Members of the Bhutanese Refugees Repatriation Support Group (BRRSG) led by former Foreign Minister Shailendra Kumar Upadhaya that reached Bhadrapur to show solidarity for the repatriation of the Bhutanese refugees appealed to the donor community Thursday to discontinue aid to Bhutan until the refugee problem is solved.
Over one hundred thousand refugees living in seven different camps in eastern Nepal have been resorting to strikes in the past weeks demanding for the resolution of the festering refugee problem.
Speaking during the visit, Upadhyaya said as the refugee problem had been created by Bhutan the King and the people of Bhutan should be serious about addressing it.
According to reports from the district, the refugees who are on strike warned that the problem could turn out to be grave if the refugee problem is not addressed. Former Speaker Daman Nath Dhungana said the government of Nepal should try to address the refugee issue through diplomatic channel. He also reminded that the problem could not be solved without the help of India.
Hiranyalal Shrestha said while addressing the refugees that as they are the real citizens of Nepal who played an important role in the creation of modern Bhutan, they must be accepted immediately by the Bhutanese government. About 205 refugees participated in the relay hunger strike until Tuesday.