Refugees are Never Burdens on Host Community: The Case of Bhutanese Refugees in South Australia
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.24203/ajhss.v5i2.4735Keywords:
Bhutanese refugee, Nepal, third country resettlement, South AustraliaAbstract
The study attempts to pose a question to the notion firmly rooted in the policy of governments that ‘refugees are burdens’ on the host communities, and then argue the potentials of refugees to become assets for the host communities by scrutinizing the case of Bhutanese refugees in South Australia. First, the study reviews the life of Bhutanese refugees in the refugee camps and the destination of their resettlement (South Australia), with specific focus on the socio-economic features. Second, the study moves on to the socio-economic impacts of Bhutanese refugees on host communities in South Australia. Results from the field researches conducted in refugee camps in Nepal and in the resettlement places in South Australia as well as intensive literature surveys clarified that Bhutanese refugees have fewer obstacles to integrate into the host communities than other conflict-related refugees residing in poor countries. Economic, social and cultural environment in South Australia has positive influences on the successful integration of Bhutanese refugees into the host communities. Lastly, the study discusses the benefits refugees would give on the host communities, and concludes refugees are never burdens on the host communities because they can potentially give benefits on the host communities under several conditions.References
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