<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221114101124/63720a1a9c7e80680e0b5582jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="960" height="640"/><figcaption>Photo: MONIKA DEUPALA</figcaption></figure>While I was working in the National Planning Commission, I was assigned a branch officer to assist me professionally. I found after we began working together that my assistant neither knew how to access emails or set up my daily schedule.All my assistant would do was pore over books to pass exams in order to get promoted. The promotion would go through, not as a result of my subordinate’s professional abilities, but on the basis of a three-hour exam filled with pages of rote-learning.I have constantly questioned how this process is justified.This is one of many examples of the procedural inconsistencies that I have encountered upon a close analysis of Nepal’s <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/business-bureaucracy-and-politicians-all-plundering-the-chure/">bureaucratic mechanism</a>— both as someone in government and out of it.The primary responsibility of a civil servant is to implement the law, and above all, serve the people to the bet of their ability. These responsibilities, however, seem to be contrary to the attitude of many Nepali government employees.Indeed, I have often noticed that they have an <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/regular-columns/One-To-Many/just-because-there-is-draft-constitution,521" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">air of superiority</a> over ordinary citizens — as if the public they are supposed to serve as being beneath them and the positions they occupy.This is not to say that there are not capable, <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepals-local-governments-lead-from-the-front/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">diligent public officials</a> serving the people. But they are heavily outnumbered by the unqualified, under-motivated and incompetent. They get to their posts through these perfunctory tests, personal connection, or political affiliation.This <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/from-the-nepali-press/corruption-deep-rooted-in-government/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">political-bureaucratic collusion</a> exists even after new employees enter government service and after their retirement, where they get to hop from one government commission to another.Much prestige is assigned to the fact that somebody has passed Nepal’s public service exam. It guarantees one financial and job security for the next two decades. But as much importance is given to the tests, there is little way through which the exam can evaluate if potential government staff can handle the responsibility of their work.And once one passes the exams and enters public service, there is no practice of evaluating whether employees are up-to-date with the technology required to fulfil their jobs, nor is there any mechanism to evaluate them on the basis of their work.In fact, any consequences that government employees might face for their professional actions is when they get transferred, wherein they are sent off to work in remote districts. Ironically, the work done during their transfer later becomes a basis for one’s promotion, making the entire process a reward instead of punishment.Access to public service in Nepal depends largely upon the leverage that one has. Indeed, if I were to go into any government office without my government identification, it would be difficult to access any service.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/everything-is-political/">“Everything is political”</a>, Durga KarkiWhile my MP badge greases the wheels of bureaucracy these days, those who are not in my position need to instead grease palms to get things done. And others who know people in the right places might make back channel ‘arrangements’ to get what they need.The onus of streamlining our <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/regular-columns/One-To-Many/%20civil-servants-holding-PR-is-not-a-problem-but-lack-of-accountability-is,535" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">deteriorating bureaucracy </a>lies in both civil servants and political leadership who seek votes through promises of ‘change’. Once they get elected, the success or failure of the political leadership depends on how their subordinates translate their vision into action.In Nepal, the effect of <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/reinstate-remove-repeat/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">changing governments</a> extends to the bureaucracy. There have been instances where public service workers have thwarted the plans of politicians by citing their agenda as not being in line with the law.Conversely, politicians have often unnecessarily intervened to transfer employees who are not aligned with their party interests, or refuse to carry out unethical actions.As a result, public service workers use precious time to question whether they should fulfil their professional responsibilities or play nice with their new bosses by not rocking the boat.Government officers have a duty to be objective and transparent about the work they are doing. They need to be well informed about the legal and political red tape in the bureaucracy since they are the ones who draft bills that are tabled in Parliament.The bills therefore serve the interest and preferences of a few individuals working in civil service.  The role of a parliamentarian is limited to voting either for or against the bill.We must now focus on if — or how much — discretionary power we should give to civil servants. Nepal’s Parliament is discussing this matter at present, along with other reforms to the work culture of public service officers.Indeed, the entire bureaucratic system needs a complete overhaul and things will only improve when employees are transferred, promoted, rewarded and punished on the basis of the outcome of their work.It is also a good idea for public offices to adopt a system of Terms of Reference (TOR) wherein an employee in a certain position must complete a targeted amount of work while holding a position.The nature of public service means that civil servants are permanently a part of government. They have many facilities at their disposal: from separate hospitals, financial security during crises, and opportunities to travel abroad. All of this is paid for with Nepali taxpayers’ money.Nepal’s public service workers must be made to understand that bureaucratic problems within our system of government must under no circumstances interfere with the services that Nepali taxpayers are entitled to.Read also, <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/all-politics-is-local/">All politics is local</a>, Sahina ShresthaBimala Rai Paudyal, PhD, is a member of the National Assembly.

