Kathmandu, February 11:

A report published in the Bhutanese government owned kunselonline today quoted Bhutan’s Chief Justice as saying that the people living in Bhutanese Refugee Camps of Jhapa and Morang districts of Nepal are not Bhutanese citizens as per the Citizenship Act 1985.

According to the online, the Bhutanese CJ was responding to people’s query when they insisted that the “people in the camps in Nepal should be prevented to enter into Bhutan”.

The people of Tsirang, according to kuenselonline, said they “felt that citizenship should be restricted to those born to Bhutanese parents and that they were aware that those living in the refugee camps in Nepal and claiming Bhutanese citizenship was infiltrated by Maoists, Gorkha National Liberation Front (GNLF) and other militants.”

“This has been voiced by representatives of the 20 dzongkhags in the National Assembly,” the CJ added.

Meanwhile, Bhut-anese refugee leader in Kathmandu, R B Basnet, termed the statement by the Chief Justice as bogus while he labelled the Tsirang people’s voice as orchestrated.

“The whole episode is orchestrated. The people’s statement must have come under compulsion,” Basnet said adding that since there are several provisions in the Citizenship Act, I don’t know what the CJ was referring to.

He confirmed the name of the Bhutan CJ as Lyonpo Sonam Tobgye.

Meanwhile, a report from Jhapa said, human rights activist and Bhutanese leader Teknath Rijal today said Nepali government’s policy and concept should be clear regarding the problems of Bhutanese refugees. Speaking in Birtamod today, Rijal said: “Bhutanese government says that non-Bhutanese are also living in the camps. It’s not true.” He sought help of Bhutan’s donors to resolve the issue.

A meeting of donors for Bhutan is going to be organised from February 15 in Geneva in which Bhutanese foreign state minister Khaldu Wan-gchuk and home minister Jigmewai Thinle are going to participate, Rijal said urging donors to stop aid to Bhutan.

Plea to donors

KATHMANDU: Various organisations have urged Bhutan’s development partners to press Bhutan to take “practical and concrete” steps to demonstrate its state commitment to a just resolution of the refugee crisis. The Lutheran World Federation, Amnesty International Bhutanese Refugee Support Group, Caritas Internationalis, Human Rights Watch, amo-ng others said, “We believe that sustained international pressure is the only realistic means for achieving a rapid and durable solution to the Bhu-tanese Bhutanese refugee crisis.” — HNS