This is the 58th edition of Diaspora Diaries, and a followup to <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/diaspora-diaries-4-xprqcf4x">#4 in this series</a>, published in Nepali Times #1104, 25-31 March 2022. We recommend reading that piece, available online at our website, before this one. It has been three years since I returned to Nepal from Lebanon. I did not think I would make it out alive after 12 years working for a family that never paid me. I returned empty-handed, and it was my mother who supported me. Without her, I do not know what would have happened to me.&nbsp; For some time after returning, I did not do anything. But I finally &nbsp;gather myself together, and trained as a beautician. Perhaps it was the trauma of my experience overseas, but I was introverted and did not socialise much in class. No one knew what I had been through in Lebanon. My troubles were mine to keep. I did not share them with anyone. The training centre also offered us jobs and I tried working for a few months on facials, hair straightening. But the chemicals made my chest hurt, so I quit. I found it <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/the-art-of-healing">therapeutic</a> to cook, and started <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/youth-led-feeding-campaign-spreads-across-nepal">preparing meals for households</a>. I cook the morning and evening meals for a family. Sometimes I cater home gatherings.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250228120224_f8cdc6a45443f90875dd91b71323e5eda2948cce753a39108ea140b64c1069f2.jpg" data-media-id="editor_3" data-image-id="20250228120224_f8cdc6a45443f90875dd91b71323e5eda2948cce753a39108ea140b64c1069f2" data-rendition-name="original" width="1280" height="720" loading="lazy" alt="Enslaved Nepali migrant worker rebuilds her life Diaspora Diaries NT"> <figcaption>Sajita Lama ponders her future in the tin hut where she cooks for a living.</figcaption> </figure>  These orders come mostly from referrals and word of mouth, and I can cook single-handedly for 40-50 people. Everyone has appreciated my food, which makes me happy. My specialty is <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/review/Thakkhola,328">Thakali food</a>. I learn <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/featured-videos/recipe-for-nepali-culinary-diversity">a lot of recipes</a> from <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/mobile-nepal-is-hooked-on-youtube">YouTube</a>. I have had no formal training, but I have a lot of experience from <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/who-is-up-for-a-quarantine-cooking-challenge">cooking</a> for the Lebanese family. It is just that the meals I prepared there were less oily and more bland. I listen to <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/migrating-with-the-music-of-nepal">music </a>and try to enjoy cooking, but I often have flashbacks that take me back to those 12 years in Lebanon. How could they get away without paying me anything? All the toil amounted to nothing. Here, in Nepal, people pay me by the hour or sometimes on a daily basis. There are tips. Even though it is not a lot, at least I am paid here. It was so different in Lebanon. Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/you-must-be-having-so-much-fun-there">“You must be having so much fun there!”</a> Sujata Dhungana I see migrant workers who have returned to Nepal with money they have saved which they invest. I came back with nothing. In fact, I barely made it back alive. But, I am trying to move on and I have made progress. I keep myself busy, and get paid for it, and this work allows me to socialise a bit with my customers.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250228120224_388d970a8354d7b83d46ec74e9dba4b96f095b29c70061732788f29531418521.jpg" data-media-id="editor_10" data-image-id="20250228120224_388d970a8354d7b83d46ec74e9dba4b96f095b29c70061732788f29531418521" data-rendition-name="original" width="1280" height="720" loading="lazy" alt="Enslaved Nepali migrant worker rebuilds her life Diaspora Diaries NT"> </figure>  After returning from Lebanon I kept confusing Arabic and Nepali. By now, my Arabic has died. I weighed around 30kg when I came back and could not eat anything. Now I at least have an appetite even though I do not eat a lot. I try to forget everything about my <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-s-hard-working-students-overseas">overseas experience</a>, except an ongoing legal case for back payment of my wages. I still have not received my dues. I don’t know when or if I ever will. I have been assured that such legal cases take time and I will eventually get paid.