Source: Religion News Service
BHUTAN, September 29, 2010: (RNS) Officials in Buddhist-majority Bhutan have barred Hindu and Buddhist clergy from voting in upcoming elections in order to “keep a clear distinction between religion and politics.” The country’s regulatory authority on religious organizations is now busy identifying Buddhist and Hindu clergy who should be barred from voting.
The landlocked Himalayan nation considers Mahayana Buddhism the state religion and funds a large monastic community, but also requires religion to be above politics.
The Bhutan Youth Development Fund, a non-profit group that sponsors monks who do not receive government assistance, estimates that almost 10 percent of the population is part of the monastic system. Around 75 percent of the less than 700,000 Bhutanese are Buddhist. Another 22 percent are Hindus, the only other officially recognized religion. Since the 17th century, Bhutan has followed a dual system of governance, known as the Chhoe-sid-nyi, which splits the government powers into a religious branch headed by a chief abbot (known as Je Khenpo), and an administrative branch headed by the king (now headed by the prime minister). Until now, the clergy had the right to vote.
Despite these secular leanings, Bhutan’s 2008 constitution specifies that the king must be a Buddhist. It also mandates that parliament conclude all sessions with Buddhist prayers, and requires religious institutions and figures to promote the Buddhist spiritual heritage “while also ensuring that religion remains separate from politics in Bhutan.”