When you educate a man, you educate an individual, but when you educate a woman, you educate a nation. This universal wisdom found its way to Thimphu this week as women supporters of the two political parties organised unprecedented meetings and actively joined the political process.

On September 16, about 200 women sat in tents pitched outside the Druk Phuensum Tshogpa president Jigmi Y Thinley’s house in Babesa to discuss how they could take issues concerning women and families into politics. Initiated by Druk Phuensum supporters, all the women were residents of Thimphu and came from different economic and educational backgrounds. They were housewives, businesswomen, corporate employees and civil servants, who wanted to form a women’s wing of DPT.

The purpose of the meeting, according to a DPT press release, was to educate women on the democratic process and make them understand the concept of free and fair elections. The former labour minister, Ugyen Tshering, briefed the group on democracy and the electoral process.

Voter registration was a concern raised repeatedly by the DPT women. Some women who attended the meeting said that, apart from the electoral process, they talked about domestic violence, single mothers, children, and the importance of women as voters and influential persons at home.

This was not the first women’s meeting in Thimphu. The PDP, which has already formed a women’s wing, also collected about 200 women on September 11 in Serbithang.

“Gender equality, which is critical for effective democratic functioning, and equal participation of women in social, economic, and political affairs, are some things in which the party strongly believes,� said Lily Wangchuk, head of the PDP women’s wing.

Working towards creating an enabling environment for active and effective participation of women in all spheres and ensuring that women’s concern, needs and aspirations were taken into account in the design and implementation of programmes and policies were also some of the objectives of PDP’s wing for women.

It is known that the voice of women in Bhutan is not suppressed but it has had no outlet either. “In the larger picture the top positions in the civil service or any corporate or private entities are a domain for men,� said Bidha, a 60-year old farmer from Tshalimarphay.

But things are changing. Tshering Bidha from Babesa is a farmer with no education but she has been actively attending both women’s as well as other general meetings of different parties. “It is better to attend the meetings than to sit at home because we learn a lot about what is happening outside our homes.�

Phub Dem, a 50-year old housewife from Changjiji, said that the opportunities that awaited women in politics were many and if women did participate, they just might prove to be more effective than men. “So far, women have been sitting in the corners of the house, eating what is brought home, and rearing children,� she said. “Their true capacity in decision-making or their leadership qualities are not known.�

“Mothers have an important role in bringing up the girl child by encouraging them to attend and perform well in schools and higher education and instilling confidence in them to assume leadership positions,� said the PDP’s candidate for south Thimphu, Sonam Tobgay Dorji, who addressed the women’s meeting.

Women, who had attended meetings organized by women’s wings of PDP and DPT, said that such activities were encouraging. “We know that women are considered almost equal to men in our society, but issues like wife battery work against this theory,� said a woman. “Such associations would help empower women and address these issues.�

Women from both parties pointed out that women constituted a major chunk of the population and if they did not take part in the political process either by voting, standing as candidates, or by becoming members, it was a loss because the Bhutanese population was small.

They said that the political process empowered women because it made them participate in political changes, make decisions to choose candidates, and exercise their rights to vote.

The women’s groups are already highly politicised. Many women told Kuensel that those who attended one group meeting came under heavy pressure not to attend the other. Source: Kuenselonline