Refugee Verification Updates

The Bhutan-Nepal Joint Verification Team has completed verification of 8,836 refugees from Khudunabari camp. In its 120 working days as on October 18, 2001, 1,444 households comprising 4,472 male, 4,364 female and among them 3,973 have gone through the process. It is expected that the JVT would take about a month and a half to complete verifying the rest of the families in Khudunabari camp. Despite concerns expressed from various quarters on the need to increase the pace of verification, the process hasn't made any significant headway. However, after the eleventh rpund of Bhutan Nepal talks held in August in Thimphu, the JVT has started verifying 16 families per day instead of the previous 10.

BRRRC UPDATE

Date: August 24, 2001

Though Nepalese delegation led by Dr. Ram Sharan Mahat, finance minister of His Majesty’s Government of Nepal (HMG-Nepal) reached Thimpu on 20th August 2001 for 11th round of bilateral Joint ministerial level committee talk (JMLC) with concrete proposals on verification of Bhutanese refugees and repatriation but had to contend with lesser bargain. Bhutanese Refugee Representative Repatriation Committee (BRRRC) welcomes and appreciate whatever being achieved amidst the tough position of the Royal Government of Bhutan (RGOB). Agreement to simplify the verification process, break up the present joint verification team (JVT) into two teams to speed up the verification going on in Khudunabari camp and complete early, there after proceed on categorization and harmonization and start working at secretary level with meeting at Kathmandu on the first week of September is a positive outcome if RGOB sincerely follows it. Other wise the superficial nod of RGOB is just intrigue to prevent HMG-Nepal to raise the Bhutanese refugee issue in the UN General Assembly in September 2001.The term "harmonization" is ambiguous and puzzling to the Bhutanese refugees. Harmonize what? We believed the verification began after fully harmonizing all differences arising in the process and not done on trial and error method.

However the peace meal process is still tedious, time-consuming and exasperating tasks. The insistence from Nepalese delegation to stipulate the time frame, begin verification in all the seven camps at a time and verification should be Bhutanese and non-Bhutanese had been unsuccessful because of the lack of reciprocal enthusiasm from Bhutanese side. The indefinite time gap is frustrating, as we have already spent the wretched refugee live more than 10 years in the camps. Therefore, hope the thought and action of RGOB changes in mean time especially before the youths frustration turn into action and always move forward sincerely in coming days in genuine quest for peaceful and permanent solution and all the Bhutanese have the right to return to their original homesteads with safety, dignity and honor.

S.B.Subba

Chairman

BRRRC

Date: July 17, 2001

To
His Majesty the King of Bhutan
Tashichhodzong
Thimphu : Bhutan

Your Majesty,
Subject: Appeal

May we have the honor to apprise Your Majesty on the ongoing verification exercise of Bhutanese refugees at Damak, Jhapa, eastern Nepal as agreed by the Royal Government of Bhutan (RGOB) and His Majesty's Government of Nepal (HMG-Nepal) and being carried out by the Joint Verification Team (JVT) of Bhutan and Nepal. We reiterate that the verification of only Bhutanese and non-Bhutanese is of paramount importance to bring peaceful end to the protracted Bhutanese refugee problem. We have time and again clearly mentioned our interest of not taking any non-Bhutanese or force any Bhutanese who would like to settle elsewhere.

However, in light of the breakthrough after long impasse, it is disappointing to note the deliberations in the ongoing national assembly on Monday the 9 July 2001 in which the national assembly members strongly asserted the Royal Government to restrain from accepting the people back. Further it was more disheartening with the statement of the home minister Lyonpo Thinley Gyamtsho who stated that the people in the camps are voluntarily migrated after selling their properties, some are economic migrants and yet others are people who have embezzled huge government fund and left the country. Of course the view may be to justify the Government action to prove that the refugees are at fault. But such intransigent stands of the house at this moment are improper and are not going to help resolve the problem if RGOB is in genuine quest of the solution. Now, no more we expect any positive effort and interest to resolve the problem by the Government. In this critical situation, as Supreme command of the nation Your Majesty is the only person who can give decision now and save the nation from future national crisis. We all are anxiously waiting for Your sagacious Majesty's call and reintegration into the national mainstream. We would also like to take this opportunity to bring the following to Your Majesty's kind attention:

1. The JVT is doing a commendable job and has achieved the optimum per day capacity of work by any single team. Nevertheless there is urgent need to review the whole exercise and work out suitable mechanism to accelerate the pace of the verification to complete within shortest time possible.

2. We appreciate the kind gesture of the RGOB in giving medical treatment to T.N. Rizal at Calcutta. We are hopeful that in similar gesture the RGOB will look after his social welfare, which he is desperately in need of and taking him into confidence the government be prepared to sit for dialogue with representatives of the dissident group for resolution of the southern problem.

3. Mr. T.N. Rizal has been awaiting for personal audience with Your Majesty since his release from the prison on 17 December 1999. Therefore we earnestly appeal Your Majesty to grant audience to him and hear his views which would help for peaceful resolution of the Lhotsampa problem and bring peace in the country. All the Bhutanese refugees support him and his effort to resolve the southern problem peacefully.

4. The resettlement program should be stopped with immediate effect and all the newly resettled people should be removed to new locations and create congenial environment for repatriation.

5. Your Majesty should declare general amnesty and repatriate the refugees with safety, dignity and honour.

6. We appreciate the RGOB the pursuance of dialogue with ULFA and NDFB to leave Bhutan whose presence are posing threat to the security of the nation.

