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by Vishal Arora
Religion News Service
2/10/11
NEW DELHI — The
government commissioner charged with promoting "Gross National
Happiness" in the tiny Buddhist nation of Bhutan said he was deeply
dismayed by a recent study that found a majority of Bhutanese women
think their husbands have the right to beat them.
Buddhism is the
religion of Bhutan (shown in this 2002 photo of the 17th century fort
that houses religious centers) but its peaceful message is contradicted
in a new study that shows most Bhutanese women think their husbands have
the right to beat them. By John MacDougall, AFP
Karma Tshiteem, head of
Bhutan's Commission for Gross National Happiness, called the findings
"surprising" and "shocking," and said such attitudes are "totally
inconsistent" with Buddhist teachings.
The survey by Bhutan's
National Statistics Bureau found that roughly 70% of women say they
deserved beating if they neglect children, argue with their partners,
refuse sex or burn dinner, reported the Business Bhutan newspaper.
The acceptance of
domestic violence is highest (90 percent) among the women in Paro, a
picturesque valley that's home to Bhutan's most revered monastery,
Takshang. The capital city of Thimphu scores the lowest acceptance rate,
about 50%, for wife beating.
"Any form of violence is
totally contradictory to the teachings of the Buddha," Tshiteem said,
noting that Ahimsa (non-violence) "is a central tenet in Buddhist
philosophy."
Mahayana Buddhism is the
state religion of Bhutan, where a vast majority of the 700,000 citizens
are Buddhist.
Gross National Happiness,
which seeks to create an "enlightened" society in which government
fosters the well-being of people as well as other "sentient beings," was
first envisioned by Bhutan's former King Jigme Singye Wangchuck in 1972.
The landlocked
Himalayan nation — about half the size of Indiana — peacefully
transitioned to democracy after the king abdicated power in 2006, but
Buddhist principles continue to shape the country's government.
Bhutan's Gross National
Happiness index — as opposed to more traditional measures like a
nation's economic activity — is based on nine components of happiness:
psychological well-being, ecology, health, education, culture, living
standards, time use, community vitality and good governance.
Because healthy family
relationships are key to harmonious communities, "attitudes accepting
such behavior, in these relationships or even outside, would be totally
inconsistent" with Gross National Happiness, Tshiteem said.
Covering 15,000
households, the Bhutan Multiple Indicator Survey also found that more
than one in four women believe HIV/AIDS is transmitted supernaturally;
one in four children do not attend school and one in five children are
involved in child labor.
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