&nbsp; I am now thinking of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/migration-not-a-wish-but-necessity-for-nepalis">migrating overseas </a>again, this time to work in a parlour or as a cook. Dubai, maybe. But with the case pending, I am hesitant to leave because what if I am needed here for official reasons pertaining to my case that require my presence? I cannot just leave and immediately come back. If I receive all my back pay, I may not even migrate. I will start a small खाजा घर, ideally an eatery near a bus park where it is busy and there is a good flow of people. I don’t have big aspirations, I will start small and expand step by step.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250228120224_16e754351fb2f593f8af1e37d9ccc7b7dd7e43b41905e68402c71709e2ffcd37.jpg" data-media-id="editor_13" data-image-id="20250228120224_16e754351fb2f593f8af1e37d9ccc7b7dd7e43b41905e68402c71709e2ffcd37" data-rendition-name="original" width="960" height="1280" loading="lazy" alt="Enslaved Nepali migrant worker rebuilds her life Diaspora Diaries NT"> <figcaption>Lama also runs a catering business through Instagram.</figcaption> </figure>  I can survive on what I am doing now. But that is it, I cannot do more. At this age, I have it in me to spend a few years overseas and return to <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/why-invest-in-nepal">invest in</a> a business. But sometimes I fear another <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/Surviving-trauma,2211">traumatic experience</a>. What if things go wrong again? I still have to confront the demons inside me. Then I think, just because it happened once it does not mean it will happen again. I mostly try not to think about my time in Lebanon. One of the daughters I took care of was two-and-half years old when I got to Beirut. The other was born while I was there and I took care of her from the very next day after her birth. By the time I left, they were both grown up. My mother keeps reminding me to keep looking ahead and forget what has happened. She reminds me that there is nothing I cannot achieve. My dream, which seems unrealistic now, is to own a house in Kathmandu. I will live on the second floor and on the first floor I will take care of the poorest, the sick, those without anyone to turn to for support.&nbsp; I will feed them and take care of them. It would give me so much joy. But I do not know if I will ever achieve this dream. To help others, you first have to be in a position to help yourself. &nbsp; <h2>Diaspora Diaries #4</h2> Excerpt from <a href="https://d1i1jdw69xsqx0.cloudfront.net/digitalhimalaya/collections/journals/nepalitimes/pdf/Nepali_Times_1104.pdf">Nepali Times, &nbsp;#1104, 25-31 March 2022</a> I first came to Lebanon when I was 18 years old. I lived in the country for 12 years as a domestic worker. Of the 12 years, I was only paid my salary for 1 year and 9 months.&nbsp; My case is unique because unlike others, I did not realise that I was being cheated through most of my stay there. I got along well with the family that I worked for. When they said they were saving up my wages in the bank, I believed them. Why would I not? They were like family, or so I thought. The idea of taking home a lump sum of money all at once was very appealing to me. After all, I had come to Lebanon to earn money to support my family back home in Nepal.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250228120220_9f914904869fb85ae3b5ecd700e2e09b759bef4e9b13018a213725b14dbe7525.jpg" data-media-id="editor_17" data-image-id="20250228120220_9f914904869fb85ae3b5ecd700e2e09b759bef4e9b13018a213725b14dbe7525" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="NT #1104"> </figure>  Now I realise that I was too trusting, and it was naive of me to believe that we were like family. They were just exploiting me, and trying to squeeze as much work from me as possible without paying for any of it. When I had first left Nepal in 2010, I had a 5 rupee note with me given to me by my sister-in-law. I kept that red bank note with me throughout my time in Lebanon. And that is all the money I brought home with me. I have now laminated the 5 rupee note. I will not forget this Nepali money because that is all I left with, and that is all I returned with. <div class="embed-block"><div><div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"><iframe src="//cdn.iframe.ly/api/iframe?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fembed%2FbrF-iDT5jy8%3Fsi%3DFJF63RjLdv1pzSNl&key=87ca3314a9fa775b5c3a7726100694b0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen scrolling="no" allow="accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;"></iframe></div></div>Watch this video prepared by the activist group This is Lebanon of Sajita Lama’s homecoming in 2022 at Kathmandu airport, and interviews with her Lebanese employers. Parts of this video may be distressing to some viewers.</div> Diaspora Diaries is a Nepali Times collaboration with Migration Lab providing a platform to share experiences of living, working, studying abroad.

