<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20230112100132/63bfd4139c7e80680e0d3089jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="2502" height="1824"/><figcaption>Photo: NEPALI TIMES ARCHIVE/BIKRAM RAI</figcaption></figure>The organisers of the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/cup-of-the-world/">FIFA World Cup in Qatar</a> must have thought that it was fitting that the final game on 18 December coincides with Qatar’s national day. But it is even more apposite because 18 December also happens to be International Migrants Day.The irony is not lost. The final game (may the best team win) marks the end of a tournament built on widespread abuse on the day honouring migrant workers.For Nepali workers who contributed to build World Cup infrastructure in the past decade, this should have been a moment of national pride. While rooting for Messi's magic, we could also be celebrating football history being made in breathtaking infrastructure built by fellow Nepalis.<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20230112100132/63bfd4169c7e80680e0d308ajpeg.jpg" alt="" width="2983" height="1056">Instead, there are <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/my-uncle-died-in-qatar/">many Nepalis boycotting the games</a>. Others have expressed frustration over campaigns seeking compensation for the abused. Many Nepalis watched the games with a bitter aftertaste — love for the beautiful game tainted by the blood, sweat and tears of compatriots.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/my-uncle-died-in-qatar/">My uncle died in Qatar</a>, Ramu KharelThe host country and the football governing body FIFA are both set to make billions in profits. But <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/pay-qatars-world-cup-workers/">demands to compensate families for the deaths of relatives have been ignored</a>. Financial support will not make up for their tragedies, but it would have provided some relief.Neither FIFA nor Qatar are particularly low on resources. Yet they have blithely ignored reports of abuse of workers. They accuse critics of hypocrisy and engaged in whataboutery about historical atrocities committed by colonial powers.But what the din of the cheering crowds at Lusail Stadium <a href="https://www.ilo.org/gb/GBSessions/previous-sessions/GB326/WCMS_459148/lang--en/index.htm">drowned out are valid concerns about workers</a> who were abused and never compensated. What about the families of the deceased who died to make this tournament possible?But as we reported during the 2018 World Cup, quoting a Qatar based migrant worker from the documentary The Worker’s Cup: “It is not about the worker. It was <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/the-workers-football/">never about the worker</a>”.The stories of mourning families in Nepal are happening here and now. They are grieving while the world is transfixed by the glamour and glare of the stadium lights.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/qatar-refuses-payoffs-to-world-cup-stadium-workers/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Qatar refuses payoffs to World Cup</a> <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/qatar-refuses-payoffs-to-world-cup-stadium-workers/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">workers</a>There may be unending disagreement on the actual number of deaths of migrant workers in Qatar, or if they occurred during construction of the stadiums. But the stories of bereaved families knee-deep in loans are well documented. Despite Qatar's advanced health system, many of the workers' deaths are <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/fifa-a-chance-to-improve-welfare-of-nepali-workers-in-qatar/">attributed to unexplained causes. </a>Many of the deaths of workers are not unique to Qatar, but the tournament has helped bring them to light. Yet, the hosts managed to pull off this global event denying the scale of deaths, or calls for compensation, telling people to instead just <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/the-workers-football/">focus on football.</a>Qatar is set to host other mega events, including the 2023 AFC and is vying for the Olympics. Saudi Arabia has its eyes on the 2030 World Cup and has started laying the foundations for its $500 billion NEOM city project.These will be built and delivered on the backs of migrant workers, including Nepalis. <a href="https://www.hrw.org/news/2021/08/02/migrant-workers-and-qatar-world-cup">Restrictive regimes</a> will continue to limit freedom of speech and punish any migrant worker who dares to speak up. Governments from countries like ours will self-censor, and <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/the-bootiful-game/">ignore their own citizens being unpaid, abused or left to die.</a>Read also:<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/labour-rights-legacy-of-the-fifa-world-cup/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> Labour rights legacy of the FIFA World Cup</a>, Meenakshi Ganguly and Mohna AnsariWorkers will <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/no-country-for-young-men/">continue to leave Nepal in droves to transform deserts into cities</a>. These jobs are important, even transformational, for some families. Landing a good employer is like winning the lottery.Many families buy land, build houses, afford education for their children or medical bills for parents back home. So the exploitation is tolerated by families who depend on the money, or by the country whose economy depends on those remittances.It is unfair to blame just the host countries as some of the gravest abuse begins in Nepal with workers drowning in debt by the time they land in Qatar. It is governance failure and corruption back home that is a major push factor, and ‘<a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/manpower-agencies-of-Nepal-are-the-ones-against-zero-cost-migration-policy,2402">manpower</a>’ agencies in Nepal also blatantly cheat workers eager for jobs overseas.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/pay-qatars-world-cup-workers/">“Pay Qatar’s World Cup workers</a>”It does not matter how Qatar won the World Cup hosting rights, why in the world Saudi Arabia wants to build a fantasy city, or what steps Malaysia is taking to ramp up medical gloves production. It will not matter that origin countries including Nepal are complacent and complicit in the abuses their citizens face abroad. Abject poverty and the desire to provide for families back home overshadow all other concerns.Jobs, even without safeguards, will always be a superior option to no jobs. This is the reality of a workforce that does not want to be limited by finding work back home, or the Nepal government’s own apathy to push for stronger, tangible migration reforms.After the 2022 Qatar World Cup is done, it is unlikely that the next mega project in the desert will be any different to maximise the gains of international migration and its abuses minimised.More vanity projects, more jobs. More remittance. More uncompensated abuse. More silent boycott. More global events in which the poorest pay a steep price. More deafening silence from our government. More viral stories on coffins received at the airport by broken families.The only difference is that the bodies will now arrive in more than one international airport in Nepal.Read more: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/cup-of-the-world/">Cup of the world</a>, Nepali Times<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/the-workers-football/">The workers’ football</a>, Upasana Khadka<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/human-rights-referees-blow-whistle-on-world-cup-fouls/">Rights referees blow whistle on World Cup fouls</a>, Kunda Dixit

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18 December

<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022120710124/639057399c7e80680e0ce149jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="2316" height="1440"/>Three weeks ahead of the FIFA World Cup 2022, Qatar’s Labour Minister <a href="https://amp.france24.com/en/live-news/20221102-qatar-rejects-compensation-fund-for-world-cup-migrant-workers">has rejected calls</a> from human rights groups to compensate migrant workers involved in building stadiums and other infrastructure.A <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/payupfifa-campaign-launched/">global campaign called #PayUpFIFA</a> was launched by <a href="https://www.hrw.org/news/2022/11/02/why-qatar-opposing-remedy-fund-migrant-workers">Human Rights Watch (HRW)</a> and other activist groups in May, calling on the international football governing body FIFA to provide adequate remedy and to avoid the legacy of what they call a ‘World Cup of Shame’.But Labour Minister Ali bin Samikh Al Marri said on Wednesday that this was a “publicity stunt”, accusing Qatar’s critics of "racism". Al Marri claimed his country was already handing out hundreds of millions of dollars in <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/pay-qatars-world-cup-workers-2/">unpaid wages</a>.HRW responded by saying that while Qatari authorities have made notable reforms, they were too little too late -- mostly after 2018 when when much of the work on the stadiums had been finished. It also said the reforms were narrow in scope and weakly enforced, which meant many workers who helped build the World Cup infrastructure <a href="https://www.hrw.org/news/2022/08/12/fifa/qatar-commit-compensate-abused-migrant-workers">never benefited</a> from existing reforms and compensation mechanisms.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022120710124/6390573d9c7e80680e0ce14ajpeg.jpg" alt="" width="2308" height="1306"><figcaption>Labour Minister Ali bin Samikh Al Marri claimed Qatar was already handing out hundreds of millions of dollars in unpaid wages.