Wednesday, August 12, 2009

A CALAMITY CALLED STRIKE

I am told that the group of people who calls themselves the “Concerned Citizens of Bhutan” took to the streets because they believe that they have a cause to do so. I am not going to discuss the merits of the cause because, as sketchy as their stated cause is, I too agree with them that the cause of the seven dead children is both noble and humanitarian. That is not my point of contention.

My point is this: Can this group of people be indemnified of any wrong doing on the grounds that what they intended is something noble and worthy? Does an act of crime become forgivable on the grounds of nobility of its intension? Are people justified to remain thoughtless to the effects of the means they employ to achieve what they suppose is a noble and worthy cause? Is it lawful to perpetrate an act of crime because the intensions are noble? Is it permissible to kill your child on the grounds that you are the progenitor?

The only argument I have heard in defense of what this group of people did is that strikes are a reality under a democratic system of governance. I have never heard an argument more ridiculous than that striking and taking to the streets is a natural accompaniment to democracy. The freedom of speech and the right of the self guaranteed by our Constitution does not give us the freedom to exercise those rights with irresponsibility. Freedom comes with responsibility and when one fails to act responsibly, that freedom can be taken away.

An avalanche is not started by a whole mountain collapsing in a heap - it is triggered by a palm full of break-away snowflakes gathering momentum as it rolls down the mountain side. Similarly, the strike culture will not sprout all at once - it will come about as a result of a seemingly harmless group of people undertaking even more ostensibly harmless activity such as the solidarity walk. And, before you know it, this country will be rendered asunder.

I am not willing to believe that the organizers will not be tempted to undertake many more such walks in the future. I am particularly worried because the cause they have taken up - to require the government to be better prepared in times of natural calamities - is something I believe is a tall order for the government to fulfill - whatever they do or however hard they try.

The government can never be prepared! No one can be - not even super powerful economies such as the US and Japan and China. There is no power under the sun that can withstand nature’s wrath. When it rebels, it will flatten everything in its path. It is nature’s way of protesting against what we do to it. The only way to fight it is to replenish what we have squandered away thoughtlessly - year after year and even while we knew that what we were doing was self destructive and that one day we have to pay for it. Human beings may never best nature - all that we can do is be humbled by its ferocity and purity of its purpose. The humankind has never known nature to be kind or forgiving - it will do to us as we deserve. Sooner we learn to leave it well alone, the better it is for us.

Instead of trying to fight a force that is beyond our capacity to fight, let us battle something against which we have a fighting chance. Let us fight to avert the calamity called STRIKE!

I DEDICATE this site and the work that went behind creating it to all those Bhutanese people who care for a strike-free Bhutan.

18 comments:

  1. You are one howreyy asshole. Leave them alone. You don't knwo what you are talking about. Just 'cos your english is good and can write picturesque stuffs do not necessarily make you right. You have only posted stuffs by people who condemn the walk but have not tried to balance it with the kind of support they were also receiving. You are a dictatorial son of a bitch. Learn the true meaning of democracy first...and start yapping.

    Annoyed

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  2. hahaha cool
    loved this blog.
    i hope you go on and on
    tashi delek

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  3. GOOD!!!
    we need more of this
    good work!!!

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  4. where is the substance? just by posting some pictures and commenting on it doesn't say anything...you have put in a lot of hard work with a little brain of yours....try harder man...or if you have the balls come out like the solidarity walkers...they did nothing wrong..theyv are tyhe true patriots...life is defined by the courage you have.

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  5. I fully support you dude. Go on!!
    We don't want STRIKE for any cost!!!

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  6. Who wants strikes and protests anyway?

    But wait for your wife to be killed in the hospital. Your children to be left to die in front of your eyes. Your parents to lose your ancestral home thanks to a corrupt judge.

    Until then keep bashing the solidarity walkers.

    Can we have more condemnations please!

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  7. Well...looking at the indepth information and photograph you have got..looks like even you were one of the so called "concerned citizen" then. And then something happened and u decided to backstab them...is it???? or what???

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  8. The govt. must do a through study on each and every individuals who organized and participated in this WALK in the name of CONCERNED CITIZENS and must come out with the hidden agenda(s). People are misusing the gift gifted by our Majesties.

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  9. “If angels were to govern men, neither external nor internal controls on government would be necessary. In framing a government which is to be administered by men over men the great difficulty lies in this: you must first enable the government to control the governed; and in the next place oblige it to control itself”. James Madison.

