‘It’s the pity which hurts’

The Netherlands is one of many countries that have constant influxes of refugees arriving from all over the world. Despite recent headlines to the contrary, the Netherlands has a long history of welcoming refugees and helping them overcome the hardships faced by those forced to flee their countries against their will. One such refugee is TU Delft student Durga Mainali, from Bhutan, a small country wedged between India and China. 

Mainali, aged 32, is currently an MSc biochemical engineering student and also serves as chairman of the Bhutan society of the Netherlands. Forced to flee Bhutan when still in grade school, Mainali recalls: “The problem was purely political: in 1990, there was unease between the Lhotshampas – the Nepalese-speaking Bhutanese people – and the King, which led to around 100,000 people being evicted from the country.”



Mainali, his entire family and many other Nepalese-speaking people from South Bhutan then fled from one country to another. “We first tried to enter India,” Mainali says, “but we weren’t allowed to stay there, so we fled to Nepal.”

What was life like in Nepal?

“There was nothing for the first six months. We stayed with relatives and a few friends from Nepal. Later, when the inflow of people increased, the UN and other organizations organized several camps in Nepal. In the beginning, there were not many facilities in those camps, but later, with initiatives by many senior Bhutanese people, schools and other facilities started coming up. I finished my senior secondary schooling in one of these camps, and by performing well, secured a scholarship from Caritas Nepal for my higher secondary schooling. I pursued my BSc in physics and worked part-time as a school teacher to pay for my tuition. It was a hectic but interesting experience.”

What made you move to Netherlands?

“Within the refugee camps, many political parties started to grow, as well as revolutionaries who do not favor everyone equally. I was involved in a few political activities and Nepal no longer became safe for me. So, I could say, I decided to escape for political reasons and for my own safety.”

How did you start your life afresh in the Netherlands?

“I had all my documents, including my educational qualifications, and was an asylum seeker. The Dutch authorities were very helpful in understanding my situation and they had a detailed discussion as to what my future possibilities could be. I certainly wanted to prolong my academics, and studied at the Hogeschool in The Hague.”

And then to TU Delft for your MSc.

“It was a good choice for me to come into a program at TU Delft which is taught in English. As a refugee, I have most of the rights that a Dutch student has. I’m on a scholarship right now from the IB Group. This helps a lot financially. I also work part-time in the summer, and on the whole it’s manageable. The good news is that I’ll be getting a passport in a few weeks, which will make me a citizen and no longer a refugee.”

As chairman of the Bhutan society, how do you manage academics and running this organization?

”It’s been hard. My studies have taken a blow several times, but the activist in me finds it necessary to work in this umbrella organization for the minority Bhutanese community in the country. I want to fight for my people, and as chairman I want to help the other refugees to integrate with the society and acclimatize to the Dutch conditions.”

What do you do as an activist to raise your voice for your people?

”As a human rights activist, I raise my voice against the autocratic atrocities in Bhutan and participate in protests outside the foreign office. A few of my friends have demonstrated outside the venue of an EU conference in Belgium in order to bring out the real situation in Bhutan. We help organize these protests, which are small but significant. We also try to inform people from our society about the educational opportunities and career development programs available in the Netherlands.”

What will do once you’ve finished your studies?

”As an engineering student, my current focus is on developing my career, yet, at the same time, the human rights activist in me will not change, and as a refugee from Bhutan I’ll continue to struggle. I’ve chosen to be a little subdued right now and concentrate on finishing my Master’s program. If and when the situation in Bhutan changes, if my country becomes democratic, I would return to Bhutan and make use of my academic knowledge to serve the country.”

What are your future plans for the Bhutan society?

”My main goal is to make our people mix with the general Dutch society and build a network with other refugee societies. We have contacts with the Nepal Development Academy and are trying to build our network with them, as we share the same language. I’m also pushing my fellow people to pursue academics. Unfortunately, right now, I’m the only one of the 300+ refugees to be studying. Others have been unfortunate because of the different educational criteria in the Netherlands.”

Has your refugee status interfered with your studies? Have you faced any discrimination?

”There might be some amount of discrimination now and then, but it

doesn’t affect me. But it’s the pity that people look at me with which hurts. I want to succeed as an individual and not as being branded a ‘refugee’. I don’t want to hide my identity. Yes, I’m a refugee, but I want to be seen as the one who fights for my people with pride.” 

Nick Krouwel is eerstejaars bouwkundestudent en woont sinds september in het Huis Van Het Rode Vaandel, een mannen-Virgielhuis aan het Achterom. De naam doet communistisch aan en inderdaad wordt in dit huis ongeveer alles gedeeld: eten, drinken én vrouwen. In dit huis is iedereen gelijk, behalve de twee HJ’s. Die moeten zorgen voor het vuilnis, de telefoon, ze moeten de deur open doen en in de hoek zitten tijdens het eten. Bovendien strijden de HJ’s met elkaar over wie er het eerst HJ-af is en mag doorschuiven naar een grotere kamer. Voor deze HJ-game tellen huishoudelijke klusjes mee, maar beslissend is uiteindelijk de final HJ-battle. Waar die battle uit bestaat moeten ze nog samen verzinnen.