It struck me as I read the papers here this morning that the concept of political correctness is fluid. Reading how disabilities are descibed made me shoke down my coffee as I started laughing but crinching inwardly. Attitudes change slowly and the thought that a family has flawed children is a sad one.
Family with three disabled struggles
TEK NARAYAN BHATTARAI
SYANGJA, Dec 29: A house here in Waling Municipality-5 resembles a care center for the disabled as three of the four children in the family have multiple disabilities.
Basanta, the eldest son of Padam and Babita Pandey, suffers from mental problems, is lame and cannot speak.
The other son Bhesh Raj, 11, has problems similar to his 22-year-old brother while younger daughter Sita, who is 4, also has mental problems, is blind and cannot speak or get up from bed.
The three can´t even go to the toilet and they discharge bodily waste at their beds.
Luckily for the unfortunate couple, their other daughter Subhadra, 13, is a normal child and her mental abilities tend toward brilliance. She is the brightest student in grade eight at Sagarmatha Secondary School and always secures over 85 percent in her exams despite having to spend most of her time taking care of her siblings.
Both the male children lost their mental abilities at the age of five.
“Both were lame and could not speak but their mental balance was fine at first,” says Padam. “But they lost the mental balance when they were five and couldn´t complete first grade in school,” he adds. Youngest sibling Sita was born underweight due to malnutrition and doctors said she would not live, according to the father. “We took her to hospitals in Pokhara and to Kanti Children´s Hospital in Kathmandu and spent a lot on her treatment but to no avail. The doctors said she was incurable,” he says.
The Pandey couple and daughter Subhadra have to take care of the three disabled siblings round the clock. “We have to pay attention round the clock and at least one of us has to be always at home,” says mother Babita. “We have searched for care and rehabilitation centers but none of them agreed to take them in without money. We have kept them at home as we are unable to pay the huge amounts the care centers demand,” she adds.
Subhadra says she faces difficulty with her studies as her siblings tear her books and notebooks and she has to study at night when they are asleep. Padam says the family doesn´t even have time to work in the fields. “I don´t know how long we can survive without doing any work to earn money,” he wonders.
tisdag 28 december 2010
onsdag 8 december 2010
Vacation in Kathmandu
I don't care about the load shedding today. I don't care that it is so dark in the room right now that I have to fall back onto my high school skills as a typist becasue I can't see the letters on the computer. Bit like I said, I dn't care about that because I am enjoying the exercise options and arts here. Funny how that works, I just decided that I would get what I asked for and(seriously)I found in one day. A an contemporary art school/exhibition hall/awazing little library with book donated from the TATE gallery - that is completely underused. B Two inivitations to art openings, painintg and sculpure. C A fitness club who let you use the facilities in their old rustic castle of sorts "the international club" for the splendid price of £2 per visit. Sauna and squash are extra but still. D The possibility to use the completely luxerious Jasmin spa/fitness club who boasts jacuzzi and swimmin pool on the roof on top of a modern gym.
And, as if that was not enough. The poetry slam event arranged tqo nighta ago as a joint effort between the American Embassy and Nepali partners was brilliant, Nepali moon shine and all being passed around the audience when the poets perforemd their stuff.
I have also just been accepted to a creative writing work shop with a writer,professor and mounteneer. IN what order he likes to identify himself I don't know but I do know that I DO NOT CARE if you take my electricity today!
And, as if that was not enough. The poetry slam event arranged tqo nighta ago as a joint effort between the American Embassy and Nepali partners was brilliant, Nepali moon shine and all being passed around the audience when the poets perforemd their stuff.
I have also just been accepted to a creative writing work shop with a writer,professor and mounteneer. IN what order he likes to identify himself I don't know but I do know that I DO NOT CARE if you take my electricity today!
fredag 12 november 2010
Thoughts from the field
I feel a little removed from the more hard core political scene. Coming here after Palestine was restful at first. Now I do miss not being in Sheeijk Jarra *discreetly add a link here with an interesting short movie* interviews with both settlers and palestian families http://www.vjmovement/truth/834. Battleground zero indeed. Missed picking olives in Hebron this year but I don't miss the close enconters with the Israeli settlers.
Still, I also wanted to do some slow grassroot human rights work and here I am. Born ambivalent maybe? Or born with a mind that wants it all? Which I am still convinced that I can have, just not at the same time. :D
Absolutely beautiful morning here i Bardiya. November is the month to visit apparently. The fog that will envelope us for a couple of months is still just visible in the morning.
Oh, I am here:
http://www.un.org.np/maps/district-maps/mid-western/Bardiya.pdf
Still, I also wanted to do some slow grassroot human rights work and here I am. Born ambivalent maybe? Or born with a mind that wants it all? Which I am still convinced that I can have, just not at the same time. :D
Absolutely beautiful morning here i Bardiya. November is the month to visit apparently. The fog that will envelope us for a couple of months is still just visible in the morning.
Oh, I am here:
http://www.un.org.np/maps/district-maps/mid-western/Bardiya.pdf
torsdag 11 november 2010
After the water lilies are gone
Bardiya district is greying. Drying. The monsoon, late as it was with fewer days of rain than needed is long gone. The field officers from colder countries can breath a little easier and are now enjoying the cool evenings and nights.
Meetings on the roof are a nice change, with or without green parrotts flying by.
And we did spent the better part of our working day on the roof today, before me and J went out to SanosShree to do an introdution meeting with a political party representative. We were well received, partly I am sure because we are white and represent an INGO but probably also because going into the so-called remote areas(in our case the Midwest of Nepal) we are hardly in majority in the NGO world. Showing face and all that. It was a very visibly open meeting, plastic chairs were pulled up outside a shop and many local people showed up to listen and have a cup of chia. And this is very good for us. We do come here on invitation from the local human rights defenders, and sometimes it is just plain slow persistant work that change any human rights violations. People knowing about us helps, it is as simple as that.
Other highlights of my day included "getting Junior in shape" activities. Junior is the neighborhood dog that somehow nesteled himself into my heart. But we take it slow, building up the relationship. Washing his ears(todays project)does not come under his favorite actitities. Generally we do do things that he likes, which is basically chasing anything fun, like buffalo, goats(the smaller are more fun), other dogs, a horse if it is not too scary, hens or the odd scared human without a stone in his hand. Cats would be great but there are very few of them so we have to make do with what there is.
And yes, the water lilies are now gone. The wetland that we use to pass on the mornings are now drying up and will shortly be planted on. And the cycle continues.
Meetings on the roof are a nice change, with or without green parrotts flying by.
And we did spent the better part of our working day on the roof today, before me and J went out to SanosShree to do an introdution meeting with a political party representative. We were well received, partly I am sure because we are white and represent an INGO but probably also because going into the so-called remote areas(in our case the Midwest of Nepal) we are hardly in majority in the NGO world. Showing face and all that. It was a very visibly open meeting, plastic chairs were pulled up outside a shop and many local people showed up to listen and have a cup of chia. And this is very good for us. We do come here on invitation from the local human rights defenders, and sometimes it is just plain slow persistant work that change any human rights violations. People knowing about us helps, it is as simple as that.
Other highlights of my day included "getting Junior in shape" activities. Junior is the neighborhood dog that somehow nesteled himself into my heart. But we take it slow, building up the relationship. Washing his ears(todays project)does not come under his favorite actitities. Generally we do do things that he likes, which is basically chasing anything fun, like buffalo, goats(the smaller are more fun), other dogs, a horse if it is not too scary, hens or the odd scared human without a stone in his hand. Cats would be great but there are very few of them so we have to make do with what there is.
And yes, the water lilies are now gone. The wetland that we use to pass on the mornings are now drying up and will shortly be planted on. And the cycle continues.
onsdag 10 november 2010
Communication is the key
The verb for want and need is the same in Nepali. There are ways around it but generally this creates confusion, especially for me as a bideshi(foreigner). Do you need to go see your sister and Do you want want to go see you sister might mean different things where I come from but I am beginning to see that there are situations here when the same two headed verb can be used. I find it interesting that the question are you married should be answered with "not yet" in order not be impolite and that do you want/need to get married is not really a very interesting question here. As almost everybody gets married and stay married for life.
These things were contemplated by me, J and S when we sat in the sun outside the DAFUO(Dalit Women Upliftment Center) office early this morning, eager to have a first language exchange with the Dalit women. We were joined by a guy/third gender s/he from the Blue Diamond Society. I am not intentionally trying to either make fun of an identity nor be funny but I honestly don't know what is a proper term for the members of BDS. Being referred to as her or didi(sister)often seem to be insulting. Probably because defining yourself in this manner means exactely what it says, nor man nor female. Or both. Or queer. Or whatever. Either way we were handed some information about BDS, including a small leaflet with very nice colour photos of what a STD can look like. Up close. Surely very....effective for its purposes but maybe not the best way to learn Nepali.
In the end the DAFUO women did not turn up but we had a nice cup up tea, and we did opened our books but decided after a while that the office probably needed us more and walked back through town. Found out later that the president had tried to get a hold of us but not suceeded. And we were told in a stern Nepali phone voice that her phone was switched off. Which may or may not be true. What is true is that mobile coverage is a constant struggle here, I am so use to it by now that I don't even think twice about having to call a person 15 times before I actually get through. I am also use to all kinds of interference on the line, hearing other people talking and receiving interesting messages such as "result unknown" when I send a sms. A part of me always wonder where these messages end up. The internet comes and goes, last week my computer told me it would take 21 days to down load a season of True Blood. :)
tisdag 9 november 2010
03:24 year 2068 in a country far away
Now I have two followers, a 100 % improvement in just on day :)
Slow day in our town. Year 2068 drags on. The Nepali calender is different, have to find out why this is. Different times of year also means different recommended auspicious activities. Getting married during the monsoon is for example not recommended but there are two other times during the year when the astrologer have decided are good, and a number of marriages taking place during this time. Sometimes they start during the night. Or at 03:24 if the stars indicated that this would give you a good start of your marriage.
Or didi(chef and cleaning lady that likes to boss us around)is from the Tharu community, a large ethnic group here in the south of Nepal. She probably did not have much to say about the time of her marriage because when we asked her if she wanted children she only said that she had her first child at fifteen because her husband wanted it. Now, a grandmother before she has reached 40 I wonder about her younger 13 year old daugher and her future. How different from the young kids running around back home in Sweden.
måndag 8 november 2010
Calling Goddess Laxmi at 2 am
I have one follower.
It is hardy inspiring but I am guessing that more people read my blog as I am getting small proof of feed back. Maybe my blog is not as interesting as one of them fashion blogs. The ones that gets updated a couple of times a day when a famous person drinks another latte.
Anywho...Dasain, the long(8 days)hindu holiday worshipping(and fearing)the Godess of death, destruction but also creation has passed and three days ago we entered the Tihar holiday that I in my naivity thought would be a little bit quieter.
No such luck.
During Dasain the tradition(modern version)is to not only have music playing around the clock from the temples but also to loop a Hindi movie around the clock, full volume. Yes, the place of worship thus also serves as a semi-outdoorsy kind of movie hall where you can hang around with your friends. Let's just say that the sound got to me after 8 days in a row. There is a lot of crying and drama going on in Bollywood productions.
Tihar is a different animal altogether. Laxmi, the Godess of wealth is invited into peoples houses by different means and coaxing. She is lured by sweets and the inhabitants of the house paints a red mud path to the goodies(fruit, food, candy etc)outside and thereby inviting wealth to enter the house and stay.
Tihar also offers a chance to worship(in order):the crow, the cow, the dog and yesterday was "young brother day" or Tikka day(tikka is the word for the red blobby thing of rice, red paint and a blessing to be stuck in between your eye brows in a ceremonial way). During young brother day, older sisters give tikkas to their brothers and the brothers give the sisters presents, money or things.