    Casting blame and gossiping in the comfort of living rooms is not enough; citizens should also be able to influence those whom they blame. It’s imperative to make the government more responsive to the wishes of the people. Solidarity walk laid the foundation for “peaceful assembly” rather than “idiotization (conscious rejection of the obligations of a citizen)”.
    Solidarity Walk is a reward of a political ideology called democracy. It was never about “visibility” or about being “the messiah” nor about being “a social misfit”. It is a cheap shot to vilify and character-assassinate the organizers. It is malicious and vicious to call them “anti-Bhutan”. Yes, criticism is a part of life and they are welcome. As mush as you believe that “solidarity walk” was unnecessary the organizers believe that it was for a cause—a cause they believe in keeping their love for their nation and the people of Bhutan. Solidarity Walk was an expression of values and the criticisms must response to values not personal attacks. In no way was it to take advantage of political process. Solidarity Walk was never a protest or a strike like how few people distorted it. Solidarity Walk is about “deepening democracy beyond its electoral form”. It’s about “freedom of speech” and “the right to information” which is enshrined in the Constitution. Lack of information breeds corruption. Obstructing the flow of information is one way of hiding the mistakes the government makes. When the actions of public officials are not subject to scrutiny by the public opportunity for official misconduct become more attractive. Lack of information and proper management of political system creates a distorted policy environment which further creates opportunity for public officials to manipulate rules for their own benefit.
    Solidarity Walk is one way of maintaining the integrity of political system. Political institutions help determine limits on the arbitrary exercise of power by the politicians and bureaucrats. Press freedom and civil society is one of the institutions that matter in fighting corruption. Both represent the people. They represent the collective voice of the people. They are our voices. Is it a crime to make your voices heard? Then I am sure democracy is a crime too.
    If the government is not accountable to the people democracy will never be fully realised. Remember that state building also refers to promoting popular trust by increasing the trustworthiness of political institutions and by increasing the accountability of government to ordinary people.
    A nation, whether democratic or not, must maintain its integrity. That’s one of the basic responsibilities of a nation towards its people. A nation breathes through its citizens. The people are the “life” of a nation. Protection of a life must be the basic responsibility of a nation. After all when we die what do we have. We just own a story. The nation must make sure that the story of every Bhutanese is worth of himself or herself. Stories of 600,000 Bhutanese make the history of Bhutan. Your story is as important as my story. Solidarity Walk just made an attempt to make those stories better.
    It is better to live for a year with integrity and principle than grovel for hundred years in a safe house of cowardice and ignorance. A life lived in fear is a life half lived. Life is defined by the courage you have. Only action can give true meaning to the written or spoken word.
    Democracy is a way of life whether we live in a democratic country or not, whether we live by the constitution or not, whether we have democratic attitudes or not.
    Is there a time for equity and justice? The time is always now.

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  10. All persons shall have the right to life, liberty and security of person........... Article 7.1, Constitution of the Kingdom of Bhutan.

    By sending seven innocent lives down the river, the government has failed to ensure these rights.

    The solidarity walkers are just asking that it does not happen again and to carry out a thorough investigation so that we learn from that mistake. Why are some people taking the discussion somewhere.

    I support the solidarity walk because the next time, it could be my son. Is it so difficult to imagine?

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  11. at least the solidarity walkers had the audacity to call themselves concerned citizens unlike people who are afraid to even come out and say that they are concerned too...what a shame?...at the first place these people are never sure of where they stand...never had an idealogy that they believe in...that's worth fighting for...they are born to be sidekicks and nibble from the side like rats. solidarity walkers...keep your heads high...you cannot stop an idea whose time has come.

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  12. i am ashamed that those people who masterminded and participated in the solidarity walk are not going to realise that they committed an unimaginable blunder...all through and further, they are insisting that what they did was right...i wish if earth gives way and all those people sink. haha

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  13. Hope the tragedy strikes you and no one does nothing. Hope you will be the one shouting for help as the earth cracks open. Since you are a civil servant I hope you get thrown out of your job without any valid reason.

    Living in the close comforts of your life, which you or your father, must have built through illicit means, you can condemn the people who are saying things ain't going right.

    And you! the blogmaster! you were there and you double cross these people. That's the worse than anything one can imagine. You betrayed them! What a shame of a Bhutanese!

    I may or may not agree with the solidarity walk, but you are dangerous man!

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  14. You are truly a concerned citizen. I have condemned many action of the people and the government but I never actually did anything about it. I am greatly impressed with your initiative and hope that there are many other people like you in Bhutan.

    First of all, it was a publicity stunt. There were many other ways of asking the government for an explanation and better preparedness in the future (even though I doubt that with extremely limited financial resources, we can have a team for fighting natural disasters.)The group could have just submitted a written letter to the Prime Minister instead of forcing all their staff members to walk on the streets. The 50 or so people who showed up did not really know what they were there for. I have a friend at TG media and he told me that his boss asked all staff to participate in the walk.

