The mission of the Refugee Resettlement Program is to help refugees and their families obtain employment, economic self-sufficiency and social integration within the shortest possible time after their arrival into the Commonwealth.
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Since October 1, 1991, refugees from over thirty countries have resettled in the Commonwealth, representing diverse ethnic, cultural and religious backgrounds. The Cumulative Arrival figures presented here include refugees per se, Cuban and Haitian entrants, Amerasian immigrants and Kurdish asylees initially resettled in Pennsylvania. Not included are other asylees, and refugees initially resettled in other states.
Most refugee resettlement entails reunification of family members and/or planned placement in regions where there are good prospects for rapid employment and sufficient support services to facilitate adjustment to life in the United States.
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Click here to explore and learn more about the various home countries of Pennsylvania's refugees.
Man Kala Katel, lived for 20 years in a one-room, dirt-floored bamboo hut topped with plastic sheeting in a Nepalese camp. Her family of five often had to wait in line for hours to fill two cans with water. They shared a latrine with another family and took baths in a river.
She went to school, grew up, got married, and gave birth to her first child—all within the camp—and retains little memory of life in her family?s native Bhutanese village. She does, however, remember soldiers knocking on the door and being issued the awful ultimatum of either leaving the country, or facing the execution of her father and brother.
Though her father was spared, her brother was taken, jailed and beaten. When he was finally released, he hobbled for three days before reaching the Nepal border.
Bhutan is a predominantly Buddhist constitutional monarchy bordered by China and India. In the early 1990s, the monarchy instituted sweeping legislation that effectively stripped the ethnic Nepalese—a Hindu minority also known as the Lhotsampas—of their rights to citizenship, ownership of property, and ability to get government jobs.
Since then, an estimated 100,000 ethnic Nepalis have fled to refugee camps, often living there (like Man Kala) for many years. The Bhutanese government has characterized the exodus of refugees as voluntary but most refugees here tell a different story.
Since arrival in the United States began in 2008, Bhutanese refugees have struggled with the language barrier, job hunting, navigating the complex medical and educational systems, and learning to live with modern amenities. However, many are well on their way to self-sufficiency and are industrious, hard-working members of Pennsylvanian communities.
Story by Hari Ghimere
