Banyan: Himalayan histrionics | The Economist

Banyan: Himalayan histrionics | The Economist

A personal tribute to slain Russian journalist Natalia Estemirova.

Natalia Estemirova was a history teacher before she became a journalist and Human Rights Activist

Last evening I had the privilege to attend a tribute by PEN America to the slain Russian journalist, Natalia Estemirova, held at CUNY graduate school of Journalism.

The evening opened with Salman Rushdie reading from one of Natalia's articles "Wild Garlic Gatherers," that was published in Novaya Gazetta on April 2007. The story was about the ordeal that followed after some innocent Chechnyan villagers who had gone to collect garlic in the forests were shot at by soldiers.

Natalia, it seems, was the 18 th journalist so far to be killed since 2000 in Russia. she was kidnapped by gunmen while she was leaving her office and her bullet-ridden body was dumped a day later. One of her friends, Tanya Lokshina, who is the founder of the Moscow-based human rights think-tank DEMOS Center for Information and Research said that Natalia was killed because of the stories she had written and the information she had about the killers of another journalist who had been killed earlier (Anna Politkovskaya).

How a true Buddhist weighs in on abortion

How a true Buddhist weighs in on abortion
by Sonam Ongmo for "Conversations for a Better World" UNFPA
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(UNFPA told me that this post was taken down because somebody from the UN complained that CHINA did not like HH Dalai Lama being mentioned!) Just imagine the sway it has on other issues!

Maximum punishment for drug peddlers

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My question is why are these decision makers always focused on "punishment" rather than prevention and cure.

Why the unending scuffle?

Why the unending scuffle?
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"Our government should realise that if some rules cannot be enforced effectively, the problem may not be with the people. The ban on the use of plastic bags has been ineffective all along. This is mainly because enough thought hasn’t been given to finding an alternative to plastic bags although the people have called for one." - Bhutan Observer


This is what bothers me about some of our officials. Not much thought is given into some of these stupid laws that they enforce. Thimphu residents need vegetables. Not everybody can have their supply last through to the next weekend when they have to wait to hit the Saabji Bazaar and do their weekend shopping. If these people can find a market, let them supply, just find a solution as to how this can be done. I understand that it clogs up the footpaths etc. so in that case maybe the government can keep the Sunday Vegetable market open throughout the week? or maybe find an alternative location for the week? The vendors can pay a small fee for the use of the space (during weekdays) that can go towards maintenance of the place. The govt surely doesn't need to make money of vegetable sellers, do they?
The respective officials simply need to come up with  ALTERNATIVE SOLUTIONS!!! 


Talk about encouraging farmers to increase productivity and helping them make a living. They are trying to trying do that as honestly as they can - they're not selling contrabands, drugs or prostituting, for god's sake, they are selling vegetables! and the government objects to that? 

Whose Social Responsibility? (Kuensel refused to publish this in 2006)

As an ex-reporter for Kuensel who covered stories on Juvenile Delinquents in 1993, a report in the June 15 edition of the Kuensel in 2006 “Court sentences minors” was of great interest to me. As a mother of two minors, it was one of grave concern.

Boys below ten sentenced

The fact that this was the “first time” the court sentenced minors below ten years of age set another milestone for yet another of the social problems in our society. The nature of the crime may not have been very serious - some young boys planning, stealing and running away with a cashier’s box that contained Nu.3000. What was their motive? So that they could buy more ice cream, it seems.  If that was the motive, then the sentence should have been more deserving to the crime - counselling, or a good scolding?  Otherwise, what do we do then if we are confronted with more complicated and serious offences by the same age group?

Not a new problem; outside forces not to be blamed

Juvenile Delinquency problems in Bhutan are not new. They have existed even before the first reports appeared and before TV came to Bhutan. Like all other crimes and social problems of a sensitive nature (like physical and sexual abuse) the problems of juvenile delinquency went under-reported at the time, as it still does now.

A free Press In Bhutan (first article for Bhutan Times, Bhutan's first independent Newspaper)

for Bhutan Times 2006

The transformation of Bhutanese society is happening, and as some in Bhutan describe it, “at break-neck speed.” But more than the introduction of Television and Inter-net; more than all the construction, the new highway and other infrastructure in recent years; more than foreign ventures like the Amman resort, it is the introduction of Bhutan’s own “free press” that will be the harbinger of real change in Bhutanese society.

