Briefing Australian parliament for release of Bhutanese political prisoners

Bhutanese Australian Association of South Australia (BAASA) has a presentation to Human Rights Sub-Committee of the Joint Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade in the Federal Parliament of Australia on May 13.

The private briefing was part of the worldwide campaign lobbying the governments in the country exiled Bhutan have resettled for the release of political prisoners still lingering in Bhutanese jails. 

“We are very concerned about the status and treatment of the political prisoners. We are very confident that treatment in jails have deteriorated since the Bhutanese government stopped allowing visits of the International Red Cross representatives in 2012,” I P Adhikari told parliamentarians, representing BAASA to make presentation in the parliamentary committee.

“Some of the family members of those political prisoners are resettled in various countries, some still living as refugees in Nepal while others are in Bhutan. They wish for family reunion.” 

There are five families in Australia whose family members are still serving jail sentence in Bhutan in political grounds. There are at least 37 political prisoners whose family have come up to record their details with the campaign.

Bhutanese laws applied under the regime of absolute monarchy become non-applicable when country moved to become a democracy. This automatically drops all allegations against these prisoners and are liable to be free. 

The elderly parents of those political prisoners are in the way of dying without their wishes to see face of their beloved sons being fulfilled. Children of those prisoners who were just born have great wishes to see their fathers now.

BAASA has urged the committee members to push through their government for the early release of these political prisoners and facilitate family reunification process. 

Longer they remain in jail, their situation would deteriorate in absence of any independent jail monitoring agency and absence of any human rights organisations to defend their rights.

Bhutan presents itself as a democratic country but those who raised voice for democracy were banished from country. Their leaders were arrested and given jail sentences, including life sentence. Those who called for democracy are now treated like criminals while those who opposed democratic changes are the bosses of the democracy.