The affirmation of the existence of a Bhutanese gay population

The affirmation of the existence of a Bhutanese gay population only happened with the creation of the Facebook page and Twitter handle “LGBT Bhutan” (Lesbian/ Gay/ Bisexual/Transgender) about six months ago.

“I liked boys since I was little, I did not find that strange” says one of the LGBT administrators who wanted to be called J. “There was no conflict within me”.

Another administrator, K, has a different story.  K was homophobic for 20 years of his life denying his innate sexual orientation. “It’s a frightening feeling (coming out), but once I accepted who I am; that I cannot hide from my sexuality, I came out to one of my best friends. I did not choose to come out by deciding who would or would not understand me. I came out to people who are close to me and whom I know I will associate with for the rest of my life. Anyone else would have made it my prime identity.”

Both administrators admit to having been inspired by Dechen- one of the only two transgenders who have chosen to live in the public eye as women.

Dechen made news when she wanted to wear a Kira to school when she was 16. Never before had such a case presented itself in Bhutanese society. “I think of myself as a normal girl, I never stop myself from going out and having fun,” Dechen says. She shares that other transgenders like her do not want to disclose their identities, as the “self-stigma” is too great. But, she says discrimination is not very widespread in Bhutanese society.

 Homosexuality is Unnatural

Although, Bhutanese society has been quite accepting of transgenders, many are quick to dub homosexuality “unnatural”. While it has been scientifically proven that one’s sexual orientation is not a personal choice and is biological, many Bhutanese are suspicious and downright judgmental about homosexuality.

Factual awareness in Bhutan is a mere shadow of the dominant gay stereotypes propagated by popular culture through films, books and social media.

“It isn’t as if I haven’t tried to be “normal”, I’ve tried that my whole life, but being normal is abnormal for me. If there is holy water that you can sprinkle on me to make me straight then please do so!” cries K in earnest.

“But Bhutanese do not use their personal morality to impose religious or moral views on others”, Ben Gagnon, a former Wheaton exchange student at the Royal Thimphu College points out.  He discovered this after carrying out an on-campus survey on homosexuality.

There were 150 participants in the survey that was probably the first of its kind to have been done in the country. About 60 percent of the respondents believe homosexuality is immoral but more than 50 percent also say homosexuality should be accepted and homosexuals protected from discrimination and harm.

 Homosexuality is Criminal

Ben who is, incidentally, gay expected Bhutan to be very homophobic; he admits his view had been coloured by a Wikipedia search that threw up Bhutan’s Penal clauses criminalising homosexuality and not because of anyone else’s experiences.

Clauses 213 and 214 in the Penal Code of Bhutan criminalise homosexual relationship. It states that a defendant shall be guilty of the offence of unnatural sex, if the defendant engages in sodomy or any other sexual conduct that is against the order of nature. “The offence of unnatural sex shall be a petty misdemeanor,” states clause 214.

In spite of the clauses, no arrests of this nature have been made since the Penal Code’s birth in 2004.

“The issue is when the law is there and if people do not enforce it, is it okay? With time, as society progresses and thoughts broaden, homosexuality may need to be revisited. In a democratic society, it becomes even more important because democracy promotes liberty”, shares Gasa’s Member of Parliament in the National Council, Sangay Khandu.

The clause may have come into existence with reason but it has antagonised many young Bhutanese who belong to the LGBT community and their “allies” (friends and supporters) in modern day Bhutan who see it as an anomaly in a normally lenient society.

This law although dormant, has had an effect on many gay and transgender Bhutanese who want to remain hidden and also carry on “relations and activities” online and off mainstream society’s radar to avoid being criminalised and losing their dignities.

Stigma could lead to Health Issues

“Gay people are having sex, you know”, says K. “But gay Bhutanese have a very carefree attitude towards sex- safe sex is not important”, adds Ben.

The gay group is therefore in a high health risk category because they may not be too forthcoming about sexual as well as mental health issues.

The Health Ministry may have sensed this as well, as they are currently mapping the MSM (men who have sex with men) and transgender population in the country.  “This is not to find a number but to understand the health barriers that exist for such a population and provide strategic health interventions”, explains an official who does not want to be named.

