Un-enough HRW report II
This is the continuation of the article you read below about the HRW report published recently.
I feel the report is so limited and incomplete, if not biased. The gross human rights violation is in eastern Bhutan for centuries. The crackdown in south began only two decades back. But we have been facing such suppression since the establishment of wangchuk authority.
The wangchuks sold out Tawang Monastery to Tibet. Killed the shabdurng and his incarnates. Forced his followers to leave the country. Yet easterners tolerate them all.
I suppose the report has become partial due to unsupportive nature of the wangchuk authority. That is certain but that should not be the simple reason for the organisation like HRW to become mere spectator of the human rights violations in Bhutan. Protection of human rights should not limit to Lhotsampas and students from other ethnic groups went to India for studies.
The report only quoted Lhotsampas who went outside Bhutan even while living in Bhutan now. There was no step taken to call eastern Bhutanese for such interview. While people like Rongthong Kuenley Dorji and Thinley Penjor say they have been fight for the rights of the easterners, they should have cooperated with easterners to bring out their voices of suppression in the international circle through HRW report. At the same time, the HRW should have campaigned for its presence in Bhutan for monitoring human rights violation issue.
This is ironic to mention here that while Bhutan has been saying it was committed to protecting the rights of the people, no international and regional human rights groups have been allowed to visit Bhutan and access the situation human rights here. It has become utmost necessary that national committees of the international human rights groups like HRW, Amnesty International, Asian Human Rights Committee etc are established here.
The government has no proposed, in the so-called constitution, formation of rights monitoring body at the national level. Such a body has become important part of the government system to ensure that people’s rights have been well protected.
While the US has been advocating the Lhotsampas in Nepal to resettle on humanitarian ground, why is it not taking initiative to improve the human rights situation here? I think, improving human rights situation in Bhutan is much import than resettling Lhotsampas in the US. The US proposal and HRW, the apex human rights watchdog of the US, report is contrast.
Please, HRW visit the eastern and other parts of the country, though your influence on your government and Indian government to access the deteriorating situation inside Bhutan.
Will you hear the easterners?