Gay Nirvana: Bhutan’s LGBT Populatn Emerg om the Shadows

Contents:

• BHUTAN GAYS CELEBRATE AFTER HOMOSEXUALY CRIMALISED
• GAY NIRVANA: BHUTAN’S LGBT POPULATN EMERG OM THE SHADOWS
• HOW GAY ARE BHUTANE GAYS?
• OUT TRAVELLER GET TOUCHHOMEABOUTGAY GROUP TOURSTAILORED VATNSGASTRONOMYRELAXCONTACT USMOREUSE TAB TO NAVIGATE THROUGH THE MENU EMS.SHAREBHUTAN
• BHUTAN GAYS CELEBRATE AFTER HOMOSEXUALY CRIMALISED
• GAY NIRVANA: BHUTAN’S LGBT POPULATN EMERG OM THE SHADOWSQUOMWHAT’S LIKE TO BE GAY A UNTRY WHERE ‘GROSS NATNAL HAPPS’ IS THE STATED POLICY OF THE ERNMENT?HUGH RYANUPDATED APR. 13, 2017 6:26PM EDT ADRE LATIF/RTERSTHE TY SOUTH ASIAN UNTRY OF BHUTAN IS BT KNOWN FOR S NCEPT OF “GROSS NATNAL HAPPS,” A BUDDHISM-SPIRED ALTERNATIVE TO GROSS DOMTIC PRODUCT. AND NSISTENT WH THE PEACEFUL IMAGE OF THE SMALL UNTRY WEDGED BETWEEN INDIA AND CHA, BHUTAN’S SMALL LGBT POPULATN HAS EXPERIENCED VERY LTLE PERSECUTN OR VLENCE.THEN AGA, MOST PEOPLE DON’T KNOW THEY EXIST.“I’VE NEVER REALLY FACED ANY KD OF HARASSMENT,” KARMA DUPCHEN, WHO AT 23 IS ONE OF THE MOST PUBLIC LGBT FIGUR THE UNTRY, TOLD THE DAILY BEAST. YET “GROWG UP GAY BHUTAN WAS A VERY ALIENATG EXPERIENCE FOR ME,” DUPCHEN SAID, BEE BHUTAN, THE IA OF BEG GAY OR TRANSGENR IS “PRETTY MUCH UNHEARD OF.”THAT DON’T MEAN THAT SAME-SEX SIR OR CROSS-GENR INTI DON’T EXIST THERE, OF URSE, BUT THERE IS NO WILY SHARED LANGUAGE WH WHICH TO DISCS THEM. LBIANISM, PARTICULAR, IS UNR-REGNIZED, ACRDG TO ANECDOTAL REPORTS OM THE BHUTANE MEDIA (LIKE THIS ARTICLE OM THE BHUTANE OBSERVER 2008), AND THE DISTCTN BETWEEN LBIANS AND TRANSGENR MEN IS BLURRY (AS MONSTRATED THIS 2013 TERVIEW WHICH ONE DIVIDUAL REFERRED TO HIMSELF/HERSELF AS BOTH). IN 2013, AS HE WAS BEGNG TO E OUT, DUPCHEN CREATED THE FACEBOOK PAGE LGBT BHUTAN, THE FIRST PUBLIC ATTEMPT AT A VISIBLE OUTLET FOR THE BHUTANE LGBT MUNY. DUPCHEN HAS A FEW IENDS WHO ARE OUT TO EACH OTHER, BUT ASI OM HIMSELF, THE ONLY OTHER PUBLICLY OUT FIGUR HE ULD POT TO WERE PASSANG DORJI, WHO WAS TERVIEWED ABOUT BEG GAY THIS YEAR ON A POPULAR BHUTANE TALK SHOW, AND DECHEN SELDON, A YOUNG TRANSGENR WOMAN WHO MA TERNATNAL NEWS WHEN SHE ASKED TO WEAR TRADNAL FEMALE GARB AT SCHOOL.TO DATE, BHUTAN HAS NO LGBT NONPROFS, NO LGBT BARS OR BOOKSTOR, NO LGBT STUTNS WHATSOEVER.IN THEORY, BHUTAN STILL HAS A LONIAL-ERA ANTI-SODOMY LAW THAT PUNISH “SEXUAL NDUCT THAT IS AGAST THE ORR OF NATURE” WH JAIL TERMS OF UP TO A YEAR. IN PRACTICE, HOWEVER, NO ONE HAS EVER BEEN PROSECUTED FOR SODOMY, AND SOME MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT HAVE EXPRSED OPENNS TO OVERTURNG , AS PART OF BHUTAN’S RELATIVELY NEW MMENT TO MOCRATIC IALS: THE UNTRY TRANSNED OM AN ABSOLUTE MONARCHY (A KD OF ENLIGHTENED SPOTISM WHICH BHUTAN’S LERS PURSUED POLICI