Nepal government 'surprised' with US remarks about refugee resettlement - Yadav Khanal

Nepal government 'surprised' with US remarks about refugee resettlement

In an interesting turn of events, the Foreign Ministry of Nepal government has expressed "surprise" over the recent remarks made by an American government official that the US is ready to take up to 60,000 Bhutanese refugees.
"The US has not discussed the issue with us. We do not understand how an American (official) made those remarks," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Yadav Khanal is quoted as saying by Nepal Samacharpatra daily.
He was referring to recent remarks made by US Assistant Secretary of State for Refugee Affairs, Ellen Sauerbrey, during a conference of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Geneva where she had stated that the US was "willing to resettle a very significant part of this [refugee] population." She said, "We think over the next three or four years that we can easily absorb 50,000 or 60,000 of the people who are now in these camps," AP quoted her as saying. There are around 106,000 Bhutanese living in UNHCR-run camps in the eastern district of Jhapa and Morang.
The US proposal has not been received with excitement by the refugee leaders who say that their first priority should be the repatriation. They claim that US willingness to resettle refugees could send a wrong message to the Bhutanese regime and absolve it of all its wrongdoings. nepalnews.com sd Oct 06 06

UN welcomes US's Bhutanese refugee resettlement offer- Jennifer Pagonis

UN welcomes US's Bhutanese refugee resettlement offer
Kantipur Report

KATHMANDU, Oct 7 -

The United Nations has welcomed the United States' proposal to resettle up to 60,000 Bhutanese refugees over the next several years.
Describing the offer as an opportunity to break a long-standing deadlock over more than 100,000 refugees from Bhutan living in eastern Nepal, U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) spokeswoman Jennifer Pagonis on Friday said, “Years of bilateral negotiations between Nepal and Bhutan have made little progress in resolving this issue,” adding that, “The opportunity for a large-scale resettlement has made us very hopeful.”
U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Population Refugees and Migration Ellen Sauerbrey on Wednesday had made the resettlement offer while attending the UNHCR’s Executive Committee meeting in Geneva.
“After 15 different governmental-level consultations between the two governments,” Sauerbrey said at a briefing, “the United States has come forward and said we are willing to resettle a very significant part of this population.”
She had said the United States is likely will be able to absorb up to 60,000 refugees over three or four years, with Canada and Australia also offering to take some of the Bhutanese refugees.
Most of the refugees fled Bhutan in the late 1980s, when the Bhutanese government, dominated by the majority Drukpa ethnic group, accused the minority Lothsampa group of being illegal immigrants. Talks between Nepal and Bhutan on the refugee issue produced no breakthrough and have been stalled for a couple of years.
Meanwhile, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister KP Sharma Oli had said that Nepal and Bhutan will hold foreign minister level talks next month to resolve the Bhutanese refugee crisis. Oli has stressed the need for the respectful return to homeland for the refugees, stating that Nepal will consider third party involvement to resolve the issue only after Bhutan formally declares that it cannot take back the refugees.

