History of Bhutan

Blog IV

In order to understand Bhutan and its culture, one has to examine the history and the ethnic relationships that have shaped the country. Much of the early history of Bhutan remains unknown as records were destroyed from natural disasters. What is known that in the late sixteenth century, Bhutan came under rule of Tibet which established governmental system known as “Zhabdrung Rinpoche.” The system consisted of the country being headed by a spiritual leader and a civil government leader.
This from of government lasted until 1907 when a monarchy was established; the first King being Penlop Uyen Wangchuck. He is most known for his mediator role between Tibet and British India as historically Britain wished to incorporate Tibet within its empire. However, Wangchuck was able to eliminate the threat from Britain through negotiations. In 1949, Bhutan gained its independence.
Much of Bhutan’s national identity highly weaved into its religious identity; Buddhism. Buddhist ideology impacts the Bhutanese people greatly and Buddhist spiritual leaders possess a high amount of influence within the country.
The Bhutanese population consists of many diverse ethnic groups. A number of small tribal groups can trace their ancestry back over three thousands within the region. In recent decades, many immigrants from Tibet, Nepal, and Mongolia have settled in the country. However problems began to arise during the late 1980’s and early 1990’s when the Hindu Nepalese population conflicted with the Buddhist majority due to their differing ideals. As such, the Bhutanese government placed restrictions to reduce the influx of Nepalese immigrants into the country. But this policy resulted in protests, demonstrations, and ethnic violence on part by the Nepalese community. As things progressed however, the situation became worse, which lead to thousands of Nepalese fleeing the country. Many of them reside in refugee camps in India and Nepal.