Current Scenario inside Bhutan 

The situation inside Bhutan is further deteriorating with acute violation of rights to education and citizenship. Students are forced to drop their schooling before appearing grade ten examinations. It is mandatory for all Bhutanese to have Bhutanese cards called ''Red card'' but it is issued to Southern Bhutanese very rarely only after making scrutiny about his, her or relative's involvement in the agitation. Still Bhutanese continue to suffer and bear the yoke of draconian policy of the RGOB. 

This ongoing crisis has victimized a large population of the youths and students whose fate remains bleak and uncertain. Though Bhutanese government provides free educations to the Bhutanese students there are thousands of Bhutanese children in the country deprived of right to education. This deprivation is due to implementation of intricately planned discriminatory policies and law. The students have to fulfill various formalities to get admitted in the schools and also government does not encourage privatization of schools though there is a few run by the government associates but are very expensive for the Bhutanese lay people.   

To be admitted in the schools, child's parents must be a Bhutanese citizen possessing Bhutanese citizenship cards and child should produce the Security Clearance Certificate, which is mandatory. Great question is that what wrong a 6 years old child can do. Amazing fact is that the Security Clearance Certificate is not issued to those Bhutanese who have their relatives in the refugee camp. During the 1990 political upheaval, the government closed down 76 schools in the southern districts denying education to about 40,000 school going children. Though some of the schools are re-opened but these re-opened schools only serve the needs of the children of security personal and government officials. 

The subjects taught in the schools aren't to the choice of the students or to the parents. The government selects the subject to be studied. Thus subject like political science, laws, human rights etc. aren't taught in the Bhutanese schools. Thousands of students come across the boarder to study in Indian schools but it is for sure that the students who studied in Indian schools aren't entitled to job in the country. Unemployment in Bhutan is increasing drastically as there is less job opportunity.    

Pertaining to educational crisis on Primary, Higher Secondary and Tertiary education caused due to discriminating policy combined with miscalculation of figures victimising as many as over 50% children directionless. The serious impact being created on the future of the promising youths and growing children who are unaware of the government policies condemned the government's decision to absorb only selected few.  Of 240,000 children (5-15years) only 122,000 are going to schools and getting their right to education defeating the international declaration of education for all by 2000. The children rejected of education composed of 50% Lhotshampas and 40% Sharchops/Common people leaving 10% of the children from other communities.  The schools that function in the east and south are short of teachers that also give room to understand that the discrimination persists in the education sector.  The NOC (No Objection Certificate), LOC (Letter of Clearance) has also created additional impact on the right to education of the children of the common people. 

In the year 2005, the students who passed school final counts to 5,110 of which 2,095 (41%) will only get the chance to study in the next higher level and the rest 3,015 will be left to the mercy of individual's fate.  Similarly, 2,688 children passed Class twelve examination and 1,187 will only get the chance for higher studies. Thus remaining 1,501 further will await decision of their individual fate. The above picture irrevocably contradicts what the Crown Prince Jigme Gesar Namgyal Wangchuk has been campaigning the prestigious forums like United Nations in-hesitantly in 2003 of having no racial discrimination and prevailing of equality in aspects of education, employment, health and opportunity. 

To add fuel in the fire, the government has enforced deprival of right to the relatives to support their kiths and kin in the education sector. The government has compelled the earning relatives to push these children back to the places where their parents live in poverty.  While closer of schools in the south has debarred children from attending in their native village schools, the children in the other regions would have no other alternatives than to run after tending cows and collecting firewood for the house as a helping hand to their parents as the parents often attend to government enforced labour in the respective district centres. 

Twenty-first centuries has witnessed global declaration of 'Education for All', but despite Bhutan being member of the United Nations has adopted policies that discourage education to its citizens. The party seriously condemns the government's discriminating policy and call upon the parents of the deprived children and the school going students who are the future pillars of Bhutan to unite for common voice to pressurize government for corrective measures. The government's campaign to the international mass about having begun the democratization process in one hand and using autocratic mode of governance on the other is a matter to be seriously viewed and condemned.  Such a government bearing primitive theology must be immediately dissolved and peoples' real government in line with the values and ethic of world democracy must be institutionalized. In order to achieve long aspired democracy, people right to fundamental freedom should not be deprived and exercise right to democracy and decision, which could only down voice the government's illusive vision. It is the humble appeal of the people to the donor parties to step into the education field at the grass root level in order to bestow justice to the people and ensure that the funding and grant given to Bhutan is properly utilized benefiting the poverty stricken society and not those in the upper class range.    

The allegation of refugees’ assault of the Bhutanese Verification Team was a preplanned and anticipated event, which the regime successfully exaggerated in the international community.  It is also unfortunate that the Bhutanese regime deputed emissaries around the world to campaign against refugees using Gross National Happiness as their banner while over 20% of the population continues to languish in the refugee camps in Nepal.  The Per Capita Income of US $710 is incorrect as over 97% of the people in 51 blocks have become vulnerable to food scarcity, and the hard labor done by these villages is not enough to survive.  We are not making any exaggerations, but are trying to express what has been published in the Bhutanese Weekly Official News Paper.  The children living in rags with families passing their lives under banana-leaves-roofed houses are yet to be seen by the international community.