Bhutan transitioned to a Democratic Constitutional Monarchy in 2008. Since then, the country has held four parliamentary elections, the most recent one being in 2024, which brought the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) back into power. The elections have seen peaceful transitions of power from incumbent governments to opposition or new parties, with no reported electoral violence. A written constitution was adopted in 2008 as part of transitioning into a democracy. Article 7 of the constitution guarantees the protection of civic freedoms such as freedom of association, expression, and assembly.
A precursor to the transition was the passing of the Civil Society Organizations Act in 2007, the umbrella legal framework for the formation, registration, and operation of Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) in the country. Today, there are more than 50 formal CSOs, and many community-based organisations, informal groups, and associations in the country. CSOs are engaged in topics of poverty reduction, empowerment of vulnerable groups, environment conservation, targeted health services, governance, and culture. Public awareness of the work of CSOs has increased and there is a growing frequency of genuine consultations with CSOs by the State on national policies and international commitments related to women, Persons with Disabilities, and the Universal Periodic Report (UPR) national Report, and expressed intentions to collaborate (e.g. Parliament-CSO Collaboration strategy; draft guideline for Government-CSO collaboration). Their role in the country, however, is limited by a still evolving democratic culture and a highly cautious approach towards civil society development which finds expression in, for example, recent administrative and financial requirements placed on CSOs. On their part, CSOs are limited by inadequate capacities, lack of coordinated strategic engagement within the sector itself and with the state, inadequate platforms for collective voice, and a critical shortage of diverse, sustainable resources.
At the global level, Bhutan’s democratic performance shows stable, mid-range performance and has moved from ‘partly free’ to ‘free’ on the Freedom House index. The number and diversity of media has grown; however, the media in general is faced with sustainability issues, challenges in accessing timely information, high attrition rate, and self-censorship, which resulted in the country falling from 147th to 150th place on the World Press Freedom Index. The country has ratified three international human rights treaties and two optional protocols. There are calls to ratify other core international human rights treaties, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