This is all good. The not so good thing is the custum of kids roaming around at night, going from house to house, singing and often bringing a Boom Box to accompany them. VERY LOUD. Very loud at 2 pm indeed. And honestly guys, Laxmi probably hear you anyway, even if you are not making the rest of the neighbourhood deaf.
söndag 24 oktober 2010
torsdag 7 oktober 2010
For men: what not to wear
It is good to know that Nepali men are interested in fashion!
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REPUBLICA KATHMANDU, Oct 3: Though on a small scale, men’s fashion is surely going through an evolution. Additionally, stepping into the color zone also has provided guys with more choices. And every season brings a list of must-haves.
But no matter at what rate the evolution is taking place, dressing right is unattainable unless you don’t know where you are going wrong. Apart from ill-fitted clothes and too skinny or too baggy trousers, Republica lists down a few trends that you should avoid in coming days.
Belts with dramatic buckles
A belt being just a pant holder is a story of once upon a time. A nice leather belt adds character to a man’s wardrobe. However, lately, a lot of embellished belts have started appearing in the market. Bullets, guns, bull heads—these are only a few examples of how today’s belt buckles look like. Rather than contributing in enhancing your look, it just adds a funny element to your ensemble.
Shapeless coats
Be it trench coat or any other type, keep this winter apparel of yours trim and slim sleeved. Never let your clothes envelope your body, and that is what an ill-fitted coat does. The common misconception we have about overcoat or trench is that it should be big enough to hide our winter layering. Yes, it should to some extent, but one sweater space is enough. Even while we tailor it, we tend to make it two/three times bigger than our normal clothing. Let your coats cut close to the body and cropped at the waist. This will save you from looking like a villain from the 90s’ Bollywood movies.
Floral patterned shirt
As long as it was sported by just a few men, the trend was digestible. But this year, we saw a pool of men donning floral patterned shirts. Donned by politicians to almost everyone on the streets, such motifs were liked by the country’s film fraternity too. Not to miss was the overdose of such shirts in the latest Nepali movie Kohi Mero. Decked up in such shirts, the actors danced in front of floral parks. Thus, it’s high time we get over this trend.
Pointy and Square toed shoes
Not only do those abnormally pointed shoes look weird, they are also a big turn off. On top of it, if they are skin-embossed, it’s wise to dump them off. It’s not a written rule, as there is none in fashion, but shoes have to be proportionate with trousers’ hems, otherwise you will end up with clown feet. Don’t ruin the ensemble by opting too pointed or massive shoes. Slightly pointed pair of shoes is good enough. One of the common mismatches that guys often commit is wearing their denims with black leather dress shoes. Wearing a pair of suede desert boots or brogues is chicer. Pairing your jeans with square-toed shoes is also not recommended; those shoes are meant for school days.
Light-wash jeans
Light-wash jeans is a risky business; only a handful of men can pull it off. And even if you do the comparison, dark denims are a better option if you want to dress up your jeans with the help of a blazer or coat. Corduroy trousers and chinos can be a good alternative for light-wash jeans.
Teaming up white belt with white footwear
Nepali film industry’s current favorite, Aryan Sigdel has been spotted teaming up his white belt with white slip-in shoes in quite a few movies. And there is a bunch of partners in crime walking down the streets of Kathmandu sporting a similar look. Why this team should not be sported anymore? Firstly, the items never made a good pair, and, inspite of them getting popularity, it’s already time to retire those white belts. This piece of item is no more a cool possession, and especially if you are matching them with your white shoes. Unless it’s basic colors like brown or black or if you’re in your teens, matching your colorful belts with your shoes is acceptable.
måndag 4 oktober 2010
Govt foils voting for PM of Tibetan govt-in-exile
Opened todays Republica. Interesting news about the Tibetan community in Nepal trying to start an election process via the Tibetan government in exile. In other words, the Tibetan diaspora in Nepal is using the soverign state of Nepal to adress political issues in their occupied country(which China in claiming) through a government in exile which resides in yet another country, India.
In picture: Tibetan Prime Minister Samdhong Rinpoche (Center) leads a religious procession of His Holiness the Dalai Lama's portrait as part of the ceremonial opening of a six-day Tibetan National General Meeting in the Tibetan settlement of Bylakuppe in the South Indian state of Karnataka, India, Thursday, August 26, 2010.
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KATHMANDU, Oct 4: Nepali authorities on Sunday foiled the primary polls organized by Tibetan refugees in various locations in Kathmandu Valley to nominate candidates for the post of prime minister and members of Tibetan government-in-exile.
Officials at the Home Ministry said police personnel were mobilized to foil the voting to nominate the successor of Samdhong Rimpoche and 44 other members of the Tibetan government-in-exile at Swaymbhu, Boudhha and Jawalakhel areas as ´it violated Nepal´s foreign policy and existing laws of the host country´.
Hundreds of Tibetan refugees living in Kathmandu Valley had gathered at Swaymbhu, Boudhha and Jawalakhel to take part in the voting that began at 9 am. While the voting in Swayambhu and Boudhha was halted after police seized the ballot boxes, the refugee leaders had agreed not to conduct voting in Jawalakhel following police intervention.
However, no arrests were made in connection with the incident.
According to Superintendent of Police (SP) Ramesh Kharel, chief of Metropolitan Police Range Office, Kathmandu, police seized 10 ballot boxes from Boudhha and eight others from Swaymbhu to foil the voting. The refugees had dispersed themselves after the seizure of the ballot boxes.
The Tibetan refugees gathered at Jawalakhel likewise halted their voting program after police personnel reached the venue, said Bikram Thapa, chief of Metropolitan Police Range Office, Lalitpur. “The refugees gathered dispersed on their own after police team reached there,” he said.
A text message received by this scribe from a Tibetan refugee leader in Kathmandu said that Tibetans were barred from going inside the election spot to cast their votes and ballot boxes were seized. “It is totally against human rights as we believe all people should be allowed to vote,” read the text message.
The Home Ministry in a statement Sunday evening said the voting act of Tibetan refugees to organize ´so-called election violating Nepal´s foreign policy and existing laws of the host country´ has drawn serious attention of the ministry.
The statement said Nepal always respects sovereignty and territorial integrity of its neighboring countries and that it is committed not to allow any activities that are detrimental to their interests on its soil. “The ministry has already instructed local administrations to take action as per the laws of the land against those engaged in such activities,” added the statement.
According to the Election Commission of the Central Tibetan Administration, altogether 79,449 people registered to vote for the prime minister and members of the Tibetan government in exile. This includes some 20,000 Tibetan refugees living in various parts of Nepal.
The police crackdown on Tibetans comes amidst mounting pressure from China to curb ´anti-China activities´ perpetrated by Tibetan refugees living in Nepal. China has grown particularly sensitive over Tibetans´ activities especially after they launched anti-China demonstrations in Kathmandu in March, 2008 to mark 50th anniversary of their failed uprisings against Chinese rulers in 1959.
According to the Election Commission of the Central Tibetan Administration, there are over one dozen candidates including Harvard University Professor Lobsang Sangay, Tibetan diplomat Tenzin Tethong Namgyal, former President of Tibetan Youth Congress Tsetan Norbu, Speaker Pempa Tsering and Deputy- Speaker Dolma Gyari in the race for prime minister.
The Election Commission originally planned to compile the results of the preliminary rounds held on Sunday in a month from Tibetan settlements all over India, Bhutan, and Nepal and from North America. The 2011 general elections will decide the third directly elected Tibetan PM and members of the 15th Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile.
The general election, according to Tibetan refugee leaders, attaches greater significance as it will elect new leadership that will have crucial responsibility to lead Tibetan movement, since aging Dalai Lama, 75, has already signaled his retirement anytime soon.
onsdag 29 september 2010
Nepali morning habits comtemplated
Junior, the neighbour dog that has been adopted by the team is now probably the only dog in our little town sporting a pink leather collar. Dog here are of course never on a leash but I must admit he looked kind of snazzy this morning, coming with me and J on our morning walk. Morning for us that is, being out by 7 am. Morning nepali style is more like getting up when the sun gets up, around halv 5 or 5. This is also the time when people gather to play football. And the army and police also do their morning run through town then. At 5?!
The other morning at 0715 we received a phone call from two members from a partner organization, asking if they could come over for a tea and a chat. We were all sleeping then and there was no use explaining our decadent western habits either. In the end they came over at 0830 when we all dragged ourselves out of bed, maybe(probably)wondering why we still looked so tired.
Our neighbors have a young boy from the Madeshi community working for them(which is very common and hard to get use to. Children working than is, but that is life here). Part of his job is to collect flowers, usually this time of year big red ones,for the morning puja(ritual)and this is how I usually wake up. Hearing him in the garden at sunrise. So different from back home.
The other morning at 0715 we received a phone call from two members from a partner organization, asking if they could come over for a tea and a chat. We were all sleeping then and there was no use explaining our decadent western habits either. In the end they came over at 0830 when we all dragged ourselves out of bed, maybe(probably)wondering why we still looked so tired.
Our neighbors have a young boy from the Madeshi community working for them(which is very common and hard to get use to. Children working than is, but that is life here). Part of his job is to collect flowers, usually this time of year big red ones,for the morning puja(ritual)and this is how I usually wake up. Hearing him in the garden at sunrise. So different from back home.
söndag 26 september 2010
Teej celebration with the DAFUO women
Teej is the fasting festival of women in Nepal. It falls in the month of August or early September. Married women observe Teej fast to honor Lord Shiva and for long and healthy life of their husband. Unmarried girls also observe fast on this day for a good husband. Teej celebrations lasts for three pious days. Traditional dances and songs form an important feature of Teej celebrations. Red color is considered auspicious for women observing Teej fast and so most of them dress up in red or bridal clothes.
måndag 13 september 2010
Conflict widow - a life in mourning
The concept of conflict widows was not a new one for me. In a theorethical sense I knew that in Nepal, being in a vagueishly defined post conflict socio-economic state, many (I would even say most)single women associated with the death of their husbands suffer social exclusion, violence from their husbands’ families and limited options for income generation.
Then reality hit. Not only I think, because after eight months in Nepal have I started to get a deeper sense of how women without men are looked upon.On a deeper level, I have also started hearing what the Nepali activist women tell us when we meet them in the field. How they are not respected, often also seen as "out of hand", not seen as real women. This is in large part due to the conservative trend of the still heavily patriarchal societies in Nepal, which see a distinct ‘place’ for women as homemakers and child-raisers. Stepping out from this ‘norm’ can be dangerous for women, especially when they are seen to be ‘interfering’ and championing the cause for other women, e.g. in domestic violence cases
Being looked upon with suspicion is thus common. Or as fair game. Being accused of being a boxsi is no joke either. We come across cases where accusations of witchcraft result in women being killed.
What really hits hard is that even wanting to be independent is just not really on here. And being a widow as result from the conflict makes it extra complicated. The social constructs that limits a Nepali widow have been, and are still hard for me to wrap my head around. I see them sometimes. And they are easy to identify. Any age, completely dressed in white they are suppose to live the rest if their life in compliance with whoever(family members or associates) that take pity on them. They are not allowed to get remarried and they are expected to stay dressed in white for the rest of their days. Somehow it seems that it is their fault that their husband died.