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Enslaved Nepali migrant worker rebuilds her life

<figure><img width="568" height="948" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110914110/636ba4bf9c7e80680e073683jpeg.jpg" alt=""/><figcaption>Photo: @RalphUNICEF</figcaption></figure>Some of the estimated 2,200 Nepalis in Lebanon, most of them <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/nepali-times-search/?q=Lebanon+workers" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/nepali-times-search/?q%3DLebanon%2Bworkers&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1596685656892000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHflopolWpkFd-pwL93a9xg_HfMAw">female domestic workers</a> in Beirut, have been injured in the massive blast on Tuesday that killed at least 80 people and injured 4,000. However, Nepalis on social media groups in Lebanon report that most are safe, and even the ones with injuries do not need hospital admission."From the window, I saw the first explosion but I did not make much of it. But the second one was huge and it felt like the building would collapse. It felt like a huge earthquake,” recalls Sanju Waiba, who was in a church. “Something hit me hard and I could not tell what was happening. I went down seven floors and a Lebanese friend drove me to hospital.”Since her injury was not severe and the hospital was dealing with many serious patients, Waiba was sent to a pharmacy which bandaged the injury on her arm.”Waiba was taken to hospital by Nepali domestic worker Pramila, who also remembers the the first explosion as not being so loud. “But the second one was so big it shook my house,” Pramila said on the phone. https://youtu.be/UY5lXqBWf_sRita, another domestic worker, who lives near the explosion area said: “The explosion was the loudest I have ever heard, I still cannot hear properly. My hands are still shaking. The glass in our windows are all broken. My employers were also afraid, and thought there would be another explosion.” Lebanon was already in the midst of a pre-coronavirus economic crisis which was exacerbated by the lockdown, and has impacted migrant workers more than the pandemic itself. There have been street protests, and migrant workers were already struggling because of the collapse of the Lebanese pound which has lost over 80% of its value against the dollar. Ashok Thapa, Chairman of the Non-resident Nepali Associaiton of Lebanon told Nepali Times: “The pandemic is a secondary concern for workers here given the relatively low number of cases, although things have deteriorated in the past week.” Lebanon re-imposed the lockdowns last week after cases started rising. Not all Nepali workers are similarly impacted. Those who earn in US dollars are relatively better off, although there are some who are working for reduced salaries. But Nepalis workers earning in local currency have been hit hard by the devaluation. Nepalis who work part-time in multiple households and live in rental accommodations have been worst affected by the economic crisis. Thapa adds, “At least those who live-in with the employers or work in companies do not have to worry about rent or food expenses.” <img width="640" height="853" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110914110/636ba4c19c7e80680e073684jpeg.jpg" alt=""><img width="640" height="853" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110914110/636ba4c39c7e80680e073685jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figure><img width="960" height="720" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110914110/636ba4c69c7e80680e073686jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption>Photos of the aftermath of the explosion taken by Nepali worker Chandra Kala Joshi.</figcaption></figure>Rama, a live-in domestic worker is aware that she is lucky to have an employer who treats her like family. “When I heard my employers talking about not being able to afford basic foodstuff, I asked them whether I should start making plans to go back to Nepal. But my employer assured me that they can afford to keep me,” she said. Rama describes that supermarket visits are different these days with limits on the quantity of items that can be purchased owing to shortages, such as only one packet of rice or two soaps per visit.  Pramila is undocumented and lives with <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/migrating-for-domestic-work/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/migrating-for-domestic-work/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1596685656892000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHcughCXXDvDj2My1WjO8y51BVf1Q">fellow Nepalis</a> in a rented apartment. “As live-out, part-time workers during a pandemic, employers are reluctant to hire us for fear of the virus,” she says. “The price of rice has tripled, and we have reduced our meals. I don’t have much of an appetite these days anyway.” Pramila is one of the 30 Nepalis in Lebanon who have <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepal-plans-to-reintegrate-returning-workers/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepal-plans-to-reintegrate-returning-workers/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1596685656892000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFf1HnA08cxJBF9PWcJqJ1-B9VFwA">registered to return home</a>, and it will be a struggle to pay the $700 air fare. This is a smaller number than other countries because of the lack of jobs and the spreading coronavirus back in Nepal, as well as the high air fare amid the Lebanese currency crisis. Others are stuck with employers who are not in a position to clear their dues. Many Nepali women have come to Lebanon despite <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/lift-the-ban-on-female-domestic-workers/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">a ban on domestic workers</a> going to West Asia, some had not been able to go home for several years to see their children and families because of the fear that they will not be allowed back out. However, last year the government allowed current workers — many working in Lebanon — to return to their jobs after home visits. Some names have been changed.

Nepalis caught up in Beirut blast recount horror

Samsung Nepal has opened pre-orders for the Galaxy A57 5G and A37 5G. Both phones run Samsung’s One UI 8.5, featuring AI capabilities like voice transcription, Circle to Search, and photo editing. They feature a 50MP triple-camera system, a Super AMOLED display, and six years of OS and security updates.

