Press
Clippings, Saturday, 29th January 2005
In Bhutan, even
the king can't smoke
PRANAY SHARMA
The Telegraph
New Delhi, Jan. 28:
King Jigme Singye Wangchuk, who has ruled Bhutan for over three decades, seems
to have become one of the early casualties of his country's path-breaking
legislation banning smoking in public.
"The ban has already forced
me to cut down on my smoking and now I am even thinking of giving it up
altogether," the king said.
Bhutan passed a law last
month that bans smoking in public places in the entire country. Though people
can still bring in cigarettes to Bhutan, they will have to pay a 200 per cent
duty on every packet that they bring and can only smoke within the confines of
their homes or hotel rooms.
The king, who is known to be
a cigar smoker, does not want to divulge whether he occasionally also smokes
cigarettes or how many in a day he smokes. "These are details which I am not
going to share with you," Wangchuk said. But he was quick to point out that the
ban on smoking was part of the process to decentralise power that he had
initiated more than a decade back.
"The ban started from
district committees which passed laws banning smoking in their areas. Later, it
was picked up by others and finally a countrywide ban was passed in the National
Assembly," he said.
The king, who was invited to
be the chief guest at the Republic Day celebrations, was candid in expressing
views on issues within Bhutan and in the neighbourhood while talking to
journalists at Rashtrapati Bhavan this evening at the end of his six-day state
visit.
A new Constitution for the
country, for which Wangchuk had taken the initiative, will be placed before the
people next March for a debate. After the draft is approved through a
referendum, Bhutan will get a new constitution.
But he is also aware that the
process he has started may well eat significantly into the powers and privileges
that he and his family have enjoyed in the past. "I can't give you details of
what all there is in the new Constitution but it will have many interesting
points and will also assign the king specific duties," he said. "You cannot have
a monarch just because in the past there have been kings in the country."
Wangchuk was also frank in
his observation about Nepal, especially the threat posed by the Maoist rebels
there. He observed that the threat posed by the Maoists in Nepal was becoming
serious and warned that unless dealt with effectively and resolved at the
earliest, it will have a negative impact in the neighbourhood as well.
"We sincerely hope that
something positive will come out soon and some initiatives will be taken by the
political parties in Nepal to resolve the Maoist problem," he said. But when
asked whether Nepal should follow Bhutan's example of launching a major military
offensive to defeat the Maoists, the king made it clear that he was in no
position to recommend what is best for Nepal.
Bhutan king worries over Maoist threat in Nepal
The financial express
NEW DELHI,
JAN 28: Warning
there was "real threat" of the Maoist problem in Nepal becoming more serious,
Bhutan king Jigme Singye Wangchuk on Friday said this could have "negative
implications" for both India and his country and hoped some initiatives would be
taken soon to resolve it.
"We
sincerely hope that something positive will come out soon and some initiatives
will be taken by the political parties in Nepal to resolve the Maoist problem,"
the king, who returns home on Saturday at the end of the six-day state visit,
told a select group of reporters here.
Wangchuk,
who was the chief guest at the Republic day celebrations, was non-committal when
asked whether he favoured Nepal taking a cue from the successful Bhutan-type
military action to flush out Indian insurgents from his country.
"Each
country has a different kind of problem, a different situation. The political
parties and people of Nepal have to together solve their own problems in the
best possible way," he said.
Observing
that the situation in Nepal was deteriorating, he said "today the Maoists have
total control more or less of the whole country".
The visiting
king frankly responded to a range of questions on Bhutan's relations with India,
China and the upcoming saarc summit in Dhaka.
Asked about
reports that China would like to be a special invitee to the Saarc summit,he
said "this is a new issue that has come up...No decision has been taken by any
of the Saarc countries" and added "I don't think this will be discussed in this
summit". "There is real threat of Maoist situation becoming much more serious
than it is today. If this happens, it will have negative implications for both
India and Bhutan becuse we share common borders," Wanghcuk said.
About the
Army action to flush out Ulfa, National Democratic Front of Bodoland and KLO
insurgents groups which were operating in Bhutan, he said "there are no militant
camps in any part of Bhutan now".
