March 22, 2008 Exiles ask Bhutan
King
to Defer
Monday Polls By Sudeshna Sarkar
Kathmandu
As the secluded Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan gears up to hold its
first general election Monday, Bhutanese exiles in Nepal, who form
nearly a sixth of the population and are barred from voting or
contesting, are urging the king of Bhutan to dissolve the government
and defer the polls.
A coalition of three Bhutanese parties in exile are urging the king
of Bhutan, Jigme Kesar Namgyal, to allow over 100,000 Bhutanese, who
are living as refugees in Nepal, to return home, and to enable over
80,000 citizens residing in the tiny, mountain-locked country to be
given security clearance, so that they can cast their vote.
The National Front for Democracy in Bhutan, that has sent the appeal
from exile in Nepal, is also urging the European Union, UN and major
donor governments to heed their plea.
The alliance comprises three parties formed in exile, most of whose
members have been living in closed refugee camps in Nepal for 17
years - the Bhutan People's Party, Druk National Congress
(Democratic) and Bhutan Gorkha National Liberation Front.
Thousands of Bhutanese, mostly of Nepali origin, were evicted from
their homeland in the 1990s when Bhutan began imposing a policy of
one language, religion and culture.
Though Nepal's government held several rounds of talks with Bhutan
to try persuade it to take back the over 100,000 refugees living in
UN-administered camps in south Nepal, the Druk kingdom has
steadfastly refused to do so.
As donors began to grow weary of funding the camps, the US and other
western governments stepped in, offering a new home to the refugees
on their soil.
The first batch of refugees headed for the US this year, amidst
protests by a section of their peers, who say the exodus from the
camps to third countries would embolden Bhutan to evict more
citizens of ethnic origin.
"(The) denial of repatriation of over one hundred thousand Bhutanese
citizens in exile and deprivation of adult franchise to over 80,000
adult citizens within the country shows that the current situation
is not favourable for establishing sustainable democracy," the
statement by the three parties said.
The trio is also asking the government to release the large number
of political prisoners, who, it says, are being held without a fair
trial.
"We do not believe in the democracy of Bhutan without including the
people who demanded democracy in 1990 through peaceful
demonstrations and while many pro-democracy activists continue to
languish both in exile and in Bhutan's prisons," it said.
The exiles are asking the king to dissolve the current government
and defer the election.
They want an interim government that will free political prisoners
and allow all parties to contest the election, which should be held
at a later date.
They are also asking the king to allow the refugees to return home
and reclaim their home and properties.
The appeal is likely to be ignored by the Druk government that has
openly refused to allow the repatriation of evicted citizens,
dubbing them as having been influenced by Nepal's armed Maoist
movement that sought to overthrow the kingdom's Shah dynasty of
kings.
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