    As peaceful as the walk may have been, we should not forget that we look at our neighboring countries as an example to follow. Many of the examples are not too good, with vandalism, bloodshed, etc.

    Let us also not forget that there are many many other people dying to take it to the streets, but have not been able to do so till now. Their hopes are up now.

    I am also very dissapointed with the government for allowing such a publicity walk. It was a indeed a historical WALK, a walk that will always be referred to in history. And that too organized by some people seeking attention without thinking about the long term consequences for the country. SHAME ON YOU AND SHAME ON ALL THE PEOPLE WHO COMMENT SENSELESSLY WITHOUT THINKING ABOUT WHAT THE WALK REALLY MEANS. Our country is what it is today because we have been very carefull. Now a few pony tailed fools and senseless people have started a bad trend.

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  15. We are the most privileged generation in the history of Bhutan. We got democracy as a gift. And now we have the most important job—the job to make democracy successful.
    The greatest weakness of a man is not believing, when they doubt about everything. People with little faith will never find anything to believe in. They do nothing but blabber under a nick and talk in the comfort of living rooms.
    A nation with complacent people and which promotes mediocrity is in danger of itself. A nation puts itself in danger when its people have nothing to believe in, when its people cannot stand by an idea, when its people have no courage. All these only lead to misdiagnosis, witch-hunt and personal attacks.
    When the time comes do you think these people will stand for the nation? No! Because, at the first place they never had anything to believe in. They don’t know where they stand and that’s why they are hiding under a nick. How will they fight when they don’t even have an iota of courage? How will they fight when they don’t know what is equality, liberty and justice? How will they stand for fellow human being when their only thought is to take away freedom from another human being? He who cannot fight for truth and fairness will not even fight for himself, let alone fight for a group of people, society or the nation.
    Only idiots and ignorant will kneel down before the tyranny of majority. Majority doesn’t decide what is right and wrong. Your conscience does. Why should a citizen surrender his conscience to a legislature? Solidarity Walk was done in the spirit for tomorrow, in the spirit of brotherhood and in the spirit of solidarity.
    It’s up to us. Do we want to promote mediocrity and complacency? Are you saying that we should mind our own business and do nothing? Okay, I’ll mind my own business, be corrupt and earn as much as I can and stay quiet. Are we promoting that kind of national mind-set?
    We cannot create peace with desolation. We cannot create peace by muffling the voices. We cannot create peace by keeping an idea down. We can create peace only by truth and fairness. We can create peace only by looking at the eyes of the seven children and telling them that we did all we could. Did we?

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  16. The walk should signal the governmental failure brooding someway somewhere!!!

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NOTE WORTHY POSTS AND COMMENTS IN THE MEDIA AND PUBLIC INTERNET FORUMS

The opposition to the Solidarity Walk was spearheaded by one TheLagard who posted the following article at:

http://www.kuzuzangpo.com/index.php?subaction=showfull&id=1248938971&archive=1250305228&start_from=&ucat=&

Solidarity Walk - A Shameful Event

The Kuensel reports that there will be a Solidarity Walk tomorrow beginning at 11AM. The reason? - supposedly to appeal to the government to launch a high level investigation into the tragic incident at Tshimalakha where 7 youngsters were swept away by the Wangchu river.

Who exactly are the organizers? Some say that they are the employees and owners of Bhutan Times newspaper. Others say it is the Opposition party - PDP. But I really can’t be bothered about who they really are - all I can say is that, in my book they are anti-Bhutan.

Pray tell me, why does any one need to stage a public drama such as a Solidarity Walk just so that they can ask the government to carry out an investigation into the matter? If the organizers had any good intensions, all that is required is to draft a suitably worded appeal and submit it to the government. Then again, what makes them think that an intervention is required from their side? What makes them think that the government isn’t going to do it any way?

If these people really carry out this march or walk tomorrow, I can guarantee you that the floodgates will have been opened. Many will follow and before long, they will want to indulge in strikes and sit-ins and other acts of public disobedience. For God’s sake, we don’t need this in our country - not now, not ever! Please act responsibly. If the organizers think that this will go down well with the people of Bhutan, please recall that it was very unpopular when the PDP suggested such a move prior to the elections.

If the organizers really mean well, let them put their money where their mouth is. Let them donate generously - in kind or in cash - to the families of the deceased so that the departed children’s last rites can be performed in a fitting way. Through this Walk, if it is the intension of the organizers to demonstrate an act of compassion for the dead and solidarity with the bereaved, then this is not the way.

