Airport officials in New Delhi recently intercepted ten Bhutanese women attempting to travel to Qatar with fake visas. According to Foreign Minister Dr Tandi Dorji, the government then intervened and helped the women travel after four days. They were travelling without registering with an authorised agent. The government in the past has made the decision that no Bhutanese will be allowed to go overseas to work as domestic help and they have to go through a registered agent.
“We have been repeatedly saying that any Bhutanese who wants to travel abroad, for work must go through an overseas registered agent. If you go through an unregistered agent, or if you go through an agent outside the country, then we’ll have the same problem as we did in the past. We have many girls who’re trafficked so to speak. So this time the ten girls who’re stopped from boarding the plane had to stay for four days in Delhi. Through the embassy, we helped solve the issue and let them travel. If they have gone through registered agencies, they will help you every time you go through problems,” Lyonpo said.
Foreign Minister Dr Tandi Dorji also said they might have ended being cheated and landed up as victims of trafficking. Lyonpo said people should go through authorised agents to avoid getting cheated.
Kelzang Choden
