Bishnu Luitel – Harrisburg, Pennsylvania

The deep love one has for their birthplace and the yearning to worship and pay homage to their deities have been demonstrated by the Bhutanese King’s brief visit to Nepal and the prayers he offered. On Friday, December 7, 2024, King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck of Bhutan, after completing a two-day official visit to India, stopped in Kathmandu, Nepal, on his way back to Bhutan. There, he visited and offered prayers at Boudhanath and Swayambhunath.

King Khesar was born at the Maternity Hospital in Thapathali, Nepal. Perhaps this is why he frequently visits Nepal. Being a Buddhist, he appears humble and compassionate towards his people and is actively working to maintain good relations with neighboring countries. Bhutan’s fifth king, Khesar’s magnanimity is being closely observed by those displaced in the 1990s. It has sparked hope that his grace might extend to them as well.

This visit has clearly shown the deep affection King Khesar holds for his birthplace. His devotion to this sacred land has undoubtedly left a profound impact on his heart and mind. Similarly, we, the displaced Bhutanese who were born and raised in Bhutan, harbor an intense longing to visit our homeland at least once before we die. Even as tourists, the desire to touch the soil of our birthplace and mark our lives with the sacredness of that land burns deeply within us.

We earnestly appeal to the current king to pave the way for exiled citizens who cherish their country to visit their ancestral land. The love and reverence for one’s birthplace run through the veins of every patriotic citizen. The memories of our ancestors, who irrigated the land with their blood and sweat to make it prosperous, often leave us mentally distressed.

Many of our elders, who are now respected citizens resettled in powerful and prosperous nations, pray day and night to return to their birthplace to spend their final days and have their funeral pyres lit on the riverbanks of their native villages. Their profound longing demonstrates that one’s birthplace and mother are greater than even heaven.

Over time, our ancestors were taken from Nepal to Bhutan through various treaties and agreements, settling there permanently. Later, other Nepali-speaking individuals followed, searching for relatives. At that time, Bhutan lacked paddy fields, orange orchards, or cardamom plantations. Instead, it was a dense jungle, home to wild animals, malaria, and epidemics. Our ancestors toiled to transform this barren, daunting land into a lush and habitable place.

They built human settlements, carved roads through cliffs and mountains, and served the country selflessly, aiding the kings and nobles without any personal gain. As the country developed and prospered, however, the simple and hardworking people were betrayed. Armed at gunpoint, they were expelled from the country under the orders of the fourth king, Jigme Singye Wangchuck, who severely violated their trust.

Perhaps that is why our parents and elders always want to talk about Bhutan. They are eager to share heartfelt and nostalgic memories of plowing fields, creating terraces, cultivating orange and cardamom orchards, building dzongs and monasteries, constructing schools, carving out trails and mule paths, and their invaluable contributions to nation-building.

They vividly recall and recount the events surrounding the construction of Bhutan’s highways, such as the Gelephu-Tongsa Road, Phuentsholing-Thimphu Road, Gelephu-Sarpang Road, and Wangdi-Thimphu Road. They wish to unburden their hearts by narrating the harrowing and mesmerizing experiences of building these roads. These accounts include the treacherous cliffs of Madhurg, Jayanti Rang, Bhotebhir, Chyafle Bhir, Jantare Bhir, Jante Bhir, and Nyanulakha Bhir.

Many laborers lost their lives while blasting rocks and clearing paths on these perilous cliffs, balancing on precarious ladders. Such tragic memories still bring tears to their eyes. One poignant story is that of *Dakwala* Ghimire, a notable postal worker, whose tale resonates deeply.

During the construction of the Bhotebhir section of the road between Surey and Samkhara, a postal worker named Dakwala Ghimire was carrying government mail along the trail. According to 81-year-old eyewitness Man Pradhan, “Suddenly, a landslide struck, and he disappeared instantly, buried under the debris.” With tears in his eyes, Pradhan added, “There were many other deaths during the road’s construction, but they are too painful to recount.” Today, Ghimire’s descendants, like many displaced Bhutanese, have been resettled across various countries worldwide.

