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Strengthening Civil Society Organizations in Bhutan- Advice; Experiences. Reply by 16 July 2010
Dear SE members,
A vibrant Civil Society is one of the indicators of a progressive society. This is a well established fact and there is no debate about that. Bhutan as a country had several traditional forms of civil society fulfilling similar roles. With so called modernization, the State ended up taking on the bulk of the tasks from planning to seeking funds to implementation of activities. The role of the traditional “wise men” diminished in importance significantly. People began to depend on the Government to fix every problem large or small. In the early stages of planned development this worked to bring about efficiencies that can be resulted from having a central lead agency to steer basic service provision.
Under the wise and benevolent leadership of our Kings, the growth and development of the country was ensured. There was no doubt that the long term interest of the country would always be the guiding force in the selection of the various development initiatives. It goes without saying that we in Bhutan have been very fortunate to have such visionary Kings, who epitomized the culture of service to the people. Many democratic processes were in place to ensure that the policies framed were in the best interest of the people and the nation.
Now that the transition to a democratic form of governance is into its third year, the need to improve the platforms for debate on critical policies and issues is proving more important. The capacities of the people have improved over the years and we now have many more thinkers and globally aware individuals than ever before. We have many excellent and talented, well traveled and experienced Bhutanese to bounce our policies and issues off of. There is room for more organized civil society initiatives in supplementing and complimenting government initiatives. And also to provide a forum for passionate debates on current policy issues and challenges. Moreover, Civil Societies can encourage public participation in the true sense of instilling individual responsibilities in the growth and development of the country.
As a member of the Civil Society I am intrigued by the myriad questions that surround the nascent organised Civil Societies in the current form, in the country and would like to seek opinions and feedback from as many respondents as possible on the issues below:
• What kind of CSO model will best benefit Bhutan in sustaining democracy without disrupting social harmony?
• How autonomous/independent should the CSO Authority be in order to serve as a true bridge between the Government and Civil Society organizations so that best synergies can be formed?
• Suggestions on avenues of research on issues related to registration/accreditation and definition of functions of CSOs to facilitate their establishment
Click this link for the CSO Act: http://www.solutionexchange-un.net.bt/Docs/res05071002.pdf (PDF: size: 147 KB)
Your suggestions and feedback would help in taking forward the agenda of CSOs in a sustainable manner.
Regards,
Chime Paden Wangdi
Tarayana Foundation, Thimphu
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