The mapping has been carried out in seven dzongkhags but is limited to an urban population due to the prevalence of HIV cases among such inhabitants.

The findings are expected to be shared later, this year. The officials (who do not want to be named) shared that the Ministry considers it important to ensure that health services are inclusive irrespective of one’s status/gender/ sexual orientation.

Tackling the mental health of such a population may not be as straightforward.

“I was deeply conflicted, an introvert and almost always angry”, K describes himself before coming out and embracing his homosexuality. “Look at me now, I am happy and an extrovert, no one would have imagined me to be like this, not even my closest friends”. K found the strength to accept his homosexuality through America’s Talk-Show Celebrity, Ellen DeGeneres, and the online “It Gets Better Project”.

What would happen to another youth, who is at odds with his/her identity, has no access to the online world, and no one to talk to? Personality disorders, depression and suicide are definite and tragic consequences.

 Buddhism does not condemn homosexuality

Bhutan is seen as a highly tolerant society and with a majority of the population being Buddhist, the LGBT administrators are quite hopeful about acceptance.

The Director of the Institute of Language and Culture Studies, Lungtaen Gyatsho, says, “Buddhism believes only in universal principles which are beyond the interpretation of notions. The rest are based on notions which are largely culture-based and time-bound. Sex is an activity and for that matter, homosexuality is also an activity and therefore, an individual choice.”

He said the debate between what is ‘natural sex’ and ‘unnatural sex’ can go on and on because notions are based on culture and no culture is right or wrong. Buddhism has no serious reason to condemn homosexuality as long as it is an activity of consensus between two persons and carried out in private. “However, notions can vary from culture to culture, society to society and country to country but no notion is right or wrong on its own”.

K first came out to his brother. “I sort of told my parents (a few weeks ago), it didn’t go so well, but it was not so bad either”, says K.

If it is not black and white anymore, perhaps it is time to look with an open mind at the rainbow?

Bhutanese teenager mauled by a Himalayan black bear

Bhutanese teenager mauled by a Himalayan black bear in Paro, Bhutan yesterday. The class 8 student was on her way to school when the animal attacked her. The incident took place at around 8:25 am in Tabchheygang under Hoongrel Gewog. The victim suffered deep wounds to her face and neck. She is currently admitted in the Dzongkhag hospital and is said to be in a stable condition.

The Forest officials have been unable to track down the bear yet.

Bhutan's PM leaves for India today

Bhutan's PM leaves for India today to get a clear indication on how much budget will be released for the 11^th Five Year Plan.

The overall budget for the 11th Five Year Plan is estimated to be Nu.225 billion, 80 billion more compared to 10^th Five Year Plan.

Lyonchhen, during a press conference today, said the financing plan will start taking shape only after he returns from India.  “At that time we will have clear indication of how much of the 11^th Five Year Plan has secured financing and it is at that time that we would like to announce first in the parliament what is in store for our nation during the next five years.”

The 11^th Five Year Plan draft will be tabled for discussion in the upcoming parliament session which begins on September 7.

The Prime Minister received an audience with His Majesty the King of Bhutan

The Prime Minister received an audience with His Majesty the King of Bhutan today. The Royal audience was sought by the Prime Minister to report to His Majesty on his ensuing visit to India and receive Royal Command.

Lyonchhen will be on an official visit to the Indian capital, New Delhi from August 30 till September 4. The Prime Minister of India, Dr. Manmohan Singh had invited the Prime Minister to visit India soon after the election result was declared in July this year.

European Union will increase their assistance to Bhutan

European Union will increase their assistance to Bhutan by more than double. The EU Ambassador to Bhutan, Joao Cravinho, said they are pleased with the outcomes of their developmental assistance to Bhutan.

 “I have also been able to tell Bhutanese authorities that EU will not only maintain the support but also increase substantially.

Joao Cravinho said EU is coming to the end of financial cycles. “We have seven financial cycles. This new financial cycle starts from Jan 2014. From the new financial cycle we have decided to increase significantly increase our developmental assistance to Bhutan.”

