History of Bhutan
During the 1870s, power struggles
between the rival valleys of Paro and Tongsa led to civil war in
Bhutan, eventually leading to the ascendancy of Ugyen Wangchuck, the
ponlop (governor) of Tongsa. From his power base in central Bhutan,
Ugyen Wangchuck defeated his political enemies and united the
country following several civil wars and rebellions in the period
1882–1885.
In 1907, an epochal year for the country, Ugyen Wangchuck was
unanimously chosen as the hereditary king of the country by an
assembly of leading Buddhist monks, government officials, and heads
of important families. The British government promptly recognized
the new monarchy, and in 1910 Bhutan signed a treaty which "let"
Great Britain "guide" Bhutan's foreign affairs. In reality, this did
not mean much given Bhutan's historical reticence. It also did not
seem to apply to Bhutan's traditional relations with Tibet. In 1985
Bhutan started a policy of racial purification under which nearly
100,000 Bhutanese citizens of Nepali origin were forcefully expelled
from the country. The Bhutanese refugees were granted refuge in
neighboring Nepal. Beginning early 2008 the refugees are being
relocated in various countries such as the USA, Canada, Australia,
Denmark, New Zealand, Norway and the Netherlands. The United Nations
maintains that the policy of Bhutanese government at the time was
racist and a gross violation of human rights
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bhutan#History |
