Better late than never. Bhutan has finally lifted its ban on television and the Internet. On 2 June, the Bhutan Broadcasting Service (BBS) begins its television network, while Druknet goes online. The date marks the 25th anniversary of King Jigme Singye Wangchuk's coronation
But the ban on satellite dishes—more flouted than followed—will remain, says the state-run Kuensel weekly. In an editorial, the paper said the arrival of a national television channel would mean that the satellite dishes dotting the Thimphu skyscape would be a thing of the past: "Once Bhutan is able to telecast national programmes and selected international programmes the cumbersome and expensive dish antennae become unnecessary. Hopefully, they will even disappear."
These antennae, many of them "old" ones being dumped on Thimphu from India's Gangtok and Darjeeling, "are a grating contrast to the important national policy of maintaining the traditional look of our houses and towns", wrote Kuensel.
The television service, initially only available for Thimphu, will be featuring programmes both in Dzongkha (the Bhutanese national language) and English. There is no reference in the announcement to Nepali, spoken by a significant portion of Bhutanese. "Ours will be a public service television channel that will complement the radio, the print media and the Internet by providing information, education and entertainment and by being a catalyst in the task of nation-building," said a BBS spokesman.