# Bhutan - United States Department of State

- Bhutan HomeReportsBureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor2023 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices&#8230;Bhutan				hide	document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", function(event) {	if(window.jQuery) {		jQuery( document ).ready(function() {			if (jQuery(".bc_middle").hasClass("collapse")) {				jQuery(".bc_ellipse").click(function(){					jQuery(".bc_hide").toggleClass("visible");					jQuery(".bc_middle").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_ellipse").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_content").toggleClass("noflex");					jQuery(".block_breadcrumbs_content").toggleClass("noflex");				});				jQuery(".bc_hide").click(function(){					jQuery(".bc_hide").toggleClass("visible");					jQuery(".bc_middle").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_ellipse").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_content").toggleClass("noflex");					jQuery(".block_breadcrumbs_content").toggleClass("noflex");				});			} else {				jQuery(".bc_ellipse").hide();			}		});	}});																							2023 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices: Bhutan																																					Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor																																																																																							Download Report																																																							Translations																																																																 In this section										/																							EXECUTIVE SUMMARY																																													EXECUTIVE SUMMARY																															Section 1. Respect for the Integrity of the Person																																																									a. Arbitrary Deprivation of Life and Other Unlawful or Politically Motivated Killings																																																																											b. Disappearance																																																																											c. Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, and Other Related Abuses																																																																			Prison and Detention Center Conditions																																																																																																																		d. Arbitrary Arrest or Detention																																																																			Arrest Procedures and Treatment of Detainees																																																																																																																		e. Denial of Fair Public Trial																																																																			Trial Procedures																																																								Political Prisoners and Detainees																																																																																																																		f. Transnational Repression																																																																											g. Property Seizure and Restitution																																																																											h. Arbitrary or Unlawful Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or Correspondence																																																																																	Section 2. Respect for Civil Liberties																																																									a. Freedom of Expression, Including for Members of the Press and Other Media																																																																			Internet Freedom																																																																																																																		b. Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association																																																																			Freedom of Association																																																																																																																		c. Freedom of Religion																																																																											d. Freedom of Movement and the Right to Leave the Country																																																																											e. Protection of Refugees																																																																											f. Status and Treatment of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs)																																																																											g. Stateless Persons																																																																																	Section 3. Freedom to Participate in the Political Process																																																									Elections and Political Participation																																																																																	Section 4. Corruption in Government																															Section 5. Governmental Posture Towards International and Nongovernmental Monitoring and Investigation of Alleged Abuses of Human Rights																															Section 6. Discrimination and Societal Abuses																																																									Women																																																																											Systemic Racial or Ethnic Violence and Discrimination																																																																											Children																																																																											Antisemitism																																																																											Trafficking in Persons																																																																											Acts of Violence, Criminalization, and Other Abuses Based on Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity or Expression, or Sex Characteristics																																																																											Persons with Disabilities																																																																											Other Societal Violence or Discrimination																																																																																	Section 7. Worker Rights																																																									a. Freedom of Association and the Right to Collective Bargaining																																																																											b. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor																																																																											c. Prohibition of Child Labor and Minimum Age for Employment																																																																											d. Discrimination (see section 6)																																																																											e. Acceptable Conditions of Work																																																																																																							EXECUTIVE SUMMARY				There were no significant changes in the human rights situation in Bhutan during the year.Significant human rights issues included credible reports of:  political prisoners or detainees; substantial interference with the freedom of association; and restrictions on freedom of movement.The government took credible steps to identify and punish officials who may have committed human rights abuses.																														Section 1.													 Respect for the Integrity of the Person												    																																																a. Arbitrary Deprivation of Life and Other Unlawful or Politically Motivated Killings										There were no reports that the government or its agents committed arbitrary or unlawful killings, including extrajudicial killings, during the year.																																				b. Disappearance										There were no reports of disappearances by or on behalf of government authorities.																																				c. Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, and Other Related Abuses										The constitution and law prohibited such practices, and there were no credible reports that government officials employed them.																Prison and Detention Center Conditions						According to a report issued by nongovernmental organization (NGO) Human Rights Watch (HRW) in September, a former prisoner who was released from Chemgang Prison in August after serving 29 years reported that prisoners faced food shortages and received inadequate medical care.  The government denied these claims, stating that conditions in the country’s prisons were good and prisoners’ material and psychological needs were being met.  No international or independent observers visited prisons in the country during the year.Administration:  Police administered the prison system.  Authorities conducted proper investigations of credible allegations of mistreatment.Independent Monitoring:  The government permitted monitoring by independent nongovernmental observers in past years.  There were no monitoring visits during the year.																										d. Arbitrary Arrest or Detention										The constitution and law prohibited arbitrary arrest and detention and provided for the right of any person to challenge the lawfulness of their arrest or detention in court.  The government generally observed these requirements.																Arrest Procedures and Treatment of Detainees						The law provided that police could arrest a person if there was probable cause or a court-issued arrest warrant.  Police were permitted to conduct “stop and frisk” searches only if they believed a crime had been committed.  The law required arresting authorities to issue an immediate statement of charges and engage in reasonable efforts to inform the family of the accused.  The law required authorities to bring an arrested person before a court within 24 hours, exclusive of travel time from the place of arrest.  Authorities generally respected the law.The law provided for prompt access to a lawyer and government provision of an attorney for indigent clients.  Bail was available depending on the severity of charges and the suspect’s criminal record, flight risk, and potential threat to the public.  In addition, bail might be granted after the execution of a bail bond agreement.  Police might hold remanded suspects for 10 days pending investigation, which courts might extend to 49 days.  In cases of “heinous” crimes, this period might be extended to 108 days, should the investigating officer show adequate grounds.  The law expressly prohibited pretrial detention beyond 118 days.  Authorities generally respected the law.																										e. Denial of Fair Public Trial										The constitution and law provided for an independent judiciary, and the government generally respected judicial independence and impartiality.  The courts generally functioned effectively, although NGO Freedom House reported the rulings of judges “often lack[ed] consistency, and many in the public view[ed] the judiciary as corrupt.”																Trial Procedures						The law provided for the right to a fair and public trial, and the judiciary generally enforced this right.  Detainees were often not aware of their right to a lawyer because they were not informed of this right by police.						Political Prisoners and Detainees						In March the HRW called on the government to free 37 prisoners who were convicted between 1990 and 2010 of a range of national security offenses including “conspiring, attempting, soliciting, abetting or committing offenses against the Tsa-Wa-Sum (‘king, country and people’),” which was defined under the law as a political offense.  The HRW reported in September that the government did not provide adequate food, clothing, or medical care to political prisoners.																										f. Transnational Repression										Not applicable.																																				g. Property Seizure and Restitution										Not applicable.																																				h. Arbitrary or Unlawful Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or Correspondence										The constitution and law prohibited such actions, and there were no reports that the government failed to respect these prohibitions.																																					Section 2.													 Respect for Civil Liberties												    																																																a. Freedom of Expression, Including for Members of the Press and Other Media										The constitution provided for freedom of expression, including for members of the press and other media, and the government generally respected this right.  An independent media, an effective judiciary, and a functioning democratic political system combined to promote freedom of expression, including for media members.Libel/Slander Laws:  Under the penal code, defamation carried criminal penalties.  International observers noted that such laws could be misused to unduly constrain freedom of expression.  There were no cases of prosecution for defamation during the year.																Internet Freedom						The government did not restrict or disrupt access to the internet or censor online content.																										b. Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association										The constitution and law provided for the freedoms of peaceful assembly and association, and the government generally respected these rights.																Freedom of Association						In September the Civil Society Organizations Authority (CSOA) ordered the Bhutan Civil Society Network (BCSN), an informal association of CSOs, to close its office and cease operations on the grounds it was acting in contravention of the CSOA’s mandate and authority.  In October the CSOA announced that CSOs would be required to maintain an endowment fund of Nu 3 million ($36,000), explaining the fund would generate interest the CSOs could use to meet recurrent expenses.  Several CSOs criticized the new requirement, saying the government had not consulted adequately with stakeholders prior to implementing it and noting the possibility some CSOs could be forced to shut down if they were unable to raise the required funds.  CSOs and international observers expressed concern the shutdown of the BCSN and new endowment fund requirement for CSOs were signals the government was shrinking the space for civil society.According to Freedom House’s Freedom in the World 2023 report, NGOs working on matters related to ethnic Nepalis were not allowed to operate.  The law required that all NGOs be registered with the government by a citizen of the country, who was required to disclose their family income and assets, provide their educational qualifications, and disclose any criminal record.																										c. Freedom of Religion										See the Department of State’s International Religious Freedom Report at  https://www.state.gov/religiousfreedomreport/.																																				d. Freedom of Movement and the Right to Leave the Country										The law provided for freedom of internal movement, foreign travel, emigration, and repatriation, but the government limited freedom of movement and repatriation for some groups.In-country Movement:  The law established categories of residency, which determined whether a person required a “route permit” to travel internally.  Travel restrictions primarily affected resident foreigners, sometimes including the children of foreigners married to citizens of the country.Foreign Travel:  Freedom House reported that, while citizens generally had the freedom to travel internationally, restrictions on that freedom that applied to different categories of residency most greatly affected Nepali speakers.Exile:  The government continued to delay consideration of claims for residency by refugees in Nepal.  Bhutan was the original source of these refugees when, in the early 1990s, the government forced between 80,000 and 100,000 Nepali-speaking residents to leave the country, following a series of decisions taken in the 1970s and 1980s that established legal requirements for citizenship that excluded them.After years of international efforts resulting in third-country resettlement of more than 100,000 refugees and their descendants, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reported that as of March, more than 6,300 Nepali-speaking refugees from Bhutan remained in Nepal.  Approximately one-third of these refugees had expressed interest in returning to Bhutan; however, there was no evidence the government of Bhutan accepted any applications by these refugees to return.																																				e. Protection of Refugees										The government cooperated with the UNHCR and other humanitarian organizations in providing protection and assistance to refugees, returning refugees, or asylum seekers, as well as other persons of concern.Access to Asylum:  The law did not provide for the granting of asylum or refugee status, and the government had not established a system for providing protection to refugees.In the 1960s, the country sheltered Tibetan refugees who were initially located in seven settlements.  According to the Central Tibetan Administration, the self-described “Tibetan exile administration” based in Dharamshala, India, a total of 1,786 Tibetan refugees lived in Bhutan during the year.Freedom of Movement:  Some restrictions on movement existed based on categories of residency.  Many Tibetan refugees faced obstacles in obtaining travel permits.  There were reports the government did not provide the travel documents necessary for Tibetan refugees to travel beyond India.Access to Basic Services:  There were reports that although all students had access to primary education, a small number of children who were stateless lacked access to the documentation necessary to enroll in higher education.Durable Solutions:  The Tibetan refugee population had been decreasing as Tibetan refugees obtained Bhutanese citizenship, according to the Department of Immigration.																																				f. Status and Treatment of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs)										Not applicable.																																				g. Stateless Persons										The country contributed to statelessness because, under the constitution, for a child to qualify for citizenship at birth, both parents were required to be Bhutanese citizens.  All births were registered, regardless of the parents’ citizenship, and persons who did not have Bhutanese citizenship could obtain it, regardless of their gender or ethnicity, after living in the country for 15 years.Stateless persons were not eligible to obtain “no objection certificates” and police security clearance certificates, which were often necessary for access to public health care, employment, access to primary and secondary education, enrollment at institutions of higher education, travel documents, and business ownership.  But children without citizenship were eligible for primary public educational and health services.																																					Section 3.													 Freedom to Participate in the Political Process												    																						The constitution provided citizens the ability to choose their government in free and fair periodic elections held by secret ballot and based on universal and equal suffrage.																										Elections and Political Participation										Abuses or Irregularities in Recent Elections:  National Council elections were widely reported to be fair and free of abuses and irregularities.																																					Section 4.													 Corruption in Government												    																						The law provided criminal penalties for corruption by officials, and the government generally implemented the law effectively.  There were isolated reports of government corruption.Corruption:  In August the judiciary suspended two high court justices for deliberate miscarriage of justice in a case in which the prison sentences of two convicted drug smugglers were overturned following a private hiking trip involving one of the justices, the attorney general, and the father of one of the defendants.  The Prime Minister’s Office dismissed the attorney general in September after an independent investigatory committee determined the attorney general had breached the code of conduct governing his position.																											Section 5.													 Governmental Posture Towards International and Nongovernmental Monitoring and Investigation of Alleged Abuses of Human Rights												    																						Domestic and international human rights groups generally operated without government restriction to monitor or investigate human rights conditions or cases and publish their findings.  Government officials were somewhat cooperative and responsive to the views of these groups.According to international NGOs, some local CSOs avoided matters perceived as sensitive by the government, including women’s rights, the environment, and human rights problems related to the Nepali-speaking community.  The government did not permit human rights groups established by the Nepali-speaking community to operate because these groups were categorized as political organizations that did not promote national unity.Government Human Rights Bodies:  The National Assembly’s Human Rights Committee conducted human rights research on behalf of the National Assembly.As part of the government’s bureaucratic and civil service reform efforts, the National Commission for Women and Children (NCWC), a previously autonomous body responsible for protecting the rights and interests of women and children, was subsumed under the Ministry of Education and Skills Development in late 2022.  In 2022 the PEMA Secretariat assumed responsibility for providing key services previously provided by the NCWC, including case management services, women and child helpline services, adoption services, and alternative care services.  According to reports, PEMA successfully took over these service functions.  In a report submitted for the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women 86th Session in October, however, CSOs and gender equality advocates expressed deep concern at the previously autonomous NCWC’s reduction to a division under the department mandated to provide educational services.  They cited concerns this would hinder the NCWC’s ability to fulfill its mandate as custodian of important national acts on gender-based violence and child protection and the country’s lead agency on gender equality.																											Section 6.													 Discrimination and Societal Abuses												    																																																Women										Rape and Domestic Violence:  The law criminalized rape and did not refer to gender in its definition of rape.  In cases of rape involving minors, sentences for conviction ranged from five to 15 years in prison.  In extreme cases, a person convicted of rape could be imprisoned for life.  Spousal rape was illegal and prosecuted as a misdemeanor.In 2022 the NCWC published the Standard Operating Procedure for Gender&#8211;Based Violence Prevention and Response, which laid out policies and procedures related to gender-based violence and the roles and responsibilities of the government and civil society in combating it, including referral to shelters and service providers.  The CSO RENEW worked with survivors of domestic violence and gender-based violence and helped them become financially stable and emotionally independent.  RENEW operated a hotline for victims of violence and human trafficking.  The law prohibited domestic violence, including physical and sexual abuse.  Physical abuse was prosecuted as battery; penalties for convicted perpetrators ranged from one month to three years’ imprisonment.  Sexual abuse was prosecuted as a sexual offense and was punishable by three to 15 years’ imprisonment.  The law provided for increased sentences for conviction of second (and subsequent) domestic violence offenses.  CSOs maintained that the maximum penalty for marital rape was disproportionately low and called on the government to ensure marital rape was addressed on the same level as other forms of rape.Three police stations had protection units to address crimes involving women and children, and 14 police stations had officers specifically devoted to women and children’s matters.  Police continued to build capacity and expressed a commitment to expand protection units to each of the country’s 20 districts.  The government operated a dedicated toll-free helpline to report violence against women and children.  The government and RENEW trained local government officials, judges, law enforcement agencies, and police on gender abuse matters and cooperated with CSOs that undertook further efforts, including operation of a crisis and rehabilitation center.  Freedom House reported that cultural taboos resulted in the underreporting of domestic violence.Discrimination:  The law mandated the government eliminate all forms of discrimination and exploitation of women and girls, including trafficking, abuse, violence, harassment, and intimidation, at work and at home.  The law prohibited employment discrimination for employees and job applicants based on race, color, sex, marital status, pregnancy, religion, political opinion, social origin, or involvement in a workers’ association.  The law mandated equal pay for equal work.  There were no categories or lists of jobs from which employment was prohibited to certain types of persons, and women were free to work in the same professions as men.  The government generally enforced these laws.  The law was gender neutral and provided equal rights of property inheritance to women spouses and children.Reproductive Rights:  There were no reports of coerced abortion or involuntary sterilization on the part of government authorities.A lack of awareness of comprehensive sexual and reproductive health care contributed to unplanned early pregnancies, postpregnancy complications, child abandonment, and financial instability.  The World Bank reported equity and access to medical care for pregnant women in some remote areas were challenges because of difficult terrain.  There were geographic disparities in access to skilled birth attendants.  The government provided access to sexual and reproductive health services for survivors of sexual violence, including emergency contraception and postexposure prophylaxis.																																				Systemic Racial or Ethnic Violence and Discrimination										The constitution provided no person shall be discriminated against based on race, sex, language, religion, or politics.Although the country did not have an omnibus civil rights act, there were provisions prohibiting discrimination spread throughout the law.  The law prohibited discrimination in the civil service in the areas of employment and career advancement.  The government generally enforced these laws and regulations.In its Freedom in the World 2023 report, Freedom House noted ethnic Nepali residents often could not obtain a police security clearance certificate.  Without that certificate, they faced difficulties in starting a business, enrolling in higher education, or obtaining passports or government jobs, and the process of registering property could also be lengthy for them.  The government did not permit NGOs to work on matters involving the status of ethnic Nepalis.  Ethnic Nepalis sometimes faced employment discrimination.																																				Children										Child Abuse:  The law prohibited child abuse and provided for a range of penalties for conviction, depending on the type of abuse.  The government enforced the laws effectively.Child, Early, and Forced Marriage:  The statutory minimum age of marriage was 18 for men and women.  The government effectively enforced the law.Sexual Exploitation of Children:  The law prohibited the commercial sexual exploitation of children, including child pornography, child sex trafficking, and the sale of children.  Authorities generally enforced the law.  The legal age of consent was 16 for both boys and girls.																																				Antisemitism										The country did not have a Jewish population and there were no known reports of antisemitic incidents.																																				Trafficking in Persons										See the Department of State’s Trafficking in Persons Report at  https://www.state.gov/trafficking-in-persons-report/.																																				Acts of Violence, Criminalization, and Other Abuses Based on Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity or Expression, or Sex Characteristics										Criminalization:  Amendments to the penal code that came into effect in 2021 decriminalized same-sex sexual conduct.  The law did not criminalize consensual same-sex sexual conduct between adults, cross-dressing, or other sexual or gender characteristic-related behaviors.Violence and Harassment:  There were no reports of violence by government or nongovernment agents against lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, or other sexual minority (LGBTQI+) persons.Discrimination:  The constitution provided for equal protection and application of rights, but neither the constitution nor legislation explicitly protected individuals from discrimination based on their sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or sex characteristics.  The law did not explicitly protect LGBTQI+ couples and their families and did not grant them rights equal to rights of other persons.  Members of the LGBTQI+ community reported instances of discrimination and social stigma based on sexual orientation.  Some LGBTQI+ CSOs cited the duration of their long-pending applications for legal registration as examples of discrimination.  A study conducted in 2022 observed that members of the LGBTQI+ community reported experiencing longer wait times for health services than members of the general population.Availability of Legal Gender Recognition:  Distinct legal status and explicit protections for transgender individuals were not provided for in the law.  According to the NGO Pride Bhutan, the lack of a legal gender framework made it difficult for transgender persons to obtain government identity documents, obtain gender-affirming care, or marry.  According to the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association World Database, it was possible to change one’s name by submitting a form and a psychiatrist’s certificate confirming a person’s gender dysphoria and a supporting letter from a civil society organization to the Department of Civil Registration and Census.Involuntary or Coercive Medical or Psychological Practices:  There were no reports of forced or involuntary so-called conversion therapy on adults or minors to try to change a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity or expression.Restrictions of Freedom of Expression, Association, or Peaceful Assembly:  CSOs that advocated for greater legal protections for LGBTQI+ persons reported difficulties legally registering.  Pride Bhutan and Queer Voices of Bhutan, two CSOs working on LGBTQI+ rights and advocacy, were not legally registered.																																				Persons with Disabilities										Persons with disabilities did not have equal access to education, health services, public buildings, and transportation because of inaccessible infrastructure, among other matters.  There was no law on disabilities.  The Disabled People’s Organization of Bhutan conducted awareness trainings on national policies regarding persons with disabilities.																																				Other Societal Violence or Discrimination										CSOs reported that persons with HIV or AIDS continued to face some social stigma, and many such persons were reluctant to reveal their health status due to fear of negative attitudes.  There were no reports of violence or discrimination against persons with HIV or AIDS.The government provided free medical and counseling services to persons with HIV or AIDS and maintained programs designed to prevent discrimination.  The CSO Lhak Sam provided support to persons living with HIV and to their families and cooperated with the Ministry of Health to create and promote effective responses to HIV, AIDS, and their impacts.																																					Section 7.													 Worker Rights												    																																																a. Freedom of Association and the Right to Collective Bargaining										The law provided workers the right to form and join independent unions.  Workers could form a union with the participation of at least 12 employees from a single workplace.  There was no national trade union.  The law did not mention the right to conduct legal strikes.  Most of the country’s workforce engaged in agriculture, a sector that was not unionized.The law provided for the right of workers to bargain collectively with employers.  The law prohibited antiunion discrimination and required reinstatement of workers fired for union activity.  Violators faced misdemeanor charges and could be compelled to pay damages.  The government effectively enforced applicable laws.  Resources and remediation were reportedly adequate, and penalties were commensurate with those for similar violations.  The law granted workers the right to pursue litigation.  Information was unavailable on whether penalties were applied against violators for laws related to freedom of association and collective bargaining.Freedom of association and the right to bargain collectively were respected by the government and employers, although there were few employee unions.  No unions were formed during the year.																																				b. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor										See the Department of State’s Trafficking in Persons Report at  https://www.state.gov/trafficking-in-persons-report/.																																				c. Prohibition of Child Labor and Minimum Age for Employment										See the Department of Labor’s Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labor at  https://www.dol.gov/agencies/ilab/resources/reports/child-labor/findings/&nbsp;.																																				d. Discrimination (see section 6)																																														e. Acceptable Conditions of Work										Wage and Hour Laws:  The national minimum wage was above the official poverty income level.  According to the Ministry of Industry, Commerce, and Employment, there were two wage rates in the country:  the national minimum wage rate and the national workforce wage rate.  The national minimum wage rate applied to anyone working in the country, irrespective of nationality.  The national workforce wage rate was higher but applied only to citizens.The law defined the workday as eight hours per day with a one-hour lunch break, and employers were required to grant regular rest days, including a minimum of nine public holidays each year.  Work for more than eight hours a day was mandated to be paid at 1.5 times the normal rate.Occupational Safety and Health:  Government occupational safety and health (OSH) standards were appropriate.  Inspectors had the right to conduct unannounced inspections and were responsible for identifying unsafe conditions.  Labor regulations granted workers the right to leave work situations that endangered their health and safety without jeopardy to their employment.Wage, Hour, and OSH Enforcement:  The Department of Labor generally enforced minimum wage, work hours, and occupational health and safety standards effectively in the formal sector.  Penalties, including payment of damages, were generally commensurate with other types of workplace violation fines, and inspection was sufficient.  The economy was largely rural and agrarian, and the ratio of informal employment to total employment was relatively high; the World Bank estimated the informal labor rate at approximately 80 percent.																																				    							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Respect for the Integrity of the Person																																							a. Arbitrary Deprivation of Life and Other Unlawful or Politically Motivated Killings																																																						b. Disappearance																																																						c. Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, and Other Related Abuses																																																				Prison and Detention Center Conditions																																																																																				d. Arbitrary Arrest or Detention																																																				Arrest Procedures and Treatment of Detainees																																																																																				e. Denial of Fair Public Trial																																																				Trial Procedures																																												Political Prisoners and Detainees																																																																																				f. Transnational Repression																																																						g. Property Seizure and Restitution																																																						h. Arbitrary or Unlawful Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or Correspondence																																																			Section 2. Respect for Civil Liberties																																							a. Freedom of Expression, Including for Members of the Press and Other Media																																																				Internet Freedom																																																																																				b. 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Worker Rights																																							a. Freedom of Association and the Right to Collective Bargaining																																																						b. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor																																																						c. Prohibition of Child Labor and Minimum Age for Employment																																																						d. Discrimination (see section 6)																																																						e. Acceptable Conditions of Work																																																									Tags																					Bhutan																								Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor																								Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs
- Elections in Bhutan Matthew Miller, Department SpokespersonThe United States congratulates the people of Bhutan on a successful national election on January 9 and the People’s Democratic Party and its leader Tshering Tobgay on the party’s win. We look forward to working with Bhutan’s incoming government to build upon the friendly relations between our countries and deepen our people-to-people ties.