For years the Bhutanese have relied solely on one newspaper and one radio-station (partially government owned) to bear the task of disseminating news and truth to the people. Today it is an exciting, yet crucial, moment in the history of the nation and the print media as privately managed newspapers will now take on this responsibility.

Where Does Buddhism Stand Today in Bhutan? (Kuensel would not publish this in 2003)

As Bhutanese we automatically consider ourselves Buddhists, whether practicing or not, just by the fact that we are born into the religion.  Over the years, however, as Bhutan has been opening up and people are becoming more educated, there has been, increasingly, a sense of disillusionment and disenchantment with the way Buddhism is being practiced.

This may be because of a lack of understanding of what the religion and the practice is all about, or because the teachings or explanations are lacking altogether. The great emphasis on the “ritualistic” and “superstitious” side of the religion instead has also made it very tasteless. Many feel that we would even have to reconsider calling ourselves Buddhists, even as non practitioners now, because our faith is so diluted, the ethics hardly there. If not that, then for whatever reasons, there is no doubt that Buddhist ethics and values that so strongly governed the everyday lives of our forefathers is eroding fast with today’s generation.

Just like all modern and educated societies we now refuse to believe in something that we cannot understand or find reason in. This is a tragedy given that we are one of the last wholly Buddhist countries in the world. It also means that the disappearance of the very ethics and values that have held together the fabric of our society will result in frays and a lack of morality in society. As a result we shouldn’t be alarmed then at the various types of social crimes that we see increasing in our society.

Can we, the lay people, be blamed for it?

Book Review: Where Every Person's Happiness Matters (Kuensel)

While it is the season for politics, albeit a long one that will last well into 2008, both voters and aspiring politicians might benefit from some essential and relevant reading – “Mindful Politics: A Buddhist Guide to Making the World a Better Place.”

The book – compiled by Melvin McLeod Editor-in-Chief of Shambhalasun a widely read Buddhist Magazine – is a collection of essays and insights from leading Buddhists and humanitarians from around the world, including Bhutan.

Critics raved about the book when it first came out in the summer of 2006.

“This anthology should be must reading for all aspiring or seasoned politicians, and it also should be placed in the hands of anyone old enough to vote,” wrote George Feuerstein of Traditional Yoga Studies.  Howard Zinn author of A People’s History of the United States said, “ The essays in Mindful Politics...gently push[ing] us to think beyond orthodox solutions, drawing upon ancient wisdom to cope with violence and insecurity of our time, giving us inspiration and hope.”  Publishers Weekly a reputed reviewer of books in the U.S said, “This anthology usefully disputes Buddhism’s reputation as apolitical. Buddhism is quiet but not quietistic.”

Bhutan Times staff resign over interference from the management.

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More to add to this. As one of the older Bhutanese journalists, although I am sad to see Bhutan Times change from the paper it set out to be, I think it was a bold move by the reporters to fight for their editorial independence. Just my opinion.  20 years ago, this would have had a disastrous affect on ones career but now with Freedom of Press there are many avenues open for these young reporters who resigned from their jobs.

I advised Tenzing Rigden, founder of the paper, not to part with a majority of shareholdings as this would take away his independence. But I guess he had to do what he had to do and so goes the story of Bhutan Times, Bhutan's first private (independent?) newspaper.

China and India's differences along the Himalayan border

Today's Wall Street Journal ran a story about China and India's differences along the Himalayan border. http:/online.wsj.com/article. The differences have been brewing over the last few years and lately China has come out strongly in recognizing parts of Kashmir as theirs as well as saying that Indian occupied Kashmir is part of Pakistan.  The other part is in Arunachal Pradesh.

It won't be before long that we will see some serious trouble in these regions and I fear for all the countries or states that lie in between.

Bhutan Times staff resign over interference from the management.

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The newly appointed "CEO" of Bhutan Times sounds pretty lame. That is just my opinion.
It saddens me to see that a promising independent paper like the Times has come to this....