“I’m standing by the post office. You won’t miss me,” promised Alok Vaid-Menon over the phone. Sure enough, there he was. 
At the Sundance Film Festival in Utah, where temperatures dip so low even the red carpet is sometimes a parade of cosy sweaters, — the US-based gender non-conforming performer was dressed in cold-defying femme fashion. Indigo pumps, a blue-and-yellow frock ending in a cloud-shaped skirt, swirls of the same colours lining the eyes.
“I want to show that it is possible to look good here,” said Alok cheekily. 
Words from one of Alok’s own verses seemed apt for the moment: “They will say that femininity is not powerful, but I have stopped traffic simply by going outside.” 
On the day we met, the 32-year-old stopped traffic for another reason too. They were the face of a short documentary ALOK, directed by Alexandra Hedison and produced by Jodie Foster, which had just premiered at the festival.
For over a decade, Alok has combined art and activism. They tour the world with poems about queer and trans experiences, self-acceptance, and love. 
Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/eleganza-extravaganza">Eleganza Extravaganza</a>, Sahina Shrestha
They will be in Kathmandu presenting a blend of poetry and comedy at the Spoken Fest on 16 February. “I haven’t been to Kathmandu since 2017, so shout out to Nepal,” Alok shared, with a beam.
The film ALOK spent two years in the making, after photographer Hedison chanced upon Alok’s work online and asked if she could trail them — as a “professional groupie” or “consensual stalker”.
The deep dive that followed, she said, “didn’t just inspire me intellectually, it moved me emotionally”. The 18-minute film, Hedison’s first, features Alok’s questioning of the gender binary, their imaginative force, and glimpses of their family and friends. 
Quoting Greta Lee, star of the Oscar-nominated Past Lives, Alok said: “For so long I’ve been cast as the best friend but this is my first time as the main character and now I don’t know if I can go back.” 
“The mainstream needs to move beyond token diversity. We deserve to have our stories be centered.”
Alok was born into a family of thinkers and academics, with roots in Kerala, Delhi, Malaysia, and the US. Although the Texas milieu they grew up in was conservative, the film shows their home was conducive to queer expression. 
Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/a-mother-celebrates-pride">A mother celebrates Pride</a>, Durga Rana Magar
The poet’s aunt Urvashi Vaid, a noted LGBTQ activist in the US, became their protector: “Because of that I was able to articulate myself and be taken seriously from a very young age.”
Where most media representations of South Asian families tend to be opposed to queer and trans kids, Alok noted their South Asian family grew up and transitioned with them.
Approaches to queer rights on the eastern side of the globe are quite progressive, in the poet’s view. “LGBTQ rights are often framed as just recognition in the US, but in India, for instance, there is actually an acknowledgement that there needs to be reparations, there needs to be economic support.”
What is the creative process like? “Procrastination is my process,” Alok chuckled. “It starts out like I’m writing for the first time every time and that’s so daunting. But if it was easy, it wouldn’t be as rewarding.”
As a performing poet, the writing is woven with sound, considering the music that lives within individual words. “Poetry is a kind of spell-making, you have to think about how to pitch and tune each word.” 
So the poet reads aloud as writing progresses and edits based on the listening experience. Language is constantly evolving, Alok reflected, but people get upset when LGBTQ communities evolve it. 
Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/comment/right-to-marry-in-nepal">Right to marry in Nepal</a>, Aastha Dahal
Many object to the use of non-binary pronouns. “It is interesting when people say ‘Oh this stuff is all so new’, then why have you always had slurs for us in your languages? So there’s always been a context with which you acknowledge us, it’s just been pejorative.”
In several US states, disapproval of trans people is at risk of being written into the law. Our conversation took place in Utah where the House recently passed a bill seeking to criminalise trans adults for using bathrooms inconsistent with the sex on their birth certificate. 
“Hopefully it’s not going to pass the Senate and get approved into law but the fact that they’re even indulging it is obscene.”
Through art, Alok would like to loosen the hold people have over gender. “Me and my friends are finding a way of looking at each other as individuals, not as categories. So this is not some idealistic future, it’s something that’s being lived right now.”
Equity will depend on people’s willingness to feel a sense of community with everyone around them. That is why Alok opened the film saying: “The most controversial pronoun I have is ‘we’. It’s not ‘they’, it’s ‘we’.” 
Read also:<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/nepal-is-ahead-of-many-countries-in-lgbtqi-rights"> "Nepal is ahead of many countries in LGBTQI+ rights"</a>, Nepali Times
Alok Vaid-Menon will perform at Park Village Resort on 16 February.

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The most controversial pronoun is ‘we’, not ‘they’

<figure><img width="1356" height="640" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111410110/637204049c7e80680e0b283bjpeg.jpg" alt=""/><figcaption>All photos: Milan Rai</figcaption></figure>Milan Rai has come a long way since his project to stick white butterflies to trees in Nepal went viral worldwide. His art has now morphed into activism to save Kathmandu’s open spaces. The self-taught school dropout sees this as a natural evolution of his art, and a reflection of the urgency to do something about <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/cars-vs-people-in-kathmandu/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">congestion and urban decay</a>. “People ask me why I stopped painting, I haven’t. My canvas is now measured in acres of open spaces,” says the 38-year-old artist. “I am no longer limited to the visual, my art is now immersive, so people can smell and taste it, touch the soil, worms and insects that dwell in them. The objects can be struck by lightning. They have life.” <img width="346" height="512" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111410110/637204089c7e80680e0b283cjpeg.jpg" alt="">Rai’s art is a subterfuge to save what is left of Kathmandu Valley’s last remaining open spaces. This has brought him face-to-face with dysfunctional politicians, disinterested municipality officials, corrupt contractors and neighbourhoods that do not value greenery.  For example, he is outraged about Ncell helping Kathmandu Municipality cover a park in Lainchour with astroturf instead of planting trees and protecting the grass (pictured, left). Rai’s own urban canvas is subversive. He says, “This is political art, land art, it has to hit people at an emotional level to act.”After spending his childhood in Hong Kong with his Gurkha soldier father, Milan Rai returned a misfit to school in Dharan. He was expelled twice, and got into bad company. After a serious gangfight, he found solace in art.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/kathmandu-loses-its-open-spaces/">Kathmandu loses its open spaces</a>, Tom Robertson and Nilima Thapa Shrestha<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/a-green-city-is-a-smart-city/">A green city is a smart city</a>, Nilima Thapa ShresthaHe entered a painting competition in India, came first, and held his first solo exhibition at Park Gallery in Lalitpur. He started painting in earnest, but something was missing.The epiphany came one morning when a butterfly alighted on his paintbrush. It led Rai to his ‘<a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/Buzz-the-butterfly-effect,523" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/Buzz-the-butterfly-effect,523&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1642150244648000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3CvsT5qRK3dCSKdTh1rvVt">Butterfly Project</a>’ to pin white paper cutouts of butterflies on trees, lampposts all over Kathmandu.They were a symbol of harmony, and went viral. In a real-life demonstration of ‘the butterfly effect,’ little white wings started appearing on London’s red double decker buses, pinned to trees on Greek islands, on a staircase at Harvard University. The Nepali artist was invited all over the world for lectures and to demonstrate his installation art. <img width="570" height="1024" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111410110/637204099c7e80680e0b283djpeg.jpg" alt=""><figure><img width="1024" height="765" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111410110/6372040c9c7e80680e0b283ejpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption> </figcaption></figure><figure><img width="600" height="460" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111410110/6372040f9c7e80680e0b283fjpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>“Butterflies brought me close to trees, and I was communicating with them, only to find out that scientists now know trees can actually communicate with each other,” says Rai.The very first tree in Kathmandu on which he had <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/from-nepali-press/The-butterfly-artist,3199" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/from-nepali-press/The-butterfly-artist,3199&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1642150244648000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3nihAN-abPseKV2nt_e4gm">pinned butterflies</a> was chopped down to make way for a road widening scheme, and this prompted  Rai to use art to save Kathmandu’s greenery.“I realised that the definition of art had to be expanded, it cannot just be a canvas or an installation, art is not just a craft, it has to be something that provokes the viewer into action,” he explains.As Kathmandu’s air pollution got worse, Rai donned a military issue gas mask and stood in the middle of traffic on the city’s main intersections, broom in hand. He visited municipality offices wearing that mask, using social media to expose government inaction.That brought Rai face-to-face with official apathy and neglect at the root of Kathmandu’s sorry state. By now he was familiar with the ins and outs of the municipalities, and set up the non-proft <a href="https://www.facebook.com/VrikshaNepal/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.facebook.com/VrikshaNepal/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1642150244648000&amp;usg=AOvVaw10GgCzqCf-bx4BK2mOB4jP">Vriksha Foundation</a> for his activism.He tried to work with Kathmandu’s mayor to rescue the Tin Kune triangle, only to find that it was not just the government that could thwart action, but also the local community. <figure><img width="218" height="462" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111410110/637204109c7e80680e0b2840jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>After an emotional live Facebook post in which he wept in frustration, Rai gave up on Kathmandu mayor Bidya Sundar Shakya, and turned to Lalitpur’s Chiribabu Maharjan who was more receptive. Even so, there were hurdles every step of the way from contractors and officialdom.                   His plan to green an open space at Jawalakhel intersection was rejected in favour of a sterile cement wasteland with concrete structures and an ugly fountain that does not work.But Rai is currently working to green four other open roadside spaces in the Jawalakhel area with leafy paths and shaded sitting areas. He has made enemies along way: land mafia eyeing the property and contractors who could not sell cement and steel rods. <figure><img width="1500" height="708" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111410110/637204139c7e80680e0b2841jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>“This is a tragedy of the commons,” says Rai, who emphasises that he is not happy with the parks he is working on. “These are not my creations, I am just trying to reduce harm. It needed urgent intervention, but my vision for these spaces has not been realised. These parks are not answers, they are questions.”After <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/art-aid-kcac-exhibition-thinking-of-you-quake-relief,2304" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/art-aid-kcac-exhibition-thinking-of-you-quake-relief,2304&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1642150244648000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3b-VVv1jrgth6P4m0iBcHr">painting on canvas</a>, sticking butterflies on trees, wearing gas masks in traffic, and trying to rescue open spaces, Rai now realises these approaches are too piecemeal.He adds, “The system is just not there to have a policy framework to address urban decay. People also need to understand that we do not need more structures, we need to rediscover our primal intimacy with the non-human world.”  Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/parks-not-parking-lots/">Parks, not parking lots</a>, Duksangh Sherpa