</figcaption></figure>The most serious, unaddressed harms that have also disproportionately impacted Nepalis over the last decade are deaths of workers. Under Qatari <a href="https://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/---ed_protect/---protrav/---ilo_aids/documents/legaldocument/wcms_125871.pdf">Labour Law</a>, families of workers who die because of work, or workers who sustain work injuries resulting in partial or complete permanent disability from work injuries, are entitled to compensation from their employers. However, deaths and disabilities not considered work-related are not compensated.But a large majority of deaths of Nepalis in Qatar are attributed to unexplained causes and as <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/human-rights-referees-blow-whistle-on-world-cup-fouls/">Nepali Times has previously reported</a>: “Died in his sleep’ (सुत्दा सुत्दै मर्यो) has become a colloquial Nepali term and the fatalities were attributed to ‘natural causes’. Mostly, there was nothing natural about them – they were a result of overwork, heat stroke and official apathy.’But Qatar’s Labour Minister Al Marri in the same interview questioned: “Where are the victims, do you have names of the victims, how can you get these numbers?"HRW insists that <a href="https://www.hrw.org/news/2022/07/11/families-bring-home-migrant-worker-remains-qatar">data on migrant worker deaths exist</a>, showcasing the repatriation process of a dead body from Qatar to Nepal that required complex documentation including power of attorney or consent from the legal heir, a death certificate, a police report, a medical report, an airway bill, an embalming certificate and a no objection certificate.In addition, records also exist with the Nepal government that provide support to families from the Migrant Welfare Fund to deliver bodies workers with valid permits from Kathmandu airport to their homes. Nepal therefore has records on migrant worker abuses that can be leveraged if FIFA or Qataris were serious about compensation.In their latest statements, international human rights organisations are pressing FIFA to act regardless of Qatar’s response as it has both the responsibility and resources to do so. In awarding the 2022 World Cup without imposing any conditions to avoid foreseeable labour rights abuses and subsequently failing to take timely and effective preventive measures, FIFA is accused of contributing to the widespread abuse of migrant workers on World Cup-related projects that followed.FIFAs response to the remedy fund remains uncertain. At the 13 October Council of Europe hearing on labour rights in Qatar, FIFA Deputy Secretary General Alasdair Bell stated: “Compensation is certainly something that we’re interested in progressing.” Such statements have been made several times in the past, without any concrete commitment.<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022120710124/639057429c7e80680e0ce14bjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="533">Unlike the Qataris, FIFA has not outrightly refused compensation and is under growing pressure from stakeholders as the tournament approaches. FIFA is accountable to football associations, sponsors, politicians and fans demanding action.Last week, the Australia national football team in a powerful video strongly supported the call for remedy, which has also been backed by seven other national football teams that will be participating in the World Cup. Four sponsors (ABInBev/Budweiser, Adidas, Coca-Cola and McDonald’s) have supported financial compensation.A recent global <a href="https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2022/09/qatar-global-survey-shows-overwhelming-demand-for-fifa-to-compensate-world-cup-migrant-workers/">opinion poll by Amnesty International</a> shows 67% of the 17,477 respondents in 15 countries also share the view that their national football associations should speak out publicly about the human rights issues associated with the Qatar World Cup, including calling for compensation for migrant workers.The fund has also been backed by 15 US Congress members, 120 French parliamentarians and former football players like Australia’s Craig Foster who is donating his World Cup broadcasting proceeds to families of migrant workers. Despite the pressure, FIFA has not responded positively.The rights organisation points out that FIFA has long contributed to World Cup ‘legacy funds’ to support projects following events. In the past, FIFA has allocated at least US$260 million for World Cup ‘legacy’ including to former hosts <a href="https://www.sportspromedia.com/news/south_african_soccer_receives_100_million_world_cup_legacy_fund/">South Africa </a>($100 million), <a href="https://www.fifa.com/news/legacy-fund-makes-further-strides-in-brazil">Brazil</a> ($100 million), and <a href="https://independent.ng/fifa-to-hand-russia-60m-for-world-cup-legacy-fund/">Russia</a> ($60 million). They insist that FIFA should also consider the same for Qatar given the documented exploitation of workers and lack of compensation for victims.<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022120710124/639057459c7e80680e0ce14cjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="2322" height="1466">“There’s a clear need for FIFA to establish a compensation fund to salvage the legacy of the approaching World Cup, which has been severely tarnished by abuses,” Minky Worden of Human Rights Watch. “Qatar should not oppose but help ensure the success of such a fund. The problem of establishing a compensation fund has never been about data, but political will.”The World Cup starts on 20 November in Doha, and it is unlikely that the remedy fund will materialise by then. But a commitment by FIFA to the fund could have far reaching consequences for families of Nepali migrant workers who lost their lives to make the tournament possible

Qatar refuses payoffs to World Cup workers

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VWeYy8HD4_AExactly six months from today on 21 November, 2022 the world will be glued to the media watching the kick-off game of the World Cup live from Qatar. Nepalis will be among the estimated 3 billion people across the globe tuning in.During previous games, neighbourhoods in every corner of Nepal were gripped with <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-in-the-grip-of-world-cup-fever/">World Cup fever</a>. With a segregated fan base, neighbourhoods would be festooned with flags of their favourite teams with some ardent fans supporting Latin American teams while others supporting European giants.From special ‘World Cup’ haircuts mimicking their favourite football players to ardent fans turning to the divine power for their favourite team to win, the games continue to consume the country every four years.This year’s World Cup in Qatar, however, is different. For Nepalis, it is not just love for the beautiful game. It is much more personal.Nepalis have played an important role in transforming Qatar ever since it was awarded the World Cup hosting rights in 2010. The eight stadiums in Qatar where the games will be held are <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/human-rights-referees-blow-whistle-on-world-cup-fouls/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">built on the blood, sweat and tears of tens of thousands of migrant workers</a> from Asia and Africa, including from Nepal.They also helped build the surrounding infrastructure including hotels, roads, and the metro which were necessary for holding the games. Ram is a Nepali engaged in the construction of the Lusail stadium, where the final World Cup match will be played this year. He told us: “It seems these structures have come up virtually overnight, it is unbelievable. But I have come to realize it is all about money.”Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/human-rights-referees-blow-whistle-on-world-cup-fouls/">Rights referees blow whistle on World Cup fouls</a>, Kunda Dixit<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221114111128/6372188c9c7e80680e0baa4bjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1273" height="581"/><figcaption>Photo: DOFE</figcaption></figure>Between 2012/13 and 2017/18, the number of <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepal-welcomes-qatar-labour-reform/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">labour approvals issued to Nepalis seeking jobs in Qatar</a> exceeded 100,000 annually, peaking at 128,550 in 2013/14. Remittances the workers send help support their families back home.But it also comes at a cost. Most workers who went to Qatar paid high recruitment costs borrowed informally at exorbitant interest rates. Others returned home empty handed as wage theft victims. And many lost their lives, mostly to unexplained causes.In the six months lead-up to the tournament in Qatar, human rights groups are blowing the whistle on World Cup fouls, and say it is time to <a href="https://www.hrw.org/news/2022/05/18/fifa-pay-harm-qatars-migrant-workers" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.hrw.org/news/2022/05/18/fifa-pay-harm-qatars-migrant-workers&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1653197319218000&amp;usg=AOvVaw2dPDlMmfw-E9XxmSxctIu6">pay up</a> for the abuses.Human Rights Watch (HRW) and Amnesty International (AI) along with other human rights groups, labour unions and international football fan groups have launched a global coalition demanding that FIFA and the Qatar government provide remedy for the abuses suffered by migrant workers.A global campaign called <a href="https://www.hrw.org/PayUpFIFA" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">#PayUpFIFA</a> has also been launched by HRW, calling on the international football governing body FIFA to provide adequate remedy and to avoid the legacy of what they call a ‘World Cup of Shame’.They say that besides the Qatari authorities, FIFA also shares responsibility for the price migrant workers had to pay to make the World Cup 2022 possible. Rights groups accuse FIFA of being a ‘<a href="https://www.hrw.org/news/2021/12/18/qa-migrant-worker-abuses-qatar-and-fifa-world-cup-2022" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.hrw.org/news/2021/12/18/qa-migrant-worker-abuses-qatar-and-fifa-world-cup-2022&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1653197319218000&amp;usg=AOvVaw2trr6lauKDRVwXb1B7AMX7">dismal steward</a> of protecting and promoting <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/home-workers-dead,3229" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">human rights in Qatar</a>’.