The news out of the Himalayas last week was all about Nepal, where King Gyanendra on Tuesday dissolved the government and proclaimed a state of emergency. (The move was billed as an attempt to end an intractable Maoist insurgency; observers predict it will only feed the flames.) But if you think Nepal is going through interesting times, consider what has been happening in nearby Bhutan. Determined to stamp out sparks of a different kind, the Bhutanese National Assembly in December made the tiny mountain kingdom the first nation in the world to ban tobacco sales and public smoking outright.
King Gyanendra may have his hands full placating murderous rebels and appalled critics, but Bhutan's King Jigme Singye Wangchuk has problems, too. "This ban has already forced me to cut down on my smoking, and now I am even thinking of giving it up altogether," he told reporters last month. (You have to admire the man for his civic docility, given the example of kingly arrogance being set elsewhere in the neighborhood.)
Two countries, two drastic steps. But while Nepal's case may seem more momentous, Bhutan's law raises knotty questions.