Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck
Democratisation
### Democratisation

The young king began his reign overseeing the [democratisation](/wiki/Democratisation "Democratisation") of Bhutan by presiding over the last sessions of the [parliament](/wiki/Parliament_of_Bhutan "Parliament of Bhutan") where electoral laws, land reform and other important issues were debated. He said that the responsibility of this generation of Bhutanese was to ensure the success of democracy. He traveled extensively to explain and discuss the Draft [Constitution of Bhutan](/wiki/Constitution_of_Bhutan "Constitution of Bhutan") with the people and to encourage participation in the upcoming democratic exercises. He continues such visits, speaking mainly to young people on the need for Bhutanese to strive for higher standards in [education](/wiki/Education "Education"), [business](/wiki/Business "Business"), [civil service](/wiki/Civil_service "Civil service"), and the need for people of a small country to work harder than those of others.

On 17 February 2021, he signed the abolishment of anti\-homosexuality laws into law, effectively decriminalising same\-sex activity in the kingdom, after the repeal of such laws had been approved by both houses in 2020\. Tashi Tsheten, of the LGBT organisation *Queer Voices of Bhutan*, welcomed the king's decision as a milestone and expressed gratitude to the king and every politician involved in making the decriminalisation possible. Additionally, Tea Braun of the organisation [Human Dignity Trust](/wiki/Human_Dignity_Trust "Human Dignity Trust") said that Bhutan had made a "step forward" by legalising homosexual activity.


How does the king's decision on decriminalisation affect the LGBTQ+ community in Bhutan?