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‘One early morning, we heard the ambassador’s wife cry out, “Ram, Ram, Ram!” A disaster has befallen Nepal!” She had heard on the radio that a fire had consumed Singha Durbar." This is not about the arson attack on 9 September 2025, but the one on 8 July, 1973. It started in the South Wing of the then single-largest building in all of Nepal. It took two days to bring the blaze under control, requiring the use of explosives to demolish one wing to protect the imposing western facade. As Bhekh Bahadur Thapa recalls in the English translation of his memoir A Life in Public Service: Nepal from Autocracy to Democracy, he was then on leave from the Nepal government serving with the IDRC in Ottawa.&nbsp; He had already served as Nepal’s Finance Secretary at age 25, went on to be Finance Minister and Governor of Nepal Rastra Bank. He was already younger than some of the GenZ ministers in Nepal’s present RSP government. Thapa, now 89, was at the launch of the book in February which was attended by former diplomats and bureaucrats. After speeches by panelists, there was a question from the audience about how Thapa had managed to be the diplomat he was, managing Nepal’s international relations on the world stage.&nbsp; Writer and journalist Akhilesh Upadhyay, who was moderating the panel, responded by going into the section of the book where we see Thapa as an ambassador to the US, playing tennis with White House officials, cultivating a network of contacts to project the identity and welfare of Nepal, and making it possible for a state visit by King Birendra to Ronald Reagan’s America. The book is full of anecdotes that suggest Thapa was a clever and strategic diplomat, always calm and unruffled, easily making friends in high places with his maturity and engaging sense of humour. Thapa’s memoir is heavy on details about Nepal’s administrative history during the years he was active in public service, serving as minister and ambassador under three kings: Mahendra, Birendra and Gyanendra, and alongside five prime ministers.&nbsp; Aside from an insider look on how certain treaties, development deals and research projects in Nepal came into fruition, Thapa goes into great detail about his personal and professional relationships with the kings, ministers, ambassadors, foreign leaders and politicians.&nbsp; As a reader, one is struck by the level of detail around the events that unfolded in Nepal over the years during Thapa’s tenure. Was Thapa recording a journal over the years of the events and the conversations that transpired, or were they committed to his phenomenal memory? Either way, the reader gets a glimpse of Nepal’s recent history from the early days of the Panchayat, through the People’s Movement and the democracy period, the Maoist insurgency, Royal Palace massacre of 2001, and Gyanendra’s coup of 2005.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2026041204048_125dc8ae300a1e33124f394abe724d42727f83e067b0201d2008b58d60c459a4.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="2026041204048_125dc8ae300a1e33124f394abe724d42727f83e067b0201d2008b58d60c459a4" data-rendition-name="original" width="1584" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="How to win friends and influence nations NT"> </figure>  Not enough is said about the political parties of the time whose presence led to the way Nepal’s multiparty democracy came to be shaped. The book keeps its focus on the administration and the key figures around it, mostly those in the Panchayat era. Towards the second half of the book, we do start to hear about political parties, but not in great depth. Another figure whose presence in the book is conspicuously less prominent is that of his wife, Rita Thapa — the person who seems to have rescued him every time financial quandary or family care became a challenge. Yet, we do not see her as a full person. Perhaps because of the personal tragedies in his life, the children are also barely mentioned.&nbsp; The book is therefore less personal and more technical. Throughout, we learn about Thapa’s thinking as he navigated the world of diplomacy to win him the trust of those who mattered. There are tips here for a new generation of Nepali officials and diplomats about how much commitment and focus is needed to be good at one’s job and serve the national interest. This book adds to tomes that have been written on Nepal’s fragile relationship with India. ‘India has always wished for Nepal to remain dependent on it,’ writes Thapa, who served as Nepal’s ambassador to India and later in the Eminent Persons Group &nbsp;on Indo-Nepal relations that has been allowed to languish. The book has several insights into the Indo-Nepal trysts with diplomacy and agency.&nbsp; China’s role is also recorded, viewed through conversations during a visit to Beijing, but all that was before Nepal’s neighbour to the north emerged as a world economic and military power. The book also has such sudden instances of quirkiness and humour. For instance, we see a young Thapa in America explaining to a government official why he would like to return to Nepal instead of settling down in the US. “Because, Nepal is beautiful,” he said. The text is immaculate and does not read much like a translation, credit for which clearly goes to the team that put the edition together: translator Prawin Adhikari, &nbsp;Anagha Neelakanthan and Bhekh Thapa’s daughter, Manjushree. As Nepal enters a new era of governance and diplomacy, A Life in Public Service: Nepal from Autocracy to Democracy should be essential reading for students of political science, economics and foreign affairs who can gain a fresh perspective on the country’s trajectory.&nbsp; There are dozens of forgotten state secrets recorded in the book, but the reader must also remember this is a story told from one person’s perspective and there may be others.&nbsp; So, what really made Thapa the diplomat he was? I met him in 2004 at the Kantipur TV studio when he was serving as king Gyanendra’s foreign minister. He was there for a studio interview, and I was just done with my English newscast.&nbsp; He surprised me at the door: “Pratibha! I’ve been reading your articles in The Kathmandu Post. You must keep writing.” I thanked him, glad to have been noticed for my work by a stranger. That was perhaps one of the things that set Thapa apart — he excelled at staying close to those in power, while also noticing those who were not.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260412040412_213e706136a038ec9f5e2b8c6d7f7c1e9ceed9479e22fe2884872ad7bd20955f.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="20260412040412_213e706136a038ec9f5e2b8c6d7f7c1e9ceed9479e22fe2884872ad7bd20955f" data-rendition-name="original" width="1136" height="702" loading="lazy" alt="Book details"> </figure>