- Bhutan National Day HomeOffice of the SpokespersonPress Releases&#8230;Bhutan National Day				hide		if(window.jQuery) {		jQuery( document ).ready(function() {			if (jQuery(".bc_middle").hasClass("collapse")) {				jQuery(".bc_ellipse").click(function(){					jQuery(".bc_hide").toggleClass("visible");					jQuery(".bc_middle").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_ellipse").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_content").toggleClass("noflex");					jQuery(".block_breadcrumbs_content").toggleClass("noflex");				});				jQuery(".bc_hide").click(function(){					jQuery(".bc_hide").toggleClass("visible");					jQuery(".bc_middle").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_ellipse").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_content").toggleClass("noflex");					jQuery(".block_breadcrumbs_content").toggleClass("noflex");				});			} else {				jQuery(".bc_ellipse").hide();			}		});	}																										Bhutan National Day																																		Press Statement																														December 16, 2023																																							On behalf of the United States of America, I extend my sincere congratulations to the people of Bhutan on the celebration of the National Day of the Kingdom of Bhutan on December 17.The peoples of our two countries share a history of warm friendship and a commitment to building a world that is more peaceful, prosperous, and equitable. The United States looks forward to continuing to strengthen the ties between our peoples and to working together to address shared challenges, such as climate change.On behalf of the people and the Government of the United States of America, I warmly extend best wishes to the people of Bhutan as they celebrate this special occasion.						Tags																					Bhutan																								Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs																								Office of the Spokesperson																								The Secretary of State
- Bhutan HomeReportsOffice to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons2023 Trafficking in Persons Report&#8230;Bhutan				hide	document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", function(event) {	if(window.jQuery) {		jQuery( document ).ready(function() {			if (jQuery(".bc_middle").hasClass("collapse")) {				jQuery(".bc_ellipse").click(function(){					jQuery(".bc_hide").toggleClass("visible");					jQuery(".bc_middle").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_ellipse").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_content").toggleClass("noflex");					jQuery(".block_breadcrumbs_content").toggleClass("noflex");				});				jQuery(".bc_hide").click(function(){					jQuery(".bc_hide").toggleClass("visible");					jQuery(".bc_middle").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_ellipse").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_content").toggleClass("noflex");					jQuery(".block_breadcrumbs_content").toggleClass("noflex");				});			} else {				jQuery(".bc_ellipse").hide();			}		});	}});																							2023 Trafficking in Persons Report: Bhutan																																					Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons																																																																																																				 In this section										/																							BHUTAN (Tier 2)																																													BHUTAN (Tier 2)																															PRIORITIZED RECOMMENDATIONS:																																																																																		PROSECUTION																																																																																		PROTECTION																																																																																		PREVENTION																																																																																		TRAFFICKING PROFILE:																																																																																																								BHUTAN (Tier 2)				The Government of Bhutan does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking but is making significant efforts to do so.  The government demonstrated overall increasing efforts compared with the previous reporting period, considering the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, if any, on its anti-trafficking capacity; therefore Bhutan was upgraded to Tier 2.  These efforts included significantly increasing prosecutions against suspected traffickers, including cases involving Bhutanese migrant workers abroad.  The government developed specialized victim identification procedures to identify vulnerable populations, and promulgated guidelines for child protection, including child trafficking.  The government continued to provide services to trafficking victims and opened a legal aid center to provide assistance to victims in civil and criminal cases.  The government also acceded to the UN TIP Protocol.  The government conducted anti-trafficking awareness programs to inform and educate the public, including migrant workers and students.  The government also implemented revisions to regulations governing the oversight of foreign worker programs to ensure fair recruitment processes and protections for Bhutanese migrant workers.  However, the government did not meet the minimum standards in several key areas.  The government did not identify any trafficking victims, including Bhutanese exploited abroad, nor initiate any trafficking investigations or achieve convictions of traffickers.  Police and judicial officials continued to lack an understanding of human trafficking.  In addition, Bhutan’s trafficking laws did not criminalize all forms of child sex trafficking.  																																					PRIORITIZED RECOMMENDATIONS:						    																																															Vigorously investigate, prosecute, and convict traffickers, and seek adequate penalties for convicted traffickers, which should include significant prison terms.  Systematically and proactively identify trafficking victims by screening for trafficking indicators among vulnerable populations, including among foreign migrant workers.  Train officials on the implementation of anti-trafficking laws, SOPs for victim identification and referral, and guidelines for child protection.  Train labor inspectors to screen cases of labor violations for indicators of forced labor such as nonpayment of wages, particularly among foreign migrant workers, and refer potential cases to police for criminal investigation.  Amend anti-trafficking laws to ensure that a demonstration of force, fraud, or coercion is not required to constitute a child sex trafficking offense, consistent with international law.  Consistently enforce strong regulations and oversight of labor recruitment companies, including by eliminating recruitment fees charged to workers, investigating claims of nonpayment of wages and contract switching, and holding fraudulent recruiters criminally accountable.																																												PROSECUTION						    																																															The government slightly increased anti-trafficking law enforcement efforts.  The law criminalized all forms of labor trafficking and some forms of sex trafficking.  Section 154 criminalized all forms of adult sex trafficking, adult labor trafficking, and child labor trafficking.  However, the law defined trafficking to require a demonstration of force, fraud, or coercion, which is inconsistent with international law for child sex trafficking, thereby failing to criminalize all forms of child sex trafficking.  Similarly, Section 224 of The Child Care and Protection Act (CCPA) criminalized child trafficking but, inconsistent with international law, also required a demonstration of force, fraud, or coercion to constitute a child sex trafficking offense and therefore did not criminalize all forms of child sex trafficking.  Section 379 of the penal code defined “trafficking a person for prostitution” as selling, buying, or transporting a person into or outside of Bhutan for the purposes of prostitution.  Section 154 of the Penal Code prescribed punishment ranging from three to five years’ imprisonment, Section 379 prescribed from five years to life imprisonment, and Section 224 of the CCPA prescribed from five to nine years’ imprisonment.  These punishments were sufficiently stringent and, with respect to sex trafficking, commensurate with penalties prescribed for other serious crimes, such as abduction.The government reported it did not initiate any new trafficking investigations, but continued to investigate 31 suspects in nine trafficking cases from previous reporting periods; this compared with one preliminary investigation initiated in 2021.  The government reported initiating prosecution against 18 alleged traffickers &#8211; 16 suspects for labor trafficking and two suspects for sex trafficking charged under rape and promotion of prostitution provisions &#8211; and continuing prosecution against 14 suspects from previous reporting periods; this compared with no prosecutions initiated in 2021.  The government did not report convicting any traffickers compared with convicting three traffickers in 2021.  Although the government previously investigated and prosecuted cases involving Bhutanese trafficking victims in the Middle East, Bhutan did not report any collaboration with foreign governments on trafficking cases.Police and judicial officials continued to lack an understanding of human trafficking, including both internal trafficking and transnational trafficking.  In some cases, successful anti-trafficking law enforcement efforts relied on persistent individual officers.  In partnership with an international organization, the Department of Law and Order (DLO) continued to conduct anti-trafficking trainings for law enforcement and prosecutors.   Royal Bhutan Police (RBP) continued to train personnel on the amended Penal Code Section 154 and the implementation of anti-trafficking laws.  RBP maintained 15 women and child protection units at police stations and the RBP headquarters in Thimphu.  All officers and personnel in these units and offices were trained on a victim-centered approach during investigations of trafficking cases, including child-friendly interviewing techniques.  RBP reportedly screened for trafficking in enforcement operations, including at worksites, businesses, and border areas, but did not identify any trafficking victims.The government did not report any investigations, prosecutions, or convictions of government employees complicit in human trafficking crimes; however, corruption and official complicity in trafficking crimes remained concerns.  A court convicted the former director-general of the Ministry of Labor and Human Resources (MOLHR) – renamed the Ministry of Industry, Commerce, and Employment (MoICE) following the Civil Service Reform Act in December 2022 – for recommending a license to an employment agency despite inadequate registration; the court acquitted the director general on three other charges.  The employment agency had involvement with a government-approved Japanese work-study program associated with some indicators of forced labor in 2018.																																												PROTECTION						    																																															The government maintained protection efforts.  The government did not report identifying any trafficking victims, compared with 22 labor trafficking victims identified abroad in 2021.  However, the government continued to provide services to at least 174 victims identified in previous reporting periods and screened some migrants for trafficking risks.  The government did not report repatriating any trafficking survivors during the reporting period.  The government had SOPs on trafficking victim identification and referral to care.  DLO developed and finalized reporting guidelines, planned for release in 2023, and victim identification procedures to complement the SOPs to further assist local government, police, and service providers in identifying vulnerable populations.  National Commission for Women and Children (NCWC) promulgated new guidelines for child protection and case management, including child trafficking, and for GBV; NCWC also revised its guidelines on children at risk.  The NCWC maintained a child protection framework to establish best practices and interagency responsibilities for addressing child protection issues, including trafficking.  The NCWC also had procedures to guide labor inspectors, immigration officials, and teachers in the identification of child victims and at-risk youth and refer them to services.  The government conducted training on the victim identification and referral to care SOPs for government officials and held “train the trainer” sessions.  Observers reported further training was required to help police officials identify potential victims among vulnerable populations, particularly children.The government and civil society partners provided services such as counseling, legal aid, medical care, psychosocial care, reintegration support, shelter, and vocational training for women and children.  The government continued to provide some services, including case management, counseling, and legal aid to 160 victims identified in previous reporting periods.  The NCWC and NGOs could provide counseling and psychological support services virtually, as well as in-person.  The NCWC could also provide case management assistance and legal aid.  In June 2022, the government established the Pema Center to provide mental health care and counseling services to a variety of patients, including human trafficking survivors; the government did not report assisting any trafficking victims during the year.  In October 2022, the government opened a legal aid center to provide free legal advice, legal assistance, and legal representation in civil and criminal cases, including human trafficking, and provided legal counseling support to 174 previously identified trafficking survivors.  The government also provided skills training for trafficking survivors, including 19 participants in a floriculture program and 14 participants in a home and hospitality training.  The government continued to provide skills training and employment programs for former drayang employees – entertainment venues potentially linked to exploitative working conditions – following permanent closure of such venues in January 2022, although some women did not find these opportunities appealing.  The NCWC maintained a budget to assist vulnerable women and children, including trafficking victims.  The government reported services were available to all trafficking survivors; however, it did not report providing services to foreign victims during the year.RBP and other agencies could refer trafficking victims to the NCWC or NGOs for shelter accommodations.  Two NGO-run facilities provided counseling, medical services, children’s education, vocational training, and long-term shelter to men, women, and child victims of crime, including trafficking.  The government provided 600,000 Nu ($7,260) to two civil society organizations to operate a vocational center and supply basic amenities at a shelter home.The government offered some victim-witness assistance to support trafficking victims participating in investigations and prosecutions, including legal assistance.  Trafficking victims could provide testimony via video or written statement, and the electronic litigation system was available in all courts.  In addition, the penal code allowed human trafficking victims to file civil suits against traffickers and courts to order traffickers to pay appropriate damages and restitution for loss or injury caused to the victim.  The immigration department mandated authorities report suspected women and child trafficking victims identified within Bhutan to the NCWC for screening and protection services before initiating deportation for immigration violations.  Bhutanese law did not provide legal alternatives to the removal of trafficking victims to countries in which victims would face retribution or hardship.  The government continued to pursue a bilateral agreement, initiated in March 2021, with the Government of the United Arab Emirates to enhance collaboration, including protection of victims during repatriations.  However, the lack of formal diplomatic relationships or mutual law enforcement agreements with migrant worker destination countries hindered Bhutanese efforts.																																												PREVENTION						    																																															The government increased efforts to prevent human trafficking.  The DLO served as Bhutan’s lead anti-trafficking agency and led the government’s anti-trafficking task force, composed of government and civil society members.  The government continued to implement its national prevention strategy, published in July 2021.  The anti-trafficking task force also continued to implement its NAP, launched in January 2022, as part of the government’s broader prevention strategy.  The government allocated approximately 579,000 Nu ($7,000) to implement training and engagement programs.  Additionally, DLO allocated approximately 500,000 Nu ($6,050) for anti-trafficking awareness programs.  The government and civil society partners conducted awareness campaigns for students and the general public.  The government continued to fund a hotline staffed by counselors to support victims of gender-based violence, including trafficking survivors, and maintained district-level helplines operated by local officials and civil society organizations; the government did not report identifying any potential trafficking victims through the hotlines.  In February 2023, the government officially acceded to the UN TIP Protocol.The MOLHR registered foreign migrant workers in Bhutan, monitored working conditions, and produced and disseminated pamphlets advising workers of their rights.  The Department of Labor (DOL), within the MOLHR, reported screening for child labor and forced labor during inspections, although officials did not identify any potential cases.  DOL lacked sufficient funding to hold specific child labor inspections.  The government reported training nearly all labor inspectors and immigration officials on human trafficking.  The government did not report the number of labor inspections conducted, but reportedly focused inspections on industries with a history of labor disputes.  As in previous reporting periods, the government did not report the disposition of labor complaints, including whether it levied civil or criminal penalties.  The DOL generally mediated claims of nonpayment of wages, and did not refer violators to police for criminal investigation of potential forced labor offenses or penalize employers if they paid the outstanding wages.  The MOLHR did not have the ability to inspect private homes for labor violations under the national labor law, rendering domestic workers vulnerable to exploitation.Government regulations on overseas employment allowed most agents to charge Bhutanese migrant workers a recruitment fee of one month’s salary along with a limited number of recruitment expenses, except for costs associated with a visa or work permit.  Recruitment fees were not charged to Bhutanese workers who travelled overseas through direct placement programs or by Bhutanese companies who bring foreign workers to Bhutan.  The government maintained its policy requiring Bhutanese migrant workers to receive approval from the MOLHR prior to traveling overseas.  In December 2022, the Department of Employment and Entrepreneurship (DoEE) launched a national strategy on overseas employment with provisions to increase trafficking awareness among Bhutanese migrant workers.  The MOLHR required any Bhutanese traveling overseas for employment to participate in a predeparture orientation on human trafficking and the risks of overseas employment.  The MOLHR posted online announcements to warn potential migrant workers of false advertisements and to encourage applicants to verify job advertisements.  The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and External Trade had a trafficking-prevention brochure for migrants planning to travel for employment.  DOL implemented its foreign workers management strategy with a budget of 2.3 million Nu ($27,850) for the oversight of foreign workers in Bhutan.The MOLHR continued to monitor recruitment agencies that assisted Bhutanese citizens older than age 21 seeking work overseas.  The MOLHR could take action against agents conducting recruitment or placements without a license.  The MOLHR monitored Bhutan’s five licensed agencies while continuing to suspend registration of new labor recruitment agencies and agents.  The MOLHR reported that four registered Bhutanese Overseas Employment Agents (BOEAs) remained operational; the registration of new BOEAs remained on hold.  Labor regulations held BOEAs responsible for supporting migrants and fulfilling their contractual obligations even when agency registrations were suspended or terminated.  The DoEE monitored the registered BOEAs through site visits and written reports; the government did not identify any violations.  In August 2022, revisions to the regulations governing the oversight of foreign worker programs went into effect to align the regulations with Section 234 of the Labor and Employment Act of Bhutan 2007 to ensure fair recruitment processes, working conditions, and repatriation for Bhutanese migrant workers.  The Department of Adult and Higher Education (DAHE) warned job seekers and students to avoid unregistered labor and educational consultants.  In December 2022, DoEE launched a national strategy to provide career counseling to young job seekers transitioning from school to work, which included information on human trafficking.  In addition, the government created a new regulatory agency, the Bhutan Qualification and Professional Certification Authority, to supervise education consultancies and placement firms for Bhutanese students studying abroad.  The government also maintained a program for unemployed Bhutanese citizens designed to provide work and skills training, thereby reducing economic vulnerability to trafficking.The government conducted awareness events for local government and security officials.  The government did not make efforts to reduce the demand for commercial sex acts.  The government reported that diplomatic personnel received anti-trafficking training prior to transferring to foreign assignments.  The government reported it provided anti-trafficking training to its troops prior to their deployment as peacekeepers.																																												TRAFFICKING PROFILE:						    																																															As reported over the past five years, human traffickers exploit domestic and foreign victims in Bhutan, and traffickers exploit victims from Bhutan abroad.  Government quotas limit the number of Bhutanese seeking employment opportunities abroad in specific industries; many Bhutanese opt to travel via informal channels with increased risks of exploitation, including labor trafficking, to circumvent the limited number of available positions each year.  Many young Bhutanese, including recent graduates, lack economic opportunities and seek education or employment abroad, particularly in Australia and the Middle East, increasing vulnerability of exploitation by recruiters.  Unregistered and unscrupulous foreign employment recruitment agencies and sub-agents increasingly operate through social media to target unemployed or economically disadvantaged individuals.  Some traffickers posing as recruiters offer ostensibly well-paying jobs overseas but exploit Bhutanese in forced labor.  Although pandemic-related restrictions temporarily reduced the number of migrant workers, a growing number of Bhutanese citizens have resumed seeking employment abroad, particularly in the Gulf states.  In recent years, traffickers sent Bhutanese women to Iraq and Oman for forced labor in domestic work.  Bhutanese citizens continued to work abroad in the hospitality, retail, and service sectors through global training and placement academies.  Some participants reported indicators of trafficking, including illegal recruitment fees and wage deductions, restricted movement, passport retention, and nonpayment of wages.  Some agencies have subjected Bhutanese students in work-study programs in Japan and Malaysia with indicators of forced labor, including fraudulent contracts, nonpayment of wages, and passport retention.Traffickers exploit Bhutanese women and girls in sex and labor trafficking, including in forced domestic labor and caregiving, through debt bondage and threats of physical abuse.  Bhutanese women and girls working as entertainers in drayangs were vulnerable to labor and sex traffickers prior to the closure of the businesses nationwide in early 2022; drayang workers primarily came from lower socioeconomic groups and likely remain vulnerable to trafficking.  Media outlets and NGOs report commercial sex by Bhutanese and Indian women in the Bhutan-India border’s growing hospitality and entertainment districts &#8211; including hotels, massage parlors, and nightclubs &#8211; some of which might be forced.Media outlets have reported instances of child labor within Bhutan’s restaurant and automobile workshop industries, some of which had indicators of forced labor.  Relatives transport rural Bhutanese to urban areas for employment in domestic work, which at times may involve forced labor.  Bhutanese children with criminal records are particularly vulnerable to trafficking.Tens of thousands of foreign workers support the Bhutanese economy in government-approved job categories, particularly construction.  These low-skilled foreign workers, consisting mostly of men from India, are hired to work on public construction projects, including hydropower, and home building.  Migrant workers are usually recruited by foreign contractors and often receive advances before beginning work in Bhutan.  Some workers subsequently report unauthorized deductions and nonpayment of wages, or recruiters absconding with workers’ wages.  Foreign workers perform domestic work alongside Bhutanese nationals from rural areas despite the government’s prohibition on foreign nationals in domestic worker positions.  Some domestic workers are unpaid by employers, experience abuse and physical mistreatment, and cannot leave their employers or return home.  Traffickers have exploited Indian children as domestic workers in Bhutan.    Although the government issues permits to foreign workers, Bhutan’s more than 400-mile border with India remains highly porous despite the government’s efforts to monitor migration, leading to concerns about potential exploitation of unregistered migrant workers.&nbsp;																																				    							View report by:																				Afghanistan											Albania											Algeria											Angola											Antigua and Barbuda											Argentina											Armenia											Aruba											Australia											Austria											Azerbaijan											The Bahamas											Bahrain											Bangladesh											Barbados											Belarus											Belgium											Belize											Benin											Bhutan											Bolivia											Bosnia and Herzegovina											Botswana											Brazil											Brunei											Bulgaria											Burkina Faso											Burma											Burundi											Cabo Verde											Cambodia											Cameroon											Canada											Central African Republic											Chad											Chile											China											Colombia											Comoros											Costa Rica											Cote d&#8217;Ivoire											Croatia											Cuba											Curaçao											Cyprus											Czech Republic											Democratic Republic of the Congo											Denmark											Djibouti											Dominican Republic											Ecuador											Egypt											El Salvador											Equatorial Guinea											Eritrea											Estonia											Eswatini											Ethiopia											Fiji											Finland											France											Gabon											The Gambia											Georgia											Germany											Ghana											Greece											Guatemala											Guinea											Guinea-Bissau											Guyana											Haiti											Honduras											Hong Kong											Hungary											Iceland											India											Indonesia											Iran											Iraq											Ireland											Israel, West Bank and Gaza											Italy											Jamaica											Japan											Jordan											Kazakhstan											Kenya											Kosovo											Kuwait											Kyrgyzstan											Laos											Latvia											Lebanon											Lesotho											Liberia											Libya											Lithuania											Luxembourg											Macau											Madagascar											Malawi											Malaysia											Maldives											Mali											Malta											Marshall Islands											Mauritania											Mauritius											Mexico											Micronesia, Federated States of											Moldova											Mongolia											Montenegro											Morocco											Mozambique											Namibia											Nepal											Netherlands											New Zealand											Nicaragua											Niger											Nigeria											North Korea											North Macedonia											Norway											Oman											Pakistan											Palau											Panama											Papua New Guinea											Paraguay											Peru											Philippines											Poland											Portugal											Qatar											Republic of the Congo											Romania											Russia											Rwanda											Saint Lucia											Saint Vincent and the Grenadines											Saudi Arabia											Senegal											Serbia											Seychelles											Sierra Leone											Singapore											Sint Maarten											Slovakia											Slovenia											Solomon Islands											Somalia											South Africa											South Korea											South Sudan											Spain											Sri Lanka											Sudan											Suriname											Sweden											Switzerland											Syria											Taiwan											Tajikistan											Tanzania											Thailand											Timor-Leste											Togo											Tonga											Trinidad and Tobago											Tunisia											Turkey											Turkmenistan											Uganda											Ukraine											United Arab Emirates											United Kingdom											United States											Uruguay											Uzbekistan											Vanuatu											Venezuela											Vietnam											Yemen											Zambia											Zimbabwe																										On This Page				search													>																										BHUTAN (Tier 2)																PRIORITIZED RECOMMENDATIONS:																																																	PROSECUTION																																																	PROTECTION																																																	PREVENTION																																																	TRAFFICKING PROFILE:																																																							Tags																					Bhutan																								Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs																																Human Trafficking																															Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons
- Bhutan HomeReportsOffice of International Religious Freedom2022 Report on International Religious Freedom&#8230;Bhutan				hide	document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", function(event) {	if(window.jQuery) {		jQuery( document ).ready(function() {			if (jQuery(".bc_middle").hasClass("collapse")) {				jQuery(".bc_ellipse").click(function(){					jQuery(".bc_hide").toggleClass("visible");					jQuery(".bc_middle").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_ellipse").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_content").toggleClass("noflex");					jQuery(".block_breadcrumbs_content").toggleClass("noflex");				});				jQuery(".bc_hide").click(function(){					jQuery(".bc_hide").toggleClass("visible");					jQuery(".bc_middle").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_ellipse").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_content").toggleClass("noflex");					jQuery(".block_breadcrumbs_content").toggleClass("noflex");				});			} else {				jQuery(".bc_ellipse").hide();			}		});	}});																							2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Bhutan																																					Office of International Religious Freedom																																																																																							Download Report																																																																																	 In this section										/																							Executive Summary																																													Executive Summary																															Section I. Religious Demography																																																																																		Section II. Status of Government Respect for Religious Freedom																																																									Government Practices																																																																											Legal Framework																																																																																	Section III. Status of Societal Respect for Religious Freedom																																																																																		Section IV. U.S. Government Policy and Engagement																																																																																																								Executive Summary				The constitution recognizes Buddhism as the state’s “spiritual heritage,” provides for freedom of religion, and bans discrimination based on religious belief.  The constitution states religious institutions and personalities shall remain “above politics.”  The law restricts religious speech and written communication promoting enmity among religious groups and requires religious groups to obtain licenses to hold public religious gatherings.The government’s Commission for Religious Organizations (CRO) did not approve any new religious groups during the year.  Unregistered religious groups, including Christians, reported being able to worship in private, although unregistered groups were not permitted to organize publicly, own property, raise funds, conduct outreach activities, or import literature.  In its most recent annual report, the international Christian NGO Open Doors alleged discrimination against Christians, stating that local authorities often refused to issue Christians with a non-objection certificate, which was needed for loan applications, registering property, applying for jobs and the renewal of identification cards.  Christian pastors said that their congregations no longer experienced difficulties in obtaining these certificates.  Christian groups continued to report that their primary concern remained the inability to acquire burial plots and the lack of a governmental process to do so.  Members of the Hindu Dharmic Samudaya, one of eight religious organizations on the CRO’s board, noted strong official support for Hindu religious practice.  The Hindu Devi Panchayan Temple in Thimphu, funded by the government, approved by the King, and consecrated in 2019, formally opened on September 23.Open Doors said converts to Christianity faced intense pressure to return to their former religion, especially from their relatives, who viewed their conversions as bringing shame to their entire family.The United States does not have formal diplomatic relations with Bhutan; the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi oversees unofficial bilateral relations.  In three visits to the country during the year, U.S. embassy personnel engaged government officials on religious freedom issues, including the country’s religious landscape, the current status of religious minority groups, and government policies related to religious freedom.  They also met with community and religious leaders and individuals from the country’s religious minority communities.																														Section I.													 Religious Demography												    																																															The U.S. government estimates the total population at 867,775 (midyear 2022).  The National Statistics Bureau of Bhutan estimates the total population to be approximately 763,000 as of 2022.  According to a 2012 report by the Pew Research Center, approximately 75 percent of the population follows Buddhism, and 23 percent are Hindu.  Hindus reside mostly in southern areas adjacent to India.  A 2020 report by the World Christian Database estimated that Buddhists comprised 83 percent of the population and Hindus 11 percent in 2019.The World Christian Database estimated that Christians comprised 2.3 percent of the population in 2019.  Christian pastors said in September that an estimated 20,000 to 30,000 Christians resided in the country, spread among 250 congregations, mostly in towns in the south.  According to scholars, although individuals often combine Bon (an indigenous Tibetan religious tradition) practices with Buddhist practices, very few citizens adhere exclusively to this religious tradition.  The Sharchop ethnic group, which makes up the majority of the population in the east, practices elements of Tibetan Buddhism combined with elements of the Bon tradition and Hinduism, according to scholars.Before the COVID-19 pandemic, India’s Ministry of External Affairs estimated that 60,000 Indian nationals lived in the country (as of 2019).  Since then, with some Indian residents leaving the country and the government restricting entry for most foreign workers in 2020, 2021, and most of 2022, the overall number of foreign workers is much smaller, around 18,000, with Indian residents the majority.  While there is no data on their religious affiliation, most foreign workers remaining from India are likely Hindu and, in fewer numbers, Muslim.																																					Section II.													 Status of Government Respect for Religious Freedom												    																																																Government Practices										No religious organizations applied to register in 2022 and 2021; 14 applied to register in 2020.  There was no information available regarding the composition of the 14 groups.  At the end of 2022, there were 139 religious organizations registered with the government:  137 Buddhist and two Hindu.  The CRO took no action on any pending Christian church registration requests.  The government did not offer any official explanation to applicants.Unregistered religious groups, including Christians, reported being able to worship in private, although unregistered groups were not permitted to organize publicly, own property, raise funds, conduct outreach activities, or import literature.Christian groups continued to report that their primary concern remained the inability to acquire burial plots and the lack of a governmental process to do so.  Some groups consequently buried their dead in undeveloped areas away from settlements.  One Christian group said there was no official directive requiring cremation of the dead, but that due to widespread cultural practice, government officials generally assumed that cremation would be practiced by all groups, including Christians.  Pastors said that Christians had little influence on this issue.Christian pastors stated their congregations no longer experienced difficulties in obtaining the “nonobjection certificates” from local authorities required for loan and employment applications, property registration, and renewing identification cards.  The pastors said this had not been an issue “for a while.”The government continued its financial assistance for the construction of Buddhist temples and shrines as well as funding for Buddhist monks and monasteries.  The Hindu Devi Panchayan Temple in Thimphu, funded by the government, approved by the King, and consecrated in 2019, formally opened on September 23.  According to the NGO Minority Rights Group International, authorities gave Buddhist temples priority over Hindu temples in the licensing process.The government reopened borders in September and loosened most restrictions on religious and other public gatherings that had been in place during the year because of the COVID-19 pandemic.Some courts and other government institutions remained housed in or adjacent to Buddhist monasteries.  Some religious groups stated that government ceremonies continued to involve mandatory Buddhist prayer rituals.The government continued to recognize significant Buddhist and Hindu religious holidays as public holidays.  The government did not recognize any Christian holidays as public holidays.Members of the Hindu Dharmic Samudaya continued to cite strong official support for Hindu religious practice.																																				Legal Framework										The constitution recognizes Buddhism as the state’s “spiritual heritage” and stipulates it is “the responsibility of all religious institutions and personalities to promote the spiritual heritage of the country.”  The constitution provides for freedom of thought, conscience, and religion and bans discrimination based on faith.  The constitution says the King must be Buddhist and requires the King to be the “protector of all religions.”The constitution also states, “No person shall be compelled to belong to another faith by means of coercion or inducement.”  The Religious Organizations Act states, “No religious organization shall compel any person to belong to another faith by providing reward or inducement for a person to belong to another faith.”  The penal code criminalizes “coercion or inducement to convert” as a misdemeanor, punishable by up to three years’ imprisonment.  Neither “coercion” nor “inducement to convert” is defined in law or regulation.The law prohibits oral and written communication “promoting enmity among religious groups” and provides for sentences of up to three years’ imprisonment for violations.The penal code states individuals found guilty of promoting civil unrest by advocating “religious abhorrence,” disturbing public tranquility, or committing an act “prejudicial to the maintenance of harmony” among religious groups shall be subject to punishment of five to nine years’ imprisonment.The law requires religious groups to register with the CRO.  To register, a religious group must submit an application demonstrating its leaders are citizens of the country and disclosing their educational backgrounds and financial assets.  The law also specifies the organizational structure, bylaws, and procedural rules for registered religious organizations.  It prohibits religious organizations from “violating the spiritual heritage” of the country and requires them to protect and promote it.  The law also states no religious organization shall do anything to impair the sovereignty, security, unity, or territorial integrity of the country.  It mandates that the CRO certify that religious groups applying for registration meet the specified requirements.Registered religious groups may raise funds for religious activities and are exempt from taxes.  Registered groups require approval from local government authorities to hold public meetings outside of their registered facilities and must seek approval from the Ministry of Home and Cultural Affairs to invite foreign speakers or receive foreign funds.Unregistered religious groups may not organize public religious services, own property, raise funds, conduct outreach activities, or import literature.  Penalties for unregistered organizations performing these activities range from fines to prison terms, depending on the offense.  The law states it is an offense for a religious group to provide false or misleading information in its religious teachings, to misuse investments, or to raise funds illegally.  The CRO has the authority to determine whether the content of a group’s religious teachings is false or misleading and whether it has raised funds illegally.  Sanctions include fines and potential revocation of registration.The law states that the CRO shall consist of an eight-member board responsible for overseeing the structure of religious institutions, enforcing the constitutional separation between the government and religious organizations, and monitoring religious fundraising activities.  The chairperson of the board is a cabinet minister appointed by the Prime Minister.  A senior official from the Ministry of Finance and one of the King’s appointees to the National Council also sit on the board.  The director of culture in the Ministry of Home Affairs serves ex officio as secretary.  Heads of Buddhist religious organizations and the Hindu Dharma Samudaya, a registered Hindu organization, occupy the remaining seats.  There are no set term limits for the CRO.  The law requires the CRO to “ensure that religious institutions and personalities promote the spiritual heritage of the country” by developing a society “rooted in Buddhist ethos.”The constitution states the King shall appoint the chief abbot of the country’s Central Monastic Body (CMB), on the advice of the five masters of the Buddhist monastic body.  Those individuals and a civil servant administrative secretary make up the Commission for Monastic Affairs, which manages issues related to Buddhist doctrine.  There are no set term limits for the CMB.  The constitution says the state will provide funds and “facilities” to the CMB.The law permits the government to “avoid breaches of the peace” by requiring licenses for public assembly, prohibiting assembly in designated areas, and imposing curfews.  The government may apply these measures to groups and organizations of all kinds, including religious groups.Government approval is required to construct religious buildings.  By law, all buildings, including religious structures, must adhere to traditional architectural standards.  The CRO determines conformity with these standards.The constitution states that religious institutions and personalities have the responsibility to ensure that “religion remains separate from politics in Bhutan.”  It also states, “Religious institutions and personalities shall remain above politics.”  The law also prohibits religious organizations from involvement in political activity.  Ordained members of the clergy of any religion may not engage in political activities, including running for office and voting.The country is not a party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.																																					Section III.													 Status of Societal Respect for Religious Freedom												    																																															Some converts reported continued societal pressure on individuals to participate in Buddhist traditions and practices.  A Christian foreign resident saw this as an outgrowth of the influence of Buddhist culture and traditions in all aspects of society, rather than an effort to discriminate against Christian citizens.  Other Christians said there was societal suspicion against them, including that Christians used financial incentives in proselytizing.  An Open Doors report covering 2022 said converts to Christianity faced intense pressure to return to their former religion, especially from relatives who viewed the conversions as bringing shame to their entire family.  The NGO characterized persecution of Christians in the country as “very high.”  The Open Doors report stated that anyone who left Buddhism was viewed with suspicion by neighbors and friends and that family members went to great lengths to bring converts back to their original faith.  One local Christian group said views on conversion differed across regions of the country, with pressure to return to Buddhism likely higher in rural areas.  Christian pastors said that their congregations responded to incidents of social stigma in their communities by citing the constitutional protections of freedom of religion and public statements by the King in 2019 in support of freedom of religion.  One Christian pastor explained that having public figures who are Christian, including a former cabinet minister, was improving how Christians were perceived, but that change will happen slowly.On June 21, the senior Buddhist authority in the country ordained a group of 144 women as bhikshunis, or female monks, at the Ramthangkha monastery.  International Buddhist observers said the ceremony was “of historical importance for all women in Buddhism and brings Tibetan Buddhism into the 21st century.”  According to RNS Religious News Service, such ordinations had taken place in the past, but not on this scale.																																					Section IV.													 U.S. Government Policy and Engagement												    																																															The United States does not have formal diplomatic relations with Bhutan.  The U.S. Embassy in New Delhi oversees unofficial bilateral relations.  During the year, embassy representatives visited Bhutan three times and engaged government officials on religious freedom issues, including the country’s religious landscape, the current status of religious minority groups, and government policies related to religious freedom.  They also met with leaders from the country’s religious minority communities, including Christian pastors and residents.  Specific topics of discussion included reports of societal discrimination against minority faiths and the effect of COVID-19 pandemic rules on religious practices and worship.&nbsp;																																				    							View report by:																				Afghanistan											Albania											Algeria											Andorra											Angola											Antigua and Barbuda											Argentina											Armenia											Australia											Austria											Azerbaijan											Bahamas, The											Bahrain											Bangladesh											Barbados											Belarus											Belgium											Belize											Benin											Bhutan											Bolivia											Bosnia and Herzegovina											Botswana											Brazil											Brunei											Bulgaria											Burkina Faso											Burma											Burundi											Cabo Verde											Cambodia											Cameroon											Canada											Central African Republic											Chad											Chile											China (Includes Hong Kong, Macau, Tibet, and Xinjiang)											Colombia											Comoros											Costa Rica											Cote d’Ivoire											Croatia											Cuba											Cyprus											Czech Republic											Democratic Republic of the Congo											Denmark											Djibouti											Dominica											Dominican Republic											Ecuador											Egypt											El Salvador											Equatorial Guinea											Eritrea											Estonia											Eswatini											Ethiopia											Fiji											Finland											France											Gabon											Gambia, The											Georgia											Germany											Ghana											Greece											Grenada											Guatemala											Guinea											Guyana											Guinea-Bissau											Haiti											Honduras											Hungary											Iceland											India											Indonesia											Iran											Iraq											Ireland											Israel, West Bank and Gaza											Italy											Jamaica											Japan											Jordan											Kazakhstan											Kenya											Kiribati											Kosovo											Kuwait											Kyrgyzstan											Laos											Latvia											Lebanon											Lesotho											Liberia											Libya											Liechtenstein											Lithuania											Luxembourg											Madagascar											Malawi											Malaysia											Maldives											Mali											Malta											Marshall Islands											Mauritania											Mauritius											Mexico											Micronesia											Moldova											Monaco											Mongolia											Montenegro											Morocco											Mozambique											Namibia											Nauru											Nepal											Netherlands											New Zealand											Nicaragua											Niger											Nigeria											North Korea											North Macedonia											Norway											Oman											Pakistan											Palau											Panama											Papua New Guinea											Paraguay											Peru											Philippines											Poland											Portugal											Qatar											Republic of the Congo											Romania											Russia											Rwanda											Saint Kitts and Nevis											Saint Lucia											Saint Vincent and the Grenadines											Samoa											San Marino											Sao Tome and Principe											Saudi Arabia											Senegal											Serbia											Seychelles											Sierra Leone											Singapore											Slovakia											Slovenia											Solomon Islands											Somalia											South Africa											South Sudan											South Korea											Spain											Sri Lanka											Sudan											Suriname											Sweden											Switzerland											Syria											Taiwan											Tajikistan											Tanzania											Thailand											Timor-Leste											Togo											Tonga											Trinidad and Tobago											Tunisia											Turkey (Türkiye)											Turkmenistan											Tuvalu											Uganda											Ukraine											United Arab Emirates											United Kingdom											Uruguay											Uzbekistan											Vanuatu											Venezuela											Vietnam											Vietnam											Yemen											Zambia											Zimbabwe															Build A Custom Report																						On This Page				search													>																										Executive Summary																Section I. Religious Demography																																																	Section II. Status of Government Respect for Religious Freedom																																							Government Practices																																																						Legal Framework																																																			Section III. Status of Societal Respect for Religious Freedom																																																	Section IV. U.S. Government Policy and Engagement																																																							Tags																					Bhutan																								Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs																								Office of International Religious Freedom																																Religious Freedom
- Bhutan HomeReportsBureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor2022 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices&#8230;Bhutan				hide	document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", function(event) {	if(window.jQuery) {		jQuery( document ).ready(function() {			if (jQuery(".bc_middle").hasClass("collapse")) {				jQuery(".bc_ellipse").click(function(){					jQuery(".bc_hide").toggleClass("visible");					jQuery(".bc_middle").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_ellipse").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_content").toggleClass("noflex");					jQuery(".block_breadcrumbs_content").toggleClass("noflex");				});				jQuery(".bc_hide").click(function(){					jQuery(".bc_hide").toggleClass("visible");					jQuery(".bc_middle").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_ellipse").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_content").toggleClass("noflex");					jQuery(".block_breadcrumbs_content").toggleClass("noflex");				});			} else {				jQuery(".bc_ellipse").hide();			}		});	}});																							2022 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices: Bhutan																																					Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor																																																																																							Download Report																																																							Translations																																																																 In this section										/																							EXECUTIVE SUMMARY																																													EXECUTIVE SUMMARY																															Section 1. Respect for the Integrity of the Person																																																									a. Arbitrary Deprivation of Life and Other Unlawful or Politically Motivated Killings																																																																											b. Disappearance																																																																											c. Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, and Other Related Abuses																																																																			Prison and Detention Center Conditions																																																																																																																		d. Arbitrary Arrest or Detention																																																																			Arrest Procedures and Treatment of Detainees																																																																																																																		e. Denial of Fair Public Trial																																																																			Trial Procedures																																																								Political Prisoners and Detainees																																																								Civil Judicial Procedures and Remedies																																																																																																																		f. Arbitrary or Unlawful Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or Correspondence																																																																																	Section 2. Respect for Civil Liberties																																																									a. Freedom of Expression, Including for Members of the Press and Other Media																																																																			Internet Freedom																																																																																																																		b. Freedoms of Peaceful Assembly and Association																																																																			Freedom of Association																																																																																																																		c. Freedom of Religion																																																																											d. Freedom of Movement and the Right to Leave the Country																																																																											e. Protection of Refugees																																																																											f. Status and Treatment of Internally Displaced Persons																																																																											g. Stateless Persons																																																																																	Section 3. Freedom to Participate in the Political Process																																																																												Elections and Political Participation																																																																																	Section 4. Corruption and Lack of Transparency in Government																																																																																		Section 5. Governmental Posture Towards International and Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Abuses of Human Rights																																																																																		Section 6. Discrimination and Societal Abuses																																																									Women																																																																											Systemic Racial or Ethnic Violence and Discrimination																																																																											Children																																																																											Antisemitism																																																																											Trafficking in Persons																																																																											Acts of Violence, Criminalization, and Other Abuses Based on Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity or Expression, or Sex Characteristics																																																																											Persons with Disabilities																																																																											Other Societal Violence or Discrimination																																																																																	Section 7. Worker Rights																																																									a. Freedom of Association and the Right to Collective Bargaining																																																																											b. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor																																																																											c. Prohibition of Child Labor and Minimum Age for Employment																																																																											d. Discrimination with Respect to Employment and Occupation																																																																											e. Acceptable Conditions of Work																																																																																																							EXECUTIVE SUMMARY				Bhutan is a democratic constitutional monarchy with King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck as head of state and Prime Minister Lotay Tshering as head of government. In 2018 the country held its third general elections; approximately 71 percent of eligible voters cast their ballots. International election observers reported the elections were generally free and fair.The Royal Bhutan Police is responsible for internal security. The Royal Bhutan Army is responsible for defending against external threats and has responsibility for some internal security functions, including counterinsurgency operations, protection of forests, and security for prominent persons. The Royal Bhutan Police reports to the Ministry of Home and Cultural Affairs, while the king is the supreme commander in chief of the Royal Bhutan Army. Civilian authorities maintained effective control over the security forces. There were no reports that members of the security forces committed abuses.Significant human rights issues included credible reports of: restrictions on domestic freedom of movement and residence; and trafficking in persons.The government took steps to identify, investigate, prosecute, and punish officials who committed human rights abuses or engaged in corrupt practices.																														