Bhutanese Refugees in Third Countries- Current Position: Update No. 82

Bhutanese Refugees in Third Countries: Current Position - Update No. 82

By Dr. S. Chandrasekharan

This is in continuation of update No. 80 that dealt with the status of the refugees outside Bhutan.

By now over 30,000 refugees have left the camps for third country settlement. The progress is slow but there is no way the settlement can be speeded up as the host countries are in no position to speed up the infra structural facilities for resettlement.

Reports indicate that among those settled abroad, the elder ones are feeling lonely and are unable to come to terms with their new situation. This feeling of loneliness is going to get worse when the younger ones get absorbed in the job markets and the elderly left behind to take care of the otherwise empty houses.

What they miss more is the cultural and religious environment. They miss their pujas, daily rituals, death anniversaries and so on. Only elders can understand their situation. The elderly people have left everything they earned or inherited in Bhutan but have not been able to leave behind their culture or the traditions which have been absorbed by the communities over centuries.

There is already a move by some to go back, to India perhaps as they will have sufficient funds sent by their children to survive in the Indian environment. If their return is successful, then one could expect a steady reverse flow.

It is the younger lots who have benefitted by third country settlement. Most of them are working in either the first job entry markets or studying in schools with the subsidies provided by the host government. The children are doing well in the schools and these younger ones have a bright future and have something to look forward to in contrast to the earlier days in the camps where they were a desperate lot.

The middle-aged ones are struggling with the language and the kind of work they are to perform to make a living. They are the most active ones and have started to get together to form a king of loose association to make their voice heard in the international forum. These groups got together and made very valid points in the Human Rights Meeting in Geneva recently where the Bhutan Government made an unsuccessful attempt to convince the forum, of Bhutan’s impeccable record on human rights. Barring the case of refugees, Bhutan does have a good record but it is going to be overshadowed further in the days to come with the refugees living outside getting more and more active.

Another development though incipient now, is the politicisation of those settled abroad. Two of the parties BNDP ( Bhutan National Democratic Party) and the BPP (Bhutan People’s Party) are getting active as many of the now settled refugees belong to one of the two parties. They will have funds too in course of time to run the party outfits in Bhutan and in the camps.

The news of not very "charming" life abroad is also creating some doubts in some of those in the camps who have already opted for third country settlement. The one overwhelming point and the fear that is catching up, is the loss of one’s identity that is inevitable now or even later.

The result is again the rise of a fresh initiative to seek outright expatriation and nothing else. The pressure is on the main stream parties still present in the camps to revive the satyagrah movement once again with the elderly taking the lead. Peaceful protests and demonstrations at the Mechi bridge could start again. The mainstream political parties in the camps seem to have no alternative.

In the camps the law and order is worsening. The Bhutan Communist Party ( Maoists) appear to be taking control of the camps. They may not only support the movement but provide "teeth" to the peaceful movement and will surely attempt to change the colour of the movement.

A signature campaign is already going on of those who will not opt for third country settlement. The number has reached 12,000 now. With the kind of feed back flowing from abroad, and the steps taken by the activist groups, it is certain that this number will go up.

There are many outfits operating in the camps. The first one is the Maoist party (BCP- Maoist-Leninist) whose goal is armed revolution. In a meeting organised on 28^th January at Kathmandu, senior politburo member of UCPN ( Maoists)- C.P.Gajurel said that the only option for oppressed Bhutanese to get justice is to take up arms. He dismissed the idea of resettlement and then offered his party’s readiness to extend any form of solidarity and support for struggle inside Bhutan.

The second is the United Revolutionary Front of Bhutan (URLB) whose founding leader Santiram Nepal was murdered recently. Then, there is the outfit of Bhutan Tigers. The latest addition is the Bhutan Leopards who appear to be the most active now.

Mr. K.B.Khadka who was associated with the Human Rights Organisation of Bhutan was also murdered recently. The reason for the killing is not known but the issue could be over third country settlement.

What is important to note is that all the underground outfits mentioned earlier are operating from Nepal with the full knowledge of Nepal government who perhaps in the face of many other major problems have not had time to think of the situation in the camps.

Two of the five camp secretaries are Maoists and the BCP is likely to capture the other three posts soon. Most of the other positions in the camps are also within the reach of the Maoists.

It is important for both Bhutan and Nepal to get the camps closed. Their meeting at the highest level should not be for going back to the verification regime which proved a failure ( with Bhutan not taking a single refugee even among the verified ones) but to think out of the box and get as many as possible to settle in India.

Whether one likes it or not, all those remaining or who have opted out of the resettlement from the camps except those radicalised and likely to be radicalised will gravitate towards India sooner or later.

It is presumed that India is aware that over 18,000 Bhutanese evicted from Bhutan are outside the camps, not in Nepal but in India. They have not offered themselves for any verification and even here some are trying to go abroad for third country settlement scheme through proxies in the camps.