The EU will not only be maintaining their support in fields like renewable energy, agriculture and good governance but they will also focus on new initiatives. The Ambassador said that they are keen to support Bhutan on the challenges faced by the country.  He said that they will be supporting in fields like capacity building of Local Government, mechanism for certification of organic products among others. The Ambassador said that during the next few months they will be sending two different missions to Bhutan to study and work on the programmes.

“Our focus will be in helping Bhutan to use non perishable sources of energy which must go hand in hand in developmental activities,” said Joao Cravinho.

He said as a country becomes more developed as in case of Bhutan there is a challenge to intensify the use of fossils fuels. “This will be problematic as Bhutan already faces current import deficit as all fossils fuels are imported. Yet Bhutan is the country where production of electric energy is to increase a lot.”

He said this is the area they are interested working with Bhutan on this.

Bhutan's best archer of 2013.

Sherab Tharchen is the best archer in the Country. The shootout was held yesterday at the Changlimethang archery range. He managed to hit 13 Kareys in 15 rounds defeating 14 archers in the on-going 17^th Yangphel Open Archery Tournament.

He received a cash prize of Nu. 200,000. Pema Dorji, a player of BF Paro managed to hit 11 kareys and four on the bull’s eye. He took home Nu. 50,000. The third position holder, Jigme Norbu, despite hitting equal Kareys with Pema Dorji, fell short by a hit on the bulls’ eye. He got Nu. 15,000.

Meanwhile, the last year’s best archer, Tshewang Dorji managed to hit only seven Kareys this year. Last year he had hit 18 kareys in 15 rounds.

The participants were the seeded players selected during the 16^th   Yangphel Open Archery tournament last year.

Bhutan's future football team in the making

Bhutan Football Federation says Bhutan would have a good football team in future, if talented youth are trained at an early stage. In order to tap the potential from an early age the Federation is organising various grassroots coaching camps in the Country.

Recently, a four-day camp was organised in Tsirang. Choki Nima from the Bhutan Football Federation said such training would allow them to select best footballers in the region and will be further trained in the Thimphu to represent the Country in future.

“Ten years down the road we are expecting the performance level in our youth in our region, not world class but within our region like SAARC and Asian level,” said Choki Nima, adding that Bhutan would have a larger pool of players and would be possible to have quality selection.

Since good footballers need trained coaches, some 22 teachers from different schools in Tsirang were also given some training. The teachers said they have now acquired more knowledge to further train their students in football.

“It is important to coach them and there are age level where there is certain coaching practices to be followed,” said Anita Tamang, Sports Teacher, Damphu LSS.

Hem Kumar of Sergithang primary school has already thought out to make his action plan. “My school does not have such facilities, as it is quite remote. However, we can improvise such facilities like paper boxes or whatever we can find. I’ll train them for beautiful game of football.”

More than 200 students between the age of six and 12 from Damphu LSS attended the camp.

News: Bhutan's biggest seizures of 2013

According to the police of Bhutan, they were informed by a reliable source that a consignment of drugs is being sent as parcel from Phuentsholing in a passenger bus on August 3. They also received information that the person who was smuggling in the controlled substance was coming in a taxi from Phuentsholing. The officials seized the consignment and also arrested the person from the Thimphu bus terminal.

They found 2890 capsules of Relipen, 3728 capsules of Spasmoproxyvon and 3880 tablets of Nitrosun-10 inside a bag.  The person was the girlfriend of the supplier, a 25-year-old man from Wangdue Phodrang. The man had also told his girlfriend to pick up the second consignment, the next day. On August 4, the team seized second consignment which had 7,176 capsules of Spasmoproxyvon and also arrested the man.

Upon frisking him, they found out 7 grams of brown sugar. Both of them are under detention and will be charged for illegal transaction of controlled substances.

A big consignment of controlled substances was seized by the Thimphu police earlier this month. They have seized 17,674 tablets and about 7 grams of brown sugar. The officials described it as the biggest seizures this year. This is the first time since 2004 that a transaction of brown sugar has been seized.

