Why Are There Refugees From Bhutan?

So why are there refugees from Bhutan anyway? The majority of the Bhutanese refugees are ethnic Nepalis from the southern region of the country, who are known as the Lhotsampas. Over the years the Lhotsamapas have maintained their Nepali culture, language, and religion, which is separate from the northern group of Bhutanese, the Druk, who are native Tibetans. The Bhutanese government allowed all Lhotsampas to apply for Bhutanese citizenship under the 1958 Nationality Law. However, in the 1980s the government became concerned about the growing Lhotsampa population and its potential threat to the dominant culture, language, and religion of the country. As a result of this growing fear, a series of policies, known as “Bhutanization,” were implemented, which imposed dress codes, restricted the practice of Nepali customs, and prohibited the Nepali language from being spoken in schools. Eventually, in 1990, as a result of the “Bhutanization” policies, the government announced that all Lhotsampas who could not prove that they had become residents of Bhutan in 1958 under the Nationality Law, were forced to leave the country.

Many of the Lhotsampas fled to eastern Nepal. There are approximately 107,000 Bhutanese refugees living in seven refugee camps in eastern Nepal, many of whom have lived in the camps for 16 years, as they are unable to return to Bhutan or permanently settle in Nepal.

The political situation in Bhutan that has forced thousands of Lhotsampas into exile is quite controversial, and I have simply grazed the surface of the issues causing the controversy in this posting. For more information about the history of the conflict, please visit the following links:

1.) http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/type,COUNTRYREP,,BTN,465c36842,0.html

2.) http://www.cal.org/co/pdffiles/backgrounder_bhutanese.pdf


Additionally, visit the United Nations Refugee Agency website to view a video about the resettlement of the Bhutanese refugees:

http://www.unhcr.org/47cc007c4.html