THAT WOULD MAXIMIZE THE POPULATN’S HAPPS) TO A NSTUTNAL ONE 2008.YET EVEN THIS EMBRACE OF MOCRACY WAS IDSYNCRATIC, WH MANY JTIFYG THE MOVE AS EFUL TO CURRY FAVOR WH WTERN POWERS. BHUTAN REMAS A UNIQUE NATN, WHICH S NATNAL AND RELIG INTI ARE REFULLY PRERVED AGAST GLOBALIZATN.THIS RELATIVELY BENIGN ISOLATN IS REFLECTED BHUTAN’S POLICI TOWARD LGBT PEOPLE.DECHEN WANGMO IS A PUBLIC HEALTH NSULTANT WHO WORKS WH THE BHUTANE MISTRY OF HEALTH AND THE UNED NATNS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM (UNDP) ON HIV/AIDS PREVENTN. SHE HELPED LNCH LHAK-SAM, BHUTAN’S WORK FOR HIV POSIVE PEOPLE. THE POLICI BHUTAN ARE GOOD: THE BHUTANE ERNMENT PROVIS EE TREATMENT FOR ALL PEOPLE WH HIV OR AIDS.BUT THE LEVEL OF UNRSTANDG IS LOW. WANGMO HELPED NDUCT BEHAVRAL SURVEYS TO TRY TO PTURE AN ACCURATE REPRENTATN OF THE NUMBER OF MEN WHO HAVE SEX WH MEN (OFTEN ABBREVIATED MSMS THE LANGUAGE OF SEXUAL EPIMLOGY) BHUTAN. IN A UNTRY OF 770,000, THE UNDP TIMATED 2012 THAT THERE WERE SOME 4,000 MSMS. (THE STUDY DID NOT ATTEMPT TO MEASURE FEMALE SEXUALY, SCE TERNATNAL HIV/AIDS WORK STILL FOC ON MEN WHO SLEEP WH MEN.)BUT WHEN WANGMO PRENTED THE RULTS OF THAT STUDY TO SOME MEMBERS OF THE BHUTANE ERNMENT, SHE TOLD THE DAILY BEAST, “THE HEALTH SECRETARY ME UP TO ME AND ASKED ME, ‘HAVE YOU SEEN ONE? HAVE YOU ACTUALLY TALKED TO AN MSM BHUTAN?’”MOREOVER, SAID WANGMO, FOR THOSE STILL UNAWARE OF LGBT INTI, “ANY NCEPT THAT YOU ARE NOT EXPOSED TO, THAT’S THE EASIT WAY OUT: BLAME ON THE WT.” THIS IS PARTICULARLY PROBLEMATIC BHUTAN, WHICH PROUDLY RISTS WTERN CULTURAL FLUENC EMS TO BE HARMFUL TO GROSS NATNAL HAPPS.INTERTGLY, UNLIKE MANY CHRISTIAN AND MLIM UNTRI, RELIGN BHUTAN IS OFTEN PART OF THE SOLUTN, NOT PART OF THE PROBLEM. FOR EXAMPLE, THIS YEAR, DZONGSAR JAMYANG KHYENTSE RPOCHE, A FILMMAKER AND BUDDHIST LAMA OM BHUTAN, UPLOAD A VIO TO YOUTUBE WHICH HE SAID OF SEXUAL DIVERSY, “YOU SHOULD NOT BE TOLERATG THIS, ACTUALLY. YOU SHOULD BE RPECTG …. IF YOU ARE TOLERATG THIS, MEANS THAT YOU THK ’S SOMETHG WRONG THAT YOU WILL TOLERATE. BUT YOU HAVE TO GO BEYOND THAT.”KHYENTSE ALSO SAID THAT BEG LGBT NO WAY IMPACTED ONE’S UNRSTANDG OF OR ADHERENCE TO BUDDHISM, WHICH IS THE OFFICIAL RELIGN OF BHUTAN.FOR HIS PART, DUPCHEN TOLD THE DAILY BEAST THAT “THE SUATN BHUTAN IS IMPROVG EVERY YEAR… A FEW YEARS AGO, NO ONE ULD HAVE BEEN ABLE TO GO OUT AND HANG OUT TOGETHER, OR EVEN DARE TO BE OPEN AND BE HAPPY ABOUT .” BUT NOW, HE SAYS, IGNORANCE IS DISSIPATG AS VISIBILY CREAS.DUPCHEN’S EXPERIENCE SHOWS THAT EVEN PLAC WH LTLE STIGMA OR OVERT VLENCE, THE EXPERIENCE OF BEG DIFFERENT N BE ALIENATG, PECIALLY SMALL MUNI. THIS MAK ONLE EFFORTS LIKE DUPCHEN’S LGBT BHUTAN FACEBOOK GROUP SO CRIL. IN A TY NATN LIKE BHUTAN, EVERY LIKE UNTS. HUGH RYAN