Bhutan at the SAFFC Games

Bhutan’s National Football team is currently in Nepal for the South Asian Football Federation Championship, which will kick-off from August 31.

Bhutan along with Afghanistan, the Maldives and Sri Lanka is in group B. Bhutan will play its first match on September 2 against Afghanistan.

A total of eight teams are competing in the Championship.

The team will also be playing friendly matches against Three Star FC and LHMM Manang FC, the two top clubs in Nepal, before they take on Afghanistan.

Manang is also the winner of the King’s Cup which was played recently in Bhutan.

News : Four Bank of Bhutan employees accused.

Following a tip-off, Bank of Bhutan Limited (BoBL) suspended four of its employees at the Punakha branch on “strong” suspicion of embezzlement, fraud, forgery, misuse of authority, negligence and official misconduct, last month.

An investigation was conducted soon after and a few suspicious transactions were detected, which were enquired into by the management, bank officials said.

It was confirmed that two employees had immediately admitted to defrauding and embezzlement of funds. Another two, detected during the investigation, were suspected to having forged the signature and thumb impression of the clients.

“Based on our internal procedures, the bank immediately filed a crime information report (CIR) with the police in Punakha,” the officials said.

The bank was told by the police that all embezzlement cases are taken over by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC), based on a meeting between the two agencies. “Accordingly we informed ACC for further actions,” a senior bank official said.

The two suspects were detected during investigation, which lasted from July 23 to August 10.  Upon completion of the investigation by the bank, the report was shared with ACC for further action.

“It’s a case of embezzlement, fraud, forgery and misconduct but has now been rectified,” bank officials said. “The staff had colluded in a fraud, which is very difficult to catch.”

The embezzlement case saw two suspects, who exploited an “inadvertent” weakness in the system (which was recently identified and rectified), and had directly debited a reconciliation account in collusion that should not have permitted direct human input.

The case of forged signature and thumb impression, however, was overlooked by the supervisor, which was the normal control mechanism to be observed strictly by the supervisor.

The suspects had been working for the bank for a period ranging from 5 to 20 years and were suspended with 50 percent basic salary, as per the bank’s service rule and regulations.

The management of the bank added, while the tip-off helped in the quick identification of the suspects, the embezzlement would have come to light within this month as a reconciliation process had already been initiated, following the identification of the inadvertent system weakness.

Bank officials said that it had since adopted more stringent control mechanisms to ensure such cases do not happen again.

Meanwhile, the case is under review jointly by ACC and BoBL.  An immediate action would be initiated against the suspects, after collecting all the documentary evidence, the bank officials said.

While Kuensel tried to contact the suspects, bank employees in Punakha said the suspended employees have changed their cell phone numbers, and some even left the town.

Some of the BoBL employees, who work at the Wangdi branch, are currently posted at Punakha as substitutes.

News : Bhutan, rocked by the ripple effect.

Most Bhutanese would be familiar with the saying, “When India sneezes, Bhutan catches a cold” to indicate how closely integrated Bhutan is with its southern neighbour at so many levels.

Consider the sky rocketing price of onions, a big issue India, big enough even to topple governments, because the pungent tear-inducing bulb just about goes with every kind of Indian meal, fried, boiled or consumed raw.

Here too, consumers have been complaining about the price of onions, around Nu 80 a kg in the Thimphu vegetable market over the weekend, and some eateries and canteens have stopped serving chopped onions as an accompaniment during lunch hour.

The only positive aspect about onions getting expensive, as someone pointed out in the past, is that the momos or dumplings will have more meat, instead of onion, in them.

But what happens when America, the world’s largest economy, on the other side of the globe, catches a cold?  Does it even impact Bhutan?

The tourism industry would say yes.  Americans are among the top dollar paying tourists, who visit Bhutan almost every year, and sick Americans would mean fewer high-end tourists to Bhutan.  So even though Bhutan might be a remote country shrouded in mystery, there is no escaping the world is flat syndrome.

And if events of the recent weeks are anything to go by, it clearly shows other ways of how Bhutan can be affected by what happens in another part of the globe.

