Reiterates repatriation of Bhutanese refugees
KATHMANDU, Sept 21: Minister for Foreign Affairs Prakash Sharan Mahat, in his address to the United Nations General Assembly meeting, cautioned that not all migrants should be treated as refugees.

Taking Nepali nationals legally working in various countries as per the demands of the host countries as example, he stressed that the legal status of such workers should be duly recognized. 

Referring to the problems faced by economic migrants, of which Nepal is one of the largest source countries, he noted that the remittances they send carry huge and long term social, cultural and environmental costs back home.

Minister Mahat is leading the Nepali delegation to the 71st session of the UNGA, at the High Level Plenary Meeting of the General Assembly on addressing the large movements of refugees and migrants, organized by the President of the General Assembly at the United Nations Headquarters in New York on Tuesday.

A statement issued by the Permanent Mission of Nepal to the UN in New York stated that the minister highlighted the need of an effective rescue mechanism for migrant workers in emergencies.

"Underlining that international migration was a multidimensional reality of our time, the minister called for dealing with it effectively in its entirety," read the statement. "He added that ensuring safe, orderly and regular migration and mobility of people was necessary through well planned migration policies, keeping the various types and causes of migration in mind."

He underscored the importance of the Global Compact for safe, regular and orderly migration with a view to realizing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and achieving full respect for human rights of migrants everywhere.

Reiterates repatriation of Bhutanese refugees

Mentioning that the issues of political refugees can hardly be resolved with "their source countries taking a back bench" he pointed out that “it should be the responsibility of the country causing it and not the country where they are residing." 

While appreciating the developed countries for resettling many Bhutanese refugees, Mahat stressed that their right to return to their homeland should be respected, as many refugees in camps in Nepal are eagerly looking forward to go back. 

He was addressing the High-Level Plenary Meeting and also participated in the Roundtable 5 on "Global Compact for safe, regular and orderly migration: Towards realizing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and achieving full respect for the human rights of migrants." 

The meeting adopted the New York Declaration on Refugees and Migrants.

 
• prakash sharan mahat
 
• united nations
 
• general assembly
 
• nepal
 
• migrants
 
• refugees
 
• foreign affairs
 
• nepal