But in our village a woman, let's call her Deepa has against the odds kept the business after her husband passed away. It is hard to describe how unusual this is. She runs her little restaurant/tea /bar out of her home. Guests come in, have a chia(tea), some grilled meat or a standard dhalbhat (rice, lentils, vegetables) or have a couple of beers or more than a few cups of rakhsi(strong and nice local home made liquour). They use the bed as a chair, cigarett butts end up on the floor and I often wondered how the young teenage daughter is fairing in all this. If she has learnt to stand up for herself. I don't know if her mother was(or is)associated with a Maoist party. Or an armed group. Or if her husband was. I dont't know what the talk of the town is but from talking to our partners and supporters I know that she is an abnormality. And in my heart I feel sad. Why is it that a women in Nepal still are likely to be punished for her husbands political activities, is seen as a fallen women because she has no man looking after her? And I wonder about the future of her daughter. Will she not be able to marry? Or will she be forced to marry somebody, anybody that will have her? Despite the fact that her father is dead.
onsdag 1 september 2010
Celebrating Krishna Janmashtami
...and Hindu God Krishnas birthday! The Pahadi temple has now palyed the same catchy tunes for two days.
tisdag 6 juli 2010
Want to form a political party?
"There are some restrictions on registering a party in Nepal; these include a rule that there must be no discrimination about party membership on the basis of religion, caste, tribe, language or sex. This means that there cannot be awomen-only party or a party for Dalits only."
This means that marginalized groups can not start their own political party, as this is seen as discriminatory.
This means that marginalized groups can not start their own political party, as this is seen as discriminatory.
måndag 5 juli 2010
The making of a constitution
Trying to put the importance of the present political situation of having an interim constitution into context. In time of writing Nepal is still in a bit of a limbo, having extended the deadline for the constitution writing until May 27 2011. If no constitution is produced before then, the country has been without a constitution for 5 years.
In 1990 Nepal adopted its fifth – and first fully democratic – constitution. Although
there were many good features about that constitution, it failed to satisfy the demandsof many Nepali people. There was also a sense that the 1990 Constitution had limitedinvolvement of the people in its making, and that it came formally into being not asan act of the people’s sovereignty but as a gift of the King. Among the shortcomingsof the Constitution in the eyes of many were the insistence that Nepal is a Hindukingdom; the inclusion of many important economic and social rights as “directiveprinciples” only, which means they were not able to be used as the basis for legalclaims; inadequate provisions for civilian control of the army; excessive power givento the King; and provisions that were not clear enough about the King’s powers, thus making it possible for those powers to be abused.
To the faults of the constitution itself, and insufficient royal commitment to democracy, must be added grave failures of leadership, failure of political parties to make any serious effort to be representative of the nation as a whole, excessive domination of many sectors of national life by a minority of the community, and excessive concentration of powers in the hands of the Kathmandu authorities. All these were compounded by the ten-year Maoist insurgency. Matters were brought to a head by the King’s seizure of all power in 2005.
The actions of the King finally led to a people’s movement, jana andolan, in April
2006, and the King ultimately recalled the parliament originally elected in 1999. By
then the Maoists had begun negotiations with the major political parties, in which
the Maoists' main demands were republicanism and the convening of a Constituent
Assembly to draft a new constitution. But the hundred of thousands who came out
on the streets were demanding more than a restoration of democracy; they demanded
greater inclusion of the various sectors of society marginalized in the past, including Dalits, Janajatis (ethnic groups), Madhesis (from the terai) and women
After a 10-year armed struggle, the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoists) won the largest number of assembly seats and in 2007 led the formation of the Coalition Government of Nepal. Its victory ended the 238-year-old Shaha dynasty of the world's last Hindu kingdom.Nepal proclaimed its commitment to democracy, secularism and inclusive development. That same year, lawmakers promulgated an interim constitution and interim parliament. Each made a far-reaching commitment to eliminating all forms of discrimination against women and ensured one-third representation of women in every state mechanism.
It is questonable if "The fall of the monarchy and consequent ushering in of a representative democratic process has intensified people's efforts to build a more inclusive state" as Jael Silliman put it but that there are efforts per se to construct a constitution that represents your people, ethnic groups, sexual orientation, gender is not in doubt. Over 5000 submissions have been sent to to the Interim Constitution Drafting Committee from various civil society groups.
Many political promises have been made, but what does a consitution really do? Let's look at what it doesn't. Using the consitution of the United States of America as an example.
What the Constitution Does Not Do
The Constitution does not give you rights. The founders considered your rights to be "God-given" or "natural rights" — you are born with all your rights. The constitution does, however, protect your rights by:
* Limiting the powers of government by granting to it only those specific powers that are listed in the Constitution; (This has not proven to be effective of late.)
* Enumerating certain, specific rights which you retain. These are listed in the Bill of Rights.
The rights deemed most important by the founders are specifically listed in the Bill of Rights. The Bill of Rights also says that, even though a particular right is not listed in the Bill of Rights, you still retain that right. Any powers not specifically delegated by the Constitution to the federal government are retained by the states and the people (you).
So, without the Constitution, the states and the people have all the rights and there is no federal government. With the Constitution, the states and the people keep any rights not specifically delegated to the federal government by the Constitution.
A quick look at the actual phrasing of the interim constitution of Nepal as it stands today. The Legislature Parliament used to be called just “Parliament”. It
is the body that makes law. The Constitution says who are the members – it is unusual
because it says that the existing members (elected in 1999) remain members, and that
the parties were to choose some extra members, from civil society and the grassroots.
Also the Maoist party members were not to be elected but chosen by the party. It says
that business of the house must be conducted on the basis of “political consensus” –
but also says that in case a decision has to be made this must usually be by a simple
majority of the members who vote.
It also says that once the Constituent Assembly comes into existence it will do the work of parliament and the current parliament will cease to exist. The Constituent Assembly has the task of making a new constitution for Nepal. It says members will be elected – some from constituencies with one member each and some in party lists. The parties must be “inclusive” in choosing candidates for the constituencies, and ensure proportionate representation of women, Dalits, indigenous tribes, people from backward regions, Madhesi and other groups in their lists for the second election. And overall at least one-third candidates must be women.
A few words on the National Human Rights Commission. The Commission has existed for some time but this is the first time it has been mentioned in the Constitution.
There must be a chairman (who must be a retired Chief Justice or Supreme Court
Judges) and 4 other members. The other members must have experience in human
rights work or social work. Members must come from a wide range of backgrounds –
including women. They are appointed by the Prime Minister – on the
recommendation of the Constitutional Council. The work of the Human Rights
Commission is to investigate accusations of human rights violations, to make
recommendations to authorities to take action, including punishment of people who
have violated human rights, to suggest taking action in court for human rights
violations, and to publicise human rights – working with civil society. It is also
supposed to study the laws of Nepal to see whether they meet human rights standards.
They are to give advice to the country on becoming a party to human rights treaties.
And they are to monitor how the government complies with human rights treaties
and make proposal for improving the country’s human rights performance. The
Commission is given some special powers to do its work. It can call people to give it
information. It can enter premises to find evidence. It can order compensation to
people who have suffered because of human rights violations. It is supposed not to
inquire into anything that is dealt with the Army Act – which deals with the
administration and disciple of the Army. But on the other hand, this does not apply
if there is a violation of human rights (or humanitarian law).
In 1990 Nepal adopted its fifth – and first fully democratic – constitution. Although
there were many good features about that constitution, it failed to satisfy the demandsof many Nepali people. There was also a sense that the 1990 Constitution had limitedinvolvement of the people in its making, and that it came formally into being not asan act of the people’s sovereignty but as a gift of the King. Among the shortcomingsof the Constitution in the eyes of many were the insistence that Nepal is a Hindukingdom; the inclusion of many important economic and social rights as “directiveprinciples” only, which means they were not able to be used as the basis for legalclaims; inadequate provisions for civilian control of the army; excessive power givento the King; and provisions that were not clear enough about the King’s powers, thus making it possible for those powers to be abused.
To the faults of the constitution itself, and insufficient royal commitment to democracy, must be added grave failures of leadership, failure of political parties to make any serious effort to be representative of the nation as a whole, excessive domination of many sectors of national life by a minority of the community, and excessive concentration of powers in the hands of the Kathmandu authorities. All these were compounded by the ten-year Maoist insurgency. Matters were brought to a head by the King’s seizure of all power in 2005.
The actions of the King finally led to a people’s movement, jana andolan, in April
2006, and the King ultimately recalled the parliament originally elected in 1999. By
then the Maoists had begun negotiations with the major political parties, in which
the Maoists' main demands were republicanism and the convening of a Constituent
Assembly to draft a new constitution. But the hundred of thousands who came out
on the streets were demanding more than a restoration of democracy; they demanded
greater inclusion of the various sectors of society marginalized in the past, including Dalits, Janajatis (ethnic groups), Madhesis (from the terai) and women
After a 10-year armed struggle, the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoists) won the largest number of assembly seats and in 2007 led the formation of the Coalition Government of Nepal. Its victory ended the 238-year-old Shaha dynasty of the world's last Hindu kingdom.Nepal proclaimed its commitment to democracy, secularism and inclusive development. That same year, lawmakers promulgated an interim constitution and interim parliament. Each made a far-reaching commitment to eliminating all forms of discrimination against women and ensured one-third representation of women in every state mechanism.
It is questonable if "The fall of the monarchy and consequent ushering in of a representative democratic process has intensified people's efforts to build a more inclusive state" as Jael Silliman put it but that there are efforts per se to construct a constitution that represents your people, ethnic groups, sexual orientation, gender is not in doubt. Over 5000 submissions have been sent to to the Interim Constitution Drafting Committee from various civil society groups.
Many political promises have been made, but what does a consitution really do? Let's look at what it doesn't. Using the consitution of the United States of America as an example.
What the Constitution Does Not Do
The Constitution does not give you rights. The founders considered your rights to be "God-given" or "natural rights" — you are born with all your rights. The constitution does, however, protect your rights by:
* Limiting the powers of government by granting to it only those specific powers that are listed in the Constitution; (This has not proven to be effective of late.)
* Enumerating certain, specific rights which you retain. These are listed in the Bill of Rights.
The rights deemed most important by the founders are specifically listed in the Bill of Rights. The Bill of Rights also says that, even though a particular right is not listed in the Bill of Rights, you still retain that right. Any powers not specifically delegated by the Constitution to the federal government are retained by the states and the people (you).
So, without the Constitution, the states and the people have all the rights and there is no federal government. With the Constitution, the states and the people keep any rights not specifically delegated to the federal government by the Constitution.
A quick look at the actual phrasing of the interim constitution of Nepal as it stands today. The Legislature Parliament used to be called just “Parliament”. It
is the body that makes law. The Constitution says who are the members – it is unusual
because it says that the existing members (elected in 1999) remain members, and that
the parties were to choose some extra members, from civil society and the grassroots.
Also the Maoist party members were not to be elected but chosen by the party. It says
that business of the house must be conducted on the basis of “political consensus” –
but also says that in case a decision has to be made this must usually be by a simple
majority of the members who vote.
It also says that once the Constituent Assembly comes into existence it will do the work of parliament and the current parliament will cease to exist. The Constituent Assembly has the task of making a new constitution for Nepal. It says members will be elected – some from constituencies with one member each and some in party lists. The parties must be “inclusive” in choosing candidates for the constituencies, and ensure proportionate representation of women, Dalits, indigenous tribes, people from backward regions, Madhesi and other groups in their lists for the second election. And overall at least one-third candidates must be women.
A few words on the National Human Rights Commission. The Commission has existed for some time but this is the first time it has been mentioned in the Constitution.
There must be a chairman (who must be a retired Chief Justice or Supreme Court
Judges) and 4 other members. The other members must have experience in human
rights work or social work. Members must come from a wide range of backgrounds –
including women. They are appointed by the Prime Minister – on the
recommendation of the Constitutional Council. The work of the Human Rights
Commission is to investigate accusations of human rights violations, to make
recommendations to authorities to take action, including punishment of people who
have violated human rights, to suggest taking action in court for human rights
violations, and to publicise human rights – working with civil society. It is also
supposed to study the laws of Nepal to see whether they meet human rights standards.
