"text":"<p>Following Britain’s victory in the 1865 Duar War, Britain and Bhutan signed the Treaty of Sinchulu, under which Bhutan would receive an annual subsidy in exchange for ceding land to British India. Ugyen WANGCHUCK - who had served as the de facto ruler of an increasingly unified Bhutan and had improved relations with the British toward the end of the 19th century - was named king in 1907. Three years later, a treaty was signed whereby the British agreed not to interfere in Bhutanese internal affairs, and Bhutan allowed Britain to direct its foreign affairs. Bhutan negotiated a similar arrangement with independent India in 1949. The Indo-Bhutanese Treaty of Friendship returned to Bhutan a small piece of the territory annexed by the British, formalized the annual subsidies the country received, and defined India's responsibilities in defense and foreign relations. Under a succession of modernizing monarchs beginning in the 1950s, Bhutan joined the UN in 1971 and slowly continued its engagement beyond its borders.</p> <p>In 2005, King Jigme Singye WANGCHUCK unveiled the draft of Bhutan's first constitution - which introduced major democratic reforms - and held a national referendum for its approval. The King abdicated the throne in 2006 in favor of his son, Jigme Khesar Namgyel WANGCHUCK. In 2007, India and Bhutan renegotiated their treaty, eliminating the clause that stated that Bhutan would be \"guided by\" India in conducting its foreign policy, although Thimphu continues to coordinate closely with New Delhi. In 2008, Bhutan held its first parliamentary election in accordance with the constitution. Bhutan experienced a peaceful turnover of power following a parliamentary election in 2013, which resulted in the defeat of the incumbent party. In 2018, the incumbent party again lost the parliamentary election. Of the more than 100,000 ethnic Nepali - predominantly Lhotshampa - refugees who fled or were forced out of Bhutan in the 1990s, about 6,500 remain displaced in Nepal.</p>"
"text":"violent storms from the Himalayas are the source of the country's Bhutanese name, which translates as Land of the Thunder Dragon; frequent landslides during the rainy season"
},
"Geography - note":{
"text":"landlocked; strategic location between China and India; controls several key Himalayan mountain passes"
"text":"named after the Bhotia, the ethnic Tibetans who migrated from Tibet to Bhutan; \"Bod\" is the Tibetan name for their land; the Bhutanese name \"Druk Yul\" means \"Land of the Thunder Dragon\""
}
},
"Government type":{
"text":"constitutional monarchy"
},
"Capital":{
"name":{
"text":"Thimphu"
},
"geographic coordinates":{
"text":"27 28 N, 89 38 E"
},
"time difference":{
"text":"UTC+6 (11 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)"
"text":"the origins of the name are unclear; the traditional explanation, dating to the 14th century, is that <em>thim </em>means \"dissolve\" and <em>phu</em> denotes \"high ground\" to express the meaning of \"dissolving high ground,\" in reference to a local deity that dissolved before a traveler's eyes, becoming a part of the rock on which the present city stands"
"text":"17 December 1907 (became a unified kingdom under its first hereditary king); 8 August 1949 (Treaty of Friendship with India maintains Bhutanese independence)"
},
"National holiday":{
"text":"National Day (Ugyen WANGCHUCK became first hereditary king), 17 December (1907)"
},
"Constitution":{
"history":{
"text":"previous governing documents were various royal decrees; first constitution drafted November 2001 to March 2005, ratified 18 July 2008"
},
"amendments":{
"text":"proposed as a motion by simple majority vote in a joint session of Parliament; passage requires at least a three-fourths majority vote in a joint session of the next Parliament and assent by the king"
}
},
"Legal system":{
"text":"civil law based on Buddhist religious law"
},
"International law organization participation":{
"text":"has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt"
},
"Citizenship":{
"citizenship by birth":{
"text":"no"
},
"citizenship by descent only":{
"text":"the father must be a citizen of Bhutan"
},
"dual citizenship recognized":{
"text":"no"
},
"residency requirement for naturalization":{
"text":"10 years"
}
},
"Suffrage":{
"text":"18 years of age; universal"
},
"Executive branch":{
"chief of state":{
"text":"King Jigme Khesar Namgyel WANGCHUCK (since 14 December 2006); note - King Jigme Singye WANGCHUCK abdicated the throne on 14 December 2006 to his son"
},
"head of government":{
"text":"Prime Minister Lotay TSHERING (since 7 November 2018)"
},
"cabinet":{
"text":"Council of Ministers or Lhengye Zhungtshog members nominated by the monarch in consultation with the prime minister and approved by the National Assembly; members serve 5-year terms"
},
"elections/appointments":{
"text":"the monarchy is hereditary but can be removed by a two-thirds vote of Parliament; leader of the majority party in Parliament is nominated as the prime minister, appointed by the monarch"