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Nepal's uncivil servants

<img width="1044" height="1258" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109121136/636b90ca9c7e80680e06f0adjpeg.jpg" alt=""/>The Covid-19 crisis has accelerated the digitisation process of government services from <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=14608#.YLXHbC8RoWo">telehealth</a> to telework, online meetings to <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/learning-during-the-pandemic-in-nepal/">remote education</a>. Rarely in modern history have we seen so many virtual experiments in governance around the world rolled out at such a pace and scale.Industrial age governance, which dominated public sector organisations in the past century acted as a drag on digital transformation. But the pandemic has hastened the shift towards a digital economy.Nepal’s own <a href="https://mocit.gov.np/application/resources/admin/uploads/source/EConsultation/EN%20Digital%20Nepal%20Framework%20V8.4%2015%20July%20%202019.pdf">Digital Nepal Framework (DGN)</a> came into the policy radar during the tenure of Yubaraj Khatiwada who held the two important cabinet portfolios related to the agenda- Ministry of Finance, and Ministry of Information and Communication Technology. After Khatiwada was appointed ambassador to the United States, apart from one-off <a href="https://thehimalayantimes.com/business/government-releases-full-version-of-nagarik-app">progress</a> , focus has not been on tougher issues of fundamentally re-engineering public service delivery and institutionalising digital services. The momentum has therefore been lost on planning for a digital framework, <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/online-classes-may-widen-digital-divide/">addressing the digital divide</a> between municipalities and inadequate digital skills, the lack of governance framework, and absence of champions in the government.  The DGN requires strong inter-departmental ownership, which it has yet to receive. It has not been popular with senior bureaucrats, and department bosses because it tramples on their fiefdoms. The steering committee organised to take it forward is under-resourced, and extrapolates the DGN framework document as a replica translation of an IT plan developed to strengthen public service delivery in the country. Whilst digital and IT are not the same, the DGN is designed to establish an overall superstructure for digital services, often requiring a high-level view of interactions among people, process and digital infrastructure.Says <a href="https://twitter.com/WorldBankNepal/status/1296264530633224192?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1296264530633224192%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2F54iventures.com%2Fa-journey-accelerated-by-covid19%2F">Faris Hadad Zervos</a>, country director of the World Bank for Maldives, Nepal and Sri Lanka: “As<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Nepal?src=hashtag_click"> Nepal</a> responds to the Covid-19 crisis, digital development will play an even greater role to build back better, decrease inequality, increase access and opportunity.” <img width="640" height="900" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109121136/636b90ce9c7e80680e06f0aejpeg.jpg" alt="">Very few  subnational governments in Nepal today have the required digital infrastructure. The magnitude of the challenge is evident as <a href="http://documents1.worldbank.org/curated/en/485591576101383264/pdf/Nepal-Development-Update-Envisioning-a-Future-Data-Ecosystem-in-Federal-Nepal.pdf">a survey of 115 local governments</a> showed that many rural and urban municipalities lacked internet access or electricity via the national grid or generators” <figure><img width="745" height="445" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109121136/636b90d09c7e80680e06f0afjpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption> Internet and electricity access for local government. Source: Nepal Development Update (2019), the World Bank </figcaption></figure>Most local governments do not have enough fiscal cushion to finance <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/now-a-digital-karnali/">digital connectivity</a> and rely on federal and provincial contributions. Persistent federal-municipal divide is therefore not helping digital transformation. These limitations will hinder future connectivity, and widen the digital divide. Effort will need to go beyond infrastructure, however, to also provide enough incentives to government agencies/actors, businesses and households to connect with the full range of digital services. National and local leadership will need to address existing barriers to adoption, such as the lack of digital skills and capabilities.Institutionalising digital services can help the government improve delivery of health and education in geophysically diverse Nepal to ‘build back better’ after the pandemic, thus supporting social inclusion and decentralisation in the young republic. In addition to an inclusive economy, digitising