Nepal, Bhutan to hold talks over refugees in November- KP OLI

Nepal, Bhutan to hold talks over refugees in November
Kantipur Report

KATHMANDU, Oct 6 -

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister KP Sharma Oli has said that Nepal and Bhutan will hold foreign minister level talks next month to resolve the Bhutanese refugee crisis.
Talking to media persons at the Tribhuwan International Airport on Friday morning, Oli, who returned from New York after attending the 61st General Assembly of the United Nations, said that he and Bhutanese Prime Minister Khandu Wangchuk, who also holds the foreign ministry portfolio, had agreed to hold a ministerial level talks this coming November.
This will be the 16th round of talks between the two countries to resolve the long-standing Bhutanese refugee crisis.
Most of the refugees fled Bhutan in the late 1980s, when the Bhutanese government, dominated by the majority Drukpa ethnic group, accused the minority Lothsampa group of being illegal immigrants.
Talks between Nepal and Bhutan on the refugee issue produced no breakthrough and have been stalled for a couple of years.
Reiterating Nepal's wish for a respectful return of all Bhutanese refugees to their homeland, "despite the recent US proposal to take in some 60,000 Bhutanese refugees", Oli said, "If Bhutan tries to create hindrances in the refugee management process, Nepal can still think of an alternative means to resolve the crisis."
On the country's ongoing peace process Oli said he is confident that upcoming government-Maoist Summit talks will be successful in bringing about sustainable peace in the country.
Stating that unless the summit talks address the present political and technical problems facing the country, the constituent assembly elections will be jeopardised, he said that everyone should work towards making the talks a success.
Fielding queries regarding the vacant positions of Nepali ambassadors in various countries, Oli said, "Since the technical problems have already been dealt with, the government at the moment is working to make the necessary appointments."
Oli had gone to New York to attend the General Assembly of the United Nations after participating in a meeting of Non-Aligned Nations in Havana, Cuba.
The foreign minister also informed that he had an informal meeting with the US president George W Bush during which the latter said that the US is ready to extend any sort of assistance for the restoration of peace in Nepal.
Oli also added that Nepal had established diplomatic ties with three new countries during the General Assembly of the United Nations.
The latest countries to establish diplomatic ties with Nepal are Andora, Congo and Bhangwata in the Asia Pacific, sources quoting the minister said.

U.S. prepared to take in up to 60,000 Bhutanese refugees from Nepal

U.S. prepared to take in up to 60,000 Bhutanese refugees from Nepal

The Associated PressMONDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2006-->Published: October 2, 2006

GENEVA The United States is prepared to take in up to 60,000 Bhutanese refugees stranded for nearly two decades in neighboring Nepal because of strained relations between the two Himalayan kingdoms, a senior U.S. official said Monday.
Ellen Sauerbrey, the U.S. assistant secretary of state for refugee affairs, said Australia and Canada also have indicated they would be willing to resettle some of the 106,000 estimated Bhutanese living in U.N.-run camps in southeast Nepal.
Most of the refugees fled Bhutan in the late 1980s, when the country's government, dominated by the majority Drukpa ethnic group, accused the minority Lothsampa group of being illegal immigrants. Talks between Nepal and Bhutan on the refugee issue produced no breakthrough and have been stalled for a couple of years.
"The United States has come forward and said we are willing to resettle a very significant part of this population," Sauerbrey told reporters in Geneva, where she was attending a conference at the U.N. refugee agency. "We think over the next three or four years that we can easily absorb 50,000 or 60,000 of the people who are now in these camps."
Sauerbrey also praised Nepal for having recently given permission to UNHCR to do a census of the camps, which will help facilitate resettlement of the refugees elsewhere. She said Nepal also recently allowed 16 people to receive exit permits, including three young women who were sexually exploited and have since been resettled in the United States.
In July, U.N. Assistant High Commissioner for Refugees Judy Cheng-Hopkins said she was optimistic the issue of the Bhutanese in Nepal would be resolved soon, saying some donor nations had indicated they would be willing to take in some of the refugees.