"text":"bicameral Parliament or Chi Tshog consists of:<br>non-partisan National Council or Gyelyong Tshogde (25 seats; 20 members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote and 5 members appointed by the king; members serve 5-year terms)<br>National Assembly or Tshogdu (47 seats; members directly elected in single-seat constituencies in a two-round majoritarian voting system; members serve 5-year terms)"
"text":"<br>National Council - last held on 20 April 2023 (next to be held in 2028)<br>National Assembly - first round held on 15 September 2018 and second round held on 18 October 2018 (next to be held in October 2023)"
"text":"<br>National Council - seats by party - independent 20 (all candidates ran as independents) and 5 appointed by the king; composition (elected only) - men 19, women 1, percent of women 5%; note - composition of 5 appointments by the king unavailable as of mid-May 2023<br>National Assembly - first round - percent of vote by party - DNT 31.9%, DPT 30.9%, PDP 27.4%, BKP 9.8%; second round - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - DNT 30, DPT 17; composition - men 40, women 7, percent of women 14.9%; note - total Parliament NA"
"text":"Supreme Court (consists of the chief justice and 4 associate justices); note - the Supreme Court has sole jurisdiction in constitutional matters"
"text":"Supreme Court chief justice appointed by the monarch upon the advice of the National Judicial Commission, a 4-member body to include the Legislative Committee of the National Assembly, the attorney general, the Chief Justice of Bhutan and the senior Associate Justice of the Supreme Court; other judges (drangpons) appointed by the monarch from among the High Court judges selected by the National Judicial Commission; chief justice serves a 5-year term or until reaching age 65 years, whichever is earlier; the 4 other judges serve 10-year terms or until age 65, whichever is earlier"
},
"subordinate courts":{
"text":"High Court (first appellate court); District or Dzongkhag Courts; sub-district or Dungkhag Courts"
"text":"<p>Bhutan Kuen-Nyam Party (dissolved in January 2023)<br>Bhutan Peace and Prosperity Party (Druk Phuensum Tshogpa) or DPT [Dorji WANGDI] (Druk Chirwang Tshogpa or DCT merged with DPT in March 2018)<br>People's Democratic Party or PDP [Tshering TOBGAY]<br>United Party of Bhutan (Druk Nyamrup Tshogpa) or DNT [Lotay TSHERING]</p>"
"text":"divided diagonally from the lower hoist-side corner; the upper triangle is yellow and the lower triangle is orange; centered along the dividing line is a large black and white dragon facing away from the hoist side; the dragon, called the Druk (Thunder Dragon), is the emblem of the nation; its white color stands for purity and the jewels in its claws symbolize wealth; the background colors represent spiritual and secular powers within Bhutan: the orange is associated with Buddhism, while the yellow denotes the ruling dynasty"
},
"National symbol(s)":{
"text":"thunder dragon known as Druk Gyalpo; national colors: orange, yellow"
},
"National anthem":{
"name":{
"text":"\"Druk tsendhen\" (The Thunder Dragon Kingdom)"
"text":"the small land-locked Kingdom of Bhutan has only recently emerged from decades of isolation from the modern world; that, and its mountainous terrain, left the country far back in the field in terms of teledensity as well as access to the Internet; over the last decade, the country has undergone a significant transformation due to the opening of its borders, liberalization of its telecom sector, and the active support from the government towards increased competition in the mobile, broadband, and ISP segments; the relatively widespread availability of the mobile platform has caused an explosion in mobile broadband subscriber numbers, growing from zero to over 100% penetration in just ten years (between 2010 and 2019).; the onset of the Covid-19 crisis in 2020 caused the subscription rates to drop back a little; growth is projected to return in 2022 (along with the broader mobile market) as the overall economy recovers; the government opens up more to foreign investment, trade, and tourism; and network expansion continues – the recent (December 2021) launch of 5G services by both of the country’s mobile operators being particularly noteworthy (2022)"
"text":"country code - 975; international telephone and telegraph service via landline and microwave relay through India; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat"
"text":"state-owned TV station established in 1999; cable TV service offers dozens of Indian and other international channels; first radio station, privately launched in 1973, is now state-owned; 5 private radio stations are currently broadcasting (2012)"
"note":"<strong>note:</strong> paved runways have a concrete or asphalt surface but not all have facilities for refueling, maintenance, or air traffic control; the length of a runway required for aircraft to safely operate depends on a number of factors including the type of aircraft, the takeoff weight (including passengers, cargo, and fuel), engine types, flap settings, landing speed, elevation of the airport, and average maximum daily air temperature; paved runways can reach a length of 5,000 m (16,000 ft.), but the “typical” length of a commercial airline runway is between 2,500-4,000 m (8,000-13,000 ft.)"