Maoist threat real:
Bhutan King
Statesman
News Service
NEW DELHI,
Jan. 28. - The Maoist insurgency in Nepal could become "much more serious than
it is today," and this would have negative implications for both India and
Bhutan, King Jigme Singye Wangchuk of Bhutan said today.
Calling the threat real, he said both India and Bhutan share a common border
with Nepal and added that he sincerely hoped something good would happen and
political parties in Nepal would take initiatives. Asked if a military solution
- the way Bhutan dealt with insurgents living in southern Bhutan with help from
the Indian Army - was the answer, he said it was up to the Nepalese to solve
their problems. "We don't want the Maoist threat to go out of control. The
situation is deteriorating day by day. The Maoists control 69 districts in
Nepal," he said. Clearly concerned, the King added that sitting in Bhutan and
watching, he has seen the problem growing. In 1996, he pointed out, only three
districts were trouble-torn. Now, in many areas, the Maoists were in total
control.
Replying to questions about a "border problem" with China, he said there was a
small difference of views in a few areas. The King ruled out full-fledged
diplomatic relations between China and Bhutan, saying his country had no ties
with any of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council. But he added
that "even though we have no diplomatic relations with China, we have good
relations with China". The China-Bhutan border is about 450 km long.
Bhutan King
promises draft Constitution
Indianexpress.com
To be
released in March, draft Constitution will clearly define role of monarchy
NEW DELHI,
JANUARY 28:
"The
king should not be a king just because he was born to be a king," believes Bhutan
King Jigme Singye Wangchuk. So, the draft Constitution, which will be released
to the public in March, will clearly define the role of the monarchy.
"On
monarchy, we have put many clauses which do not exist anywhere in the world, to
make sure that the institution benefits the people," he said today. The draft
will later be put up for a referendum.
Recounting
the process of ushering democracy in Bhutan, the King said it began in the early
1980s when the government decided to go in for decentralisation of powers and
set up district development committees. A decade later, village development
committees were set up.
"We
started teaching our people to vote. After that we started having secret ballot.
And in the seven years after 1991, I gave my executive powers to the Cabinet.
Much like the Swiss system, members of the Cabinet get to become Prime Ministers
on rotation... and now we will get a Constitution," he said.
As an
example of how it works, Bhutan recently placed a complete ban on smoking,
because one after another, the district development committees passed such a
resolution. "I smoke but now I have decided to cut it down, and will try to give
it up... cigarettes are available but there's a 100 per cent sales tax and
import duty on it," said Wangchuk.
On the
refugees in Jhapa district of Nepal, the King claimed that a majority of them
were not Bhutanese citizens. "When our people went there (Jhapa) for joint
verification on December 22, 2003, the team was attacked...We must remember this
is a Maoist stronghold...but still, if there is a single Bhutanese citizen
there, then we don't have to accept him. The law itself protects him."
While
discussing the country's relationship with its neighbours, Wangchuk said he was
optimistic about resolving the differences with China over boundary. He said the
two countries shared a 450 km-long border and the differences were over a small
portion.
He, however,
delinked Thimpu's decision on not having full diplomatic ties with Beijing from
the boundary question. Bhutan, Wangchuk said, had decided not to have full
diplomatic ties with any of the five permanent members of the UN Security
Council of which China is a member. And as for China being invited to the SAARC
summit, he said this was a "new issue" and that none of the members had firmed
up their views on it.
But what if
India were to become a permanent member of the UNSC? The King was quick to
reply: "This (policy) can't apply to India. It would be like divorcing your
wife."
Nepal
situation grave, says Bhutan King
By Amit
Baruah
The Hindu
NEW DELHI,
JAN. 28. The situation in Nepal is deteriorating day-by-day, with the Maoists
holding sway over 69 districts in the country, the King of Bhutan, Jigme Singye
Wangchuck, warned today. He said the Maoists had almost total control over Nepal
and this would have negative implications for both Bhutan and India.
Talking to a
select group of correspondents, the King, however, was hopeful that "something
good, something positive" would come out of the current situation in Nepal.