government services can make the country attractive to foreign investors. <figure><img width="768" height="335" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109121136/636b90d29c7e80680e06f0b0jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption>E-Government Development Index and Foreign Direct Investment (FDI). Source: IMF (2021) - How e-Government services can pay dividends</figcaption></figure>Although Nepal has a relatively high Digital Adoption Index and a modest Global Innovation Index in its peer-group, the use of digital signatures, and governance framework considered as the bedrocks to advance digitisation of government services is at a nascent stage. The UN E-Government Development Index 2020 ranks Nepal 132nd  among 193 countries on e-government development.  <figure><img width="760" height="450" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109121136/636b90d49c7e80680e06f0b1jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption>Digital Adoption Index and Global Innovation Index. Source: Nepal Development Update (2019), the World Bank </figcaption></figure>Of course, it is not realistic to expect that the government will leap-frog to higher levels of digital maturity overnight. Institutionalising new technologies and digital governance will require coordinated action between the  government, development partners and the societal ecosystem as a whole.The post-pandemic reality will require the Nepal government to take a policy and regulatory lead in digitising services. The government will have to lead by example synchronising an enabling environment for <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-e-shopping-booms-under-covid-19/">e-payment systems</a>, <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/long-distance-medicine-in-nepal,3521">telehealth</a>, demand for digital services, including<a href="https://kathmandupost.com/columns/2020/09/14/the-future-of-the-classroom-is-online"> online education</a>. We must not let the past shackle us and move confidently ahead to implement transformational change in state services through digital processes. As <a href="https://www.ynharari.com/">Yuval Noah Harari</a> says: ‘Future historians will see Covid-19 as a turning point in the history of the 21st century. But which way we turn is up to us.’  For Nepal, as immobility grips the economy and traditional processes are disengaged, it is fitting to ask if the government will cling to the past, or advance towards a bold new digital future.  Ashutosh M Dixit is an economist based in Nepal.

Covid crisis can spur digitisation

<figure><img width="800" height="534" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111011114/636ccce29c7e80680e08bc47jpeg.jpg" alt=""/><figcaption></figcaption></figure>For those growing up in the 1980s in Kathmandu, the 'Green Belt' became a familiar term as poplars rose up along the Ring Road. Over the years, this strip of green gave Kathmandu some breathing space as the city grew at breakneck speed.Slowly, encroachment, carelessness and road expansion decimated the trees. The poplars were the first to go, then the jacarandas that lined the streets were cut, too.From a Green Belt Kathmandu has become a Dust Bowl. But all is not lost, the tree-lined Darbar Marg to neighbourhood beautification at Narayan Chaur have shown that if communities get together it is possible to revive the Valley’s lungs. Kathmandu will benefit from developing a series of linked water bodies, open spaces, parks and patches of urban forests, by not only connecting fragmented green spaces but also increase their <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/ecosystem-services" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.britannica.com/science/ecosystem-services&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1613961396459000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHNy6efdfO2ocEdezKqw7uT7zdIvA">ecosystem services</a>, a concept that gives economic value to restoring nature. <figure><img width="900" height="600" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111011114/636ccce59c7e80680e08bc48jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Lack of open, green spaces takes a daily toll on the lives of the residents who have limited space for walking or other social activities. The abject lack of greenery in Kathmandu is a contributing factor to not just physiological but also psychological stress.  