Kunda Dixit

Nepali artist’s butterfly effect

<figure><img width="760" height="486" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110914114/636ba5ae9c7e80680e0736dajpeg.jpg" alt=""/><figcaption>Govinda KC, Nepal’s crusading surgeon and health activist, plastering a patient's ankle at the Mugu District Hospital on Sunday. He saw 177 patients for free in five days before travelling on to Jumla on foot. Photos: ACHYUTRAJ BHANDARI</figcaption></figure>Health reform <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/risking-his-life-to-save-lives/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/risking-his-life-to-save-lives/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1597224179931000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFQK2JWnimNdv8w4s23TLpC78KGKQ">activist Govinda KC</a>, who has been on 17 hunger strikes to pressure the government to make medical care more affordable, has been holding free clinics for patients in hospitals and COVID-19 isolation wards in western Nepal ever since the pandemic started.KC arrived in Gamgadi on 5 August after walking two days from Jumla, and immediately started free consultations with patients, performing emergency operations at the Mugu District Hospital. He has seen 177 patients since then, and performed three operations.<a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/regular-columns/One-To-Many/Truth-be-told%20,749" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://archive.nepalitimes.com/regular-columns/One-To-Many/Truth-be-told%2520,749&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1597224179931000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFtSQBKZtB-vcam4Nsz2wAtqOnl4A">KC is himself an orthopaedic surgeon</a>, and has made it his life’s mission to make medical care free and accessible to the Nepalis who need it the most. His hunger strikes were protests against <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/blogs/kundadixit/page/5/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/blogs/kundadixit/page/5/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1597224179931000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHY_jV_4K2jz-1PFUWl9VPIgc1DvA">government interference in the health sector</a>, and <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/editorial/Kleptocracy-kills,3161" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/editorial/Kleptocracy-kills,3161&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1597224179931000&amp;usg=AFQjCNH9lmHQky6NGRYp5QvehHAAxtSGGQ">collusion between politicians and tycoons</a> involved in medical education that was driving up costs.  As word spread that KC had arrived at the Mugu District Hospital last week, patients from surrounding villages started pouring into Gamgadi to have relatives examined. He has also been training resident surgeons on surgical procedures.“For us, he is god,” said 17-year-old Gagan Bham from Rara, whom KC operated on for a fracture in his ankle. <img width="1050" height="635" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110914114/636ba5b09c7e80680e0736dbjpeg.jpg" alt="">Also from Rara is 10-year-old Reshma Bham who had broken her hand while grazing livestock last year. KC operated on her, and straightened out her arm which is now plastered and in a sling.“We lived up in the mountains and did not have the money get her treated. We were afraid our daughter would be disabled for life, Dr KC was sent here by god,” said Reshma’s mother Danta, who added that she had heard about KC’s arrival by chance on the radio.After working without a break for 12 hours a day, on Monday KC returned on foot to Jumla.  KC has been on a tour of remote northwestern Nepal, where health care is neither accessible not affordable for a majority of people. The need for medical attention has gone up since quarantine centres and isolation wards have been set up for COVID-19 patients in the region, most of whom are returnees from India.KC has not been welcomed everywhere. Last month, a government health post in Rimi of Dolpo district refused to let the crusading doctor see patients there, saying he did not have government permission.  KC nevertheless saw some patients before travelling on to Bajura.One of KC’s hunger strikes was in Jumla two years ago where he demanded that medical colleges should be opened in every province in Nepal, and he wanted the Karnali Institute of Health Sciences to be the centre for Karnali Province. He broke his hunger strike after government assurances in 2018. But seeing no progress has been made to fulfil that demand, last month in Jumla he threatened to go on another hunger strike.

Govinda KC treats patients in remote Nepal

<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109141144/636baef49c7e80680e078024jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1803" height="1201"/><figcaption>Statue of Jang Bahadur Rana in Tundikhel in the 1972. Photo: Daniel W Edwards</figcaption></figure>For thousands of years, adulatory statues have been installed and, at one time or another, defaced or removed. Even since the early 1900s, statues in Russia, France, Hungary, Greenland, Canada, Brazil, South Africa, Mongolia and other countries, have been either toppled by protesters or dismantled by government edict.We are consumed by statues as they are visibly symbolic reference points. But were we to seriously research the background of those represented in the statues, many of us may be surprised.The births of many modern nations had been initiated by the arrival of ‘western’ interlopers. Nepal’s founding monarch Prithvi Narayan Shah is said to have quipped that they brought bazaar (trade), bible (religion) and banduk (guns to motivate obedience), leaving an undoubtedly confounding legacy. His statue at Singha Darbar intersection, with an index finger symbolising unity, was nearly toppled in 2006.It would be difficult to find a name or representation of one from any culture whom we could comfortably absolve of atrocities. Thus, unless one prefers statues of only Mother Theresa, Chief Dan George, Albert Einstein, Greta Thunberg or Gandhi (though even that has been disfigured in London recently) almost any other historical statue will inevitably be of people who have had binary actions and effects (think Genghis Khan, Mao Zedong, Simon Bolivar, Kwame Nkrumah, and even Nobel laureates like Mandela and Aung San Suu Kyi).Many of the memorials erected have been for multipolar, compartmentalised characters with a record of welcome changes for some, but blood on their hands for others. One who helped liberate a country only to then abet massive programs of executions and famine to bring people to accept a ‘utopian reform’ (Lenin and Mongolia).Another, intimately involved in liberating a continent while simultaneously allowing a famine to overtake millions on another continent (Churchill and Europe, and India). And the righteous ones with contradictory legacies in surreptitiously saving multiple thousands of persecuted citizens while simultaneously supporting the vile regime’s bureaucracy.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109141144/636baef79c7e80680e078025jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="991" height="656"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Spurred by the Black Lives Matter movement, demonstrations, protest marches and various forms of damaging and destroying statues have spread across the world.Collectively, we accept many aspects of dissatisfaction, because much of it is too obscure or wickedly complicated to pursue by all, but those dedicated to extensive research and pursuit of solutions.Focus therefore shifts to visible, physical representations of systemic weaknesses, especially during increased societal tension. Each concrete symbol then demolished energises those wishing to similarly act. Yet, statues are not the only simulacra of histories forgotten or revived.Around the world, roads, canals and railroads have been built wholly or partially through slave or indentured labour. Yet, we continue to tour on them without a thought. Historical ruins, palaces and temples have been constructed with bonded labourers, thousands of whom have perished in the process. Yet, we travel great distances to behold and marvel at the beauty of such structures, few of which have any signs of contriteness.Fashionable clothing is fabricated in sweatshops by poor underpaid women and children in hazardous environments. Yet we, whilst browsing on Robsonstrasse, remain oblivious to this. Why do these not elicit the same fervor for change as statues?I am not judging the correctness of attacking statues. No person who has used offensive language, communicated negatively about or expressed hatred of particular peoples, caused misery, famine, death and destruction deserves a podium.Then there were those who did unforgivable things from which, in the end, they personally profited. It is reasonable to assume that their decisions were calculated with knowledge of the consequences: Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin, Pol Pot, Enver Hoxha ... the more infamous of the most egregious tyrants.Targets for mass killings and enslavement included those who were indigenous, or from a different religious, ethnic, racial, economic or political group. So, for those enmeshed in the purposeful planning, commitment and/or oversight of major atrocities, I have no sympathy. Yet many in between, such as Castro, Kagame and MBS, have been implicated in contradictory liabilities.Difficulties start when considering people who were basically well-intentioned within incredibly complex contexts, wherein their weighing of best alternatives sometimes resulted in decisions with deleterious impacts. So, were these errors of character, of fact, or of process?Were people purposely targeted and were people harmed or killed or allowed to die? Did they anticipate that there may be many people injured or killed? Would the then available alternative options have caused even more deaths and destruction?<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109141144/636baefa9c7e80680e078026jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="2016" height="1224"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>In every age and culture there have indeed always been upright people opposing maltreatment of others. Yet disenfranchisement, hatred, vindictiveness and exploitation have continued. Viewed in a historical sense, it can be said that we have not sufficiently learned from the past.If we want to be part of a generation that makes an extraordinary effort to improve lives, we must demonstrate maturity in our ethics, morals and obligations to human rights with people of every race, religion, ethnicity, nationality, language and culture. Protesters should decide: if the statue is an affront to current values, would it be best to deface it, bury it in a harbour or melt it down for scrap.But if we never see those statues again, many among us may remain oblivious to gross wrongs committed, and those responsible for them. Or, would it serve a higher edifying purpose to leave it in place with an explanatory plaque, or remove it to a museum for posterity’s historicising?Rather than a statue to one who in the future might become embroiled in controversy, explanatory signs could be a proactive cultural option to memorialise a tragedy or famous event.London Mayor Sadiq Khan recently set up a Commission for Diversity in the Public Realm to recommend which statues in London should be removed. Discrete options already in practice elsewhere include Coronation Park in Delhi, where statues of former officials from the colonial era have been relocated. In Berlin’s Spandau Zitadel special museum visitors can touch most of the objects relegated to a protected indoor display. In Nepal, statues of Ranas in heroic poses on their steeds have been relegated to obscure corners of Tundikhel. Statues of the Shahs were similarly removed in 2006.As far as names of such flawed benefactors on buildings, cities, and streets, these could indeed be exchanged for contextually more appealing and appropriate names. Alternatively, more societies can shift to a culture withoutmonuments to their heroes.As Rabindranath Tagore said in 1917: “Because each nation has its own history of thieving and lies and broken faith, therefore there can flourish only international suspicion and jealousy, and international moral shame becomes anaemic to a degree of ludicrousness.”Altering, dismembering or stomping on statues or other representations, protesters transform their frustrations onto a rehumanised embodiment of their focus. But by doing this, are they not exemplifying a moral reaction obverse to their own desired ethical behaviour by others?Toxic outrage may force the elimination of symbols of racism or other atrocities, but in the long term it can only be deliberate policy and regulatory improvements in governance, education and civic action that would gradually change the culture of attitudes and behaviours.I prefer decisions with an understanding of the antecedents of the disliked person, and of the effects of any actions which may elude the preferred education of future generations.As Israel’s Prime Minister Golda Meir said in 1975, “One cannot and must not try to erase the past merely because it does not fit the present”.Rather we must take advantage of history, including unsavoury history, and keep it visible so as to enable enhanced learning from past misdeeds and errors by showing measured, humane, non-violent responses.Young and old alike must learn that there is not just day and night, but dawn and twilight as well.Iván G Somlai is Director of <a href="http://ethnobureaucratica.weebly.com/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://ethnobureaucratica.weebly.com/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1595908271105000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEAAYBkY4vUCdH7dyy0yT5DpY8aKw">EthnoBureaucratica</a> based in Canada, and was a former consultant with Nepal’s Ministries of Health, Industry, and Tourism.<a href="http://ethnobureaucratica.weebly.com/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://ethnobureaucratica.weebly.com/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1595908271106000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEDX9-IUfFgvMsBWNP-B4BwsbePaw">http://ethnobureaucratica.weebly.com</a>Ivan.Somlai@INSEAD.edu