US ready to give new home to Bhutanese exiles in Nepal -Ellen Sauerbrey

US ready to give new home to Bhutanese exiles in Nepal

Agence France-PresseLast updated 10:04pm (Mla time) 10/02/2006

GENEVA --

The United States is prepared to provide a new home for tens of thousands of Bhutanese refugees who have been living in limbo in Nepal for more than a decade, a senior US official said on Monday.
"The United States has come forward and said that we are willing to resettle a very significant part of this population," said Ellen Sauerbrey, Assistant Secretary of State for Population, Refugees and Migration.
"We think that over the next three or four years we can easily absorb 50,000-60,000 of the people who are in these camps," said Sauerbrey, who was in Geneva to take part in a meeting of the UN refugee agency's executive board.
Some 106,000 Bhutanese refugees, mostly ethnic Nepalese Hindus, have been living in seven camps in southeast Nepal after leaving Bhutan in 1990 when the Buddhist kingdom launched cultural reforms encouraging the use of Bhutan's language and national dress.
Bhutan later expelled more ethnic Nepalese for allegedly entering the remote Himalayan kingdom illegally.
Bhutan and Nepal have argued for years over each other's responsibility for the refugees.
More than a dozen Bhutanese have already arrived in the United States or have been given exit permits by Nepalese authorities, most of them young women who have been victims of sexual exploitation in refugee camps, Sauerbrey told journalists.
"This is one of the very, very long, protracted refugee situations," said Sauerbrey.
"We are very happy that there is seemingly now some movement on this situation, and we will keep working at every opportunity with the two governments to try to move this process along," she said.
Australia and Canada have also said they are willing to take in some of the refugees, Sauerbrey noted.

The Bhutanese Refugee Problem- Rajan Pokhrel

The Bhutanese Refugee Problem
After years of living in camps the displaced are longing for home
Rajan Pokhrel (rajanp)

Published 2006-09-22 16:35 (KST)

Since the late 1980s and early 1990s the royal government of Bhutan, in a calculated campaign, has revoked the citizenship and evicted more than 100,000 Bhutanese citizens. These citizens were driven from Bhutan and came into Nepal through India. For almost 16 years now they have been living as refugees in seven camps in eastern Nepal.

Bhutanese Refugees in Nepal
Population per camp
Timai 10,253

Beldangi (I) 18,200

Beldangi (II) 22,225

Beldangi (III) 11,142

K/bari 13,436

Goldhap 9,500

Sanischare 20,090

Total 104,846

Source: Bhutanese refugee human rights organizations

The issue of Bhutanese Refugees has now become a long story. Sixteen years have passed by and still there is no solution in sight that the Bhutanese refugees will ever go back to Bhutan. It is indeed a long period of time for the refugees to remain in the slum-like refugee camps and survive on begged alms and charity handouts. Sixteen years that have passed in bamboo huts in refugee camps in eastern Nepal is indeed a long period of time for the oppressed people who are equally tormented by frustration.Despite the 15 rounds of bilateral talks between the governments of Bhutan and Nepal; efforts from the refugees' side for repatriation and pressure from various international levels for the repatriation of Bhutanese refugees, the Bhutanese refugee problem is gearing up towards an even more grave situation.I talked to some of the Bhutanese refugees and other people whom I met, and telephoned them in Kathmandu and Jhapa over the past two weeks.Bhutanese refugee Nar Bahadur Karki has a dream to return Bhutan. "I always remember my small house and the cultivated land," Karki said, adding that bilateral talks between Nepal and Bhutan are needed for the early repatriation of the refugees. Another Yognath Dhungel, opposed the proposal for third country repatriation. "My motherland is more lovely than heaven. I want to be back at any cost," Dhungel said. According to him they are facing innumerable problems in the camps in Nepal.Netra Dahal accused India and Nepal of not pressurizing Bhutan's government to solve the problem. "It is an international issue but not only the problem of Nepal," Dahal said, adding that the international community must play its role in solving the problem. Rama Kharel, who is residing at a camp with her 7-member family, asked the concerned authorities to manage her (refugees) repatriation to Bhutan. "I want to die in my country," she reluctantly said.One of the Bhutanese refugees' leaders, Ram Chandra Sigdel, who had led the self-repatriation campaign in the past, said the refugees have high hopes from the newly formed democratic government of Nepal. He urged the government to take firm steps in solving the problem of refugees and said that international pressure is also required to solve the problem.Bhaktmaya Sharma, Durga Tamang, Gita Devi Pokhrel, Tilrupa Dulal and Baliraj Khadka are among the many refugees who dream of returning to their homeland. They asked the United Nations High Commissions for Refugees (UNHCR) to expedite necessary process for their repatriation.Bhutanese refugees have a right to return home, for which, India's mediation is necessary since it is not just Nepal's problem, said Pradip Pokharel, advisor of Amnesty International Nepal. "The government should form a refugee commission to look into the cases and problems of refugees," he said.The bilateral meeting between Nepal and Bhutan held in Oct. 2003 had agreed to begin repatriation of refugees at Khudunabari camp, but the whole process could not move forward after the refugees at the camp and Bhutanese officials had differences on Dec. 23 of the same year. The repatriation process as well as the government level talks couldn't be established until that date.Meanwhile, UNHCR has now come up with the response "Durable Solution" for the Bhutanese refugees' problem. UNHCR's response is an unambiguous answer to our voice, said Homnath Baral, a member of the Refugee Rights Coordinating Committee (RRCC).According to Baral, the Bhutanese issue needs a political solution. Baral welcomed the proposal of UNHCR to find out the durable solution of the problem.Bhutanese refugee Pingala Magar said they no longer want to live as refugees and their patience has run out. "We welcome the UNHCR's proposal for resettlement," she added.
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Leader of the U.S. Congressmen's delegation, Jim Kolbe, who visited Nepal recently, told Bhutan that America could absorb up to 70,000 Bhutanese refugees languishing in various camps in eastern Nepal. "The U.S. has agreed to take up to 50,000 or up to 70,000 of these people. Australia and Canada has also agreed to take in smaller numbers," Kolbe is quoted as saying in a report posted to Kuenselonline, the Bhutanese government's official website. Republican Congress member Kolbe, led a U.S. congressional delegation to Bhutan on a three-day visit from Aug. 28-31.

