UN urged to address plight of Bhutanese political prisoners and refugees

KATHMANDU, Aug 29: The Global Campaign for the Release of Political Prisoners in Bhutan (GCRPPB), an exile-based Bhutanese civil society organization, has called for the rights of Bhutanese political prisoners, addressed the Bhutanese refugee crisis, and advocated for the establishment of an independent human rights body in Bhutan.

Ram Karki, Founder and Global Coordinator of the GCRPPB, presented these issues at the United Nations in Geneva during the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) pre-sessions on Bhutan, held on Wednesday. The event was attended by Bhutan’s Ambassador Tenzin Rondel Wangchuk, Permanent Representative Dechen Om, and numerous members of permanent missions from various countries, along with civil society representatives from 14 nations.

Karki urged Bhutan to grant immediate and unconditional amnesty to all political prisoners, stressing the need for proper rehabilitation and adequate compensation for those released. He also called for the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to monitor prison conditions and facilitate family visits, according to a statement issued by the GCRPPB.

On the issue of Bhutanese refugees, Karki advocated for the immediate repatriation of those who wish to return to Bhutan with dignity, under the supervision of the UNHCR. He also emphasized the right of former Bhutanese citizens with overseas passports to obtain tourist visas to visit Bhutan and reunite with their families.

Highlighting human rights violations in Bhutan, including arbitrary detention, unfair trials, unlawful state seizures of private land, and restrictions on freedom of expression, Karki called for the establishment of an independent human rights institution in Bhutan, in accordance with the Paris Principles. He also urged the removal of obstacles to freedom of the press and expression and the allowance of international human rights organizations to operate in the country.

During an EU-Civil Society consultation in Geneva on August 28, 2024, Karki reiterated these concerns, urging European Union countries to press Bhutan to halt the deportation of political prisoners to India immediately after their release and to ensure their rehabilitation within Bhutan with adequate compensation. He also called for arrangements to facilitate family reunifications for these individuals.

This event marks a historic moment in the Bhutanese refugee movement, as it is possibly the first time a representative of a Bhutanese refugee organization has directly addressed high-level Bhutanese government officials at a UN platform, urging the resolution of these critical issues in the presence of numerous UN member state representatives.

GCRPPB expressed gratitude to its team members for their tireless efforts in preparing for this event and extended special thanks to Geneva-based UPR Info for selecting GCRPPB to represent Bhutanese civil society at this pre-session and for arranging the speaker’s travel expenses.

Due to the focus of this meeting, GCRPPB was unable to address the ongoing issues in Bhutanese refugee camps in Nepal, such as identity cards, travel documents, relief supplies, and other basic needs facing the refugees.

Full Text of the Statement:

KATHMANDU, Aug 29: The Global Campaign for the Release of Political Prisoners in Bhutan (GCRPPB)—an exile-based Bhutanese civil society organization—has strongly raised the issues of Bhutanese political prisoners, the Bhutanese refugee crisis, the need to grant the right to resettled former Bhutanese refugees with overseas passports to visit Bhutan, and the need for an independent human rights body inside Bhutan to monitor human rights violations.

Representing the GCRPPB, its Founder and Global Coordinator Ram Karki presented these issues at the United Nations on Wednesday.

Headquartered in Geneva, during the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) pre-sessions on Bhutan, Karki addressed the Bhutanese Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, Tenzin Rondel Wangchuk, the permanent representative Dechen Om, and numerous members of permanent missions from several countries, along with members of civil societies from 14 countries whose UPR session takes place this November.

Regarding Bhutanese political prisoners, Karki urged the government to grant amnesty to all political prisoners immediately and unconditionally. He requested the member states to make the following recommendations to Bhutan in the forthcoming Universal Periodic Review (UPR):

1. Grant amnesty to all 34 political prisoners immediately and unconditionally.

2. Ensure that released political prisoners receive proper rehabilitation inside the country and are compensated adequately.

3. Invite the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to monitor prison conditions and facilitate family visits.

On the issue of Bhutanese refugees and those resettled former Bhutanese with overseas passports willing to visit Bhutan, the international community was urged to make the following recommendations to Bhutan:

1. Immediately develop a process for repatriating all Bhutanese refugees who wish to return with honor and dignity, in a time-bound manner, under the supervision of the UNHCR.

2. Guarantee the right of former Bhutanese citizens with overseas passports to obtain tourist visas to visit Bhutan to meet their loved ones.

Highlighting several incidents of human rights violations such as arbitrary detention, unfair trials, unlawful state seizures of private land, lack of freedom of expression and speech, and discrimination in the recognition of citizenship in Bhutan, the international community was asked to make the following recommendations to Bhutan in the forthcoming UPR session:

1. Take immediate measures to establish an Independent Human Rights Institution in Bhutan, per the Paris Principles.

2. Eliminate all obstacles curtailing the country's freedom of the press, speech, and expression.

3. Allow international human rights organizations to operate in the country.

GCRPPB’s Karki also participated in the EU-Civil Society consultation at its Geneva-based office on the afternoon of August 28, 2024, where he spoke about these issues and urged EU countries to make strong recommendations to Bhutan in the forthcoming UPR session. European Union countries were also asked to press the Bhutanese government to stop deporting political prisoners to India immediately after their release and instead rehabilitate them within Bhutan with adequate compensation or arrange family reunification by liaising with the countries where these prisoners' families have resettled.

This is possibly the first time in the history of the Bhutanese refugee movement that a representative of a Bhutanese refugee organization has made a presentation at a UN platform, with high-level Bhutanese government officials as audience members, directly urging the Bhutanese government to resolve these issues in the presence of numerous permanent representatives of UN member countries.

GCRPPB would like to thank all its team members for their tireless efforts over several months in preparing documents for this event. Special thanks go to Geneva-based UPR Info for selecting GCRPPB to represent Bhutanese civil society in this pre-session and for arranging the travel costs for its speaker.

Since this meeting was purely about raising issues with Bhutan, GCRPPB was unable to address the burning issues in Bhutanese refugee camps in Nepal, such as identity cards, travel documents, relief supplies, and other basic problems facing the people there.