Air-brushing history by toppling statues

<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109141144/636baec19c7e80680e078013jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1598" height="1066"/><figcaption>Photo: Bignewskhabar</figcaption></figure>On 23 May, Angira Pasi, a 12-year-old Dalit girl, was found hanging after being forcibly married to a 25-year-old ‘upper-caste’ man who had raped her. On 24 May, Nabaraj BK, and his five friends were <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/they-killed-our-son-and-now-they-are-killing-justice/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/they-killed-our-son-and-now-they-are-killing-justice/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1595740698198000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGV8LnJ9KL669O-ysSlJa5RS8RLWw">beaten to death</a> and thrown into a river because Nabaraj dared to marry an ‘upper-caste’ Thakuri girl. On 25 May, a white policeman in Minneapolis in the United States kneeled on <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/we-all-yearn-to-breathe-free/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/we-all-yearn-to-breathe-free/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1595740698198000&amp;usg=AFQjCNG9CqanylI4D8SxH_uxFnbi9IE-7Q">George Floyd's</a> neck for 8 minutes 46 seconds, and killed him.Three crimes in three consecutive days. One of them set off a worldwide movement that is fundamentally changing race dynamics not just in the US but around the world. The two other crimes in Nepal were the latest in a long list of casteist atrocities across the subcontinent perpetrated against a traditionally excluded community.Millions continue to protest police brutality and deeply rooted systemic biases that unfairly and disproportionality affect black Americans. These protests have gathered up to 26 million participants, one of the highest turnout in any protest in US history. It has also generated more media coverage than any other protest in the last 50 years.However, in an unsurprising turn of events, the crimes against Dalit people, just as heinous, just as frequent, have received disproportionately less attention, and have not led to any real reform.The Rupandehi police refused to file Angira's case until it got national attention. They then detained her rapist Birendra, his mother, and aunt, but remain convinced Angira died by suicide.Rukum police have detained 34 suspects in Nabaraj BK's case. The Home Ministry's five-member probe team from Kathmandu investigating it has deemed it pre-meditated caste-based violence. Serious repercussions are yet to follow.A <a href="https://tbinternet.ohchr.org/Treaties/CEDAW/Shared%20Documents/NPL/INT_CEDAW_CSS_NPL_32516_E.pdf" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://tbinternet.ohchr.org/Treaties/CEDAW/Shared%2520Documents/NPL/INT_CEDAW_CSS_NPL_32516_E.pdf&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1595740698199000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHsgicz5UlUdsg6lK2azGeGlDwDMg">comprehensive report</a> by the Feminist Dalit Organisation (FEDO) and the International Dalit Solidarity Network (IDSN) shows the extent to which Dalits are marginalised in Nepali society.A staggering 42% of Dalits live below the poverty line, in comparison to the national average of 25%. The Dalit literacy rate of 52.4% falls short of the national literacy rate of 65.97%, with Dalits comprising only 1.6% of Nepalis with SLC and above, and 0.8% of Nepalis with a Bachelor’s degree.The picture is worse for Dalit women, who are discriminated against because of their caste and gender. Dalit women and girls comprise 21% of trafficking victims of Nepal. Dalit girls make up 62% of Nepali <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=3798#.XwyQcJMzY6A" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id%3D3798%23.XwyQcJMzY6A&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1595740698199000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHzsQA69rbsgXvvQE9icVEDpGVoVg">child marriages</a> under 15-years of age."While there are similarities between caste issues in Nepal and race in the US, it is important to recognise that there are distinct differences in terms of its origins and how it manifests in everyday life,” says Dalit rights activist Sarita Pariyar. “It is good to see some Nepali are taking interest in race questions, however, they need to ask themselves about their own role in the caste questions as well."Pariyar underlines the need to rethink relative privileges of other Nepalis and role in the persistence of caste-based injustices and inequities in Nepal. “This is important for reclaiming our humanity as well as just futures for all," she adds.Pradip Pariyar, social activist and chairperson of the SAMATA Foundation, adds: "Nepalis in the US are speaking up for black lives but are silent about Dalit lives because we have never had conversations about caste in our family, in our society."Although Dalits bear the brunt of casteism, ethnic discrimination also affects other marginalised communities in Nepal. Asked about this, all educated upper- and middle-class Nepalis interviewed for this article preferred to remain anonymous."My grandmother only wants a Bahun or Chhetri maid,” said one ‘upper-caste’ person in Kathmandu. Even though she is old and struggling with severe back pain, she would rather do all the work in her big house than hire a maid of another caste."Another adds, "My grandparents refused to put Dasain tike on my father's office staff because he is Teli Madhesi." A Sherpa student complained to her school about Losar not being a holiday, but was ignored.Pradip Pariyar argues that to tackle casteism, there must be representation. "Issues that affect Dalits are not even in the radar of non-Dalits,” he says. “I have talked to people who can stand up and bring change. Because they aren't Dalit, they aren't as concerned about these issues as they should be. This will continue if there is no representation."However, the picture is grim. Dalits, despite making up 13% of Nepal's population, have merely 8% representation in the Nepal’s Parliament and comprise a meagre 0.8% of Nepal's civil service. As long as Dalits are underrepresented, activists say, they will remain silenced and powerless, and continue to be discriminated against, oppressed, murdered, lynched, raped, and forgotten.Sarita Pariyar adds, "It is important to re-examine the idea and role of resources from within and outside of Nepal for inclusive development. In this, we need to have a genuine role of Dalits for ensuring effective distribution and use of resources."

Black lives matter but Dalit lives don't?

<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109141136/636bada79c7e80680e077fa8jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"/><figcaption>A glimpse of enough Is Enough campaign in Kathmandu. Photo: MONIKA DEUPALA</figcaption></figure>Civil society around the world faces serious restrictions on its freedom to express and engage in activism to defend human rights following the COVID-19 pandemic, a report by Forus International and the Asia Development Alliance (ADA) has concluded.Titled ‘Realising the Potential of Goal 16 of the 2030 Agenda’ was published last week with 18 civic space cases studies from countries, including Nepal. It highlights how the pandemic has exacerbated and deepened existing problems faced by civil society organisations (CSOs) by constricting their work environment.“Civic space was already under pressure before the pandemic,” said Sarah Strack of Forus. “A vibrant and independent civil society is vital to fulfil its role in the implementation of SDGs. Progress will be correlated to the extent to which meaningful civic space will be secured at local, national, regional and international levels.”The report says the SDGs (the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals for 2030) will be severely affected by state responses to the coronavirus crisis, and the pressure on non-governmental actors.A key trend in almost all of the case studies included in the report is unwarranted state restriction on civic space -- on the freedom of expression, assembly and association of civil society in many countries around the world.Says Philip Alston, former UN Special Rapporteur on Extreme Poverty and Human Rights: “The responses to COVID-19 in many countries has only made the situation worse as governments have opportunistically used the pandemic as a justification to further clamp down on civil society.”<a style="font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em;" href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/media-muzzle/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Targeting free speech can take various forms</a>. In Cambodia, several journalists have been arrested or threatened because of their reporting on the COVID-19 pandemic. A blogger on the Pacific island of Samoa was jailed for seven weeks for allegedly defaming the Prime Minister. CSOs and <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/lockdown-crackdown/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">independent media groups have been ‘muted'</a> in many countries from Nepal to Colombia.The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) in its 18th annual report released earlier this year on the World Press Freedom day also said that the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/south-asia-tightening-press-controls-amidst-covid-19/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">pandemic has worsened the lack of safety for journalists in South Asia</a> as controls on media freedom were tightened across the region.The Internet and social media has been especially targeted by authorities to curtail dissent, but civil society organisations around the world have used virtual spaces to become more vocal and exchange information to efficiently defend offline space. One example of this is <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/social-movement-through-social-media/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Nepal’s Enough Is Enough campaign that first started on social media</a>.Thousands of youth took to streets demanding better response to the pandemic with some of them participating in a hunger strike that lasted 12 days before <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/12-point-deal-after-12-days-of-hunger-strike/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">an agreement was reached earlier this month</a>  However, some activists resumed their hunger strike in Kathmandu on Sunday.A global campaign involving Forus International and concerned stakeholders will call for new civic space indicators to be developed that will measure the efforts of UN Member States to protect fundamental freedoms in accordance with international human rights standards and national human rights laws.Nepal’s treatment of civil society and their advocacy will be crucial as the country <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/will-nepal-get-2nd-term-at-unhrc/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">prepares for a second term</a> at the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) amidst poor record on transitional justice at home.For the social recovery from the COVID-19 crisis to be sustainable and resilient, a return to business as usual must be avoided, stated the report. It further explains that the building back better narrative and plans must be comprehensive, covering all policy areas and creating more space for civil society in the development, implementation and monitoring.Says Forus International: “We believe progressive governments, international and regional institutions, philanthropic organisations and civil society now need to take bold steps to counter the shrinking of civic space and to develop global partnerships to tackle the issue.”

COVID-19 shrinks civic space

<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108151120/636a663d9c7e80680e05996ejpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1312"/><figcaption>illustration: DIWAKAR CHETTRI</figcaption></figure>The earthquakes of April 2015 literally shook all of us out of our complacency, and forced us to understand the value of open spaces -- just as after the 1934 earthquake, when tens of thousands of <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/leaving-tundhikhel-shelter-camps,2447">Kathmandu residents moved to the open grounds at Tundikhel</a>, or to Lagankhel in Patan.But memories of disasters are short-lived, and in the past five years instead of protecting the last remaining spaces in Kathmandu Valley, we have allowed them to be encroached upon. At the heart of Kathmandu, Tundikhel represents in a microcosm what is happening across urban Nepal as people move into the cities and real estate prices soar.The land mafia, with its political protection, has infiltrated school management committees and taken over most school playgrounds located on prime real estate. The government created a green belt on the Ring Road -- now it is busy chopping down the last remaining jacarandas. The vehicle lobby is obviously stronger than the tree lobby.This newspaper has been <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=5876#.Xe8odIMza70">covering the shrinking Tundikhel since 2002</a>, and for the first time printed maps showing the army’s steady encroachment into the open space. Since the government seems to be too slow to act, it is the public and communities that need to be vigilant -- which is why the current #OccupyTundikhel campaign is so important.One good way to begin protecting open spaces like Tundikhel would be to have every local government across the country make an inventory of such spaces in its jurisdiction. These should then be added to a national open space protected list, and legislation passed to ensure no one who eyes them can actually get their hands on these invaluable areas.Former Patan mayor Buddhi Raj Bajracharya set a good example by protecting community spaces during his tenure. A national database could be created and made available online so that no one dares to buy, sell or encroach on these open spaces.Rituals and festivals can be important reasons to save many of the Kathmandu Valley’s open spaces from encroachment.  Tundikhel hosts annual festivals like the feeding of the Gurumapa, Ghoda Jatra, Shivaratri and, more recently, the New Year’s Day showcase of numerous ethnic groups from across Nepal.A published calendar of such events could help enhance the feeling of ownership of open spaces across the country. Disaster preparedness drills in places like Tundikhel could also be pencilled in as regular events.Nepal’s stellar performance in the South Asian Games 2019 could be another reason to invest in saving open spaces. Tundikhel can be dedicated to all future Nepali gold medallists at the Olympics, World Cups and Asian Games. Names of all those who win medals for Nepal could be inscribed on a special monument. With only temporary structures allowed, sports could provide an effective incentive to care for these spaces.At a time when many Nepalis believe the way to prosperity is not education or enterprise but politics, open spaces could be protected as places where Nepalis gather and practise free speech. The name Khula Manch, which means ‘open stage’, has always held a Hyde Park connotation in Kathmandu, even during the days of absolute monarchy. It is a place where anyone can say anything and not face prosecution of any kind. The country should designate Khulla Manch(s) in all 753 municipalities, inspired by the first one at Tundikhel.The oral tradition of the Kathmandu Valley tells us that Tundikhel (Tinkhya) was land bought by wealthy Lhasa traders who needed space to unload and load goods and as a camping ground for porters and pack animals. After the Sugauli treaty of 1816, Muktiyar Bhimsen Thapa used Tundikhel to parade the Nepal Army, in a bid to impress the British of the country’s military might.This great open space has shrunk over time. Rana rulers built Bir Hospital and the military hospital and the Panchayat leaders constructed the post office, the RNAC building, NEA and City Hall. These were all within the boundaries of greater Tundikhel. The road around it was widened during the state visit of Queen Elizabeth II in 1962.From charging ground water to impressing the British envoy and from hosting ancient rituals to New Year’s Day celebrations, Tundikhel has served us well. The temporary bus terminal and school have to be moved immediately and the army has to return to the people what rightfully belongs to them. After the next earthquake, let us not be forced to say: “I told you so.”And let us not listen to economists and finance experts who tell us we need to monetise everything. Not everything should be valued in cash. Let Tundikhel be what Tundikhel was. End of the debate.Anil Chitrakar is President of <a href="http://www.siddharthinc.com/">Siddharthinc</a>