Section 1.													 Respect for the Integrity of the Person												    																																																a. Arbitrary Deprivation of Life and Other Unlawful or Politically Motivated Killings										There were no reports that the government or its agents committed arbitrary or unlawful killings.																																				b. Disappearance										There were no reports of disappearances by or on behalf of government authorities.																																				c. Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, and Other Related Abuses										The constitution prohibits such practices, and there were no credible reports that government officials employed them.																Prison and Detention Center Conditions						There were no significant reports regarding prison or detention center conditions that raised human rights concerns.Administration:  Police administered the prison system.  Authorities conducted investigations of credible allegations of mistreatment.Independent Monitoring:  The government permitted monitoring by independent nongovernmental observers in past years.  Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, however, there were no monitoring visits this year.																										d. Arbitrary Arrest or Detention										The law prohibits arbitrary arrest and detention and provides for the right of any person to challenge the lawfulness of his or her arrest or detention in court.  The government generally observed these requirements.																Arrest Procedures and Treatment of Detainees						By law, police may arrest a person if they have probable cause or a court-issued arrest warrant.  Authorities generally respected the law.  Police may conduct “stop and frisk” searches only if they believe that a crime has been committed.  Arresting authorities must issue an immediate statement of charges and engage in reasonable efforts to inform the family of the accused.  The law requires authorities to bring an arrested person before a court within 24 hours, exclusive of travel time from the place of arrest.The law provides for prompt access to a lawyer and government provision of an attorney for indigent clients.  Bail was available depending on the severity of charges and the suspect’s criminal record, flight risk, and potential threat to the public.  In addition, bail may be granted after the execution of a bail bond agreement.  Police may hold remanded suspects for 10 days pending investigation, which courts may extend to 49 days.  In cases of “heinous” crimes, this period may be extended to 108 days, should the investigating officer show adequate grounds.  The law expressly prohibits pretrial detention beyond 118 days.  The law empowers the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) to order the arrest of a person who committed, or who was about to commit, a corruption-related offense.  The UN Working Group found that while there were some dedicated pretrial detention facilities for children, there were no dedicated pretrial detention facilities for adults.  Police held pretrial detainees in police stations where pretrial detainees comprised the largest number of persons being held.																										e. Denial of Fair Public Trial										The law provides for an independent judiciary, and the government generally respected judicial independence and impartiality.  The country’s courts generally functioned effectively, although Freedom House in its Freedom in the World 2021 report stated the rulings of judges “often lack consistency, and many in the public view the judiciary as corrupt.”																Trial Procedures						The law provides for the right to a fair and public trial, and the judiciary generally enforced this right.  According to testimonies received by the UN Working Group, most defendants in criminal matters did not have access to legal representation at crucial stages of their proceedings:  following arrest, during pretrial detention, and during their trial and appeal.  Detainees were generally not aware of their right to a lawyer because they had not been informed of this right by police.						Political Prisoners and Detainees						There were no reports of political prisoners or detainees.						Civil Judicial Procedures and Remedies						The constitution provides the right to initiate proceedings for the enforcement of “fundamental rights” enumerated within its text, and individuals and organizations may seek civil remedies for human rights violations through domestic courts.  The law governs the resolution of criminal trials and civil litigation and states a suit may be initiated by a litigant or a member of the litigant’s family.  The law also provides for compensation to those detained or subjected to unlawful detention but later acquitted.																										f. Arbitrary or Unlawful Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or Correspondence										The constitution prohibits such actions, and the government generally respected these prohibitions; however, citizens seeking to marry noncitizens require government permission.																																					Section 2.													 Respect for Civil Liberties												    																																																a. Freedom of Expression, Including for Members of the Press and Other Media										The constitution provides for freedom of expression, including for members of the press and other media, and the government generally respected this right.  An independent press, an effective judiciary, and a functioning democratic political system contributed to freedom of expression, including for members of media.Independent media were active and generally expressed a variety of views.  The law does not provide specific protections for journalists or stipulate freedom of information, but there were no official restrictions on media.  The law prohibits media outlets from affiliating with political parties and prohibits outlets from endorsing candidates during election periods.Libel/Slander Laws:  Conviction of defamation may carry criminal penalties.  There was one case of defamation brought by the government during the year, which was dismissed by the High Court.																Internet Freedom						The government did not restrict or disrupt access to the internet or censor online content, and there were no credible reports that the government monitored private online communications without appropriate legal authority.																										b. Freedoms of Peaceful Assembly and Association										The law includes provisions for the government to restrict freedoms of peaceful assembly and association, although such measures were not implemented during the year.																Freedom of Association						The constitution provides for freedom of association, and the government respected it.  The government permitted, pursuant to relevant election laws, the registration of political parties and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) deemed “not harmful to the peace and unity of the country.”  According to the Freedom in the World 2022 report, local and international NGOs worked with relative freedom from official scrutiny, except for NGOs working on the status of Nepali-speaking refugees (see also section 5).  By law, all NGOs must be registered with the government by a Bhutanese citizen.  That person must disclose his or her family income and assets, provide his or her educational qualifications, and disclose any criminal record.																										c. Freedom of Religion										See the Department of State’s International Religious Freedom Report at  www.state.gov/religiousfreedomreport/																																				d. Freedom of Movement and the Right to Leave the Country										The law provides for freedom of internal movement, foreign travel, emigration, and repatriation, but the government limited freedom of movement and repatriation for some groups.In-country Movement: The law establishes categories of residency, which determine whether a person requires a “route permit” to travel internally. Travel restrictions primarily affected resident foreigners, sometimes including the children of foreigners married to Bhutanese citizens.Exile: The government continued to delay consideration of claims for residency by refugees in Nepal. Bhutan was the original source of these refugees when, in the early 1990s, the government of Bhutan forced between 80,000 and 100,000 Nepali-speaking residents to leave Bhutan, following a series of decisions taken during the 1970s and 1980s establishing legal requirements for citizenship that excluded them.After years of international efforts resulting in third-country resettlement of more than 100,000 refugees and their descendants, the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reported that as of the end of the year, approximately 6,300 Nepali-speaking refugees from Bhutan remained in the two refugee camps UNHCR administers in Nepal. Approximately one-third of these refugees expressed interest in returning to Bhutan; however, there was no evidence the government accepted any applications by these refugees to return to Bhutan.Citizenship: The citizenship of any naturalized citizen may also be revoked if that naturalized citizen “has shown by act or speech to be disloyal in any manner whatsoever to the king, country, and people.”																																				e. Protection of Refugees										The government cooperated with UNHCR and other humanitarian organizations in providing protection and assistance to refugees, returning refugees, or asylum seekers, as well as other persons of concern.Access to Asylum: The law does not provide for the granting of asylum or refugee status, and the government has not established a system for providing protection to refugees; however, some refugees were deemed eligible for and received residence permits.In the 1960s, the country sheltered Tibetan refugees who were initially located in seven settlements. According to the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA), the self-described “Tibetan exile administration” based in Dharamshala, India, a total of 1,298 Tibetan refugees lived in Bhutan in the year, compared with 1,847 persons in 2021.Freedom of Movement: Some restrictions on movement exist based on categories of residency. Many Tibetan refugees faced obstacles in obtaining travel permits. There were reports the government did not provide the travel documents necessary for Tibetan refugees to travel beyond India.Access to Basic Services: The government stated Tibetan refugees had the same access to government-provided health care and education as citizens. There were reports, however, that some Tibetans were not permitted to enroll in public secondary and higher-level schools because they lacked security clearance certificates.Durable Solutions: The Tibetan refugee population has been decreasing as Tibetan refugees obtain Bhutanese citizenship, according to the Department of Immigration.																																				f. Status and Treatment of Internally Displaced Persons										Not applicable.																																				g. Stateless Persons										For a child to qualify for citizenship, both parents must be Bhutanese citizens. NGOs and media sources highlighted the existence of stateless children born to unwed mothers who were unable to prove the identity of the child’s father.Stateless persons are not eligible to obtain “no objection certificates” and police security clearance certificates, which were often necessary for access to public health care, employment, access to primary and secondary education, enrollment at institutions of higher education, travel documents, and business ownership. The National Commission for Women and Children (NCWC) stated, however, that children without citizenship were eligible for public educational and health services.																																					Section 3.													 Freedom to Participate in the Political Process												    																																															The constitution provides citizens the ability to choose their government in free and fair periodic elections held by secret ballot and based on universal and equal suffrage.																																				Elections and Political Participation										Recent Elections: In 2018, the government successfully held national elections. Voter participation was estimated at approximately 66 percent in the first (primary) round and 71 percent in the second (general) round. International observers generally considered the elections free and fair. There were no reports of significant irregularities during the election process.Participation of Women and Members of Minority Groups: No law limits participation of women or members of historically marginalized groups in the political process, and they did participate. The law prohibits ordained members of the clergy, including Buddhist monks and nuns, from voting or participating in politics.																																					Section 4.													 Corruption and Lack of Transparency in Government												    																																															The law provides criminal penalties for corruption by officials and the government generally implemented the law effectively.  There were isolated reports of government corruption during the year.Corruption:  On August 22, a district court sentenced the former head of the Board of the National Cottage and Small Industry Development Bank and a contractor to three and one-half years each in prison for bribery.																																					Section 5.													 Governmental Posture Towards International and Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Abuses of Human Rights												    																																															Domestic and international human rights groups generally operated without government restriction, including when investigating and publishing their findings on human rights cases.  Government officials were somewhat cooperative and responsive to their views.According to international NGOs, local civil society organizations (CSOs) practiced self-censorship to avoid working on matters perceived as sensitive by the government, including women’s rights, the environment, and human rights problems related to the Nepali-speaking community.  The government did not permit human rights groups established by the Nepali-speaking community to operate because these groups were categorized as political organizations that did not promote national unity.Government Human Rights Bodies:  The National Assembly’s Human Rights Committee conducted human rights research on behalf of the National Assembly.  The National Commission for Women and Children is the government body responsible for promoting the welfare of women and children and does grassroots work on topics ranging from gender-based violence to economic empowerment.																																					Section 6.													 Discrimination and Societal Abuses												    																																																Women										Rape and Domestic Violence: The law criminalizes rape and makes no reference to gender in its definition of rape. In cases of rape involving minors, sentences for conviction range from five to 15 years in prison. In extreme cases, a person convicted of rape may be imprisoned for life. Spousal rape is illegal and prosecuted as a misdemeanor. In January, the NCWC published the Standard Operating Procedure for Gender&#8211;Based Violence Prevention and Response, which lays out policies and procedures related to gender-based violence and the roles and responsibilities of the government and civil society in combating it.The law prohibits domestic violence, including physical and sexual abuse. Physical abuse is prosecuted as battery; penalties for convicted perpetrators range from one month to three years’ imprisonment. Sexual abuse is prosecuted as a corresponding sexual offense and is punishable by three to 15 years imprisonment. The law provides for increased sentences for conviction of second (and subsequent) domestic violence offenses.Three police stations had protection units to address crimes involving women and children, and 11 police stations had officers specifically devoted to women and children’s matters. The government operated a dedicated toll-free helpline to report violence against women and children. The government trained police on gender abuse matters and cooperated with CSOs that undertook further efforts, including operation of a crisis and rehabilitation center. Freedom House reported that cultural taboos resulted in the underreporting of domestic violence.Sexual Harassment: The law includes specific provisions that criminalize sexual harassment in the workplace. NGOs reported these provisions were generally enforced. According to UNICEF, the Royal Civil Service Commission operated the Civil Service Support Desk to address sexual harassment in the civil service. The commission designated points of contact to assist civil servants who experienced sexual harassment in the workplace. The NCWC is implementing an internal framework to address gender matters in the workplace, including preventing and responding to sexual harassment. Approximately 29 government agencies and local governments have adopted the framework. The NCWC and Royal Civil Service Commission conducted awareness programs on sexual harassment and related legislations.Reproductive Rights: There were no reports of coerced abortion or involuntary sterilization on the part of government authorities.A lack of awareness of comprehensive sexual and reproductive health care contributed to unplanned early pregnancies, post-pregnancy complications, child abandonment, and financial instability. The World Bank reported equity and access to medical care for pregnant women in some remote rural areas was a challenge because of difficult terrain, leading to disparities in access to skilled birth attendants. The government provided access to sexual and reproductive health services for survivors of sexual violence, including emergency contraception, however emergency contraception was not available as part of the clinical management of rape.Discrimination: The law mandates the government eliminate all forms of discrimination and exploitation of women and girls, including trafficking, abuse, violence, harassment, and intimidation, at work and at home. The government generally enforced this law. The law is gender neutral and provides equal rights of property inheritance to female spouses and children.																																				Systemic Racial or Ethnic Violence and Discrimination										The constitution states no person shall be discriminated against based on race, sex, language, religion, or politics.Although the country does not have an omnibus civil rights act, there are provisions prohibiting discrimination spread throughout various other acts. The law prohibits discrimination in the civil service in the areas of employment and career advancement. For example, the law states, “All eligible Bhutanese citizens shall have equal opportunity for employment and career advancement in the Civil Service on the basis of merit, qualification, fair and open competition without discrimination on the grounds of race, sex, language, religion, and other status.” The government generally enforced these laws and regulations.In its Freedom in the World 2022 report, Freedom House noted ethnic Nepali residents often could not obtain a police security clearance certificate; without that certificate, they faced difficulties in starting a business, enrolling in higher education, or obtaining passports or government jobs, and the process of registering property could also be lengthy for them. The government did not permit NGOs to work on matters involving the status of ethnic Nepalis. Ethnic Nepalis sometimes faced employment discrimination (see section 7.d.).																																				Children										Birth Registration: Under the constitution, a child born to parents who are both citizens by birth or by naturalization acquires citizenship. Birth registration was provided on a nondiscriminatory basis.Education: The government provided 11 years of universal free education to children, but education was not compulsory.Child Abuse: The law prohibits child abuse and provides for a range of penalties for conviction, depending on the type of abuse. In June, the High Court convicted a schoolteacher for child molestation and official misconduct and ordered prison sentences of three years and one year, respectively, for these offenses.Child, Early, and Forced Marriage: The statutory minimum age of marriage is 18 for men and women.Sexual Exploitation of Children: The law prohibits the commercial sexual exploitation of children, including child pornography, child sex trafficking, and the sale of children. Authorities generally enforced the law. The legal age of consent is 16 for both boys and girls.																																				Antisemitism										The country does not have a Jewish population and there were no reports of antisemitic acts.																																				Trafficking in Persons										See the Department of State’s Trafficking in Persons Report at  https://www.state.gov/trafficking-in-persons-report/.																																				Acts of Violence, Criminalization, and Other Abuses Based on Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity or Expression, or Sex Characteristics										Criminalization: The law does not criminalize consensual same-sex sexual conduct.Violence Against LGBTQI+ Persons: There were no reports of violence by government agents against lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersex (LGBTQI+) persons.Discrimination: The constitution provides for equal protection and application of rights but neither the constitution nor legislation explicitly protects individuals from discrimination based on their sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or sex characteristics. Members of the LGBTQI+ community reported instances of discrimination and social stigma based on sexual orientation. Some LGBTQI+ CSOs cited their long-pending applications for legal registration, which would provide some government funding for their activities, as barriers.Availability of Legal Gender Recognition: Distinct legal status and explicit protections for transgender individuals are not provided for in the law. According to the NGO Pride Bhutan, the lack of a legal gender framework made it difficult for transgender persons to obtain government identity documents, obtain gender-affirming care, or marry.Involuntary or Coercive Medical or Psychological Practices Specifically Targeting LGBTQI+ Individuals: There were no reports of so-called conversion therapy.Restrictions on Freedom of Expression, Association or Peaceful Assembly: CSOs that advocated for greater legal protections for LGBTQI+ persons reported difficulties legally registering. Pride Bhutan and Queer Voices of Bhutan, two CSOs working on LGBTQI+ rights and advocacy, were not legally registered.																																				Persons with Disabilities										Persons with disabilities did not have equal access to education, health services, public building, and transportation. A CSO working on disability rights, the Disabled People’s Organization of Bhutan (DPOB), stated there were difficulties for and social stigma towards persons with disabilities. The DPOB stated inaccessible infrastructure was one of the major issues faced by persons with disabilities.																																				Other Societal Violence or Discrimination										CSOs said persons with HIV or AIDS continued to face some social stigma, and many such persons were reluctant to reveal their health status due to fear of negative attitudes.The government provided free medical and counseling services to persons with HIV or AIDS and maintained programs designed to prevent discrimination. The CSO Lhak Sam provided support to persons living with HIV and to their families and cooperated with the Ministry of Health to create and promote effective responses to HIV, AIDS, and their impacts.																																					Section 7.													 Worker Rights												    																																																a. Freedom of Association and the Right to Collective Bargaining										The law provides workers the right to form and join independent unions. Workers may form a union with the participation of at least 12 employees from a single workplace. There was no national trade union. The law does not mention the right to conduct legal strikes. Most of the country’s workforce engaged in agriculture, a sector that was not unionized.The law provides for the right of workers to bargain collectively with employers. The law prohibits antiunion discrimination and requires reinstatement of workers fired for union activity. Violators may face misdemeanor charges and be compelled to pay damages. The government effectively enforced applicable laws. Resources and remediation were reportedly adequate, and penalties were commensurate with those for similar violations. The law grants workers the right to pursue litigation. Information was unavailable to establish whether penalties were applied against violators for laws related to freedom of association and collective bargaining.Freedom of association and the right to bargain collectively were respected by the government and employers, although there were few employee unions. No unions were formed during the year.																																				b. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor										The law prohibits most forms of forced or compulsory labor, but the government did not always effectively enforce applicable laws. The law makes exceptions regarding prison labor, work that might be required during an emergency, and work required for “important local and public” celebrations. The law criminalizes trafficking for illegal but not exploitative, purposes.Violations of law with respect to the worst forms of child labor, forced and compulsory labor, nonpayment of compensation, minimum working age, employing foreigners without a permit, and noncompliance with permits issued by the government are felonies for which the penalties for conviction are sentences of three to five years’ imprisonment. Labor inspectors often mediated cases of nonpayment of wages and withholding passports in lieu of civil or criminal investigations.Officials relied on citizens to report forced labor of domestic workers directly to police. Relatives transported rural citizens to urban areas for employment in domestic work, which at times involved forced labor. Media reported instances of child labor within the restaurant and automobile workshop industries, some of which had indicators of forced labor.The Ministry of Labor and Human Resources was responsible for registering foreign migrant workers, monitoring working conditions and recruitment agencies, and producing and disseminating pamphlets advising workers of their rights, including full and prompt payment of wages and their legal right to retain personal identity documents. Drayangs (karaoke bars), which were a sector where women were vulnerable to forced labor and labor rights abuses, were permanently closed by the government in January.Also see the Department of State’s Trafficking in Persons Report at  https://www.state.gov/trafficking-in-persons-report/.																																				c. Prohibition of Child Labor and Minimum Age for Employment										See the Department of Labor’s Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labor at  https://www.dol.gov/agencies/ilab/resources/reports/child-labor/findings/ .																																				d. Discrimination with Respect to Employment and Occupation										The law prohibits employment discrimination for employees and job applicants based on race, color, sex, marital status, pregnancy, religion, political opinion, social origin, or involvement in a workers’ association, including as an occupational health and safety representative, and mandates equal pay for equal work. The law does not address discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, or HIV and AIDS status. There were no categories or lists of jobs from which employment was prohibited to certain types of persons, and women were free to work in the same professions as men.Some Nepali-speaking citizens could not obtain police security clearances, which were required to obtain government jobs and licenses to run private businesses; ethnic Nepalis sometimes faced difficulty gaining employment.Amnesty International reported that many LGBTQI+ individuals, especially those from marginalized backgrounds, faced discrimination in hiring and employment.																																				e. Acceptable Conditions of Work										Wage and Hour Laws: The national minimum wage was above the official poverty income level. According to the Ministry of Labor and Human Resources, there were two wage rates in the country: the national minimum wage rate and the national workforce wage rate. The national minimum wage rate applied to anyone working in the country, irrespective of nationality. The national workforce wage rate was higher but applied only to citizens.The law defines the workday as eight hours per day with a one-hour lunch break, and employers are required to grant regular rest days, including a minimum of nine public holidays each year. Work above eight hours a day is mandated to be paid at 1.5 times the normal rate.Occupational Safety and Health: Government occupational safety and health (OSH) standards were current and appropriate. Inspectors had the right to conduct unannounced inspections and were responsible for identifying unsafe conditions. Labor regulations grant workers the right to leave work situations that endanger their health and safety without jeopardy to their employment.Wage, Hour, and OSH Enforcement: The Department of Labor generally enforced minimum wage, work hours, and occupational health and safety standards effectively in the formal sector. Penalties, including payment of damages, were generally commensurate with other types of workplace violation fines, and inspection was sufficient.Informal Sector: The economy was largely rural and agrarian, and the ratio of informal employment to total employment was relatively high; the World Bank estimates the informal labor rate at around 80 percent. The proportion of informal jobs, at 93 percent, was highest among workers with no schooling. Informal labor was also closely related to poverty. Nearly all workers (98 percent) from households in the poorest quintile engaged in informal work. Government policies meant to improve the living conditions of workers rarely reached laborers in the informal economy.																																				    							