Iraqi and B Two of the largest refugee populations I throughout my experience in the IFMC in C were the Bhutanese refugees coming from N refugee camps and the Iraqi refugees displac both the Gulf War and the more recent Iraq that in mind, below I recount a brief overvie conflicts that led to the displacement of thes Bhutan The Bhutanese refugee population consi of inhabitants of southern Bhutan. This grou referred to in Bhutan as the Lhotshampa, wh Dzonghka (national Bhutanese language) fo “southerners”. This population is ethnically (language, culture, and religion) due to their and migration from Nepal initially during th but largely during the early 1900s. The Bhutan House, the Dzong (i.e. tradi administrative, religious, and military center the south of Bhutan (and led by the Dorji fam these large numbers of Nepali workers in th regions of the country with the aim of expan country’s agricultural production. As the Ne population in the south of Bhutan grew, this Bhutan ultimately became the primary natio of income. From this growth in southern Bh the eventual concerns from the Bhutanese go that the size of the Nepali population would Bhutan’s national identity. Up until the depa large numbers of Nepali refugees at the end century, ethnically Nepalese inhabitants of s Bhutan claimed to constitute approximately population, while the Bhutanese governmen estimate at closer to 15%. Studies of the lan distribution in Bhutan as of 2006 estimate N spoken by 40%, while Dzonghka (the officia language) is only spoken by 25% of the pop language map of Bhutan is pictured below. 1 Bhutanese Refugees: A Brief History October 2014 Walid El-Nahal I encountered Charlottesville Nepali ced during War. With ew of the se refugees. ists primarily up was hich is or Nepali r origination he late 1800s itional r) overseeing mily) settled he southern nding the epali s region of onal source hutan came overnment d threaten arture of of the 20 th southern 65% of the nt places the nguage Nepali to be al national pulation. A This cultural divide and fe national identity by the Bhutan led to rising tensions in Bhutan Bhutanese government betwee concerned by the increasing nu Dorji family who were settling In an effort to de-emphasiz government put in place new p adoption of traditional northern places. They also implemented in 1958 and 1985 which put a to slow the tide of Nepalis com of Bhutan. These marked anyo citizenship that pre-dated the f illegal immigrant, while granti who could prove their long-ter Following the census in 19 Bhutan), the number of ethnica Bhutan became even more evid stringent attempts of enforcing throughout the country, includ Nepali as a language taught in Dzonghka’s place as the forma response, the Nepali populatio protesting what they felt was c only led to tightening of the go south of Bhutan, in fear of eith overthrow the Bhutanese gove south of Bhutan, the nation’s m Thousands of citizens of south and eventually to refugee camp the conflict between the ethnic Bhutanese government turned This violence escalated in People’s Party (branded as terr of Bhutan and as freedom figh Congress Party) led protests an southern Bhutan denouncing th culture and demanding equal r Bhutan regardless of ethnicity. escalated into violent clashes w Army leading to arrests of hun The instability and insecurity o exodus of the ethnically Nepal estimates of up to 100,000 peo several of the seven refugee ca managed by the Nepali govern the United Nations High Comm ear for the Bhutanese nese government are what n, even within the en the king who was umber of Nepalis and the g more Nepalis in Bhutan. ze Nepali culture, the policies which required the n Bhutanese garb in public d two “Citizenship Acts” hold on legal immigration ming to work in the south one who could not prove first Citizenship Act as an ing citizenship to those rm presence in Bhutan. 988 (the first ever in ally Nepalese citizens of dent, leading to more g Bhutanese tradition ding the withdrawal of school to reinforce al national tongue. In ons began formally clear discrimination, which overnment’s grip over the her a Nepali uprising to ernment or secession of the most profitable region. hern Bhutan fled to India, ps in southeast Nepal as cally Nepalese and the violent. 1990 when the Bhutan rorists by the government hters by the Nepali nd marches through he suppression of Nepali rights for all citizens of . These protests quickly with the Royal Bhutan ndreds of Nepali citizens. of the region led to the li populations, with ople fleeing by 1996 into amps in southeast Nepal nment in collaboration with missioner for Refugees.
Iraqi and Bhutanese Refugees: A Brief History
Jul 11, 2023
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