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/the-workers-football/">The workers’ football</a>, Upasana Khadka<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221114111128/6372188e9c7e80680e0baa4cjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="707" height="698">A <a href="https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/media_2022/05/2022.05.17.Joint%20letter%20to%20Gianni%20Infantino%20re.%20remedy%20for%20labour%20abuses.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">joint letter</a> sent to Gianni Infantino (above), President of FIFA when the governing body awarded the tournament to Qatar, says it knew or should have known the risks this would pose to migrant workers welfare given the country’s poor human rights record and the ban on trade unions. And yet it did so without placing on Qatar any conditions for the protection of labour rights, they say.In awarding the 2022 World Cup without imposing any conditions to avoid foreseeable labour rights abuses and subsequently failing to take timely and effective preventive measures, FIFA is accused of contributing to <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/world-cup-stadium-workers-in-qatar-unpaid/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">the widespread abuse of migrant workers</a> on World Cup-related projects that followed.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/diaspora-diaries-1/">Diaspora Diaries 1</a>, Nepali Times<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221114111128/637218909c7e80680e0baa4djpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1201" height="629">To be sure, after international media spotlight, Qatar has introduced labor reforms including removing requirements for exit permits to leave the country, allowing workers to legally change jobs and introducing minimum wages.But the rights groups say that these reforms were introduced too late, and were too little to address abuses, and too lax in their enforcement. They are said to look good on paper but have translated poorly to practice.Consequently, there are still reports of unpaid wages, high recruitment costs, deplorable living conditions, and death including from heat stress. It was only a decade after being awarded the hosting rights for the World Cup, that Qatar last year introduced strong heat stress regulations that prohibit outdoor work when the wet-bulb globe temperature exceeds 32.1 degrees. The previous legislation that prohibited work during certain hours of the day even when temperature could be dangerously high beyond those hours.However, this much needed reform came only in 2021, when much of the construction work including building stadiums and surrounding infrastructure were already completed and when many had suffered adverse health consequences doing outside work in the dangerous heat.There have been at least 37 deaths of migrant workers at World Cup construction sites. But many more thousands have also lost their lives during construction of other infrastructure for the World Cup. Visuals of bodies coming home have been a common sight, leading to social media outrage and a recurring theme in news reports. In Kathmandu, the coffins arrive on flights from Doha, and the same planes take off with more migrant workers to Qatar.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/the-qatar-job-mirage/">The Qatar job mirage</a>, Nepali Times<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221114111128/637218939c7e80680e0baa4ejpeg.jpg" alt="" width="937" height="421">Families were left in the dark about what killed their loved one because the deaths were not investigated. 'Died in his sleep’ (सुत्दा सुत्दै मर्यो) has become a colloquial Nepali term and the fatalities were attributed to ‘natural causes’.Mostly, there was nothing natural about them – they were a result of overwork, heat stroke and official apathy. The Nepal government’s compensation scheme from the Worker’s Welfare Fund has been a lifeline for many families of the dead, although those without valid labour permits were ineligible for support. The government also provided free transportation of the coffins back to their villages, which soon became a thriving industry for private companies.At a press conference on 18 May at the launch of its campaign on remedy for migrants, Human Rights Watch screened a <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VWeYy8HD4_A" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v%3DVWeYy8HD4_A&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1653197319218000&amp;usg=AOvVaw32jaO1wCBkt2fDWeWF243e">video </a>capturing the stories of Nepalis who could be potential beneficiaries of such a remedy fund.This includes Mairul Khaitun and Manju Devi, widows of migrant workers struggling to make ends meet and continuing to repay loans that their husbands took for the jobs in Qatar that killed them. According to Khaitun, they gave only his remaining wages to the family after her husband's death."If someone helps me, I will be able to eat properly, live decently. Without help, how can I educate my children?" she asks.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/world-cup-stadium-workers-in-qatar-unpaid/">World Cup stadium workers in Qatar unpaid</a>, Nepali TimesDevi, another widow, says: "You ask, how is it going? Well, it’s just going. We eat whatever we can find and get."FIFA or Qatar cannot do much to undo the emotional and financial toll of the loss of lives and livelihoods as those faced by Khaitun and Devi, but rights activists say the remedy fund would provide some respite to the struggling families.Michael Page, deputy Middle East and North Africa director at Human Rights Watch, said: “Migrant workers including Nepalis suffered serious harm preparing for the FIFA World Cup in Qatar. As part of FIFA’s human rights responsibilities, FIFA should work with Qatar and others to set aside at least $440 million, the same amount as the prize money provided to World Cup teams, that can be used to compensate abused workers.”Remedy is one of the pillars of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights that FIFA adopted in 2016. It has the resources and the responsibility, and should not leave behind victims or their families as the tournament fast approaches.“We know FIFA has the money — they are expected to make $6 billion in revenue for the Qatar World Cup. They can at least dedicate the same amount of money they are paying to football teams with millionaire athletes to address the serial wage theft and unexplained deaths scores of migrant workers faced,” Page added.Read also: <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/home-workers-dead,3229">Home they bring the workers dead</a>, Upasana Khadka<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221114111128/637218959c7e80680e0baa4fjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1366" height="614">A recently launched report <a href="https://www.amnesty.org/en/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/MDE2255862022ENGLISH.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.amnesty.org/en/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/MDE2255862022ENGLISH.pdf&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1653197319218000&amp;usg=AOvVaw1GCnIKLUl5wVweRdFW9XG_">Predictable and Preventable</a> by Amnesty International says the remediation program should be governed in a participatory way following consultation with stakeholders including migrant workers, surviving family members, and trade unions.It needs to be easily accessible to workers and families, many of whom will no longer be in Qatar. The report points to examples from other remediation programs such as those designed for victims of Rana Plaza disaster in Bangladesh.FIFA says that it is currently ‘evaluating the proposal’ for the remedy fund. But rights groups say there is need for those with leverage over FIFA, including football associations, fans and sponsors, to ensure victims of abuse are provided adequate reparations. Football associations have found themselves under increasing pressure to speak up. And a few have set good examples.Most recently at the FIFA congress in Doha, <a href="https://www.hrw.org/news/2022/04/01/no-beautiful-game-without-rights-qatar" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.hrw.org/news/2022/04/01/no-beautiful-game-without-rights-qatar&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1653197319218000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0iWHweuH0FZZCKYvMgp93e">Lise Klaveness</a>, the Norwegian FA President, called out FIFA’s failure to protect human rights when selecting Qatar to host the World Cup, urging it to ensure that migrant workers injured and families of the deceased are cared for.Tim Sparv, a retired Finnish footballer who showed solidarity with the global campaign for remedy call on social media had previously written a compelling piece calling on players to engage more actively, ‘<a href="https://www.theplayerstribune.com/posts/tim-sparv-finland-world-cup-2022-qatar-soccer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.theplayerstribune.com/posts/tim-sparv-finland-world-cup-2022-qatar-soccer&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1653197319218000&amp;usg=AOvVaw2x7HPfH2GBbq5r_s15b04k">We need to talk about Qatar</a>’.“I was unaware of what was really going on in Qatar. I tend to look at big organisations like FIFA and just assume that they know what they’re doing,” Sparv said.Multiple teams including from Norway, Germany and the Netherlands have worn human rights jerseys during matches to protest against migrant rights abuses in Qatar.Read also: <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/death-of-nepali-migrant-workers-in-qatar,1592">Sudden death</a>, Pete Pattisson<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepal-must-now-send-skilled-workers-to-qatar/">Nepal must now send skilled workers to Qatar</a>, Nepali Times<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221114111128/637218989c7e80680e0baa50jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1000" height="750"><figcaption>A homemade flag of Brazil hanging over a street in Bhaktapur in 2018. Photo: MONIKA DEUPALA.