"note":"<strong>note:</strong> unpaved runways have a surface composition such as grass or packed earth and are most suited to the operation of light aircraft; unpaved runways are usually short, often less than 1,000 m (3,280 ft.) in length; airports with unpaved runways often lack facilities for refueling, maintenance, or air traffic control"
"text":"Royal Bhutan Army (includes Royal Bodyguard and an air wing); National Militia<br><br>Ministry of Home and Cultural Affairs: Royal Bhutan Police (2023)"
"text":"18 years of age for voluntary military service for men and women; no conscription; militia training is compulsory for males aged 20-25, over a 3-year period (2023)",
"note":"<strong>note: </strong>in 2021, the Royal Bhutan Army graduated from a year-long training course the first batch of 150 women to be allowed to serve in combat roles; previously, women were allowed to serve in medical and other non-combat roles"
"text":"the Army is responsible for external threats but also has some internal security functions such as conducting counterinsurgency operations, guarding forests, and providing security for prominent persons; the force is deployed throughout the country in more than a dozen “wings,” each comprised of a few infantry companies; the Army also has units of royal bodyguards and special forces; Bhutan relies on India for military training, arms supplies, and the country’s air defense (2023)"
"text":"<p><em>Bhutan-China:</em> Lacking any treaty describing the boundary, Bhutan and China continue negotiations to establish a common boundary alignment to resolve territorial disputes arising from substantial cartographic discrepancies, the most contentious of which lie in Bhutan's west along China’s Chumbi salient.<br><br><em>Bhutan-India:</em> none identified</p>"
"text":"<p>Tier 2 Watch List — Bhutan does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking but is making efforts to do so; the government increased convictions of traffickers and the number of victims identified and referred to services; officials drafted and launched an anti-trafficking National Action Plan; however, the government did not demonstrate overall increasing anti-trafficking efforts compared with the previous year; the government reported only one investigation and did not initiate any new prosecutions, and the overall identification efforts remained insufficient; because the government has devoted sufficient resources to a written plan that, if implemented, would constitute significant efforts to meet the minimum standards, Bhutan was granted a waiver per the TVPA from a downgrade to Tier 3; therefore Bhutan remained on Tier 2 Watch List for the third consecutive year (2022)</p>"
"text":"<p>Trafficking profile: human traffickers exploit domestic and foreign victims in Bhutan and exploit victims from Bhutan abroad; unregistered foreign employment recruitment agencies increasingly operate through social media to target unemployed or economically disadvantaged individuals; Bhutanese citizens working in hospitality, retail, and services sectors in the Gulf, including in Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, and the UAE, and in India, Thailand, and the United Kingdom, reported indicators of trafficking; in recent years traffickers sent Bhutanese women to Iraq and Oman for forced labor in domestic work; traffickers have exploited Bhutanese women and girls in sex and labor trafficking, including in forced domestic labor and caregiving; reports indicate an increase in commercial sex by Bhutanese and Indian women in the Bhutan-India border’s growing hospitality and entertainment districts—including hotels, massage parlors, and nightclubs—some of which might be forced; traffickers reportedly have exploited Indian child domestic workers and male Indian migrants working in the construction and hydropower sectors; rural Bhutanese transported to urban areas may be involved in forced domestic work, and child labor in restaurants and automotive workshops may involve forced labor (2022)</p>"
