Scandal In The Holiest Of Places

I heard it from a friend nearly a week back …. I was told that it was being kept under wraps for the sheer shamefulness of it - but I was surprised to read about it on the front page of the Kuensel’s 27th July, 2024 issue.

The reported involvement of our men in Blue in the scandal that was recently unearthed at Taktsang is so terribly appalling. This is a manifestation of the rot that is setting in into our society - it cannot get any baser than this. When the custodians of law can be allured into turning into law breakers - the citizens have to start worrying.

What are we supposed to do? We can bundle these culprits inside sacks and throw them into the Wangchhu. But how many of them? And how often? That is not the solution to our problems.

We have to accept that such vile crimes become possible because we offer people the opportunity, and the reason, to carry them through. In other words, the onus must fall on the law makers - for their inability to design laws that help build a robust and law-abiding society. When laws begin to hinder lawful activities - citizens will resort to unlawful activities. That, sadly, is the way the cookie crumbles.

Think about it - monument fees have always been collected from tourists visiting Taktsang and other designated monuments elsewhere - it has been happening for decades. Then why is such scam happening now? Why did it not happen earlier - when the takings would have been many folds more than now because of the sheer superior numbers? Can we blame it on the sudden and abrupt decline in the morality and the ethical mores of the police, the guides and the drivers? And, if that is true, what is causing it?

Obviously, something has come to pass that is beginning to alter the very moral fiber of the Bhutanese people. Time may be at hand for us to realize the folly of our endeavors and make amends, before the opportunity is lost to us, irretrievably!

The case of Taktsang may be just the proverbial tip of the iceberg - it is a scary thought that this may be happening elsewhere. Consider the implications if this is happening at the Phuentsholing border gate!

Lessons From An Uncommon Monk

Sometimes I wonder if I am doing any good at all - most of what I write tend to be critical - giving the impression that there is nothing quite right about Bhutan and the Bhutanese people. This is ofcourse not true - no single society is so bad.

But people do tend to confuse about being critical as being negative - some through ignorance and yet others, sadly, premeditated - for personal gain and false fame. Luckily, there are those who know that only those who care enough has the courage to be critical - those who do not care - they let it pass because, in their reckoning, being critical does not translate to money into their pockets.

I too pine to put out positive and heartwarming stories - stories that tell of care, mindfulness, of service and dedication - of love for the King and country and passion for their wellbeing. Stories of broken promises and dashed dreams do not give hope and encouragement - they permeate a sense of hopelessness and doom - not the intended message.

And, sure enough, recently I heard a story that is so heartwarming and positive - so enthralling and progressive - that I need to narrate it to others so that people may draw inspiration from it - on how to be tolerant, open minded, and accommodative.

A friend from Sweden, on his latest trip to Bhutan which is his 10th, narrated to me his following humbling personal experience.

It was during his 7th trip some years back, that he decided to go on a morning jog to Taktsang Monastery - he is a Judoka and likes to keep himself fit. Upon reaching Taktsang, he decided that he wanted to see what it was like inside the Monastery’s temples.

Taktsang - the abode of an enlightened monk!

He was dressed in his jogging sneakers and shorts - so the monk at the temple gate denied him entry, for the reason that he was inappropriately dressed. He was a little disappointed but decided to turn back and start his return jog to Paro. But the monk stopped him - he gesticulated:

“Hold on …. wait here a minute … I will be right back.”

After a while the monk returned, clutching a full set of woman’s clothing comprising of: Kira, Wonju, Kera, Koma and Toego. Without much ado …. the monk proceeded to wrap him up - and ushered him into the sanctum sanctorum of the temples - prim and proper - dressed up as a blonde-haired Bhutanese woman!

Inside, he saw rows upon rows of chanting monks - sheepishly giggling at him and his appearance in an uncommon attire.

But what mattered was that he was able to gain entry to one of Buddhist world’s most revered religious sites - even if dressed as a woman. Even more important, he had unknowingly stumbled upon a novitiate monk with that rare liberated mind, unbound by dogma and rigid cultural and religious tyranny - a rarity!

A priceless experience, and a lesson of a life time!

Hollow Intergenerational Promises

Successive governments over the years have admitted that the private sector is the engine of growth and development. Sadly, the intergenerational promise of support for the private sector has remained nothing more than empty promises to be sung like a lullaby, every election year.