Bhutan citizens to vote twice for new government-Dasho Kunzang Wangdi

Bhutan citizens to vote twice for new government

Thimphu, Sep 18:

Bhutanese citizens above 18 years will vote twice when elections for a new government are held in 2008, officials here said."The first vote will be during the primary round and the second during the general election," said Chief Election Commissioner Dasho Kunzang Wangdi.Explaining the procedures of the elections, Wangdi said the primary round would be open to all political parties registered with the commission who fulfil the conditions laid down by it.He said although any number of parties could be formed at the primary level all parties should have national representation."A party should have a charter depending on the ideology or principle that it is going to adopt. The charter has to be accepted by the Election Commission when it is being registered," Wangdi was quoted as saying by Bhutan's national newspaper Kuensel."A party will have to present its manifesto during the running and active members of a party who try to get a seat in parliament will be assigned the duty of running."According to the draft constitution of Bhutan, the two political parties with the highest number of votes in the primary election will be declared eligible to contest in the general election.The two parties would then have to nominate their candidates for seats in parliament with the one getting the maximum seats in parliament forming the government.Officials have said people could informally form parties and campaign as long as they do not go against the present laws.


--- IANS

US to Feed Bhutanese Exiles

U.S. provides assistance to feed Bhutanese Refugees in Nepal

The United States has provided $750,000 to the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) to help feed Bhutanese refugees in Nepal.
A press release issued by the American Centre in Kathmandu said “The U.S. State Department's Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration (PRM) provided the funds as part of a recent $11.5 million donation to theWFP.”
The statement quoted WFP Executive Director James Morris as saying, "Thanks to this timely and generous US contribution, there will now be sufficient funding for ninerefugee operations in Africa and a further three in Asia - until the end of this year."
Around 106,000 Bhutanese refugees are languishing in seven United Nations High Commissioner for Refugee (UNHCR) administered camps in eastern Nepal since the early 1990’s.
Fifteen rounds of bilateral negotiations between the Bhutanese and Nepalese governments have failed to resolve the refugee impasse.

nepalnews.com pb Sep 18 06

BHUTAN'S DEMOCRACY AND INDIA'S FEAR

Bhutan gets ready for democracy
September 13, 2006


One of the world's smallest nations is taking a giant step towards becoming a democracy. The Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan, which shares borders with both India and China, will hold its first general election in 2008. The kingdom, with 2.2 million people, is now getting ready to make the shift from monarchy to parliamentary democracy. It is holding mock elections to create awareness among officials and citizens of the process. The mock polls include political campaigning, voting, counting of votes, and declaration of results. In December last year, King Jigme Singye Wangchuck announced his decision to abdicate in favor of his eldest son. This was a prelude to Bhutan adopting a constitution and electing a prime minister in 2008. 938Live's Tamal Mukherjee (TM) spoke to strategic affairs analyst Surya Gangadharan (SG) in New Delhi, to find out more about the winds of change in the Himalayan kingdom.