</figcaption></figure>As the tournament draws close and the cheers begin, the next six months will see increased pressure on FIFA and the Qatari authorities from fans, players and sponsors to ensure that workers harmed to make the tournament possible are adequately compensated.By speaking up, fans from countries like Nepal where the workers are from also have an important role to ensure that families like that of Khaitun and Devi get some support.As the country prepares to deliver the World Cup and host over 1.2 million visitors, migrant workers who form over 95 per cent of the Qatari workforce will again be indispensable. But there is <a href="https://www.hrw.org/news/2022/03/29/10-questions-journalists-should-ask-fifa-and-qatari-authorities-about-rights-abuses" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.hrw.org/news/2022/03/29/10-questions-journalists-should-ask-fifa-and-qatari-authorities-about-rights-abuses&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1653197319218000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3cUB5molP_y_wNTZmn0rb3">danger</a> that many will again be short-changed.Migrants including Nepalis will be serving as waiters, security guards, housekeepers and drivers, among others during the tournament. Rights group warn that just as in the construction phase of the World Cup when stadium workers who formed less than 1.5 per cent of the total labor force were held at higher standards, only those service sector workers in luxury hotels or football training sites will be held at higher labor standards. The rest, who will also be serving World Cup visitors, might continue to fall between the cracks.With the tournament drawing close, and as construction projects wrap up,  the country is also said to be preparing to send back many workers on long leaves or for good. The worry is that the demobilisation plan may mean workers will be sent back without all their dues being cleared.Citizens of Nepal and other south Asian countries toiled to transform the country from a desert to the gleaming state-of-the-art stadiums, accommodation and other infrastructure as it prepares to host the most popular global sporting event in the world.Rights groups say that had Qatar followed through on its promises for reform and granted workers their basic rights, the World Cup would be viewed much differently -- national pride at having helped enable the tournament that unites the world.Instead, there is a bitter aftertaste about the last decade when scores of workers tied to the World Cup suffered due to the complacency of their own governments, the Qataris and FIFA. Many citizens of Nepal and other countries paid a high price for making the World Cup 2022 possible.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/fifa-a-chance-to-improve-welfare-of-nepali-workers-in-qatar/">FIFA a chance to improve welfare of Nepali workers in Qatar</a>, Upasana Khadka<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepal-welcomes-qatar-labour-reform/">Nepal welcomes Qatar labour reform</a>, Upasana Khadka<a href="https://www.hrw.org/PayUpFIFA">Human Rights Watch Remedy Fund Campaign</a>

#PayUpFIFA campaign launched

Leaked letters from Korea’s Unification Church have revealed its extensive involvement in buying political and media influence worldwide, including links to Nepal’s parties and politicians. Documents obtained by the <a href="https://newstapa.org/eng">Korean Centre for Investigative Journalism</a> (Newstapa) and <a href="https://dunia-asia.org/leaked-true-mother-report-exposes-unification-church-influence-in-nepal-and-north-korea-outreach/">Dunia</a> contain correspondence to and from the controversial religious movement whose leader, 82-year-old <a href="https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/southkorea/politics/20251216/explainer-who-is-han-hak-ja-true-mother-at-center-of-unification-church-scandals">Hak Ja Han</a>, is currently on trial in Seoul for allegedly bribing the wife and associates of disgraced former president Yoon Suk Yeol.&nbsp; The letters and direct messages referenced in the investigation mention three former prime ministers: Madhav Kumar Nepal who has now joined the Nepali Communist Party, K P Oli of the Communist Party of Nepal UML (Unified Marxist-Leninist), and former Maoist ideologue Baburam Bhattarai.&nbsp; The documents detail financial support from the Unification Church (now known as Family Federation for World Peace and Unification) to Nepal Paribar Dal (Nepal Family Party) and its founder <a href="https://reviewnepal.com/national/dhakal-reelected-as-chair-of-pariwar-dal.html">Ek Nath Dhakal,</a> who is a staunch ally of the UML. On Sunday, Dhakal signed an MoU with K P Oli of the UML to cooperate in the March election and beyond. The leaked correspondence concerning Nepal spans the period between the <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/elections-of-by-for-men,4038">first federal elections in 2017</a> till the 2022 polls and contains emails between Dhakal and Yong Jeong Shik, Regional President for Asia of the Unification Church, with urgent requests for funds for campaigning and to support the UML.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260124080120_63bb0a555b9f0676b1301b7a71e9cefda7f3eb69e5fa0ff1249a1bbeec0c17bf.png" data-media-id="editor_5" data-image-id="20260124080120_63bb0a555b9f0676b1301b7a71e9cefda7f3eb69e5fa0ff1249a1bbeec0c17bf" data-rendition-name="original" width="1280" height="598" loading="lazy" alt="Moonie money in Nepal's politics NT"> </figure>  ‘Regarding funding, I am truly sorry, but a minimum of $500,000 is required,’ one of the messages to Yong in the report says. ‘Furthermore, as the election is scheduled for December 7th [2017], I would be very grateful if I could receive it as soon as possible. The initial $500,000 was used for overall election expenses, and the additional $500,000 is intended for campaign activities for the Family Party and supporting key leaders.’ In addition, there are also letters requesting an additional $20,000 per month in ‘maintenance costs for the Nepal Family Party and preparations for the<a href="http://nepalitimes.com/banner/nepals-parties-forge-new-pre-poll-alliances"> 2022 election</a>’.&nbsp; Asked for a reaction to the allegations, Govinda Nath Mishra of the Nepal Paribar Party said: “This is an unnecessary smear campaign against our party. Parties doing good work are always linked to some foreign powers in Nepal to discredit them.” Ek Nath Dhakal has also denied that his party’s affiliation with the UML has anything to do with Unification Church donations. <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/Korean-movement-in-Nepal,2962">He told Nepali Times in an interview in 2016</a>: “The party has links to all faiths, as it has with the unification movement. The Nepal Family Party is a kind of conservative party with a manifesto that promotes family values, interfaith dialogue and harmony. There are 11 political parties supporting Prime Minister Oli. Nepal Family Party is just one of them.” <div class="embed-block"><div><div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"><iframe src="https://cdn.iframe.ly/api/iframe?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fembed%2FMcGp_Mn4fwA%3Fsi%3DM3bVjAnbnelwKwAl&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></div> In another update to Yong, Dhakal describes the UML’s election campaign in 2017 as ‘proceeding very successfully … it appears certain the Unified Marxist-Leninist will achieve a landslide victory’. Dhakal was not contesting directly as a candidate, but piggybacking on the UML <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/house-of-cards-6alq6pvi">which had put him on the proportional representation list</a>, ostensibly in return for campaign financing. He continues: ‘It is certain that I will be elected as a proportional representation member of the National Assembly due to a shortage of female candidates. I discussed the possibility of my election with Prime Minister Madhav and Prime Minister K P Oli … both have confirmed that I could be moved from 5th place [on the PR list] to 1st or 2nd if necessary.’&nbsp; After the 2017 election, the UML formed a coalition with the Maoists and Prime Minister Oli appointed Dhakal Minister for Peace and Reconstruction overseeing Nepal’s post-conflict and post-earthquake activities. During his tenure, Dhakal organised an ‘<a href="http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2018-12/01/c_137644390.htm">Asia-Pacific Summit 2018</a>’ in Kathmandu presided over by Hak Ja Han, wife of Rev Sun Myung Moon, founder of the Unification Church and Universal Peace Federation (UPF). The couple are known in the movement as ‘True Parents’ and Hak Ja Han is referred to as ‘True Mother’. Oli addressed the Kathmandu summit which was attended by 1,500 delegates, including Burmese leader Aung San Suu Kyi and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen. The <a href="https://theannapurnaexpress.com/story/15201/">gathering drew criticism</a> for being a proselytisation exercise, prompting Oli to decline attending a ‘blessing’ ceremony by Hak Ja Han.&nbsp; Ever since, the ‘Holy Wine’ has entered Nepal's political lexicon, and is still used derogatorily to label politicians involved.&nbsp; Nepal Paribar Party’s Govinda Nath Mishra says: “Ek Nath Dhakal has become a member of the House of Representatives twice, and our party has since its inception been close to the UML. We are just continuing that cooperation for this election as well.”  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260124080120_49ed56931f2bd97d75a5c9604e2d4f5cd3474177b302b13db5df2ccbe63994dd.png" data-media-id="editor_12" data-image-id="20260124080120_49ed56931f2bd97d75a5c9604e2d4f5cd3474177b302b13db5df2ccbe63994dd" data-rendition-name="original" width="1318" height="1204" loading="lazy" alt="Moonie money in Nepal's politics NT"> </figure>  The Unification Church has said that the leaked documents are not authentic and were unofficial records created by former Director General of the Unification Church’s International Headquarters Yun Young Ho to ‘flaunt his influence’. The Japanese branch of the Unification Church said in a statement this week: ‘After reviewing the documents believed to be the report in question, we have found factual inaccuracies were added or content modified.’ Milan Kumari Rajbanshi, deputy General-Secretary of the Nepal Paribar Party and former MP denied her party was funded by any outside source, and she was no aware of any correspondence between Dhakal and anyone else.&nbsp; She told Nepali Times: “After the September street protests we spoke to many political parties, including GenZ activists, but the UML was the closest to our values.” Rajbanshi will be campaigning in Jhapa-5 on behalf of K P Oli who will be contesting against former Kathmandu mayor Balen Shah. The Newstapa leak show Dhakal and the Unification Church worked behind the scenes in the 2017 election to influence the &nbsp;elections. One email from Dhakal references this: ‘(If) we can secure a majority in next year’s general election … our wish is to educate all parliamentarians for two years until 2020 and create a constitution centred on Cheon Il Guk.’ Cheon Il Guk (천일국) means ‘One Heavenly Kingdom’ and is the vision of a spiritual nation proclaimed by Sun Myung Moon and his Unification Church, and emphasises family values instead of individualism for global unity under a ‘Heavenly Parent’.&nbsp; The emails reveal that the Church was planning to convince Madhav Nepal and K P Oli to take all 150 coalition legislators to Bangkok to introduce them to its beliefs. That trip did not materialise, but the Church had earlier taken 20 Communist MPs to the Philippines and Thailand for ‘principle education’.&nbsp; In another email to Yong Jeong Shik, Dhakal describes Baburam Bhattarai as being ‘disillusioned with communism’ and that he proposed ‘gathering all minority parties to join the Family Party’. Bhattarai left the Maoists and is contesting from the Pragatisheel Loktantrik Party from his Gorkha constituency in March. Despite its connections with Nepal’s Communists, the Unification Church is known to support conservative politics around the world including through ownership of media like <a href="https://www.washingtontimes.com/">The Washington Times</a> newspaper.&nbsp; Founder Sun Myung Moon was deeply involved in pushing for Korean unification, and the Church has worked with Asian countries that have ties with North Korea. Documents show that the Unification Church had tried to get then UML Chair Madhav Kumar Nepal to Pyongyang, but the Nepal government supposedly under pressure from the South Korean, Japanese and US ambassadors got him to call it off. Madhav Nepal had also insisted that he meet Kim Jong Un, but the North Korean side had said it was not possible. But after Nepal left the UML to form the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Socialist) he met the North Korean Ambassador in the presence of Ek Nath Dhakal to plan a visit in order to work towards Korean unification. A 11-member delegation composed of Nepal, Dhakal, MPs and a newspaper publisher visited North Korea in 2017 (pictured below).  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260123040128_6690244be7aa18e24a4aef825935a7afcaa893b40191f712ab498105e06aaf51.jpg" data-media-id="editor_14" data-image-id="20260123040128_6690244be7aa18e24a4aef825935a7afcaa893b40191f712ab498105e06aaf51" data-rendition-name="original" width="2201" height="1148" loading="lazy" alt="Moonie money in Nepal's politics NT"> </figure>  METICULOUS ARCHIVE An extract from correspondence is indicative of the former prime minister’s links to the Unification Church: ‘Madhav Kumar Nepal … maintains a very close relationship with us and could become Prime Minister again at any time. There is no one who knows us as well or respects the Parents as much as former Prime Minister Madhav does … he is someone who regards the True Parents like God.’ The internal documents of the Unification Church obtained by Newstapa is called the ‘TM [True Mother] Special Report’ and appears to have been prepared for Hak Ja Han. The 3,212-page text provides a chronological account of the Church’s management of politicians internationally, its handling donations, and plans to expand political influence through its affiliated media outlets. The document is a meticulous archive apparently compiled by Yun Young Ho, the former Director General of the Unification Church’s International Headquarters, the organisation’s second-in-command.&nbsp; This suggests church affairs were reported directly to Hak Ja Han. Korean investigators are now focusing on whether Han merely received these reports or issued specific directives based on them. Yun testified during the trial in Seoul that the Church’s regional leaders and local partners would send daily field reports which he would synthesise into a ‘Special Report’ format to provide oral briefings to Han. Hak Ja Han therefore may have been personally involved in the Church’s operations in granular detail. Korean special prosecutors are viewing these documents as critical evidence in her trial to prove that she was directly involved in political lobbying. Last week, during a hearing on the Hak Ja Han bribery case, a regional Church leader admitted to personally drafting segments of the ‘True Parents Correspondence Report’ featured in the document. The ‘TM Special Report’ appears to be a compilation of internal documents reprocessed into a single file and includes emails and direct messaging. Certain periods are missing, leading to gaps in the narrative, raising the possibility that specific portions of the report may have been selectively curated or redacted. &nbsp; <h2>Both Koreas in Nepal</h2>  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2026012304018_962b3169d725dbd3dc820aab16a6ab8d3a083b55174558003d4ccfe97fe7789e.jpg" data-media-id="editor_15" data-image-id="2026012304018_962b3169d725dbd3dc820aab16a6ab8d3a083b55174558003d4ccfe97fe7789e" data-rendition-name="original" width="1750" height="1168" loading="lazy" alt="Moonie money in Nepal's politics NT"> </figure>  Buddhism spread northwards across the Himalaya from Nepal to China and Korea 1,000 years ago, but in the past decades two of Korea’s powerful ideologies have come to Nepal. Nepal’s leftist movement, most notably the Nepal Workers Peasants Party (NWPP) <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/Bhaktapur-dear-leader,3010">inspired by North Korea’s Kim Il Sung’s Juche Idea</a> espouses a nationalist agenda, and has a strong base in Bhaktapur. Meanwhile, South Korea’s Unification Church of Sun Myung Moon has influenced Nepal’s political, administrative and religious spheres.&nbsp; After establishment of Moon’s Universal Peace Federation (UPF) in 2005, the Church has a sizable presence in Nepal. The movement’s leader is Ek Nath Dhakal of the Nepal Paribar Party (right) who is affiliated with the UML and even served as a minister in a UML-Maoist coalition after being nominated as a PR member to Parliament.&nbsp; <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/Korean-movement-in-Nepal,2962">He told this paper in 2016</a>: “I am a Hindu, associated with the Unification Movement. The UPF staged one of its mass weddings at Dashrath Stadium in Kathmandu in 2017 (right). The movement recruits public figures like former president Bidya Devi Bhandari, Madhav Kumar Nepal and others as Ambassadors for Peace. Before he died in 2012 at age 92, Rev Moon had picked Nepal as a ‘model peace nation of God’. The Church says it embraces all religions, and does not even display the Christian cross at its places of worship.&nbsp; While young Nepalis follow South Korean pop culture fever, in Bhaktapur it is Kim Il Sung’s Juche Idea that is the dominant ideology. The Nepal Workers Peasants Party has won just about every district and local election from Bhaktapur, not so much for its politics, but because its representatives have performed well. Bhaktapur’s following of Kim Il Sung is based on Bijukchhe’s vision that his town be self-reliant and deliver development equitably.&nbsp; <h2>A worldwide web</h2>  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2026012304018_5c2949a3715b74f8992a6dcfc305fbaa817a0b834365c737bb81245762d74148.jpg" data-media-id="editor_18" data-image-id="2026012304018_5c2949a3715b74f8992a6dcfc305fbaa817a0b834365c737bb81245762d74148" data-rendition-name="original" width="1750" height="968" loading="lazy" alt="Moonie money in Nepal's politics"> </figure>  In 2022, the Unification Church (Family Federation for World Peace and Unification) arranged a meeting between Yoon Suk Yeol, who was then presidential candidate, and former US Vice President Mike Pence just before South Korean elections. The visit was timed for the ‘World Summit 2022’ hosted by the Universal Peace Federation (UPF), a Unification Church affiliate. The visit was widely covered by the media at the time, but a Newstapa investigation last year confirmed that the Church paid Pence $550,000 to visit Seoul. The visit was designed to bolster Yoon’s diplomatic and security credentials and appeal to religious voters. Yoon knew Pence was a devout Christian, and media at the time reported that both prayed before the meeting. Just like the UPF’s World Summit 2018 in Kathmandu, Cambodian PM Hun Sen was in attendance as was former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. The welcome remark at the Summit was delivered by Yun Young Ho, then-Director General of the Unification Church’s World Headquarters. South Korean Special Prosecutors are currently investigating Yun for allegedly bribing former president Yoon Suk Yeol’s wife Kim Keon Hee.&nbsp; Newstapa also dug up Pence’s financial disclosures filed with the US Office of Government Ethics and the Federal Election Commission and found that Pence reported receiving $550,000 from the UPF for ‘a speaking engagement’ in Seoul in 2022 — an unusually hefty fee. Cambodian Premier Hun Sen has hosted K P Oli several times in Phnom Penh, once as prime minister in 2019, and again last year in August. There seems to be a similar nexus between Hun Sen, the UPF and former President Yoon and his wife Kim Keon Hee. When he became president in 2022, Yoon visited Cambodia with his wife, and South Korea doubled its development assistance to Cambodia to $1.5 billion. The Special Prosecutor in Seoul is investigating allegations that the Unification Church provided funds to Kim Keon Hee in helping a Mekong River project in Cambodia.