They are to give advice to the country on becoming a party to human rights treaties.
And they are to monitor how the government complies with human rights treaties
and make proposal for improving the country’s human rights performance. The
Commission is given some special powers to do its work. It can call people to give it
information. It can enter premises to find evidence. It can order compensation to
people who have suffered because of human rights violations. It is supposed not to
inquire into anything that is dealt with the Army Act – which deals with the
administration and disciple of the Army. But on the other hand, this does not apply
if there is a violation of human rights (or humanitarian law).
Six new mothers, a murderer and a resigned PM
Some people are campaigning for constitutional monarchy and the revival of the 1990 constitution of Nepal. Here's a statement issued by a group of people who believe that the 1990 constitution had the provision of constitutional monarchy and should be reactivated should the constituent assembly fail to bring out a constitution on time that is acceptable to all Nepali people.
New dead line for the constitution writing, another year of suspence. Not a big surprise that the political parties(or whomever we should hold responsible)did not meet the dead line of the interim constitution writing on May 28. The rumour though is that four days after Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal tendered his resignation(which was last week), the outgoing prime minister´s move came after a secret agreement with Maoist Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal on the basic principles of the new constitution and the peace process. What this might entail is yet to be seen. UML Chairman Jhala Nath Khanal is a named candidate as a future PM. As is Maoist Vice Chairman Dr Baburam Bhattarai. And Pushpa Kamal Dahal, the chairman of the largest party in the Constituent Assembly. Or anybody else really. Which is what seems to be the only consensus around here. In Nepali politics, anything can happen type of thing.
Still trying to wrap my head around that I am in a develping country and that things are done differently here. Nepal has for instance, not yet managed to buy the passport reading machines that are required these days according to international security standards. The hand written passports can still be found but today it seems that the bidding is at least back on track.
KATHMANDU, July 5: An initial evaluation by the committee formed to judge bids for a multi-million dollar machine-readable passport (MRP) project of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has found three out of four bidders meeting all criteria set in bidding documents.
Altogether four international bidders -- De La Rue, Oberthur Technologies, PERUM PERURI and 3M Technologies -- are in the race for the project. But the evaluation committee headed by Chief of Protocol Mukti Nath Bhatta has found 3M Technologies not meeting the set criteria.
Not sure if hand written passports would go down well if used to travel overseas. Somebody need to make a decision so international travels can happen smoothly for the local population over here.
Some good news: ANFA awarded Rs 50,000 and a 21-inch Samsung color television set to each member of the Nepali women´s football team. A tv? Sure, why not? This news was followed by the this snippet of news though:
Coca-Cola, the official sponsor of the World Cup, has also been providing support to the All Nepal Football Association, says Saumindra Bhattacharya, managing director of BNL. “Football is a core passion in Nepal. It is progressing in multiple dimensions,” he said, and added, “This year we have also sponsored football for girls in Nepal.”
Ah, this is where the tv comes in! Progress.
And finally, I don't know what to make of this piece of journalistic work, but this is what from todays Republica newspaper:
CHITWAN, July 3: Two hundred and eighty-one Maoist combatants, including six new mothers and murderer of businessman Ram Hari Shrestha Govinda Prasad Batala, from Shaktikhor cantonments have passed this year´s SLC exams.
Six new mothers and a murderer? Eh........
New dead line for the constitution writing, another year of suspence. Not a big surprise that the political parties(or whomever we should hold responsible)did not meet the dead line of the interim constitution writing on May 28. The rumour though is that four days after Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal tendered his resignation(which was last week), the outgoing prime minister´s move came after a secret agreement with Maoist Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal on the basic principles of the new constitution and the peace process. What this might entail is yet to be seen. UML Chairman Jhala Nath Khanal is a named candidate as a future PM. As is Maoist Vice Chairman Dr Baburam Bhattarai. And Pushpa Kamal Dahal, the chairman of the largest party in the Constituent Assembly. Or anybody else really. Which is what seems to be the only consensus around here. In Nepali politics, anything can happen type of thing.
Still trying to wrap my head around that I am in a develping country and that things are done differently here. Nepal has for instance, not yet managed to buy the passport reading machines that are required these days according to international security standards. The hand written passports can still be found but today it seems that the bidding is at least back on track.
KATHMANDU, July 5: An initial evaluation by the committee formed to judge bids for a multi-million dollar machine-readable passport (MRP) project of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has found three out of four bidders meeting all criteria set in bidding documents.
Altogether four international bidders -- De La Rue, Oberthur Technologies, PERUM PERURI and 3M Technologies -- are in the race for the project. But the evaluation committee headed by Chief of Protocol Mukti Nath Bhatta has found 3M Technologies not meeting the set criteria.
Not sure if hand written passports would go down well if used to travel overseas. Somebody need to make a decision so international travels can happen smoothly for the local population over here.
Some good news: ANFA awarded Rs 50,000 and a 21-inch Samsung color television set to each member of the Nepali women´s football team. A tv? Sure, why not? This news was followed by the this snippet of news though:
Coca-Cola, the official sponsor of the World Cup, has also been providing support to the All Nepal Football Association, says Saumindra Bhattacharya, managing director of BNL. “Football is a core passion in Nepal. It is progressing in multiple dimensions,” he said, and added, “This year we have also sponsored football for girls in Nepal.”
Ah, this is where the tv comes in! Progress.
And finally, I don't know what to make of this piece of journalistic work, but this is what from todays Republica newspaper:
CHITWAN, July 3: Two hundred and eighty-one Maoist combatants, including six new mothers and murderer of businessman Ram Hari Shrestha Govinda Prasad Batala, from Shaktikhor cantonments have passed this year´s SLC exams.
Six new mothers and a murderer? Eh........
söndag 23 maj 2010
Discipline dilemma-to beat or not to beat children
Having a well needed weekend off, I am leafing though VOW(Voice of Women)a Nepali magazine and I read:
Discipline is an uncomfortable element that exist between parents and children. When your children through a tantrum, when they don't listen to you, you might as well want to give them a slap or two because the belief that 'beating children for behaving badly is normal' is entrenched in our culture. News that students have been severely beaten for the violation of rules at school continues to make headlines.
The article then proceeds by offering some effective disciplinary actions(not beating)and give reasons for not beating such as the child will learn violence is an accepted way to solve problems..
I don't know how to react to this. On one hand I think it is positive that this is being talked about in a feature article but the major part of me just feel sad that in(I imagine)"modern" magazine for women this is not a subject from the past. At lest they are discussing it.
*I continue leafing through the magazine*
I am amazed at the number of ads marketing a whitening product. Whitening as in making your skin whiter. And not only to make you face "five shades whiter" but also your tan line from your t-shirt or you legs or whatever part of your body that has been exposed to the sun. There are even product to whiten your armpits(as in your deodorant)! AND there is a feature story about a competition sponsored by the company Fair and Lovely and the winner do indeed long fair and lovely. Maybe I react so much to this because I am of a pale/pink constitution myself. A fair skinned Sweden ends up in a country filled with amazingly beautiful women who i can not for my life understand why they would like to change it but maybe it is equally strange to understand the tanning industry back home.
The articles on Urticaria(hives),Why Men Want Taken Women, Breast Power exercises, self defense against somebody trying to choke you from behind, Love and Sex in the time of pornography could have been found in any magazine back home but then I come across a question from an anonymous women. She needs marital advice as she has had three daughters and her husband is very angry at her for not producing a son. She has just given birth and he is blaming her. She feels very weak and don't think her body can take another birth. They live(very commonly)with his family and she writes that her in laws are supportive of her. The answer comes: look after yourself and your little one and please note that the inability to produce a son lies mostly in the male chromosomes. He wont probably listen to that though. We are happy you have a supportive family, best of luck.
So, I am again learning that just when I think I understand a bit of this culture I realize there is so much to learn. And maybe also accepting that there are things I actually do not like. At all.
Discipline is an uncomfortable element that exist between parents and children. When your children through a tantrum, when they don't listen to you, you might as well want to give them a slap or two because the belief that 'beating children for behaving badly is normal' is entrenched in our culture. News that students have been severely beaten for the violation of rules at school continues to make headlines.
The article then proceeds by offering some effective disciplinary actions(not beating)and give reasons for not beating such as the child will learn violence is an accepted way to solve problems..
I don't know how to react to this. On one hand I think it is positive that this is being talked about in a feature article but the major part of me just feel sad that in(I imagine)"modern" magazine for women this is not a subject from the past. At lest they are discussing it.
*I continue leafing through the magazine*
I am amazed at the number of ads marketing a whitening product. Whitening as in making your skin whiter. And not only to make you face "five shades whiter" but also your tan line from your t-shirt or you legs or whatever part of your body that has been exposed to the sun. There are even product to whiten your armpits(as in your deodorant)! AND there is a feature story about a competition sponsored by the company Fair and Lovely and the winner do indeed long fair and lovely. Maybe I react so much to this because I am of a pale/pink constitution myself. A fair skinned Sweden ends up in a country filled with amazingly beautiful women who i can not for my life understand why they would like to change it but maybe it is equally strange to understand the tanning industry back home.
The articles on Urticaria(hives),Why Men Want Taken Women, Breast Power exercises, self defense against somebody trying to choke you from behind, Love and Sex in the time of pornography could have been found in any magazine back home but then I come across a question from an anonymous women. She needs marital advice as she has had three daughters and her husband is very angry at her for not producing a son. She has just given birth and he is blaming her. She feels very weak and don't think her body can take another birth. They live(very commonly)with his family and she writes that her in laws are supportive of her. The answer comes: look after yourself and your little one and please note that the inability to produce a son lies mostly in the male chromosomes. He wont probably listen to that though. We are happy you have a supportive family, best of luck.
So, I am again learning that just when I think I understand a bit of this culture I realize there is so much to learn. And maybe also accepting that there are things I actually do not like. At all.
tisdag 11 maj 2010
The walking Blood Bank
Gopi Lai is a 53 year old fire fighter from Nepalganj Fire Brigade who faced a dilemma 25 years ago. His brother, Banney Khans wife was giving birth at home and she needed blood. Gobi Lai was scared, never had he given blood but he also realized that if he didn't help the baby and the mother would die. Only a young man in his late teens he decided to donate blood, the family was saved and Gopi was hooked on donating. In face he has devoted his entire life to giving blood and is known in his hometown simply as the Blood bank. On February 18th 2010 he gave his blood for the 123d time!
Once in a while my path is crossed by somebody that makes me stop and think about the umpteen ways of spending our short time here on earth. Gobi says in Republica that he sometimes travel across the border to India to donate, has never taken any money for his services and will continue donating blood every three months when his body is producing new blood cells. And maybe life is very simple sometimes. Gopi Lai realized he could do something good, didn't need the money so he simply did it.
lördag 8 maj 2010
Being a gay man in Nepal Act I
Sometimes I forget how hard the gay community fought(and is still fighting)to get their civil rights in the so-called developed world.
Blue Diamond Society in Nepal just entered the barricades and describes themselves as follows:
Blue Diamond Society (BDS) was founded in 2001 in an effort to address the needs of MSMs (an umbrella term to include both men who have sex with men whom identify as gay and those men who have sex with men whom identify as heterosexual because they are the "penetrator") in Nepal. It is Nepal's only organization for and by gay men.
...and this is what they do:
Since its inception, BDS' efforts have focused on HIV/AIDS/STI prevention and outreach education. At present, BDS conducts the only HIV/AIDS/STI prevention program in Nepal that targets the MSM community. In addition to a weekly clinic that offers free HIV/AIDS/STI check-ups and treatment, BDS provides a weekly social support group, a weekly training on safe-sex practices, a weekly queer or safe-sex film show, and a 24-hour drop-in center. BDS organizes and participates in many local community events to raise awareness and discussion of MSMs, sexualities, genders and sexual health practices in Nepal.
