Is Bhutan Really a Happy Country?
Introduction
Bhutan has a unique relationship with the rest of the world and it ends up affecting its citizens. Bhutan is a country that is very sheltered from today’s technological advancements. It has one of the most unique histories and has mind baffling relationships with the rest of the world. Most countries are generally increasing in technological advancements but Bhutan is making a point to stop. The Government in Bhutan decided in 1974 to lift the ban on tourism because there was a desire from the outlying countries to see the beauty that Bhutan holds.This resulted in a rise in tourism. Unfortunately, with the rise in tourism, Bhutan also started to see a negative change in its people. Because of these negative changes Bhutan decided to put heavy requirements in place in order for someone to travel there. That, in turn, slowed down tourism because financially most people couldn’t meet the requirement. Most Bhutanese citizens were happy about the change because they could then go to their temple and not have to worry about tourists coming in to observe. They felt as if their home was beautiful again. There is still much debate on whether or not these travel restrictions are benefiting the happiness of its citizens.
Bhutan has a complex history but is determined to have a simple future. Above everything, the King of Bhutan keeps the level of the country’s Gross National Happiness at the utmost importance. Bhutan no longer measures its wealth in Gross Domestic Product, but rather in Gross National Happiness. The King of Bhutan sees drastic change in the GDP numbers in the United States of America but sees no change in the overall satisfaction of its citizens. Bhutan doesn’t want that to be their way of life. Bhutan is not blinded to the fact that the world is changing around them, they are just choosing not to conform to that way of life. Bhutan is also starting to see more and more emigration because of its stubbornness to not conform. Many are struggling to see how Bhutan will change in a positive way with all of the restrictions they currently hold. It is a constant battle between keeping Bhutan’s rich history in place and keeping its citizens “happy”. They are trying to live in a way that best fits what they are looking for.
Travel in Bhutan
Bhutan is a country that holds much mystery that many people seek to find. Since 1974, Bhutan has seen a steep rise in their tourism numbers. As stated in Ghosh’s Journal, This is the last authentic place on earth, “Arrivals soared to almost 65,000 in 2011 and are projected to touch 100,000 this year” (2012, p.52). Bhutan has a population of upwards of 700,000 people with over 500,000 people living in rural mountainous areas. With the numbers continually increasing in Tourism, Bhutan is finding itself in a struggle. They cannot possibly accommodate all the people that want to visit. As a result of the increase in tourism, Bhutan has had to update their travel restrictions. Anyone who is not a citizen of India, Bangladesh, and/or the Maldives has to apply for a visa before entering and have to be traveling with a tour operator. Your trip must be paid in full to the Embassy of Bhutan in order to get approved for the visa. Another action that they are taking is the concept of “High Value, Low Impact” (Andelman, 2010, p.104). This means that they charge more to come to the country because the value of what they are seeing is so great. The country also needs to preserve its natural culture and history so charging more to visit the country is resulting in less tourism. You are charged upwards of $200 a day depending on what time of year you travel. $65 of that daily charge goes to provide free education and healthcare for its citizens. Because of the changes Bhutan has had to make to preserve its culture, the relationships with other countries varies.
History of Bhutan
Over the years Bhutan has maintained a complicated relationship with many countries. Bhutan has two relationships that stand out above all others. Those two relationships are with China and India. As implied in Andelman’s work, Bhutan, Borders and Bliss, Bhutan has had to work through many difficulties with other nations because their livelihood relies on it. More specifically Andelman states, “You cannot choose your neighbor, but you can deal with your neighbor” (2010, p.104). This phrase could be implied in every walk of life for every person. Bhutan has struggled to keep its relationship with China in good standing. There is a lot of religious misunderstanding and tension there. Bhutan has been in cahoots with Tibet since before America was discovered. Both countries had a common understanding about religion and how they celebrated life. Once China took over Tibet, the main religion in Tibet started to change which did not go well with Bhutan. Ever since then, the two countries have stayed friendly with each other but are not particularly fond of each other. However, the relationship between Bhutan and India is better. There are three road entrances connecting Bhutan and India. The two countries do a lot of trading of products and goods which help the countries run smoothly. Bhutan doesn’t have higher education majors like Law and Medical, so Bhutanese people go to India to get those majors and further their education. India is also Bhutan’s only way to access the ocean. In exchange for all the things India provides for Bhutan, Bhutan allowed all people with an Indian passport to be able to travel to Bhutan without being on a tour group. Bhutan has relationships with other countries but the relationship with China and India are the two that make the greatest impact on Bhutan and its citizens.
Bhutan boldly made the decision many years ago to measure their countries well being in a different way than most countries. Most countries around the world, especially those that are a part of the United Nations measure their countries well being by Gross Domestic Product (GDP), but Bhutan decided that was not for them. In 1972, Bhutan’s King made the decision to measure their development by Gross National Happiness (GNH) rather than Gross Domestic Product. In an article written by Esty the author mentions numerous times that Bhutan has been better off since they switched and the King feels that its citizens are benefiting more from GNH than GDP.
Esty (2004) states that Economic indicators such as GDP, social indicators such as education and healthcare, and more subjective measurements that reflect levels of satisfaction. As they point out GDP per capita has tripled in the United States since World War II, yet life satisfaction rates have remained static ( p.513).
