The Bhutanese Leading the way.
Taba police, Thimphu received an alleged case of sexual harassment from the National COVID-19 hospital in Taba. The initial incident took place on the night of 21 March. The details are not being shared, as the police are waiting for both the parties to complete their isolation period and start the investigation. Police do not want to make early comments on the case.
It is known that the alleged suspect and victim are both health staffs, and kept under isolation at the National COVID-19 hospital after testing positive for COVID-19.
The management of Jigme Dorji Wangchuck National Referral Hospital also refrained from making any comment on the case. However, there is now a plan to sensitize district hospitals on the matter for now.
A retired civil servant, and a mother of two daughters, Pelmo, said that safety of the patients should be of the utmost concern. Otherwise no one would want to go to isolation hospitals despite testing positive of COVID-19, and that may eventually have a big impact the voluntary testing process.
“The system must be enhanced. Government has been giving it their best since Day one, but it won’t take time to ruin their hard work, at once, if things are not monitored well. I wish this to be untrue, but if it turns out to be true then it is high time to focus on safety measures. Otherwise, people will lose trust in the system, itself,” she added.
Meanwhile, a senior officer working in one of the NGOs said, “It might be too early for me to comment or be judgmental on the particular case, but in general, I believe, no one and no place is safe anymore. What people need is, a situation where they can take advantage of.”
“We can do better, and I think it is high time that the government should look into the matter seriously. They must ensure a safe environment, irrespective of the gender, as anyone can be a victim to any criminal offences,” she said.
