Bhutan's forgotten people (Part 2) | 101 East

In the early 1990s, Bhutanese of Nepali origin suddenly found themselves stripped of their citizenship. Bhutan enacted a royal decree of single national identity, forcing more than 100,000 ethnic Nepalese to leave. For the next two decades, they lived in refugee camps in eastern Nepal. Almost two decades later, Bhutan remains silent on their repatriation.

Filmmaker Subina Shrestha gives her view
Now the refugee camps are emptying with the majority of people resettled in the west. But some want to stay -- clinging on to the hope of returning home, despite reports that Bhutan’s discriminatory policies have left a percentage of its population grossly unhappy.

Bhutan is known to many as the Last Shangri-la; the country of "Gross National Happiness". But behind the façade of a peaceful nation is a state that forcefully drove out a sixth of its population -- an act which has been described as a systematic "ethnic cleansing".

Sabitra Bishwa is one of more than 100,000 Lhotsampas or Bhutanese of Nepalese origin, who found themselves stateless. In the 1980s, Bhutan introduced the policy of "one nation, one people" and alienated the Lhotsampa culture. This was followed by a revision of citizenship laws. Many Lhotsampas found they did not qualify and in the early 1990s, many were forced to leave, reaching the border with India.

But India's government also rejected them, taking them to the border with Nepal. In the 22 years since, the refugees have been unable to return to Bhutan. Without India's support, the Nepalese government has been unable to influence Bhutan.

In the first of two special programmes, "Bhutan’s forgotten people" follows Sabitra Bishwa and her family from a refugee camp in eastern Nepal to their departure for a new life in the US. Around them, the camp is emptying fast. Ninety thousand people have already left, leaving behind empty shacks and their abandoned dreams of returning home. It’s a difficult choice to make, and many are heartbroken.

For refugees like Sabitra, relocating to the US is a relief. Her sister moved there one year ago and is keen to see her again and give a better future to her family.

From the camp, we follow Sabitra to Kathmandu where the refugees are given an orientation on air travel -- from how to go through security to how to find your seat.

The films ends with Sabitra and her family boarding the plane, ready to start a new chapter in their lives in a new country, one that is completely foreign to them, and which we will explore in the show's part two, beginning on May 29th, at 2230 GMT.

Is third country resettlement the best option for Bhutan’s refugees? Share your views @AJ101East #Bhutan’sRefugees

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