A former volunteer for the Blue Diamond Society writes, "When Nepalis ask me where I volunteer, I tell them I work with an organization for and by gay Nepali men. The response to my answer is uniform. Their eyes widen as their face takes on various looks of shock, amusement and curiosity. The standard reply is, "Gay men in Nepal? I didn't know there were any.""
This vignette is representative of the struggle gay Nepali males face. Many Nepalis deny the existence of homosexuals in their community, often claiming it is a "western import." This denial, compounded with a refusal to discuss sexualities, genders and safe-sex health practices, creates enormous psychological consequences for gay men and health consquences for the entire Nepali community. Gay Nepali men are often pressured into a heterosexual marriage by their families. Many lead double lives in order to be true to their sexuality and selves. Because there are no "safe" spaces for these men, the double life of a gay Nepali man often includes having sex with MSMs in dangerous, unsanitary conditions. MSMs, forced to have sex in hidden locations where the use of contraceptives is not convenient, are likely to go unprotected (the use of condoms in Nepal is rare across sexualities).
söndag 2 maj 2010
A land without constitution
Our little town is most certainly not the most cosmopolitan town in the world but rather a sleepy, dusty if quite charming place. Buffalo's and goats venture into the neighbors garden on occasion and are chased out by the older didi(sister). I see her coming running out sometimes holding onto her frilly umbrella, the usual protection from the sun over here. White bulls, cows are also usual sights in the streets and thus men and beast live together in a seemingly orderly but slightly anarchistic manner.
So when there is a biggish Maoist rally here, as is the situation in time of writing, it breaks the usual calmness and I am always amazed at the number of people that participate in a rally. The Maoists organize themselves (even here) according to a militant structure and their manifestation and rallies are therefor an unfamiliar sight to me, them using the whole street and walking in formation.
As far as the political situation goes, this is what the local news report: The Maoists have taken to the streets, rallied on May 1st all over the country and proclaimed an indefinite strike coming into affect today. The negotiations with the ruling parties(see below)were unfruitful. The agenda included trying to resolve different views of the constitution writing, the progression of the peace process and how power sharing should look. Not an easy task.
The interim constitution expires on May 28 and what happens then is anybody's guess.
The media call it a political crisis. Maoist Vice Chairman Dr Baburam Battarai is quoted in Republica saying that "there will not be any agreement till the prime minister resigns" but adds that talks are still possible despite the party's proclaimed aim not to end the strike until the government is toppled. PM Kumar Nepal went on records saying that he wouldn't step down and that the government could only be changed though due constitutional and parliamentary process.
What the future will bring nobody knows. All I know for now is that a political rally is taking place outside my window and something in me is really thankful for the passion that makes people take to the street in the name in change. But needless to say, my wishes for this war torn country is of course a peaceful solution to all the strife and confusion that even a foreigner like myself is sensing right now.
Ok. Still with me? You can stop reading now or follow me on a little walk through the ruling parties of present day Nepal.
One of the ruling parties is the National Congress, or NC.
I call them socialist and they are indeed part of a bigger international socialist network(as is the Swedish Social democratic party). At least they are left, this I know. NC rule together with the communist party CPN-UML, united Marxist-Leninist and smaller parties in a coalition but they are the two main political power bears here in the former kingdom of Nepal.
Nepal has altogether 43 ministers, honorable Ministers and State Ministers including the Prime Minister. Some of them have interesting sounding fields of responsibility(and there is even according to the governments homepage one minister without a portfolio) such as minister of Tourism and civil aviation, Peace and Reconstruction, General Administration(Minister of bureaucracy? I am not being ironic, I would really like to know). There is also the department of Women, Children and Social Welfare that we have come in contact with even though I feel I need more knowledge of what they actually do.
I can hear the speeches continue in the local chowk(market)down the road and I wish I could understand. Quite peaceful affair by the sounds of it, some authority present but no clashes just people demonstrating for something they believe in.
So when there is a biggish Maoist rally here, as is the situation in time of writing, it breaks the usual calmness and I am always amazed at the number of people that participate in a rally. The Maoists organize themselves (even here) according to a militant structure and their manifestation and rallies are therefor an unfamiliar sight to me, them using the whole street and walking in formation.
As far as the political situation goes, this is what the local news report: The Maoists have taken to the streets, rallied on May 1st all over the country and proclaimed an indefinite strike coming into affect today. The negotiations with the ruling parties(see below)were unfruitful. The agenda included trying to resolve different views of the constitution writing, the progression of the peace process and how power sharing should look. Not an easy task.
The interim constitution expires on May 28 and what happens then is anybody's guess.
The media call it a political crisis. Maoist Vice Chairman Dr Baburam Battarai is quoted in Republica saying that "there will not be any agreement till the prime minister resigns" but adds that talks are still possible despite the party's proclaimed aim not to end the strike until the government is toppled. PM Kumar Nepal went on records saying that he wouldn't step down and that the government could only be changed though due constitutional and parliamentary process.
What the future will bring nobody knows. All I know for now is that a political rally is taking place outside my window and something in me is really thankful for the passion that makes people take to the street in the name in change. But needless to say, my wishes for this war torn country is of course a peaceful solution to all the strife and confusion that even a foreigner like myself is sensing right now.
Ok. Still with me? You can stop reading now or follow me on a little walk through the ruling parties of present day Nepal.
One of the ruling parties is the National Congress, or NC.
I call them socialist and they are indeed part of a bigger international socialist network(as is the Swedish Social democratic party). At least they are left, this I know. NC rule together with the communist party CPN-UML, united Marxist-Leninist and smaller parties in a coalition but they are the two main political power bears here in the former kingdom of Nepal.
Nepal has altogether 43 ministers, honorable Ministers and State Ministers including the Prime Minister. Some of them have interesting sounding fields of responsibility(and there is even according to the governments homepage one minister without a portfolio) such as minister of Tourism and civil aviation, Peace and Reconstruction, General Administration(Minister of bureaucracy? I am not being ironic, I would really like to know). There is also the department of Women, Children and Social Welfare that we have come in contact with even though I feel I need more knowledge of what they actually do.
I can hear the speeches continue in the local chowk(market)down the road and I wish I could understand. Quite peaceful affair by the sounds of it, some authority present but no clashes just people demonstrating for something they believe in.
lördag 1 maj 2010
Don't rain on my parade, the Maoist said
Coming back from Surkhet yesterday, in our old beat up jeep, we met bus after bus filled with people waving the Maoist flag. Not only buses actually, but also motorcycles with big red flags attached to the front more often than not with two youngish men on their way to execersice their democratic rights to demonstrate on Labour day, May 1st.
125,000 people attended the massgathering in Kathmandu alone yesterday, vowing to stay on the streets until the government is toppled.
torsdag 29 april 2010
In his own words
PBI can be called upon by human right defenders when an international presence if felt to make their work more safe and give them a wider space to in which to be effective. JKL contacted PBI when the levels of threaths became too much. Below are the background to why he came to us in the first place.
Interview with Jai Kishor Labh
Jai Kishor Labh is a father, community leader and human rights defender in Janakpur, Nepal. His eldest son and four other students were abducted and killed in October 2003. Since then he has been working to investigate and bring to justice the accused in the case. He has been accompanied by PBI.
PBI: Could you please explain your case?
JKL: I have filed a case of disappearance and extrajudicial killing for my son, who was arrested from the Janakpur area on October 8, 2003. Two years later, the Nepal Army sent a letter saying my son and the four students arrested with him were killed in Janakpur on the very date of the arrest. Under order from the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), the Nepal Police formed an investigation committee headed by the Deputy Inspector General (DIG) who sent a report of the investigation to the NHRC stating the police arrested my son and four other students and took them to a Nepal Army barracks. After that, the police said they were not able to conduct their investigation further as there is no record of my son and the four other students being admitted to the army barracks. I filed a First Incident Report (FIR) in the District Police Office (DPO) in Dhanusha in which the Superintendent of Police of the DPO registered the case in the general diary but not the legal diary. He then identified the suspected burial site but thereafter did nothing. And so, I filed a mandamus in the Supreme Court, demanding that the DPO register the case in a legal diary and investigate the incident according to the law of the land. But still nothing has been done. I think they are only prolonging the case. They are not in the mood to investigate the case, just to prolong it. So I am doing my best to move it forward. Many national and international organizations and individuals are also working to apply pressure on the police to investigate the case. It is a matter of great regret that even the government’s Chief Home Minister says they are dedicated to investigating the cases of serious human rights violations but are doing nothing.
PBI: How is your family dealing with the fact that it is taking many years to bring justice for your son?
JKL: My family is very sad about not getting justice according to the law and they are being harassed and losing hope for justice. But I am still hopeful. So I am dealing with the case, even if it is taking a very long time. I hope that at some time justice will come. I am a diabetic and have a bad heart and therefore think I may die before justice is delivered. And so I would like to call on the Prime Minister, the Home Minister and all the stakeholders, that they take human rights violations seriously and make it a priority to investigate cases like my son’s disappearance and deliver justice. Otherwise, it will indicate to society that if a lawyer and human rights defender cannot get justice, then how can normal everyday people get justice? Peace in Nepal cannot be established without justice. Justice should be delivered to victims and victims’ families for a sustainable peace, but I think that may take a long time. In the meantime, my family and other victims’ families are being harassed and losing hope for getting justice. This is not good for democracy and sustainable peace, so all human rights activists should do more for the delivery of justice for victims’ families.
PBI: What keeps you going? Why have you not given up hope?
JKL: I am only hopeful because of the so-called true love of law – if there is a rule of law, the law will make sure that cases like my son’s disappearance are investigated and the perpetrators punished. The law that exists here says that if anyone violates human rights, he or she should be punished. It has been clearly written in the law so I am hopeful that a time will come when justice will prevail.
PBI: What keeps you going personally?
JKL: It is the national and international organizations and individuals who are helping me that keep me going. Because of them, I think I am protected and can go on pushing for investigation into my son’s death and justice in his case.
PBI: Any last remarks?
JKL: I would like to say that Nepal is a country that has already ratified many treaties and international conventions on human rights. According to the Nepal Treaty Act, all international instruments that have been signed and ratified by Nepal should be applied to Nepalese law. In addition, many leaders and political parties in Nepal have also said they are dedicated to the advancement of human rights, peace and justice in the country. These same leaders and political parties have also said that Nepal is a country where the rule of law will prevail. I would like to ask these national leaders to listen to this governance and make a new Nepal that will protect and promote human rights. It is only through justice that there can be peace. If justice is not prevailing in Nepal, there can be no peace, and without peace there are no human rights.
onsdag 28 april 2010
In the memory of Jai Kishor Labh
In 2001-2002 Nepal had more disappeared or missing people than Colombia. Many were never seen again.
Today my thoughts go to the human rights defender Jai Kishor Labh, who passed away on April 18 in his house.
Jai Kishor Labh was a lawyer based in Dhanusha district in Nepal.
His 25-year-old son, Sanjiv Kumar Karna, a Business Studies student, was arrested on 8 October 2003 by a joint force comprising personnel of the District Police Office, Dhanusha, police personnel of the Regional Police Unit Office, Janakpur Municipality, and personnel of the Army Camp, based in a guest house near Tirhutia Gachhi, Janakpur. He was not seen thereafter.
PBI had been accompanying Jai Kishor since November 2009 due to threats to him and his younger son because of his work on the case of his eldest disappeared son, Sanjeev.
Jai Kishor Labh will be remembered as a relentless pursuer of justice and will be missed.
Today my thoughts go to the human rights defender Jai Kishor Labh, who passed away on April 18 in his house.
Jai Kishor Labh was a lawyer based in Dhanusha district in Nepal.
His 25-year-old son, Sanjiv Kumar Karna, a Business Studies student, was arrested on 8 October 2003 by a joint force comprising personnel of the District Police Office, Dhanusha, police personnel of the Regional Police Unit Office, Janakpur Municipality, and personnel of the Army Camp, based in a guest house near Tirhutia Gachhi, Janakpur. He was not seen thereafter.
PBI had been accompanying Jai Kishor since November 2009 due to threats to him and his younger son because of his work on the case of his eldest disappeared son, Sanjeev.
Jai Kishor Labh will be remembered as a relentless pursuer of justice and will be missed.
tisdag 27 april 2010
Over 40 degrees we don't check the temperature
This morning two turban clad men(actually it was towels but they have a very intricate way of arranging their hats)were squatting in our garden, curiously looking at Didi(our feisty live out cook and cleaning lady), R from our team and Suno our driver climb into the steaming hot jeep. Being locals, Didi and Suno don't seem to be that bothered by the sun even when it is well past 40 degrees. And today was a big day as Didi has asked us to please take her with us to the airport as she had never seen it.
First I found this a bit strange, how could she not have seen it? It is only an hour away. Then I realized that of course, being a mother of five, not having a car or the economy to be away for a day maybe it hadn't occurred to her to even consider doing it alone. Nowadays, I see her house as I look at other houses made out of mud. Nothing special. If you don't have money for a brick house, people build their own houses with whatever building material they can find, even dung.
After two month here in the Midwest things start to take on that glow of normality that occurs when I have stayed in a place for a while. I still do not understand what is so bad about saying no or I can't do it, but rather saying yes and not showing up but maybe I will. I do appreciate the little things more now, having a functioning fridge(ours had an accidental near death experience involving a couple of sharp knives and a hole of leaking freon)but these things happen and today two silent Nepali repair men with a doctors look alike bag worked in the kitchen and now it is working again! Hallelujah!
I also enjoy all the baby animals(generally to the great amusement of the owner). Why is she playing with the baby goat? Does she want to buy it? Eat it? Sacrifice to the Gods?
Talking about eating. There are some rumors floating around about people eating owl here. Hmmm....never thought of that but...eh, why not? There are also rumors of people eating cat but I choose to believe that is only a rumor.
fredag 9 april 2010
A Human Rights Organisation within the Nepalese Army
"Today the practice of zero tolerance of human rights violations has led to the enhancement of the image of the Nepalese Army".
It is encouraging that the Nepalese army officially takes the human rights violations seriously even though I do know that in practice this is not always endorsed. And while we can talk about reasons for that it might be interesting to look at the background to the Human Right Cells that exists today,under what circumstances it was founded and how it is talked about:
"The Nepalese Army has issued and implemented various directives, instructions and policies on International Human Rights Laws (IHRL) and Internatinal Humaniterian Laws (IHL) as well as national directives" and These directives clearly instruct the Nepalese Army to respect and support the protection and promotion of IHRL and IHL and judicial proceedings during all operations. Besides, the Nepalese Army has integrated the teaching of IHRL and IHL into all Army career courses. The Nepalese Army has issued various booklets and cards like the Soldier's Card, ROE Card, Human Rights booklet and Human Rights Year Book for the protection and promotion of IHRL and IHL in the organization. The Nepalese Army has taken punitive measures against those found guilty of violations of human rights and humanitarian laws.
Link to the full text here!
It is encouraging that the Nepalese army officially takes the human rights violations seriously even though I do know that in practice this is not always endorsed. And while we can talk about reasons for that it might be interesting to look at the background to the Human Right Cells that exists today,under what circumstances it was founded and how it is talked about:
"The Nepalese Army has issued and implemented various directives, instructions and policies on International Human Rights Laws (IHRL) and Internatinal Humaniterian Laws (IHL) as well as national directives" and These directives clearly instruct the Nepalese Army to respect and support the protection and promotion of IHRL and IHL and judicial proceedings during all operations. Besides, the Nepalese Army has integrated the teaching of IHRL and IHL into all Army career courses. The Nepalese Army has issued various booklets and cards like the Soldier's Card, ROE Card, Human Rights booklet and Human Rights Year Book for the protection and promotion of IHRL and IHL in the organization. The Nepalese Army has taken punitive measures against those found guilty of violations of human rights and humanitarian laws.
Link to the full text here!
onsdag 7 april 2010
Blues of a lesbian cop part I & II
The headline stood out as I was leafing through a two week old copy of Republica: Blues of a lesbian cop in not a common headline in a Nepali newspaper. After the initial confusion I understood that traffic police woman Rubina Hussein had been charged with abduction and sexual abuse of 17 year old Pujan Basnet. And while the Nepali Supreme Court had ordered the arrest of Hussein and brought Basnet in for a deposition, Rubinas version of the truth differed considerably. And no wonder, as she stated "She is my live-in girlfriend; we are had over head over heels in love. The sexual relationship was concentual. They arrested and suspended me in a misuse of power".
Now I am getting more than a little confused. I know that homosexuality in Nepal was legalized in 2007, later than in many other countries but still. I also know that gay marriage is on the table being discussed as being part of the constitution writing that is suppose to be finished on May 28 2010. And I had heard of The Blue Diamond Society, a Nepali organisation working for sexual minorities founded by Sir Elton John.
So, why is she described wearing handcuffs? Why is she arrested....? Or is she arrested or only in custody? Reading on I realize that Pujans family charged her with kidnapping and claimed it was because Rubina was keeping her without the consent of Pujans family. Seriously now. According to Nepali law, Pujan is no longer a minor.
Yesterday, March 5 Hussein was still in custody but the Kathmandu District Court ordered the police to release her on bail of Rs 15,000. She has been charged with kidnapping and sexual abuse. The judge commented this by saying that "She was released on bail as I saw no case of abduction but I reached the conclusion that Rubina kept the 17 year old in the room with the approval of the latter's guardian". Hussein is to appear in court on April 30th.
Now I am really confused. It is not a case of abduction? Why the high bail? What is accused of?
But of course I know that being a lesbian in Nepal is difficult and sometimes very dangerous. Nepal is not a liberal western country and while I have no illusions of the latter I wish Rubina and Hussein all the best and hope that they will come out of this ordeal stronger even though I doubt it. I'll keep you posted.
Links to those interested in how the story unfolded in Nepali press,
The Himalayan Times
...which by the way ends with “What Rubina did was against Nepal Police Act-2049 BS. She will be dismissed from service and disqualified from holding any government post" the police officer said. And this while the case is still under investigation.
onsdag 31 mars 2010
Cockroaches in the drain
So we live in the basement in our little village in the Terai. We are very close to the Indian border, which means that while I am in a generally mountainous country now I am living in a tropical climate with all that that entails in form of heat and animal life. The Bardia National is close and there the tigers, rhinos and elephants still roam.
The tropical climate also means having "cleaning crews"of lizards on Search and Destroy missions and I am always very happy to see Liz running up and down the walls and ceilings inside the basement, keeping is clean by eating flies and what ever else is to her liking. However....cockroaches also inhabiting the premises and I find it very hard to co-habit with them. Not in the least because I realize now that the close to the monsoon and the warmer it gets, the more likely they are to stay.
Cockroaches leave chemical trails in their feces as well as emitting airborne pheromones for swarming and mating. Other cockroaches will follow these trails to discover sources of food and water, and also discover where other cockroaches are hiding. Thus, cockroaches can exhibit emergent behavior,[10] in which group or swarm behavior emerges from a simple set of individual interactions.
Hmm...I guess I will just have to find a way to live peacefullt together since using the non Ahimsa method of stepping on them also sends out smells drawing their friends to the murder scene.
måndag 29 mars 2010
First FIR filed!
Glad today that the filing by our partners(and associates from ICJ) of the FIR regarding the Bardia National killings was accepted and actually filed. Needless to say, also glad that PBI were asked to accompany them to file and gave the human right defenders a larger space to operate, which is part of why we are here in Nepal in the first place. This might not sound like much(nor may it lead to much even though it potentially could now that an investigation technically is underway)but the army is to be investigated and this in itself is a small victory. No, it is actually more than a small victory taking into account the relationship formed during the conflict between the army and police and the formation of the armed police force, a separate combat unit of sorts. The concept of unified command came into effect during the conflict which, needless to say created many bonds between two otherwise separate units in the Nepali society.
The women killed in the National Park was all over the news for a couple of days, and even though the case is being investigated by three parties(the Nepali army, the Nepali government and OHCHR which already published a report)there are many rumors going around. The facts are that the army still say that the women were poachers, or that they at least mistook them for being poachers inside the park. What happend to the victims, the lowcast Dalit women is still unclear but at least there might be some hope at the horizon.
The women killed in the National Park was all over the news for a couple of days, and even though the case is being investigated by three parties(the Nepali army, the Nepali government and OHCHR which already published a report)there are many rumors going around. The facts are that the army still say that the women were poachers, or that they at least mistook them for being poachers inside the park. What happend to the victims, the lowcast Dalit women is still unclear but at least there might be some hope at the horizon.
torsdag 18 mars 2010
A short testamony
"He(the journalist)told us that it is very difficult for people to report threaths to the police because as soon as they leave the police station they recieve another threath, and this means that informaton must be leaking from the police itself."
onsdag 17 mars 2010
The triangular alarm of the Midwest
I have now transitioned to the office of my NGO in the Midwest. Right now our Madeshi neigbours are having a small celebration. A nine day puja(religious ritual)at the hindi tempel to be more exact. This was not exactely what I expected when I talked about experiencing different religions but now I am part of it in a very practical way. Generally there is no need for an alarm in the morning. The local mosque wakes me around half past five(I like the man read-singing the prayers more than the woman but she is ok if not always on key), followed by the nearest hindu tempel followed by the trumpets in the army compound. These days though, we are now on day three,the puja is a constant backdrop of sound from early morning. The people performing and participating in the puja seem to take a rest during the day. Then the music, chanting, bhajan is a again being broadcasted across town. Wishing for a sleep in is thus not really on the agenda. But Nepalis are early risers, maybe even more so here in the countryish Terai near the Indian border. A part of Nepal also known for the fertile grounds and the ability to grow food and rear animals to sustain other regions of more hilly nature in Nepal. So, pondering the fact that I might need a little adjusting to the daily routines of people and the level of noice I am also fashinated by the different ways of organising a society where many different people live very closely together.
måndag 15 mars 2010
Derailing peace by digging up old bones?
Wilder Taylor is in town. He is secretary general of the ICJ(International Commission of Jurists)and thus an interesting guy to listen to. Buzy guy to, so it is appreciated that he came to assess the state of human rights and transitional justice in Nepal. Not an easy task. Especially since there seem to be a section in society that seem to believe that procecuting crimes of the past may derail the peace process. The past is the past and we have to move on sort of thing.
Taylor explored this by saying that in his experience this fear is common in sectors that have faced national strife and that Nepal is one of many wartorn countries where this fear has been expressed. However, experience shows that if truths are not brought to light, proper transition is never achieved. And this I find important:
Reconciliation requires forgiveness, but you also cannot forgive in an adhoc manner. The truth has to emerge and those responsible for the worst violence need to be brought to justice.
He continues;
In this country 3,000 people 'disappeared' and thousands lost there lives. People who want democracy, stability and justice cannot, in principle, be against the exercise of justice. Look at places like Bosnia, Rwanda and Cambodia, in countries they thought they could get away with impunity. Which politician can go to their people and say 'Nothing happend. Lets's move on'. It doesn't work.
