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First Tourists
300 total tourists -
Times for Change
Bhutan introduces measures to relieve poverty, improve access to basic services, provide quality education and open itself to the world through tourism, introducing television and the internet -
Refugee Crisis
Some 100,000 ethnic Nepalese say they were forced out of Bhutan in the 1980s and 1990s, alleging ethnic and political repression. -
War in the South
Bhutanese soldiers fight Indian separatist rebels in an attempt to drive them from their bases in the south of the country. -
Tobacco Ban
Bhutan becomes first country in the world to ban the sale of tobacco products -
Handover of Power
King Jigme Wangchuck announces he will hand over power to his son Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck and hold the country’s first multi-party democratic elections in 2008. -
Agreement with India
Bhutan signs a landmark agreement with India which revises ties with its neighbour, giving Bhutan more say over its foreign and defence policies. -
Terror Attacks
A string of bomb blasts hits the country ahead of elections set for March 24. The attacks are blamed on groups fighting for the rights of ethnic Nepalis exiled in 1991. -
Parliamentary Elections
First ever elections after transitioning from an absolute monarchy. Pro-monarchy Bhutan Harmony Party wins 44 out of the 47 seats in the country's first parliamentary elections. Another pro-monarchy party wins the remaining seats. -
Tourism Takes Off
64000 total tourists, earning Bhutan $47.7 million USD -
Elections
Opposition People's Democratic Party wins 32 seats in the lower house, against the incumbent Druk Phuensum Tshogpa party's 15 seats. -
Historic Meeting
John Kerry becomes the first-ever US secretary of state to hold a cabinet-level meeting with a Bhutanese official when he meets Bhutanese Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay in India. -
Standoff with China
Indian and Bhutanese troops were locked in a 73-day stand- off with Chinese troops in Dokalam, a tri-junction between Sino-India and Bhutanese border near Sikkim, from June 16 this year after Indian Army personnel stopped the Chinese Army from building a road in the disputed area.