BHUTAN GAYS CELEBRATE AFTER HOMOSEXUALY CRIMALISED

"A lot of cried, " said Tashi Tsheten of Rabow Bhutan that reprents the untry's lbian, gay, bisexual and transgenr muny. "We are a small and margalised muny and when our rights are discsed parliament, mak extremely happy, " Tashi law had never been ed, but Fance Mister Namgay Tsherg, who submted the remendatn to repeal sectns 213 and 214 of the penal , said they had bee "a sta" on the untry's Tsherg said the sectns had bee rndant sce Bhutan beme a nstutnal monarchy 2008.

"There is no annual Gay Pri rally or other public display while Tashi said there was a general acceptance of transgenrs, pecially ral areas, they still face much discrimatn, pecially schools. While Bhutan remas eply relig, Buddhism do not actually nmn homosexualy.

GAY NIRVANA: BHUTAN’S LGBT POPULATN EMERG OM THE SHADOWS

But, of urse, gay, bisexual and transgenr Bhutane people do exist. There are reportedly high levels of mental illns and prsn amongst the gay and transgenr muny, wh over a fifth of gay and bisexual men admtg to havg attempted suici more than once acrdg to a 2016 survey [3]. While Bhutan is predomantly Buddhist and teach valu like passn and tolerance, s laws are highly unfavorable toward the Lbian Gay Bisexual Transgenr Queer (LGBTQ) muny that forms a ty segment of s society.

Acrdg to rmal rerds of the muny, there are 92 registered LGBTQ+ members cludg one lbian, 47 gay men, 12 bisexual men, two bisexual women, 14 transgenr men and 16 transgenr women. Homosexualy  Bhutan has been crimalised. Twenty-six-year-old Pema Dorji is a gay man.

Tenz Gyeltshen, another gay man, realised that he was homosexual fairly recently. Also read: It’s Still Illegal To Be Gay 72 Countri.

HOW GAY ARE BHUTANE GAYS?

Acrdg to Integrated Blogil and Behavral Surveillance (IBBS) survey among vulnerable and key populatns at higher risk Bhutan, 2016, over 42% of the transgenr women and 23% of gay and bisexual men have attempted multiple suicis, which has led to terratn  their health and self-teem. The LGBTQ+ muny, pecially transgenr women and effemate gay and bisexual men, are often a victims of extreme physil and sexual vlence (20%), acrdg to the IBBS survey.