Moonie money in Nepal’s politics

The Kathmandu Valley has attracted an exceptional number of outstanding and accomplished foreigners over the decades, but few as extraordinary as Marilyn Silverstone (1929-1999).&nbsp; Frances Klatzel’s book A Portrait of Ourselves, Marilyn Silverstone: From Photojournalist to Buddhist Nun, is a fitting and fascinating biographical celebration of this American woman whose life of unusual choices took her, as the title suggests, from an affluent Jewish childhood in Scarsdale, New York to becoming an acclaimed and adventurous Magnum photographer.&nbsp; Roving the world, her camera captured many of the most iconic events of the 20th century, her images were published in Time, Life, Newsweek, Look, National Geographic, Paris Match, Vogue and other magazines. Following the teachings of Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, Marilyn Silverstone devoted the last twenty years of her eventful life to living quietly and practising Buddhism in Nepal. Ordained as a Buddhist nun, she took vows in the sanctified Solukhumbu precincts of Thubten Choling with Venerable Trulshik Rinpoche in the spring of 1977. Living in Kathmandu until her death in Shechen Monastery, which she helped create, Marilyn wrote: ‘When I look back over the years, although I did not know it at the time, ending my life as a Buddhist nun was logical and inevitable.’&nbsp; Ani Marilyn was a familiar figure amid the sacred spaces of the Valley, the lanes of Boudha and even Kathmandu’s drawing rooms during my early years in Nepal, a large smiling presence draped in maroon robes, dyed sneakers, slightly whiskered, robust.&nbsp; As a wedding gift she gave Tenzin and I an inscribed copy of her slim volume, Ocean of Life, aptly named for the span of her achievements and expansive embrace – editor, translator, writer, filmmaker, photographer, journalist and Buddhist nun. Marilyn’s nephew wrote: ‘Her legacy was that she was always herself no matter what chapter of her life that she was living.’  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260122100124_70d489c3d161f59668f315ede60cbb213d365357b0a9f2d7aad3b537a14dcb5e.png" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="20260122100124_70d489c3d161f59668f315ede60cbb213d365357b0a9f2d7aad3b537a14dcb5e" data-rendition-name="original" width="1164" height="1600" loading="lazy" alt="Ani Marilyn"> <figcaption>Ani Marilyn as a Tibetan Buddhist nun at Shechen Monastery in Boudha.</figcaption> </figure>  Working with a wide range of impeccable sources, Frances Klatzel has assembled first-hand the personal recollections and unsparing insights from Marilyn’s most intimate friends. One of these, Jane Abell Coon, wrote the Introduction. She was a well-known person in 1980s Kathmandu whose husband Carlton Coon served as American Ambassador to Nepal and she simultaneously as American Ambassador in Bangladesh.&nbsp; The book begins with a rare message from the 14th Dalai Lama and a touching Foreword by Venerable Rabjam Rinpoche. It ends with exquisite excerpts from a Buddhist religious tract that Marilyn had translated from its traditional Tibetan text. Marilyn’s initial trip to India was to photograph Ravi Shankar in 1955, the classical sitar maestro. Increasingly fascinated by ‘the complex and compassionate culture’ of Tibet, her Himalayan archives include images throughout India, Nepal, Sikkim and Bhutan.&nbsp; The first internationally accredited photojournalist to base herself in India, from 1959 Marilyn lived in Bombay then Delhi, with her lifelong partner Frank Moraes, the Goan journalist, writer, commentator and first Indian editor of the Times of India after Independence. INDIAN INFLUENCERS I remember being taken to meet the legendary Frank Moraes in 1973, by then politically exiled in Marilyn’s elegant but chaotic London house, a magnet for South Asian intellectuals. She was not there, but Frank’s son the poet Dom Moraes was slumped desultory on a sagging sofa. My impression of Frank was well-dressed, polite and slightly distracted. Marilyn’s talent for friendship and wide network of Indian influencers and princely connections gave her unique access to historic events, as well as recording refugees, rituals, droughts, floods, famines and funerals. In addition to maharajahs and global leaders, her images portray personal moments, ordinary people, unflinching pain and flashes of joy. She said: ‘In my job, the closer you get to people, the better off you are.’ This book is illustrated with a thrilling trove of pictures of and by Marilyn, many of which reflect the impact of Henri Cartier-Bresson who signed her up as one of the first women to join his prestigious Magnum photo cooperative.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260122100124_6dfdef41da5945aea0a8bbd8c1514af5de2adb36361d4e20c29914c59f2039e0.png" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="20260122100124_6dfdef41da5945aea0a8bbd8c1514af5de2adb36361d4e20c29914c59f2039e0" data-rendition-name="original" width="2124" height="1404" loading="lazy" alt="Ani Marilyn"> </figure>  Her assignments ranged across warzones in Vietnam, the Shah of Iran’s coronation, and Russian tanks rolling into Prague. Marilyn’s 1960s involved constant travel, her Magnum beat was the ‘Far East’, from Pakistan and Bangladesh to China, Korea, and Japan.&nbsp; With a knack at being in the right place at the right time, Marilyn was the only western woman journalist to record the arrival from Lhasa into ‘safety and exile’ of the young Dalai Lama in 1959. She was at Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru’s funeral in Delhi, the Chogyal of Sikkim’s marriage to Hope Cooke, and with Jacqueline Kennedy on a small boat at the Lake Palace of Udaipur.&nbsp; Marilyn snapped the Pope giving blessings in Bombay, Mother Teresa attending to the poor, and the Beatles on their way to meet the Maharishi. With Frank, she travelled to Africa and shot Emperor Haile Selassie in Ethiopia, Nigeria’s independence celebrations, and a very old and solar-topied Dr Albert Schweitzer in his jungle hospital in Gabon.&nbsp; A Portrait of Ourselves, Marilyn Silverstone: From Photojournalist to Buddhist Nun, is a highly recommended tribute to an inspirational life, told with discerning honesty and private perceptions by those who knew her best.&nbsp; Her monastic years living in Nepal continued to feature travel, hard work, undiminished curiosity, dogged fights for right, uncompromising support for others, disdain for conformity and battles with ill health, but all with her characteristic good humour. Marilyn leaves us with some sound advice in her own words: “I can say that I did it all. The secret though is just keep walking through life without analysing it too much or clinging to it too much. Just walk on.” &nbsp;&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260122100140_dc0c465e462bd14e92b2a2e79b5349f23fa039bcda81cc02a9a70adbcee35c7b.jpg" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="20260122100140_dc0c465e462bd14e92b2a2e79b5349f23fa039bcda81cc02a9a70adbcee35c7b" data-rendition-name="original" width="1136" height="702" loading="lazy" alt="marilyn silverstone"> </figure>

“Just walk on”