Anil Chitrakar

Let Tundikhel be what Tundikhel was

<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108181148/636a96ef9c7e80680e05dc96jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1044"/><figcaption>Police fire water cannons at people of Khokana protesting against the road-expansion drive in Kathmandu</figcaption></figure>Consider these events:<ul><li>In May, residents and traders burned tyres to block the Chabahil-Jorpati road, signalling their frustration at long-delayed construction on the dusty, crater-filled stretch. They succeeded in sparking action, but after upgrading work stalled, protests erupted again last week in a bid to force the contractor to finish the job.</li></ul><ul><li>The road blocking trend morphed into poster protests, where the faces of delinquent road contractors were plastered to poles and vehicles. This included Nagarkot, where contractor Sharada Prasad Adhikari, also the landlord of Nepal Communist Party Co-chair Pushpa Kamal Dahal, was targeted. The tactic spread further, with Mayor Bhim Parajuli of Biratnagar being publicly shamed last week.</li></ul><ul><li>Residents attempting to stop road-building in Baitadi in October were turned on by an excavator operator, whose shocking attack with the machine injured eight people. Attempted murder charges are pending.</li></ul><ul><li>In Udaypur last week, locals clashed with police after seizing more than a dozen dump trucks and an excavator that were being used to gouge sand and rocks out of a local river.</li></ul><ul><li>Residents of Charikot of Dolakha District took to the streets last week to protest the lack of progress in repairing the Jiri Highway. They blocked the main intersection to vehicular traffic for hours.</li></ul>When local government elections were held in 2017 after a 20-year gap, <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/trickledown-corruption/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">hopes were high</a> for improved service delivery at the community level. Anecdotally, at least here in the Kathmandu Valley, that hasn’t happened. But asked in a survey last year about local service delivery, Nepalis in general were ‘broadly favourable, with cautious optimism’ about infrastructure development.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/survey-is-wakeup-call-for-nepal-government/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Survey is wakeup call for Nepal Government</a>, Rameshwor BohoraThe public opinion poll, conducted by Kathmandu University School of Arts, Interdisciplinary Analysts and The Asia Foundation, found that the number of people who believed that the new federal system improved the capacity of local government to deliver services like health, education, access to justice and information, and local infrastructure development rose to 45.20% in 2018 compared to 34.8% in2017. More than 70% of respondents said they felt that their local government representatives ‘strongly care’ or ‘care’ about them.No doubt, roads and bridges are being built, but these works, long seen by many as the measure of the country’s development, are proving controversial. During the recent monsoon, sloppily built local roads were said to be the cause of many landslides, destroying homes, temporarily obstructing access to commercial centres and in some cases killing local people. Partially built bridges collapsed when <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/flood-of-recrimination/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">flood waters</a> swirled around their foundations.Given the lack of action -- or in some cases oversight -- by elected governments, it appears that local people have stepped in to fill the gap. Or could it be that the process of electing local officials also emboldened residents themselves to get active?Both factors play a part, said Meghan Nalbo, Nepal Country Representative at The Asia Foundation and Bishnu Adhikari, governance project lead, in a joint email interview.“The recent instances of citizen activism appear to be a sign of filling a gap that is not being effectively met by their local governments or any other higher authorities in the country. Citizens are now more aware of the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/own-worst-enemy/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">performance, or lack thereof</a>, by their federal, provincial, and local governments as a result of free media reporting and an increasing access to and use of <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/new-news/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">social media</a>,” they wrote.Those information sources are also revealing “increasing collusion of political interests with local or national <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/bulldozing-democracy-2/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">contractors</a>”, say Adhikari and Nalbo.In many cases local governments are not acting because there is confusion over which level of government is supposed to regulate such things as water and land, says Khem Raj Nepal, who was secretary in the former ministry of local development. The jurisdiction is shared among the three levels of government but there is a lack of clarity about the roles of each one, resulting in inertia and inaction.“Governments commit to completing a particular project within a certain timeframe and budget, but when they do not deliver, and appear to be favouring other interests, people get frustrated,” adds Nepal.Adhikari and Nalbo note that residents in some municipalities have been effective in convincing local governments to stop some plans, such as hiking local taxes and service fees, a trend that should grow. “Local governments would need to be more accountable and responsive,” they added.

Marty Logan

Think locally, act locally

<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110811110/636a298d9c7e80680e0458d4jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="960" height="720"/><figcaption>Journalists and activists including Namrata Sharma met in Jakarta recently to discuss gender discrimination.</figcaption></figure>“My alcoholic father used to beat me and my mother, and I always protected my mother. After treatment my father is sober now, but my mother has started scolding me and makes me do all the household chores, giving me very little time to study,” says Sarita from a remote village in  Banke district of western Nepal. But Sarita may as well be in Indonesia, Europe or North America.Gender discrimination is pervasive and widespread, and the problem is the same all over the world, as we heard from activists and investigative journalists from 15 countries at a recent interaction in Jakarta.Read also:<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/3-4th-of-the-sky/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">3/4th of the sky</a>, Editorial<a style="background-color: #ffffff; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em;" href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/nepals-better-halves/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nepal’s better halves</a>, Anil ChitrakarAfter the end of the Suharto regime, an Indonesian participant said, the economy improved, but gender-based discrimination and violence were still prevalent in both urban and rural areas. Women still bore the brunt of patriarchal taboos, making it difficult for them to reach the top of their professions, earn better salaries, and upgrade living standards. Most agreed that there had been progress in amending existing laws and formulating new ones to end discrimination, but the violence itself had not abated.Cases of rape and incest are reported every day from all over the world, in both developed and developing countries. In Nepal, <a href="https://cijnepal.org.np/unsafe-homes-victimized-by-own/">20 cases were reported by Center for Investigative Journalism</a> (CIJ) Nepal during a 16-day campaign against Violence Against Women in 2018, majority of them involved rape of minor girls by relatives or neighbours.International Women’s Day draws attention worldwide to a global problem, in rich and poor, East and West. The women’s movement has achieved great progress when it comes to amending and promulgating laws and in creating mechanisms to hold countries accountable for injustice. In the last few years new movements have allowed women to speak out more boldly against sexual harassment in the workplace through the #Metoo movement.“For me International Women's Day (IWD) 2019 is a precious moment and a safe space where women are inspired to talk about their stories through protests and artwork,” says Meggy Katigbak of Asian People’s Movement on Debt and Development. However, she acknowledges that there is discrimination even among women by race, class, colour, and other factors.“Liberal feminists who focus on identity politics do not fully understand or appreciate that it the intersects with the struggles of other women,” she adds.But ironically, despite the popularity of International Women's Day, the situation of most women is still the same as on the day women garment workers first gathered to protest in 1908 in New York. Many countries now have rules that allow women to assert their rights, but many like Sarita in Nepal do not have the means to raise their voice against discrimination they face on a daily basis.The 2019 campaign theme for International Women's Day is #BetterforBalance, with the message of improving gender balance for a better world. Though there are more women in different professions today, at least 33% is needed to make it a critical mass, and women have not reached that number in most professions and decision making positions.Nepal marks International Women's Day with a government holiday, but that is barely enough to address many gender issues prevalent here. According to the 2016 World Economic Forum report, Nepal ranks 110th out of 144 countries in gender parity, and UN Women ranks Nepal 110th out of 145 countries in the Global Gender Gap Index. According to the 2016 <a href="https://www.dhsprogram.com/pubs/pdf/FR336/FR336.pdf">Demographic and Health Survey report of Government of Nepal</a>, the number of employed women in 2016 is only 68% as compared to 83% in 2006, and 68% of these women are three times more likely than men to not to be paid for their labour. And Nepal ranks third highest in child marriage in Asia.In order for victims like Sarita to be able to communicate better and access education, safe shelter and better livelihood, a social revolution is required where the rights of all people are recognised and accepted by society. Having an institutional set-up with proactive laws help, but equally important is empowering women. It is important to recognise that inequality leads to more difficult lives for all. We need to move towards better gender balance for the wellbeing for all.Namrata Sharma is the Chair of the Centre for Investigative Journalism.

#BalanceforBetter

<img width="1500" height="1046" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221107121144/6368ef8d9c7e80680e035987jpeg.jpg" alt=""/>They say a picture speaks a thousand words. This one spoke billions — of rupees. A lavish lunch is laid out with curry, dal and plates of nutritious red rice from Jumla. Tucking it all in are Prime Minister K P Oli, Prime Minister-in-waiting Pushpa Kamal Dahal. The third man is their host: business tycoon Durga Prasai, in whose house this picture was taken earlier this year.The UML-Maoist alliance was in government, but negotiations on party unity had stalled. Prasai was mediating, and this was the lunch meeting in which the deal was finally struck: the two would take turns leading the new party, and they agreed on dividing up positions for their loyalists.  The photograph went viral this week because it is so symbolic of our times. Here is Prasai who, as owner of the B&amp;C Hospital in Jhapa, is a powerful figure in the medical-industrial complex. He had a lot to gain from the unity of the two parties.The trio is seen feasting on a multi-course lunch while today 1,000 km away in western Nepal, <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=19449#.W0WbPtUza72" target="_blank" rel="noopener">campaigning physician Govinda KC</a> is on the 11th day of his fast-onto-death to pressure the government on medical education reform. The rice they are eating in the photo is the Marsi variety from Jumla, which the highest paddy growing region in the world. The glutinous red rice is known for its nutritious value, but ironically it is in Jumla itself that KC is on his hunger strike to draw attention to the lack of health facilities in remote Nepal.As the photograph was shared, public disgust and ridicule crossed party lines — KC’s sacrifice and single-minded pursuit of equitable and affordable health services in this country has a lot of support from citizens fed up with shoddy government hospitals and expensive private ones.This is KC’s <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/blogs/thebrief/2016/07/10/kcs-crusade/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">15th hunger strike</a>. After previous ones he had wrested government agreement for his main demands: stop corruption in universities according affiliation to private medical colleges, restrict universities to maximum five affiliations, limit the number of new private medical colleges in Kathmandu Valley to ten. This time, KC added one more demand: allow the Karnali Health Science Academy in Jumla itself to conduct MBBS courses. Those who do not understand just how deep the rot is may not comprehend why anyone should be opposed to more medical colleges.  Although there are more doctors in Nepal today than 20 years ago, the population has also increased in that period. Nepal’s doctors to population ratio is one of the lowest in the world: 2 physicians for every 10,000 people.However, in a country so chronically mismanaged for so long, there are only a few areas where one can strike it rich quick. Which is why smuggling and human trafficking, are a politically-protected racket. Extortion is a profession, and the practice of doling out protection money is so endemic most companies actually set aside a budget line for it. But by far the <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/blogs/kundadixit/page/5/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">most lucrative way to make a fast first billion is to open a medical college</a>. An entrance test is a formality for students whose parents can afford a ‘donation’ of Rs10 million, and there is no shortage of those. This sets off a vicious circle where after graduation, new doctors seek immediately to recoup their investment by over-charging and over-prescribing, making treatment unaffordable. It is no surprise that some politicians are in cahoots with the medical mafia, just as they also protect the bus cartels, the smuggling syndicates and the real estate barons. Besides Prasai who owns B&amp;C Hospital, Rajendra Pandey and other former UML politicians have invested in the Man Mohan Memorial and the Kathmandu National Hospitals. NCP financier Upendra Mahato (whose brother-in-law is Transport and Infrastructure Minister Raghubir Mahaseth) also wants affiliation for another hospital in Kathmandu.KC’s hunger strike is a direct challenge to KP, who wants to rush the Medical Education Bill through Parliament by deleting <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/blogs/thebrief/2015/04/02/dr-kc-triumphs/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">previously included clauses on the limit to affiliations</a> and a cap on new medical colleges in Kathmandu Valley — recommendations made by the Kedar Mathema commission. KC’s campaign is trying to break the cycle of commercialisation by ensuring affordable, accessible and quality health care to all Nepalis.The tragedy of Nepal is that a government that came to power with so much promise for reform is letting the kleptocracy strike even deeper roots. State failure has poisoned our air, water, food, making Nepalis ill. But it is a cruel joke that they cannot afford treatment because of the same state failure. The <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/let-a-thousand-flowers-bloom/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">NCP government</a> can reclaim some of its lost credibility by helping save the lives of tens of thousands of Nepalis by saving the life of just one Nepali — Govinda KC.

