An American writer, Doris Lee McCoy has launched her fifth book entitled “The Magic of Gross National Happiness” at the Tarayana foundation conference hall in the capital city of Bhutan on September 10, 2010.
According to Doris, Bhutan is the eighth happiest nation in the world. America has been place in the 23rd position, Germany 35th, and England 41st.
Doris stressed that the people around the globe have begun to realize the importance of happiness further adding that there are 26 happiness clubs in America.
She said the four pillars of GNH splitting into nine domains gave specifics for other countries to be able to use as an example they might also use in theirs.
Interestingly, this book could not catch the plight of those citizens who were expelled from the country only when they tried to safeguard their own happiness.
She does not know that Bhutanese economy is based on Indian aid and grants. Every year Bhutan king goes to New Delhi to beg for money. Even Bhutan’s military and police budget is funded by India. She should know that only an economically and politically self sufficient and independent nation can claim of GNH. It’s just a joke to claim of GNH in Bhutan which has no access to land, sea or air. Everything has to be done through India because Bhutan has no diplomatic relations with its northern neighbour i.e. China. Bhutan’s claim is just a propaganda to divert the international attention from the real issues of how it threw out over 100,000 of its own southern citizens by destroying their homes, confiscating their properties and citizenship rights and how shamelessly its rulers have been denying the fundamental rights of their return home in total disreagrd to UDHR, UN Conventions, resolutions and decisions. This writer should also talk about plight of refugees and political prisoners in Bhutan if she wants any credit for her book. She should go and meet refugees and their leaders like RK Dorji and Rizal to find out the truth behind this mask of GNH.
Suraj jue,
You are a guy with negative mind as saying goes in hindi”khatta angur kown kha..a.ga (one fine day hungry fox/jackal saw brids enjoying grape/fruits on the top of tree,AS THE FOX/JACKAL CAN NOT CLAMB THE TREE, fox/jackal asked birds to give some grape/fruits,birds refused to give and out of fustration fox/jackal said WHO WILL IT THIS BITTER TESTED FRUITS ?
Mr.John Mike,
The present ill-repute of Bhutan is because of the visionless cowards like you who cannot even disclose your identity to have a healthy discussion on a blatant propaganda of Wangchuk regime that is trying to fool the world. Wait and watch. The truth will prevail one day.
The truth had already prevailed. You will never see Bhutan again whether it is happy or unhappy.
John, you don’t have to tell this story even a fool knows about it. If India stops just one time budget you guys, your kings, queens, princes and princessess, lyonpos and dashos will all go hungry. You can’t survive even for a day. The idea of GNH will just vanish and you will come on the street with begging bowls.If India stops army and police budget, you know what is going to happen they will jointly stage a coup against your kings and lyonpos. Your propaganda of GNH is nothing but to cheat outsiders while ordinary Bhutanese people face day to day problem of living from hand to mouth. I strongly suggest auditing of all Indian aids, grants and loans by an independent body to find out how much money the rulers in Bhutan have amassed since 1949 and how much of it was used to suppress the democratic movement, to throw out southern Bhutanese people and to bribe officials of Nepal and India to kidnap and detain leaders like Rizal and RKD.
Suraj bhai,Nirola dai,
You have lots of ill feelings and negative thoughts about Bhutan and fellow citizen, then why you are so crazy to come back to Bhutan and trying to tell the world that you are once citizen of Bhutan ?
Lotus Flower,
That’s exactly what Saddam Hussein had told his opponents who were exiled to US and other countries that you will never see Iraq again. See what happened to Saddam. Same fate awaits all those players high or low who forcefully evicted southern Bhutanese masses by destroying their homes.
Four Pillars in GNH:
1. The depth of the bow of a ‘happy’ citizen in front of the Kings and his ministers- how low does s/he bow, are the knees straight or bent, does s/he look scared of the ‘dear leaders’ or does s/he looks happy for the opportunity to bow? How long are the citizens wait in line to bow before they are fully happy to bow? and so on
2. How red are the cheeks of the happy citizens? Apple red? Peach-red? Orange-red? Cold-red?
3. How frequent, how loud (in decibels) and how mirth-filled are the laughters of the happy citizens? How often do citizens frown? What is the length of crow-feet around their eyes? Do they laugh at each other or with each other? How wide is their grin when they see their Kings and Ministers? And so on.
4. How often do peole come out in the street and dance away? How often do they participate in the chham dance and in how often do they revel in Tse-Chus etc? How often do they run to the Gomkora Tse-chu – every year? And so on.
And there are domains to GHN too, but that is entirely another story. We will talk about that when the drunk Brokpas are done trying to cut through the animal hide pants of their fellow drunk with their blunt knives.
Thank you…. I am grinning in GHN. Are you?
Hawa ko humbug GNH ЁЯЩБ
Shame to this writer who try lie this world..Truth will expose..well written and fake book Just a dream diary..batter ask all the bonfide citizen..
Raj, who are you referring bona-fide citizens to? The writer had walked throughout the country, met with people, performed thorough research before writing a book about the GNH. She is not like RP Subba or TP Mishra who sits at the comfort of their computers and assume things and propagate, and introduce themselves as political analysts.
Again, things have changed in Bhutan. It is there for everyone to see. Please don’t fool yourself by trying to think Americans and Europeans are fools like you.