Bhutanese refugees organised a protest in Beldangi, Jhapa, on Monday demanding a permanent solution to their problems. They also requested the Nepal government to take initiatives for solving their festering problem.

The refugees said they have been compelled to live in the camp amid numerous hardships for the last 26 years. They accused the Nepal government of not being serious about settling their problems, mainly through repatriation.

“We will raise the issue at the international level if the Nepal government does not take initiatives,” said Chiranjibi Khaling Rai, the former secretary of the camp. The camp dwellers also called for resumption of talks between Nepal and Bhutan on the refugee issue.

The refugees raised objections that most of their compatriots have been resettled in the third countries unilaterally. They also demanded identity cards for the remaining refugees who number 1,641 in total, according to Rai.

Nepal has hosted more than 100,000 Bhutanese refugees since early 1990s in seven camps in eastern Nepal. With the large-scale third-country resettlement under way since 2007, there are still around 11,000 refugees living in Beldangi, Damak and Pathari Sanischare in Morang. Of them, some 2,000 want to go back to Bhutan.                          

Published on: 1 August 2017 | The Kathmandu Post