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Respect for the Integrity of the Person																																							a. Arbitrary Deprivation of Life and Other Unlawful or Politically Motivated Killings																																																						b. Disappearance																																																						c. Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, and Other Related Abuses																																																				Prison and Detention Center Conditions																																																																																				d. Arbitrary Arrest or Detention																																																				Arrest Procedures and Treatment of Detainees																																																																																				e. Denial of Fair Public Trial																																																				Trial Procedures																																												Political Prisoners and Detainees																																												Civil Judicial Procedures and Remedies																																																																																				f. Arbitrary or Unlawful Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or Correspondence																																																			Section 2. Respect for Civil Liberties																																							a. Freedom of Expression, Including for Members of the Press and Other Media																																																				Internet Freedom																																																																																				b. Freedoms of Peaceful Assembly and Association																																																				Freedom of Association																																																																																				c. Freedom of Religion																																																						d. Freedom of Movement and the Right to Leave the Country																																																						e. Protection of Refugees																																																						f. Status and Treatment of Internally Displaced Persons																																																						g. Stateless Persons																																																			Section 3. Freedom to Participate in the Political Process																																																				Elections and Political Participation																																																			Section 4. Corruption and Lack of Transparency in Government																																																	Section 5. Governmental Posture Towards International and Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Abuses of Human Rights																																																	Section 6. Discrimination and Societal Abuses																																							Women																																																						Systemic Racial or Ethnic Violence and Discrimination																																																						Children																																																						Antisemitism																																																						Trafficking in Persons																																																						Acts of Violence, Criminalization, and Other Abuses Based on Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity or Expression, or Sex Characteristics																																																						Persons with Disabilities																																																						Other Societal Violence or Discrimination																																																			Section 7. Worker Rights																																							a. Freedom of Association and the Right to Collective Bargaining																																																						b. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor																																																						c. Prohibition of Child Labor and Minimum Age for Employment																																																						d. Discrimination with Respect to Employment and Occupation																																																						e. Acceptable Conditions of Work																																																									Tags																					Bhutan																								Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor																								Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs
- Bhutan HomeReportsOffice of International Religious Freedom2021 Report on International Religious Freedom&#8230;Bhutan				hide	document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", function(event) {	if(window.jQuery) {		jQuery( document ).ready(function() {			if (jQuery(".bc_middle").hasClass("collapse")) {				jQuery(".bc_ellipse").click(function(){					jQuery(".bc_hide").toggleClass("visible");					jQuery(".bc_middle").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_ellipse").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_content").toggleClass("noflex");					jQuery(".block_breadcrumbs_content").toggleClass("noflex");				});				jQuery(".bc_hide").click(function(){					jQuery(".bc_hide").toggleClass("visible");					jQuery(".bc_middle").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_ellipse").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_content").toggleClass("noflex");					jQuery(".block_breadcrumbs_content").toggleClass("noflex");				});			} else {				jQuery(".bc_ellipse").hide();			}		});	}});																							2021 Report on International Religious Freedom: Bhutan																																					Office of International Religious Freedom																								June 2, 2022																																																																																			Download Report																																																							Translations																																																																 In this section										/																							Executive Summary																																													Executive Summary																															Section I. Religious Demography																																																																																		Section II. Status of Government Respect for Religious Freedom																																																									Legal Framework																																																																											Government Practices																																																																																	Section III. Status of Societal Respect for Religious Freedom																																																																																		Section IV. U.S. Government Policy and Engagement																																																																																																								Executive Summary				The constitution recognizes Buddhism as the state’s “spiritual heritage,” provides for freedom of religion, and bans discrimination based on religious belief.  The constitution states religious institutions and personalities shall remain “above politics.”  The law restricts religious speech and written communication promoting enmity among religious groups and requires religious groups to obtain licenses to hold public religious gatherings.  International nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) continued to report that the lack of clarity in the law addressing “inducements” to conversion placed the activities of minority religious groups at risk of legal sanction, although the country’s religious minority groups reported no such sanction or pressure during the year.  The government’s Commission for Religious Organizations (CRO) did not approve any new religious groups during the year.  Unregistered religious groups, including Christians, reported being able to worship in private, although unregistered groups were not permitted to organize publicly, own property, raise funds, conduct outreach activities, or import literature.  In its report for 2022 (which covered events in 2021) the international Christian NGO Open Doors alleged discrimination against Christians, stating that Christians often faced difficulty obtaining “nonobjection certificates” from local authorities; these were required for loan and employment applications, property registration and renewing identification cards.  One local organization said this was not the case, except when the applicant had a criminal record.  Members of the Hindu Dharmic Samudaya, one of eight religious organizations on the CRO’s board, continued to cite strong official support for Hindu religious practice.Some converts reported continued societal pressure on individuals to participate in Buddhist traditions and practices.  Open Doors said converts to Christianity faced intense pressure to return to their former religion, especially from their relatives, who viewed their conversions as bringing shame to their entire family.The United States does not have formal diplomatic relations with Bhutan; the U.S. embassy in New Delhi oversees unofficial bilateral relations.  During the year, the U.S. embassy engaged government officials on religious freedom issues and met virtually with community and religious leaders.&nbsp;																														Section I.													 Religious Demography												    																																															The U.S. government estimates the total population at 857,000 (midyear 2021).  According to a 2012 report by the Pew Research Center, approximately 75 percent of the population follows Buddhism and 23 percent are Hindu.  Hindus reside mostly in southern areas adjacent to India.  The 2020 report by the World Christian Database estimated that Buddhists comprised 83 percent of the population and Hindus 11 percent in 2019.The 2012 Pew Research Center report estimates of the size of the Christian community ranges from 0.5 to 3.6 percent of the total population.  The Open Doors report covering 2021 estimates the Christian population at 30,000 (approximately 3.5 percent).  Most Christians are concentrated in towns in the south.  According to scholars, although individuals often combine Bon (an indigenous Tibetan religious tradition) practices with Buddhist practices, very few citizens adhere exclusively to this religious tradition.  The Sharchop ethnic group, which makes up the majority of the population in the east, practices elements of Tibetan Buddhism combined with elements of the Bon tradition and Hinduism, according to scholars.Most of the country’s foreign workers come from India.  In 2019 (most recent data available), India’s Ministry of External Affairs estimated that 60,000 Indian nationals lived in the country and 8,000 to 10,000 additional temporary workers entered the country daily.  Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, some Indian residents left the country and the government limited entry of most foreign workers.  While there is no data on their religious affiliation, most foreign workers are likely Hindu and, in fewer numbers, Muslim.																																					Section II.													 Status of Government Respect for Religious Freedom												    																																																Legal Framework										The constitution recognizes Buddhism as the state’s “spiritual heritage” and stipulates it is “the responsibility of all religious institutions and personalities to promote the spiritual heritage of the country.”  The constitution provides for freedom of thought, conscience, and religion and bans discrimination based on faith.  The constitution says the King must be Buddhist and requires the King to be the “protector of all religions.”The constitution also states, “No person shall be compelled to belong to another faith by means of coercion or inducement.”  The Religious Organizations Act states that “no religious organization shall compel any person to belong to another faith by providing reward or inducement for a person to belong to another faith.”  The penal code criminalizes “coercion or inducement to convert” as a misdemeanor, punishable by up to three years’ imprisonment.  Neither “coercion” nor “inducement to convert” is defined in law or regulation.The law prohibits oral and written communication “promoting enmity among religious groups” and provides for sentences of up to three years’ imprisonment for violations.The penal code states individuals found guilty of promoting civil unrest by advocating “religious abhorrence,” disturbing public tranquility, or committing an act “prejudicial to the maintenance of harmony” among religious groups shall be subject to punishment of five to nine years’ imprisonment.The law requires religious groups to register with the CRO.  To register, a religious group must submit an application demonstrating its leaders are citizens of the country and disclosing their educational backgrounds and financial assets.  The law also specifies the organizational structure, bylaws, and procedural rules for registered religious organizations.  It prohibits religious organizations from “violating the spiritual heritage” of the country and requires them to protect and promote it.  The law also states no religious organization shall do anything to impair the sovereignty, security, unity, or territorial integrity of the country.  It mandates that the CRO certify that religious groups applying for registration meet the specified requirements.Registered religious groups may raise funds for religious activities and are exempt from taxes.  Registered groups require approval from local government authorities to hold public meetings outside of their registered facilities and must seek approval from the Ministry of Home and Cultural Affairs to invite foreign speakers or receive foreign funds.Unregistered religious groups may not organize public religious services, own property, raise funds, conduct outreach activities, or import literature.  Penalties for unregistered organizations performing these activities range from fines to prison terms, depending on the offense.  The law states it is an offense for a religious group to provide false or misleading information in its religious teachings, to misuse investments, or to raise funds illegally.  The CRO has the authority to determine whether the content of a group’s religious teachings is false or misleading and whether it has raised funds illegally.  Sanctions include fines and potential revocation of registration.The law states that the CRO shall consist of an eight-member board responsible for overseeing the structure of religious institutions, enforcing the constitutional separation between the government and religious organizations, and monitoring religious fundraising activities.  The chairperson of the board is a cabinet minister appointed by the Prime Minister.  A senior official from the Ministry of Finance and one of the King’s appointees to the National Council also sit on the board.  The director of culture in the Ministry of Home Affairs serves ex officio as secretary.  Heads of Buddhist religious organizations and the Hindu Dharma Samudaya, a registered Hindu organization, occupy the remaining seats.  The law requires the CRO to “ensure that religious institutions and personalities promote the spiritual heritage of the country” by developing a society “rooted in Buddhist ethos.”The constitution states the King shall appoint the chief abbot of the country’s Central Monastic Body, on the advice of the five masters of the Buddhist monastic body.  Those individuals and a civil servant administrative secretary make up the Commission for Monastic Affairs, which manages issues related to Buddhist doctrine.  The constitution says the state will provide funds and “facilities” to the central monastic body.The law permits the government to “avoid breaches of the peace” by requiring licenses for public assembly, prohibiting assembly in designated areas, and imposing curfews.  The government may apply these measures to groups and organizations of all kinds, including religious groups.Government approval is required to construct religious buildings.  By law, all buildings, including religious structures, must adhere to traditional architectural standards.  The CRO determines conformity with these standards.The constitution states that religious institutions and personalities have the responsibility to ensure that “religion remains separate from politics in Bhutan.”  It also states, “Religious institutions and personalities shall remain above politics.”The law also prohibits religious organizations from involvement in political activity.  Ordained members of the clergy of any religion may not engage in political activities, including running for office and voting.The country is not a party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.																																				Government Practices										International NGOs continued to report that the lack of clarity in the law addressing “inducements” to conversion placed the activities of minority religious groups at risk of legal sanction, although the country’s religious minority groups reported no such sanction or pressure during the year.There were no applications to register religious organizations during the year, compared with 14 in 2020.  There was no information available regarding the composition of the 14 groups.  There were 139 religious organizations registered with the government as of December:  137 Buddhist and two Hindu.  The CRO took no action on any pending church registration requests.  The government did not offer any official explanation to applicants.Unregistered religious groups, including Christians, reported being able to worship in private, although unregistered groups were not permitted to organize publicly, own property, raise funds, conduct outreach activities, or import literature.Christian groups said they continued to be unable to acquire burial plots and there was no clear governmental process to do so.  Some groups instead buried their dead in undeveloped areas away from settlements.  One group said there was no official directive requiring cremation of the dead, but that government contacts informally urged cremation.  The group said cremation remained the clear national preference, given the broad influence of Buddhist practice and tradition, and that as a minority religious group, Christians had little influence on this issue.Some Christian groups said that Christians had fewer officially endorsed public celebrations than the Hindu community.The Open Doors report covering 2021 said Christians often faced difficulty obtaining “nonobjection certificates” from local authorities; these were required for loan and employment applications, property registration and renewing identification cards.  One local organization said it was not difficult to obtain a certificate, except when the applicant had a criminal record.The government continued its financial assistance for the construction of Buddhist temples and shrines as well as funding for Buddhist monks and monasteries.  According to the NGO Minority Rights Group International, authorities gave Buddhist temples priority over Hindu temples in the licensing process.Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the government imposed strict safety protocols and prohibited religious gatherings and associated activities during the nationwide lockdown from January to February 13.Some courts and other government institutions remained housed within or adjacent to Buddhist monasteries.  Some religious groups stated that government ceremonies continued to involve mandatory Buddhist prayer rituals.Members of the Hindu Dharmic Samudaya continued to cite strong official support for Hindu religious practice.																																					Section III.													 Status of Societal Respect for Religious Freedom												    																																															Some converts reported continued societal pressure on individuals to participate in Buddhist traditions and practices.  The Open Doors 2021 report said converts to Christianity faced intense pressure to return to their former religion, especially from relatives who viewed the conversions as bringing shame to their entire family.  The NGO characterized persecution of Christians in the country as “very high.”  The NGO report said that anyone who left Buddhism was viewed with suspicion by neighbors and friends, and family members went to great lengths to bring converts back to their original faith.  One local organization said persecution varied in different regions of the country, with pressure to return to Buddhism likely to be higher in rural areas.																																					Section IV.													 U.S. Government Policy and Engagement												    																																															The United States does not have formal diplomatic relations with Bhutan; the U.S. embassy in New Delhi oversees unofficial bilateral relations.  During the year, the embassy engaged government officials on religious freedom issues and met virtually with community and religious leaders.																																				    							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Religious Demography																																																	Section II. Status of Government Respect for Religious Freedom																																							Legal Framework																																																						Government Practices																																																			Section III. Status of Societal Respect for Religious Freedom																																																	Section IV. U.S. Government Policy and Engagement																																																							Tags																					Bhutan																								Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs																								Office of International Religious Freedom																																Religious Freedom
- Bhutan HomeReportsOffice to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons2022 Trafficking in Persons Report&#8230;Bhutan				hide	document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", function(event) {	if(window.jQuery) {		jQuery( document ).ready(function() {			if (jQuery(".bc_middle").hasClass("collapse")) {				jQuery(".bc_ellipse").click(function(){					jQuery(".bc_hide").toggleClass("visible");					jQuery(".bc_middle").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_ellipse").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_content").toggleClass("noflex");					jQuery(".block_breadcrumbs_content").toggleClass("noflex");				});				jQuery(".bc_hide").click(function(){					jQuery(".bc_hide").toggleClass("visible");					jQuery(".bc_middle").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_ellipse").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_content").toggleClass("noflex");					jQuery(".block_breadcrumbs_content").toggleClass("noflex");				});			} else {				jQuery(".bc_ellipse").hide();			}		});	}});																							2022 Trafficking in Persons Report: Bhutan																																					Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons																																																																																																				 In this section										/																							Bhutan (Tier 2 Watch List)																																													Bhutan (Tier 2 Watch List)																															PRIORITIZED RECOMMENDATIONS:																																																																																		PROSECUTION																																																																																		PROTECTION																																																																																		PREVENTION																																																																																		TRAFFICKING PROFILE																																																																																																								Bhutan (Tier 2 Watch List)				The Government of Bhutan does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking but is making significant efforts to do so. These efforts included increasing convictions of traffickers and the number of potential trafficking victims identified and referred to services. In addition, the government drafted and launched a resourced anti-trafficking National Action Plan (NAP). However, the government did not demonstrate overall increasing efforts compared with the previous reporting period, even considering the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on its anti-trafficking capacity. Bhutan’s trafficking laws do not criminalize all forms of child sex trafficking. The government reported investigating one potential human trafficking case and did not initiate new prosecutions against traffickers, and overall identification efforts remained insufficient. Because the government has devoted sufficient resources to a written plan that, if implemented, would constitute significant efforts to meet the minimum standards, Bhutan was granted a waiver per the Trafficking Victims Protection Act from an otherwise required downgrade to Tier 3. Therefore Bhutan remained on Tier 2 Watch List for the third consecutive year.																																					PRIORITIZED RECOMMENDATIONS:						    																																															Amend anti-trafficking laws to ensure that a demonstration of force, fraud, or coercion is not required to constitute a child sex trafficking offense, consistent with international law.Vigorously investigate, prosecute, and convict traffickers and adequately sentence convicted traffickers.Increase identification of trafficking victims.Disseminate information and train officials on the amended Penal Code Section 154 and the implementation of anti-trafficking laws.Train and instruct labor inspectors to screen cases of labor violations for indicators of forced labor, including nonpayment of wages, and refer to police for criminal investigation.Take steps to eliminate all recruitment fees charged to workers by recruitment agents and investigate claims of nonpayment of wages, contract switching, and illegal fees charged by agents.Accede to the 2000 UN TIP Protocol.																																												PROSECUTION						    																																															The government maintained anti-trafficking law enforcement efforts. The law criminalized all forms of labor trafficking and some forms of sex trafficking. Section 154 criminalized all forms of adult sex trafficking, adult labor trafficking, and child labor trafficking. However, the law defined trafficking to require a demonstration of force, fraud, or coercion, which is inconsistent with international law for child sex trafficking, thereby failing to criminalize all forms of child sex trafficking. Similarly, Section 224 of The Child Care and Protection Act (CCPA) criminalized child trafficking but, inconsistent with international law, also required a demonstration of force, fraud, or coercion to constitute a child sex trafficking offense and therefore did not criminalize all forms of child sex trafficking. Section 379 of the penal code defined “trafficking a person for prostitution” as selling, buying, or transporting a person into or outside of Bhutan for the purposes of prostitution. Section 154 of the Penal Code prescribed punishment ranging from three to five years’ imprisonment, Section 379 prescribed from five years to life imprisonment, and Section 224 of the CCPA prescribed from five to nine years’ imprisonment. These punishments were sufficiently stringent and, with respect to sex trafficking, commensurate with penalties prescribed for other serious crimes, such as abduction.The government initiated one potential trafficking investigation and continued to investigate a 2019 case involving 160 Bhutanese women exploited in domestic servitude in Iraq, compared with no new investigations initiated in the previous reporting period. The government did not report initiating any prosecutions, compared with one prosecution initiated in the previous reporting period against three suspects in a 2018 labor trafficking case involving Bhutanese nationals in Mumbai, and it continued prosecution of two cases. However, the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) initiated preliminary procedures to prosecute 15 alleged traffickers in one case, which remained pending by the end of the reporting period. In June 2021, the government convicted three traffickers following the reinvestigation and prosecution of the 2018 Mumbai case during previous reporting periods, compared with no convictions during the previous reporting period. The court sentenced one defendant to 54 months in prison for trafficking under Section 154 of the penal code and the other two defendants to 18 months in prison for attempted collusion in trafficking. The government did not report taking action against the employment agencies involved in the 2019 case of Bhutanese domestic workers in Iraq. The OAG did not pursue further appeals following the dismissal of trafficking charges in a 2018 case in which a suspect was charged with child trafficking for forced domestic labor of an 8-year-old girl. Despite indicators of trafficking, including severe physical abuse that required hospitalization and amputations, two courts acquitted the defendant of forced labor and convicted the employer of illegal transportation of a child. Royal Bhutan Police (RBP) reportedly screened for trafficking in enforcement operations, including at worksites, businesses, and border areas, but did not identify any trafficking victims. RBP maintained “women and child protection” units at three police stations and “women and child protection” desks at 11 additional police stations. RBP also maintained one “women and child protection” division at its headquarters in Thimphu. All officers and personnel in these units and offices were trained on “women and child friendly policy procedures,” including a victim-centered approach during investigations of trafficking cases.In mid-2018, some Bhutanese participants in a government-approved work-study program in Japan reported indicators of forced labor. The OAG charged the recruitment agency with 2,887 counts of forgery and 730 counts of larceny by deception, and the government charged the Director-General of the Ministry of Labor and Human Resources with four criminal offenses, including illegal issuance of a certificate of registration to an employment agency without required documentation. For the third year, the prosecution of both cases was ongoing at the close of the reporting period.The government did not report any investigations, prosecutions, or convictions of government employees complicit in human trafficking crimes. Some officials continued to lack an understanding of human trafficking, especially internal and transnational forced labor, although recent high-profile cases have helped increased awareness. Limited police resources often hindered thorough investigations, and a lack of training for law enforcement on victim-centered investigations impeded formation of strong cases. In some cases, successful anti-trafficking law enforcement efforts relied on persistent individual officers. In partnership with an international organization, the Department of Law and Order (DLO) continued to support anti-trafficking trainings for law enforcement and prosecutors.																																												