A Bhutanese citizen in exile, currently teaching at Siddhartha Higher Secondary School in Damak in Jhapa district, has been found receiving Nepali citizenship from Rautahat district administration.
Damak Police Inspector, Hari Khatiwada, identified the detained refugee as T Neupane.
Following complaints from parents, a special police squad arrest Neupane, who was also accused of molesting the students.
Neupane was appointed as the secondary level teacher for math and science from the beginning of this academic session, but was later fired following complaints from students.
According to Inspector Khatiwada, he has been handed over to the Rautahat police for necessary investigation and action against him.
It is said that Neupane had received the Nepali citizenship from Rautahat district naming Chandralal Neupane as his father.
U.S Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Robert Blake called on Prime Minister Jigmi Y Thinley at the Gyalyong Tshogkhang, Wednesday.
U.S Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Robert Blake with Prime Minister Jigmi Y Thinley (Picture courtesy : Kuensel)
The PM and the Assistant Secretary spoke of Bhutan’s development process and Thinley’s recent visits to the remote parts of the country to de-bottleneck some of the development projects, stated the Cabinet Secretariat.
They also spoke of food security and Bhutan’s goal to achieve cereal sufficiency, and the political developments in the country. Assistant Secretary Robert Blake said that one of the difficult tasks in the region was to have a responsible and a responsive government, according to the report.
It is said Blake also congratulated the government for the progress of development and for understanding the need to make themselves accountable in a responsible manner.
Assistant Secretary Robert Blake also extended collaboration in education to expand relations between the two nations: to attract more universities from the United States for the education city and for more Bhutanese to avail higher education in the universities in the U.S.
Assistant Secretary Robert Blake served as Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Mission in New Delhi, India from 2003 to 2006, as Ambassador to Sri Lanka and Maldives from 2006 to mid-2009, and as Assistant Secretary for South and Central Asian Affairs from May 2009 to the present.
The Election Commission (EC) has asked the two aspiring political parties, Bhutan Kuen-Ngyam Party and Druk Chirwang Tshogpa, to re-submit their applications for registration.
Commission reviewed the papers submitted by the two political parties but there still is some revision to be made and some information to be added in the application form, repairs BBS, Friday.
Three political parties, Bhutan Kuen-Ngyam Party, Druk Chirwang Tshogpa and Druk Nyamrup Tshogpa, applied for registration with the ECB between October-December 2012.
The revised documents of the Bhutan Kuen-Ngyam Party and Druk Chirwang Tshogpa along with that of the Druk Nyamrup Tshogpa will be considered by the Commission beginning December 18, according to the EC.
It further said, the EC is hoping to complete the process before the end of December 2013 to those groups that fulfill the minimum requirements under the electoral laws.
The Kathmandu-based US Embassy staffers on Wednesday donated over 25 bags of kitchen utensils, blankets and clothes to the recent fire victims of Beldangi.
The donations collected from the embassy employees in Kathmandu were handed over to the International Organization of Migration and will be distributed to the refugees, stated the Embassy in its statement.
US Ambassador to Nepal Peter W Bodde also visited the fire victims on December 5 and met with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and other organisations assisting with the relief efforts.
After remaining silent for almost a decade following Operation Flush Out,’ the massive military assault on Indian Militant’s in Bhutan, the militants camps have started getting the touch of new life once again making it a concern for Indian authority.
According to senior security agency officials, Indian militant groups especially Kamtapur Liberation Organization(KLO) had well established set ups in Bangladesh. They have now started shifting their activity centres to Bhutan adjoining to north East India. These locations in Bhutan are their natural choice due to forest clad off-terrine topography, reported The Economic Times, Wednesday.
“Recent incidents including indiscriminate firing by KLO militants in Assam’s Dhubri , surrender of KLO top leader Chila Roy or independence day boycott call by conglomeration of militants organizations including KLO, NDFB or NLFT is a major indication of the increased activities of these outfits in Bhutan adjoining areas,” said the official.