7. We are concerned on the recent election of Royal Advisory Councilors (RAC) in which no southern Bhutanese candidate was elected. This is in contradiction to the past tradition, wherein two RAC members used to be from the south to give equal ethnic representation. This is being felt apparent indication of the Government's policy to gradually marginalise the Lhotsampas from taking part in the decision making process. Of course, we do not undermine the capability of the newly elected councilors who have been elected by the people with careful scrutiny and judgement. But our only concern is how will they represent our cause who have little knowledge of our tradition, social, cultural and religion and the deep rooted cause of the Lhotsampas problem which led to creation of more than 100,000 refugees.

While concluding, we once again appeal Your magnanimous Majesty to kindly think over the whole gamut of the national crisis particularly the threat posed by the presence of ULFA and NDFB in the country and the future implications of the refugee problem if left prolonged. Taking into view of the future consequences of delayed resolution of the refugee problem in context to the unfavourable political development in the region we further plead Your Majesty to order the Government to speedily resolve the problem in the greater interest of the country and the people.

We remain,

Suk Bahadur Subba Pratap Subba      Ram Bahadur Das    Jawala Prasad Regmi
Chairman                 Camp Secretary   Camp Secretary      Camp Secretary
BRRRC                   Sanischare           Beldangi-I               Beldangi-II

Ghanashyam Adhikari     Padam Lal Rizal Til Bahadur Gurung Nandi Keshar Koirala
Camp Secretary             Camp Secretary Camp Secretary      Camp Secretary
Beldangi-II Extn.             Goldhap                    Khudunabari       Timai

UPDATE 13 ON THE BHUTANESE REFUGEE JOINT VERIFICATION TEAM.

During the week of 27th July -10th August, 2001, the Bhutan/Nepal Joint Verification Team (JVT) interviewed 107 families, 349 males and 321 females, total of 670 . There are 1957 families and 12500 individuals in Khudunabari Camp. As of now the trend is at an average rate of approximately 10 families per day. There are distrubances sometimes due to heavy rains that blocks the movement of people, as such the work is slow. With the change of the Prime Minister wihin the ruling Congress Party, there has been some level of political stability. It appears that this could be one of the reasons for the agreement on the holding of the 11th round of Joint Ministerial level talk at Thimphu. It is sheduled for 20-22 August, 2001. After almost four months of work, the JVT has managed to verify only 940 families and 5,913 individuals as of 10th August 2001. Total number of working days so far completed is 88. Almost 50 percent of the total population is now verified from Khudunabari Camp.

During this weekened diplomats from Norway and Ireland and UNHCR officials visited the refugee camps expressing their concern over the activities of the JVT.

Again on 11th- 12th August 2001, Six Hon'ble Members of Nepales parliament belonging to Foreign Relations and Human Rights Committee visited Jhapa to have first hand information on the developments of JVT. The delegation consisting of the honourable members were Shree. Suresh Karki, Shree. Bijoy subba, Smt. Urmilla Aryal, Shree.Jagan Nath Khatiwada, Shree.Gobinda Bikram Saha and Shree. Shiva Humagai. They were assisted by Office Secretary Mr. Toya Nath Bhattarai of the said committee. The team visited Goldhap refugee camp. They were supposed to visit Khudunabari camp also but due to the flood in the river they could not visit or talke to the verified refugees. It is believed that this team will submit its report to the government and to the Parliament at an earliest.

The Nepalese delegation headed by Ho'nble Minister for Finance as the special representative to the Prime Minister along with JVT Team leader Mr. Sushil Jung Bahadur Rana and others are expected to arrive Thimphu on 20th August 2001. The Bhutanese political parties, human rights groups and social organisaions have urged the government of Nepal through the visiting parliamentarians on the following;

1. To ensure repatriation of all the genuine Bhutanese refugees, a time frame to complete the verification must be stipulated and mutually agreed categorization amended forthwith.

2. The verification procedures and mutual understandings between the governments of Bhutan and Nepal should be kept open and transparent.

3. That the Government of Bhutan be urged to immediately repeal ‘refugee’s land allotment scheme’ and rehabilitate internally displaced innocent population at places of no dispute within the country.

4. That, the verified refugees be repatriated immediately to their original homesteads ensuring their justice, dignity, security and honor.

5. The UNHCR be involved to ensure fair, transparent and just verification under international norms and principles.

6. A ‘Task Force’ constituting of parliamentarians, intellectuals, bureaucrats and journalists may be formed to evaluate, review, and update of every event concerning Bhutanese refugees within Bhutan, in the international arena and interact with the refugees as and when deemed necessary. This would help HMG-Nepal to evolve the most suitable strategies in dealing with the Bhutanese government and handling of the refugee repatriation process.

7. Bhutanese not registered either in the camps or in the Office of the Refugee Co-ordinating Unit, disqualified for registration by the screening post at Kakarvitta, Jhapa - Nepal and temporarily suspended in the camps must be officially recognized and registered as refugees to ensure justice and verification.

However, the PFHRB as of writing this report is not very optimistic of the outcome of the talk as the Bhutanese National Assembly that has concluded on 3rd August 2001has categorically deleberated to not to accept any refugees. However, the Home and Foreign Mininsters statment to the National Assembly contains that only a few would be accepted that too after categorisation. The PFHRB is committed to the repatriation of all the genuine Bhutanese to their original homesteads and would not accept Bhutanese government's policy of accepting meek and powerless few and disown majority conscious and literate refugees.

The entire Bhutanese JVT Team have left for Thimphu and for a fortnight it is learnt that the verification would be suspended.

Thanks,

D.P.Kafley,