Home minister condemns Corporal Punishment Article 7 of the Constitution: Any person is not subject to Corporal Punishment Tashi Namgyal Thimphu Home minister Damcho Dorji has condemned the recent suicide case of a 16 year old student from Tsangka Lower Secondary School under Dagana dzongkhag when the eighth grader “allegedly” went missing and eventually committed suicide, after the school principal meted out corporal punishment, while his dead body was found three days later. “There is no exception for him just because he is a principal”, the minister said, adding that although he is liable for corporal punishment, investigations will reveal whether he is also liable for the suicide or not. The home minister told Bhutan TODAY that the principal will not go scot free if he is proven guilty. Lyonpo said that Bhutan has reached a time where corporal punishment is no more acceptable and that there are so many other ways to handle such situations. “There are other ways to deal with it than beating and traumatizing a kid”, he exclaimed. Opposition Leader (OL) Pema Gyamtsho told Bhutan TODAY that it is a serious issue which merits immediate investigation from the concerned authorities. The principal’s action also contradicts to what is being clearly stated under the constitution. According to Article 7, under Fundamental Rights of the constitution, “a person is not subject to corporal punishment”. However, Gewog authorities and the affected ones already revealed to this paper that there are countless accounts by the principal, Rinchen Dorji, where students have been hospitalized, arms broken, and even to the extent of beating a teacher on one occasion. Village people shared that they now fear sending their kids to the school also and even the kids dread the principal. In the meantime, the issue has raised so many furors among the general public who are literally “shocked” and “shaken” by the incident. “I am shocked as well as angry that our system had allowed such a bully or should I say psychopath to head Tshangka Lower Secondary School in Dagana. The Principal shouldn’t go unpunished. Can we have a terror as a head of our school? Can we entrust the lives on all those little students with that psychopath”, said Sonam Yangchen, who also feels the need for a strong network of child rights activist. She said that even when Bhutan is signatory to the Convention on the Rights of Child , majority of the people and even teachers are not aware of the rights, hence they justify that beating children is acceptable. “In other countries, pet foundations are demanding justice for pets being beaten. Yet, we keep silent in Bhutan when such actions are suffered by humans”, she said. Another father of a kid pointed out that teachers are supposed to be the mother of love and compassion and abusing another human being is not justifiable under any circumstances. “Let us not be blinded by the cliche that teachers punish students out of love and care and to make them a better person. Let us all be teachers who justify our title as being noble and source of love, care and compassion. What just happened is a total act of barbarian and justice should be done”, a teacher from one of the schools who is against corporal punishment said. A mother of three told Bhutan TODAY that Bhutan has ratified numerous international conventions/treaties such as Convention on the Rights of Child. “Government is legally and morally obliged to implement the acts and statements stated in the conventions. I wonder why such acts of abuse don’t catch governments attention although it is clearly reflected under the constitution”, she said. Another father pointed out that the principal should be given life imprisonment. “Why is the ministry of education silent and not taking any actions? We know this is not a first story”, he said, referring to a similar incident at Kamji school under Chukha dzongkhag where a poor and innocent parent lost their son. The government supported the principal and instead sued the Journalist for informing the nation. “We want this not to happen again and the ministry of education do all necessary investigate and give justice to the bereaved parents”, he said. The case is still under investigation after the Dagana police handed over it to the Office of the Attorney General (OAG). Meanwhile, the home minister urges each and every parent to report to any authorities immediately if such incidents happen anywhere, anytime and whatever the reasons may be. The education minister, despite so many attempts by this paper to contact him since the first coverage on this story, did not respond to any calls.
Posted on: Sun, 08 Jun 2014 05:07:30 +0000
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