UN award for Bhutan’s Queen Mother

In a primary for the Himalayan Kingdom, and a uncommon honour within the sub-continent, Bhutan’s Queen Mother Gyalyum Sangay Choden Wangchuck has been awarded the United Nations Population Award within the particular person class for 2020 for her work on sexual well being and ending gender violence.

The awardee within the organisational class is HelpAge India that works on elder care. Only two Indians have been awarded previously 4 a long time for the reason that award was established in 1981: former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1983 and industrialist-philanthropist J.R.D.Tata in 1992.

“It is of great honour to our region as the recipients of the prestigious UNFPA Population award this year, both in the individual and institutional category are from the Indian sub-continent,” the Bhutanese Queen Mother, who will obtain the UN award on December 10, informed The Puucho, in replies to questions from Thimphu. “I am truly humbled by this recognition for the achievements that Bhutan has made over the past decade in the areas of sexual and reproductive health.”

Enabling surroundings

In specific, the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) that introduced the award mentioned Gyalyum Sangay Choden, popularly referred to as “Ashi Sangay” (Princess Sangay) has been recognised for creating “an enabling environment to openly discuss sexual reproductive health in the [Bhutanese] kingdom” and for founding a volunteer organisation referred to as ‘Respect, Educate, Nurture and Empower Women’ (RENEW).

Since its begin in 2004, RENEW has been concerned in spreading sexual schooling amongst college students, guaranteeing reproductive healthcare for ladies and counselling companies. India has supported RENEW via the Embassy in Thimphu, and helped assemble the RENEW disaster centre in addition to Bhutan’s first shelter for victims of gender-based violence, “Gawailing Happy Home”.

57-year-old Gyalyum Sangay Choden Wangchuck is the youngest of 4 sisters, all married to Bhutan’s former monarch, the Fourth King Jigme Singye Wangchuck, who abdicated in favour of his son Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck in 2006. Despite the abdication, every of the Bhutanese royals stays engaged with public engagements and charity work, and far of Ashi Sangay’s work is supported by the Fourth and Fifth Kings and the Bhutanese authorities, in addition to international grants.

Breaking taboos

In 1999, the Queen Mother was appointed UNFPA Goodwill Ambassador. Recounting the start of her fieldwork, which she clearly takes past superstar endorsements and photo-ops, Ashi Sangay mentioned sexual and reproductive points had been thought of “taboo subjects” in Bhutan. Although the primary case of HIV/AIDS within the nation was detected in 1993, it was hardly spoken of. The numbers have grown to about 627 circumstances final 12 months, a purpose for some concern in a small nation with a inhabitants of simply 7,71,000 individuals.

“The initial years were very challenging as there was an inherent denial and non-acceptance to address sexual and reproductive health issues which were obviously prevalent in our society,” Ashi Sangay, informed The Puucho. “Some of my travels have involved perilous journeys on foot, pony and even yaks through unforgiving terrain. Through these very personal interactions I was able to identify the needs of the people, especially women and children,” she provides, explaining the beginning of RENEW.

While Bhutanese ladies take pleasure in a standing, a spot within the workforce and property rights which can be thought of extra equitable than a lot of the SAARC area, there are rising considerations about violence. A 2017 examine by Bhutan’s National Commission for Women and Children discovered that as many as 14% of ladies surveyed had suffered bodily violence that 12 months, 4.5% suffered sexual violence and greater than 72% had by no means sought assist from anybody for it.

It is that hole that Ashi Sangay says she is making an attempt to bridge, whilst RENEW grapples with the brand new problem of the Coronavirus pandemic. Although Bhutan has not had a single COVID-19 associated loss of life, and stored its affected person rely beneath 400, the Queen Mother says a rise in home violence towards ladies and ladies, who had been compelled to remain at residence through the lockdown has been a rising concern, and her group of about 3,000 volunteers are attempting to go to as many houses as potential as a solution to monitor their state of affairs.