Timeline Bhutan
Return to home
The capital is Thimphu (former capital was
Punakha)
and the total population is 700,000 [650,000]. 85% of the people are
Buddhist
Drukpas of Mongoland Tibetan origin and the national language is
Dzongkha.
The country is barely 100 miles wide and 200 miles long.
(SFEC, 2/23/96, p.T5,6)(WSJ, 3/6/97, p.A1)(SFC, 3/15/01,
p.A24)
627-649 The introduction of
Buddhism in Bhutan occurred during the reign of Tibetan king
Srongtsen Gampo. He converted to Buddhism and ordered the
construction of two Buddhist temples, at Bumthang in central Bhutan
and at Kyichu in the Paro Valley.
(http://tinyurl.com/7qlsz)
659 Bhutan’s Kyichu Lhakhang
monastery was built.
(SFC, 3/15/01, p.A24)
700-800 Bhutan’s Taktsang monastery was founded by
tantric master Padmasambhava, often described as “another Buddha.”
(SFEC, 2/23/96, p.T5)
800-900 Ninth century monks called Bhutan “the
hidden world.”
(WSJ, 3/6/97, p.A8)
1627 Two Portuguese Jesuits
arrived in Bhutan, the first westerners to do so.
(WSJ, 3/6/97, p.A8)
1644 Trongsa Dzong was built.
Trongsa was the ancestral home of Bhutan’s royal family.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trongsa)
1783 Captain Samuel Turner, a
British army officer, traveled through Bhutan and Tibet.
(Econ, 1/31/09, p.91)
1907 A Bhutan royal dynasty
that continued to a 4th ruler in 1997 was founded.
(SFEC, 2/23/96, p.T6)
1949 Bhutan decided that its
policies would be guided by relations with India.
(Econ, 12/18/04, p.55)
1952 Bhutan enthroned the third
Druk Gyalpo, Jigme Dorji Wangchuck.
(http://tinyurl.com/7qlsz)
1955 Nov 11, Jigme Singye
Wangchuk was born. He became king of Bhutan in 1972.
(SSFC, 3/17/02, p.C10)(www.worldwhoswho.com)
1956 Bhutan abolished serfdom.
(Econ, 12/18/04, p.55)
1958 Bhutan’s position of
gongzim, held since 1907 by the Dorji family, was upgraded in 1958
to lonchen (prime minister) and was still in the hands of the Dorji.
(http://tinyurl.com/7qlsz)
1958 Jawaharlal Nehru, prime
minister of India, trekked for a month to make a treaty with Bhutan.
He demanded to be met at the border by someone of equal rank. King
Wangchuk balked at making the trip and quickly appointed his aide,
Jigme Palden Dorji, as prime minister to meet Nehru 127 miles away
by mule and foot.
(WSJ, 3/6/97, p.A8)(Econ, 5/14/05, p.46)
1958 The cut-off year for
granting Nepalese citizenship. Families living in Bhutan after this
year would be considered as illegals.
(WSJ, 3/6/97, p.A8)
1960 During the 1960s many
Nepalese migrated to Bhutan for economic reasons.
(Econ, 10/25/03, p.39)
1961 Bhutan constructed its 1st
paved road.
(Econ, 12/18/04, p.55)
1967 A national library was
established.
(SFC, 3/15/01, p.A24)
1968 In Bhutan Michael Aris
(1946-1999), a graduate from Durham Univ., was invited about this
time to become the private tutor of the children of the royal family
of Bhutan. Aris spent 6 years in Bhutan. In 1972 he married Aung San
Suu Kyi of Burma.
(SFC, 3/30/99,
p.F4)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Aris)
1971 Bhutan joined the United
Nations.
(WSJ, 1/25/00, p.A1)
1972 Jul 24, Bhutan’s King
Jigme Dorji Wangchuck died while on safari in Kenya. His son Jigme
Druk Gyalpo Jigme Singye Wangchuck (b.1955), the 4th of his dynasty,
became king.
(WSJ, 3/6/97, p.A1)(SFEC, 2/23/96, p.T5)(SSFC,
3/17/02, p.C10)
1972 Bhutan’s King Jigme Singye
Wangchuck formally launched his Gross National Happiness (GNH) plan.
(SFC, 12/4/08, p.A1)
1974 Jun 2, Jigme Druk Gyalpo
Jigme Singye Wangchuck (18) was crowned king of Bhutan.
(www.worldwhoswho.com)
1974 Bhutan opened up to
limited tourism.
(WSJ, 1/25/00, p.A1)
1981 Bhutan’s King Jigme Druk
Gyalpo Jigme Singye Wangchuck introduced 20 district committees
elected by households in an effort to decentralize authority. In
1991 this was extended to 201 committees.
(Econ, 12/18/04, p.57)
1983 The Paro Airport, 40 miles
from the capital, was constructed.
(WSJ, 3/6/97, p.A8)
c1985 The government invoked
codes that mandated the use of dress, language and architectural
style that reflected the majority Drukpas.
(WSJ, 3/6/97, p.A1)
1985 The South Asian
Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) was founded in Dhaka,
Bangladesh, with the aim of promoting economic cooperation and
alleviating poverty in South Asia. Members included Bangladesh,
Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
(AP, 11/13/05)
1986 Bhutan’s first newspaper,
the government weekly Kuensel, began publishing. It recorded its
first crime in 1989, the same year that the first satellite dish
arrived.
(WSJ, 3/6/97, p.A8)
1988 A census found that
southern Bhutan had a lot of illegal Nepalese settlers. Protestors
of the census were jailed, some expulsion orders were issued and
others were harassed out.
(WSJ, 3/6/97, p.A1)(Econ, 10/25/03, p.39)
1988 Jamie Zeppa of Canada
began a teaching assignment in Bhutan. In 1999 "Stranger in the
Strange Land of Bhutan," a memoir of her experiences was published.
(SFEC, 8/8/99, p.T10)(WSJ, 9/10/99, p.W7)
1988-1993 Thousands of Nepali speakers left Bhutan
after they failed to produce documents to prove their citizenship.
(Econ, 12/18/04, p.56)
1989 A conservation trust fund
was created for the country.
(WSJ, 3/6/97, p.A8)
1989 Telephones were introduced
to Bhutan.
(WSJ, 1/25/00, p.A1)
1995 Bhutan’s national assembly
declared that 60 percent of the country must be forested, including
26 percent that is set aside as protected.
(AP, 12/18/05)
1998 Apr 19, In Bhutan a fire
destroyed the Taktsang Monastery, that dated back in some form to
the 9th century.
(SFC, 4/22/98, p.A9)
1998 Jul 7, King Jigme Singye
Wangchuck gave the legislature power to fire him and to choose a
Cabinet.
(SFC, 7/8/98, p.A12)
1998 Bhutan’s King Druk Gyalpo
Jigme Singye Wangchuck formalized a plan dubbed the Four Pillars of
Happiness: sustainable economic development, conservation of the
environment, the promotion of national culture and good governance.
This was based on his belief in Gross National Happiness (GNH) as
opposed to Gross National Product (GNP).
(WSJ, 10/13/04, p.A14)(Econ, 12/18/04, p.56)
1999 Bhutan introduced
television and access to the Internet.
(Econ, 12/18/04, p.55)
2000 Aug 8, In Bhutan flash
floods and mudslides left at least 50 people dead.
(SFC, 8/9/00, p.A14)
2001 Sep 9, In Damak, Nepal, a
Bhutanese leader, R.K. Budhathoki, was attacked and killed with
khukris, the traditional Nepalese curved knives.
(SFC, 9/10/01, p.B2)
2001 Bhutan and Nepalese
authorities agreed on a joint screening system to determine on which
refugees would be allowed to go back to Bhutan. Over 100,000 people
were in refugee camps in Nepal.
(Econ, 10/25/03, p.39)
2002 Jul, The National Assembly
passed a resolution saying the military will expel Bodo guerrillas
if they do not leave peacefully.
(SFC, 10/28/02, p.A7)
2002 Oct 27, In India
separatist guerrillas in Assam state killed 22 villagers. Members of
the National Democratic Front of Bodoland operated out of bases in
Bhutan. The 10-year insurgency has left over 10,000 dead.
(SFC, 10/28/02, p.A7)
2003 Jan 5, In Bhutan Indian
separatists said 50 Indian soldiers attacked their camps. 15
soldiers and 7 rebels were reported killed.
(SFC, 1/8/03, p.A16)
2003 Dec 15, The royal army of
Bhutan seized a camp near its border with India that they believe
housed the headquarters of a major Indian separatist group.
(AP, 12/16/03)
2003 Dec 18, Bhutan's royal
army killed at least 90 Indian separatist guerrillas in three days
of fighting to shut down their bases in the tiny Himalayan nation.
the Bhutanese army reported six to seven fatal casualties.
(AP, 12/18/03)
2004 Dec 17, Bhutan began to
enforce a total ban on tobacco sales and smoking in public. The
royal National Assembly passed the resolution in July.
(SFC, 11/30/04, p.A2)
2005 Mar, Bhutan’s King
Wangchuck published a draft constitution. It included freedom of
thought and speech, a 2-party electoral system, and a mandatory
retirement age of 65 for the king, to be endorsed by two0thirds of
the National Assembly.
(Econ, 5/14/05, p.46)
2005 Nov 12, In Dhaka,
Bangladesh, a 2-day summit aimed to alleviate poverty and boost
trade and cooperation among Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives,
Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Leaders called for greater
cooperation within the region to deal with the aftermath of
disasters like the Kashmir earthquake and last year's devastating
tsunami.