Bhairav is the fierce manifestation of Lord Shiva, and his strength is depicted in a fearsome face but he is also a protector and guardian. There are eight forms of Bhairav in Kathmandu, and they are all featured in Mukesh Shrestha’s exhibition Bhairav Bhav at Gallery 108 in Darbar Marg. The artist was moved to contemplate the violent September protests through this series of paintings.&nbsp; “The GenZ protests exposed the greedy and aggressive side of leaders in which many young Nepalis lost their lives. Bhairav teaches people that forms of aggression and peace can go hand in hand, and peace can be chosen,” Shrestha explains. The artworks on display have a distinct palette of yellow, black and white, symbolising peace even during turbulent times. “Yellow is an auspicious colour for Hindus and Buddhists, it also has religious significance,” he says. Each painting is imbued by the black walls of the gallery and spotlight with warm lights. Says gallery manager Pooja Mahato, “The backdrop is black deliberately so that the visitors’ focus goes more to the artwork and less on the surrounding.”  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2026012008018_ac2e3090a926cb57fca481d580d1c087b43d392299e2d99231a6044a05696964.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="2026012008018_ac2e3090a926cb57fca481d580d1c087b43d392299e2d99231a6044a05696964" data-rendition-name="original" width="2784" height="3984" loading="lazy" alt="Bhairav art review"> </figure>  Each of the paintings depicts Bhairav’s face in the real form but the bodies are imagined by the artist. This distinction is also made by the use of colours on the face while the body is conspicuously black and white. As Bhairav is one of Lord Shiva’s forms, serpents are an essential part of the portraits. The pieces on Kal Bhairav of Kathmandu Darbar Square and Bagh Bhairav of Kirtipur ooze power from every angle. Kal Bhairav is the Lord of time, and the Bagh Bhairav represents the ferocity of the tiger. Meanwhile, Unmatta Bhairav, also known as Digambar sacrificed the greed for life and is depicted naked. Couples who do not have children are blessed with offspring if they worship this Bhairav avatar. Then there is Batuk Bhairav, the childish god with a happy face. The blue here creates a vibrant, ritualistic visage even as it emotes calmness. “It is believed that Bhairav came in this child-like form to fool the demons to destroy them, and is represented through small hands and feet,” explains Mahato.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2026012008018_e1f25fe3e0d9431df47cd8f76182649e969d511298c17c0c92179475e8008809.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="2026012008018_e1f25fe3e0d9431df47cd8f76182649e969d511298c17c0c92179475e8008809" data-rendition-name="original" width="2120" height="3728" loading="lazy" alt="Bhairav art review"> </figure>  Shweta Bhairav's face is also depicted exactly the same as it is in Kathmandu Darbar Square. Its body includes the feet of Bhramayani Devi, one of the forms of Nava Durga. It is believed that this form of Bhairav is granted entry in Kathmandu only after the welcome of Bhramayani Devi.&nbsp; Shweta Bhairav was wrongly identified as the Akash Bhairav when it was chosen as the motif for Royal Nepal Airlines 60 years ago. Despite this, the carrier’s aircraft still carry the wrong Bhairav on their fuselage. Shanta Bhairav, meanwhile, entered Kathmandu Valley in the form of a human to meet his beloved, Lassi. After agreeing to take the role of the protector for children as many were lost, he was allowed to live in the Valley.&nbsp; The paintings also represent peace and tranquility: lotus flowers emerging from the heads of a male and female body, and military tanks below them. Says Mukesh Shrestha, “Each artwork is a journey from ignorance to knowledge. Whatever we think, we become. If we think of peace, we become peaceful, but if we think of destruction, we become destructive.” Bhairav Bhav By Mukesh Shrestha Gallery 108, Darbar Marg Until 31 January 11am-7pm (Mondays by appointment)

The power of peace

The pale green ice on the top of the lake gleams in the pale January sunlight. The dark waters beneath are visible through the translucent frozen surface. This is Thulagi Glacial Lake at the foot of Mt Manaslu in central Nepal, classified as one of the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/danger-nepal-s-glacial-lakes-are-filling-up">most dangerous lakes </a>to appear in the Himalaya due to climate heating.&nbsp; The place is breathtaking not just because of its 4,050m altitude, but the scenery all around. The beauty belies the threat this expanding lake poses downstream along the Marsyangdi Valley. &nbsp; The lake lies at the terminus of the 4.5km long Thulagi Glacier. The local Gurung inhabitants call it Dona Tal. They say it started appearing in the 1960s. Local guide Chandra Bahadur Gurung, 47, has been ferrying trekkers to the spot for about 20 years.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260122100136_4d3c25c9b4f6eaff3e538b36346471c301d38338514bfdfa9ee63ccd77d20489.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="20260122100136_4d3c25c9b4f6eaff3e538b36346471c301d38338514bfdfa9ee63ccd77d20489" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Thulagi glof"> <figcaption>Yaks graze below Thulagi Himal (7,059m) and Mt Manaslu (8,163m) along the Dona Khola that drains the lake.</figcaption> </figure>  “Dona used to be small, but it has now grown bigger,” he says, gesturing to how the glacier has receded and shrunk. Trekkers used to be able to go to the other side, but now the glacier is riddled with ponds and boulders falling off the moraine that make it dangerous.&nbsp; Gurung adds rather matter-of-factly: “The lake will burst sooner or later.”&nbsp; Kathmandu-based International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) has been studying Thulagi for the past two decades. Topographic maps from the 1960s and early satellite images show the lake being much smaller.&nbsp; When the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/nepal-s-resource-curse">Marsyangdi Hydropower Project</a> project was being built in 1994, the German Institute of Geology and Natural Resources with the Department of Hydrology and Meteorology measured the lake to be already 2km in length. More recent surveys show the lake has increased its size since then to more than 1 sq km. &nbsp; The lake is among 47 <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/meltpools-in-the-himalaya">dangerous glacial lakes in Nepal and Tibet </a>&nbsp;identified by ICIMOD in 2020 due to its size, the risk of landslides and avalanches, and the gradual collapse of the lake’s ice-core moraine dam.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260122100136_9b9fea3665494614c2d89e4202c735fd642a13552d67ca2be3da5c390320ca9b.jpg" data-media-id="editor_4" data-image-id="20260122100136_9b9fea3665494614c2d89e4202c735fd642a13552d67ca2be3da5c390320ca9b" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Thulagi glof"> <figcaption>Local guide Chandra Bahadur Gurung has been taking trekkers up to Thulagi Lake for 20 years.</figcaption> </figure>  In 2018 a team of glaciologists led by Umesh K Haritasya <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/10/5/798">published a journal article</a> about the evolution of three glacial lakes including Thulagi, Lower Barun, and Imja. Even back in 1976, Thulagi was twice the size of <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/from-nepali-press/Diverting-danger,3172">Imja glacial lake</a> in the Khumbu and six times the size of the Lower Barun. The team measured the lake’s depth at 79m, and calculated that it held 36.1 million m3 of water. Since then, Thulagi has been growing at a slower rate than the other two lakes because it is shielded by shadows of mountains. There is also not as much glacial calving in the narrow valley.&nbsp; Nonetheless, scientists and experts have long warned that a Glacial Lake Outburst Flood (GLOF) from Thulagi poses a big risk to four hydropower projects on the Marsyangdi and settlements like Besisahar and Dumre (map).  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260125130136_eac3ccf38d2f91619825ab977bb21ea3eee84d6e87939721f9a8dbb7f0f22504.jpg" data-media-id="editor_7" data-image-id="20260125130136_eac3ccf38d2f91619825ab977bb21ea3eee84d6e87939721f9a8dbb7f0f22504" data-rendition-name="original" width="2076" height="1444" loading="lazy" alt="Thulagi map"> </figure>  The lake feeds into Dona Khola, a tributary of the Marsyangdi where the 49.9MW Dona Khola hydropower project is being built at a cost of Rs10 billion. Another 42MW Super Dona Khola project is planned on the river. “One of the trigger points that could lead to a glacial lake outburst could be the steep lateral moraine, which might be weakened by rapidly melting permafrost,” says Scott Watson, a University of Leeds researcher who was part of the team that conducted the 2018 study. Locals are already witnessing what Watson describes. They say that it was easy to reach Thulagi’s headwaters even until a few years ago, but that is now dangerous because of ice and rockfalls.