EDITORIAL: May Bhutan achieve prosperity and retain its identity
Bhutan’s King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck, 31, and Queen Jetsun Pema, 21, arrived in Japan on Nov. 15 for their first state visit. They were married last month, and this trip doubles as their honeymoon. We extend our most cordial welcome to the couple.
The Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan is slightly bigger than Kyushu and home to about 700,000 people, most of whom are devout Tibetan Buddhists.
Although it is a landlocked agricultural country, exports of hydroelectric power constitute its main source of revenue.
Some people liken Bhutan to Shangri-La, and we can see why.
Not only is Bhutan blessed with spectacular natural scenery, it also prioritizes “gross national happiness (GNH)” over gross national product (GNP).
This national policy was put in place by King Jigme Singye Wangchuck, the current king’s father, who valued his people’s happiness over economic progress.
But the country is now experiencing an onslaught of foreign capital, having opened its doors gradually after many years of isolation from the rest of the world.
A construction rush is under way in the capital city of Thimphu, which is experiencing a population influx. Commercial facilities are opening, motor traffic is growing, and mobile phones and the Internet are rapidly becoming part of the fabric of life.
With information now traveling the globe instantly and fanning people’s desires, the big test hanging over Bhutan is whether it can achieve prosperity without sacrificing the people’s happiness.
Bhutan is also experimenting with democracy.
In 1998, the current king’s father, whose successful health care and education reforms earned him the public’s overwhelming support, steered the nation away from decades of absolute monarchy to constitutional monarchy.
Historically, it was a rare decision indeed for a monarch with absolute powers to voluntarily cede control to the people.
After the current king ascended the throne, elections were held in both the upper and lower houses of Parliament, and a new Cabinet was formed in 2008. The Constitution adopted by Bhutan provides for the king’s retirement age and the right of the people to dismiss their king.
When the people voiced their preference for the old monarchy rather than the new parliamentary system, the former king reportedly persuaded them to understand the need for a system that would “enable the nation to survive a bad king.”
What formed the background of Bhutan’s transition from an absolute monarchy to a constitutional monarchy was a series of crises experienced in nearby nations and other parts of the world. Revolutions in Laos and Iran in the 1970s drove their respective royal houses out of existence, and Nepal also ceased to be a monarchy in 2008. Even Thailand’s much-beloved king, Bhumibol Adulyadej, has lately lost his power of mediation over the country’s growing political turmoil.
With economic globalization now dictating a “global standard” even for government, it is no longer easy for crowned–but unelected–heads of state to keep exercising political power.
Democracy has yet to take root in Bhutan. The nation faces many challenges, notably establishing infrastructure and dealing with ethnic Nepalese refugees. The young king will have to build the nation in close cooperation with the fledgling Bhutanese government.
This year marks the 25th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Bhutan and Japan. As one of the world’s top providers of aid to Bhutan, Japan supported the 2008 Bhutanese general elections. And the people of Bhutan have strong feelings of friendship for us, probably because we look like them and our national costume is somewhat similar to theirs.
We would like to keep rooting for Bhutan’s twin challenges–democratization and the pursuit of gross national happiness–and remain unstinting in our offer of cooperation.
Source: http://ajw.asahi.com