Wouldn’t they feel an intense desire to return to the roads their ancestor built or the cliff where their forebear lost his life, to shed a single tear in his memory? Could anyone imagine how much the tragic and painful chain of events surrounding Bhotebhir still haunts Ghimire’s descendants? How deeply it unsettles and distresses them?

It is our earnest hope that the Bhutanese king creates an environment that allows such families to fulfill their yearning for their homeland. These families, shaped by countless such events, carry within them an unwavering love for their country. Remembering one’s homeland is undoubtedly a testament to an unbreakable bond of love for the nation.

During the Bhutanese king’s visit to Nepal, a journalist in Kathmandu asked why Nepali-speaking citizens had been expelled from Bhutan. In response, an official accompanying the king reportedly said, *“The government didn’t expel them. Leaving the country was their own mistake. The government bears no responsibility.”*

This statement is utterly objectionable. How could it be true that in 1990, over 100,000 people left the country all at once by their own choice? The reality behind this mass exodus is undeniable, and the official’s baseless response lacks any truth. Perhaps the official wasn’t even born in 1990, or if they were, they might have been too young to understand.

If the people had committed any mistakes, wasn’t it the state’s responsibility to investigate and determine who was at fault and what kind of errors were made? Who else but the state is accountable for enforcing justice and punishing offenders according to the law? Punishing citizens based on suspicions or unproven allegations is far from just. What wrongdoing could the elderly, women, children, or people with disabilities—those who couldn’t see, hear, speak, or walk—have possibly committed to deserve being exiled from their homeland?

The official must answer this question. A state must act with wisdom. Being a minister doesn’t grant someone the right to make careless statements, especially in today’s interconnected world where any words spoken spread globally in an instant.

During that time, Bhutan had no proper governance system, no rule of law—only the king’s arbitrary decrees. The fourth king, Jigme Singye Wangchuck, would shed crocodile tears in daytime meetings with southern citizens, pretending to discourage them from leaving the country. But at night, he would send soldiers to loot villages, burn homes, and threaten families with violence if they refused to leave. Soldiers raped daughters and daughters-in-law, terrorizing people into fleeing.

Who created such a horrifying state of tyranny? Without thoroughly investigating the government’s abuses and brutal oppression, the official’s comments cannot be agreed upon. Speaking recklessly under the guise of representing the king’s delegation is no longer acceptable in today’s world.

The current Bhutanese king, Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck, now has to appeal to his citizens abroad for goodwill because of the loss of wisdom and humanity under the fourth king’s rule. If King Khesar surrounds himself with similarly ignorant and irresponsible ministers, he may face a future as bleak as his father’s.

We live in an era of advanced technology where no crime can be concealed as it was in the past. Technology has fostered transparency, awareness, and unity among people worldwide, making the world a global village. Yet Bhutan continues to propagate illusions on the global stage.

In 1990, the fourth king meticulously planned and orchestrated the eviction of many of his citizens, stripping some of their property before expelling them. Others fled due to intolerable abuses by the Bhutanese military. Many were reclassified as non-citizens during the census process. Some were accused of holding dual citizenship, while others were labeled illegitimate because one of their parents was from outside Bhutan. These citizens were categorized into lower classes (e.g., Category 3 or 4) and systematically deprived of state benefits and rights, ultimately forcing them to leave the country.

Over 100,000 Bhutanese people were thus driven out, including those whose ancestors had sacrificed their lives and labor to develop Bhutan. These families, once instrumental in the nation’s progress and prosperity, were branded as *Ngolops* (anti-nationals) or non-citizens and subjected to severe military oppression.

Before making careless statements, Bhutan’s ministers and officials must carefully study and understand these tragic events. Our earnest request is for the Bhutanese leadership to exercise responsibility, respect history, and avoid repeating the mistakes of the past.

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