Bhutan is ruled by a hereditary absolute monarch, who is assisted by a surrogate National Assembly, Council of Ministers and a subservient judiciary. There is no constitution to guarantee and protect citizen's human rights. The legal traditions are based on the religious laws of Buddhism. There is no rule of law. Bhutan's civil and criminal codes are rooted in the Tsa Yig, a code established in 1616 by Shabdrung, the Monk-ruler.This code was revised in 1957 but it retained all the substance of the 17th century code. The legal system is not modelled after the British or American legal system. There is no comprehensive legal regime pertaining to civil and criminal cases. Most laws are yet to be codified. Bhutan has also not accepted the compulsory jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice. Precedence has no place in justice delivery and administration system.

Judiciary: The Bhutanese Judiciary was established in 1961. The High Court in Thimphu known as Royal Court of Justice is the country's supreme court. It was set up in 1968 to review appeals from the district courts. Until then, district authorities administered the law. The judiciary is not independent of the king and neither is it impartial or neutral. It functions under the command of the king. The king is the highest court of appeal. The court itself comprises six judges. Village heads decide minor cases and the district officials adjudicate major crimes. The High Court functions as a single bench and district courts have a lone district Judge. The Judiciary never declares any government action unlawful. The King fires the dissenting judges summarily. In one instance, he personally went to the High Court and fired the Chief Justice and five other Judges on the spot, when they refused to give a favourable verdict to the Queens' uncle against a group of villagers. Judges are thus under constant threat.

The justice administration system is still primitive. Provisions for defence attorneys, lawyers, solicitors and jury trials are non existent. Arbitrary arrest and detention is the rule rather than exception. Bhutan police has never seen an arrest warrant. There is no system according to which a competent judge issue arrest warrants. People are detained and arrested forindefinite periods.The King exercises strong, active and direct power over thejudiciary. The Government significantly restricts the rights of Bhutanesecitizens and the judiciary has never protected these rights. The judicial system is there to implement an antiquated legal system that is based onmedieval theocratic Buddhist precepts.

All Judges from district to the High Court are appointed by the King through the Royal Civil Service Commission and serves at his pleasure. Demonstrated loyalty to the King and his family is the sole criteria for the appointment. No Judicial official including the Chief Justice is trained in law. The current judges do not possess any university degree. In fact an important institution like the judiciary has been made a dumping ground for inefficient and unwanted civil servants.

The king and his Council of Ministers is the single source of law. Members of national Parliament -- the National Assembly (NA)-- themselves cannot pass any legislation. They do not belong to any political party, since political parties and human rights organisations are banned in Bhutan.The Council of Ministers sendsall legislation to the National Assembly for approval and enactment. The NA just approves them. All legislation passed by the NA is sent to the King, who has the power to veto any legislation. NA's basic objective is to eulogize the magnanimity of the King, pay adulatory and flattering tributes to him andlegitimize government action. NA members are indoctrinated to deliberate on pre-decided agenda set by the government. Laws in Bhutan have no respect at all for individual rights and civil liberties. Citizens including members of NA lose their nationality if they criticize the King and his government. The king and hisgovernment are above law and supreme in the legal system.

Appeal: The District courts have original and general jurisdictions on criminal and civil cases.Bhutan does not have the intermediary appellate court system. The next higher court after the District courtis the High Court in Thimphu. The King is the final and highest court of appeal. The father of the current King introduced this system with a view to bring the monarchy closer to addressing peoples' grievances . But this system is now decaying.The current political leadership has created an aura of fear among the people and the monarchy is gradually losing its 'benevolent status'.

Trial: Bhutan has the most outdated, unprofessional and unlawful prosecution and trial system. The government restricts citizens' right to a fair trial. In contravention to all established jurisprudence and international legal norms, the Judges in Bhutan investigate cases, file charges, prosecuteand even award judgment. The hearing judge assists the police from the executive branch of the government in the prosecution and decides the cases. The entire basis of the judicial system is extraction of the confession of the crime, even form the innocent. There are instances of hundreds of innocent Tibetans, who were given life imprisonment during the coronation and later the Lhotshampas. Majority of cases are decided at the Judge's discretion and they sometimes give longer sentences than has been prescribed under law. Concerned government departments investigate and conduct the prosecution in cases against the State. There is no distinction between judiciary and executive at the justice delivery level. Litigants or defendants, themselves have to represent and defend their cases in the court.

In1989, Tek Nath Rizal was arrested for his political activities. He was convicted under the National Security Act (NSA) 1993 by a Kangaroo court though the NSA had not been passed at the time of his conviction. Political prisoners are not tried by the district courts. In 1999, the High Court imprisoned many Nyingmapa Buddhist Monks of Sharchhop community with the aim of imposing the ruling Ngalong norms on a distinct religious and linguistic community - theSharchhops. The government uses NSA to immobilize political dissidents and suppress human rights activities. It also bans the activities of religious minorities under the outdated National Assembly resolutions.

After international criticism of Rizal's 1991 Kangaroo court trial, the government introduced a system of jabmis or certificated legal counsellors to hoodwink the international community. These jabmis are given three month training and a licence to practise. These lowly educated jabmis hardly understand the legal intricacies. One can imagine the quality of their pleading.

It is high time Bhutan introduced modern laws, legal and jurisprudence system based on international norms and standards. The government should introduce democratic norms guaranteeing citizens' human rights. In this context, the government should proclaim a democratic constitution with constitutional Monarchy without further delay.