Each year World Refugee Day, marked on June 20, brings attention to the plight of tens of millions of persons forcibly displaced by conflict and persecution around the world. For decades, Nepal has been a generous host to refugees and is certainly no stranger to their  plight. As Nepal focuses on relief, recovery and reconstruction after the devastating earthquakes of  April 25 and  May 12, it has been heartening to see that many refugees in Nepal and from around the world have offered a helping hand in this time of need.

Refugees empathise

On a recent trip to Ramechhap, it was touching to see a team of refugees from Bhutan help construct temporary shelters in a completely devastated village. The refugees are expert and innovative craftsman, having honed their knowledge and skills of bamboo construction for over 20 years in the camps in Eastern Nepal. The team helped construct shelters for a number of widows and female-headed households while assisting other families by passing on their building techniques. The group’s efforts will help ensure that at least a few more families remain safe and dry this monsoon season.

Earlier in May, refugees living in the camps in Beldangi and Sanischare in eastern Nepal also pooled their money to buy and distribute relief items to some 200 families in Sindhuli district. Similarly, many of the 96,000 refugees from Bhutan who have been resettled abroad are pitching in. Refugee groups in Australia and the US have collected tens of thousands of dollars, which they are channelling to the relief and reconstruction efforts in Nepal.

Refugees from Bhutan were not alone in coming to Nepal’s aid, however. Many young Tibetan refugees undertook numerous relief missions to the most-affected districts and also assisted many who sought refuge in Kathmandu. An Iraqi refugee who has called Nepal home for the past 11 years also joined his neighbours to save the lives of those trapped under collapsed buildings; he later organised a collection of food and basic relief items. Similarly, a group of Somali refugees travelled to some of the most-affected districts to help families clear rubble so they can begin to rebuild.

Nepal has generously hosted large numbers of refugees for the past 50 years and this generosity did not go unnoticed. Most refugees know the pain and hardship of losing homes and loved ones, so it came as no surprise to see the genuine offers of help extended by so many refugees in Nepal and from around the world. In all of these cases, refugees gave freely of what little they had.  

Just like us

‘Refugees are people like us living in extraordinary times’ is the theme of this year’s World Refugee Day and this certainly resonates with the experience of the last two months in Nepal. Refugees are indeed ordinary people like any of us who seek—and deserve—to live a dignified life. As we have seen in recent weeks, they have their own identity and skills and are capable of making valuable contributions to the communities in which they live.

As we reflect upon the strength and resilience of more than 50 million people around the world forced to flee their homes due to war or human rights abuses, it is only right to also think of the plight of millions of Nepalis who are struggling to put their homes and lives back together. Despite their own struggles and hardships, seeing refugees give back some of the kindness and hospitality of the government and people of Nepal is a humble reminder of the values of compassion, generosity, and gratitude. In the difficult times that lie ahead, these are values which will be needed more than ever.

Sanders is the UNHCR Representative in Nepal