National 4 (Spotlight Weekly)

‘It Is In The Interest Of India To Solve The Bhutanese Refugee Problem’

— HARI ADHIKARI

HARI ADHIKARI, general secretary of Bhutan National Democratic Party, was a member of Bhutan's National Assembly representing the southern part of the kingdom. Adhikari came to Nepal in 1990 after the disclosure of a letter he had signed along with Bhutanese dissident leader Tek Nath Rijal. Adhikari spoke to SPOTLIGHT on various issues regarding the plight of Bhutanese refugees. Excerpts:

When did you leave Bhutan?

I left Bhutan on August 24, 1990. I was put under house arrest for 10 months before coming into exile. My crime was that I was a friend of Tek Nath Rijal. Ten months after my exile, the Bhutanese government kicked out all my family members, taking away all our property. My family was sent to Nepal by the senior Bhutanese officials.

What action have you taken since then?

I arrived in Nepal on September 5, 1990 and staged a hunger strike. It was the first program to raise the refugee issue. A few days later, Nepali Congress leader Girija Prasad Koirala raised our issue. From the very beginning, I have been working to highlight the plight of the Bhutanese refugees. I am a founding secretary of Bhutan National Democratic Party, which was formed on February 7, 1992. I am now the general secretary of the party. The party was launched from Delhi Boat Club while we were in exile. We laid our foundation after our eviction from Bhutan. We have altogether eight MLAs. Our president is among the 72 prominent figures who filed the written memorandum to the Bhutanese monarch. Our party holds elections every five years.

What is the reason behind the eviction of Bhutanese of Nepalese origin?

This is a major question. Bhutan had not stabilized until people of Nepalese origin migrated there centuries ago. We went there along with Bhrikuti, in the seventh century. There is a long history of people of Nepalese origin in Bhutan. There was exchange of Nepalese artisans with Bhutan. It may be the weakness of the King. There was a power struggle in Bhutan for long time until the new Wangchuk rulers arrived on the scene. The King was compelled to issue the eviction of Bhutanese of Nepalese origin to cover his faults. He was compelled to launch activities against people of Nepali origin. Bhutan is still unstable. Even two step-brothers of the King are in exile as is popular religious guru Sadung. The southern Bhutanese of Nepalese origin, who compose 43 percent of the population, are the defense of King Wangchuk. Otherwise, the king will be in a minority. We Bhutanese citizens of Nepalese origin always regard the King as an incarnation of Lord Vishnu.

What is the percentage of people of Nepalese origin in Bhutan?

Although the Bhutanese administration is projecting the percentage as just 25 percent, I have already mentioned that there are absolutely 43 percent of Bhutanese of Nepalese origin. Before 1990, the Bhutanese government said the population of Bhutan was 1.5 million. These both data were actually wrong. I forget the actual number but the population of Bhutan was less than one million at that time and the percentage of people of Nepalese origin was 43 percent. The population was actually 700,000 at that time. Now the Bhutanese government says its population is 600,000, reducing the 100,000 refugees living in Nepal. If a census is taken accurately, there are 43 percent of Bhutanese of various ethnic groups of Nepalese origin.

Do you see any external hand behind the displacement of the Bhutanese of Nepalese origin?

This is a very sensitive question. First of all, Bhutan is like an iceland of mountain surrounded by tallest of mountains in north bordering a large country, China, and another big country, India, in the south. There must be a certain level of interest of both countries in Bhutan. If the ruler and people of Bhutan are united, there is no question of involvement of external hand. I don't want to particularize any country. But if the ruler and people of Bhutan are aware about such a situation, no one can harm Bhutan. When the ruler of Bhutan decided to evict Bhutanese of Nepalese origin cruelly from their homeland, one could not rule out the possibility of external backing. I don't understand how racial discrimination appeared between people of Bhote and Nepalese origin who have been living together for centuries. This surprises me.

Since India guides Bhutanese foreign and defense affairs, how do you see New Delhi's role in ending the refugee impasse?

India is the regional power. We cannot reach Bhutan without passing through Indian territory. It is not only foreign affairs and defense that are tied with India. Even the Bhutanese currency receives guarantee of the Indian rupee. That way, India guarantees the economy of Bhutan. In such a situation, India can definitely influence Bhutanese policy matters. I think a democratic, multiethnic and multilingual country like India has a moral obligation to support to retain the multi-ethnic and multi-lingual character of Bhutan. I don't know whether India has played any role in Bhutan in the process of eviction. It is certain that no compromise can be found without the involvement of India. We are advocating an Indian role to end the stalemate.

How do you see the role of the Nepalese government in supporting the cause of Bhutanese refugees?

We don't have any kind of reaction against role of the Nepalese government. Nepal is itself an underdeveloped country and does not have enough resources. We appreciate the hospitality of the Nepalese people and the Nepalese government. If our refugee camps had been in another part of the world, our cause would have faded away and many refugees would have died. The only problem is that Nepal has had a series of unstable governments. Even political analysts comment that Nepalese government is not strong enough to defend our cause with Bhutanese officials. We hope that Nepal will continue to take stand with Bhutan government on the refugee issue. We don't have any complaint about the role of Nepal. Nepalese civil society and intellectuals will press the government in case they see any wrong on the part of government policy. We don't want to assimilate in Nepal and those who entered Nepal since 1990 should be repatriated. Nepalese civil society and Nepalese government should help to repatriate us to our own land.