RED RICE

The daily 10-hour curfew at Tribhuvan International Airport from 8 November that will last five months has affected tourism during Nepal’s peak season, with some hotels and trekking agencies here reporting cancellations into spring next year. The reduced hours at Nepal’s main aviation gateway till 31 March means that a third of all flights have been cut. This has also caused ticket prices to surge by up to eight times of normal fares. For example a Kathmandu-Delhi ticket that used to cost Rs12,000 is now listed at Rs50,000, and even then seats are not available.&nbsp; “Especially if they are here to trek, change in flight dates can cause tourists to miss their connections,” says Jagan Timilsina, who runs a trail running and outdoor education business. &nbsp; Pokhara is feeling the brunt as hotels report last-minute cancellations for November because of flight disorders. Some hoteliers also say although there have been some cancelled trips, most itineraries have been rescheduled.&nbsp; Hari Prasad Sharma Gaire of the local chapter of the Hotel Association of Nepal says the Kathmandu airport closure should have been timed for the off-season. He told us: “Starting construction during the peak tourist season was a mistake and will cause the tourism industry to lose a lot of business. The upgrade could have been spread out over a longer time but closed for fewer hours at night so that disruption was minimal.”&nbsp; Nearly a third of the 1.2 million tourists who visit Nepal annually come to Pokhara, which is also the gateway to Mustang, the Annapurna treks and pilgrimage tourism to Muktinath. Located by scenic lakes with a range of adventure sports like hot air ballooning, paragliding, canyoning, bungee and ziplines, Pokhara is also popular among diaspora Nepalis. “Besides its own attractions, Pokhara is really the hub for central Nepal, and we have been trying to get visitors to extend their stay here,” says Timilsina, who started out as a trekking porter and rose up the ranks to be an expedition guide and entrepreneur. &nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2024111603114_0e071ce63ea9b0a9a7ee76f8c3cea0ff08c6767c41dd09f6bc4413d2db067a60.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="2024111603114_0e071ce63ea9b0a9a7ee76f8c3cea0ff08c6767c41dd09f6bc4413d2db067a60" data-rendition-name="original" width="3500" height="2333" loading="lazy" alt="Pokhara's tourism woes NT"> <figcaption>Tourist arrivals in Pokhara have slumped since the disruptions at Kathmandu airport due to upgrading work. Photo: KRISHNA MANI BARAL/NEPALI TIMES ARCHIVE</figcaption> </figure>  Even without the Kathmandu airport closure affecting tourist arrivals, Pokhara was already suffering from a decline due to many factors like the poor state of the Prithvi Highway, the shortage of luxury accommodation for high-end tourists, and the reluctance of international airlines to start direct flights to Pokhara despite an expensive new airport that was inaugurated two years ago.&nbsp; “There was a lot of initial excitement on the construction of the international airport,” says Timilsina, “but it hasn’t delivered as expected due to politics. People have invested in nearby businesses, and have faced losses.” India has blocked direct flights from its cities to Pokhara because the facility was built by a Chinese company. Although tourists and pilgrims from India hit record levels this year, the poor state of the highways and the Indian bus accident on the highway to Kathmandu in July that killed 27 pilgrims from Maharashtra state dampened arrival figures. Gaire says, “While tourist arrivals to Pokhara are now approaching pre-Covid levels, we haven’t seen the improvement we were expecting. We need a better marketing strategy. What are our embassies abroad doing?”&nbsp; Indeed, Pokhara used to be a favourite destination for Chinese tourists. There was a boom in arrivals from China before Covid, especially after a popular Chinese tv serial was shot on location here. But arrivals from China have not really recovered since the pandemic because of the economic slowdown there. Promoting Pokhara airport to handle direct flights from Chengdu or Kunming could revive Chinese arrivals.&nbsp; Nepal’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAAN) has used the Kathmandu airport closure as an excuse to arm-twist international airlines to start flying to Bhairawa, which has barely been in operation for two years since it was inaugurated. So far, Fly Dubai, Thai AirAsia, Jazeera and Qatar are flying to Bhairawa, but most use it as a hop before flying on to Kathmandu, which does not reduce congestion at Kathmandu.&nbsp; An ideal situation could have been to get Pokhara to run to full capacity while Kathmandu is partially out of action. Pokhara entrepreneurs are puzzled why the CAAN and the national government have not taken more interest in promoting Pokhara as an alternative to reduce the congestion in Kathmandu. Nepal’s football team that was flying to Dushanbe this week couldn’t get tickets via Delhi, and took a domestic flight to Bhadrapur, crossed over to Bagdogra and flew on to Delhi to catch their flight to Tajikistan.

