Second large group reaches Netherlands

Hague, April 03, 2009: The second large group of exiled Bhutanese getting resettled overseas arrived here in the Netherlands on March 31. 

TB Gurung and DP Mainali were there to receive them with tulip flowers in the Dutch way.

‘I feel as if I am in Kathmandu’ said PS Gurung, who was there with almost all of his family members including those who arrived in the Netherlands years earlier. ‘The feeling of unity with love and care for each other made our travel very enjoyable’ he said.

The entire groups of 31 people were then brought to a transition centre in Amersfoort. They were greeted by the first group of Lhosthampas who arrived a month earlier. The weather was sunny and all of them felt as though they are in the camps in Jhapa, where they lived for 18 years hoping to return to their home in Bhutan.

The Bhutanese refugee’s who could arrive in The Netherlands are in advantage in sustenance. During the transition period they are well paid, maintained and educated to integrate in the Dutch society. They will also be given family loan to maintain their homes besides social security. In addition, they may not need to pay their travel cost like those who opts for America.