If they really undertake this act of civil disobedience, then I can say that years from now, the death of the 7 unfortunate children will be remembered as an event that ushered in a movement that gave birth to the social evil known as STRIKES.

Let not an event of national mourning be remembered as such a dark day!

Posted on 30 Jul 2009 by TheLaggard


Leader of the Opposition Party (PDP) Denies Involvement

The Opposition Leader, popularly known as the OL, denies allegations that his party was behind the Solidarity Walk. This is how he responds through his weblog: www.tsheringtobgay.com/democracy/2009/walk-talk.html:

A regular reader, Guest, asked me in “Lobxang’s anger”, my last entry: “Is your party behind this Solidarity Walk? I need to know.” Here’s my answer: “No, PDP is not behind the solidarity walk. And, nor am I.”

Ashan, another reader, commented in the same entry: “I just hope that PDP is not behind the Walk.” My answer, again, is that PDP is not behind the walk. We had, and have, nothing to do with it.

Now, what I’d like to know is this: why is PDP being linked to today’s walk?

The Guest referred to by the Opposition Leader responds as follows:

You Excellency,

Thank you for letting me know that your party PDP is not behind this mindless act called the Solidarity Walk.

I would also like to explain that I suggested a provable link between the PDP and the so called “Concerned Citizens” group because I truly fail to understand the real motive behind the Walk other than to discredit the King and the government of inaction even while fully aware that action was already in full swing. I felt that only a political rival was capable of such a mindless and disruptive act. Please forgive me.

However, please reflect for a moment that both Bhutan Today and Kuensel had carried first person interviews with the families whose children were among those who were swept away. They have categorically stated that every one present gave their best to save the children. It was pitch dark and the water had swollen to dangerous levels. The location is in a tumultuous and slippery gorge. Even those who were struggling to save the lives of the children - their own lives were at risk. And yet they struggled tirelessly until the end. And yet, these Concerned Citizens are hell bent on spreading the rumor that the people involved did not do what was expected of them.

These motley group of 30 odd people comprising of a two-bit actor, a confirmed drug abuser and a social misfit has the audacity to call themselves the “Concerned Citizens” as if we the rest of the people of Bhutan were not.

I am terribly pained because in the first instance, they have set into motion something that is now irreversible – the strike culture. Secondly, even while they have recognized the fact that His Majesty the King and the government were already doing what was needed to be done, they still go ahead and go through the farce that was the Solidarity Walk. Thirdly, none of these so called Concerned Citizens took part in the rescue operation that tragic night and yet they mindlessly accuse and insult those who kept vigil and worked tirelessly throughout the night to try and save the children.

Lastly, and that is the cruelest part, they turned this tragic and painful moment of great loss into a public drama for whatever private agenda they have.

Their evil faces are now a part of history – they are recorded for eternity on video films and still cameras of the Police and the media. While such deceitful people will be incapable of any remorse even if this act of theirs brings this country to its knees, posterity will remember the event called the Solidarity Walk as a dark event in the history ofBhutan that forever altered the way the Bhutanese people will conduct themselves in future.

I wish we could relinquish this madness called democracy.

By Guest: August 1, 2009 at 2:53 pm

A Charity Concert is Planned

It is reported that the organizers of the Solidarity Walk will be organizing a Charity Concert to remember the seven young lives lost in Chukha. The following announcement was posted on the weblog: http://www.nopkin.com/blog/blog_details.php?id=3328:

SEVEN BOYS (In Memoriam: A Charity Concert)

To remember the seven young lives lost in Chukha, a charity concert will be organized on August 8, 2009 (Saturday) at 7 pm at the YDF hall.

Band and performers like Who's your daddy?, Bonz and Tshering Dorji, Jigme Drukpa, Kheng Sonam Dorji, Dechen Zangmo, One String Short, Cross Infection and Yangchen Dukpa will be performing.

Please be there to contribute in your own ways.

By Tse, Aug 07, 2009

A troubled commentator in the same Blog responds thus:

I shall be there!!!! I just hope all of us goin there, do not get consumed by the music fest on the roll ... and start behaving like 'monkeys' and start head banging, and cheering like hooligans.

Darn ... anyways, how do we 'mortal humans' .... put up a sombre display whilst the music flows ...slowly and steadily gushing through our veins .... hmmmmm ! .. Tse do a story on that :)

By Bystander, Aug 07, 2009

In response to the planned Concert, oneTheReveler had to say the following through his post at:

www.bhutantimes.com/modules/newbb/viewtopic.php?topic_id=2818&forum=10&post_id=24718#forumpost24718:

Just heard that the organizers of the stupidly famous Solidarity Walk is organizing a musical night tomorrow to remember the 7 dead children in Chukha. I never heard of singing and dancing and merry making to show solidarity. Rest of the Bhutanese people must be missing something these organizers know.