True to form, the PDP yet again promises to do so during their present tenure. According to Business Bhutan’s newspaper reporter Tashi Namgyal, the PDP is said to have said; “Tourism to remain as a key sector for growth”.

It would be unfair to believe that their pronouncements were ill-intended. No doubt the government knows that tourism industry generates the highest net-gain foreign exchange, it provides the highest number of employment and, beyond all doubt, its benefit is accrued to the broad spectrum of the Bhutanese society.

The government knows very well that the country can ill afford the collapse of the tourism industry because it has too many things riding on its back.

According to recent reports in the social media, I am told that Lyoenchen Tshering Tobgay has made a truly significant move – in an obvious attempt to help the tourism sector claw back to some semblance of life. He is said to have invited the managements of the two national airlines to speak to his government – to see how his government might help them bring some sanity in the fares charged by them.

To help His Excellency get a grip on WHY the most important private sector of the country is suffering, I would like to present the following image - it is a vivid testament, if any were needed, why the tourism industry has been bled to death:

I believe that no words are necessary - the picture tells the story.

Subsidizing The Wings Of The Dragon

The following is the state of affairs at the Druk Air’s ticketing counter in Thimphu yesterday: at the peak business hour of 11:08AM, of the ten service counters, only two of them are occupied. I can assure you that this is not a one-off happenstance – I was there day-before-yesterday as well – it was even worst – not even one counter was occupied.

Druk Air Thimphu's Ticketing/Reservation Counters

Any thinking person’s heart would bleed at such a wretched scene. Druk Air has near monopolistic grip over the air transport business in the country. By comparison, it has the largest fleet of aircrafts – it serves the widest network of domestic and international routes and, best of all, as the nation’s flag carrier, it has the assurance of the Kingdom of Bhutan’s sovereign guarantee backing it.

With all that going for it, why is the airline’s booking office looking like an abandoned wasteland (Sa Tong) in Trashiyangtse?

Simple: it got its priorities all missed up; the airline out priced itself out of the market. They drove their potential customers to their competing airlines in the region.

Druk Air is a national flag carrier - it has an obligation far greater than financial profit. Created as a symbol of nationhood, its roles and functions are distinct from those other run-of-the-mill public enterprises. Like the RBA was not created to fight a war but to secure our territorial boundaries, Druk Air was not created to make profit but to make a statement, and to give wings to liberate the Bhutanese people from the bondage of landlockedness. Sadly however, as time went by, the custodians of the organization got their priorities mixed up and the corporation became an organization that is akin to what the Indians have aptly described: Bandarong Ke Haath Mein Nariyal: Coconut In The Hands Of Monkeys.

But it seems like things are going to look up soon. Supposedly, His Excellency the Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay has invited the managements of the two national airlines to let him know how his government might help - if necessary - through subsidies - in order to help the airline companies keep their airfares within the bounds of sanity.

That is the way to go!

Finally, it would appear that realization is dawning on people who matter, that given the limitations imposed by the geographical make of our country, profitable operation of certain enterprises is not possible - unless the government provides them subsidy - in order that they can continue to provide certain critical services that is essential for the development of the country.

Government subsidies to the transport sector is not new - larger and more efficient economies around the world have been doing it, year after year. The European Union (EU) subsidizes its transport sector to the tune of €73 billion. Likewise, the transport sector in China receives a government subsidy in excess of US$130 billion a year. Germany is routinely accused by competing neighbors of continuing to operate its money-losing airports; it continues to subsidize them in a veiled way to gain competitive edge over others.

Remember, subsidizing critical sectors is not a cost to the government – in most cases it is a responsibility.

Druk Air is a critical service provider - on its back rides the all-important tourism industry. Bhutan's tourism industry's success, or failure, hinges on how responsibly the national flag carrier behaves. The government - the elected representatives of the owners of the airline - the Bhutanese public - have placed faith in their representatives to do their job. We are encouraged that the government is now attempting to  live up to its responsibilities.