However, Bhutan Home ministry officials denied any information in this line. “Our Government is too serious against militancy. Bhutan has always cooperated India in all possible manner to fight militancy,” said Consul General of Bhutan Tsering Wangda .
India and Bhutan enjoys 699km common border manned by the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) from the Indian side and by the Royal Bhutan Army on the Bhutan side. Most of the insurgent camps were located along the border, according to the report.
It further said, following upraise of many militants camps, 81st National Assembly of Bhutan adopted a resolution for the last attempt to persuade ULFA, NBFD, and the KLO to close down their camps or to face military action.
Though Bhutan had to launch full fledged military assault on the militant’s camps from 15th of December 2003 to 15th of January 2004 mainly on Indian demand and under multi-directional Indian supports, large section of Bhutan politicians or elites never liked this indirect Indian invasion into their military affairs.
At the same time, despite ‘Operation Flush Out’ Indian intelligence could never confirm complete eradication of Indian Militants activities in Bhutan soil. Naturally, the net outcome of the operation has always remained as a debatable issue that has been refueled by recent activities.
Two exiled Bhutanese youths of Jhapa-based Beldangi camp are officially set to challenge the existing longest handshake of 42 hours and 35 minutes by two Nepalese brothers, Dinesh and Pawan Timsina, as recorded by the Guinness World Record team in March last year.
Nil Hari Upreti (right) shakes hand with Dik Man Gurung (Picture : Tilak Niroula/BNS)
The refugee duo, Nil Hari Upreti and Dik Man Gurung, successfully completed the continuous handshake of 72 hours on Wednesday at 10:17 a.m.
Regional coordinator of Human Rights Organization of Nepal Dr K.P Subedi, Field Director of Caritas Nepal Fr. Amalraj PS and Chairman of Bhutanese Refugee Representative Repatriation Committee Dr Bhampa Rai jointly separated the hands of the world record aspirants today.
Hundreds of refugees and their well-wishers witnessed the handshaking event that was held in Nepal Red Cross Society hall, Damak, Jhapa. While, various six dozen judges from various backgrounds monitored the event since Monday morning.
“We wanted to inform the world community that even refugees are equally capable as other citizens, and we did,” one of the youths, Nil Hari Upreti, told media after the event. “The next step will be submission of all testimonies for official record to the Guinness World Record team.”
Speaking in the closing ceremony, rights activists Subedi said the refugees had shown their talents in front of the international community by replacing the past record of 44 hours.
While, the Field Director of Caritas Nepal, Father P.S. Amalraj congratulated the duo for their heroic record in the world.
The duo had earlier exhibited similar shows of 24 hours, 36 hours and 51 hours earlier in Timai, Khudunabari and Beldangi camps.
Born in 1926 in Mameythang in Dorana block, Bikh Bahadur (BB) Gurung still has a memory of the immense harvest of maize from the cornfields in Banra, Sibsoo. The good harvest could not be stored just in one house, another shed for the store stood up, another three or four maize-stands made from chopped tree branches erected outside the house carried the hanging maize ears. The next year, people did not cultivate anything because of the bountiful harvest of the previous year. By the third year, nothing grew from the soil because of severe draught. There was famine everywhere, so people rushed out to neighboring Indian villages of Todey and Tangta. There came a saying out of this crisis: No food in Banra – Bindu, beggars in Todey – Tangta.
The Gurung family settled in Tashidin where new settlements had begun fresh. After logging and lopping, they settled to till the land started cultivating grains. Again, there was no mood to settle permanently in Tashidin, so migrated to Tanju of Dagana. At the time of eviction, BB Gurung was residing in Emiray.
His forefathers had migrated from Taplejung, a hilly district of eastern Nepal, to Chongthong Tea Estate that falls in Indian district of Darjeeling in the 19th century. From there, the Gurung family moved to Sibsoo, and finally got resettled in Emiray after dwelling for certain periods in Tashidin and Tanju of Dagana district. Bikh Bahadur became refugee for the second time when the regime evicted hundreds of thousands of southern Bhutanese in 1992. Having relocated from Timai to Beldangi-II Extension, legendary Bikh Bahadur resides in Sector E-1, Hut No. 57 with his wife Sankha Maya and kinfolk.