And he is right. It doesn't work. Mothers, wifes, brothers, friends all want to find out what happend to relatives and close ones. At present Nepal has proposed two bills; one of disappearance and one of truth and reconciliation. None of them propose procecution of crimes committed in the past. And this is of grave concern.
Taylor explored this by saying that in his experience this fear is common in sectors that have faced national strife and that Nepal is one of many wartorn countries where this fear has been expressed. However, experience shows that if truths are not brought to light, proper transition is never achieved. And this I find important:
Reconciliation requires forgiveness, but you also cannot forgive in an adhoc manner. The truth has to emerge and those responsible for the worst violence need to be brought to justice.
He continues;
In this country 3,000 people 'disappeared' and thousands lost there lives. People who want democracy, stability and justice cannot, in principle, be against the exercise of justice. Look at places like Bosnia, Rwanda and Cambodia, in countries they thought they could get away with impunity. Which politician can go to their people and say 'Nothing happend. Lets's move on'. It doesn't work.
And he is right. It doesn't work. Mothers, wifes, brothers, friends all want to find out what happend to relatives and close ones. At present Nepal has proposed two bills; one of disappearance and one of truth and reconciliation. None of them propose procecution of crimes committed in the past. And this is of grave concern.
Go home and be a better wife
The Nepali lady who was told to go home and be a better wife had gone to the police station to report a rape by her husband. The report was not accepted and the person telling her to go home was the officer in the district police office.
fredag 5 mars 2010
The dance of filing a First Information Report
Filing a report in my country is pretty straight forward. I have a complaint of some sort, I go down to the police station and leave the details or make a statement. I might be irritated that I have to wait a bit, but in general it is pretty straight forward. Not so in Nepal.
PBI-Nepal has a partnership with local human rights defenders(HRDs). We do a variety of things but one very practical aspect of our work is(per request as is always the case)is accompanying them to police staions to file reports related to issues and crimes committed primarily during the conflict between the maoists and the Nepali state that left between 13 000-17 000 people dead, many still missing and many tortured and abused.
Ok, this is what often happends in practice. We meet the HRDs and while our mandate which clearly states that we are a non-partisan organisation that do not interfer in the work of the partner, we are clearly supportive in their right to investigate alledged human rights crimes and have a right to ask the local authorites to help bring justice to the victims. Therefor we put on our vests and walk with the HRDs when they attempt to file their first FIR(First Information Report),because according to us as well as analysis done by local UN organs such as UNMIN, UNOCHA,UNHCR and intentional and national human right organisations the treaths these laywers are receiving are at the level that they can potentially be killed. For filing a report...
The reasons might need some explanation. The people being mentioned in these reports are sometimes high politicias. Or highly ranked police or military men(or women). They might be local people that are now in a postion of power and do not want to be investigate and brought to trial or they might simple be the local rich entrepreneur that has paid off the staff in the local police station.
So, off we go to together. We wait outside while our partners attemp to file the actual paper FIR. Which in theory means that it needs to be investigated, warrants issued leading up to a possible trial and sentence. Often they are denied. To exemplify, our partners tried to use December 10 last year, Human Rights Day to file these first reports all over Nepal and in ALL(not just some, but ALL cases) they were not received. The reason given was often be that the superior officer wasn't in the office so very sorry but...
The next step is often to go to the Appellate or Supreme court, asking for an order to be issued to the specific officer or station. A mandamus is the correct legal term. Sometimes the court refuses. Sometimes the file is still not files. So the HRDs start again, back to the high court, new mandamus. Maybe the FIRs are actually filed. But not investigated. As has been mentioned before, not ONE single case related to human rights abuse has so far been processed and received a sentence. Not one.
PBI-Nepal has a partnership with local human rights defenders(HRDs). We do a variety of things but one very practical aspect of our work is(per request as is always the case)is accompanying them to police staions to file reports related to issues and crimes committed primarily during the conflict between the maoists and the Nepali state that left between 13 000-17 000 people dead, many still missing and many tortured and abused.
Ok, this is what often happends in practice. We meet the HRDs and while our mandate which clearly states that we are a non-partisan organisation that do not interfer in the work of the partner, we are clearly supportive in their right to investigate alledged human rights crimes and have a right to ask the local authorites to help bring justice to the victims. Therefor we put on our vests and walk with the HRDs when they attempt to file their first FIR(First Information Report),because according to us as well as analysis done by local UN organs such as UNMIN, UNOCHA,UNHCR and intentional and national human right organisations the treaths these laywers are receiving are at the level that they can potentially be killed. For filing a report...
The reasons might need some explanation. The people being mentioned in these reports are sometimes high politicias. Or highly ranked police or military men(or women). They might be local people that are now in a postion of power and do not want to be investigate and brought to trial or they might simple be the local rich entrepreneur that has paid off the staff in the local police station.
So, off we go to together. We wait outside while our partners attemp to file the actual paper FIR. Which in theory means that it needs to be investigated, warrants issued leading up to a possible trial and sentence. Often they are denied. To exemplify, our partners tried to use December 10 last year, Human Rights Day to file these first reports all over Nepal and in ALL(not just some, but ALL cases) they were not received. The reason given was often be that the superior officer wasn't in the office so very sorry but...
The next step is often to go to the Appellate or Supreme court, asking for an order to be issued to the specific officer or station. A mandamus is the correct legal term. Sometimes the court refuses. Sometimes the file is still not files. So the HRDs start again, back to the high court, new mandamus. Maybe the FIRs are actually filed. But not investigated. As has been mentioned before, not ONE single case related to human rights abuse has so far been processed and received a sentence. Not one.
torsdag 4 mars 2010
tisdag 2 mars 2010
Why is PBI in Nepal?
Mandate for organisations usually makes for a dry read. Still, if you are interested in the process of making ideals alive by working with human rights you need to at least know the boundaries of our work. Thus;
PBI-Nepal Project Mandate
To work with and for Civil Society Activism and Human Rights Defenders to increase their protection and maintain or expand the political space available to their work in favour of peace and human rights in Nepal.
Pursuant to this mandate, the Nepal Project works on:
1. Help maintain a peaceful space in which civil society can operate and grow so that it can play a major role in building sustainable peace and adressing structural violence.
2. Model nonviolence and promote nonviolent conflict resolution.
3. Foster social and political dialogue and reconciliation.
4. Promote international understanding of the confict in Nepal and to facilitate connections between Nepali organizations and the rest of the world.
5. Empower civil society so as to reduce, and eventally end, the need for a PBI presence.
Big words, sustainable peace, structural violence, reconciliation, empower civil society. During the next year I will fill them with meaning and discuss them in detail from the PBI context as they are in my opinion so much more interesting when practically applied.
PBI-Nepal Project Mandate
To work with and for Civil Society Activism and Human Rights Defenders to increase their protection and maintain or expand the political space available to their work in favour of peace and human rights in Nepal.
Pursuant to this mandate, the Nepal Project works on:
1. Help maintain a peaceful space in which civil society can operate and grow so that it can play a major role in building sustainable peace and adressing structural violence.
2. Model nonviolence and promote nonviolent conflict resolution.
3. Foster social and political dialogue and reconciliation.
4. Promote international understanding of the confict in Nepal and to facilitate connections between Nepali organizations and the rest of the world.
5. Empower civil society so as to reduce, and eventally end, the need for a PBI presence.
Big words, sustainable peace, structural violence, reconciliation, empower civil society. During the next year I will fill them with meaning and discuss them in detail from the PBI context as they are in my opinion so much more interesting when practically applied.
A million tourists to Nepal
Four days ago the 'Visit nepal year' started with a massive parade in the center of Kathmandu. The target is set at a million visitors 2011 but many of us are sceptical. Yesterday Arum Simhaniya, the third media person in a less than two months was killed. According to local sources Simhaniya, who was on the board of directors of the media group publishing the daily paper Janakpur Today, was shot at close range and died on the spot. Journalist Uma Sing, working in the same media group for Radio today was stabbed to death on January 11. And media entrepreneur Jamin Shahs recent killing makes, however unrelated these crimes might turn out to be, a disturbingly high number of killed people working in journalism.
Add to this todays report from OHCHR Nepal reporting to the Human Rights Council in Geneva that the Nepali government's continued disregard towards issues of impunity and political development have pushed the peace process into an increasingly fragile state. The report which is sceduled to be presented at the Council on the 24 of March warns that the government and political parties are ignoring human rights issues and have failed to implement the vast majority of recommmendations made by the Commission. It further says that cooperation between human rights investigations, including those by OHCHR into conflict-related violations remains poor. And adds that "to date, not a singel perpetrator of major human rights violatios or abuses committe during the conflcit has been comvicted".
Meanwhile, deputy Priminister Koirala adressed the Human Rights Council at UNHRC in Geneva yesterday. Koirala adressed the government efforts to promote and protect human rights as well as Nepal's continued commitment to human rights.
While his speach might be mostly rethorical and not correspond with the OHCHR report it might show that there is an intention to put umounity higher up on the political agenda. This being possible,it is at the moment somewhat hard to reconcile the fact that the legal process of bringing perpetrators(from all sides)to justice is so slow. After all the peace agreement was signed four years ago.
So Visit Nepal Year might be an excellent and ambitious idea on paper for a war torn country with a unique scenary and culture, but it might be just a bit too soon.
Add to this todays report from OHCHR Nepal reporting to the Human Rights Council in Geneva that the Nepali government's continued disregard towards issues of impunity and political development have pushed the peace process into an increasingly fragile state. The report which is sceduled to be presented at the Council on the 24 of March warns that the government and political parties are ignoring human rights issues and have failed to implement the vast majority of recommmendations made by the Commission. It further says that cooperation between human rights investigations, including those by OHCHR into conflict-related violations remains poor. And adds that "to date, not a singel perpetrator of major human rights violatios or abuses committe during the conflcit has been comvicted".
Meanwhile, deputy Priminister Koirala adressed the Human Rights Council at UNHRC in Geneva yesterday. Koirala adressed the government efforts to promote and protect human rights as well as Nepal's continued commitment to human rights.
While his speach might be mostly rethorical and not correspond with the OHCHR report it might show that there is an intention to put umounity higher up on the political agenda. This being possible,it is at the moment somewhat hard to reconcile the fact that the legal process of bringing perpetrators(from all sides)to justice is so slow. After all the peace agreement was signed four years ago.
So Visit Nepal Year might be an excellent and ambitious idea on paper for a war torn country with a unique scenary and culture, but it might be just a bit too soon.
måndag 1 mars 2010
torsdag 25 februari 2010
A Swedish onion in Nepal
Slowly peeling of the layers of comfort and habits. Softening to the fact that there wont be more electricity, light, internet time, working toasters if I resist the load shedding schedule. The power will come back when it will. Peeling yet another layer and notice without too much attachment that I now carefully walk around the edges of the ever present garbage piles that litter almost every street in the city center. Often also unconsciously find myself stepping down from the high sidewalks and walk in a zigzak motion towards the traffic. Following the natural flow of people, the odd cow, may dogs, salesmen balancing their goods on their head all slowly moving to their destination. The natural adaptation of living in a city too small for its habitants. Sidewalks often occupied or claimed by sleeping beggers, the travelling book and newspaper salesmen who everyday spread their books on large sheets of plastic only to pick the up at the end of the day and start over in their corner the next morning. Or walking around the strawberry corner near Durbar square where women display small handmade plastic cones carefullt stacked with fresh strawberries.
tisdag 23 februari 2010
söndag 21 februari 2010
The US-led ISAF force plans military surge in Afghanistan
Having family serving(how strange that looks in print)in the International Security Assistance Force in Mazeer-el-Sharif, this information is interesting. Primarily because it was reported in the Nepali press in a manner very unlike the Swedish media. According to Chaudhury, New Delhi, India:
The USA-led ISAF force plans to begin a military surge in Afghanistan, initially aiming at taking control, clearing and securing major urban centres and highways from the Taliban and placing the Afghan National forces gradually in charge as it prepares its exit strategy.
