Reflection and My Perspective on International Bill of Rights in Bhutanese Context

The three fundamental Human Rights instruments are the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR1948), the International Covenant of Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR, 1966) and the International Covenant of Social, Economic and Cultural Rights (ICESCR). The commission's main accomplishment are those instruments combinedly known as the International Bill of Rights. The ICCPR obligates the countries that have ratified the treaty to protect and preserve civil and political rights and it is an important international human rights treaty.

ICESCR has 31 articles that basically talks about the protection of the basic economy, social and cultural rights. Rights under ICESCR are all related to violence against women. Bhutan is signatory to only two human rights instrument that includes the convention on the rights of child (CRC) and the convention on the Elimination of discrimination against women(CEDAW). But Bhutan has not ratified the two legal framework that are the ICCPR and the ICESCR.

Although Bhutan did not signed the two legal instruments, the Constitution of Bhutan includes all the basic human rights that are under two legal instruments. Our government and our king had protected, preserved and provided all the important human rights to the people of Bhutan. Even though Bhutan is not a part of that two legal instruments, people in Bhutan enjoys the same rights and more rights are provided to the people. Keeping this in mind, the hard work our king and government puts for the people of Bhutan, we must not misuse the rights given.