This has become so important in the reasoning of why Bhutan decided to switch to GNH so many years ago. Bhutan wants its citizens to be happy and thrive with what they have offered them. The article brings out a good point in saying that the United States may have a really high GDP, but that doesn’t mean that its citizens are truly happy. With the results of the surveys and tests that were done by Esty, they have come to the conclusion that the amount of money the country makes is way less important than the lives of the people that live in their country.
One of the biggest conflicts in Bhutan’s history plays a huge role in the overall satisfaction of its citizens’ lives. In 1985, the lives of the Nepali people living in Bhutan were changed forever. Hundreds of years ago Nepali people came to the neighboring country, Bhutan, for a place to live and prosper. The Nepali population continued to grow, becoming over 50% of Bhutan’s population. The Nepali people practiced Hinduism whereas the Bhutanese practiced Buddhism , so when the population of the Nepali people grew to be over half of the country’s population Bhutan decided something needed to change. The King of Bhutan was worried that the culture that Bhutan was built on was going to be taken over by Hinduism. As a result of this, the King made a law saying that all people of Nepali descent needed to evacuate the country immediately unless they had a job that was required for life to prosper in Bhutan. Those jobs consisted of primarily doctors and teachers. About 30% of the people that were able to stay in Bhutan decided to leave because of the conditions they were demoted to. In an article by Carrick (2008), she states that Education is not freely available, nor available on an equal basis, since ngalong children are given priority over ethnic Nepali (p. 26). Education for people in any realm is important and being denied education was a deal breaker for most Nepali families. The Nepali people fled to Nepal because India denied them access into their country because India decided to honor Bhutan’s choice to create this law and did not want to ruin the relationship that the two countries built. There were over 300,000 Nepali refugees living in one camp before they started migrating to other countries that could support them better. These Nepali refugees were misfits in every way because they were denied citizenship in Bhutan, India and Nepal because of the ties that each country had with each other. With no place to go or call home, over 30% of the Nepali refugees legally migrated to the United States in search for a place to call home. When they arrived in the United States they were provided with English lessons and financial support until they could find a job, but unfortunately the culture was still drastically different. With the culture being so different the Nepali immigrants found it hard to “fit in” and they found it hard to thrive in a place where they do not recognize anything. Over 40% of the Nepali Refugees that immigrate to America end up committing suicide within 2 years of living there and 30% regret their decision to come to America. The law of kicking all people of Nepali decent out of Bhutan created riots and shootings and unfortunately more suicide than could have ever been imagined.
Bhutan’s choice
Bhutan has had a more complicated relationship with countries than most. Bhutan wants its people to thrive and to be satisfied with the life they have been given. There were some inconsistencies of years when things started to progress in Bhutan. There is one thing that is absolutely definite in all of my findings though, that Bhutan is choosing to be secluded for a reason. They have relationships with nearby countries that help them with medical and help them gain access to resources but are fairly strict with keeping their circle pretty tight. Bhutan is one of the last countries in the world to still be a monarchy and that has served them in many ways. Bhutan has been able to serve its “true” people with the utmost respect and guidance but has failed in many ways to support people of different descent. Most of my sources said it to be good that Bhutan went from GDP to GNH because that way they can focus on the well being of their citizens and focus less on what the country is actually making in terms of money. One thing is for certain and that is, Bhutan is a fierce country that can uphold any law with ease and will attempt to serve its people in the best way it knows how.
What does all of this mean?
At this point you may be wondering what all of this means and how this applies to your life today. Bhutan is a country that has been hidden in the shadows for years and is slowly starting to come out and share its culture with the world. With all of the rules that Bhutan has about traveling there, it makes it hard for travelers to seek out the beauty of the country when there is so much still hidden. Bhutan has a great natural block from the 21st century world because of the mountains they have surrounding their entire country. With the mountains it makes it really hard to come into the country unnoticed because so many of Bhutan’s citizens live in the mountains. The one airport that Bhutan does have, only has 2 flights in and out per day. Most people that seek to see what Bhutan has to offer cannot because of the financial elements that Bhutan requires. Only people of Indian descent and Bhutanese descent can go into Bhutan with no daily fee. So much of the Bhutan we know today is built from the current King, also known as the Dragon King. He has implemented many new ways of living for the Bhutanese people. After the law came out that all people of Nepali descent had to be removed, the country became more quiet. More people moved into the mountains because that is where the most desired place to live was. Bhutan has such a rich history that it would be a shame if we forgot it.
Application
So now we come back to the question, Is Bhutan really a happy country? After research, I can say with confidence that happiness means many different things to different people and cultures. I cannot give a definitive answer to the question because I do not know. I believe that to answer the question, you need to live there in the flesh and understand fully the culture they live in because my version of happiness is completely different from someone that lives in Bhutan. For them, it is natural to send your sons off to a monastery at a very young age, whereas I would not do that. We live in two completely different cultures that live their lives in ways opposite of each other. We may never be able to fully understand what it is like to live life as a Bhutanese person in Bhutan, we can do our part in respecting them. They chose to opt out of a 21st century lifestyle and that is okay. Bhutan has had their rough moments in history but so has every country. Comparing Bhutan to the US would be unfair to both countries because we value different things at different levels. We value our freedom and they value their space. We value our technology and they value being disconnected. While not everyone is the same and some people dislike their life in Bhutan, most people desire the separation from the newest technological advancements because it brings them closer to who they really are.
We are all different people that wish different things but one thing we all have in common is that we have the ability to love. We have the ability to love others no matter where they come from, no matter what race they are or what language they speak. So, do I think Bhutan is a happy country? Yes. But I also believe we are too, just in different ways.
Bibliography
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