(SG): Yes, it must rank as one of the most freak experiments in the world, where a king who is fully in control, who has all the powers, is voluntarily giving them up to parliament and to his people. So, it is a very very unique experiment, especially when you compare it with what King Gyanendra tried to do in Nepal. This is really unique.

(TM): Right. But there are lots of questions about what will happen after they set up a democratic system?

(SG): Well, there will be a lot of uncertainties. For one, whether Bhutanese are mature enough to handle democracy when their politicians serve them well, and democracy also means a more open kind of system. So, you are opening the doors for all kinds of influences, whether it is geo-political, geo-strategic, economic and otherwise. You are opening the doors to corruption. All these things will come in. So, it is not very clear whether Bhutan's current gross national happiness will actually continue maybe ten years down the road.

(TM): How are people in New Delhi viewing this? Are they also a bit concerned about what will happen in future?

(SG): As of now, India is guiding Bhutan in its foreign policy and it is one of the biggest contributors to Bhutan's economic development. The moment a representative government comes there, you are going to meet up with a different set of challenges. How do you persuade MPs and others who have been popularly elected, who have a vision of where they are, who they are, will they take kindly to India telling them this is how it is, this is how things should be done? It won't. There's the other factor that Bhutan is strategically crucial for us. It borders China. And we are aware that Bhutan and China have been having some kind of an unofficial dialogue on their border. Bhutan wants to settle the border, China wants a mission in Bhutan which we don’t favour. So, all these little games are going on. And once a representative government comes in, you could have a Bhutanese government independently taking decisions without consulting Delhi. That's where the problems could arise.

(TM): Yes. A similar situation has happened in Nepal, where democracy was introduced, but it is now going through the initial teething problems?

(SG): I think Nepal in a sense -- the last democracy revolution of 1991 was left unfinished. It wasn't taken to the logical conclusions. So, that was blunder on the part of the Nepalese themselves. So, they had to go down the road again this time in order to complete the task. But to say that India's relations with Nepal are going to be easy, but with the Maoists coming in, things aren't going to be easy, they are going to be even more difficult. So, I would see a lot of parallels in Nepal and Bhutan, in the way developments are going on.

(TM): But it seems the king in Bhutan has decided to go down this road, and they are now getting ready to introduce full-fledged democracy and hold elections in 2008?

(SG): The king seems very certain about what he is doing. And in a sense what he is doing is laudable because he is trying to, he has a vision for Bhutan beyond him. And it's better he tries and does it now because he is still young and his son is younger, and he can be there to serve as a kind of stabilizing force to keep people together. So, obviously he is looking very very far ahead, and one should in a sense congratulate him for his vision. Whether this vision will work or how it will work is something in the realm of uncertainty. --------

That was strategic affairs analyst Surya Gangadharan in New Delhi, talking to
Tamal Mukherjee.

CLICK TO LISTEN TO THE INTERVIEW. http://www.rsi.sg/english_loadaudio.php?

audio=mms://202.172.226.198/radiorsi/rsi_English/rsi_e_wed2005.asf
IT TAKES TIME TO OPEN

Bhutanese RefugeesNew Refugee Policy - Uttam Maharjan

Bhutanese RefugeesNew Refugee Policy [ 2006-9-13 ]

