US Plans to Resettle Tibetan Refugees from Nepal
Wednesday, 7 September 2005, 11:20
Dharamshala: The United States has conveyed to His Holiness the Dalai Lama and the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) its willingness to consider resettling Tibetans in the United States as part of its refugee admissions program, according to the Kashag secretariat.
“If approved, this program would resettle certain Tibetans living in Nepal, with all applicants requiring approval by the US Department of Homeland Security before admission. While criteria have not yet been formulated, it is currently envisioned that this program will be directed towards Tibetans who have been in Nepal for a number of years and who are particularly vulnerable.
“This would not be an immigrant visa operation, as in 1991, but rather a U.S. Government-funded refugee resettlement effort. The CTA will continue to keep the Tibetan community informed on the progress of this proposal, which is now before the US Congress.
“In the past four decades, His Holiness the Dalai Lama and the CTA have been able to provide for the needs of the majority of Tibetan refugees with generous support from India, the United States, other governments, and international agencies. We would welcome a decision by the United States to go ahead with the program as an expression of its commitment to continuing support for the welfare of Tibetan communities. His Holiness the Dalai Lama believes that the Tibetan Diaspora in the United States will contribute its resources to helping Tibetan refugees who arrive in the United States, as a means of sustaining Tibet’s cultural and religious traditions, and contributing to the world as a whole.”
