Leaders say US offer not good

Kathmandu, November 04: A group of exiled Bhutanese leaders again reminded Nepali lawmakers the offer made by the United States to resettle 60,000 of them is not in their favor.

"The offer is not in our favor as it will only help to resolve labor shortage problem in America and directly support the aspirations of absolute monarchy in Bhutan," they said on Sunday during the discussion with the Nepalese Parliamentary Committee on Human Rights and Foreign Affairs.

"Any kind of temporary solution will not be acceptable as we have yet to resolve the problems of over 700,000 people aspiring for democracy in Bhutan," one of the six-member delegation told.

The delegation chief and president of Druk National Congress Thinley Penjore, said the US offer and Geneva activation created "cyclonic confusion in the camps" and created division among the organizations.

"It seems that a few with vested interests paved their way into the camps spreading message of America's willingness to accept 60,000 of the exiled Bhutanese for resettlement in their country," Penjore told the committee. He further said, "The looming message didn't specify proposals to resolve the impasse in its entirety."

He also called it "unfortunate" that the US offer didn't come officially through the Government of Nepal.

The delegation included leaders of Bhutan People's Party (BPP), the Druk National Congress (DNC) and the Bhutan Gorkha National Liberation Front (BGNLF).

The leaders also stressed on India's proactive role in resolving the issue and asked the Nepal government to help open dialogue between Bhutan government and exiled leaders in New Delhi.

Former Nepalese ambassador to Bhutan Chakra Prasad Bastola warned that diplomatic relations between Nepal and Bhutan may be jeopardized if Bhutan doesn't show flexibility in resolving the Bhutanese refugee problem.

Meanwhile, Nepalese Deputy Prime Minister K. P. Oli told journalists before leaving for his five-day Delhi visit on Sunday that talks on exiled Bhutanese issue could figure during his meetings in India, but the Nepal-Bhutan talks slated for November 21-22 in Thimpu would try to find a solution to the stalemate. Bhutan News Service