The way their minds work, I wonder if they extended an invitation to all the members of the family and friends of the deceased to help them remember the departed souls? What will they do next? Hire the RBA band to March in Changlemithang?

Will the organizers please lay off. Let the grieving families get over the ordeal. This is the least we can do. Let us help them get on and move on in life. All this theatrics isn't helping them put behind them the grief they must surely suffer.

Please have a heart. You may not know how to be human but surely all that uproar from those who feel must get to you if you are humans at all.

By TheReveler, on:2009/8/7 8:24


Other Interesting and Noteworthy Comments

In www.kuzuzangpo.com on 7th August, 2009 by one LateVisitor:

I completely agree with TheLaggard and most of the commentators here on why the walk was not necessary.

Granted, the expression of condolence and support in a situation like that is generally uplifting and always welcomed, but the use of an action that is synonymous with the singularly infelicitous `democratic` tradition of staging protest to profess solidarity is, as many commentators here have rightly pointed out, stabbing what we have been carefully nurturing for decades in the back. If we chafe against a democratic tradition such as this, it would be a mistake to assume that this all our new democracy is. We did not have to resort to any form of expressions similar to what was done to bring democracy to our country, so then how do we justify their need now.

The walk is a clear sign of an undue despair driven by pessimism. This pessimism when struck by impetuosity leads to precipitous action such as the walk. If we succumb ourselves to such uncontrollable emotional outbursts more often than not, it could result in more assaults to our unique democracy. Worse still, such actions will send out wrong signals to our younger generation and that will be unfortunate.

A rumination before embarking on such an exercise could have done a world of good to what we are trying to achieve collectively. The walk was seemingly good in its intention but blind to its consequences, for which it will never have to pay the price. And that is why I would call it, to all intents and purposes, and for want of a better word, a debacle.

Those who had taken part in the walk must know and appreciate that the need to embark on such an action needs to be evaluated in the wider interests of the nation. That would have not only gone to earn them the epithet ‘concerned citizens’ but will automatically qualify them as responsible citizens too. More importantly, if those who participated in the walk ever goes through what TheLaggard and a majority of the commentators here have expressed, I would like to urge them to shed anything that would prevent them from taking a view of the criticisms/feedbacks from a purely non-partisan standpoint. Let’s not egoism and delusions of persecution get in our way and stifle the hope for what we are striving for. We must debate and differ in our spirits, yet, instead of focusing on the serious disagreements and disparaging each other’s intent, let us not forget that we share a common ground and that we must stand firm on it regardless of how each of us might feel.

While we know that such demonstrations have come to be known as an ‘evil-necessity’ and a part of `democratic` tradition all over the world, we need to question ourselves whether or not we can afford to allow and risk such a tradition. If we are capable of conceptualizing and propounding something as rare and unique as GNH, aren’t we equally capable of a lateral thinking that could mould and put into practice another tradition to democracy?

We are walking a tight rope at this time. People are always on the qui vive for anything that resembles the despicable democratic traditions. Even a slight jerk can send us falling down into an abyss of chaos. It will undermine our 4th King’s Vision and impair our progression to a unique democracy. Let’s not pervert our system and use whatever little we have achieved so far for launching empty rhetoric. The degree to which we are able resist such ‘temptations’ will decide the course of our unique democracy.

One commentator appears to have asked our OL whether the PDP was behind the whole episode. But a more pertinent question would have been to ask him what he thinks about the act? Whether he supports the act or condemns it. That would be interesting to know.

Posted By LateVisitor @ 07 Aug 2009

Commented on this Blog by one Anonymous: AUGUST 17, 2009 6:05 PM

“If angels were to govern men, neither external nor internal controls on government would be necessary. In framing a government which is to be administered by men over men the great difficulty lies in this: you must first enable the government to control the governed; and in the next place oblige it to control itself”. James Madison.

Casting blame and gossiping in the comfort of living rooms is not enough; citizens should also be able to influence those whom they blame. It’s imperative to make the government more responsive to the wishes of the people. Solidarity walk laid the foundation for “peaceful assembly” rather than “idiotization (conscious rejection of the obligations of a citizen)”.