OUT TRAVELLER GET TOUCHHOMEABOUTGAY GROUP TOURSTAILORED VATNSGASTRONOMYRELAXCONTACT USMOREUSE TAB TO NAVIGATE THROUGH THE MENU EMS.SHAREBHUTAN

Although gay and bisexual men are 19 tim more vulnerable and transgenr women are approximately 34-47 tim more vulnerable to HIV fectn, till date Bhutan has only one rerd se of HIV fectn the muny. 3% of gay men and bisexual men had a history of syphilis fectn while the prevalence of syphilis fectn among the transgenr women was 25%. Acrdg to well-known Bhutane journalist Namgay Zam, the law should be amend so that LGBTQ+ people have equal rights and liberti.

Yet “growg up gay Bhutan was a very alienatg experience for me, ” Dupchen said, bee Bhutan, the ia of beg gay or transgenr is “pretty much unheard of. Dupchen has a few iends who are out to each other, but asi om himself, the only other publicly out figur he uld pot to were Passang Dorji, who was terviewed about beg gay this year on a popular Bhutane talk show, and Dechen Seldon, a young transgenr woman who ma ternatnal news when she asked to wear tradnal female garb at date, Bhutan has no LGBT nonprofs, no LGBT bars or bookstor, no LGBT stutns theory, Bhutan still has a lonial-era anti-sodomy law that punish “sexual nduct that is agast the orr of nature” wh jail terms of up to a year. Article 213 Chapter 14 of the Penal Co of Bhutan stat, “A fendant shall be guilty of the offence of unnatural sex, if the fendant engag sodomy or any other sexual nduct that is agast the orr of nature” Do unnatural sex, which is grad as a petty mismeanour, clu homosexualy?

How rife is homosexualy Bhutan?

BHUTAN GAYS CELEBRATE AFTER HOMOSEXUALY CRIMALISED

Homosexualy is still a taboo topic morn Bhutan.

Whenever there is talk of the subject most people ask, “Are there gays Bhutan?

