Bhutan - Country Profile

Full name: Kingdom of Bhutan
Population: 697,000 (UN, 2009)
Capital and largest city: Thimphu
Area: 38,364 sq km (14,812 sq miles)
Major language: Dzongkha (official)
Major religions: Buddhism (official), Hinduism
Life expectancy: 64 years (men), 68 years (women) (UN)
Monetary unit: 1 ngultrum = 100 chetrum
Main exports: Electricity, timber, cement, agricultural products, handicrafts
GNI per capita: US $1,900 (World Bank, 2008)
Internet domain: .bt
International dialing code: +975

 

Bhutan is a small, remote and impoverished Himalayan kingdom sandwiched between its powerful neighbors, India and China. Almost completely isolated for centuries, tried in several respects from the outside world while fiercely their old traditions. The Bhutanese name for Bhutan, Druk Yul, means "Land of the Thunder Dragon" and has begun to open to foreigners in 1970. 

 

Wangchuk hereditary monarchy in power since 1907. However, Bhutan has been a two-party parliamentary democracy after the elections of March 2008. This led to a landslide victory for the monarchy Bhutan Harmony Party of former Prime Minister Jigme Thinley. The opposition Democratic Party also supports the old Buddhist monarchy limited. Bhutan's culture and beautiful landscape make it a natural tourist attraction. Tourism is the visitor has previously agreed as part of a package tour or travel. Backpackers and independent travelers who are discouraged. - King Jigme Singye Wangchuck, the father of the current monarch - was all he could to preserve the indigenous culture of the majority Drukpa Buddhist people. ethnic group has a common culture with the Tibetans and other Himalayan. 

 

The Peoples National dress is compulsory - the knee-length wrap-around "gho" for men and famous ankle-length dress as "Kira" for the monarchy women. Bhutan has also tried the philosophy of "Gross National Happiness (GNH), which encouraged attempts a balance between the spiritual and material strike. But the 1990s emphasize that the majority of the Buddhist culture and lack of political representation to deep resentment boiled over between ... the ethnic communities in southern Nepal out the outbreak of the violence and tens of thousands of people in Nepal refuge have fled to refugee camps in Nepal Some 100,000 refugees live accompanied in storage by the UN in Nepal In these refugees have a number of insurgent groups has been - Bhutan Communist Party (Marxist-Leninist-Maoist), Bhutan Group and Tiger Bhutan RUF believe. 

 

Bhutanese security forces that behind the wave of bomb attacks that the kingdom shaken at the prospect of parliamentary elections in 2008. The leaders of Nepal and Bhutan had promised to try to repatriate the refugees before the elections. However, there was little progress on this front. India is no refugees on its territory, which lies between Bhutan and Nepal, and although the United States and other countries agreed to tens of thousands of refugees, the status certain officers accept refugees say that the only acceptable path is complete repatriation to Bhutan.

 

Head of state: King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck