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Bhutanese Democracy
The development of Bhutanese democracy has been marked by the active encouragement and participation of reigning Bhutanese monarchs since the 1950s, beginning with legal reforms such as the abolition of slavery, and culminating in the enactment of Bhutan's Constitution. The first democratic elections in Bhutan began in 2007, and all levels of government had been democratically elected by 2011. These elections included Bhutan's first ever partisan National Assembly election. Democratization in Bhutan has been marred somewhat by the intervening large-scale expulsion and flight of Bhutanese refugees during the 1990s; the subject remains somewhat taboo in Bhutanese politics. Role of the monarchy History The process of modernization and democratization was initiated by the Third King of Bhutan Jigme Dorji Wangchuck (''r.'' October 27, 1952 – July 21, 1972) amid increasing internal and external political complexity. Three years prior, in 1949, India and Bhutan had signed the Treaty o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Druk Gyalpo
The Druk Gyalpo (; 'Dragon King') is the head of state of the Kingdom of Bhutan. In the Dzongkha language, Bhutan is known as ''Drukyul'' which translates as "The Land of the Thunder Dragon". Thus, while kings of Bhutan are known as ''Druk Gyalpo'' ("Dragon King"), the Bhutanese people call themselves the ''Drukpa'', meaning "people of Druk (Bhutan)". The current sovereign of Bhutan is Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck, the fifth ''Druk Gyalpo''. He wears the Raven Crown, which is the official crown worn by the kings of Bhutan. He is correctly styled "''Mi'wang 'Ngada Rinpoche''" ("His Majesty") and addressed "''Ngada Rimboche''" ("Your Majesty"). King Jigme Khesar was the second-youngest reigning monarch in the world when he ascended the throne on 1 November 2008 after his father, Jigme Singye Wangchuck, abdicated the throne in his favour. Duties and powers The Constitution confirms the institution of monarchy. The Druk Gyalpo (King of Bhutan) is the head of state and th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Parliament Of Bhutan
The Parliament of Bhutan ( dz, རྒྱལ་ཡོངས་ཚོགས་ཁང་ ''gyelyong tshokhang'') consists of the King of Bhutan together with a bicameral parliament.Constitution: Art. 1, § 3; Art. 10 This bicameral parliament is made up of an upper house, the National Council and a lower house, the National Assembly.Constitution: Art. 11; Art. 12 The current parliamentary framework replaced the unicameral Tshogdu in 2007, with the first members taking seats in 2008. Composition of Parliament The National Council of Bhutan is the upper house, or house of review in the bicameral legislature. It consists of 25 members: one directly elected from each of the 20 dzongkhags (districts) and 5 appointed by the King under election laws. The National Council meets at least twice a year. The membership elects a Chairperson and Deputy Chairperson from its number. Members and candidates of the National Council are prohibited from holding political party affiliation.Con ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Constitution Of Bhutan
The Constitution of Bhutan (Dzongkha: འབྲུག་གི་རྩ་ཁྲིམས་ཆེན་མོ་; Wylie:'' 'Druk-gi cha-thrims-chen-mo'') was enacted 18 July 2008 by the Royal Government of Bhutan. The Constitution was thoroughly planned by several government officers and agencies over a period of almost seven years amid increasing democratic reforms in Bhutan. The current Constitution is based on Buddhist philosophy, international Conventions on Human Rights, comparative analysis of 20 other modern constitutions, public opinion, and existing laws, authorities, and precedents. According to Princess Sonam Wangchuck, the constitutional committee was particularly influenced by the Constitution of South Africa because of its strong protection of human rights. Background On 4 September 2001, King Jigme Singye Wangchuck briefed the Lhengye Zhungtshog (Council of Ministers, or Cabinet), the Chief Justice, and the Chairman of the Royal Advisory Council on the need t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
National Council Of Bhutan
The National Council is the upper house of Bhutan's bicameral Parliament, which also comprises the Druk Gyalpo (Dragon King) and the National Assembly. Similar to the Rajya Sabha of neighbouring India and the upper houses of other bicameral Westminster-style parliaments, it cannot author monetary or budget-related bills. Besides creating and reviewing Bhutanese legislation, the National Council acts as the house of review on matters affecting the security, sovereignty, or interests of Bhutan that need to be brought to the notice of the Druk Gyalpo, the Prime Minister and the National Assembly. Twenty members of the first Council were elected in the first ever elections for the Council held on December 31, 2007 and January 29, 2008. Membership The National Council consists of twenty-five members. Twenty members are elected by the electorates of the twenty districts using first-past-the-post, while five members are nominated by the Druk Gyalpo. The members cannot belong to any ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mock Election
A mock election is an election for educational demonstration, amusement, or political protest reasons to call for free and fair elections. Less precisely it can refer to a real election purely for advisory (essentially without power) committees or forums such as some student councils, particularly those that chiefly emulate a real legislative body. For educational purposes Secondary schools sometimes organize mock elections to introduce young people to the concept of elections before they have reached their voting age. The elections aim to give the participants an understanding of democracy, the role of government and parliament. The experience helps encourage future young voters to cast a ballot. They can have real or fake candidates depending on the school and what the mock election is for. For a change to democratic elections As a way to introduce democratic elections in Bhutan, in preparation for the Bhutanese general election in 2008, a mock election was held on Ap ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jigme Dorji
Dasho Jigme Palden Dorji (14 December 1919 – 6 April 1964) was a Bhutanese politician and member of the Dorji family. By marriage, he was also a member of the House of Wangchuck. The brother-in-law of Jigme Dorji Wangchuck, Dorji was close to his kinsman and accompanied the future king when he lived in the United Kingdom in 1950. In 1928, at the age of nine, Jigme Palden Dorji was appointed the ''Trungpa'' (Administrator) of Haa Dzongkhag and in 1953, he succeeded his father Raja Tobgay, after his death, as Bhutan Agent to Kalimpong. He became the first man to hold the title Prime Minister of Bhutan (''Lyonchen''). This followed the upgrading of the old position in 1958 as part of a wider series of reforms by Jigme Dorji Wangchuck. As brother-in-law of the Dragon King of Bhutan Dorji helped to drive the king's modernisation policies. However his reforms antagonised both the military and the religious institutions leading to a corporal in the army assassinating him in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cornell University Press
The Cornell University Press is the university press of Cornell University; currently housed in Sage House, the former residence of Henry William Sage. It was first established in 1869, making it the first university publishing enterprise in the United States, but was inactive from 1884 to 1930. The press was established in the College of the Mechanic Arts (as mechanical engineering was called in the 19th century) because engineers knew more about running steam-powered printing presses than literature professors. Since its inception, The press has offered work-study financial aid: students with previous training in the printing trades were paid for typesetting and running the presses that printed textbooks, pamphlets, a weekly student journal, and official university publications. Today, the press is one of the country's largest university presses. It produces approximately 150 nonfiction titles each year in various disciplines, including anthropology, Asian studies, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tibet
Tibet (; ''Böd''; ) is a region in East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are some other ethnic groups such as Monpa people, Monpa, Tamang people, Tamang, Qiang people, Qiang, Sherpa people, Sherpa and Lhoba peoples and now also considerable numbers of Han Chinese and Hui people, Hui settlers. Since Annexation of Tibet by the People's Republic of China, 1951, the entire plateau has been under the administration of the People's Republic of China, a major portion in the Tibet Autonomous Region, and other portions in the Qinghai and Sichuan provinces. Tibet is the highest region on Earth, with an average elevation of . Located in the Himalayas, the highest elevation in Tibet is Mount Everest, Earth's highest mountain, rising 8,848.86 m (29,032 ft) above sea level. The Tibetan Empire emerged in the 7th century. At its height in the 9th century, the Tibet ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
British Empire
The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts established by England between the late 16th and early 18th centuries. At its height it was the largest empire in history and, for over a century, was the foremost global power. By 1913, the British Empire held sway over 412 million people, of the world population at the time, and by 1920, it covered , of the Earth's total land area. As a result, its constitutional, legal, linguistic, and cultural legacy is widespread. At the peak of its power, it was described as " the empire on which the sun never sets", as the Sun was always shining on at least one of its territories. During the Age of Discovery in the 15th and 16th centuries, Portugal and Spain pioneered European exploration of the globe, and in the process established larg ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ugyen Dorji
Ugyen Dorji ( dz, ཨོ་རྒྱན་རྡོ་རྗེ་, , 1855–1916) was a member of the elite Dorji family and an influential Bhutanese politician. He served as the closest adviser to Ugyen Wangchuck, the hereditary 12th Penlop of Trongsa and later 1st Druk Gyalpo. Ugyen Dorji was instrumental in advising the Penlop to aid the British Empire in its expedition to Tibet in 1904 and fostering friendly relations with the British after the Bhutan War (1864–1865). Operating from Bhutan House in Kalimpong, India, Ugyen Dorji used his position to open Bhutan to the outside world, establish Bhutan's foreign relations, and operate a lucrative trading outlet. Family He was a son of ''Dasho'' Sharpa Puchung, '' Dzongpon'', and his wife, Thinley Pem, a lady from the Tsento in Paro. His sister was ''Ayi'' Thubten Wangmo. Ugyen Dorji's son Sonam Topgay Dorji was born in 1896. His descendants maintained and developed the political power of Ugyen Dorji, marrying into the r ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dorji Family
The Dorji family (Dzongkha: རྡོ་རྗེ་; Wylie: ''Rdo-rje'') of Bhutan has been a prominent and powerful political family in the kingdom since the 12th century AD. The family has produced monarchs, Prime Minister of Bhutan, Prime Ministers, Dzong lords and governors. The fourth king of Bhutan Druk Gyalpo, Jigme Singye Wangchuck, as well as his son the current fifth king of Bhutan Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck, are also members of the Dorji family and therefore also descendants of the royal family of Sikkim. The Dorji family is also the holder of the Bhutan House estate in Kalimpong, India. History The powerful aristocratic Dorji family are descended from the influential 12th-century aristocratic Lama Sum-phrang Chos-rje (b.1179; d. 1265). The Dorji family are therefore also descended from the aristocratic Dungkar Choji (b. 1578) of the prominent Nyö clan. This means that the Dorji family are related by blood to the reigning Wangchuck monarchs who share the same an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
House Of Wangchuck
The Wangchuck dynasty () have held the hereditary position of Druk Gyalpo ("Dragon King") of Bhutan since 1907. Prior to reunification, the Wangchuck family had governed the district of Trongsa as descendants of Dungkar Choji. They eventually overpowered other regional lords and earned the favour of the British Empire. After consolidating power, the 12th Penlop of Trongsa ''Gongsar'' Ugyen Wangchuck was elected Druk Gyalpo, thus founding the dynasty. The position of Druk Gyalpo – who heads the royal family of Bhutan – is more commonly known in English as the King of Bhutan, however "Druk Gyalpo" would be translated literally as "Dragon King" (or less commonly, "King of the Dragons," or "Thunder Dragon King") The Wangchuck dynasty ruled government power in Bhutan and established relations with the British Empire and India under its first two monarchs. The third, fourth, and fifth (current) monarchs have put the kingdom on its path toward democratization, decentralization, a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