BB Gurung. The photograph was taken in Timai camp a few months before his family was transferred to Beldangi-II Extension (Picture : Vidhyapati Mishra/BNS)
Prison escape Bikh Bahadur joined the first historic people’s uprising against the state atrocities on southern Bhutanese campaigned in the name of ‘Jai Gorkha’ in 1946-1947. The atrocities had reached its peak following the death of iconic Garjaman Gurung. Including Gurung, 36 ‘Jai Gorkha’ campaigners got arrested in 1950 and locked-up in Dagadzong jail when the state authority decided to suppress the mass protest in Dagana. Those detained by the regime of the then southern ruler, Jigmi Palden Dorji, included BB Gurung, Motikhar Khatiwada, Dhan Bahadur Jimba, and Saney Bal, among others.
Of them, Jimba was very clever. During one of his punishment works in a forest he could manage to hide a rope that the prisoners found while they were taken for collecting firewood by the jail authority. The prison wall was very tall and thick. However, some three-feet above the ground there was a hole on the wall, although it was too small for any human beings to penetrate into for any possible attempts to escaping the captivity. Several attempts to make use of that hole for escaping the captivity failed, but Jibma kept on trying. One day, he succeeded in sizing the hole and got on the other side of the wall tying up his legs, probing them through the hole before pushing his body. The rope broke, and the Jimba’s dropping on the ground produced a loud sound. The sound alerted the inmates and developed in the added sense of fear of inhuman torture. The remaining captives decided to inform the authority about Jimba’s escape. A few days later, Saney Bal too managed to escape from the prison taking advantage of an open toilet. Frequent escape brought massive changes in the jail administration. The degree of punishment doubled, jailbirds were made to carrying heavy logs and stones without food and water.
On one fine day, prisoners were taken to a forest for carrying logs and firewood, being guarded by just single security personnel – Juthey. Taking advantage of just a security guard without gun, prisoners starting breaking chains tied on their legs with stones. Juthey tried to intervene into the situation, but the prisoners attempted to smash his head with stones – making him flee the scene for safety. One after the other, all the prisoners including Gurung unchained their legs, and escaped through the forest with handcuffs chained to their hands, and moved towards the Darachu River. Spending a night on the bank of the river, Gurung and two of his friends reached the house of Lama Dorji Wanchuck, who was personally known to Gurung. Initially, Wangchuck denied providing hospitality even for a night. However, he agreed to provide shelter after Gurung explained him their situations in nitty-gritty. The very next day, Gurung reached Emirey, but failed to reach his home after knowing that the district authority had deployed dozens of security persons to re-arrest all prison breakers.
A local blacksmith unchained Gurung’s hands inside a forest, where he spent days before fleeing to Kulkuley of Kalikhola. From there, he shifted to Dalsingpada of India. In a few days, his wife Sankha Maya too joined him with the help of his friends from back in the village.
The dignified return When Bikh Bahadur was taking refuge in India, Wangdi Babu was Sub-Division Officer (SDO) of Dagapela Dungkhag. It was during his reign that the government notified all Indian clerks to quit Bhutan. The move created a vacancy of a clerk in his office as Indian clerks duo Rakesh Chhetri and Mohan Lepcha were laid off, and consulted all 14 mandals (village heads). The village heads unanimously proposed the right candidacy of Bikh Bahadur, and also informed that he was in exile in Dalsingh Pada. A special delegation was sent to bring Gurung back home as SDO Wangdi assured to finalize all legal formalities for his return. The government team met exiled Gurung in Kalchini, convinced him about the job and assured full security after his return.
Un undated photograph of 17 Mandals representing various blocks under the Chirang district in 1950s. Gurung is at the extreme left in the second row. During that time Dagana was also under the Chirang district’s jurisdiction.