(AFP, 11/12/05)
2005 Dec 18, Bhutan state media
reported that the king has said he will step down as ruler in 2008
and hold the country's first national elections for a parliamentary
democracy. King Jigme Singye Wangchuck said he will be succeeded by
his son (25), the crown prince.
(AP, 12/18/05)
2006 Dec 2, A bomb exploded in
southwest Bhutan near the border with India, seriously injuring four
people and shattering the calm of the isolated Himalayan kingdom.
(AP, 12/3/06)
2006 Dec 14, The king of
Bhutan, Jigme Singye Wangchuck (51), signed a royal decree giving
charge of the kingdom to Crown Prince Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck
(26) at a special session of the Bhutanese Cabinet in the capital,
Thimphu. This was more than a year ahead of schedule.
(AP, 12/16/06)
2006 Bhutan’s economy grew this
year by 12% and GDP per person was reckoned to be about $1,400.
Hydroelectric power sent to India accounted for 87.5% of Bhutan’s
exports.
(Econ, 4/28/07, p.50)
2007 Apr 28, It was reported
life expectancy for the Bhutan’s 700,000 people had increased to 64
years.
(Econ, 4/28/07, p.50)
2007 May 22, The UN's top
refugee official arrived in Nepal for a visit aimed at resolving the
fate of around 100,000 refugees from Bhutan stuck in Nepal for 16
years.
(AP, 5/22/07)
2007 May 30, In Nepal some
10,000 Bhutanese refugees demonstrated at the India-Nepal border,
where a day earlier Indian troops had opened fire, killing one
refugee.
(AP, 5/30/07)
2007 Jun 19, Indian police said
they have discovered a stash of hundreds of human skulls and thigh
bones and arrested a gang for allegedly smuggling them to the
Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan for use in Buddhist monasteries.
(Reuters, 6/19/07)
2007 Jul 26, Bhutan's prime
minister and six members of his Cabinet resigned to pave the way for
the 1st parliamentary elections in the Buddhist kingdom and its
transition to democracy.
(AP, 7/27/07)
2008 Jan 1, Bhutan election
officials announced that the Himalayan nation will begin its
transformation from an absolute monarchy to a democracy with several
leaders fresh out of college at the helm. The size of the country's
population is unknown. Estimates put it between 700,000 and 2.2
million.
(AP, 1/2/08)
2008 Mar 24, Bhutan held its
first democratic elections. A new parliament and new constitution
diluted the powers of its popular monarch. The Druk Phuensum Tshogpa
(DPT) or Bhutan United Party, led by ex-premier Jigmi Thinley (55),
won 44 of 47 seats. Thinley has pledged to boost development and
happiness in the Himalayan nation.
(AP, 3/25/08)(Econ, 3/29/08, p.58)
2008 Aug 2, In Sri Lanka a
two-day summit of leaders of the 15th South Asian Association for
Regional Cooperation (SAARC), opened amid extraordinary security.
Leaders of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, The Maldives,
Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka attended the summit. Government troops
captured rebel-held Vellankulam village in Mannar, the last rebel
stronghold in the area. Fresh fighting between Sri Lankan troops and
Tamil Tiger separatists killed 14 rebels and two soldiers across the
embattled northern region.
(AP, 8/2/08)(AP, 8/3/08)
2008 Nov 6, The Himalayan
kingdom of Bhutan crowned a new king, placing a charismatic
Oxford-educated bachelor as head of state of the world's newest
democracy. Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck (28) became the world's
youngest reigning monarch.
(AFP, 11/6/08)
2008 Nov 24, Bhutan opened its
4th annual Gross National Happiness (GNH) conference.
(SFC, 12/4/08, p.A1)
2008 The population of Bhutan
numbered about 642,000.
(SFC, 12/4/08, p.A1)
2009 Sep 21, A strong
6.3-magnitude earthquake struck the remote Himalayan kingdom of
Bhutan, killing at least 12 people and damaging monasteries and
other buildings.
(AP, 9/21/09)(AP, 9/22/09)
2010 Nov 21, A global tiger
summit meeting in St. Petersburg, Russia, approved a wide-ranging
program with the goal of doubling the world's tiger population in
the wild by 2022 backed by governments of the 13 countries that
still have tiger populations: Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, China,
India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Thailand, Vietnam
and Russia. Experts wild tigers could become extinct in 12 years if
countries where they still roam fail to take quick action to protect
their habitats and step up the fight against poaching.
(AP, 11/21/10)
2010 Dec 13, A UN official said
a campaign to resettle ethnic Nepalese forced out of Bhutan two
decades ago has found homes for 40,000 refugees in Western
countries, although tens of thousands continue to wait.
(AP, 12/13/10)
2011 Feb 6, In Bhutan the top
diplomats of India and Pakistan held talks in Thimphu, the Bhutanese
capital, in the first high-level meeting between the two rival
countries since July.
(AFP, 2/6/11)
Go to
http://www.timelinesdb.com
Subject = Bhutan
End of file.