4,833 refugees have left for the US, 129 for New Zealand, 131 for Australia, 22 for the Netherlands, 19 for Norway, 16 for Canada and 13 for Denmark.
More than 50,000 refugees have expressed interest in resettlement - just under half of the total 107,000 refugees originating from Bhutan who live in seven camps in eastern Nepal. Some of them have been in exile for as long as 17 years.
"Five thousand departures mean that 5,000 refugees are now starting their lives afresh," said Daisy Dell, the UN refugee agency's representative in Kathmandu. "The resettlement process has been going very smoothly, thanks to close cooperation between UNHCR, the International Organization for Migration [IOM] and the resettlement countries."
She added, "We are especially grateful to the Nepalese government for facilitating the whole process, including hosting the refugees for so many years and now issuing them exit permits promptly."
Those who left have not forgotten about their friends back in Nepal. Many have written letters about their new country and new life.
"As a matter of fact, resettlement could be the best chance to rebuild our lives," said one of the refugee women resettled to the US. "Although starting over is not easy, there is a programme for everyone with the resettling agencies, no matter what age, qualification or gender. We have
seen other former refugees doing well, so we can do it as well."
According to another refugee in the US, the elderly are a little worried about their culture and day-to-day religious life. "We hope to build a Hindu temple nearby," said a recent arrival from Nepal. "We have to preserve our culture. The nearest Hindu temple is a one-hour drive away."
In Nepal's camps, UNHCR staff hold regular meetings with the refugees to answer questions about resettlement and other durable solutions. Special information sessions are organized for women at risk or people with disabilities. Refugees are being offered English language classes as well as additional vocational and skill-based training to prepare for a life in a
new country.
Another 2,000 to 3,000 refugees are expected to leave Nepal for third countries by the end of this year. At the same time, UNHCR continues to advocate for the option of voluntary return to Bhutan for those refugees who wish to do so, and hopes that talks on repatriation can restart soon.
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Over 3,000 Bhutanese resettled: IOM
Source: The Kathmandu Post
BY LILA BARAL
Over 3,000 Bhutanese refugees, who were languishing in sub-human conditions in UNHCR-administered camps in eastern Nepal, have been resettled in the US, Denmark, Australia and other countries under the third country resettlement program.
An official at the International Office for Migration (IOM), which is playing a key role in the resettlement process, said that the process is continuing smoothly and as planned.
"So far, altogether 3,247 Bhutanese refugees have been resettled in various countries," he said. Among them, 3,034 were taken to the US, 102 went to New Zealand and 19 headed for Norway. Likewise, 13 and 62 others were taken to Denmark and Australia respectively, while 17 refugees were resettled in the Netherlands.
IOM plans to resettle over 8,500 refugees under the third country resettlement program, most of whom will go to the US.
"Although the resettlement process was objected to by a certain group of refugees in the beginning, the process is underway without any obstruction now," said Govinda Koirala, a staffer at IOM. "If everything goes as planned, all the refugees of one of the camps will be resettled in new countries by the end of December this year."
Many other refugees, who are waiting for their turn after already sending over some of their kin, said that they were now upbeat as those relatives were sending back positive messages from abroad.
"I was worried as my younger brother, who was not very experienced with the outside world, was chosen for the resettlement," said refugee Hari Dhakal. "But now he tells me over the telephone that he already has a mobile phone and computer facilities, and we are hopeful of a good life out there."
An IOM official also claimed that the resettlement process is becoming easier due to the positive messages from those already resettled abroad.
More than 108,000 Bhutanese refugees have been living in seven camps in Jhapa and Morang districts since 1992 after the Druk regime launched its ethnic cleansing.
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
Second group arrives Australia under resettlement
Source: Apfanews.com
Of them three families landed in Lancheston, Tasmania and five families in Adelaide, South Australia. They were received at the airport by Immigration Officers, MRC Officers and Volunteers.
One of those, Purna Chhetr, on arrval at Lancheston told Bhutan News Service that he was very happy and set to being his new life in a new country.
"I even had not imagined in wild dream to arrive in such beautiful place," he exclaimed.
It was little cold outside as it is winter here but the houses are well insulated and warm inside home, that are prepared for the exiled Bhutanese who arrive here for resettlement.
"People here are good and we were welcomed with big heart," they said.
Birkha Samal, who landed at the Adelaide in South Australia, termed his new home to be a excellent place. Apartment allocated for his family is near the road and a shopping arcade, fully furnished with TV and all food stuff in refrigerator are ready.
Samal said journey was little stressed due to separation from the society in which he grew up but also said it was a good experience as he travelled in air this long distance for the first time.
The exiled Bhutanese expressed that their first priority in this new land would be the education for children. They hoped to being working shortly, after getting acquainted with the society.
Saturday, August 2, 2008
Rights group urges SAARC leaders to address Bhutanese refugee crisis
Source: Nepalnews.com
Human Rights Organization of Bhutan (HUROB) has called on all SAARC leaders to address the Bhutanese refugee crisis as one of the major problems of South Asia at the 15th SAARC Summit in Colombo, Sri Lanka and come up with a firm decision to resolve it.
On behalf of over 1,00,000 Bhutanese refugees in Nepal who have been languishing in sub-human condition in seven camps in eastern Nepal for the past 18 years, HUROB called upon all SAARC emissaries to take the refugee issues as a common problem of South Asia.
HUROB made the call in a letter sent to all SAARC leaders through Nepal's SAARC representative Girija Prasad Koirala.
Monday, June 30, 2008
Third-country resettlement of Bhutanese refugees to increase
The Bhutanese refugees, who were initially against the idea of third-country resettlement, hoping instead to be repatriated to their homes - were expressing stronger interest to UNHCR and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) for third-country resettlement.The two agencies have been facilitating their resettlement since 2007.
The first batch of 100 refugees left for Arizona in March 2008. By 25 June, a total of 1,255 refugees had departed for the USA, with 169 to Canada, The Netherlands, Denmark, Australia, New Zealand and Norway, UNHCR reported.
The refugees are Bhutanese citizens of Nepalese origin - known as “Lhotsampas” in Bhutan.
The Lhotsampas have been living in seven camps in eastern Nepal for the past 17 years since being evicted from their homes by the Bhutanese government, which introduced a law stripping them of their citizenship and civil rights because of their ancestry. Pro-resettlement feeling growing
“It is expected that within a few months, some 2,000 refugees will be able to leave each month. The offers for resettlement have been made for a period covering some four to five years,” UNHCR Nepal representative, Daisy Dell, told IRIN.
More countries in Europe have shown interest in housing refugees from Bhutan but so far there has been no confirmation of additional offers, she added.
To date, more than 38,500 Bhutanese refugees have registered their desire for resettlement - nearly one-third of the total 107,000.
“Other families have still not decided what is best for them and may need additional information from those already resettled,” explained Dell.
“The numbers could grow immensely as they become aware of better lives [abroad] rather than the hardship of living in the camps,” refugee Ashok Gurung said.
Gurung, a member of the Nepal-based Refugee Rights Coordinating Committee, said the past 17 years of hardship had affected their lives so badly that mental health and depression problems were spreading among the population.
“We know the political reality. For how long can we refugees deal with this suffering?” Gurung asked.
However, while most experience culture shock when they move, they gradually adjust to “new and better lives”, according to relatives and friends of resettled refugees.
“They are treated with care and provided with good facilities. There is no more suspicion over refugees just dumped in some foreign country,” said Thakur Mishra, a Bhutanese journalist and editor of the online Bhutan News Service.
Security concerns
However, there remain security concerns due to constant threats by underground organisations run by some refugees who advocate for repatriation and against resettlement.“One of them includes the Bhutan Communist Party-Marxist Leninist Maoist [BCP-MLM], which has often been blamed for intimidating refugees against applying for resettlement,” said one refugee activist who declined to be identified.
He added, however, that as more refugees declared their desire to leave openly, the threats had decreased.
In fact, several of those who supported the BCP-MLM had left the party and applied for third-country resettlement themselves, he explained.
“Refugees must be able to exercise their freedom of decision regarding durable solutions,” said UNHCR’s Dell, adding that the agency was working closely with local authorities and police to protect refugees from harassment, intimidation and the use of force.
Sunday, June 29, 2008
Nepal’s Generosity To Refugees
Source: Rising Nepal
By Hira Bahadur Thapa
Although the Government of Nepal has not yet acceded to the 1951 UN Convention on Status of Refugees and its subsequent Protocol, it has been quite generous to the refugees from whichever country they are from. There are glaring examples to prove Nepal’s generous behaviour meted out to the refugees. The simple reason why Nepal treats the refugees so kindly is nothing but purely humanitarian. It knows that there is no legal obligation on its part to provide humanitarian care like food and shelter to refugees as it is not a party to the refugees-related international convention. Its position on the current convention on refugees is not a factor deciding the type of treatment the refugees should be given. This is why we have hosted not only refugees from China who entered Nepal a long time ago but also Bhutanese refugees who have been sheltered since the early Nineties after being expelled from Bhutan.
