Open dialogue with the Bhutan king: UNHCR
In what is seen as a significant policy statement, the Kathmandu office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has called for dialogue between the Bhutanese monarch and Bhutanese political parties in exile.
UNHCR'S representative in Nepal, Abraham Abraham, told Bhutanese political parties in Damak on Tuesday that they should re-establish dialogue with the Bhutanese King and work towards reconciliation.
"The Bhutanese refugee situation is a complex one to resolve as it was not the result of an internal conflict in Bhutan," Abraham told 32 refugees representing the Bhutanese political parties in Nepal.
Abraham was in Damak for a routine visit to UNHCR's sub-office, which oversees the refugee agency's operations for some 105,000 Bhutanese refugees in seven camps in eastern Nepal, said a statement issued by the UNHCR’s Kathmandu office.
"Repatriation could be achieved by the refugees sending the right messages and signals to their King and working towards reconciliation," Abraham told the meeting.
Since the refugees were evicted by the Bhutanese government some 14 years ago, not a single refugee has returned, despite negotiations on repatriation between the Bhutanese and Nepalese governments.
UNHCR has not been involved in these negotiations, but has worked consistently to advocate a comprehensive and long-term solution to the refugees’ plight, the statement said.
Meanwhile, the UNHCR office in Kathmandu has refuted reports that quoted Abraham as saying that Bhutan’s king had created refugees. In a letter to the editor sent to The Kathmandu Post daily, the UNHCR said the agency was advocating a dialogue between the Nepali and Bhutanese governments to resolve this issue. nepalnews.com by July 14 05
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