[ad_1]
A family fears for the safety of a missing man from Bhutan who enjoyed his freedom in New Zealand after more than 20 years in a refugee camp.
Bir Bahadur Poudel, 69, lives with her son Gopal Poudyel on John F Kennedy Drive, Palmerston North. He left his home at 8.30 a.m. on October 23 and has not been seen since.
Poudyel said that his father liked to walk long distances, but always returned at night.
There were 170 Bhutanese households in Manawatū. Poudel knew people in about 50 of them and stopped for cups of tea on his walks.
NZ POLICE
Detective Sergeant Dave Wilson and the son of the missing Bir Poudel, Gopal Poudyel, are asking people in the Manawatū area to be vigilant and search their properties.
READ MORE:
* Police search for missing man in Palmerston North Stream
* A person arrested after a car chase in Palmerston North
* Palmerston North residents are fed up with runners who ‘don’t respect society’
Warwick Smith / Stuff
Gopal Poudyel distressed his father Bir Bahadur Poudel, 69, who has not been found.
Poudyel said that although Poudel was 69 years old, he was in very good physical shape. “He can walk faster than us.”
Poudel’s travels took him from Milson through town to Highbury, where he had friends, and to the central business district. “We are just worried.”
The family was encountering particularly difficult nights, thinking of Poudel in the cold, the dark, and the rain.
Poudel loved his grandchildren, ages 7 and 8, and often took them to Milson School before taking the bus to English classes at English Language Partners in King St.
“More than us, he loves them,” Poudyel said. “The second day he disappeared, my children were crying.”
They would ask where their grandfather was and would be angry when they were told that he still hadn’t come home.
Poudel was not wearing warm clothing and was wearing a black turtleneck and light gray pants.
There was confusion about which hat he had. It was either a Bhutan cap or a navy blue wool hat with white and red stripes.
Warwick Smith / Stuff
Gopal Poudyel, center, with family, friends and members of the Bhuntanese community are distraught over the disappearance of their father. From left, behind, are Gopi Kafle; Ganga Ram Adhikari; Dirga Maya Poudel, Poudyel’s mother; and Kaushila Kafle.
He carried no identification or cell phone and it was not known if he was carrying cash.
Poudel had been taking English classes at English Language Partners for about three years, but had a hard time understanding sentences.
He used to say “kia ora” or “hello” to people he passed on the street, and the neighbors could almost understand him, but he often lost confidence or could not pronounce words in English.
Poudyel said that his father could understand singular words, as if someone said “address”, he could tell where he lived.
But if someone asks you “where do you live?” he wouldn’t understand.
The family arrived in New Zealand in January 2015, after more than 20 years in a Nepalese refugee camp.
In his home area of Khibesha, Bhutan, there was a conflict between ethnic groups amid political, cultural and religious differences and rumors of deaths spread in other villages.
Out of fear, the family of 10 and other villagers set out on foot for Nepal through rugged terrain, which included mountains, as well as rivers and dense scrub.
David Unwin / Stuff
Bhutanese refugees Dirga Maya Poudel, Bir Bahadur Poudel and Gopal Poudyel in 2017, two years after arriving in New Zealand.
Their seven-day journey ended in a refugee camp in Nepal, where they remained in conditions of rampant disease before moving to another camp.
The family stayed from 1993 to 2007, but realized that Nepal could not offer them the life they wanted for their children and moved to New Zealand.
The community had supported the family and had been driving and walking around the neighborhood looking for Poudel.
“In our community, people are very helpful, whenever we need them,” Poudyel said.
People checked their properties in the morning and evening, and older men wearing Nepalese caps were asked not to wear them to reduce confusion.
English Language Partners manager Jessica Yap said older refugee-origin students often did not have an education in their own language, making it difficult to learn a new language.
He said it could take years to learn to say his own name and recite his address.
Yap said Poudel took English classes Monday through Thursday, for a total of 10 hours a week.
She described him as gentle and said that you could occasionally get a smile out of him. “We feel very sad and anxious for him.”
Poudyel said police would visit him two to three times a day to check in and talk about where they were looking.
A police spokeswoman said officers were searching the wider area of Manawatū. The police were asking people to search their properties.
“Our priority is to make sure he is safe and well, so we can reunite him with his family.”
Anyone who has seen Poudel can contact the police at 105 and quote file number 201024-3032.
