Canada will welcome up to 1,000 additional Bhutanese refugees from Nepal, the country’s Minister for Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism, Jason Kenney, has announced.

“Canada has a longstanding tradition of assisting refugees and welcomes one in 10 refugees resettled globally, more than almost any other country in the world,” Kenney said in a statement issued on Thursday. “We recognize the importance of family reunification in this process, and resettling refugees who already have family in Canada will help them adjust much faster and more easily.”

Bhutanese refugees have been living in seven camps in eastern Nepal since the early 1990s. 

Canada, along with Australia, Denmark, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway the United States and the United Kingdom, are resettling many of them.

In May 2007, Canada announced that it would resettle up to 5,000 Bhutanese refugees over five years. In June 2012, it committed to resettling 500 more Bhutanese refugees who have family connections in Canada. 

The latest announcement will bring the total number to 6,500. Till date, 5,000 have already been resettled in Canada.

“We welcome the Government’s decision to resettle more Bhutanese refugees,” said Furio De Angelis, the Representative of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Canada. “By working in partnership with other countries, Canada has helped refugees who have been living in camps for more than two decades find a new home and start their lives anew.”

The additional 1,000 Bhutanese refugees will be selected over a period of two years. The country’s representatives plan to visit the refugee camps in Nepal in April, while some of the selected one are expected to reach Canada before the end of this year.

Published on : 29 March 2013 | The Kathmandu Post