A resolution recognizing the Kingdom of Bhutan as responsible for the oppression and forced eviction of more than 100,000 Bhutanese citizens during the late 1980s and 1990s.

III 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. RES. 108 Recognizing the Kingdom of Bhutan as responsible for the oppression and forced eviction of more than 100,000 Bhutanese citizens during the late 1980s and 1990s. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES MARCH 15, 2023 Mr. BROWN (for himself and Mr. CASEY) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations RESOLUTION Recognizing the Kingdom of Bhutan as responsible for the oppression and forced eviction of more than 100,000 Bhutanese citizens during the late 1980s and 1990s. Whereas the Kingdom of Bhutan was responsible for the op- pression and forced displacement of more than 100,000 Nepali language-speaking Bhutanese citizens, Lhotshampas and Sharchops, in the 1990s due to their identity, culture, language, religion, and political opinion; Whereas many of these individuals experienced unjust deten- tion, torture, and other forms of human rights abuses; Whereas many political prisoners continue to be held in Bhu- tanese prisons for protracted sentences; VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:10 Mar 16, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR108.IS SR108 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •SRES 108 IS Whereas persecuted Bhutanese were forced to cross into Nepal, where some remained for nearly two decades in refugee camps; Whereas thousands of Bhutanese refugees remain in refugee camps in Nepal, and the Government of Bhutan con- tinues to deny dignified repatriation to those who desire it; Whereas more than 250,000 Nepali-speaking Lhotshampa Bhutanese still inside Bhutan suffer political, social, and economic oppression as the Government of Bhutan has continuously refused to reinstate the citizenships that were stripped during the 1990s; Whereas such incidences of human rights violations and abuses and extreme acts of violence perpetrated by any individual actor or state should be condemned; Whereas the majority of the Nepali-speaking Lhotshampa, who were refugees in Nepal, have now resettled in other countries, including Australia, Canada, Denmark, Neth- erlands, New Zealand, Norway, the United Kingdom, and the United States; Whereas, although Bhutan and the United States have not established diplomatic relations, the two countries main- tain warm and productive unofficial ties; Whereas the Kingdom of Bhutan transitioned to democracy in 2008 and has held successive free and fair elections and transitions of power since that time; Whereas the Kingdom of Bhutan has been a leader in the global fight against climate change and is the only carbon negative country; VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:10 Mar 16, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR108.IS SR108 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •SRES 108 IS Whereas the Kingdom of Bhutan has stood with the United States and other likeminded countries as the United Na- tions to condemn Russian aggression in Ukraine; and Whereas the Kingdom of Bhutan is a close Indo-Pacific part- ner of the United States committed to upholding the rules-based international order: Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the Senate— 1 (1) declares that the Royal Government of Bhu- 2 tan is responsible for the political, cultural, and eth- 3 nic oppression of Nepali-speaking Lhotshampas and 4 Sharchops in Bhutan during the late 1980s and 5 1990s; 6 (2) urges the Royal Government of Bhutan to 7 conduct a rapid and unconditional release of all po- 8 litical prisoners, whose crime was demanding democ- 9 racy and human rights, with due restitution and rep- 10 arations; 11 (3) in a spirit of friendship, urges the Royal 12 Government of Bhutan to resume discussions with 13 the Government of Nepal on the status of individ- 14 uals in Nepal who assert a claim to Bhutan citizen- 15 ship or residency; 16 (4) requests the Royal Government of Bhutan 17 to restore citizenship for all Nepali-speaking 18 Lhotshampas that have had it arbitrarily revoked; 19 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •SRES 108 IS (5) requests the Royal Government of Bhutan 1 accept the voluntary return of its citizens from the 2 refugee camps in Nepal; and 3 (6) urges the Royal Government of Bhutan to 4 enter into a holistic peace building and reconciliation 5 process and institute an independent Truth Commis- 6 sion to publicly investigate any human rights viola- 7 tions and abuses committed during the 1990s, pub- 8 lish its findings, and follow through on its rec- 9 ommendations to ensure no future displacement or 10 oppression of Nepali-speaking Lhotshampas and 11 other minorities in Bhutan. 12 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:10 Mar 16, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\SR108.IS SR108 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS