HM – Tshering Tobgay

With thanks

March 7, 2013Democracy, Monarchy2 Comments

The following is a rough translation of my address yesterday, in the closing session of the parliament.

Today is an auspicious day: it is the closing ceremony of the 10^th session of the first parliament. Today is also an historic day: it is the closing session of the first elected parliament after Bhutan became a democratic constitutional monarchy. On behalf of the opposition party, I offer thanks to His Majesty the King and Her Majesty the Queen for gracing the closing session of the parliament.
In the past five years since the introduction of parliamentary democracy, His Majesty the King has worked tirelessly and contributed so much to the nation and the people that it is impossible to recount them all here. In fact, it is difficult to even offer a summary, because no such articulation would do justice to His Majesty’s contributions.
Nevertheless, on behalf of the opposition party, I take the privilege of offering our sincere gratitude to His Majesty the King for the continuing, steadfast and unwavering support and guidance that the country has been blessed with. And so I would like to take the privilege of highlighting just a few areas and projects through which His Majesty has led the country with vision and dynamism.
First, by granting royal kidu, His Majesty the King has changed the lives of countless people. His Majesty has granted land to the landless and the poor. Thousands upon thousands of people in the villages who couldn’t pay for their excess land were granted exemption, and their excess lands were regularized in their name. This went on to address the biggest concern for countless people in the villages and helped them lead a normal life. It gave them hope to continue living in the villages at a time when rural to urban migration has become a grave threat.
His Majesty’s kidu program has been extended to poor students to help them go to school. It has given the rural and poor students an equal opportunity to go to school and shape a career for themselves. His Majesty also supports many elderly, poor and needy citizens all over the country. The Kidu program ensures that no one is left behind and His Majesty has personally met all of the recipients to understand their problem.
Second, it was unfortunate for our country to have suffered from so many disasters in the past five years. We had entire towns and a dzong destroyed by fire. We experienced windstorms, floods and earthquakes posing a lot of hardship for the people. We even had an unfortunate plane crash where some Bhutanese citizens on pilgrimage died in Nepal. But whenever a disaster struck, His Majesty personally and immediately went to comfort the people. While His Majesty’s mere presence gave people hope and comfort, relief funds and support helped them rebuild their homes and lives.
Third, as a deeply religious country, the two great religions of Bhutan have spread even more and taken greater hold. It is because of His Majesty’s personal work and example that the people have even greater faith and belief in our religions. In this context, I would also like to thank His Holiness the Je Khenpo, Trulku Jigme Choida, for his exemplary leadership, and the five lopens, the clergy and the monks, lay monks, and nuns of all faiths for their continuous prayers for the nation.
Fourth, as the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces, His Majesty the King has strengthened the security of the country. His Majesty has guarded our external boundaries and protected the country from all internal threats. In addition, His Majesty initiated the De-Suung program which has strengthened community vitality, patriotism, and volunteerism. The De-Suung volunteers are the first ones to reach any disaster affected area. They seem only eager to help and such positive enthusiasm would not have been possible without His Majesty’s vision and leadership.
Sixth, it is amazing to recount that His Majesty has personally met almost all the people in the country. Despite the busy schedule, His Majesty has given audience to people from all sectors at the Royal Palace. His Majesty invited and personally attended to people from the civil service, corporations, local governments, business community, farmers, musicians, movie industry, media, bloggers and many others. His Majesty listened to them, took stock of their problems, joked with them, advised them and the most important, inspired them to achieve greater heights. In addition to that, His Majesty has been visiting schools constantly. Ever since ascending the throne, His Majesty has graced every graduate orientation program, whether it is university graduates, vocational graduates or teachers, and has been personally giving away the graduation certificates no matter how large a group is. His Majesty has always reiterated that the youth are the future of the country and has always kept them in the loop with constant interaction and in the process advising and supporting them.
Seventh, His Majesty the King has taken Bhutan’s international relations to new heights. His Majesty has generously granted audiences to international visitors to Bhutan, and has visited many countries. Each visit has brought unparalleled goodwill and standing. While making new friends, His Majesty has taken the friendship with India to a new level.

The power of the land

July 4, 2012Government, Legislature33 Comments

The following is a translation of my statement in the National Assembly yesterday: Today we are discussing a matter of profound significance – land. The historic First Parliament of Bhutan has already deliberated many issues of great importance. Today’s topic of discussion, concerning the amendment of the Land Act, is also extremely important. The decisions we take will have a long-term impact, for better or for worse, on our country and our people. It may appear that our kingdom has been blessed with plenty of land. This is true, but the amount of land actually available for agriculture and…

Wangduephodrang Dzong

June 25, 2012Culture, Monarchy36 Comments

I was in Wangduephodrang on Saturday. I’d gone there to visit the De-Suung training program. After meeting the De-Suups, I stopped by the Wangduephodrang Dzong to see the massive renovation that the dzong was receiving. While returning to Thimphu, I stopped briefly on the other side of Punatsangchhu to take in at the grandeur of the Wangdue Dzong, and, as usual, marveled at the brilliance of Zhadrung Ngawang Namgyel. He had chosen the site personally, on a ridge overlooking the confluence of the Punatsangchhu and Dangchhu rivers, to defend His newly unified Drukyul against intruders from the South. He…

Apologise and appeal

January 24, 2012Justice20 Comments

Today, we celebrated traditional day of offering. Today is also exactly one year since Sonam Tshering was detained by officials for illegally possessing Nu 120 worth of Baba khaini. Sonam Tshering has already been in jail for one full year. So today, on traditional day of offering, I thought about how we, parliamentarians, should offer our services to Sonam Tshering and the many others like him who continue to suffer under the oppressive Tobacco Control Act. First we should apologize. We should apologize and take full responsibility for arrogantly (and foolishly) passing a law that quickly subjected so many…

Oath of Allegiance

January 5, 2012Legislature1 Comment

The 8th Session of the Parliament began yesterday. The 8th session will be remembered as, during the inaugural ceremony, the Members of Parliament took the Oath of Allegiance to His Majesty the King. I’m posting a (unofficial) translation of the Oath of Allegiance as a reminder of our promise to serve our King, our country and our people to the best of our abilities. We bow at the feet of the supreme golden throne of the Druk Gyalpo Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck, the upholder of the Chhoe-sid-nyi of Bhutan. We, the Members of the First Parliament of Bhutan, hereby…

Our King has spoken

December 21, 2011Monarchy12 Comments

Our elders believe that the words of our kings are droplets of gold. They believe that to carry out a king’s command is to undertake a task that’s heavier than a mountain. They also believe that to ignore a king’s command is to waste an opportunity more precious than gold. Our kings do not say much. But when they do, what they say is important; what they say has far-reaching implications. And what they say is gratefully received, studied and carried out with a sense of great urgency. Our King has spoken. In his Royal Address, on 17th December,…

Thanking our armed forces

December 16, 2011Monarchy6 Comments

HM_Commander_in_Chief — Supreme Commander in Chief

The Royal Bhutan Army, Royal Body Guards, Royal Bhutan Police, and militia and Desung volunteers celebrated Armed Forces Day yesterday. To commemorate the important day, I’m reproducing a translation of the motion of thanks that I proposed during the opening ceremony of the sixth session of Parliament about a year ago, on 19 November 2010.
Introduction
It has been almost three years since Bhutan became a Democratic Constitutional Monarchy. Throughout this period, His Majesty the King has continuously favoured the first elected Parliament with counsel, guidance and unconditional support. As a result, neither misfortune nor hardship has been able to trouble the two Houses of Parliament or any of its 72 honourable members. And for that reason, we, the members of Parliament, have been able to fulfill our respective responsibilities, and work towards establishing a strong foundation for our democracy.
Earlier this year, during the inauguration of the fifth session of the Parliament, I had the opportunity to report to the Honourable Members that, from the day His Majesty the King ascended the Golden Throne, His Majesty has worked throughout the country, and worked tirelessly, for the benefit of the nation and the people. More specifically, I drew attention to the fact that the selfless service rendered by His Majesty were in accordance with the duties of the Druk Gyalpo as enshrined in the Constitution.
My report, however, was very brief. In fact, since I covered His Majesty’s accomplishments in a range of areas, I could not do justice to any one of them. So today, as I, on behalf of the Opposition Party, respectfully submit this Motion of Thanks, I propose to focus on just one aspect of His Majesty’s work.
To do this, I would like to draw the attention of our Honourable Members to Article 28 Section 1 of the Constitution which states that: “The Druk Gyalpo shall be the Supreme Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces and the Militia”.

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Congratulations!

June 11, 2011Monarchy10 Comments

25 additional colonels make our armed forces that much more stronger. His Majesty the King, who is the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, granted promotions to the accomplished officers this morning. I thank the officers for their outstanding services to the tsa-wa-sum, and wish them and their families a very hearty Tashi Delek!

