The Camp Management Committee (CMC) of Beldangi camp regretted for restricting refugees from going outside the three Beldangi camps, Friday.
An all-party meeting under the chairmanship of Chief District Officer of Jhapa, Sashi Shekhar Shrestha, at the community forest office this morning reached an understanding that CMC did a mistake by not allowing the refugees to move out of the camps.
“The CMC felt sorry for the decision and expressed regret in front of representatives of various stakeholders including the UNHCR and Jhapa CDO,” one of the participants told Bhutan News Service after the meeting.
According to the source, the government authority queried the CMC for deciding to breach social norms and values by executing ‘no movement’ of the refugees outside the camp.
The meeting also decided to remove all animals from the camps at the earliest possible time.
Meanwhile, the local community urged the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to find an alternative for carbon briquette claiming its remains have polluted the environment and even destroyed crops when washed away during the raining season.
Responding to the concern, the UNHCR representative said discussions have been underway as he cited the briquette has also adversely affected the refugees in camp.
The CDO also instructed the Armed Police Force and Nepal Police to immediate arrest those accused of mercilessly beating two refugee youths on Tuesday and bring them into a book.
Following the agreement, transportation and movement of refugees outside the camps have resumed.
Reported by Tulsi Upreti from Beldangi-I camp for BNS