How to win friends and influence nations

Prime Minister Balendra Shah on Wednesday broke tradition and met with 17 foreign envoys collectively, a move that was a notable departure from how his predecessors operated.&nbsp;
Shah had already set himself apart by talking less, listening more, and delegating to trusted friends. But by meeting all ambassadors at one go in the presence of the Foreign Ministry, he signalled a paradigm shift in how he wants Nepal to be seen: no longer just balancing India and China, but as a country confident about its <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/guest-editorial/tripolar-contestation-over-nepal">strategic importance and place in the world</a>.
In just two weeks, the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/rsp-dos-and-don-ts">RSP has sprung into action </a>on multiple fronts to implement its ambitious 100-point, 100-days action plan. It has taken short-term measures to mitigate the impact of the Gulf war, as well as medium- and long- term measures to streamline the bureaucracy. A few high-profile figures have been made examples of to drive the message home.
Earlier this week, the government recalled six politically appointed ambassadors, the most notable being long-serving Shankar Sharma from New Delhi. The Kathmandu District Court issued arrest warrants against former prime minister Sher Bahadur Deuba and his former foreign minister wife Arzu Rana on charges of money laundering and corruption.
Each ministry has been trying to clean up the accumulated rot from the past three decades: regulatory overhaul of microfinance, education, health and service delivery.&nbsp;
These actions widely disseminated campaign-style on YouTube and TikTok have made most Nepalis hopeful that the party they installed in power means business.
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BACKLASH
But such attempts to overhaul a long-entrenched political culture were bound to face backlash. In their impatience and enthusiasm to get things done, some of Prime Minister Shah’s ministers have over-reached.
It was common knowledge that government-paid advertising in the mainstream press was kickback-driven, but the PMO’s directive that official notices be published or broadcast only on state-run media has been denounced — especially as the media industry struggles to stay afloat.
More serious are some recent appointments by ministers of relatives and figures closely associated with the RSP to key positions. This has rankled because this party built its political plank on ending nepotism and graft.&nbsp;
News that Home Minister Sudan Gurung allegedly had not paid rent on leased land, which illegally encroached on the lake in Pokhara did not help. &nbsp;
Prime Minister Shah himself has come under scrutiny for appointing a kitchen cabinet full of male buddies from his time as Kathmandu mayor. To douse criticism he brought in as adviser investigative journalist Deepa Dahal, who has exposed corruption in high places of the previous coalitions.&nbsp;
Shah’s appointment of another political adviser Asim Shah to the head Constitution Amendment Task Force, is also seen as problematic. He is a filmmaker and former lawmaker, but does not have a background in constitutional law.&nbsp;
Even more controversial is the Cabinet’s decision to appoint RSP Chair Rabi Lamichhane’s legal counsel, Narayan Kandel, as Attorney General. Kandel used to be a UK permanent resident, and does not have as much experience practicing law in Nepal.&nbsp;
Kandel’s appointment drew flak and raised eyebrows, and with the pending legal cases against Lamichhane this appointment represents a flagrant conflict of interest.
Health Minister Nisha Mehta was also accused of favouritism after reappointing Junu Shrestha, wife of Labour Minister Dipak Kumar Shah, as member of the Health Insurance Board which had earlier suspended her. The Labour Minister’s rambling rant at the Board’s meeting on Tuesday has not helped the RSP’s image.&nbsp;
(UPDATE: On Thursday, Prime Minister Shah sacked the Labour Minister after the RSP found him in breach of the party's code of conduct and discipline. He served 14 days in the Cabinet, one of the shortest tenures for a minister in Nepal )
It is hard to know what <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/ball-in-balen-s-court">Balendra Shah is thinking</a>, and how Rabi Lamichhane is going to justify some of these moves. After all, making politics, governance, and bureaucracy a meritocracy has been the core tenet of the RSP, and it risks alienating its mainly youth base if these missteps persist.
But at least for now, most RSP supporters seem to be giving the party the benefit of doubt.

domestic-workers-in-beirut

Enslaved Nepali migrant worker rebuilds her life

Nepalis caught up in Beirut blast recount horror

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Know your Ministers

How to win friends and influence nations

Nepal’s new government springs into action