Zhabdrung’s gifts

May 12, 2011Culture6 Comments

Here’s a story from Sombaykha to commemorate Zhabdrung Kuchoe: Topche was a nyagay – a strongman. About two hundred years ago, he left his village, Nakhikha in Sombaykha, to serve in Zhabdrung Jigme Drakpa’s court. In addition to being famous for his great physical strength, Boed Topche, as he was known, was also an exceptional swordsman. Legend has it that he would fight nonstop against the Zhabdrung’s enemies. And that at the end of each day, he would have to soak his hand in a bowl of hot water to dislodge the sword from his bloodied hand. At the…

Royal Kasho on LG elections

May 4, 2011Democracy19 Comments

The Prime Minister, on behalf of the National Council, National Assembly and two political parties, has brought before me the issue of the candidates disqualified from participating in Local Government elections. The 90 disqualified candidates have also jointly submitted an appeal on the same issue. The members of the National Council have submitted their concerns on the relaxation of the one-year mitsi requirement for candidates in Local Government elections. As King, it is my duty at all times, to examine not just the issue at hand, but to also contemplate the long term effect of any decision on the…

Cremations

December 20, 2010General

Thirty two people were cremated today. 18 of them were pilgrims who died in the recent plane crash in Nepal. The rest were from other parts of the country – they were bought to Thimphu when their families learnt that that His Majesty the King was personally supporting the cremations, and that His Holiness the Je Khenpo was presiding over the final rites. Thousands of mourners, from all walks of life, gathered in Thimphu’s cremation grounds to stand by the bereaved families of the air crash victims. The outpouring of public support reconfirms how readily we are able, and…

Valuable lessons

December 18, 2010Monarchy

HM+NationalDay20102 — Strengthening Bhutan

Yesterday, during our 103^rd National Day celebrations, His Majesty the King reminded us, His people, of our collective responsibility to strengthen our nation. That, His Majesty explained, meant excelling in our workplaces. But that, His Majesty emphasized, also – and more crucially – meant “… upholding values such as integrity, justice and compassion and above all living by that unwritten but absolute code of right over wrong…”
Below is the official transcription of His Majesty the King’s National Day address.
My dear people,
As King, I have been deeply blessed by the satisfaction of seeing immense achievements in four short years, made possible only by the harmonious bond between the people and government, as we worked hand in hand. We have conducted our first general elections, formed the government and opposition, instituted the National Assembly and National Council and above all, following elaborate deliberations by our honourable members of Parliament, we adopted our sacred and historic Constitution. We have all worked together towards strengthening our democratic institutions and this year established the Supreme Court of Bhutan.
As a developing country, socio-economic development efforts are vital. In this regard, the prime minister and the government have not only worked hard on successfully implementing the crucial 10^th 5-year plan but have also initiated many new projects for the benefit of our people.
For the peace, happiness and prosperity we enjoy today, I take this opportunity to voice on behalf of our people, gratitude to the Fourth Druk Gyalpo Jigme Singye Wangchuck. On my own behalf, I shall never forget the kindness, loyalty and faith with which you, my people, have supported me at the beginning of my own reign.

Relief for relief fund?

November 23, 2010Legislature, Monarchy

During Question Hour today, I requested the Hon’ble Home Minister to report on the status of the Relief Fund. In particular, I asked him if he, as the minister in charge of disaster management, would propose legislation to establish the Relief Fund. According to Article 14 Section 12 of the Constitution: Parliament shall establish a relief fund and the Druk Gyalpo shall have the prerogative to use this fund for urgent and unforeseen humanitarian relief. Bhutan’s first Parliament has already met five times. And the sixth session is currently on. Yet, and in spite of the opposition party’s repeated…

Royal address

November 19, 2010Monarchy7 Comments

His Majesty the King addressed the nation during the opening session of the Sixth Session of the Parliament this morning. The official transcript of the Royal Address follows:
Since assuming Kingship in December 2006, I have travelled outside Bhutan four times – each time it has been to India. Indo-Bhutan friendship is of paramount importance and something we hold dear. We must always work to further strengthen and deepen it. In October this year, I visited Kolkata and New Delhi. I found in my meetings with the President, Prime Minister, Chairperson of the UPA, ministers, government officials and leader of the Opposition, a common heartfelt appreciation for Bhutan’s achievements as a nation, and a steadfast commitment and pledge to strengthen even further what they feel is a model partnership and bond between countries.
We are presently undertaking the mid-term review of the 10^th 5-year Plan. India’s assistance has been wholehearted and generous to the first development plan under our new democracy. On behalf of the people of Bhutan, I convey my deep appreciation to the Government and People of India.
Upon my return from India, I went directly to Bumthang to the site of the tragic fire in Chamkhar town.

MPAB delivers

November 9, 2010Miscellaneous

I’m back in Thimphu having completed my medical treatment (I’m fully better now), and after visiting Bumthang where, thanks to His Majesty’s People’s Project, the victims of the recent fire disaster in Chamkhar town and the town itself are already well on they way to a full recovery. The banner features MPAB artists entertaining RBA soldiers involved in the reconstruction of Chamkhar. The artists also performed for the residents of Chamkhar. And, a day after arriving in Thimphu, they organized a fund raising event at the Clock Tower Square.