The article then mentions the strategic placement of many cities near the Pakistani border and the need for help from the Pakistani army to
take on and and prevent the uprooted Afghan Taliban forces crossing into safe havens within Pakistan.
And also
Islamabad has offered to use its influence over these groups(including the Haqqani group) to stop attacking the ISAF forces if the US ensures that India palys no future roll in Afghanistan.
Recent casualties in the Swedish camp and a description of the ISAF(that includes many nations)makes me wonder about the practicalities of the Swedish contingent and the future of the involvement of this neutral state, non-NATO member said to be in Afghanistan to support the peace process.
Link(In Swedish)from the medal ceremony.
The USA-led ISAF force plans to begin a military surge in Afghanistan, initially aiming at taking control, clearing and securing major urban centres and highways from the Taliban and placing the Afghan National forces gradually in charge as it prepares its exit strategy.
The article then mentions the strategic placement of many cities near the Pakistani border and the need for help from the Pakistani army to
take on and and prevent the uprooted Afghan Taliban forces crossing into safe havens within Pakistan.
And also
Islamabad has offered to use its influence over these groups(including the Haqqani group) to stop attacking the ISAF forces if the US ensures that India palys no future roll in Afghanistan.
Recent casualties in the Swedish camp and a description of the ISAF(that includes many nations)makes me wonder about the practicalities of the Swedish contingent and the future of the involvement of this neutral state, non-NATO member said to be in Afghanistan to support the peace process.
Link(In Swedish)from the medal ceremony.
lördag 20 februari 2010
A small maoist flag
The red flag with the faded black star is torn and not conspicuous enough to catch your attention unless you happen to see the sign advertising the barbershop next to it. A maoist barbeshop?
Makes me think of the cost of war.
http://www.telegraphnepal.com/news_det.php?news_id=4375
Makes me think of the cost of war.
http://www.telegraphnepal.com/news_det.php?news_id=4375
fredag 19 februari 2010
Even a moustasch will not stop the mouth from eating
Going through a list of Nepali proverbs but couldn't guess this one. Was told it meant that if you really decided to do something, nothing can stop you which...I guess makes sense.
I have come to the end of my language course. Now I actually do speak a little bit Nepali. Hardly in complete sentences full of intricate ironic meaning the way I would like it but more along the line of trying to order the correct food, tell the shop owner I want a lower price or THAT English paper instead of the one I was given. Many, if not most Nepalis I come across do speak a decent level of English these days so being understood is never really an issue here in Kathmandu.
On wednesday I move out of mero ekdam ramro Newari pariwaar, my very nice Newari family that is. I will miss the thin and high house, wide enough for my bead to fit sideways and tall enough with its seven floors to see over most other houses in the area of Laagan. The open rooftop has been a refuge to just sit or do yoga or eat breakfast and just observe the daily life from another angle. When the sun comes out(which it does most days except for the Shiva Ratri festival last week when the sky literally opened and it wouldn't stop pouring for almost two days straight), lids are liften and people of all age ans sizes crawl up on the corregated roofs and a separate life is lived up there. The wash is being hung, hair is washed and dried(houses have very little central heating if any), puppies are being played with and the occasional hen or rooster walk around high up in the air minding their own business. Mostly people just seem to take a break in the sun, maybe sorting though the chilis , flowers or herbs that are often left to dry in the sun before being eaten.
After 5 weeks I now also know that many brothers, fathers, uncles or in our case, little brother and grandfather are minding and playing with the young ones. My language teacher is never far away from her baby but even a mother needs to sleep and the youngest one of our household is being coo'ed, carried, fed, sunbathed on the roof and generally just held and loved but all other family members but especially the men of the family. It is lovely to see, and I imagine just a part of life in this family as in many other Neplai families. When you marry the woman generally moves into the husbands home and become a part of the household, even if she of course still might visit her old home. Old folks homes doesn't exist I have been told, you just make room for young and old family members, regardless of age.
I have come to the end of my language course. Now I actually do speak a little bit Nepali. Hardly in complete sentences full of intricate ironic meaning the way I would like it but more along the line of trying to order the correct food, tell the shop owner I want a lower price or THAT English paper instead of the one I was given. Many, if not most Nepalis I come across do speak a decent level of English these days so being understood is never really an issue here in Kathmandu.
On wednesday I move out of mero ekdam ramro Newari pariwaar, my very nice Newari family that is. I will miss the thin and high house, wide enough for my bead to fit sideways and tall enough with its seven floors to see over most other houses in the area of Laagan. The open rooftop has been a refuge to just sit or do yoga or eat breakfast and just observe the daily life from another angle. When the sun comes out(which it does most days except for the Shiva Ratri festival last week when the sky literally opened and it wouldn't stop pouring for almost two days straight), lids are liften and people of all age ans sizes crawl up on the corregated roofs and a separate life is lived up there. The wash is being hung, hair is washed and dried(houses have very little central heating if any), puppies are being played with and the occasional hen or rooster walk around high up in the air minding their own business. Mostly people just seem to take a break in the sun, maybe sorting though the chilis , flowers or herbs that are often left to dry in the sun before being eaten.
After 5 weeks I now also know that many brothers, fathers, uncles or in our case, little brother and grandfather are minding and playing with the young ones. My language teacher is never far away from her baby but even a mother needs to sleep and the youngest one of our household is being coo'ed, carried, fed, sunbathed on the roof and generally just held and loved but all other family members but especially the men of the family. It is lovely to see, and I imagine just a part of life in this family as in many other Neplai families. When you marry the woman generally moves into the husbands home and become a part of the household, even if she of course still might visit her old home. Old folks homes doesn't exist I have been told, you just make room for young and old family members, regardless of age.
onsdag 17 februari 2010
Learning to read the cultural landscape of Nepal
There are real fears and then there are baby fears. Real fears are those where your life might actually be in danger, or at least you are in a potentially dangerous situation. Baby fears are the ones that I confront every day here in Nepal. Fears that are related to everyday things. When you boundaries of comfort are stretched or even overstepped. Like the other day. My sweet Nepali teacher pushed me out the door and ordered me not to come back before I talked to enough people and I had 20 new words to show for it. Wouldn't take no for an answer and just told me that unless I overcame my fear of being in the(my expression)idiot-phase I would never learn to speak Nepali. For those of you who has ever studied another language you know the phase I am talking about, when you know very little useful stuff, mostly grammatical structures and a bunch of words that don't seem to string together like peacock and I am late for class.
My teacher is a smart lady and she probably sensed my hesitation so she drew a small map over the area of central Kathmandu, patted me on the back and said -go find this market and then come back with your words and the name of the god that is in the center of the bazaar.
So I grabbed my Nepaali kitaab ra kaleb ra kopi (my book with Nepali glossary, pen and pad) and went into the street. Figured I might as well get in to it and prepared a little speeach in my head that probably sounded very similar to this, but in Nepali then
- Hallo! Howareyoumynameismariaandistudynepali.Whatisthat?
At this point I certainly have the attention of the shopkeeper who look at wnere my finger in pointing.
-Eh...bread, he says in English. But I don't give up and repeat slower "Ma Napali PaDnchuu" which if I am lucky translates to I study Nepali but if not so lucky "I fart Nepali"... Nepali people might have a good sense of humor but they are also kind enough to recognize a good try. So after getting my first word and learning that it roughly translates into "white, sliced English bread" on I go At the tailors I repeat my speech. He looks scared when I point at the suits.
-No Madam. Not for ladies! It takes a while to calm him down and find out that suit is also suit in Nepali. That figures. Cashews sounds vaguely the same but almonds are 'peanuts from the Terai', the area near the border of Nepal that I soon will be working in.
The nicest word I learn was Maya, which mean love in Nepali. Nice one.
My teacher is a smart lady and she probably sensed my hesitation so she drew a small map over the area of central Kathmandu, patted me on the back and said -go find this market and then come back with your words and the name of the god that is in the center of the bazaar.
So I grabbed my Nepaali kitaab ra kaleb ra kopi (my book with Nepali glossary, pen and pad) and went into the street. Figured I might as well get in to it and prepared a little speeach in my head that probably sounded very similar to this, but in Nepali then
- Hallo! Howareyoumynameismariaandistudynepali.Whatisthat?
At this point I certainly have the attention of the shopkeeper who look at wnere my finger in pointing.
-Eh...bread, he says in English. But I don't give up and repeat slower "Ma Napali PaDnchuu" which if I am lucky translates to I study Nepali but if not so lucky "I fart Nepali"... Nepali people might have a good sense of humor but they are also kind enough to recognize a good try. So after getting my first word and learning that it roughly translates into "white, sliced English bread" on I go At the tailors I repeat my speech. He looks scared when I point at the suits.
-No Madam. Not for ladies! It takes a while to calm him down and find out that suit is also suit in Nepali. That figures. Cashews sounds vaguely the same but almonds are 'peanuts from the Terai', the area near the border of Nepal that I soon will be working in.
The nicest word I learn was Maya, which mean love in Nepali. Nice one.
lördag 13 februari 2010
Shiva ratri, Lhosar and Valentines day
...all in on happy holiday weekend. Shivaratri translates into "Shivas night" and took place of the last day of the Nepali winter which this year was last friday. 300,000+ people, mainly teachers and holy men, (gurus and Sadhus) and followers of God Shiva gathered then in the holy temple of Pashupati. Last wednesday it started raining and didn't finish for a day and a half and my Newari family laughed and said that this often happends when all these holy men come from all over Nepal and India for this very special holiday.
The location of Pashupathi looks, to an outsider and heathen like myself(who is not Hindu)very similar to Varanasi. Burning ghats by the holy river. Men and women waiting to die by the holy water, blessed by priests and Shiva himself with consorts. Old folks homes that you can rent while in waiting.
Lhosar I thought would be easy to describe as simply the Tibetan New Year. In is celebrated in the Tibetan community in exile and often among western buddhists. Now of course it turn out there are three (!) Lhosars. Today the 14/2, possibly named Gyalko Lhosar as it is mainly described as a religious celebrated. Soman Lhosar on the other hand is, again according to my sources a 'farmers festival', whatever that means and then there is Tamu Lhosar observed by the Gurung people roughly around out Wester new year.
To make it even more confusing, it is not exactely a Tibetan new year, but a holiday also celebrated by ethnic groups or people identifying themselves as Sherpas, Gurungs and Tamangs.
And then there is Valentines. Have a good one and go out and tell somebody you love them!
The location of Pashupathi looks, to an outsider and heathen like myself(who is not Hindu)very similar to Varanasi. Burning ghats by the holy river. Men and women waiting to die by the holy water, blessed by priests and Shiva himself with consorts. Old folks homes that you can rent while in waiting.
Lhosar I thought would be easy to describe as simply the Tibetan New Year. In is celebrated in the Tibetan community in exile and often among western buddhists. Now of course it turn out there are three (!) Lhosars. Today the 14/2, possibly named Gyalko Lhosar as it is mainly described as a religious celebrated. Soman Lhosar on the other hand is, again according to my sources a 'farmers festival', whatever that means and then there is Tamu Lhosar observed by the Gurung people roughly around out Wester new year.
To make it even more confusing, it is not exactely a Tibetan new year, but a holiday also celebrated by ethnic groups or people identifying themselves as Sherpas, Gurungs and Tamangs.
And then there is Valentines. Have a good one and go out and tell somebody you love them!
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