Lost and Confused

Mr. Michael Rutland OBE, NOM (Gold), has lived in Bhutan for the past 53 years. He has been a witness to most of Bhutan’s many stages of development and change – our idyllic seventies, the idealistic eighties, the perilous nineties and now the tumultuous 2000s. Thus, he is qualified to pass judgement on Bhutan and our state of affairs. During my meeting with him on 10th July, 2024, that is what he did precisely, and most emphatically! In the course of our conversations, he declared:

“There is no other country in this world with the level of peace, tranquility, stability and sense of security – as we have here in Bhutan.”

I agreed with him absolutely and totally! My tireless rantings notwithstanding, I know that we have it better than most. It is for this very reason - the fear that we might lose what we have achieved thus far, that some of us are frantic!

Lost and confused! What do I do? Where do I go? Who do I talk to?

It is the dread that this heaven on earth is at risk of being led asunder by those who have tended to exhibit tendencies that border on the skewed and the twisted - those who think nothing of demolishing truths spoken in good faith and with good intension - in order that their own falsehood and triviality may prevail.

It is sad to see hundred upon thousands abandon homes and families - to traverse the turbulent seas and oceans - in pursuit of livelihood - only to find that all that they have succeeded to do is - forfeit LIFE.

What exactly is triggering this human exodus? What is that which drives hoards upon hordes of our youth to brave the unknown and the untested; that they are willing to abandon the safety and security of home and family? I am unwilling to believe that they are all of them driven by the allure of the promise of gold in distant lands.

Then what is it? How, and why, are they different from those of us who see meaning and purpose in holding steadfast and remain optimistic and confident – that our pot of gold is here in this land of happiness?

What must we do to re-engineer the thought process of a generation that seems lost and confused?

A penny for your thoughts?

The Burdensome Beasts

Social, cultural and religious traditions and practices are NOT God given – they are essentially necessitated or influenced by compulsions imposed by nature, climate, geography, and a number of other factors.

For many decades since I can remember, one of the practices I had noticed was that during the winter months, the mules and ponies from the Northern highlands would unfailingly migrate to low-lying places like Thimphu and Punakha where they would remain for a number of months. Then, come end February/early March, they would return to their homesteads spread across the alpine regions of Laya, Soi, Lingzhi, and Lunana. By mid-March, their winter grazing grounds would be completely void of these visitors from the freezing North.

Freed of all burden: Mules/ponies roaming listlessly around Thimphu Metropolitan areas

But this year I was surprised to see them still merrily loitering in and around Thimphu. This is early July – what the dang hell are they still doing here - impeding vehicular traffic and increasing workload for the workers of Thimphu Thromde (Thimphu Municipal Authority)?

A friend sitting by my side remarked:

“Wai Khengtala, are you suffering amnesia? Don’t you know this is PDP domain – mules and ponies are accorded primacy now”.

“Funny guy”.

But I was intrigued – they are supposed to have long gone to their alpine villages. What happened? Why are they still here?

Then it dawned on me:

Yet one more carcass by the wayside, resulting from the country’s failed tourism business!

First it was the Stray Dogs on the streets. Upon suspension of tourism – the strays on the streets began to suffer starvation – the situation got so bad that His Majesty had to institute a stray dog feeding program.

Then we heard wails of woe from the Walking Stick Fashioners at the base of Taktsang. They complained that they have been deprived of their employment and livelihood - there were no buyers for their wooden walking sticks.

Next, I got to hear of the sad demise of the wooden Phallus Carver from Lingzhi who use to plonk himself by the road side next to the Zangthopelri near the Vegetable Market - morning to night - every day. He supposedly died of withdrawal - because without the income from a stream of tourists who use to buy his wares, he had no income to finance his nightly quota of booze.

CONTEXT

Mules/Ponies are beasts of burden. During the pre-pandemic days when tourism flourished unabated, there was a continuous flow of trekkers who required the services of thousands of mules/ponies. The highlanders who owned these animals would earn huge sums of money every trekking season. To give you an idea, I use to pay a hire charge of Nu.1,700.00 per day, per pack pony, and Nu.2,500.00 per day for every ridding pony I required.

The business was so lucrative that my pony contractor in Laya would make an annual trip every year to Mongaar – to buy feed for his animals: a truck load of corn/maize. The areas where I used to trek had no grass for his animals – so he had to carry the feed from home.

Every trekking trip I would require a minimum of 15 ponies.

