The 80,000th refugee from Bhutan departed from Nepal for the United States of America yesterday, December 9, 2014. The U.S. Ambassador to Nepal, Peter W. Bodde bid farewell to Karmi Uraw, Dil Bahadur Sarki, and their eleven-month-old son at Tribhuvan International Airport before they start a new life in Columbus, Ohio. The family will arrive in the United States tomorrow, on International Human Rights Day.

After meeting the family, Ambassador Bodde commended the government and people of Nepal for graciously hosting Bhutanese refugees for over 20 years, noting that, “Nepal’s history shows its commitment to protecting those who have come here seeking refuge.  In that honorable tradition, I encourage Nepal to continue to act as a model for the world as a durable solution for refugees from Bhutan is found.”

"The United States, in close coordination with the government of Nepal, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), and the International Organization for Migration (IOM), began resettling refugees from Bhutan residing in eastern Nepal in 2007. Since the first Bhutanese refugees departed Nepal seven years ago, more than 93,000 have been resettled in Australia, Canada, Denmark, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, the United Kingdom, and the United States.  Some of the 80,000 Bhutanese who have resettled in the United States have already become naturalized American citizens," writes the press issued by Public Affairs Section, Embassy of The United States.