His return to home in 1952 and a prestigious clerical job did evoke criticism among a section of people in the Dungkhag. However, SDO Wangdi’s protection was able to suppress voices from people. Wangdi defended the clerk’s position by declaring that the government decided to grant Bikh Bahadur an amnesty and accordingly released from an alleged house arrest. He served as a clerk for some 17 years, connecting peoples’ grievances with various SDOs.
In one instance, SDO Wangdi passed a biased verdict on a land dispute between villagers Nanda Lal Gurung and Dal Bahadur Kafley. Irked at Wangdi’s intended unjust, Nanda Lal filed a case against him in Sarbang. During that time, Dagapela was under the jurisdiction of Sarbang district. The case was settled amazingly as the district authority decided to terminate dictatorial SDO Wangi instantly and fulfill the vacancy by the petitioner himself.
Immediately after assuming his office, new SDO Nanda Lal decided to downsize the existing 14 blocks into just five and appointed new mandals. It was during this move that Bikh Bahadur was nominated as mandal for Emirey block. His contemporary mandals included Baliraj Gurung (Goshi), Ganga Prasad Gurung (Tashidin), Krisna Bahadur Tamang (Dorana) and Bal Bahadur Khatiwada (Suntaley). Bikh Bahadur served as Emirey mandal for some 17 years.
(The writer, who was born in 1954 in Samtse district and a former employee at Royal Insurance Corporation and Food Corporation of Bhutan, his wife Indira and their children spent 17 years in a refugee camp in Nepal before coming to Tasmania in 2008 as refugee. They are now rebuilding their lives and enjoying being part of an inclusive community).
Editor’s note : Buddha Mani Dhahal (Kentucky, USA) has translated the author’s original texts from Nepali into English, while Vidhyapati Mishra (Kathmandu, Nepal) has provided additional research inputs to the article. The article will complete in two parts as the second half still awaits finalization.
The King of Bhutan, with implicit support and tacit understanding of the Govt. of India, dared to evict one hundred thousand bona-fide Bhutanese of Gorkha (Nepalese) and Sarchhop ethnicities from southern and eastern Bhutan representing about one sixth of the total population of Bhutan in the early 1990s with inherent intention of ethnic cleansing.
To conceal this heinous crime from the international community and to keep away from the true lawful bench of the world institutions, the Bhutanese rulers quickly labeled those evictees as economic migrants, terrorists, anti-nationals, illegal immigrants or Indians. So, it has become imperative for any legal institutions, rights defenders and the Bhutanese people to know from available historical and existing facts as to whether the claim made by the Bhutanese rulers bear any truth.
As Economic Migrants No history can be written without truths in it. And the truths cannot be misrepresented by any hired writers to suit the interests of the rulers. However, we can derive the basic facts of history about Bhutanese people from its essence of origin. The Bhutias, forefathers of Drukpas, from Tibet started immigrating to this area; today’s Bhutan then ruled by India Kooch rulers in 7th century A.D and settled down here permanently. (BHUTAN by Nagendra Singh, 1978:19). Those Tibetan (Bhutias) immigrants were deeply attracted by the then flourishing economic condition of this Indian ruled area. So, history is very clear as to who are the real ‘Economic Migrants’ to this area now known as Bhutan.
As time passed by, the Bhutias ousted the Koch Rulers and their people. However, as a result of their unfair ruling system the economic condition of this area again gradually became deplorable. So the Bhutias here had to live in poor condition for centuries. It is due to the fact that “the northern Bhutanese disliked living in low lands and would not work in the lands by themselves” (BHUTAN AND THE BRITISH by Peter Collester 1972: 130). Even John Claude White noted, “The northern Bhutanese dreaded fever in the lower hills and avoid settling there”(BHUTAN AND THE BRITISH by Peter Collester 1972: 155). In such ruined state of economy of the then Bhutan, Gurkhas from the west started immigrating sporadically in the southern parts of Bhutan which was uncared, unoccupied, infested with malaria, wild animals and robbers. Gradually, the hard working Gurkhas tamed the land and cultivated in the area improving the economic condition of southern
Bhutan even when Bhutan was still labeled as the poorest country in the world. Thus Gurkhas never immigrated as economic migrants but as agricultural workers.