Solidarity Walk is a reward of a political ideology called democracy. It was never about “visibility” or about being “the messiah” nor about being “a social misfit”. It is a cheap shot to vilify and character-assassinate the organizers. It is malicious and vicious to call them “anti-Bhutan”. Yes, criticism is a part of life and they are welcome. As mush as you believe that “solidarity walk” was unnecessary the organizers believe that it was for a cause - a cause they believe in keeping their love for their nation and the people of Bhutan. Solidarity Walk was an expression of values and the criticisms must response to values not personal attacks. In no way was it to take advantage of political process. Solidarity Walk was never a protest or a strike like how few people distorted it. Solidarity Walk is about “deepening democracy beyond its electoral form”. It’s about “freedom of speech” and “the right to information” which is enshrined in the Constitution. Lack of information breeds corruption. Obstructing the flow of information is one way of hiding the mistakes the government makes. When the actions of public officials are not subject to scrutiny by the public opportunity for official misconduct become more attractive. Lack of information and proper management of political system creates a distorted policy environment which further creates opportunity for public officials to manipulate rules for their own benefit.

Solidarity Walk is one way of maintaining the integrity of political system. Political institutions help determine limits on the arbitrary exercise of power by the politicians and bureaucrats. Press freedom and civil society is one of the institutions that matter in fighting corruption. Both represent the people. They represent the collective voice of the people. They are our voices. Is it a crime to make your voices heard? Then I am sure democracy is a crime too.

If the government is not accountable to the people democracy will never be fully realised. Remember that state building also refers to promoting popular trust by increasing the trustworthiness of political institutions and by increasing the accountability of government to ordinary people.

A nation, whether democratic or not, must maintain its integrity. That’s one of the basic responsibilities of a nation towards its people. A nation breathes through its citizens. The people are the “life” of a nation. Protection of a life must be the basic responsibility of a nation. After all when we die what do we have. We just own a story. The nation must make sure that the story of every Bhutanese is worth of himself or herself. Stories of 600,000 Bhutanese make the history of Bhutan. Your story is as important as my story. Solidarity Walk just made an attempt to make those stories better.

It is better to live for a year with integrity and principle than grovel for hundred years in a safe house of cowardice and ignorance. A life lived in fear is a life half lived. Life is defined by the courage you have. Only action can give true meaning to the written or spoken word.

Democracy is a way of life whether we live in a democratic country or not, whether we live by the constitution or not, whether we have democratic attitudes or not.

Is there a time for equity and justice? The time is always now.

Should Bhutanese Media be allowed to indulge in Activism?

Posted on: http://www.kuzuzangpo.com/index.php?subaction=showfull&id=1250477938&archive=&start_from=&ucat=&

In His address to the National Assembly during its concluding ceremony, His Majesty the Druk Gyalpo stated as follows:

“Media - newspapers, television, radio and the Internet - must play a very important role. I appreciate that while some of the media agencies are young and lack adequate resources they have strived to perform their duties with complete commitment. Hereafter, media will be vital in keeping people well informed and in encouraging debate and participation - key to a vibrant democracy. Therefore, I have decided that through the exercise of my Royal Prerogative of Kidu, to strengthen media agencies so that they may carry out their duties, without fear or favour, in the interest of democracy.”

That was on 30th July, 2009.

On 31st July, 2009, the media people based in Thimphu took to the streets under the banner of “Concerned Citizens of Bhutan” and staged the first ever authorized protest march of sorts - called the “Solidarity Walk.”

When His Majesty said that the media “must play a very important role”, did He mean that they should be the harbinger of a social evil called the strikes?

When His Majesty said that “Hereafter, media will be vital in keeping people well informed and in encouraging debate and participation - key to a vibrant democracy”, did He mean that the media people must indulge in ACTIVISM?

The vital role of keeping the people well informed will be grossly tainted if the media indulges in activism. They cannot inform the people in a balanced, neutral and objective manner. The recent activist overture of our media is a dangerous development in our country and it does not bode well for our democracy. It is particularly unsettling since the current bulk of the media people are young and highly impressionable.

The media is a very potent force and, if misdirected, they can create a whole lot of trouble. We need to ensure that the media keep within the bounds of their journalistic domain and not be allowed to tread in areas that should, by necessity, be out of bounds for them. The Press cannot pass judgments - that is not their role or responsibility.

Therefore, through this post, I would like to appeal to His Majesty that if the media were deserving of any Kidu, I would like to submit most humbly that they need professional direction from senior journalists of outstanding repute and experience - to bring into perspective the magnanimity of their responsibility to society. Our journalists need proper grounding not only in ethical reporting but also in responsible conduct.

There hasn’t been a repeat of such irresponsible article as Bhutan Time’s Editorial “Ode to my MP”. But their involvement in this Solidarity Walk clearly shows that they are still confused about their roles and responsibilities.