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260122100136_217a1951a620e8efe11e5936600be172874976a0c04a1031495cf6687ce8f82c.jpg" data-media-id="editor_8" data-image-id="20260122100136_217a1951a620e8efe11e5936600be172874976a0c04a1031495cf6687ce8f82c" data-rendition-name="original" width="1426" height="1070" loading="lazy" alt="Thulagi glof"> <figcaption>The 50MW Upper Marsyangdi Hydropower Project station in Lamjung. A Thulagi Lake outburst would damage four hydropower projects on the Marsyangdi and its tributaries.</figcaption> </figure>  GLOF WARNING&nbsp; Glaciologist Rijan Bhakta Kayastha has been studying Thulagi since 1994, and was part of a team that discovered that the lake’s terminal moraine was made up of rocky soil on top and ice at its core.&nbsp; In 2020, Kayastha's team published a study that modelled the route of a possible GLOF. They found that if the lake burst, it would take 2.5 hours to reach Dharapani, and 4 hours to reach Bahundanda 39km downstream. The surge would be 13.7m high at Dharapani and 15m by the time it reached Taal, the village most at risk because it is situated only a few metres above the Marsyangdi. ‘Considering the size of the Thulagi glacial lake and its dam, it seems unlikely that a rock fall or avalanche would cause the lake to breach the moraine dam,” concluded the study. “But an earthquake or climate change would require a separate study. At present, there is no immediate or imminent threat of this glacier bursting.” MEMORIES OF 2021 Across Manang valley, residents are haunted by the memories of the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/himalayan-floods-a-sign-of-worse-to-come">2021 flood on the Marsyangdi</a> that swept away parts of Chame, Dharapani, Naso, and Taal villages.&nbsp; Kamarkali Gurung, grew up on the banks of the Marsyangdi in Dharapani, and had never imagined that the tranquil river she knew could become such a monster. She had saved up to build her own three-story property with 17 rooms.&nbsp; Her family was away that June evening when the flood swept away her hotel. “Not even a spoon remained, everything was gone,” says Kamarkali. “Losing the hotel hurt like losing a loved one. The Marsyangdi flows through my house now, I can never go back.”&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260122100136_925087c286f18a0374f5d2fae5cc528b6e8b5a55e02813e470c49b923b4f193a.jpg" data-media-id="editor_10" data-image-id="20260122100136_925087c286f18a0374f5d2fae5cc528b6e8b5a55e02813e470c49b923b4f193a" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Thulagi glof"> <figcaption>SURVIVORS: Kamarkali Gurung's hotel was swept away by the 2021 flood on the Marsyangdi. She now operates her hotel from a rented house in Dharapani.</figcaption> </figure>  Surendra Gurung, also a hotelier, was in Dharapani the night of the flood, and can still remember the fear as the river roared towards the village. “I did not know if I would live or die,” he says.&nbsp; Sirantal village was merely 10m above the Marsyangdi, and was completely destroyed by the flood. Thirty-two people were rescued by army helicopters, and most of the families have now relocated to Taal.&nbsp; One of them is Singha Bahadur Gurung who also ran a lodge for 20 years. “We did not have to buy anything except rice, the soil in Sirantal was so fertile,” he remembers.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260122100136_9da9290e59a6d565ae9cb81a850f725ccd937fd658d0adfabccfe4114ec94bed.jpg" data-media-id="editor_11" data-image-id="20260122100136_9da9290e59a6d565ae9cb81a850f725ccd937fd658d0adfabccfe4114ec94bed" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Thulagi glof"> <figcaption>Singha Bahadur Gurung operated a lodge in Sirantal before the flood swept it away in 2021.</figcaption> </figure>  Marsyangdi now flows through where Singha Gurung’s village used to be. “Ever since the flood, I am terrified every time it rains from June to August,” he says.&nbsp; The 2021 flood was during the monsoon, and was caused by unusually heavy rainfall in the catchment. A GLOF on the Marsyangdi would be much more destructive. Roshni Ghale, 46, runs a hotel in Taal, and escaped with her family to a nearby cave as the flood engulfed nearby homes.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260122100136_7a6b74a4c33b597e2815b035ec5d56ffea35923016518f0fb35bcc4fc925dccd.jpg" data-media-id="editor_12" data-image-id="20260122100136_7a6b74a4c33b597e2815b035ec5d56ffea35923016518f0fb35bcc4fc925dccd" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Thulagi glof"> <figcaption>Roshni Ghale spent six months after the 2021 flood rebuilding her hotel in Taal. Tourism has steadily picked up in the four years since the flood. </figcaption> </figure>  “We spent the next six months after the flood rebuilding our lives, going to bed hungry many a night,” she recalls. In the four years since, tourism has picked up again, but the<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/the-unseen-wounds-of-climate-disasters"> community is still traumatised</a>. In the wake of the floods, the government had begun talks to rehabilitate and repatriate the community, but until now, they have been <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/multimedia/from-one-disaster-to-the-next">empty promises</a>. In any case, the people here, most of them experienced hoteliers whose livelihood depends on tourism, are unwilling to uproot their lives and start over elsewhere.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20260122100136_9a13c863422806eefdcd826ed12f9906e2372bd8f60f83c5351652eccf050384.jpg" data-media-id="editor_15" data-image-id="20260122100136_9a13c863422806eefdcd826ed12f9906e2372bd8f60f83c5351652eccf050384" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="844" loading="lazy" alt="Thulagi glof"> <figcaption>Most of the survivors of the 2021 flood on the Marsyangdi from villages like Sirantal have relocated to the upstream village of Taal, which itself was hit by a monsoon flood in 2021.</figcaption> </figure>  DISASTER PREPAREDNESS Even though studies have assessed the risk of GLOFs in Manang and across Nepal, and warned about the damage that such floods could cause, it took until 2021 for early warning systems to be installed on the banks of the Marsyangdi and in the town of Taal.&nbsp; But beyond that, there has been little preparedness. Early warning systems and disaster preparedness are necessary not just along the Marsyangdi but also at and around Thulagi itself, say experts. Locals here are becoming increasingly aware of the risk posed by the expanding lake up the valley, but are reluctant to leave homes and communities that they have lived in for generations. The hydropower projects on the Dona Khola promises jobs, and the local government is upgrading the hiking trail to Thulagi Lake which has become a tourist attraction. “Manang now gets <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/too-little-snow-too-much-rain">too little snow and too much rain</a>, and the Marsyangdi charts its own course,” says Min Rashi Gurung, chair of Ward-1 of Naso rural municipality, where Thulagi is located. &nbsp; But help may be on the way.Last year, the Green Climate Fund (GCF) approved a $36.1 million grant to help Nepal reduce risk of GLOFs in Thulagi and four other glacial lakes. The project is managed by the government and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). The project is set to begin next fiscal year, and will reduce the water level in the four glacial lakes including Thulagi, similar to what was done in Imja and Tso Rolpa, says Dinkar Kayastha at the Department of Hydrology and Meteorology. &nbsp; Centre for Investigative Journalism - Nepal