Now that the tourism business has been driven into the ground, these animals are no more the beasts of burden. Instead, they have now become BURDENSOME BEASTS. Thus, from all indications, it would appear that their owners have put them to pasture!

A Funeral for Bhutanese Tourism

The following appeared in Bhutan's national newspaper, the KUENSEL, on their weekend issue of June 29, 2024. I am posting it here once again - for my international readers.

Exactly half a century back, for the first time ever, Bhutan opened its doors to commercial tourism. On 2nd October, 1974, a multinational group of 12 tourists set their feet on Bhutanese soil. It was perhaps an act of divine intervention that Bhutan’s first tour group happened to be organized by the much revered and selfless Jesuit Father - Fr Richard McDonald, then based in Darjeeling, India.

This dramatic pivot occurred after careful consideration by our leaders. Under an Act approved by the 36th National Assembly of Bhutan on 7th June, 1972, the following resolution was passed:

22. Matter relating to Tourism Act

In view of the likelihood that, despite being in its initial stage of development, Bhutan would attract a large number of tourists, the Cabinet had prepared a draft of rules governing tourism in the country. After due consideration of the same, the Assembly accorded its approval.

Over the years, tourism became the country’s single-largest employer and highest net-gain foreign exchange generator. The country’s biggest and the brightest commercial houses - such as Tashi and Lhaki Groups – could not resist the allure of the tourism enterprise, so much so that they remain active players to this day. The business appealed to the highest echelons, to the lowest, and to everyone in-between. For this reason, the tourism business was Bhutan’s most diligently monitored and tightly regulated commercial activity, resulting in bountiful revenue for the government and generous income for every player across the broad spectrum of the business chain.

Under a business regime that was nothing short of generous, known as the Minimum Daily Package Rate (MDPR), there was no leakage of government revenue and the country received 100% of the foreign exchange generated by the tourism business, not merely the Sustainable Development Fee (SDF). Today, under the new rule, less than 10% of the foreign exchange is realized. Even worse, there is massive tax evasion. We are told that the Royal Monetary Authority and the Department of Revenue and Customs are perplexed as to why, despite a huge increase in tourist arrivals, the foreign exchange inflow remains stagnant and tax collection dismal. But this grim state of affairs should hardly be perplexing: we created it with the introduction of the ill-informed Tourism Levy Act of Bhutan 2022.

I had hoped that in 2024, with the pandemic well behind us, the people of Bhutan would come together to put on a show to beat all shows, to celebrate 50 years of tourism that has touched and improved nearly every life in this country. I had hoped that the pioneers and trailblazers of the industry – the earliest surviving head of the Department of Tourism (Lyonpo Jigme Tshultim), the earliest cultural guide (Gandhi Nawang Dorji), the earliest trekking guide (Karchung Wangchuk), the earliest private-sector tour operator (BTCL), and even the earliest lunch boy (Karma Sonam) who carried a pack meal to be served to the first-ever tour group lead by Lars-Eric Lindblad – would congregate at the Clock Tower to celebrate the occasion and reminiscence about the stupendous journey to which they bore witness.

Alas, that hope has been dashed. No celebratory mood could possibly prevail when the industry is maimed and bleeding. I am told that DoT made do with a somber, low-key event, apparently lighting a few butter lamps at the Kuensel Phodrang early this month. Some believe that ritual was really intended to mourn the death of a once-thriving industry.

Where do we go from here? Can we reclaim the tourism business from the clutches of the outsiders who now rule the roost? Is it conceivable that the government may realize the folly of their plans and make amends? According to recent news reports, those may be empty reveries. The current government’s GDP projections tell a tale of even more dire times to come for the industry:

In the above official chart, tourism does even not feature as an economic sector nor as a contributor to the nation’s GDP. Is our tourism industry nothing more than a mirage? Are we supposed to forget or dismiss tourism’s past role in the nation’s growth? According to these numbers, the government does not foresee any future contribution from the industry.

How can Bhutan – a country that repeatedly turns up on “Best Places to Visit” tallies, a destination reliably found on sophisticated traveler’s “bucket lists” - starve the very industry that has brought us so much wealth and respect in the past? I believe it’s time for a national discussion - and the sooner, the better.