GAY NIRVANA: BHUTAN’S LGBT POPULATN EMERG OM THE SHADOWSQUOMWHAT’S LIKE TO BE GAY A UNTRY WHERE ‘GROSS NATNAL HAPPS’ IS THE STATED POLICY OF THE ERNMENT?HUGH RYANUPDATED APR. 13, 2017 6:26PM EDT ADRE LATIF/RTERSTHE TY SOUTH ASIAN UNTRY OF BHUTAN IS BT KNOWN FOR S NCEPT OF “GROSS NATNAL HAPPS,” A BUDDHISM-SPIRED ALTERNATIVE TO GROSS DOMTIC PRODUCT. AND NSISTENT WH THE PEACEFUL IMAGE OF THE SMALL UNTRY WEDGED BETWEEN INDIA AND CHA, BHUTAN’S SMALL LGBT POPULATN HAS EXPERIENCED VERY LTLE PERSECUTN OR VLENCE.THEN AGA, MOST PEOPLE DON’T KNOW THEY EXIST.“I’VE NEVER REALLY FACED ANY KD OF HARASSMENT,” KARMA DUPCHEN, WHO AT 23 IS ONE OF THE MOST PUBLIC LGBT FIGUR THE UNTRY, TOLD THE DAILY BEAST. YET “GROWG UP GAY BHUTAN WAS A VERY ALIENATG EXPERIENCE FOR ME,” DUPCHEN SAID, BEE BHUTAN, THE IA OF BEG GAY OR TRANSGENR IS “PRETTY MUCH UNHEARD OF.”THAT DON’T MEAN THAT SAME-SEX SIR OR CROSS-GENR INTI DON’T EXIST THERE, OF URSE, BUT THERE IS NO WILY SHARED LANGUAGE WH WHICH TO DISCS THEM. LBIANISM, PARTICULAR, IS UNR-REGNIZED, ACRDG TO ANECDOTAL REPORTS OM THE BHUTANE MEDIA (LIKE THIS ARTICLE OM THE BHUTANE OBSERVER 2008), AND THE DISTCTN BETWEEN LBIANS AND TRANSGENR MEN IS BLURRY (AS MONSTRATED THIS 2013 TERVIEW WHICH ONE DIVIDUAL REFERRED TO HIMSELF/HERSELF AS BOTH). IN 2013, AS HE WAS BEGNG TO E OUT, DUPCHEN CREATED THE FACEBOOK PAGE LGBT BHUTAN, THE FIRST PUBLIC ATTEMPT AT A VISIBLE OUTLET FOR THE BHUTANE LGBT MUNY. DUPCHEN HAS A FEW IENDS WHO ARE OUT TO EACH OTHER, BUT ASI OM HIMSELF, THE ONLY OTHER PUBLICLY OUT FIGUR HE ULD POT TO WERE PASSANG DORJI, WHO WAS TERVIEWED ABOUT BEG GAY THIS YEAR ON A POPULAR BHUTANE TALK SHOW, AND DECHEN SELDON, A YOUNG TRANSGENR WOMAN WHO MA TERNATNAL NEWS WHEN SHE ASKED TO WEAR TRADNAL FEMALE GARB AT SCHOOL.TO DATE, BHUTAN HAS NO LGBT NONPROFS, NO LGBT BARS OR BOOKSTOR, NO LGBT STUTNS WHATSOEVER.IN THEORY, BHUTAN STILL HAS A LONIAL-ERA ANTI-SODOMY LAW THAT PUNISH “SEXUAL NDUCT THAT IS AGAST THE ORR OF NATURE” WH JAIL TERMS OF UP TO A YEAR. IN PRACTICE, HOWEVER, NO ONE HAS EVER BEEN PROSECUTED FOR SODOMY, AND SOME MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT HAVE EXPRSED OPENNS TO OVERTURNG , AS PART OF BHUTAN’S RELATIVELY NEW MMENT TO MOCRATIC IALS: THE UNTRY TRANSNED OM AN ABSOLUTE MONARCHY (A KD OF ENLIGHTENED SPOTISM WHICH BHUTAN’S LERS PURSUED POLICI THAT WOULD MAXIMIZE THE POPULATN’S HAPPS) TO A NSTUTNAL ONE 2008.YET EVEN THIS EMBRACE OF MOCRACY WAS IDSYNCRATIC, WH MANY JTIFYG THE MOVE AS EFUL TO CURRY FAVOR WH WTERN POWERS. BHUTAN REMAS A UNIQUE NATN, WHICH S NATNAL AND RELIG INTI ARE REFULLY PRERVED AGAST GLOBALIZATN.THIS RELATIVELY BENIGN ISOLATN IS REFLECTED BHUTAN’S POLICI TOWARD LGBT PEOPLE.DECHEN WANGMO IS A PUBLIC HEALTH NSULTANT WHO WORKS WH THE BHUTANE MISTRY OF HEALTH AND THE UNED NATNS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM (UNDP) ON HIV/AIDS PREVENTN. SHE HELPED LNCH LHAK-SAM, BHUTAN’S WORK FOR HIV POSIVE PEOPLE. THE POLICI BHUTAN ARE GOOD: THE BHUTANE ERNMENT PROVIS EE TREATMENT FOR ALL PEOPLE WH HIV OR AIDS.BUT THE LEVEL