Peoples Forum for Human Rights and Development (PFHRD), an organisation of Bhutanese refugees in Nepal, raised their issue in the ongoing 56th session of UN Human Rights Commission being held in Geneva.

“The ethnically repressive laws such as the retroactive citizenship act of 1985, discriminatory census exercise of 1988 conducted only in southern Bhutan and a ban on southern Bhutanese dress, culture and language have resulted in serious violation of the social and cultural rights of southern Bhutanese people,” Yeshey Pelzom said.

Drawing the attention of Commission on the plight of over 100,000 Nepali speaking Lhotshampa refugees, Pelzom called upon the Commission ‘to halt resettlement in southern Bhutan immediately,’ a PFHRD press release said.

She also appealed to the Commission to pressure the Bhutanese government to withdraw all those people who have been resettled so far on refugee’s land and to make firm arrangements to repatriate the original occupants of the land hwo are suffering in the refugee camps, the press release stated.

Speaking under agenda item 11, she highlighted the gross violation of the human rights in eastern Bhutan where both civilation and Buddhist monks were facing prison terms for raising their voice for democracy and human rights. Pelzom also demanded immediate release of Rongthong Kuenley Dorji, Chairman of Druk National Congress who was arrested by the Indian police in April 1997 and was still in detention in New Delhi.