HR 25 - AS INTRODUCED
2026 SESSION
26-2505
12/09
HOUSE RESOLUTION 25
SPONSORS: Rep. Budathoki, Hills. 40; Rep. Khan, Rock. 30; Rep. Seibert, Hills. 21
COMMITTEE: State-Federal Relations and Veterans Affairs
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ANALYSIS
This resolution recognizes the Kingdom of Bhutan as responsible for the oppression and forced eviction of more than 100,000 Bhutanese citizens during the late 1980s and 1990s. This resolution also urges the Kingdom of Bhutan to release all remaining political prisoners and accept the voluntary return of its displaced citizens.
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26-2505
12/09
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty-Six
Whereas, the Kingdom of Bhutan was responsible for the oppression and forced displacement of more than 100,000 Nepali language-speaking Bhutanese citizens, Lhotshampas and Sharchops, in the 1990s due to their identity, culture, language, religion, and political opinion; and
Whereas, many of these individuals experienced unjust detention, torture, and other forms of human rights abuses; and
Whereas, many political prisoners continue to be held in Bhutanese prisons for protracted sentences; and
Whereas, persecuted Bhutanese were forced to cross into Nepal, where some remained for nearly 2 decades in refugee camps; and
Whereas, thousands of Bhutanese refugees remain in refugee camps in Nepal, and the Royal Government of Bhutan continues to deny dignified repatriation to those who desire it; and
Whereas, more than 250,000 Nepali-speaking Lhotshampa Bhutanese still inside Bhutan suffer political, social, and economic oppression as the Royal Government of Bhutan has continuously refused to reinstate the citizenships that were stripped during the 1990s; and
Whereas, such incidences of human rights violations and abuses and extreme acts of violence perpetrated by any individual actor or state should be condemned; and
Whereas, the majority of the Nepali-speaking Lhotshampa, who were refugees in Nepal, have now resettled in other countries, including Australia, Canada, Denmark, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, the United Kingdom, and the United States; and
Whereas, more than 2,000 Bhutanese refugees who were expelled have been resettled in the State of New Hampshire; and
Whereas, although Bhutan and the United States have not established diplomatic relations, the 2 countries maintain warm and productive unofficial ties; and
Whereas, the Kingdom of Bhutan has stood with the United States and other like-minded countries at the United Nations to condemn Russian aggression in Ukraine; and
Whereas, the Kingdom of Bhutan is a close Indo-Pacific partner of the United States committed to upholding the rules-based international order; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives:
That the New Hampshire house of representatives declares that the Royal Government of Bhutan is responsible for the political, cultural, and ethnic oppression of Nepali-speaking Lhotshampas and Sharchops in Bhutan during the late 1980s and 1990s;
That the New Hampshire house of representatives urges the Royal Government of Bhutan to conduct a rapid and unconditional release of all political prisoners, whose crime was demanding democracy and human rights, with due restitution and reparations;
That the New Hampshire house of representatives, in a spirit of friendship, urges the Royal Government of Bhutan to resume discussions with the Government of Nepal on the status of individuals in Nepal who assert a claim to Bhutan citizenship or residency;
That the New Hampshire house of representatives requests the Royal Government of Bhutan to restore citizenship for all Nepali-speaking Lhotshampas that have had it arbitrarily revoked;
That the New Hampshire house of representatives requests the Royal Government of Bhutan accept the voluntary return of its citizens from the refugee camps in Nepal; and
That the New Hampshire house of representatives urges the Royal Government of Bhutan to enter into a holistic peace-building and reconciliation process and institute an independent truth commission to publicly investigate any human rights violations and abuses committed during the 1980s and 1990s, publish its findings, and follow through on its recommendations to ensure no future displacement or oppression of Nepali-speaking Lhotshampas and other minorities in Bhutan.
Be it further resolved that copies of this resolution, signed by the speaker of the house of representatives, be forwarded to the President of the United States and the Secretary of the United States Department of State.
Nov. 12, 2025: Introduced 01/07/2025 and referred to State-Federal Relations and Veterans Affairs