Protracted negotiation
No other negotiations have been more protracted than that of the Bhutanese refugees who were compelled to leave their homeland by their government. About 100,000 of them have been in Nepal since 1991. The host government’s tireless efforts to repatriate them to their place of origin have borne no fruit. In the course of the last almost 18 years, Nepal has been engaged with all sincerity in finding a negotiated and durable solution to the vexed issue of the refugees from Bhutan. Unless there is reciprocal flexibility from the other side, it is near impossible to bring about an acceptable solution to the problem of refugees. While Nepal could have prevented the inflow of the Bhutanese refugees once they started to cross into our territory, the then government decided to let them enter only on the grounds of humanitarian concerns.
The reluctance of the country of origin of the Bhutanese refugees to be serious in taking their citizens back was clearly visible in the approach of the concerned government to the many rounds of negotiations held so far. There were as many as 15 rounds of ministerial level negotiations between Nepal and Bhutan. At each stage of the negotiations, the Bhutanese side hardly presented a flexible position, which very much obstructed the progress, especially in the repatriation of the refugees. As talks seemed no where to a satisfactory conclusion, members of the international community floated the idea of resettlement of the Bhutanese refugees in some of the western countries, including Australia. This option of third country resettlement is undoubtedly less than a comprehensive solution to the refugee problem. The most durable solution of the problem lies in the repatriation of the refugees to their own country.
The growing frustration among the Bhutanese refugees for having been forced to stay in the country of asylum for long years and not seeing any rays of hope to go back to their motherland must have led them to voluntarily accept the option of third country settlement. The host government is too heavily burdened with the sheltering of now more than 100,000 Bhutanese refugees. They have been staying in camps in eastern Nepal for more than a decade-and-a-half. Under such unavoidable circumstances, the Nepal government, once approached by all the members of the donor community for giving consent to the solution of the refugee problem through third country settlement, gave its nod in view of the welfare of the refugees.
Nepal has accepted this temporary solution not because it does not believe in repatriation as the only comprehensive resolution of the refugee problem. It has on the other hand agreed to the call of the international community and of those bilateral donors, in particular, with the conviction that resettlement may ease the burden on Nepal while the refugees also have a better quality of life if settled outside the country of asylum. The key point here is the voluntary decision of the refugees themselves to seek a better future in the developed countries of the west which are willing to get them resettled.
The United States of America has agreed to take the highest number of Bhutanese refugees. There are other countries like Norway, Denmark and Australia showing willingness to accept the Bhutanese refugees in their territories. The US has declared it will resettle as many as 60,000 of the Bhutanese refugees in the country. The process of resettlement has begun, and so far a few hundred refugees have already left the refugee camps for the US. Some other countries are also preparing to take them. The US government is to complete the resettlement of 60,000 refugees in the next five years.
The option of third country resettlement can never be a durable solution to the complex problem of refugees. Despite this, the Nepal government, as a host, did not object to this with the understanding that members of the international community will continue exerting due pressure on the Bhutanese government to agree to take back its citizens.
The refugees in volunteering to go to a third country for resettlement in no way forfeit their right to repatriation. Nothing bars them from being repatriated to their country of origin even when they have been resettled. It behooves on the part of the countries resettling the refugees to impress upon the country of origin that it should not in any way get encouraged to force its citizens to flee their own country. To ensure this, the country that expelled its countrymen must be made to follow repatriation.
Urban refugees
What concerns a country like Nepal at the moment is that the government’s generosity to the refugees is being misused by some. One of the irrevocable evidences of this is the undesirable tendency on the part of some foreigners to use Nepal’s territory as a jumping ground to seek third country resettlement in the west. It is believed that there are some foreign nationals trying to be listed as urban refugees in Nepal who seem to take advantage of the liberal immigration policy of the government. There is no denying the fact that the concept of so-called urban refugees is completely unacceptable to the government of Nepal.
Certainly in the name of giving humanitarian consideration to the plight of genuine refugees, Nepal cannot afford to turn a deaf ear to such a problem. Against this background, the government should also be serious enough in dealing with the refugees who try to misuse their shelter by participating in political demonstrations, which unfortunately has attracted the attention of the western press.
