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Case Study: ETHNIC NEPALIS IN BHUTAN
- Bhutan is a remote Himalayan state whose powerful king has gone
to great lengths to preserve the traditional culture of the majority
Buddhist community.
- In 1988 ethnic Nepalis who had been living in the south of the
country for generations were effectively deprived of their nationality.
Many fled the country and 90,000 are now living in refugee camps.
Analysis
Minority communities in many countries face discrimination and are
under pressure to lose their distinct identity. In some instances
that pressure is backed up by force.
Bhutan, in the Himalayas, is bordered by Tibet,
China, Nepal, India and Bangladesh. Until recently, when elements
of democracy were introduced, Bhutan's king was one of the last
absolute monarchs in the world.
He has kept the country isolated 'in order to preserve
its national identity'. Television is banned, and citizens who do
not wear traditional dress face fines of around three days' wages.
Most of the 600,000 Bhutanese are Buddhists but
the Nepalese-speaking people, some of whom have lived in the south
of the country for generations, are Hindu.
In 1988 the Bhutanese authorities launched a census
in Southern Bhutan. It appeared to be designed to exclude a large
number of ethnic Nepalese from Bhutanese citizenship.
It was combined with unpopular measures requiring
them to adopt North Bhutanese traditions and culture. In effect,
they were deprived of their nationality.
The Nepali community responded by campaigning for
democracy but demonstrations were broken up by the authorities and
many people were arrested. Amnesty International has reported they
were tortured and ill-treated. In an atmosphere of fear and repression,
thousands of people fled into exile.
Now, more than 90,000 people live in refugee camps
in Nepal. Negotiations between the Nepalese and Bhutanese governments
have failed to resolve their fate.
Official documents still refer to them as 'illegal
immigrants' or 'Nepalese who had worked in Bhutan'. These people
argue, however, that this is a denial of their right to nationality
under Article 15.
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