Ashi Sangay Choden Wangchuck

Ashi Sangay Choden Wangchuck (born 11 May 1963) is a Queen Mother (Gyalyum) of Bhutan and the fourth and youngest of the four queens of His Majesty Jigme Singye Wangchuck, the Fourth Druk Gyalpo. She has distinguished herself through her pioneering work in women's rights and child protection in Bhutan. As the founder and president of RENEW (Respect, Educate, Nurture and Empower Women), she has played a central role in bringing issues of gender-based violence and women's empowerment to the forefront of Bhutanese public policy.^[1]

The youngest of four daughters of Yab Dasho Ugyen Dorji (1925–2019), the founder of Ugyen Academy, and Yum Thuiji Zam (born 1932), Ashi Sangay Choden is a sister of Ashi Dorji Wangmo (first queen), Ashi Tshering Pem (second queen), and Ashi Tshering Yangdon (third queen). Their brother, Sangay Ngedup, served as Prime Minister of Bhutan. Ashi Sangay Choden's decision to focus on the sensitive subjects of domestic violence and women's rights marked a departure from conventional royal philanthropy and has had lasting effects on the country's legal and institutional framework.^[2]

Since the voluntary abdication of the Fourth King in 2006 and the subsequent transition to constitutional monarchy, Ashi Sangay Choden has continued her advocacy work with renewed vigour. She has served as a Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) since 1999 and received the United Nations Population Award in 2020.^[3]

Early Life and Education

Ashi Sangay Choden was born on 11 May 1963 in the village of Nobgang in the Punakha district of western Bhutan. She received her education at St. Joseph's Convent in Kalimpong and St. Helen's School in Kurseong, India, institutions in the Darjeeling district of West Bengal.^[4]

Marriage and Family

Ashi Sangay Choden married King Jigme Singye Wangchuck in 1979. The four sisters married the King privately in 1979, with a public ceremony held on 31 October 1988 at the Dechog Lhakhang in Punakha Dzong, on the Buddhist holiday of Lhabab Duchen. As the fourth and youngest queen, Ashi Sangay Choden brought a distinctive perspective to the royal family's public service commitments.^[5]

She has two children with the Fourth King:

Prince Khamsum Singye Wangchuck (born 6 October 1985)
Princess Euphelma Choden Wangchuck (born 6 June 1993)

^[6]

RENEW: Founding and Mission

In 2004, Ashi Sangay Choden founded RENEW (Respect, Educate, Nurture and Empower Women), the first organisation in Bhutan dedicated specifically to combating domestic violence and promoting women's empowerment. The idea for RENEW was conceptualised around 2000, drawing on her extensive travels throughout the country, during which she visited distant villages and schools and witnessed the challenges facing disadvantaged women and adolescents. The creation of RENEW acknowledged publicly for the first time that domestic violence was a problem within the kingdom — a subject that had long been shrouded in silence and stigma.^[7]

Under Ashi Sangay Choden's leadership, RENEW established crisis centres and shelters for survivors of domestic violence, provided legal aid and counselling services, and launched awareness campaigns to educate communities about gender-based violence. The organisation also developed vocational training programmes to help women achieve economic independence, recognising that financial vulnerability is a major factor trapping women in abusive situations.^[8]

RENEW has worked closely with the Royal Bhutan Police and the judiciary to improve the institutional response to domestic violence cases. The organisation's advocacy contributed to the enactment of the Domestic Violence Prevention Act of 2013, a landmark piece of legislation that criminalised domestic violence in Bhutan and established legal protections for survivors. The passage of this law is widely regarded as one of the most significant advances in women's rights in Bhutanese history.^[9]

Bhutan Textile Museum and Cultural Preservation

In 2001, Ashi Sangay Choden established the Bhutan Textile Museum (now the Royal Textile Academy) in Thimphu, dedicated to the preservation and promotion of Bhutan's rich textile heritage. The museum showcases the country's centuries-old weaving traditions and serves as both an educational resource and a centre for the continuation of traditional textile arts.^[10]

International Engagement

Ashi Sangay Choden has served as a Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) since 1999, advocating for sexual and reproductive health and rights across Bhutan and the region. In 2020, she received the United Nations Population Award in recognition of her outstanding contribution to population and reproductive health issues.^[11]

She has represented Bhutan at international forums on women's rights, child protection, and social development, speaking at events organised by the United Nations and participating in regional conferences on gender equality in South Asia. Her presentations have highlighted both the progress Bhutan has made in addressing gender-based violence and the challenges that remain, particularly in rural and remote communities.

Legacy

Ashi Sangay Choden Wangchuck's most enduring contribution to Bhutan is her role in transforming the national conversation about gender-based violence and women's rights. By founding RENEW and lending royal patronage to a cause that had been considered too sensitive for public discussion, she helped to destigmatise the issue and create institutional pathways for prevention, protection, and accountability. Her work through RENEW has had tangible effects on the lives of thousands of Bhutanese women and children, and the legal and organisational frameworks she helped to establish continue to shape the country's approach to gender equality within the broader vision of Gross National Happiness.

References

Contributed by BhutanWiki Editorial