“I was 13 when I first got into substance abuse. Seeing older kids use drugs, I got curious and tempted. Then, kids my age would try it. Inhalants, tablets, marijuana—they were all so easily available in the market back then. Dealers would get caught, but the punishments were mild, so it never really stopped the flow of drugs. Once I started, it wasn’t long before I was chasing higher and higher thrills with different substances. Before long, we’d smoke in the school toilets and pop tablets, always trying to stay ahead of the teachers’ surprise checks. Later, I turned to dealing drugs myself. I got caught in school numerous times, either after bunking classes or showing up late. Teachers would call my parents, who were always shocked and sometimes beat and scolded me, but it never helped. I’d be right back at it the next day. By 2012, my friends and I resorted to mugging people and robbing phones. Once, I even ended up gravely injuring another boy while snatching his phone. Then, we’d sell them, but it didn’t take long for the police to catch up with us. My friends got arrested first, and after they were beaten and interrogated, they gave up my name. I had no choice but to surrender.
We were sentenced to three years without thrimthue in lieu of attempted murder and battery. We were transferred to the Youth Development and Rehabilitation Centre (YDRC) in Tshimakothi. At the centre, our day started at 5 in the morning for the PT and then social work. Some of us would go to the local school while others received vocational training or classes on campus. In the school, we were always under the watchful eyes of non-uniform guards. Students and teachers were aware of our past, and it was hard not to feel different and looked down upon. Some kids were even told not to be friends with us. Realizing my mistakes, I studied hard. As our results improved, the community began to change its perspective on us. My sentence was reduced to half since we were juveniles.
After my release, I faced discrimination from my family and neighbors. Schools wouldn’t admit me. Luckily, my old school principal gave me a chance. I studied hard but couldn’t qualify after class 10, so I enrolled in a private school. Unfortunately, I relapsed and got back into substance abuse, leading me to drop out and work as a driver and in construction. In 2019, I received a scholarship from Nazhoen Lamtoen to study as a chef. That opportunity helped me leave my bad habits behind, and I’ve been clean since then. Now, as a chef, I’m taking charge of my life. I often think that stricter measures in schools, like better evaluation and preventing exposure to bad environments, along with having school counselors, and a better reintegration system free of judgement might have made a difference for me and others like me.”
Humans of Thimphu and GSTH Project CHAMP, in collaboration with Shift Bhutan and Save the Children Bhutan, are advocating for Children in Conflict with the Law (CICL) by sharing their stories and experiences to foster empathy and drive systemic change.
Story by Dechen Wangdi