The United States scaling back its quantitative easing programme has depreciated the Indian rupee to new lows and, in the process, the Bhutanese Ngultrum has also nosed dived since it is pegged at parity with the rupee.

This has caused a major scare for a number of Bhutanese industries that import raw materials from other countries to produce goods for the domestic market and beyond.  Even importing computers has become all the more expensive in a span of few weeks because of falling exchange rates.

When the 2008 U.S. recession hit, it was initially only the tour operators that were worried because it translated to fewer footfalls.  Officials said that Bhutan would not be affected because it was not integrated with the global market and its isolation provided the insulation.

That all turned out to be false.  The new steel and ferro industries at the Pasakha industrial estate had to approach the government to re-adjust their loan repayment since their main market, India, had been affected and business was at rock bottom.

Being remotely located can no longer serve as a shield against global shocks.  As efforts are made to further integrate Bhutan with the global economy, it might be well worth preparing for all kinds of economic shocks.

For now, it is a relief to know that the country has enough foreign currency reserves to cover 12 months of essential imports.

The National Flag of Bhutan

The flag of Bhutan is based upon the tradition of the Drukpa Lineage of Tibetan Buddhism and features Druk, the Thunder Dragon of Bhutanese mythology. The basic design of the flag by Mayum Choying Wangmo Dorji dates to 1947. A version was displayed in 1949 at the signing of the Indo-Bhutan Treaty. A second version was introduced in 1956 for the visit of Druk Gyalpo Jigme Dorji Wangchuk to eastern Bhutan; it was based upon photos of its 1949 predecessor and featured a white Druk in place of the green original.

The National Assembly of Bhutan codified a code of conduct in 1972 to formalize the flag's design establish protocol regarding acceptable flag sizes and conditions for flying the flag.

The First Schedule of the Constitution of 2008 legally describes the flag:

“

The upper yellow half that touches the base symbolizes the secular tradition. It personifies His Majesty the King of Bhutan, whose noble actions enhance the Kingdom. Hence, it symbolizes that His Majesty is the upholder of the spiritual and secular foundations of the Kingdom. The lower orange half that extends to the top symbolizes the spiritual tradition. It also symbolizes the flourishing of the Buddhist teachings in general and that of the Kagyu and Nyingma traditions in particular. The dragon that fully presses down the fimbriation symbolizes the name of the Kingdom, which is endowed with the spiritual and secular traditions... The white dragon symbolizes the undefiled thoughts of the people that express their loyalty, patriotism and great sense of belonging to the Kingdom although they have different ethnic and linguistic origins.[2]

”

The official description of the symbolism behind the flag remains largely the same as it was when first codified under the Act of 1972.

The National Flower of Bhutan

Blue Poppy, the national flower of Bhutan
Blue Poppy, the National Flower of Bhutan, is known locally as 'Euitgel Metog Hoem’. Its biological name is Meconopsis grandis. At one time, people considered it to be a myth because of its existence had not been confirmed but they can be found along high mountain passes from the far eastern parts of the country across to the west. It is one of the rarest flowers in the world and its stems have 4 to 5 flowers. Blue poppies used to grow abundantly at the Chelela pass in the Paro Valley but recently, its growth have been severely depleted and they have become quite rare. According to the Royal Society for the Protection of Nature in Bhutan, about 150 blue poppies were spotted here in the 1990s but the numbers depleted to only 11 in 2002. The depletion has been mainly attributed to the people from the neighboring districts, who dig away these plants to plant them in their own gardens.

Four types of blue poppies were identified at the Chelela Pass. The rare ‘Meconopsis napaulensis’ is on the verge of extinction in the area, which could further lead to disturbance in the ecosystem of the area. Transplanted blue poppies do not grow properly and the best way to sow the seed, to get a healthy blue poppy plant. 13 types of endemic Blue Poppies have been identified all over Bhutan, strewn all over the alpine region across the country. Hair-like bristles cover the leaves and stems of the plant to protect them from the cold Himalayan winds. Blue Poppy is a hardy perennial flowering plant. It is herbaceous and blooms in summer. The flowers are huge and are about 4 to 5 inches in diameter. Its plants can be two feet tall and can grow from sunny to partial shade areas. The beautiful blue flowers have shades of violet look magnificent. They have a velvet or fuzzy texture and its germination and aftercare can be quite challenging.

