MADRAS, India — Bhutan is now a democracy. Its transition from a monarchy to a democracy has been smooth. The tiny country, where Buddhism is the state religion, has been applauded by the world for changing with the times, and not waiting to be pushed like Pakistan, which has stubbornly refused to adopt democratic ideals despite enormous pressure from the United States.
Bhutan will have a multiparty system, and its enlightened king has already stepped aside to pave the way for his Oxford-educated son. This situation almost seems like cinema with the trappings of a modern-day fairy tale. But as in most fairy tales, there are witches and wicked men. The evil in the case of Bhutan is its geographical position. It lies nestled in the Himalayas, landlocked and sandwiched between two Asian giants, India and China, fiercely fighting for regional hegemony, world attention and superpower status.
With New Delhi and Beijing keenly eyeing Bhutan, it may become a strategic pawn. In any case, it has for years been treated as a mere buffer between India and China, especially when the two countries were enemies. Even today the two powers harbor a great deal of suspicion toward one another.