Pokhara’s tourism woes

An excerpt of a conversation between an anthropologist and linguist Mark Turin, PhD and Lava Deo Awasthi, PhD, the first Chairperson of the Language Commission of Nepal. Nepali Times: What is the role of Nepal’s Language Commission and when was it formed? Lava Deo Awasthi: The Constitution of Nepal (2015) created a Language Commission (LC) with the following four core mandates: (a) to develop eligibility criteria for gaining status as an official language and offer recommendations to the Government of Nepal about the official language(s) in each province; (b) to offer recommendations to the Government about measures to be taken for the conservation, promotion, and development of languages; (c) to suggest possible ways of using mother tongues in education by assessing their stage of development; and, (d) to conduct studies, carry out research and perform monitoring functions about the response to the constitutional provisions for the federalisation of languages in Nepal. The Commission was founded in 2016 and I was appointed as the Chairperson of the Commission in September of the same year by the Cabinet of Ministers. What in your own professional and educational background helped to prepare you for the role? I have worked with the Government of Nepal for about 30 years, alongside holding teaching appointments at universities in Nepal. Prior to assuming the role of the Chairperson of the Commission, I served as permanent Secretary to the Government of Nepal and worked as the Chief Administrator of the Central Development Region. I was appointed as Director General of the Department of Education and completed my assignments as Joint Secretary at the Planning, Monitoring and Educational Administration Divisions of the Ministry of Education.&nbsp; In addition, I have taught courses as a visiting professor at Tribhuvan University and Kathmandu University for more than three decades. Later, I also started supervising MPhil and PhD students at the Far Western University in Mahendranagar, Kanchanpur. My PhD project from the Danish University of Education was dedicated to making sense of Nepal’s social construct and commitment to multilingualism, exploring the persistence of monolingual school practices in the face of constitutional promises and state commitments to multilingualism. I conducted a survey of Nepal’s languages and carried out a qualitative study of the Tharu language in the district of Bardia. I analysed language policy statements and explored classroom pedagogies in schools. I documented how teachers showed a tendency to resist change and maintain the status quo because they were not consulted when new educational language policies were introduced. Teachers also exhibited a deeply-held adherence to the Gurukul education system which appears to have been harnessed as a way to resist newer pedagogical ideologies imported from the West. Recognising how engrained these rich traditions of knowledge transmission are, I wanted to know how students’ engagement in the learning process appeared to have dwindled, creating a gap between children’s home languages and the language(s) of the school. Whilst statutory provisions for education in the mother tongue were oriented towards promotion, classroom pedagogies remained resolutely monolingual and exclusionary. The result was that multilingual education policies that had been introduced in Nepal did not result in meaningful changes in classroom practices. My research was also a reflection of childhood traumas I had experienced at the earliest stage of formal education. My home language, Baitadeli, has a strong oral tradition and no written literature. English is my fifth language in terms of exposure and competence, and my home district of Baitadi is well-known for its loyalty to the local language. I had to drop out of school after completing my sixth grade. Staying at home, I received much attention from my family and had much greater exposure to my native language, culture and environment. My overall impression is that dropping out of school had a surprisingly positive impact on my life. The opportunity offered a surprising dividend for me as I gained mastery in my mother tongue and received extensive exposure to folk literature and Indigenous knowledge and survival skills, cultivating my interest in language, culture, literature and local cosmologies.&nbsp; Now that I reflect on it, I appreciate how language has always played a key role in my life. I grew up in a multilingual environment: brought up with Baitadeli, Hindi, Sanskrit, Nepali and English. Language played a major part in my decision to leave school and my later success is closely linked to my competence in several languages. It was rewarding to be at home with my family as I deepened my understanding of native language and culture, which in turn helped me to harness and refine my art of living. Languages matter so much to me because they are both software and hardware. Later, when I was in secondary school, I realised that my command of my home language contributed significantly to enhancing my Nepali and English. I used my mother tongue as a form of linguistic capital to strengthen my competence in both English and Nepali.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2024111811110_5400ba54792bf9e4854e1c1effde8bf09804e99647f23513700b450cc49adc4a.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="2024111811110_5400ba54792bf9e4854e1c1effde8bf09804e99647f23513700b450cc49adc4a" data-rendition-name="original" width="1000" height="1500" loading="lazy" alt="Dr Lava Deo Awasthi"> </figure>  In your term as the Commission’s first Chairperson, what were your strategic goals and objectives? My first strategic goal was to create an environment conducive to implementing the provisions of the Constitution of Nepal in relation to language. My priority was to prepare a detailed action plan for my six-year tenure in consultation with language stakeholders, including language experts, professionals, activists, Indigenous community members and representatives of relevant national and local-level institutions. The Commission formed a body of high-level advisors to ensure that the Chairperson’s work was well-informed and credible. The advisors to the committee had highly visible professional and social reputations in Nepal and had much experience in the field of language conservation, promotion, research and development. Another strategy we adopted was to establish close institutional linkages with federal, provincial, and local level governments for collecting opinions and disseminating information widely.&nbsp; What critical issues did you have to consider while discharging your duty? When Nepal’s new Constitution was drafted, a number of concerns could not be adequately addressed. These related to the conservation of languages, the recognition of official languages at the provincial level, and the use of mother tongues at federal, provincial, and local levels. These unresolved issues and matters pertaining to the federalizsation of Nepal’s languages were passed on to the Language Commission to address and resolve.&nbsp; Regarding the recommendations for official languages, a five-year timeline had been set by the Constitution. With great effort, we succeeded in having all provinces agree to recognise their official languages as per the recommendations of the Commission.&nbsp; What were your greatest achievements during your term? One of the greatest achievements was that we succeeded in setting a language agenda at all levels. Nepal’s language communities and other stakeholders expressed the view that this was the first time their languages were recognised and their voices heard by the state. People participated in debates and discussed issues relating to language that in all likelihood had never before happened in their lifetimes, at least not in ways that were supported by the state. We encouraged people to speak in their own language(s) and provided translators during plenary sessions and group discussions. Another major achievement was developing criteria for the status planning of languages at federal, provincial, and local levels, and to recommend 11 province-level official languages, in addition to the Nepali language. Similarly, a notable achievement was recognising Indigenous languages spoken by smaller communities, all of whom faced ongoing marginalisation and high levels of endangerment. The Commission identified 9 new languages that had not been reported in the 2011 census, and provided a framework for recognising official languages within a municipality. The commission emphasised the need for documentation and digitisation of languages for developing corpora and archives at national and sub-national levels.&nbsp; Languages of historical importance as well as classical languages were given recognition for their protection, growth, and development. Recommendations were made for the conservation, promotion and development of Nepal’s marginalised languages that are threatened by majority languages and for those languages that hold particular power at local and global levels. Recommendations were also made for how best to safeguard Nepal’s languages from the ever-growing spread of English and other powerful, globalising languages.&nbsp; A further important aspect of the Commission’s work was to emphasise mother tongue medium instruction in schools across the nation. Recognising the role of language in children’s cognitive, socio-emotional and academic development, the Commission suggested strategies for linking schools with ward-level language clusters for use in the classroom. The importance of nurturing and respecting a child’s first language was reiterated in the Commission’s recommendations for children’s learning and all-round development. By the end of my term, a remarkable change could be observed in terms of building trust within and across Nepal’s diverse language communities. A network of language groups and stakeholders across the country proved to be a powerful way of bringing all language communities under one roof for a collective review of and response to the process of federalising language policy. The many language stakeholders across Nepal appreciated the opportunity to work within a coordinated framework, and—feeling empowered by this—seemed genuinely enthusiastic about the initiatives taken by the Commission.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2024111811114_b45297fdd2fedf17bdb6313e495a1062c0d87f1a19fa5349f871f220b75f93ab.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="2024111811114_b45297fdd2fedf17bdb6313e495a1062c0d87f1a19fa5349f871f220b75f93ab" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Dr Lava Deo Awasthi NT"> </figure>  What were the most significant challenges for you as Chairperson? One of the major challenges was winning people’s trust in advocating for the mission of the Language Commission. I faced considerable resistance as I sought to emphasise the use of native languages in families and communities. While the Commission advocated for multilingualism and promoted linguistic diversity, the prevailing policy circles and central level institutions had been deeply influenced by a one-language discourse and ideology of Nepali only. The spread of English also poses a huge threat to Nepal’s languages. However, people in power do not seem to see this as a problem. They tend to abandon their own languages in preference for English. The way that Nepal’s municipalities are increasingly introducing English as a medium of instruction at the earliest stage of a child’s school-based education has proven to be detrimental to their cognitive development, socio-emotional wellbeing and academic success. Most of Nepal’s elites have been heavily influenced by the spread of English and remain unaware about its impact on their home languages as well as on the inter-generational transmission of Indigenous languages in the country. I wish that we could have produced more compelling evidence to show the consequences of making poor policy choices for our children’s education. Demystification calls for a collective response. To make change happen across this entire, complex and federalising country was daunting work and left like a race against time. I feel that I could have done more to offer concrete examples in favour of using the mother tongue as a medium of children’s education at the earliest stages of a child’s education. What do you see the Language Commission achieving in the next 5-10 years? The Language Commission will have to ensure that all of its key recommendations are implemented at all levels of government. In 10 years’ time, all seven of Nepal’s provinces will have their official languages in place. These languages will also be recognised as languages of federal business, alongside Nepali. I anticipate that all official languages in the federal and provincial systems will have a national portal for inter-language corpora using machine translation to fulfil their federal, provincial and local level language functions, and that all languages spoken in Nepal will be represented through a digital database in the national archive. The Office of Statistics will monitor the status of Nepal’s languages over time. By the end of the next decade, each municipality in the country will have recognised one or two official languages at the local level, based on speech populations. Other local languages will have received community-level legal recognition and official status to fulfil their functional roles. Languages that are highly endangered or at risk will be entitled to receive state grants for enhancing local level capabilities to encourage families and young learners to speak the language. Incentive schemes will be introduced in municipalities that promote language within the family and at home. Inter-generational transmission of languages will have received welcome and timely attention across Nepal. It is my hope that all schools—public and private—will have introduced mother tongue medium instruction at the earliest stage of school education, at least up to class five. Nepali, English and other national as well as classical and foreign languages will be taught as subjects. The existing policy of English medium education at the early stage of education will be abolished. The Government of Nepal will be held accountable if the number of speakers of any language decreases or if local communities face language loss and greater endangerment. Under the aegis of the Language Commission, a Centre for Language Research and Innovation will be created with world-class facilities for language documentation and archiving in collaboration with Tribhuvan University’s Central Department of Linguistics and other relevant institutions. Harnessing the vastness of Nepal’s linguistic diversity, the Language Commission will morph into a centre of excellence for national and international communities to engage in collaborative language research, to share experiences and document best practices at in service of global linguistic diversity and Nepal’s many Indigenous languages.