PROTECTION						    																																															The government increased protection efforts during the reporting period. The government identified 22 labor trafficking victims, including eight Bhutanese women exploited in Oman and 14 Bhutanese women exploited in Iraq. This compared with no victims identified during the previous reporting period. The government funded the repatriation of at least eight trafficking victims from Oman and screened an additional 18 potential victims repatriated from Oman. The National Commission for Women and Children (NCWC) provided eight identified victims with counselling services. The government reported that it offered counselling services to 14 identified victims, although the victims did not accept these services. The government continued to provide services to 160 women who were identified as victims of domestic servitude and trafficking in Iraq in December 2019 and repatriated in the previous reporting period. A government-funded organization provided services, including shelter homes and food, for identified victims. The Ministry of Labor and Human Resources (MOLHR) and a government-funded program also provided skills training for identified victims. The government provided assistance and an employment program for nearly 25,000 vulnerable individuals experiencing pandemic-related economic needs, including monthly income support for women repatriated from Iraq and Oman and former drayang (karaoke bars) employees.The government had SOPs on trafficking victim identification and referral to care. The NCWC also had procedures to guide labor inspectors, immigration officials, and teachers in the identification of child victims and at-risk youth and refer them to services. Although the pandemic constrained government resources, the government conducted training on SOPs for officials, including judges, labor inspectors, and diplomatic staff. RBP also trained 514 personnel on the amended Penal Code Section 154 and the implementation of anti-trafficking laws, interviewing victims, and the government’s SOP on trafficking.When the government identified trafficking victims, RBP and other agencies could refer them to the NCWC or an NGO for care. The government financed civil society organizations to operate shelters. The NCWC and NGOs could refer men, women, and children to two NGO-run facilities that provided counseling, medical services, and long-term shelter to victims of crime. In 2020, the government expanded funding to include a second shelter in the capital and allocated an additional 100,000 Bhutanese ngultrum (Nu) ($1,300) to NGOs providing shelter services. One shelter had case management officers in five districts, and the other had the ability to assign counselors to visit crime victims outside the capital on an ad hoc basis.Ministries did not have dedicated budgets to support trafficking victims, which created gaps in services in some reported cases. The NCWC maintained a budget to assist vulnerable women and children, including trafficking victims. The NCWC could also provide case management assistance and legal aid. The NCWC and partner organizations provided legal counseling to 42 trafficking survivors during the reporting period. The pandemic-related government lockdown and movement restrictions hampered NCWC and NGO efforts to provide some services, including requiring the government to postpone livelihood training and awareness programs. A civil society partner conducted vocational training for 16 repatriated human trafficking victims. The NCWC and NGOs provided counseling and psychological support services virtually, as well as in-person services. The NCWC and partner agencies conducted telephone counselling services with trafficking survivors in the Middle East to provide psycho-social support and prevent re-traumatization. The government continued to use its multi-sectoral response policy to guide officials referring or transferring survivors of trafficking for services. The government sought to provide services to all trafficking survivors regardless of nationality. The NCWC also launched a child protection framework to establish best practices and interagency responsibilities for addressing child protection issues, including trafficking.The government maintained procedures, including witness protection, to support trafficking victims participating in the investigations and prosecutions of alleged traffickers. In addition, the penal code allowed human trafficking victims to file civil suits against traffickers and courts to order traffickers to pay appropriate damages and reparation for loss or injury caused to the victim. No traffickers or defendants were ordered to pay damages to a trafficking victim during the reporting period. The immigration department mandated that authorities report suspected foreign trafficking victims identified within Bhutan to the NCWC before initiating deportation for immigration violations. Bhutanese law did not provide legal alternatives to the removal of trafficking victims to countries in which victims would face retribution or hardship. The government continued to pursue a bilateral agreement, initiated in the previous reporting period, with the Government of the United Arab Emirates to combat human trafficking through an exchange of information and expertise, protection and support for victims, and cooperation during repatriations. However, the lack of formal diplomatic relationships or mutual law enforcement agreements with migrant worker destination countries hindered RBP efforts to investigate some potential trafficking cases.																																												PREVENTION						    																																															The government slightly increased efforts to prevent human trafficking. The DLO led the government’s anti-trafficking task force, composed of government and civil society members. In July 2021, the government published its national prevention strategy (NPS), which was developed in the previous reporting period, in collaboration with civil society and other relevant stakeholders. In July 2021, the government also published the results of a country assessment of human trafficking in Bhutan conducted during the previous reporting period. The anti-trafficking task force drafted a new NAP as part of the government’s broader prevention strategy and officially launched the NAP in January 2022 with a budget of more than 1 billion Nu ($13 million). The government and civil society partners conducted awareness campaigns to combat trafficking during the reporting period. In partnership with an international organization, the DLO continued to support public awareness events on human trafficking for groups including students, airport officials, local government officials, and the general public. The government funded a hotline staffed by counselors to support victims of gender-based violence, including survivors of trafficking, and established district-level helplines operated by local officials and civil society organizations; the government did not report identifying any trafficking victims through the hotlines during the reporting period.The government closed all entertainment venues in March 2020 due to the pandemic and did not reopen any by the end of the reporting period. In January 2022, the government issued an executive order permanently closing the Drayangs, which involved potentially exploitative working conditions, following an extended review of proposed guidelines to provide greater oversight of the entertainment venues. The government introduced skills training and employment programs for approximately 556 former drayang employees.The MOLHR registered foreign migrant workers in Bhutan, monitored working conditions, and produced and disseminated pamphlets advising workers of their rights. The Department of Labor (DOL), within the MOLHR, had a total of 34 labor officers, including 23 labor inspectors, but inspectors lacked adequate anti-trafficking training and sufficient funding for child labor inspections. The July 2018-June 2019 DOL annual report documented 147 complaints of nonpayment of wages, compared to 211 in the previous reporting period; the 2019-2020 report had yet to be published by the end of the reporting period. As in the previous reporting period, the government did not report the disposition of labor complaints, including whether it levied civil or criminal penalties. The DOL generally mediated claims of nonpayment of wages, and it did not report violators to police for criminal investigation of potential forced labor offenses or penalize employers if they paid the outstanding wages. The MOLHR did not have the ability to inspect private homes for labor violations and relied on the RBP to investigate or for potential victims to self-identify.Government regulations on overseas employment allowed most agents to charge Bhutanese migrant workers a recruitment fee of one month’s salary along with a limited number of recruitment expenses, except for costs associated with a visa or work permit. Recruitment fees were not charged to Bhutanese workers who travel overseas through direct placement programs or by Bhutanese companies who bring foreign workers to Bhutan. Foreign workers were required to pay fees for a work permit and medical check-up, which amounted to about 20 percent of one month’s wages. The government implemented a new policy requiring Bhutanese migrant workers to receive approval from the MOLHR prior to traveling overseas. The MOLHR also required any Bhutanese traveling overseas for employment to participate in a predeparture orientation on human trafficking and the risks of overseas employment. The MOLHR posted online announcements to warn potential migrant workers of false advertisements and to encourage applicants to verify overseas job advertisements. The Department of Adult and Higher Education (DAHE) issued a notification warning job seekers and students to avoid unregistered labor and educational consultants. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs also issued a trafficking-prevention brochure for migrants planning to travel for employment. Individual police officers continued to educate migrant workers about trafficking when they applied for the mandatory police clearance. The MOLHR continued to monitor recruitment agencies that assisted Bhutanese citizens older than age 21 seeking work overseas. The MOLHR could take action against agents conducting recruitment or placements without a license. During the reporting period, the MOLHR continued to monitor five licensed agencies and one agency it had suspended during previous reporting periods. The government previously suspended registration of all new labor recruitment agencies and agents; the government did not report if it had reinstated new registrations. The MOLHR had 11 registered Bhutanese Overseas Employment Agents (BOEAs) when the Overseas Employment Program was first implemented in 2013. Only four registered agents are currently operational; six out of the total registered agents were delisted and penalized due to non-compliance of regulations, while one withdrew. The registration of new BOEAs remains on hold. Labor regulations held BOEAs responsible for supporting migrants and fulfilling their contractual obligations even when agency registrations were suspended or terminated. The Department of Employment and Entrepreneurship monitored the registered BOEAs through site visits and written reports. In 2018, the MOLHR signed a memorandum with the Government of Japan on a technical intern training program to formalize collaboration and reduce trafficking risks. The implementation of the program was delayed due to the pandemic. The government maintained its intent to repatriate any intern participants wishing to return to Bhutan and did not receive any complaints during the reporting period.The government did not make efforts to reduce the demand for commercial sex acts. The government reported that diplomatic personnel received anti-trafficking training prior to transferring to foreign assignments. The government reported it provided anti-trafficking training to its troops prior to their deployment as peacekeepers. Bhutan is not a party to the 2000 UN TIP Protocol; however, the government reported ongoing efforts to ratify the UNTOC and TIP Protocol, which remained awaiting parliamentary debate and confirmation at the end of the reporting period.																																												TRAFFICKING PROFILE						    																																															As reported over the past five years, human traffickers exploit domestic and foreign victims in Bhutan, and traffickers exploit victims from Bhutan abroad. Unregistered and unscrupulous foreign employment recruitment agencies and sub-agents increasingly operate through social media to target unemployed or economically disadvantaged individuals. Some traffickers posing as recruiters offer ostensibly well-paying jobs overseas but exploit Bhutanese in forced labor. Some agencies have subjected Bhutanese students in work-study programs in Japan and Malaysia with indicators of forced labor, including fraudulent contracts, nonpayment of wages, and passport retention. Bhutanese citizens continued to work in the hospitality, retail, and service sectors in the Gulf, including in Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, and the UAE, and in India, Thailand, and the United Kingdom through global training and placement academies. Some participants reported indicators of trafficking, including illegal recruitment fees and wage deductions, restricted movement, passport retention, and nonpayment of wages. In recent years, traffickers sent Bhutanese women to Iraq and Oman for forced labor in domestic work. Although pandemic-related restrictions temporarily reduced the number of migrant workers, a growing number of Bhutanese citizens have resumed seeking employment abroad, particularly in the Gulf states. The government reported repatriating more than 4,815 Bhutanese citizens since the start of the pandemic.Traffickers have exploited Bhutanese women and girls in sex and labor trafficking, including in forced domestic labor and caregiving, through debt bondage and threats of physical abuse. Bhutanese women and girls, who worked as entertainers in Drayangs prior to the permanent closure of the businesses nationwide, were vulnerable to labor and sex traffickers. Drayang workers often came from rural areas and signed contracts they could not access; some female drayang entertainers reportedly worked in commercial sex, some of which traffickers may have facilitated. Media outlets and NGOs report an increase in commercial sex by Bhutanese and Indian women in the Bhutan-India border’s growing hospitality and entertainment districts—including hotels, massage parlors, and nightclubs—some of which might be forced.Relatives transport rural Bhutanese to urban areas for employment in domestic work, which at times may involve forced labor. Media outlets have reported instances of child labor within Bhutan’s restaurant and automobile workshop industries, some of which had indicators of forced labor. Prior to the pandemic, the expanding construction sector increased the demand for low-skilled foreign labor. Male Indian migrant workers—including in the construction and hydropower sectors—often receive advances before beginning work in Bhutan. Some workers subsequently report unauthorized deductions and nonpayment of wages. Traffickers have exploited Indian child domestic workers in Bhutan. Bhutan’s small stateless persons population lacks access to documentation necessary to attend school, rendering stateless children vulnerable to traffickers.																																				    							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- Bhutan HomeReportsBureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor2021 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices&#8230;Bhutan				hide	document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", function(event) {	if(window.jQuery) {		jQuery( document ).ready(function() {			if (jQuery(".bc_middle").hasClass("collapse")) {				jQuery(".bc_ellipse").click(function(){					jQuery(".bc_hide").toggleClass("visible");					jQuery(".bc_middle").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_ellipse").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_content").toggleClass("noflex");					jQuery(".block_breadcrumbs_content").toggleClass("noflex");				});				jQuery(".bc_hide").click(function(){					jQuery(".bc_hide").toggleClass("visible");					jQuery(".bc_middle").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_ellipse").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_content").toggleClass("noflex");					jQuery(".block_breadcrumbs_content").toggleClass("noflex");				});			} else {				jQuery(".bc_ellipse").hide();			}		});	}});																							2021 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices: Bhutan																																					Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor																																																																																							Download Report																																																							Translations																																																																 In this section										/																							EXECUTIVE SUMMARY																																													EXECUTIVE SUMMARY																															Section 1. Respect for the Integrity of the Person																																																									a. Arbitrary Deprivation of Life and Other Unlawful or Politically Motivated Killings																																																																											b. Disappearance																																																																											c. Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment																																																																			Prison and Detention Center Conditions																																																																																																																		d. Arbitrary Arrest or Detention																																																																			Arrest Procedures and Treatment of Detainees																																																																																																																		e. Denial of Fair Public Trial																																																																			Trial Procedures																																																								Political Prisoners and Detainees																																																								Civil Judicial Procedures and Remedies																																																																																																																		f. Arbitrary or Unlawful Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or Correspondence																																																																																	Section 2. Respect for Civil Liberties																																																									a. Freedom of Expression, Including for Members of the Press and Other Media																																																																			Internet Freedom																																																								Academic Freedom and Cultural Events																																																																																																																		b. Freedoms of Peaceful Assembly and Association																																																																			Freedom of Peaceful Assembly																																																								Freedom of Association																																																																																																																		c. Freedom of Religion																																																																											d. Freedom of Movement and the Right to Leave the Country																																																																											e. Status and Treatment of Internally Displaced Persons																																																																											f. Protection of Refugees																																																																											g. Stateless Persons																																																																																	Section 3. Freedom to Participate in the Political Process																																																																												Elections and Political Participation																																																																																	Section 4. Corruption and Lack of Transparency in Government																																																																																		Section 5. Governmental Posture Towards International and Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Abuses of Human Rights																																																																																		Section 6. Discrimination and Societal Abuses																																																									Women																																																																											Systemic Racial or Ethnic Violence and Discrimination																																																																											Children																																																																																														Anti-Semitism																																																																											Trafficking in Persons																																																																											Persons with Disabilities																																																																											HIV and AIDS Social Stigma																																																																											Acts of Violence, Criminalization, and Other Abuses Based on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity																																																																																	Section 7. Worker Rights																																																									a. Freedom of Association and the Right to Collective Bargaining																																																																											b. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor																																																																											c. Prohibition of Child Labor and Minimum Age for Employment																																																																											d. Discrimination with Respect to Employment and Occupation																																																																											e. Acceptable Conditions of Work																																																																																																							EXECUTIVE SUMMARY				Bhutan is a democratic constitutional monarchy with King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck as head of state and Prime Minister Lotay Tshering as chief executive. In 2018 the country held its third general elections; approximately 71 percent of eligible voters cast their ballots. International election observers reported the elections were generally free and fair.The Royal Bhutan Police are responsible for internal security matters. The Royal Bhutan Army is responsible for defending against external threats and has responsibility for some internal security functions, including counterinsurgency operations, protection of forests, and security for prominent persons. The Royal Bhutan Police report to the Ministry of Home and Cultural Affairs while the king is the supreme commander in chief of the Royal Bhutan Army. Civilian authorities maintained effective control over the security forces. Members of the security forces committed no known abuses.Significant human rights issues included credible reports of political prisoners; the existence of criminal libel and slander laws; restrictions on freedom of peaceful assembly and association; restrictions on domestic and international freedom of movement and residence; and trafficking in persons.The government took steps to identify, investigate, prosecute, and punish officials who committed human rights abuses or engaged in corrupt practices.																														Section 1.													 Respect for the Integrity of the Person												    																																																a. Arbitrary Deprivation of Life and Other Unlawful or Politically Motivated Killings										There were no reports that the government or its agents committed arbitrary or unlawful killings.																																				b. Disappearance										There were no reports of disappearances by or on behalf of government authorities.																																				c. Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment										The constitution prohibits such practices, and there were no reports that government officials employed such practices.Impunity was not a significant problem in the security forces.																Prison and Detention Center Conditions						There were no significant reports regarding prison or detention center conditions that raised human rights concerns.Physical Conditions: There were no major concerns in prisons and detention centers regarding physical conditions or inmate abuse.Administration: Police administer the prison system. Authorities conducted proper investigations of credible allegations of mistreatment.Independent Monitoring: The government permitted monitoring by independent nongovernmental observers; however, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, there were no monitoring visits during the year.																										d. Arbitrary Arrest or Detention										The law prohibits arbitrary arrest and detention and provides for the right of any person to challenge the lawfulness of his or her arrest or detention in court, and the government generally observed these requirements.In its preliminary findings conducted during a 2019 visit to the country, the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (the UN Working Group) noted significant progress had been made on the arbitrary deprivation of liberty since prior visits in 1994 and 1996.																Arrest Procedures and Treatment of Detainees						By law police may arrest a person if they have probable cause or a court-issued arrest warrant. Police generally respected the law. Police may conduct “stop and frisk” searches only if they believe that a crime has been committed. Arresting authorities must issue an immediate statement of charges and engage in reasonable efforts to inform the family of the accused. The law requires authorities to bring an arrested person before a court within 24 hours, exclusive of travel time from the place of arrest. The UN Working Group visited the country in 2019, observing more than 20 places of detention and confidentially interviewing more than 150 detained individuals. A large majority of detainees interviewed confirmed they had appeared before a judge for their first remand hearing within 24 hours of their arrest, which the UN Working Group noted was “a remarkable achievement.”The law provides for prompt access to a lawyer and government provision of an attorney for indigent clients. Bail is available depending on the severity of charges and the suspect’s criminal record, flight risk, and potential threat to the public. In addition bail may be granted after the execution of a bail bond agreement. Police may hold remanded suspects for 10 days pending investigation, which courts may extend to 49 days. In cases of “heinous” crimes, this period may be extended to 108 days should the investigating officer show adequate grounds. The law expressly prohibits pretrial detention beyond 118 days. The law empowers the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) to order the arrest of a person having committed, or who is about to commit, a corruption-related offense. The UN Working Group found that while there were some dedicated pretrial detention facilities for children, there were no dedicated pretrial detention facilities for adults. Police held pretrial detainees in police stations where they comprised the largest number of detainees.																										e. Denial of Fair Public Trial										The law provides for an independent judiciary, and the government generally respected judicial independence and impartiality. The country’s courts generally functioned effectively, although Freedom House in its Freedom in the World 2021 report stated the rulings of judges “often lack consistency, and many in the public view the judiciary as corrupt.”																