On what basis can you claim that everyone in the refugee camps are genuinely Bhutanese of Nepalese origin?

We are requesting the Nepalese government to advocate the cause of those living in the refugee camps in Nepal. We all have documents to prove that we are genuine Bhutanese. As you know, no one can move without the permission of Bhutanese administration. There are clear provisions that stipulate that only Bhutanese citizens can possess land. Citizenship is tied with land. The refugees have various document, including marriage certificate, birth certificate, land-holding certificate. If the Bhutanese government takes us back, we can show any proof they want from us to establish our identity as Bhutanese.

What about Bhutanese refugees who are said to be living on the Indian side of Bhutan-India border?

We don't know about the others, but the refugees living in Nepal are genuine people who were born there, grown up there and who are sons of the Bhutanese soil.

What legal documents do you have to show in the verification process that you are genuine Bhutanese citizens?

We have the citizenship certificate issued by the Bhutanese government and the documents on payment of land revenue and other taxes. According to the Bhutanese Citizenship Act 1958, every person can claim citizenship of Bhutan after holding land for 10 years. You cannot get anything in Bhutan without acquiring citizenship certificate. This is the reason Bhutanese government is now trying to abandon the act. It is our legal proof. We have enough documents to legally prove that we are Bhutanese in accordance with Bhutanese law and regulations. The Bhutanese Citizenship Act 1958 is a fundamental document to prove our legitimate rights.

Some Bhutanese officials are questioning the loyalty of Bhutanese of Nepalese origin, arguing that Bhutan could go the way of Sikkim. How do you look at this?

This is merely politics. This is just political propaganda of Dago Tshering and a handful of Drukpas who don't want to see strong, independent and united Bhutan. Neither are we in favor of Greater Nepal nor do we want to turn Bhutan into another Sikkim. We are ready to sacrifice our life to safeguard the independence and sovereignty of Bhutan.

Some of your human leaders urge donor countries not to provide any assistance. Is not it harming your genuine cause in front of other groups of Bhutan?

First of all, the money committed by the donors is very insignificant in the context of Bhutan. Our citizens and our Nepalese well-wishers should bear this issue in mind. First of all, our struggle continues. As you know we don't have anything except our body. If you want to organize a press conference, you need to spend money. Only Bhutanese side will raise the issues to divert the attention of the world whenever there takes place international conference and international meeting regarding Bhutan. The struggle of Bhutanese people continues. This time round we are focusing more on repatriation issues. That is all. Frankly speaking, political parties do not receive support. Mostly human-rights related organizations are receiving funds and they got more media hype. As far as politicians are concerned, they have been doing their best to repatriate the refugees living in low profile.

We read different statements of various political parties. Why do not all Bhutanese parties raise the issue under one umbrella? Why are you so divided?

Although we have two major political parties from southern Bhutan, we have a common voice as far as the refugees are concerned. We have different modalities of working, but two major political parties share a common agenda and program. As far as human rights groups are concerned, they have different ways of working. We have an understanding that the human rights groups should work to mobilize world opinion and political parties have to mobilize the people.

What about the other political parties? Don't they have any influence?

There are two political parties of origin of Bhote group. The aspiration for democracy is going to the north and west from south. These two political parties are also supporting us. We will support them.

Western countries are seriously considering your demand. Some diplomats based in Nepal visited Bhutanese refugee camps and the refugee issue appeared in Geneva. How do you look at it?

We are very grateful to the western countries that have been providing us all necessary things, including food and shelter. I don't think they have much say in the Bhutanese context. Even some newspapers raised the Geneva conventions. For the western countries, Bhutan is just a sovereign state and they don't have any major influence. Western countries have pledged US$ 284,000 to Bhutan, which is very nominal. I read somewhere that the amount will pressure Bhutan to accept western influence. I don't think so. I don't believe even stopping such money will have any significant impact. The news is appearing on the basis of Nepalese analysis but not on the basis of Bhutanese ground realities. We have to accept that the only compulsion of Bhutan is to walk along the western world. It is necessary for a small country like Bhutan to join international forum to protect Bhutanese interest. I don't think Bhutan will bow down on the ground that it will not receive aid from western countries.

Don't you think the conflict among Bhutanese forces will have a long-term impact on Bhutan's independence?

We don't have any differences at the people's level. There are differences with the rulers. First of all, we are Bhutanese and then refugees. We are ready to sacrifice ourselves for the cause of Bhutan. The rulers must understand that the country will not gain strength by marginalizing 43 percent of the population. It will be up to the rulers to decide what type of nation they want.

What has Bhutan benefited from the refugee issue?

Before the democratic movement, Bhutan was an isolated country, unknown to the world. Our movement gave optimum benefit to Bhutan. We are now players on the international stage.

Do you believe India would help achieve a solution to the Bhutanese refugee problem?

I do not see India negatively. Geo-strategically our survival is dependent upon India and it must come forward to solve the problems. Every state has its own interest and India, too, does. India will come to solve the problems if we pursue it. Even in 1950, India came to solve the problem. India should have more interest with the ruling party.

Do you see any interest from China?

First of all, we have not seen any Chinese interest in the refugee issue. It is in the interest of India and the compulsion of India to solve the problem. The countries of South Asia need the good will of China, but our priority is always India.

Don't you plan to take the issue to the United Nations and International Court of Justice in The Hague?

We Bhutanese cannot take the issue to The Hague. We still firmly believe that India will come to the forefront to find an amicable solution to the Bhutanese refugee problem.