By Uttam Maharjan

The fate of over 100,000 Bhutanese refugees has been in the air for a decade and a half. These Bhutanese refugees have been sheltering in seven camps in Jhapa and Morang districts in eastern Nepal since they first arrived in December 1990. The Government of Nepal and the Royal Government of Bhutan have held umpteen rounds of talks to solve the refugee crisis. The Nepal-Bhutan Joint Ministerial Committee was formed in 1993, and the first round of talks was held in that year. Despite so many rounds of talks, there is no sign of the refugee crisis getting solved. Who is to blame for this sorry state of affairs? It is largely Bhutan itself. Trilateral issueBhutan has been avoiding solving the refugee crisis by making one alibi or the other. Whenever international pressure seems to pile up on it, the Dragon Kingdom shows willingness to solve the refugee crisis by holding talks with Nepal. But the point to ponder is that although the Bhutanese refugee crisis is trilateral in nature, involving Nepal, Bhutan and India, Bhutan insists that it is a bilateral issue. That is why, although Nepal wants India to get involved in the refugee talks, the country has not been able to notch up success in this direction. Without Indian support and cooperation, the problem cannot be easily solved.Under international pressure, Bhutan agreed to take back its refugees in 2003 after verification of the refugees dwelling in the Khudunabari camp. Preparations were being made for the repatriation of the first batch of refugees and verification of refugees in other camps when an untoward incident took place on December 22 in that year. The refugees assaulted the Bhutanese officials of the Joint Verification Team. In fact, the incident occurred due to the provocative behaviour on the part of the Bhutanese officials. After the incident, the Bhutanese officials went back to Bhutan without so much as informing their Nepalese counterpart. Since then, the refugee issue has remained unsolved despite Nepal's repeated requests for solving the problem. During the intervening time since the incident, some developments have cropped up. At one time, some Bhutanese refugees, being despondent over their problem remaining unaddressed for a long time, marched on their own to their homeland, only to be repelled by the Indian authorities. There were protest programmes by the Bhutanese refugees in the capital city of Kathmandu to mount pressure on the government to take concrete measures to arrange for their repatriation to their homeland. The point of nationalising and assimilating the refugees in Nepal was also mooted. In yet another recent development, resettlement of the refugees in third countries has held the limelight. But the refugees are against this scheme, which has reportedly been hatched by the international community. What they want is nothing less than dignified repatriation to their homeland without, of course, any strings attached.A new era of people's democracy, popularly called loktantra, has been ushered in Nepal since the success of People's Movement II. The loktrantic government has taken the initiative of solving the refugee imbroglio by formulating a new refugee policy. Accordingly, a five-member team has been constituted. The team has been surveying the status of the refugees since August 31, 2006. The members of the team have been holding direct talks with the refugees to know their feelings. The team has flatly denied that the refugees will be resettled in third countries, clarifying that it is just a scuttlebutt. The team, following in the footsteps of the past governments of Nepal, believes that Indian support is essential to solving the refugee crisis. The team has, therefore, mulled over winning India over to the positive thinking that the refugee crisis is a trilateral issue and not just a bilateral one. The team has also accused Bhutan of escaping solving the refugee problem by making one excuse or the other.Given the long time the refugee crisis has remained unresolved, it is high time Nepal took drastic steps to solve the crisis. The best way to solve the crisis is dignified, unconditional repatriation of the refugees to their homeland, which can be engineered through the tripartite efforts of Nepal, Bhutan and India. Otherwise, there will be no option left for Nepal other than to internationalise the issue. Package of solutionsTill now, the refugees have been living off the assistance being given by various international organisations. It is reported that these organizations are gradually cutting back on their assistance, making the lives of the refugees more and more miserable. It is obvious that the refugees cannot be supported forever in Nepal. Nor is it possible for Nepal to assimilate all the refugees. What must be understood by Bhutan and the international community is that Nepal has sheltered the refugees on humanitarian grounds. The refugee crisis must be solved, otherwise the refugees will turn stateless people, a crime in the eyes of international law. Let's hope that the newly formed government team will come up with a package of solutions beneficial to both Nepal and Bhutan and not a Pandora's box that will further exacerbate the refugee crisis.