Posted on 17 Aug 2009 by TheLaggard

Posted By: PRO MEDIA: August 17, 2009 at 1:46 pm

http://www.tsheringtobgay.com/media/2009/stop-press.html#comments

Tenzin Rigden may be rough, highly charged and too emotive to be an ideal guru for you.

Nonetheless, fellow Bhutanese patriots! The next time when you get thrown out of your job unjustly or when your son or your daughter is passed over in a job or a scholarship interview or your wife is left to die in a hospital, there will be one man who will stand up for you. It will be Tenzin Rigden.

And if all those organisations are corrupt, there is another highly-charged Tenzin. The one and the only Tenzin Lamsang!

All your role models and upholders of equity and justice will turn a blind eye. Wanna bet on that?

Don’t be too critical of those who are critical because one day you will need them by your side. Your rosy life can turn sour any time. Don’t forget life is uncertain.

Commented by one Guest: August 17, 2009 at 5:44 pm

Posted on: http://www.tsheringtobgay.com/media/2009/stop-press.html

So Pro Media, what you are saying is that the actions of the likes of Tenzin Rigden are justified on the grounds that whatever he is doing is to shield us from some unknown but horrible situation in our distant future? What is he – some kind of soothsaying crusader? If that is what he wants to be, then get out of the chair that he occupies now at the Bhutan Times and do his frigging crusading work else where. As the CEO of a national newspaper with substantial readership and influence, he is a national threat and a security risk.

If he remains the CEO of Bhutan Times, there is a real danger that he will breed a whole generation of reporters who will grow up believing that acting both judge and the jury is part of their journalistic mandate. He is the head of a national newspaper that has the potential to mold minds and influence decisions. For this reason, he does not have the luxury of allowing his emotions to override his other, more important responsibility – that of keeping the news his paper disseminates: fair, truthful, unbiased and none-partisan.

Tenzin Rigden has to understand his responsibility in the context of what he is – head of a media organization that is as important as any of the other three arms of democracy.

Posted by Concerned Bhutanese @ 17 Aug 2009

http://www.kuzuzangpo.com/index.php?subaction=showcomments&id=1250477938&archive=&start_from=&ucat=&

I am fazed that some media people are also involved in such acts. This was however expected. Look at our media today, anybody who has a bachelor’s degree and can speak fluent English easily becomes a journalist/reporter in any one of the media houses. Do the media agencies conduct any orientation course on subjects concerning ethics of journalism for the new recruits? Is there a requirement set by the media agencies that lays out the DOs and DON’Ts for their journalist/reporter. Not even Kuensel I guess. I think it is totally left to the new recruits to pick up these essential journalistic ideals by themselves. That is…simply….not good.

Rather than having everything regulated by the government and state-controlled, the concerned media should take the responsibility to not let their people act like hawkers selling whatever they want, whenever they like, and wherever they prefer. This will go a long way in helping the development of a responsible media in our country that is in tandem with the kind of democracy our 4th King has envisioned. The role of journalists and the media people alike goes beyond just reporting and presenting an article. They have a bigger responsibility as an informer and educator of our people on this new thing called democracy and about the ‘ills’ and ‘goods’ of the ’democratic’ culture of demonstration and ANY FORM of walk, peaceful or violent.

Today’s walk might have been ‘peaceful’, but what guarantee is there that tomorrow's will be peaceful too? What guarantee is there that this act will not be misconstrued by our younger generation and certain section of our society who are pliant to influences? These are some simple messages people here are trying to getting across to every citizen. What people need to understand is that such ‘Peaceful Walks’ will insidiously grow into a FRANKENSTEIN MONSTER that will eat us all up one day, not even our democracy in the name of which the walkers exercised their ‘right’ will be spared. Who do we blame then? The beginning of all things are small. We have to be cautious, each one of us. Look around! We don’t have to stretch our neck too far to see what has become of the so called peaceful walks. There is a big sense in why some people are folding their hands into two and trying to reach out to people with a message that we are getting off track and that is not the kind of start we want.

Let’s debate and debate constructively. Let’s not our Drukpa spirit be blinded by egoism and blind anger. We have to understand and appreciate each other’s concerns. If we don’t, nobody will. In this world where people outside are trying to gun us down and waiting for us to slip, we cannot afford to be divided, more so in a small country like ours. People always disagree- friends do, families do, who does not? Just because we disagree does not mean we should be at each other’s throats. We must disagree to agree. We must not engage ourselves in ‘guts’ and ‘balls’ as these are ‘prescriptions’ for ‘gangs’ and ‘bangs’- and who benefits, known! Who suffers, all of us!