National Bird of Bhutan.

RAVEN, The National Bird of Bhutan.

The Raven is the Bhutan's national bird. It represents one of the most powerful deities of the country, Jarog Dongchen. Raven is thus known in the local language as ‘Jarog’. The Royal Raven Crown or Druk Gyalpo represents Bhutan's reverence for these birds and the faith of Bhutanese in their protective deity. Jarog Dongchen along with Yeshey Gonpo (Mahakala) and Palden Lhamo (Mahakali) form the Divine Trinity, who protects the King and the people of Bhutan from harm and safeguard their well being. At one time, it was a capital crime to kill a Raven in Bhutan. One can still see ravens nesting in monasteries and dzongs throughout Bhutan. 

The biological name of Raven is Corvus Corax Tibetanus and is quite similar to the Crow or Corvus Macrorhynchos that is also common in Bhutan. The crow however has larger bill but overall, raven is much larger than a crow and is about 28 inches long. Raven’s tail looks like a wedge, its upper peak has bristles and there are prominent hackles on its throat. Hackles are long, shiny and pointed feather that can be found on raven’s throat and best. Both male and female ravens look alike and are jet blue-black in color. They are commonly found in upland habitation and in alpine and trans-Himalayan regions. During winters, they migrate to lower lands standing at 2300 m. They reside in high altitudes of Tibet, Sikkim, Ladakh and Bhutan. 

You can spot a raven at Damthang, Cherithang, Jagothang, Lingshi and Chebesa in Western Bhutan; Bumthang, Dur and Pegula in Central Bhutan and Singye Dzong and surrounding areas in Eastern Bhutan. They can be seen generally in pairs or huddling together by dozens. By nature, ravens are wild, wary, bold and suspicious and love to fly. They are carrions like vultures and can feed on vegetable or animal matter, dead or alive. You can even see them doing acrobatic stunts in high winds and it is not rare to see a raven doing tricks like twisting, turning, sides slipping, looping the loop and nose-diving. Female ravens start building the nest around February from twigs while the make ravens bring moss and hair to make it comfortable for the young ones. Their nests can last for years and only need minor renovations. 

Hens give about 5 to 6 eggs at once and incubate them, only to be occasionally relieved by the males. The young ones hatch in 19 to 23 days and for 40 to 42 days, they remain in the nest and are looked after and fed by adults with the food brought in their special throat sac. It has been observed that even the young ones attack large predators trying to approach their nest bravely. It is believed that the guardian Deity, Mahakala, takes the form of a raven to guide the country’s unifier, Shabdrung Ngawang Namgyel, to Bhutan. Namgyel founded Bhutan in the 17th century. The raven-headed form of Mahakala is known as Lego Jaro Dongchen. In 1885, the Trongsa Penlop Jigme Namgyal (father of HM Ugyen Wangchuck, the first king of Bhutan) wore the Raven Crown to the war with the British as his helmet. Since then, it became a model for all future crowns of the Wangchuk dynasty.

His Majesty with the Raven Crown.

NATIONAL ANIMAL OF BHUTAN

The national animal of Bhutan is the Takin (Burdorcas taxicolor), an extremely rare bovid mammal of the ovine-caprine family. These kind of animals can be only found in the higher altitudes. It is believed that the great master from Tibet, Drukpa Kuenlay (Divine Madman) who came to Bhutan in the 15th century introduced this animal in a body of a cow and the head of a god.

It lives in herds in the steepest and most thickly wooded declivities of native mountains at an altitude of 4,000 metres (over 13,125 feet) and eats bamboo. It can weigh as much as 250 kilograms (550 pounds). In summer, Takins form large herds (up to 300 at a time). They go into cover at midday and come out late in the afternoon. Locally, they are known as Dong Gyem Tsey.