Trial Procedures						Defendants benefit from a presumption of innocence, have the right to confront witnesses, and may not be compelled to testify. The law stipulates defendants receive fair, speedy, and public trials, and the government generally respected this right. Before registering any plea, courts must determine whether the accused is mentally sound and understands the consequences of entering a plea. A court must hold a preliminary hearing within 10 days of the filing of criminal charges. There is a standing government rule that courts clear all cases within a year of case filing. The law stipulates a defendant’s right to be present at trial to plead or defend himself or herself and that a defendant’s right to a speedy trial not limit his or her time to prepare a defense. Although trials are open to the public, a court may order that media and the public be removed from the courtroom for part or all trial proceedings in the interest of justice.The law provides for the right to representation. Although representation occurred frequently in criminal cases, in civil cases most defendants and plaintiffs represented themselves. The law states that criminal defendants have the right to confront witnesses and may not be compelled to testify. They may choose legal representation from a list of licensed advocates. According to testimonies received by the UN Working Group, most defendants in criminal matters did not have access to legal representation at crucial stages of their proceedings: following arrest, during pretrial detention, and during their trial and appeal. Detainees were generally not aware of their right to a lawyer because they had not been informed of this right by police. In many cases defendants could not afford to retain a lawyer. The government promoted the use of judiciary websites for legal information as a means of self-help for defendants. While the law does not require that defendants in criminal trials receive the free assistance of an interpreter, interpreters are provided free of charge, or the proceedings are conducted in a language the defendant understands. The court must provide the opportunity for the parties to present relevant evidence, including witness testimony. Prosecutors and defendants are allowed to conduct direct and cross-examination.Defendants have the right to appeal to the High Court and Supreme Court.						Political Prisoners and Detainees						There were prisoners serving sentences resulting from convictions under the National Security Act or its related penal code provisions. Most political prisoners are Nepali-speaking persons associated with protests in the early 1990s. Government officials claimed that those remaining in prison were convicted of violent crimes during demonstrations.Citing interviews of these prisoners by the UN Working Group, the civil society network World Alliance for Citizen Participation stated that several prisoners were serving life sentences with no prospect of release unless granted amnesty. Family members of prisoners were allowed to meet their relatives and received a travel allowance paid by the International Committee for the Red Cross.						Civil Judicial Procedures and Remedies						The constitution provides the right to initiate proceedings for the enforcement of “fundamental rights” enumerated within its text, and individuals and organizations may seek civil remedies for human rights violations through domestic courts. The law governs the resolution of criminal trials and civil litigation and states a suit may be initiated by a litigant or a member of the litigant’s family. The law also provides for compensation to those detained or subjected to unlawful detention but later acquitted.																										f. Arbitrary or Unlawful Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or Correspondence										The constitution prohibits such actions, and the government generally respected these prohibitions; however, citizens seeking to marry noncitizens require government permission.																																					Section 2.													 Respect for Civil Liberties												    																																																a. Freedom of Expression, Including for Members of the Press and Other Media										The constitution provides for freedom of expression, including for members of the press, and the government generally respected this right. An independent press, an effective judiciary, and a functioning democratic political system contributed to freedom of expression, including for members of media.Freedom of Expression for Members of the Press and Other Media, Including Online Media: Independent media were active and generally expressed a variety of views. The law does not provide specific protections for journalists or stipulate freedom of information, although there were no official restrictions on media. The law also prohibits media outlets from affiliating with political parties and prohibits outlets from endorsing candidates during the election period.Libel/Slander Laws: Conviction of defamation may carry criminal penalties. The Freedom in the World 2021 report noted, “powerful individuals can use defamation laws to retaliate against critics.”																Internet Freedom						The government generally did not restrict or disrupt access to the internet or censor online content, and there were no credible reports that the government monitored private online communications without appropriate legal authority.						Academic Freedom and Cultural Events						There were no reported government restrictions on academic freedom and cultural events besides countrywide restrictions on public gatherings due to the COVID-19 pandemic.																										b. Freedoms of Peaceful Assembly and Association										The law includes provisions for the government to restrict freedoms of peaceful assembly and association, although the implementation of such measures was not common.																Freedom of Peaceful Assembly						While the constitution provides for the right to assemble peacefully, the government retains the right to restrict assembly. The law prohibits “promotion of civil unrest” as an act that is prejudicial to the maintenance of harmony among different nationalities, racial groups, castes, or religious groups and permits the government to control the public’s right of assembly “to avoid breaches of the peace” by requiring licenses, prohibiting assembly in designated areas, and instituting curfews. Apart from COVID-19-related restrictions, there were no reports of restrictions on public gatherings or assembly during the year. Freedom House noted government permission for public gatherings was “sometimes denied.”						Freedom of Association						The constitution provides for freedom of association, and the government permitted the registration of political parties pursuant to relevant election laws and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) deemed “not harmful to the peace and unity of the country.” According to the Freedom in the World 2021 report, local and international NGOs worked with increasing freedom from official scrutiny, except for NGOs working on the status of Nepali-speaking refugees. By law all NGOs must be registered with the government by an individual who must be a citizen, disclose his or her family income and assets, provide his or her educational qualifications, and disclose any criminal record (see also section 5).																										c. Freedom of Religion										See the Department of State’s International Religious Freedom Report at  www.state.gov/religiousfreedomreport/																																				d. Freedom of Movement and the Right to Leave the Country										The law provides for freedom of internal movement, foreign travel, emigration, and repatriation, but the government limited freedom of movement and repatriation for some groups.In-country Movement: The law establishes categories of residency, which determine whether a person requires a “route permit” to travel internally. Travel restrictions primarily affected resident foreigners, sometimes including the children of foreigners married to Bhutanese citizens.Foreign Travel: Children of single mothers who could not establish citizenship through a Bhutanese father sometimes faced difficulties acquiring travel documents for travel outside the country. Citizens require a security clearance certificate from police in order to obtain a passport.Exile: The government continued to delay consideration of claims for residency in the country by refugees in Nepal. In the early 1990s, the government reportedly forced between 80,000 and 100,000 Nepali-speaking residents to leave the country, following a series of decisions taken during the 1970s and 1980s establishing legal requirements for citizenship.After years of international efforts resulting in the resettlement of thousands of refugees, the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reported that as of the end of the year, approximately 6,300 Nepali-speaking refugees remained in the two refugee camps it administered in Nepal. Approximately one-third of these refugees expressed interest in traveling to Bhutan.Citizenship: Civil society groups noted barriers to retention of citizenship faced by Bhutanese spouses of noncitizens. According to the constitution, “If any citizen of Bhutan acquires the citizenship of a foreign State, his or her citizenship of Bhutan shall be terminated.” The citizenship of any naturalized citizen may also be revoked, if that naturalized citizen “has shown by act or speech to be disloyal in any manner whatsoever to the king, country, and people”.																																				e. Status and Treatment of Internally Displaced Persons										Not applicable.																																				f. Protection of Refugees										The government cooperated with UNHCR and other humanitarian organizations in providing protection and assistance to refugees, returning refugees, or asylum seekers, as well as other persons of concern.Access to Asylum: The law does not provide for the granting of asylum or refugee status, and the government has not established a system for providing protection to refugees; however, some refugees were deemed eligible for and received residence permits.Since the 1960s Bhutan has sheltered Tibetan refugees who were initially located in seven settlements. According to the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) 2017-18 annual report, the most up-to-date information available, 1,847 Tibetan refugees lived in the country; approximately 1,650 of them had refugee resident permits. The Tibetan refugee population was decreasing as Tibetan refugees adopted Bhutanese citizenship, according to the Department of Immigration.Freedom of Movement: Some restrictions on movement exist based on categories of residency. Many Tibetan refugees faced obstacles in obtaining travel permits. There were reports the government did not provide the travel documents necessary for Tibetan refugees to travel beyond India.Employment: While Tibetans and other noncitizens are not eligible for government employment, the CTA reported that several refugees received business licenses and others found public-sector employment through temporary government contracts.Access to Basic Services: The government stated Tibetan refugees had the same access to government-provided health care and educations as citizens. There were reports, however, that some Tibetans were not permitted to enroll in public secondary and higher-level schools because they lacked security clearance certificates.Durable Solutions: The government continued to delay implementing a process to review claims to Bhutanese residency by refugees located outside the country and did not accept referrals for voluntary repatriation from UNHCR.																																				g. Stateless Persons										For a child to qualify for citizenship, both parents must be Bhutanese citizens. NGOs and media sources highlighted the existence of stateless children born to unwed mothers who were unable to prove the identity of the child’s father.Stateless persons may not obtain “no objection certificates” and police security clearance certificates, which were often necessary for access to public health care, employment, access to primary and secondary education, enrollment at institutions of higher education, travel documents, and business ownership. The National Commission for Women and Children (NCWC) stated, however, that children without citizenship were eligible for public educational and health services.																																					Section 3.													 Freedom to Participate in the Political Process												    																																															The constitution provides citizens the ability to choose their government in free and fair periodic elections held by secret ballot and based on universal and equal suffrage.																																				Elections and Political Participation										Recent Elections: In 2018 the government successfully held national elections. Voter participation was estimated at approximately 66 percent in the first round and 71 percent in the second round. International observers generally considered the elections free and fair. There were no reports of significant irregularities during the election process. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, in June the Election Commission conducted by-elections for National Assembly seats for the Mongar and Nganglam constituencies and in November 2020 for the Chhoekhor Tang constituency.Participation of Women and Members of Minority Groups: No law limits participation of women or members of minority groups in the political process, and they did participate. The law prohibits ordained members of the clergy, including Buddhist monks and nuns, from voting or participating in politics.Women were underrepresented in public office. Women occupied eight seats (17 percent) in the 47-member National Assembly. Seven of the 10 female candidates who contested 2018 National Assembly elections were elected, an increase from three in the previous election. One of the three recent by-elections had a female candidate elected to the National Assembly. There were three women in the 25-member upper house or National Council.																																					Section 4.													 Corruption and Lack of Transparency in Government												    																																															The law provides criminal penalties for corruption by officials, and the government generally implemented the law effectively. There were isolated reports of government corruption during the year.Corruption: In April a district court sentenced two former bank employees convicted of embezzlement to 11 years’ imprisonment each. The former bank employees were convicted for forging and tampering with the account information of 67 clients between 2012 and 2019.The government took an active role in addressing official corruption through the Public Accounts Committee in the National Assembly and the Royal Audit Authority, which monitored the use of government funds. The ACC is authorized to investigate cases of official and private sector corruption and allows citizens to submit information to its website regarding corrupt practices. The constitution enables the ACC to act as an independent body, although its investigative staff were primarily civil servants answerable to the Royal Civil Service Commission. The ACC has the authority to suspend the registration of civil society organizations under investigation.The 2019 ACC report detailed 165 complaints of “abuse of functions,” 13 of embezzlement, nine of bribery, and 148 other related corruption offenses. In June the Good Governance Committee of the National Assembly submitted the Anti-Corruption Commission Annual Report 2019 to the parliament.																																					Section 5.													 Governmental Posture Towards International and Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Abuses of Human Rights												    																																															Domestic and international human rights groups generally operated without government restriction, investigating and publishing their findings on human rights cases. Government officials were somewhat cooperative and responsive to their views. According to international NGOs, local civil society organizations practiced self-censorship to avoid matters perceived as sensitive by the government. These included women’s rights, the environment, and human rights problems related to the Nepali-speaking community. Because the government categorized human rights groups established by the Nepali-speaking community as political organizations that did not promote national unity, these groups were not permitted to operate.Government Human Rights Bodies: The National Assembly Human Rights Committee conducted human rights research on behalf of the National Assembly. The Civil Society Organization Authority has the legal authority to regulate civil society operations. Of 53 registered civil society organizations, 42 were categorized as public-benefit organizations and 11 as mutual-benefit organizations.																																					Section 6.													 Discrimination and Societal Abuses												    																																																Women										Rape and Domestic Violence: The law criminalizes rape and makes no reference to gender in its definition of rape. In cases of rape involving minors, sentences for conviction range from five to 15 years in prison. In extreme cases a person convicted of rape may be imprisoned for life. Spousal rape is illegal and prosecuted as a misdemeanor. In January the NCWC published the Standard Operating Procedure for Gender Based Violence Prevention and Response, which lays out policies and procedures related to gender-based violence and the roles and responsibilities of the government and civil society in combating it. According to the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) 2020 Annual Report, in 2019 there were 12 reported sexual offenses committed against women, including five cases of rape. A 2017 NCWC report stated that more than two in five women experienced at least one form of sexual, physical, psychological, or economic violence.The law prohibits domestic violence, including physical and sexual abuse. Physical abuse is prosecuted as battery under the penal code, and penalties for convicted perpetrators range from one month to three years’ imprisonment. Sexual abuse is prosecuted as a corresponding sexual offense, and punishable if convicted by three years’ to 15 years’ imprisonment. The law provides for increased sentences for conviction of second (and subsequent) domestic violence offenses.Three police stations had protection units to address crimes involving women and children, and 11 police stations had officers specifically devoted to women and children’s matters. The government operated a dedicated toll-free helpline to report violence against women and children. The government trained police on gender abuse matters and cooperated with civil society groups that undertook further efforts, including operation of a crisis and rehabilitation center. Freedom House reported that cultural taboos resulted in the underreporting of domestic violence, although reports have increased in recent years. Between January and April 2020, there were 97 reported cases of domestic violence. Between December 2020 and January 15, there were 223 reported cases of gender-based violence. The increase in cases was reportedly due to enforced confinement and other COVID-19 pandemic measures.Sexual Harassment: The law includes specific provisions to address sexual harassment in the workplace. NGOs reported these provisions were generally enforced. According to UNICEF, the Royal Civil Service Commission operated the Civil Service Support Desk to address sexual harassment in the civil service. The commission has designated points of contact to assist civil servants who experience sexual harassment in the workplace. The NCWC developed an internal framework to address gender matters in the workplace, including preventing and responding to sexual harassment. Approximately 29 government agencies and local governments have adopted the framework. The NCWC and Royal Civil Service Commission conducted awareness programs on sexual harassment and related legislations.Reproductive Rights: There were no reports of coerced abortion or involuntary sterilization on the part of government authorities.A lack of awareness of comprehensive sexual and reproductive health care contributed to unplanned early pregnancies, postpregnancy complications, child abandonment, and financial instability. In 2020 more than 237 cases of teenage pregnancy were reported. The World Bank reported that equity and access to medical care for pregnant women in some remote rural areas was a challenge because of difficult terrain, leading to disparities in access to skilled birth attendants.The NCWC and a government funded NGO provided shelter, and medical and counseling services to women and girls who are survivors of violence, including sexual violence.Discrimination: The law mandates the government take appropriate measures to eliminate all forms of discrimination and exploitation of women and girls, including trafficking, abuse, violence, harassment, and intimidation, at work and at home. The government generally enforced this law. The law is gender neutral and provides equal rights of property inheritance to female spouses and children.																																				Systemic Racial or Ethnic Violence and Discrimination										The constitution states that no person shall be discriminated against based on race, sex, language, religion, or politics.Although the country does not have an omnibus civil rights act, there are provisions spread throughout various other acts prohibiting discrimination. The law prohibits discrimination in the civil service in the areas of employment and career advancement. For example, the law states, “All eligible Bhutanese citizens shall have equal opportunity for employment and career advancement in the Civil Service on the basis of merit, qualification, fair and open competition without discrimination on the grounds of race, sex, language, religion, and other status.” The government generally enforced these laws and regulations.In its Freedom in the World 2021 report, Freedom House stated that ethnic Nepali residents who lacked a police security clearance certificate sometimes faced difficulties in starting a business and that the process of registering property could also be lengthy. The government did not permit NGOs to work on matters involving the status of ethnic Nepalis, and ethnic Nepalis sometimes faced employment discrimination (see section 7.d.).																																				Children										Birth Registration: Under the constitution, a person born to parents who are citizens by birth or by naturalization acquires citizenship.Education: The government provides 11 years of universal free education to children, although education is not compulsory.Child Abuse: The law prohibits child abuse and provides for a range of penalties for conviction depending on the type of abuse. According to the OAG 2020 Annual Report, 67 sexual offenses committed against children were recorded in 2020, including 42 cases of rape and 14 cases of child molestation. In June the High Court convicted a schoolteacher for child molestation and official misconduct and ordered prison sentences of three years and one year, respectively for each offense.Child, Early, and Forced Marriage: The statutory minimum age of marriage is 18 for men and women.																																			Sexual Exploitation of Children: The law prohibits commercial sexual exploitation of children, including child pornography, child sex trafficking, and the sale of children. Authorities generally enforced the law. The legal age of consent is 16 for both boys and girls.International Child Abductions: The country is not a party to the 1980 Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction. See the Department of State’s Annual Report on International Parental Child Abduction at https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/International-Parental-Child-Abduction/for-providers/legal-reports-and-data/reported-cases.html.																																				Anti-Semitism										The country does not have a Jewish population, and there were no reports of anti-Semitic acts.																																				Trafficking in Persons										See the Department of State’s Trafficking in Persons Report at  https://www.state.gov/trafficking-in-persons-report/.																																				Persons with Disabilities										Persons with disabilities did not have equal access to education, health services, public building, and transportation on an equal basis with others. Several government policies and guidelines, however, supported persons with disabilities. For example, the Gross National Happiness Commission adopted the National Policy for Persons with Disabilities, the Ministry of Education instituted standards for inclusivity regarding children with disabilities, and the Ministry of Works and Human Settlement adopted guidelines for “differently abled friendly construction” that state that infrastructure should provide access to persons with disabilities.Social stigma and stereotyping of persons with disabilities was widespread.																																				HIV and AIDS Social Stigma										While NGOs claimed persons with HIV or AIDS faced no widespread stigma, there were reports such persons were reluctant to reveal their conditions due to fear of negative public attitudes.The government provided free medical and counseling services to persons with HIV or AIDS and maintained programs designed to prevent discrimination. The NGO Lhak-Sam provided support to persons living with HIV and their families and cooperated the Ministry of Health to create and promote effective responses to HIV/AIDS and its impact.																																				Acts of Violence, Criminalization, and Other Abuses Based on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity										The constitution provides for equal protection and application of rights but neither the constitution nor legislation explicitly protects individuals from discrimination based on their sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or sex characteristics. In December 2020 the parliament amended the law against “unnatural sex” to state, “Homosexuality between adults shall not be considered unnatural sex.”Members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersex (LGBTQI+) community reported instances of discrimination and social stigma based on sexual orientation. According to the LGBTQI+ rights NGO Pride Bhutan, during the year it received 47 reports of discrimination, 27 reports of social stigma, 19 reports of violence, and 16 reports of bullying from members of the LGBTQI+ community.The law does not provide distinct legal status for transgender individuals, nor does it provide explicit protections.																																					Section 7.													 Worker Rights												    																																																a. Freedom of Association and the Right to Collective Bargaining										The law provides workers the right to form and join independent unions. Workers may form a union with the participation of at least 12 employees from a single workplace. There is no national trade union. The law does not mention the right to conduct legal strikes. Most of the country’s workforce engages in agriculture, a sector that is not unionized.The law provides for the right of workers to bargain collectively with employers. The law prohibits antiunion discrimination and requires reinstatement of workers fired for union activity. Violators may face misdemeanor charges and be compelled to pay damages commensurate with other forms of workplace discrimination.The government effectively enforced applicable laws. Resources and remediation were adequate, and penalties were commensurate with those for similar violations. The law grants workers the right to pursue litigation.Freedom of association and the right to bargain collectively were respected by the government and employers, although there were few employee unions. No unions were formed during the year.																																				b. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor										The law prohibits most forms of forced or compulsory labor, but the government did not always effectively enforce applicable laws. The law makes exceptions regarding prison labor, work that might be required during an emergency, and work required for “important local and public” celebrations. The law criminalizes trafficking for illegal, but not exploitative, purposes. Violations of law with respect to the worst forms of child labor, forced and compulsory labor, nonpayment of compensation, minimum working age, employing foreigners without a permit, and noncompliance with permits issued by the government are felonies for which the penalties for conviction are sentences of three to five years’ imprisonment. Resources, inspections, and remediation were adequate, and penalties were commensurate with other analogous crimes. In addition labor inspectors often mediated cases of nonpayment of wages and withholding passports in lieu of civil or criminal investigations. Penalties for forced or compulsory labor were commensurate with other analogous crimes.Officials relied on citizens to report forced labor of domestic workers directly to police.Due to the worsening COVID-19 pandemic in neighboring countries, in April the government temporarily suspended the admission of foreign workers. The Ministry of Labor and Human Resources is responsible for registering foreign migrant workers, monitoring working conditions and recruitment agencies, and producing and disseminating pamphlets advising workers of their rights, including full and prompt payment of wages and their legal right to retain personal identity documents. While drayangs (karaoke bars) continued to be a sector where women were vulnerable to sex trafficking, forced labor, and labor rights abuses, during the year legislation was passed that mandated contracts for drayang employees that incorporated provision against abuse. Also see the Department of State’s annual Trafficking in Persons Report at  https://www.state.gov/trafficking-in-persons-report/.																																				c. Prohibition of Child Labor and Minimum Age for Employment										The law prohibits the worst forms of child labor. The minimum age for employment is 13, and the minimum age for hazardous work is 18. Children younger than age 18 are prohibited from working in dangerous occupations, including mining, construction, sanitary services, carpet weaving, and serving in bars.While child labor laws were generally enforced, the Ministry of Labor and Human Resources reported that a shortage of inspectors trained specifically in child labor violations placed constraints on the number of child-labor inspections conducted during the year. Penalties for conviction included up to nine years’ imprisonment, commensurate with sentences for conviction of analogous crimes.Education is not compulsory, which contributed to the number of children working. Children performed agricultural work, completed chores on family farms, or worked in shops and restaurants after school and during holidays. Child labor also occurred in hotels and automobile workshops. Girls were employed primarily as domestic workers, where they were vulnerable to abuse and exploitation.Also see the Department of Labor’s Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labor at  https://www.dol.gov/agencies/ilab/resources/reports/child-labor/findings/ .																																				