Bhutan king’s ploy:

This refers to the article “Bhutan’s prince warns of ‘uncertain future’” published in THT on December 31. Crown Prince Jigme Kesar Namgyal Wangchuk’s statement is against the commoners as it signals towards future autocracy. The Bhutanese are even deprived of their fundamental rights without which the other rights are unthinkable.

While changing from monarchy to democracy, the people should be given the minimum rights like the freedom to enjoy parliamentary democracy but the innocent Bhutanese are being governed by the Tsa-wa-sum (three gems of sovereignty), which is hostile to human rights. The country during King Jigme Singye Wangchuk’s rule has seen various crises like the eviction of citizens, resettlement in the southern part, mysterious deaths in prisons, changing of Nepali names of places into Dzongkha (national language), monopoly of the royal forces, control over the public properties, etc.

The King has declared that he will abdicate. Had he done so before 1988, the southern Bhutanese would not have suffered so much. The King has announced his ‘confused’ son as his successor, which is again contrary to the Tsa-wa-sum. This is indeed a ploy to ‘remain dry on water’ from the family squabbles and to make fools of the international community. The King is trying to give legitimacy to his eldest son. But the crowned prince was very young at his father’s wedding. How can the Bhutanese accept the ‘confused’ son as their future king?

Yuva Raj Baral, Birtamod, Jhapa

Change tack:

This refers to the news “Rizal meets Pandey” published in THT on December 29. The refugees of Khudunabari, one of the verified camps, are currently on a relay hunger strike demanding repatriation. Nepal, which is fighting its own political problems, has no time to hink about them. Foreign minister Ramesh Nath Pandey who had earlier gone to New York to ttend the special UN meeting had failed to address the issue. This meeting will prove worthless. But Nepal should not ignore this crisis as there is a possibility of further cleansing of Southern Bhutanese in the near future. The delay in resolving the problem may lead to an additional dilemma of more than one lakh refugees who are under UNHCR-run camps in Nepal. Nepal should raise the issue in the international fora rather than emphasising bilateral talks with Bhutan.

Thakur P Mishra, Sanepa, Lalitpur

Clarification:

Two subsequent letters published in THT have drawn our attention. Hari Panthi’s claim (Dec. 26) that the treatment was “wrong” is not true. His statement “I came to know that the doctor who treated me at Kantipur Dental Hospital was not a doctor” is downright wrong. Similarly, Mani Lohani’s claim (Dec. 29) that he has suspicion that his problem could be grave does not rest on solid ground. There are no fake doctors at the Kantipur Dental Hospital in Bharatpur. They are all registered with the Nepal Medical Council. We believe they are not spontaneous reactions of patients but of those guided by vested interests. We are ready to have an interaction with Lohani and Panthi.

Buddhi Man Shrestha, Executive Chairman, Kantipur Dental Hospital