UNHCR deputy chief arrives

July 19, 2006
2 MIN READ
A
A+
A-

Assistant High Commissioner for Refugees (Operations) from UNHCR headquarters in Geneva, Judy Cheng-Hopkins, arrived in Kathmandu, this afternoon on a four-day official visit to Nepal.

Assistant High Commissioner for Refugees (Operations), UNHCR, Judy Cheng-Hopkins (Photo source : unhcr.org)
During her stay in Nepal, Hopkins will visit the Bhutanese refugee camps in the eastern districts of Jhapa and Morang and other refugee programmes here to have a first hand view of UNHCR’s operations in Nepal. She will also call on high level government officials and hold meetings with the UN counterparts and UNHCR’s NGO partners, a press statement issued by the refugee agency on Wednesday said.

The visit of Hopkins comes at a time the UNHCR has been pressurising the Nepal government to accept the proposal of third country settlement of the Bhutanese refugees, which drew sharp criticism from refugee leaders. Bhutanese refugees have been saying that repatriation of refugees should take place before any other options are floated.

It is expected that Hopkins would discuss the issue of the Nepal government’s decision to send some 5,000 Tibetans to the US for settlement. The northern neighbour, China, opposed the Nepal government decision to send Tibetans to the US.

Prior to her departure from Nepal, Hopkins will hold a press conference on July 22 in Kathmandu.

There are over 105,000 Bhutanese, 20,000 Tibetan and few hundred refugees from other countries in Nepal. The government-in the policies and programmes presented before the house by Deputy Prime Minister KP Oli-has addressed only the Bhutanese refugee issue.