Of swimming risk, child abuse, stray dog adoption, leaking water pipes and women in sports

Refrain from swimming in the river

The recent incident of a young man who drowned while swimming in Wangchu at the Tango- Cheri base is disheartening.

I have noticed people still picnicking and swimming in the river at the popular picnic spot in Thimphu. Maybe they are not aware of the recent incident or the risks of swimming at this time of the year.

Authorities concerned should do something about it. Maybe, we need to put up a board asking people to refrain from swimming in the river because going by the number of people visiting the site and still seen swimming after the tragic incident, it seems they are not aware of the dangers.

Pema
Thimphu
(Published on July 9, 2018)

Protect our children

It was very sad to know that three children were sexually abused over the years in Trashigang. It is disturbing that the child could have been abused from the time when she was just four years old.

When the families that little ones look up to are the ones that fail to take responsibility, I am at a loss for words to describe just how in the world are they able to be with the child.

This incident reveals the helplessness of the child and the society. From the story, it seems like the neighborhood in the area have some idea of the issue, which should have been reported earlier.

The society also needs to play a bigger role and help both children and their parents. If not for the counselor, we wouldn’t know how long the children could have been exploited.

There are organizations that work towards children’s well being in Bhutan, but I feel that a lot more needs to be done when it comes to protecting a child’s innocence, happiness and future. We need stricter rules and regulations for those who abuse children. This act of abuse should not be compromised and the culprit needs to be punished.

I wonder if the three children could ever be able to recover from the dreadful incidents they went through.

Zangmo
Thimphu
(Published on July 10, 2018)

Could we not adopt them?

Free roaming dogs have become prominent headlines in Kuensel. While some are written by tourists, others are mostly written by Thimphu residents. Instead of putting all the blame on these innocent dogs, can we pause for a moment and look at where we as a society are failing?

We all know that dogs make great pets. Yet when it comes to choosing a breed for our home, we choose all foreign breeds. Our home born puppies come free and yet they live in the gutter for want of a home. Unkempt and hungry, these dogs breed many times in a lifetime, leading to a sizeable growth in their population, and yet many of us, the so-called hardcore animal lovers, turn our faces from taking these lovable puppies homes as pets.

These mongrels are on the streets not out of choice. They endure the freezing winter nights and live under torrential summer rain on the street. They live on food found in the rubbish bins and drink water from the dirty drain. I am sure most of us cannot live without three meals a day and these dogs have to search frantically almost everywhere just for a mouth full of leftover food.
A few lucky ones might get pieces of biscuits from caring passersby.

Dogs are the only creature on earth that are loyal and reciprocate the care and love you show to them and care about you more than themselves. For many of us, a dog may be one of
the remaining reasons why we can be persuaded to go for a walk. Dogs have given us their absolute all. Not all street dogs are fierce; they are trying to protect themselves from danger. A lot of them are sweet and gentle. So next time you think of buying a pet, how about adopting a puppy from the street?

Yeshey Pickee
Olakha, Thimphu
(Published on July 11, 2018)

Respect for the men in patrol

With the rise in crime and violence, the very street that we walk on has now become unsafe for the general public.

Police spend an enormous amount of resources for the safety of the public through constant patrolling of public areas regularly. Police patrolling has played a major role in the decline of crimes of various nature.

The patrol team works under unfavourable circumstances but receive little credit for their efforts. Often policemen are seen in groups, patrolling in harsh weather conditions to keep the city safe.

One can imagine the magnitude of the responsibility that has to be carried out by these policemen. At the same time, one would expect the same degree of respect to be given to them but that is not always the case.

On a personal note, every individual in our society should give credit to these policemen who work tirelessly day in and day out for the welfare of the society.

Kinley Tshering Dendup
Thimphu
(Published on July 12, 2018)

Fix the leaking water pipes

Bhutan should not be facing drinking water crisis yet its capital city, Thimphu continue to remain parched.

I feel this situation is because of lack of planning and management within the Thromde and the works and human settlement ministry. Thimphu thromde is currently working on a new water supply from Dodeynam, which is taking time, perhaps because of the terrain and resources.

It would be good if the municipality could look into controlling the leakages from the tanks and piping network through more plumbing inspection. By now the Thromde should have looked into providing untreated water from the river for car washing purposes with separate piping network in their premises.

As such, I would like to suggest the Thromdes to be well equipped with plumbers and to provide the service on a payment system to the house owners. The works and human settlement ministry could support all the Thromdes by providing more plumbers and supporting staff at different locations. Otherwise, we should explore allowing private players to run the water distribution system and leave the monitoring role to the thromdes.

Tshering
Thimphu
(Published July 13, 2018)

Need to encourage women into sports

The national football federation unwilling to increase the prize money for ongoing women’s super league is a disappointment.

I have heard federation officials say the number of women’s team is less and so the investment in women’s football is limited and sponsors are not willing to support and clubs.

The league has eight teams this year, two more from the previous edition. This edition of the league saw private companies interest in women’s football. Ugyen Trading House is the title sponsor. I am confident there are others.

Sunrise Women’s FC and Tensung Bum FC joined the league as new clubs. The former has trained and experienced players from India. There is a need to welcome new developments in women’s football. Reforms in women’s football should be supported.

Men’s teams receive close to Nu one million as prize money; women’s team just about one percent of that. The trend spread across all national sports federations.

This must change if we are to encourage women into sports and raise of standards.

Kinzang
Thimphu
(Published July 14, 2018)

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