Bhutila Karpoche re-elected as MPP in Ontario, Canada

By Choekyi Lhamo

DHARAMSHALA, JUNE 7: The Member of Provincial Parliament (MPP) Bhutila Karpoche has been re-elected as the representative of the Parkdale- High Park in Toronto, home to one of the largest concentrations of Tibetans outside of Asia. Karpoche made history in 2018 by winning a seat in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario in Canada, making her the first person of Tibetan origin in North America to be elected into public office.

“Parkdale—High Park has sent a loud message: that we believe in taking care of each other, we believe that public dollars should go to public services and not private profit, and that we believe governments should work for us, the people. We will keep organizing. We won’t stop,” MPP Karpoche tweeted after her re-election, adding that she would “work hard on the issues that matter to us.” The New Democratic Party (NDP) candidate was declared winner last week with 23,024 votes counted against Liberal candidate Karim Bardeesy who came second with 9,547 votes.

Speaker of Tibetan Parliament in Exile Khenpo Sonam Tenphel on Monday congratulated Bhutila on her re-election and wished her best for future endeavors, “As a Tibetan, you have always voiced and apprised the government and the people of Canada regarding the critical issue of Tibet and the danger of extinguishing the Tibetan Culture and heritage under the Chinese brutal regime. You have carried your responsibility as the MPP with dignity and respect in fulfilling the aspirations of the general public of Parkdale in every way possible. I hope you will continue to do so in the future too.”

Within three years into office, she proposed a bill to mark the month of July as the Tibetan Heritage Month, which subsequently became law in Ontario in Sept. 2020. “The recognition of the month of July as Tibetan Heritage Month in Ontario is significant. The systematic destruction of Tibetan culture, heritage and way of life in Tibet makes this month all the more important,” wrote Phayul’s Guest reporter Tenzin Dechen in her 2021 article describing this move as “a feat no other jurisdiction in the world has achieved.”

The Tibetan-Canadian immigrated to the country in 2002 with her family, and received her BSc. degree from the University of British Columbia and her MPH from the University of Toronto. She also holds a PhD candidature in Policy Studies and had previously worked in the office of Cheri DiNovo, a former member of the Ontario Legislature, for 11 years before she declared her candidacy for MPP of Parkdale- High Park.