As Terrorists The acts of terrorism by the Bhutanese rulers in 1990s on Bhutanese citizens of southern Bhutan and in 1997 on eastern Bhutanese have been described earlier. Many people including foreign diplomats who visited Bhutanese refugee camps in eastern Nepal have acknowledged the history of horror these refugees had to go through before their eviction from their homesteads. But, so far, none of these foreign diplomats and International observers is heard of speaking about the undeclared terrorism unleashed by Bhutanese rulers on innocent citizens of Bhutan.
Have all of them become the birds of same feathers? Is it acceptable to the people who claim to be civilized, conscious and human rights defenders?
Having been favored by the silence of the world human rights watchdogs, the Bhutanese rulers shamelessly but bodily labeled the innocent evicted Bhutanese as terrorists. But a question to ponder upon lingers – were all these old and young, infants and toddlers, women and disables able to make themselves terrorists?
The Indo-Bhutan Friendship Treaty revised in 2007 provided the leverage to Bhutanese rulers to import and stock arms and ammunition as much as they want. Such arms are never to use against other nation but the people themselves, if they raise voice against the authoritarian policies.
As Illegal Immigrants As noted earlier, even the King Jigme Singye Wangchuk evidently accepted the facts about immigration of Bhutias, the forefathers of Drukpas from Tibet, to this area since 650 A.D without taking legal permission from the then Indian Koch Rulers. Such immigration from Tibet took place to this area for better pasture. They also settled down in this area permanently and started ruling this area under different Lamas and Deb raja. So, are not the Bhutias (Drukpa) illegal immigrants to modern Bhutan?
In a case similar to the Bhutias from Tibet, some of the Gurkhas also migrated to Bhutan centuries later without any legal permission as such system of recording the entry of migrants was not in place in the country. But their exact time of entry was not noted in the history and that remains a legend among the descendants of Gurkhas. Further later, some Gurkhas were encouraged by the then rulers of Bhutan (through Bhutan agent in Kalimpong) to settle in Bhutan and tame the malaria infested land after finding them a sincere and hard working. Some were even issued the kasho (the royal edict) allowing settlement with authority to clear and cultivate the virgin forestland in the south. In 1877, some prominent persons like Dhanbir Budathoki and Dalchan Gurung were allowed to settle more Gorkhas in southern Bhutan. Thus the Gurkhas/Nepalese were never illegal immigrants to this area of today’s Bhutan.
As Anti-Nationals Are citizens of any country who raise their voice against their ruthless ruler anti-nationals? Perhaps the Bhutanese rulers consider themselves synonymous with the nation, Bhutan. Because of their misconceptions they labeled all the Bhutanese of other communities as anti-nationals after evicting them from their motherland, Bhutan, who raised their voice against them about their discriminative, suppressive and oppressive policies. The evicted Bhutanese are never against their own nation, Bhutan. But the truth of anti-national activities of the Bhutanese rulers have been recorded in the history and observed recently. In the past, vast area of Bhutan from the left bank of river Teesta (now in India) to right bank of river Jaldhaka (now in Bhutan) along with eighteen (18) duars were handed over to British-India by the then Bhutanese rulers after signing the treaty on 11th Nov 1865 and recently handed over ten thousand square kilometer of northern Bhutan to republic of China is not true anti-national activities? Is evicting thousands of bona fide national not anti-nationals?
As Indians During his visit to Kathmandu on 16th April 2011, Bhutanese Prime Minister Jigme Y Thinley alleged, “most of the refugees are from India”. If Prime Minister Thinley is the true follower of Buddhism, in the name of Lord Buddha, has he any answer to the Bhutanese refugees in camps, who by their documentary evidences proved Bhutanese citizens? If those people in camps are not Bhutanese, then the rulers are at liberty with impersonation of true Buddhists and telling all lies to the world. If the refugees in eastern Nepal are Indians then what bothered the shameless Bhutanese rulers to stage a drama of categorizing and verifying them on Nepalese soil? Over and above, it is an irony to see the world also supporting the immoral stand of the Bhutan Government.
Interestingly, the Prime Minister finds street dogs in Thimphu smiling. It is for sure that he failed to interpret whether those dogs were giving him mischievous smile for his evil ways of ruling Bhutan or a sarcastic grin at him for evicting innocent Bhutanese citizens and not repatriating them for a just solution.
It is hoped that the rulers of Bhutan will accept the facts and start becoming positive to repatriate all the exiled bona fide Bhutanese to their homestead, in safety and with human dignity as soon as possible.
Six-year-old Yagandra Kami flew to Pennsylvania in the United States on Wednesday, becoming the 75,000th refugee from Bhutan to be resettled from Nepal under a major resettlement programme launched in November 2007.
Six-year-old Yagandra Kami, in his blue jacket, waves goodbye as his boards the IOM bus to the Kathmandu International Airport together with his parents and two sisters. On Wednesday afternoon they left for the United States (Picture courtesy : UNHCR/E.Hamilton)
“Today we celebrate this turning point and look back the long way we have come from number one,” said Maurizio Busatti, Chief of Mission of the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) in Nepal. “Our efforts will continue unabated to prepare the last refugee to settle into his/her new life. IOM is committed to nurturing the team spirit and the model partnership that has marked this program from the start and is at the basis of today’s result”.
Under one of the largest and successful resettlement programmes, more than 63,400 of the refugees have begun new lives in the United States. The other countries to accept refugees are Australia (3,837), Canada (5,296), Denmark (724), New Zealand (710), the Netherlands (326), Norway (546), and the United Kingdom (257), stated a joint press statement issued on Wednesday by IOM and UNHCR.
“This is a tremendous achievement,” said Stephane Jaquemet, UNHCR Representative in Nepal. “It has only been possible due to the incredible generosity of the resettlement countries, the resilience of the refugees, the great support of the Government of Nepal, and the exemplary partnership with IOM.”
The UN refugee agency is responsible for interviewing refugees and referring their names to resettlement countries, while the International Organization for Migration conducts health assessments, organizes cultural orientation courses and transports the refugees from Nepal to their countries of resettlement, added the statement.
The statement further said, UNHCR also provides in-depth and targeted information on durable solutions to the refugees through mobile information counseling in the camps.
With over half the original population resettled, the seven refugee camps in eastern Nepal have been merged to two, Sanischare and Beldangi, added the statement.
UNHCR also stated that it has been receiving a steady stream of Declarations of Interest for resettlement from the remainder of the population.
Amongst the over 41,000 remaining refugees in these camps, some 31,300 have expressed an interest in resettlement. The acceptance rate by the countries of resettlement is over 99%, the highest in the world, according to the report.
Investing around 20,000 crore Indian currency, Indian state of Haryana is eyeing to set up 2,000 MW hydroelectric project in Bhutan for meeting is mounting energy demands.
Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda
A high power delegation, let by Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, is set to visit Bhutan on December 14, to explore the possibility of setting up the plant in Bhutan, online edition of The Indian Express (TIE) reported, Tuesday.
Power Minister Captain Ajay Singh Yadav confirmed that the government was exploring the idea of setting up a hydroelectric plant outside the state, the report said.
“It is at a preliminary stage but it’s true that we want to rid the state of the power crisis. We are actually in talks with the Bhutanese government. Senior officers have already taken stock of the situation and soon a decision will be taken,” Yadav said.
The state government has informally informed the Ministry of External Affairs about its plan. Only after an agreement is reached with Bhutan, however, will the Haryana government formally seek the Centre’s permission for the hydro-electric project, added the report.
If Haryana reaches an agreement with the Bhutan government, it will be the first time that a state has done so.
