Even as the issue of democratisation of the polity as demanded by Nepali immigrants has been pushed to the background, the issue of terrorist outfits active in India which have set up bases in Bhutan appears to be the major feature of the mountain kingdom’s internal security scenario.
The Bhutanese refugee issue is far from settled and there is an evident lack of interest to in arriving at an early resolution. The tenth meeting of the Nepal-Bhutan Ministerial Joint Committee was held in Kathmandu, between December 24 and 28, 2000, with the Foreign Ministers of the two countries leading their respective national delegations. The two teams discussed the mechanism for the verification of claims of Bhutanese citizenship by people residing in camps in Nepal, who allege that they had been forcibly evicted from Bhutan.
Armed ngolop terrorists continued to rob and terrorise the Bhutanese people and to desecrate the country's sacred religious treasures. There were attempts to hold anti-government demonstrations in border towns like Phuentsholing and from camps in Nepal. The government contends that these were attempts to sow seeds of discord within the country.
Indian terrorist groups, including the United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA) and the Bodo Liberation Tigers (BLT) continue to operate from Bhutan and had, in December 2000, attacked Bhutanese citizens as well. The terrorists had entered Bhutan in 1992 following army operations against them in the Indian State of Assam. For about three years the Royal Bhutanese government was not aware of their presence, and by the time their activities came to light, they had entrenched themselves inside Bhutan and established camps. Soon, their numbers began to swell. Talks with the terrorist organisations' leadership failed, and the government is not hopeful of seeing the terrorists out of Bhutan in the near future. BLT terrorists killed 13 persons and injured 19 others in separate attacks on vehicles passing through Indian territory on their way from one part of Bhutan to the other. Among those targeted were personnel of the Royal Bhutan Police.
The 78th session of the National Assembly put forward a four-pronged strategy to tackle the problem of Indian terrorists operating from bases within Bhutan. It resolved:
Public opinion within Bhutan on the issue of dealing with Indian terrorists is varied. While one section argues that India has the responsibility to solve the problem, another section, the nationalists, strongly contends that Bhutan should not involve any external power in matters relating to national security.
The prime reason the Royal government holds out for not initiating measures to evict, or to halt operations by, Indian terrorists is fear of retribution by these terrorist groups, and its consequent impact on the social and economic life of people residing in areas where these groups are entrenched. A case in point is the November 12, 2000 twin-explosions in Samdrup Jongkhar, in which four persons were injured, two of them seriously. The King toured the country to gauge public opinion on initiating military action and flushing out Indian terrorists. Reports suggest that the people are highly concerned about the presence of Indian terrorists within Bhutan and its long-term impact on the country and are reported to have pledged to donate money and volunteered to join hands with security forces, if military action was taken against terrorists.