Asked if military operations of the kind conducted by Bhutan against Indian
insurgents were a way out in Nepal, he responded, "I am in no position to make
comments about what others should do."
The King
took a dim view of India's plans to link rivers. "I've read about it, but I
haven't seen the plan," he said, adding that the proposal would not be feasible
in practice. Millions of people, the King pointed out, would be affected - they
would lose their land and property.
According to
the monarch, a huge environment lobby - both within and outside India - would
oppose this project. It would take decades and billions of dollars, the King
maintained, stressing that implementation of the project was very unlikely.
SAARC summit
In response
to a question, the ruler of Bhutan maintained that the issue of China being
associated with the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation would not
be discussed at the coming SAARC summit in Dhaka. SAARC members had not taken
any decision on associating China with the grouping.
Asked about
efforts being made to resolve differences over portions of the Bhutan-China
border, he said the two issues persisted. Some differences of opinion continued
between the two countries on portions of their 450-km border, still to be
demarcated.
The King
was, however, confident that these differences would be resolved through ongoing
discussions between Bhutan and China. The border was well defined by the
Himalayas and their peaks. He said that last year the Chinese Government laid
some roads in portions of the territory on which there were differences of
opinion. The King said the area of difference was quite small, but chose not to
give any details.
India
providing assistance to its tsunami-hit neighbours would bring it a lot of
goodwill. "It will do a lot of good at the SAARC summit." India's decision not
to accept relief assistance was a reflection of its strength.
Military
operations
About the
military operations launched against Indian insurgents in December 2003, the
monarch said it was the last option and taken after many rounds of discussions
and even involved a personal visit by him to the training camps of the
militants.
The King
said he was happy to report that there were no militant camps in Bhutan any
longer. "We are trying to ensure that our borders remain secure." India and
Bhutan, he said, had agreed that their territories should not be used to harm
each other's interests.
On the state
of some 100,000 "Bhutanese" refugees who have been living in Nepal for well over
a decade, the King said these people were not Bhutanese "citizens" and could
have been living in India or Nepal previously.
The King
said a verification team that had gone to one of the camps in December 2003 had
been attacked, but offered that if the (Maoist) "situation" improved in Jhapa,
then another verification team could be sent. Jhapa, he claimed, was a Maoist
stronghold.
Bhutan King
considering giving up smoke
Nepal news
Bhutanese
King, Jigme Singye Wangchuk, may not be a role model for denying democratic
rights to his own people, he seems to be setting up an example by giving up
smoking in public places, reports say.
Bhutan
passed a law last month that bans smoking in public places in the entire
country. Though people can still bring in cigarettes to Bhutan, they will have
to pay a 200 per cent duty on every packet that they bring and can only smoke
within the confines of their homes or hotel rooms, according to reports.
"The ban has
already forced me to cut down on my smoking and now I am even thinking of giving
it up altogether," Telegraph, a leading Indian daily, quoted the Bhutanese
monarch as saying in New Delhi.
The
Bhutanese king graced the Republic Day function of India (on Jan. 26) as its
chief guest.
The king,
who is known to be a cigar smoker, does not want to divulge whether he
occasionally also smokes cigarettes or how many in a day he smokes. "These are
details which I am not going to share with you," Wangchuk said. But he was quick
to point out that the ban on smoking was part of the process to decentralise
power that he had initiated more than a decade back, according to the daily.
"The ban
started from district committees which passed laws banning smoking in their
areas. Later, it was picked up by others and finally a countrywide ban was
passed in the National Assembly," he said.
Wangchuk was
also frank in his observation about Nepal, especially the threat posed by the
Maoist rebels there. He observed that the threat posed by the Maoists in Nepal
was becoming serious and warned that unless dealt with effectively and resolved
at the earliest, it will have a negative impact in the neighbourhood as well.
"We
sincerely hope that something positive will come out soon and some initiatives
will be taken by the political parties in Nepal to resolve the Maoist problem,"
he said. But when asked whether Nepal should follow Bhutan's example of
launching a major military offensive to defeat the Maoists, the king made it
clear that he was in no position to recommend what is best for Nepal, according
to the daily.