d. Discrimination with Respect to Employment and Occupation										The law prohibits employment discrimination for employees and job applicants based on race, color, sex, marital status, pregnancy, religion, political opinion, social origin, or involvement in a workers’ association, including as an occupational health and safety representative, and mandates equal pay for equal work. The law does not address discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, or HIV/AIDS status. There are no categories or lists of jobs from which employment is prohibited to certain types of persons, and women are free to work in the same professions as men.The government did not consistently enforce the law. Some Nepali-speaking citizens could not obtain police security clearances, which are required to enroll in higher education and to obtain passports, government jobs, and licenses to run private businesses. The government did not permit NGOs to work on matters involving the status of ethnic Nepalis, and ethnic Nepalis sometimes faced employment discrimination.Amnesty International reported that many LGBTQI+ individuals, especially those from marginalized backgrounds, faced discrimination in hiring and employment.																																				e. Acceptable Conditions of Work										Wage and Hour Laws: The national minimum wage is above the official poverty income level. According to the Ministry of Labor and Human Resources, there are two wage rates in the country: the national minimum wage rate and the national workforce wage rate. The national minimum wage rate applies to anyone working in the country, irrespective of nationality. The national workforce wage rate is higher but applies only to citizens.The law defines the workday as eight hours per day with a one-hour lunch break, and employers are required to grant regular rest days, including a minimum of nine public holidays each year. Work of more hours than the legal workday is mandated to be paid at 1.5 times the normal rate.Occupational Safety and Health: Government occupational safety and health standards are current and appropriate. Inspectors have the right to conduct unannounced inspections and are responsible for identifying unsafe conditions. Labor regulations grant workers the right to leave work situations that endanger their health and safety without jeopardy to their employment.The Department of Labor generally enforced minimum wage, work hours, and occupational health and safety standards effectively in the formal sector. Penalties, including payment of damages, were generally commensurate with other types of workplace violation fines, and inspection was sufficient.Informal Sector: There was no information available on any informal sector activity in the country.																																				    							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Respect for the Integrity of the Person																																							a. Arbitrary Deprivation of Life and Other Unlawful or Politically Motivated Killings																																																						b. Disappearance																																																						c. Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment																																																				Prison and Detention Center Conditions																																																																																				d. Arbitrary Arrest or Detention																																																				Arrest Procedures and Treatment of Detainees																																																																																				e. Denial of Fair Public Trial																																																				Trial Procedures																																												Political Prisoners and Detainees																																												Civil Judicial Procedures and Remedies																																																																																				f. Arbitrary or Unlawful Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or Correspondence																																																			Section 2. Respect for Civil Liberties																																							a. Freedom of Expression, Including for Members of the Press and Other Media																																																				Internet Freedom																																												Academic Freedom and Cultural Events																																																																																				b. Freedoms of Peaceful Assembly and Association																																																				Freedom of Peaceful Assembly																																												Freedom of Association																																																																																				c. Freedom of Religion																																																						d. Freedom of Movement and the Right to Leave the Country																																																						e. Status and Treatment of Internally Displaced Persons																																																						f. Protection of Refugees																																																						g. Stateless Persons																																																			Section 3. Freedom to Participate in the Political Process																																																				Elections and Political Participation																																																			Section 4. Corruption and Lack of Transparency in Government																																																	Section 5. Governmental Posture Towards International and Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Abuses of Human Rights																																																	Section 6. Discrimination and Societal Abuses																																							Women																																																						Systemic Racial or Ethnic Violence and Discrimination																																																						Children																																																																			Anti-Semitism																																																						Trafficking in Persons																																																						Persons with Disabilities																																																						HIV and AIDS Social Stigma																																																						Acts of Violence, Criminalization, and Other Abuses Based on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity																																																			Section 7. Worker Rights																																							a. Freedom of Association and the Right to Collective Bargaining																																																						b. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor																																																						c. Prohibition of Child Labor and Minimum Age for Employment																																																						d. Discrimination with Respect to Employment and Occupation																																																						e. Acceptable Conditions of Work																																																									Tags																					Bhutan																								Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor																								Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs
- Bhutan HomeReportsOffice to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons2021 Trafficking in Persons Report&#8230;Bhutan				hide	document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", function(event) {	if(window.jQuery) {		jQuery( document ).ready(function() {			if (jQuery(".bc_middle").hasClass("collapse")) {				jQuery(".bc_ellipse").click(function(){					jQuery(".bc_hide").toggleClass("visible");					jQuery(".bc_middle").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_ellipse").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_content").toggleClass("noflex");					jQuery(".block_breadcrumbs_content").toggleClass("noflex");				});				jQuery(".bc_hide").click(function(){					jQuery(".bc_hide").toggleClass("visible");					jQuery(".bc_middle").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_ellipse").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_content").toggleClass("noflex");					jQuery(".block_breadcrumbs_content").toggleClass("noflex");				});			} else {				jQuery(".bc_ellipse").hide();			}		});	}});																							2021 Trafficking in Persons Report: Bhutan																																					Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons																																																																																																				 In this section										/																							BHUTAN: Tier 2 Watch List																																													BHUTAN: Tier 2 Watch List																															PRIORITIZED RECOMMENDATIONS:																																																																																		PROSECUTION																																																																																		PROTECTION																																																																																		PREVENTION																																																																																		TRAFFICKING PROFILE																																																																																																								BHUTAN: Tier 2 Watch List				The Royal Government of Bhutan does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking but is making significant efforts to do so. These efforts included amending Section 154 of the penal code to further align the definition of trafficking with the definition under international law, finalizing a national prevention strategy (NPS) on trafficking, expanding funding to NGOs for shelter services, and funding the repatriation and support services for 160 Bhutanese women who were victims of trafficking in the Gulf. In addition, the government continued to work with an international organization on anti-trafficking trainings and public awareness events. However, the government did not demonstrate overall increasing efforts compared to the previous reporting period, even considering the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on its anti-trafficking capacity. Bhutan’s trafficking laws do not criminalize all forms of child sex trafficking. Officials did not initiate any new trafficking cases, convict any traffickers, or identify any new trafficking victims during the reporting period. Therefore Bhutan remained on Tier 2 Watch List for the second consecutive year.																																					PRIORITIZED RECOMMENDATIONS:						    																																															Amend anti-trafficking laws to ensure that a demonstration of force, fraud, or coercion is not required to constitute a child sex trafficking offense, consistent with international law. • Vigorously investigate, prosecute, and convict traffickers with significant terms of imprisonment. • Increase proactive trafficking victim identification, including by training officials on, and implementing, existing standard operating procedures (SOPs). • Draft and finalize a national action plan to combat trafficking. Disseminate information and train officials on the amended Penal Code Section 154 and the implementation of anti-trafficking laws. • Train and instruct labor inspectors to screen cases of labor violations for indicators of forced labor, including nonpayment of wages, and refer to police for criminal investigation. • Finalize and implement guidelines to oversee drayangs, including ensuring workers have access to contracts. • Take steps to eliminate all recruitment fees charged to workers by recruitment agents, and investigate claims of nonpayment of wages, contract switching, and illegal fees charged by agents. • Increase awareness of human trafficking, including forced labor of Bhutanese students abroad. • Accede to the 2000 UN TIP Protocol.																																												PROSECUTION						    																																															The government increased anti-trafficking law enforcement efforts. The law criminalized all forms of labor trafficking and some forms of sex trafficking. During the reporting period, the government amended Section 154 of the penal code, which criminalized “trafficking in persons,” to further align the definition of trafficking with the definition under international law. Specifically, the amended legislation defined trafficking as incorporating any form of exploitation and removed a previous provision that required prosecutors to prove that trafficking was conducted for an “illegal purpose.” Under the current provision, all forms of adult sex trafficking, adult labor trafficking, and child labor trafficking are criminalized. However, the law defined trafficking to require a demonstration of force, fraud, or coercion, which is inconsistent with international law for child sex trafficking, thereby failing to criminalize all forms of child sex trafficking. Similarly, Section 224 of The Child Care and Protection Act (CCPA) criminalized child trafficking but, inconsistent with international law, also required a demonstration of force, fraud, or coercion to constitute a child sex trafficking offense and therefore did not criminalize all forms of child sex trafficking. Section 379 of the penal code defined “trafficking a person for prostitution” as selling, buying, or transporting a person into or outside of Bhutan for the purposes of prostitution. Section 154 of the Penal Code prescribed punishment ranging from three to five years’ imprisonment; Section 379 from five years’ to life imprisonment; and Section 224 of the CCPA from five to nine years. These punishments were sufficiently stringent and, with respect to sex trafficking, commensurate with penalties prescribed for other serious crimes, such as abduction.The government did not initiate any new investigations but did reinvestigate one case and made new arrests in existing cases during the reporting period, compared with two investigations in the previous reporting period. In 2020, the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) prosecuted three suspects for labor trafficking of three Bhutanese women in a case stemming from 2018 and continued two previous prosecution cases, compared with three prosecutions the previous year. Authorities arrested 12 individuals in ongoing forced labor cases during the reporting period, including nine in relation to a 2019 case in which 160 Bhutanese women were exploited for domestic service in Iraq, Oman, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Investigation of the employment agencies involved in the case remained ongoing. Three additional individuals were charged in a 2018 case of three Bhutanese women rescued in India who were en route to Iraq, where investigators believed they would be forced into domestic service. In 2019, Bhutanese law enforcement arrested two suspects in this case. A Bhutanese request for the extradition from India of a third alleged Bhutanese trafficker was unsuccessful. In 2020, the government reinvestigated the case, which led to the arrests. At the end of the reporting period, the trial remained ongoing. An ongoing OAG appeal of the dismissal of trafficking charges in a 2018 case, in which a suspect was charged with child trafficking for forced domestic labor of an 8-year-old girl, sought to reimpose trafficking charges on the defendant. Despite indicators of trafficking, including severe physical abuse that required hospitalization and amputations, in 2018 the court dropped the trafficking charges, convicted the employer for illegal transportation of a child, and penalized her with a 9,900 Bhutanese ngultrum (Nu) ($136) fine and 180,000 Nu ($2,470) in victim compensation. The OAG appeal was ongoing at the end of the reporting period. The government did not convict any traffickers during the reporting period.In mid-2018, several hundred Bhutanese participants in a government-approved work-study program in Japan reported indicators of forced labor. The government dismissed the allegations for nearly one year, but after a lawyer representing a group of students filed a criminal complaint against the recruitment agency, the government investigated the case. The lawyer alleged forgery, deceptive practices, harassment, abandonment of a person in danger, and human trafficking. The OAG reportedly could not bring trafficking charges due to lack of evidence of human trafficking as defined by Bhutanese law but charged the agency with 2,887 counts of forgery and 730 counts of larceny by deception. The government also charged the Director-General of the Ministry of Labor and Human Resources with four criminal offenses, including illegal issuance of a certificate of registration to an employment agency without required documentation. For the second year, the prosecution of both cases was ongoing at the close of the reporting period.Some officials continued to lack an understanding of human trafficking, especially internal and transnational forced labor, although recent high-profile cases have helped increased awareness. Limited police resources often hindered thorough investigations, and a lack of training for law enforcement on victim-centered questioning impeded formation of strong cases. In some cases, persistent individual officers accounted for successful anti-trafficking law enforcement efforts. In partnership with an international organization, the Department of Law and Order (DLO) continued to support anti-trafficking trainings for law enforcement and prosecutors. The lack of diplomatic relationships or mutual law enforcement agreements with destination countries hindered Royal Bhutan Police (RBP) efforts to investigate some potential trafficking cases.																																												PROTECTION						    																																															The government demonstrated mixed protection efforts; the government did not identify any victims during the reporting period but did expand funding to NGOs for shelter services and repatriated and provided short-term services to 160 women identified by an international organization as victims of domestic servitude in Iraq, Oman, and the UAE in the previous reporting period. The government did not identify any trafficking victims during the reporting period. During the previous reporting period, the government—with help from an international organization—identified 160 women as victims of domestic servitude in Iraq, Oman, and the UAE. The government had SOPs on trafficking victim identification and referral. In partnership with an international organization, the government conducted five trainings for officials on the SOPs, including three that were conducted online due to pandemic-related restrictions. The government also finalized a training manual on trafficking for the judiciary and held a two-day training for judges in March 2021. RBP maintained Women and Child Protection Units at three police stations, which consisted of a female police officer assigned to crimes against women and children. Ten women and child desks at other police stations had a police officer assigned to these crimes. RBP reportedly screened for trafficking, including at worksites, businesses, and border areas, but did not identify any trafficking victims. Due to the pandemic, the entertainment sector, including drayangs (karaoke bars), were closed during the reporting period.When it identified trafficking victims, RBP and other agencies could refer them to the National Commission for Women and Children (NCWC) or an NGO for care. NCWC and NGOs could refer female and child victims to two NGO-run facilities that provided counseling, medical services, and long-term shelter to women and child victims of crime. The government funded a full-time nurse, security guards, and some operating costs. No shelter could accommodate male trafficking victims. During the reporting period, one child trafficking victim identified in 2018 remained at a shelter. Starting at the end of the previous reporting period and continuing throughout the current reporting period, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs assisted an international organization and coordinated with the Iraqi government in screening the 160 Bhutanese women identified in domestic servitude in Iraq, Oman, and UAE for trafficking indicators in the previous reporting period. The government funded the repatriation of all the women, including in some cases paying fees to break contracts in Iraq. During the required 21-day pandemic quarantine period upon return to Bhutan, the government provided the women with medical care, counseling, assistance in reuniting with their families, and temporary financial support. NCWC developed a reintegration program for each of the women and continued to provide support once they returned home. This included providing livelihood skills training for 63 of the women. Shelter services in Thimphu were provided to 21 women.There were no shelters for crime victims outside of the capital area. In 2020, the government expanded funding to include a second shelter in the capital and allocated an additional 100,000 Nu ($1,370) to NGOs providing shelter services. One shelter had case management officers in five districts and the other had the ability to assign counselors to visit crime victims outside the capital on an ad hoc basis. Ministries did not have dedicated budgets to support trafficking victims, which created gaps in services in some reported cases. NCWC maintained a budget to assist women in difficult circumstances, which was available to support female and child trafficking victims. NCWC could also provide case management assistance and legal aid. The pandemic-related government lockdown and movement restrictions hampered NCWC and NGO efforts to provide some services. NCWC and NGOs provided counseling and psychological support services virtually as well as in-person services.During the previous reporting period, some Bhutanese students who went to Japan through a placement program contracted serious illnesses due to the squalid living conditions, resulting in several deaths. At the close of the reporting period, the Bhutanese government had repatriated most of the participants. The government did not report on the status of any students remaining in Japan or on assistance to these potential victims but maintained its intent to repatriate any additional participants wishing to return to Bhutan. The immigration department mandated that authorities report suspected foreign trafficking victims identified within Bhutan to NCWC before initiating deportation for immigration violations. Bhutanese law did not provide legal alternatives to removal of trafficking victims to countries in which victims would face retribution or hardship.																																												PREVENTION						    																																															The government maintained efforts to prevent human trafficking. DLO led the government’s anti-trafficking task force, composed of government and civil society; however, during the reporting period, task force meetings were suspended due to a need to shift focus and resources to the COVID-19 mitigation task force. In partnership with an international organization, DLO finalized its national prevention strategy (NPS) in collaboration with civil society and other relevant stakeholders; at the close of the reporting period, it was awaiting full government endorsement. The NPS was based on an assessment conducted in the previous reporting period with the assistance of an international organization and a parliamentary study on national trafficking trends and will serve as the foundation of the future national action plan. During the reporting period, the government delayed meetings to begin drafting the national action plan because of the pandemic. Insufficient application of SOPs, and a lack of a dedicated anti-trafficking budget continued to hamper DLO’s implementation of its anti-trafficking mandate. In partnership with an international organization, DLO continued to support public awareness events on human trafficking for groups including students, airport officials, local government officials, and the general public.All entertainment venues, including drayangs, were closed in March 2020 due to the pandemic and had not reopened at the end of the reporting period. In the past, the government and media reported cases of children working in drayangs, a violation of the minimum age requirement of 18. The Ministry of Economic Affairs continued for a second year to work on new guidelines to review and oversee drayangs, including mandating investigations into potentially exploitative working conditions. The Ministry of Labor and Human Resources (MOLHR) registered foreign migrant workers in Bhutan, monitored working conditions, and produced and disseminated pamphlets advising workers of their rights. The Department of Labor (DOL), within MOLHR, had a total of 35 labor inspectors, but inspectors lacked adequate anti-trafficking training. The July 2018-June 2019 DOL annual report documented 147 complaints of nonpayment of wages, compared to 211 in the previous reporting period; the 2019-2020 report had yet to be published by the end of the reporting period. As in the previous reporting period, the government did not report the disposition of these complaints, including whether it levied civil or criminal penalties. DOL generally mediated claims of nonpayment of wages, and it did not report violators to police for criminal investigation of potential forced labor offenses or penalize employers if they paid the outstanding wages. MOLHR did not have the ability to inspect private homes for labor violations and relied on the RBP to report or potential victims to self-identify.Government regulations on overseas employment allowed most agents to charge Bhutanese migrant workers a recruitment fee of one month’s salary along with a limited number of recruitment expenses, except for costs associated with a visa or work permit. Recruitment fees are not charged to Bhutanese workers who travel overseas through direct placement programs or by Bhutanese companies who bring foreign workers to Bhutan. Foreign workers are required to pay fees for a work permit and medical check-up, which amounts to about 20 percent of one month’s wages. MOLHR requires all Bhutanese traveling overseas for employment to participate in a predeparture orientation on human trafficking and the risks of overseas employment. Individual police officers continued to educate migrant workers about trafficking when they applied for the mandatory police clearance. MOLHR continued to monitor recruitment agencies that assisted Bhutanese citizens older than age 21 seeking work overseas. During the reporting period, it continued to monitor five licensed agencies and one agency it had suspended in the previous reporting period. During the previous reporting period, the government suspended registration of all new labor recruitment agencies and agents; the government did not report if it had reinstated new registrations. MOLHR posted online announcements to warn potential migrant workers of false advertising and to encourage applicants to verify overseas job advertisements with the ministry. The government did not make efforts to reduce the demand for commercial sex acts. The government did not provide anti-trafficking training for its diplomatic personnel. Bhutan is not a party to the 2000 UN TIP Protocol.																																												TRAFFICKING PROFILE						    																																															As reported over the past five years, human traffickers exploit domestic victims in Bhutan, Bhutanese abroad, and foreigners in Bhutan. Unregistered and unscrupulous foreign employment recruitment agencies and sub-agents increasingly operate through social media. Some traffickers posing as recruiters offer ostensibly well-paying jobs overseas but exploit Bhutanese in forced labor. Some agencies have subjected Bhutanese students in work-study programs in Japan and Malaysia with indicators of forced labor, including fraudulent contracts, nonpayment of wages, and passport retention. Bhutanese citizens continued to work in the hospitality, retail, and service sectors in the Gulf, including in Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, and UAE, and in India, Thailand, and the United Kingdom through global training and placement academies. Some participants reported indicators of trafficking, including illegal recruitment fees and wage deductions, restricted movement, passport retention, and nonpayment of wages. Media outlets reported traffickers have exploited Bhutanese women in sex trafficking in India. In recent years, traffickers sent approximately 160 Bhutanese women to Iraq for forced labor in domestic work.Traffickers have exploited Bhutanese women and girls in sex and labor trafficking, including in forced domestic labor and caregiving, through debt bondage and threats of physical abuse. Bhutanese women and girls who work as entertainers in drayangs are vulnerable to labor and sex traffickers. Drayang workers often come from rural areas and sign contracts they later cannot access that can give more than half of their income to the drayang owners. Additionally, some female drayang entertainers reportedly work in commercial sex after the drayangs close, some of which traffickers might facilitate. Relatives transport rural Bhutanese to urban areas for employment in domestic work, which at times may involve forced labor. Media outlets have reported instances of child labor within Bhutan’s restaurant and automobile workshop industries, some of which had indicators of forced labor. Prior to the pandemic, the expanding construction sector increased the demand for low-skilled foreign labor. Male Indian migrant workers—including in the construction and hydropower sectors—often receive advances before beginning work in Bhutan. Some workers subsequently report unauthorized deductions and nonpayment of wages. Traffickers have exploited Indian child domestic workers in Bhutan. Media outlets and NGOs report an increase in commercial sex by Bhutanese and Indian women in the Bhutanese-Indian border’s growing hospitality and entertainment districts—including hotels, massage parlors, and nightclubs—some of which might be forced. Bhutan’s small stateless persons population’s lack of access to documentation necessary to attend school rendered stateless children vulnerable to traffickers.																																				    							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