OF UNRSTANDG IS LOW. WANGMO HELPED NDUCT BEHAVRAL SURVEYS TO TRY TO PTURE AN ACCURATE REPRENTATN OF THE NUMBER OF MEN WHO HAVE SEX WH MEN (OFTEN ABBREVIATED MSMS THE LANGUAGE OF SEXUAL EPIMLOGY) BHUTAN. IN A UNTRY OF 770,000, THE UNDP TIMATED 2012 THAT THERE WERE SOME 4,000 MSMS. (THE STUDY DID NOT ATTEMPT TO MEASURE FEMALE SEXUALY, SCE TERNATNAL HIV/AIDS WORK STILL FOC ON MEN WHO SLEEP WH MEN.)BUT WHEN WANGMO PRENTED THE RULTS OF THAT STUDY TO SOME MEMBERS OF THE BHUTANE ERNMENT, SHE TOLD THE DAILY BEAST, “THE HEALTH SECRETARY ME UP TO ME AND ASKED ME, ‘HAVE YOU SEEN ONE? HAVE YOU ACTUALLY TALKED TO AN MSM BHUTAN?’”MOREOVER, SAID WANGMO, FOR THOSE STILL UNAWARE OF LGBT INTI, “ANY NCEPT THAT YOU ARE NOT EXPOSED TO, THAT’S THE EASIT WAY OUT: BLAME ON THE WT.” THIS IS PARTICULARLY PROBLEMATIC BHUTAN, WHICH PROUDLY RISTS WTERN CULTURAL FLUENC EMS TO BE HARMFUL TO GROSS NATNAL HAPPS.INTERTGLY, UNLIKE MANY CHRISTIAN AND MLIM UNTRI, RELIGN BHUTAN IS OFTEN PART OF THE SOLUTN, NOT PART OF THE PROBLEM. FOR EXAMPLE, THIS YEAR, DZONGSAR JAMYANG KHYENTSE RPOCHE, A FILMMAKER AND BUDDHIST LAMA OM BHUTAN, UPLOAD A VIO TO YOUTUBE WHICH HE SAID OF SEXUAL DIVERSY, “YOU SHOULD NOT BE TOLERATG THIS, ACTUALLY. YOU SHOULD BE RPECTG …. IF YOU ARE TOLERATG THIS, MEANS THAT YOU THK ’S SOMETHG WRONG THAT YOU WILL TOLERATE. BUT YOU HAVE TO GO BEYOND THAT.”KHYENTSE ALSO SAID THAT BEG LGBT NO WAY IMPACTED ONE’S UNRSTANDG OF OR ADHERENCE TO BUDDHISM, WHICH IS THE OFFICIAL RELIGN OF BHUTAN.FOR HIS PART, DUPCHEN TOLD THE DAILY BEAST THAT “THE SUATN BHUTAN IS IMPROVG EVERY YEAR… A FEW YEARS AGO, NO ONE ULD HAVE BEEN ABLE TO GO OUT AND HANG OUT TOGETHER, OR EVEN DARE TO BE OPEN AND BE HAPPY ABOUT .” BUT NOW, HE SAYS, IGNORANCE IS DISSIPATG AS VISIBILY CREAS.DUPCHEN’S EXPERIENCE SHOWS THAT EVEN PLAC WH LTLE STIGMA OR OVERT VLENCE, THE EXPERIENCE OF BEG DIFFERENT N BE ALIENATG, PECIALLY SMALL MUNI. THIS MAK ONLE EFFORTS LIKE DUPCHEN’S LGBT BHUTAN FACEBOOK GROUP SO CRIL. IN A TY NATN LIKE BHUTAN, EVERY LIKE UNTS. HUGH RYAN

Many Bhutane people still have shocked exprsns on their fac when there are any discsns about homosexualy. But more shockg is that even the ted are ignorant about the fact that there is a gay populatn Bhutan.

But he is exclively gay.

Acrdg to him, there are gays Thimphu, rangg om the young to the old and the married. Most of the gays Letro knew refed to even give ments for fear of beg intified if their inty was not kept secret, spe promis that their nam would not be revealed.

Inter s mentn Bhutan as a untry where there is a law agast homosexuals wh imprisonment rangg om a month to a year. But legal experts say there have been no s of homosexuals beg imprisoned Bhutan to date. Even Letro was hant to talk at first bee he thought that homosexualy was punished Bhutan.

Acrdg to science, sexual orientatn (cludg homosexualy and bisexualy) is the rult of a batn of environmental, emotnal, hormonal, and blogil factors. Also, beg homosexual or bisexual do not mean the person is mentally ill or abnormal some way.