People could even discuss about such walks on forums like this before embarking on one to solicit people’s advice/suggestions and see what every concerned Bhutanese thinks about it. That would give those intending to take on one a fairly good idea as whether they should really go ahead or not. Such an initiative would then allow them to legitimately carry the tag ' Concerned Citiznes'. Like them, everybody is a concerned citizen and has equal stake in this democracy of ours and because of I am putting up my comment here. We are all concerned about the unfortunate incident.

My greatest fear about the future of our democracy is that many people still seem to be getting hold of the wrong end of the stick; the illiterate population would naturally do so, but even the literate people seem to be barking up the wrong tree unfortunately. Apparently, their immediate reference of democracy is what happens across the Bhutan gate and in TV news. People seem to be overwhelmed by the ‘right to expression’ and the ‘freedom of expression’ so much so that they seem to be taking it too literally. They should know that these right/freedom were bestowed on them by our monarchs who had full faith in their people and with the confidence that these will be exercised responsibily. That is Their aspiration. People should know that every right implies a responsibility. That responsibility calls on each one of us to act responsibly; to wait and give a second thought before we push any button in the name of democracy; they cannot afford to do that since we are all sailing in the same ship. If someone feels that a wrong button was being pressed, alarm will naturally be set on and take the person to task.

Posted by: the postman : August 17, 2009 at 1:21 pm

http://www.tsheringtobgay.com/media/2009/stop-press.html#comments

Its a good idea. I was invited but i couldn’t make it..i was in Limbo-Land, somewhere between Damphu and Gelephu! But like the OL said, its a good idea…and that pat on the back by His Majesty, i thought, should have been the COVER story that Week, where Times featured the re-narration of the whole Chhukha episode.

I’m not saying that that was bad… but SENSITIVITY is the key. Its like reliving the whole tragedy. The chairs/drawings were uncalled for at that printed time.

In time these things could have been presented…focusing on the humane-side.

There could have been a lot of questions asked. WHY? and more importantly, WHERE and How the Government can improve- man skills, trainings, equipments, all the tools-of-the-trade.

Imagine the boys had just been washed away- it would have been an IN-BRIEF report: “Yesterday…seven boys…”

It became the story it became because they bouldered on. This was a tragedy. But the situation gave the media all the right to ask the TOUGH questions; the BROADER questions.

As for the SOLIDARITY; I was called. I’m happy one person thought about my VIEWS/INPUT. I said NO. The GUT tells you and you just know/feel it: We are Bhutanese and we have our own way of showing solidarity and our own way of GRIEVING which i believe is INTERNAL. Thats why I said NO. Moreover like the GUESTS above said…its not up to the MEDIA to INITIATE/PARTICIPATE in these things.

REPORT…If there are no responses…REPORT ON THAT…IF things get apathetic, REPORT ON THAT…use stronger language, ask telling questions…and if there’s no COMMENT on that…REPORT IT!

And please try and keep your PERSONAL AGENDAS out of the story. There’s nothing as POWERFUL and TRUTHFUL as an UNBIASED FEARLESS PEN.
My Congratulations. May the T-Press Club become a real fraternity of media-people who constantly get sticks rather than carrots- and still stay objective regardless. That’s why news-people are so mis-understood.

Stick to your GUTS- Its an HONOR.

I totally missed the following which were post on:

https://www.bhutantimes.com/modules/newbb/viewtopic.php?topic_id=2634&forum=10&post_id=25494#forumpost25494

By testimony: 30th July, 2009

Seven Children have lost their lives,
life ended before it began....

the nation mourns this unbearable loss,
vacant eyes clinging in disbelief....


Some would barter this moment of sadness,
marching the streets to parliament...

knowing fully well the consequence,
they throw caution to the winds......

peace and tranquility the prize,
once gone with their thoughtless deeds....

will, like memory, be lost in history's time,
from whence even tears of blood will not retrieve....

this equanimity that we take so much for granted,
countrymen, pray for what drives man to such madness....

Another one by the same author on the same site:

By testimony: 1st August, 2009

There is a hush of silence
Did the walk do more than already done

My heart reaches out to the children
they prayed as they cried to the end

I share with the parents my tears
destiny is not ours of the making

the time we spend together
is time left over from previous years

Dasho Dzongda and your selfless team
heed not glib tongues that wag

By now the nation knows
you couldnt have done more even if you were a dad

As usual my words have no language
I hope my thoughts are loud and clear

the flame that lights a butterlamp
will also burn homes far and near

so while reason speaks with words of gold
remember those spoken by parents of old

Be more afraid of scheming man
unlike a tiger his stripes are within

let us not like robots all
unknowingly work to our country's downfall

We have a KING who lives in our hearts
and if all else fails on HIM we shall call

So no more talks in the guise of walks
no more walks aiding him that stalks.....