As the country is moving towards the election of the constituent assembly, Bhutanese refugees in Nepal cast their ballots to elect representatives for camp management.
A press statement issued by the UNHCR in Nepal said there was a festive mood as over the course of three days – from May 2-4 – refugees lined up to vote for the person they believed should represent them in dealing with the host community, the government of Nepal, UNHCR and its partners.
Since the establishment of the camps in 1992, elections have become an annual event. Refugees eagerly looked forward to election day and the opportunity to exercise their democratic right to vote – even though it was in a refugee camp far from their homeland.
“We want refugees to fully exercise their right to elect their representatives and the role of UNHCR is to assist the process,” said UNHCR Representative in Nepal Abraham Abraham.
“Bhutanese refugees are very democratic and have always appreciated the electoral mechanism for representing themselves,” added Abraham.
In the run-up to the elections, UNHCR worked to get more women involved in the process to ensure good diversity among the candidates. This resulted in just over 50 percent female candidates standing in the elections, the first time that women have been equally represented as candidates for the Camp Management Committees, the statement adds
“The increased and active participation of women in the elections is highly encouraging,” said Abraham.
Over 105,000 Bhutanese refugees are living in the seven UNHCR administered camps in Jhapa and Morang districts for the past 15 years.