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[home]>[programmes]>refugee
Right to
Return Workshop: Concept
Paper
Fourteen years have lapsed since the Bhutanese came to Nepal seeking
refuge. No one had then expected that the crisis would live so long. The
refugees were hopeful that the international community would expose the
inhumanness of this forced eviction and reinstate the refugees to their
home and hearth. Unfortunately, it had no elements to compare itself
with other similar tragedies like Bosnia. This issue did not catch the
attention of any champion of human rights and democracy for its lesser
existence in the geopolitics. The Royal Government of Bhutan's (RGOB)
tactics of creating obstacles in the return of the refugees and the
inconsistent policy of His Majesty's Government of Nepal (HMGN) even as
of today, are the prime factors that have contributed towards the making
of this issue a "protracted refugee situation" in South Asia.
The announcement of the result of the verification by the Joint
Verification Team (JVT) in June 2003 was looked upon to usher in
positive developments despite its severe limitations. It was expected
that the two countries would narrow down their differences and pave way
to the resolution of the issue. The Bhutanese refugees who were robbed
off their dignity by the RGOB had submitted to the process of
categorization by the JVT without remedial procedures in the hope that
they would get justice one day. Contrary to their belief in the JVT, the
harsh conditions of return imposed by the delegation from Bhutan closed
all means of return. The incident of 22nd December 2003 at Khudunabari
is but an expression of dissent that the limits have been crossed by the
JVT.
After all these years of weary march down the bilateral path, Bhutan
found yet another opportunity to buy time tactically. Nepal is in a fix.
India wants it resolved bilaterally despite its support to the Druk
regime. UNHCR is all ready to cut assistance level from the next year.
At this juncture, it has become necessary for all to understand the
whole process of return from the different perspectives.
SAFHR has for years been involved in calling an end to the injustice
being meted out to the Bhutanese refugees. The surveys of the
unregistered asylum seekers from Bhutan and a case study on the
verification of refugees in Khudunabari have already been completed. It
has concluded from these studies that a solution to the crisis wholly
rest on the political will of the people of Bhutan. They refugees and
all working for the cause need to redefine their role and involvement.
Workshop on the Right to Return:
The 'Right to Return Workshop ' seeks to provide an opportunity for
refugees particularly those in the camp, their leaders and human rights
activists to strengthen their capacity and analyse what "return" means
in the international context. It will serve to understand the historical
background of the UN mechanisms, conventions, protocols and Executive
Committee decisions. It will enable them to draw parallels and also help
them understand the regional practices. It is expected that the workshop
will clarify doubts on voluntary repatriation and the protection role of
the UNHCR. It will help build self confidence and familiarize the
returnees on the repatriation aspects like pattern of return, conditions
of return, role of HMG, NGOs and INGOs, the difficulties related to the
process and the international obligations. The programme is also
envisaged to build an opinion on the conditions of return.
The four days residential workshop will be organised around lectures,
roundtable discussions, and working groups. The inaugural session
"State, Nation and Citizenship" is to reorient the whole focus of the
participants on how state and nation building are related to
citizenship. Legal experts will facilitate the sessions on historical
background to 1951 UN convention and 1967 protocal and the Bhutanese
refugee issue and the response of the international community. The
representative of the UNHCR will be requested to take up the session on
the role of UNHCR in the protection of refugees and the national laws
and constitutional provisions. Regional experts have been invited to
share their knowledge on conditions of return and return practices in
South Asia.
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