Languages are both software and hardware

Nearly 750,000 Nepalis went abroad for employment in the past year, and more than 100,000 left on student visas. Most of them were young Nepali men and women, and the number has been increasing every year. As with other sections of society, Nepal’s security agencies also face a recruitment crisis. Nepal Police opened recruitment for 64 inspectors in September, and received 2,239 applications, compared to 2,718 candidates last year. Police also invited candidates for 256 assistant sub-inspectors this year for which it received 17,756 applications – down from 19,932 last year. It is the same story in the Nepal Army, the number of applicants for the post of Officer Cadet (Second Lieutenant) went down from 6,144 for 400 open seats in 2019 to 4,390 in 2020. Meanwhile, applicants in the paramilitary Armed Police Force went down from 857 applications for 75 posts in 2021 to 536 applicants for 99 posts last year. While the number of applicants appears higher than the demand, the data shows a significant decrease in applications for vacancies in Nepal’s law enforcement agencies. Security personnel are recruited on the basis of rank and age in Nepal, and the age cutoff for entry into Nepal’s security agencies is typically 25 years. Sociologist and migration expert Ganesh Gurung says that the demographic of young, physically fit Nepalis emigrating abroad in search of better opportunities has impacted recruitment into law enforcement and the military here at home. “The returns from working in Nepal’s police and army are minimal, whereas overseas job opportunities are more attractive,” Gurung says. “The work may be physically demanding abroad, but the pay is a lot higher.”  <figure><img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241116041148_a7e477e0ee2f56acf16c2559fdb24d8f0377f7bc1f9e56138bc40108fc4fa33f.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="20241116041148_a7e477e0ee2f56acf16c2559fdb24d8f0377f7bc1f9e56138bc40108fc4fa33f" data-rendition-name="original" width="800" height="534" loading="lazy" alt="Nepal Police"><figcaption>Nepal Police</figcaption></figure>  Nepal Police spokesperson DIG Dan Bahadur Karki agrees that the physical and mental demands of a law enforcement job is incomparable to the income that security personnel earn. “A young Nepali who works in Dubai earns enough to build a home in the village within four years, while a Nepali with the same qualifications and physical ability in a security agency here barely makes enough to survive,” says Karki. “Obviously the youth prefer foreign employment.” Security agencies are now worried about the quality of inducted manpower. “There is a difference in work ethic between an applicant chosen from a competitive pool of 50 candidates versus one chosen from a pool of three candidates,” explains Gurung. “Unmotivated employees hamper the overall performance of the state apparatus.” Nepal Army spokesperson Brigadier General Gaurab Kumar KC says recruitment has not been hampered by outmigration: “We have still been getting more than three times the applicants than there are open posts, so we are not yet worried.” Even so, the passing rates of aspirants have gone down for security forces after the Public Service Commission began examinations for military recruitment in 2015. In fact, the Nepal Army complained about the Commission’s involvement in recruitment. Still, the number of vacant military posts tends to exceed the number of passing candidates. Nepal Army’s KC says that the military will not compromise on intake criteria even if there are fewer passing applicants. “Unqualified persons will not be admitted even if there are less-than-required passing candidates. We will re-advertise if that is the case.” But Nepal’s security forces now also have to worry about retention of existing personnel. About 900 Nepal Army, 600 Nepal Police, and 300 Armed police personnel resign every year before the completion of their tenure.  <figure><img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241116041148_b8cd62f70eea3aac7d3d3778615a5b70b1e20550c9bd76321f051f9c766fd2a9.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="20241116041148_b8cd62f70eea3aac7d3d3778615a5b70b1e20550c9bd76321f051f9c766fd2a9" data-rendition-name="original" width="750" height="378" loading="lazy" alt="Armed police forces"><figcaption>Armed Police Force</figcaption></figure>  In 2020, Home Minister Ram Bahadur Thapa recalled almost 1,000 police personnel who had been deployed for the security of VIPs after long-standing criticism that security forces were being misused to cater to political and bureaucratic leadership. However, security personnel have continued to be assigned to high-ranking officials as glorified housekeepers. In December 2022, Rabi Lamichhane’s Home Ministry had instructed its offices to recall unauthorised security personnel assigned to high-ranking officials, following which 500 officers from Nepal Police and Armed Police Force were withdrawn from their details. But the Nepal Army does not have to follow such rules, and the practice of army personnel serving high-ranking active-duty and retired military personnel remains. Conditions here are dire enough that many active duty officers in Nepal’s military and police forces have chosen to leave their jobs to serve in the Russian Army to fight in the Ukraine war. The hierarchical culture and chain of command of politics, bureaucracy, law enforcement and military has also meant that abuse and mistreatment of subordinates is rife in Nepal’s security forces. “Feudalism is alive and well within our security institutions,” says Gurung. “When soldiers and security forces who swore to protect and serve the nation are made to be at the beck and call of politicians and bureaucrats, it is easy to understand why they are disillusioned with their jobs and why they choose to quit and find jobs abroad.”

Job insecurity in security forces

Earlier this month, Nepal received Rs1.6 billion from the World Bank as part of its <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/will-nepal-ever-be-paid-for-saving-trees">Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF)</a>, rewarding the country for increasing its carbon sink capacity. Nepal is the first in South Asia to benefit from this facility, and it is specifically to recompense the country for increasing forest cover in 13 Tarai districts between 2018-2024. “We are also trying to get another Rs13 billion from the facility while also preparing for free market-based carbon trading in the international market,” says Nabaraj Pudasaini of the REDD (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation in Developing Countries) Implementation Centre. Big emitters of greenhouse gases are under pressure to reduce their carbon emissions, and many have signed agreements to do so by investing in decarbonisation projects in developing countries. Countries that emit more than a specified amount of carbon would be able to buy emission rights from countries that emit less. Nepal is internationally known for its community forestry program which has been largely credited for <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/tree-mendous">increasing tree cover to over 45%</a> in less than three decades. But this achievement had not been adequately recognised or rewarded internationally before. Forests, especially in the tropics, absorb and store large amounts of carbon while releasing oxygen in a process known as photosynthesis. <a href="https://www.fao.org/forest-resources-assessment/en/">Preventing deforestation</a> and increasing canopy cover is considered a much more achievable goal than reducing emission in the scale necessary to limit global average temperature to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels. COP11 in Montreal in 2005 first proposed reducing carbon emissions by improving forest quality by halting degradation. By 2015, a new mechanism of financial assistance was created to help less developed countries with sustainable management of forests <a href="https://www.un-redd.org/">(called REDD+)</a>. Under this new mechanism, countries receive aid based on their efforts to prevent forest degradation and increase carbon sink, and in 2021 the World Bank was entrusted with implementing it. Nepal’s FCPF receipt this month was calculated on the basis of 2.4 million tons of carbon stored at a rate of $5 per ton. In the second phase, Nepal will receive more than Rs4 billion within the next year for storing an additional 7 million tons of carbon. Eighty per cent of this amount obtained from carbon trading needs to be spent on local beneficiaries and indigenous communities.&nbsp; But carbon trading is not easy, Nepal needs to prove that protected forests will not be destroyed in future.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241121091132_c8a381c9a95aa86fec558951650d97bb87914741f01766982ba2b086af001f16.jpg" data-media-id="editor_4" data-image-id="20241121091132_c8a381c9a95aa86fec558951650d97bb87914741f01766982ba2b086af001f16" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="999" loading="lazy" alt="Greenbacks for greenery NT "> <figcaption>Photo: KUNDA DIXIT</figcaption> </figure>  Explains carbon trading expert Yugan Manandhar. “Forests should be handed over to the community and shown that they are managed sustainably. Proving this will be particularly challenging; forest encroachment and degradation is rife in the Tarai.” <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/multimedia/nepal-is-going-up-in-smoke">Deliberate forest fires</a> have also added to the challenge because they increase carbon emissions and reduce the sink capacity of forests. The basis for the amount that Nepal received was set five years ago by calculating the carbon reserves of forests in the 13 Tarai districts. In the meantime, sustainable forest management, tree plantation, forest destruction and erosion control were prioritised to increase carbon reserves in those forests. Nepal is signing another carbon trading agreement during the ongoing Baku climate conference. The <a href="https://www.leafcoalition.org/">Lowering Emissions by Accelerating Forest finance (LEAF Coalition) </a>proposes to sell the carbon stored in the forests of Bagmati, Gandaki and Lumbini provinces. For this, Nepal signed the letter of intent three years ago at COP26 in Glasgow. The target is to store 70 million tons of carbon in 32 million hectares of forest in the three provinces per which Nepal will receive Rs13 billion in four years at $10 per ton with provisions to increase the rate if various conditions are met. However, the agreement in itself doesn’t guarantee the amount. According to the targets set by Nepal, forest degradation should be stopped and carbon reserves increased by protecting tree cover. Preparations are also underway for clean air carbon trade because it has offset fossil fuel use by introducing 30,000 electric vehicles. Nepal has been selected for the first round to receive $40 million within one and a half years through the Clean Air System of the World Bank. Given that most of Nepal’s energy mix is from biomass, replacing them with electric stoves can significantly improve health by reducing indoor pollution as well as strengthen the country’s capacity for carbon trade. “Nepal's goal now is to sell carbon in the free market where carbon credits are bought and sold based on supply and demand in an open and transparent manner,” adds Pudasaini of the REDD Implementation Centre. “Nepal can now set its own price and bargain with interested buyer countries and organisations.” Lately, India has been discussing setting up a carbon market. Nepal has exported Rs12.72 billion worth of electricity to India so far this fiscal year, which can be traded under Nepal’s carbon market. “Carbon trading can create significant economic benefits for Nepal, which will help reinvest in development and environmental protection projects,” says Manandhar. “But we must prioritise sustainable management of forests, cutting older trees and allowing regrowth as well as promoting electric stoves and electric vehicles.”