Sprawling, insensitive and haphazard development over the years have over-run what remained of open spaces. More recently, Kathmandu has experienced annual flooding during monsoon and extreme temperatures, a new phenomenon for the city’s residents. According to the World Economic Forum, access to green open space and a feeling of social connection creates liveable and vibrant cities. The small open spaces that remain are not a result of planning but due to litigation (Tinkune) or neglect (Tundikhkel). But even here, they provide people a place to unwind and de-stress with friends and family. The new corridors long the Bagmati, Dhobi Khola and other rivulets have constricted the floodplains, but at least the banks are tree-lined. <figure><img width="1620" height="1326" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111011114/636ccce79c7e80680e08bc49jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Tree have many obvious positive aspects like emitting oxygen, muffling noise pollution, moderating temperature. But also little-known benefits like releasing essential oils like <a href="http://forest-therapy.net/healthbenefits.html#:~:text=The%20Power%20of%20Phytoncides,from%20harmful%20insects%20and%20germs." data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://forest-therapy.net/healthbenefits.html%23:~:text%3DThe%2520Power%2520of%2520Phytoncides,from%2520harmful%2520insects%2520and%2520germs.&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1613961396459000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEBeJr9Bu62qWjZE3KlyEK_kbeYiQ">phytoncides</a>, which help physical and mental wellbeing in humans.  While Kathmandu has not yet seen a campaign that calls for the protection and preservation of nature, we have in the recent years seen some movement around keeping open spaces intact. For many Kathmandu residents, the realisation sank in after the 2015 earthquake. “It is important to tell the masses how our open spaces are being encroached upon and why they should be preserved,” says Vijaya Shrestha, who coordinated the <a href="https://kathmandupost.com/valley/2019/11/03/occupy-tundikhel-hopes-to-reclaim-the-public-spaces-that-are-being-encroached-upon" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://kathmandupost.com/valley/2019/11/03/occupy-tundikhel-hopes-to-reclaim-the-public-spaces-that-are-being-encroached-upon&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1613961396459000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHdN6c71qc2W6gJlrcRR7hbLQJmRg">Occupy Tundikhel campaign</a>. Organised by a youth group, it was an attempt to spread awareness about the importance of open spaces of which Tundikhel was a prominent symbol. The historical and cultural importance of this once-vast maidan pre-dates its function as a military parade ground. But Tundikhel has been steadily encroached upon by the Army, and it is now only a sliver of its former expanse.  <figure><img width="900" height="600" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111011114/636ccceb9c7e80680e08bc4ajpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Restoring it to its original boundary would not only provide Kathmandu with lungs, but also preserve its historical significance, as well as serve as a refuge in future disasters as it did in the 1934 and 2015 earthquakes. The Kathmandu Valley Development Authority has identified <a href="http://www.kvda.gov.np/documents/Document_201603060220.pdf" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://www.kvda.gov.np/documents/Document_201603060220.pdf&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1613961396459000&amp;usg=AFQjCNG815pF4cE_1ijidwisGrC2XpBHOA">887 open spaces</a> within the Kathmandu Valley: 488 sites in Kathmandu, 345 in Lalitpur, and 53 in Bhaktapur. Among these, 58% of the area is usable for public activities. These open spaces vary in size, services, and function. But identifying open spaces alone cannot guarantee their protection unless the feeling of ownership can be developed among the communities.Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) has been developing a plan to carve out 36 parks of varying sizes and services in the city, in collaboration with 11 municipalities to develop other green spaces around the valley. So far, the plans have been restricts to maps and their sustainable management will be a challenge. Issues of ownership are unclear, and the lack of belongingness can lead to poor maintenance, commercialisation and encroachment. In some cases, open space development has turned into <a href="https://books.openedition.org/pressesinalco/457?lang=en#:~:text=For%20Baviskar%20(2011a)%2C%20bourgeois,conservation%20agenda%20(protected%20parks%2C%20sanctuaries" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://books.openedition.org/pressesinalco/457?lang%3Den%23:~:text%3DFor%2520Baviskar%2520(2011a)%252C%2520bourgeois,conservation%2520agenda%2520(protected%2520parks%252C%2520sanctuaries&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1613961396459000&amp;usg=AFQjCNH0o98Ms0HISZLOJy4IV1uO901PeA">bourgeois environmentalism</a>--with high boundary walls, restricted opening times, and fees that favour a few well-off people. This deprives ordinary citizens from access to greenery. The valley’s open spaces are fragmented, and unplanned urbanisation has left them disconnected with each other. They can be linked through <a href="http://www.futura-sciences.us/dico/d/sustainable-development-ecological-corridor-50000683/#:~:text=An%20ecological%20corridor%2C%20which%20is,dependent%20on%20a%20single%20environment" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://www.futura-sciences.us/dico/d/sustainable-development-ecological-corridor-50000683/%23:~:text%3DAn%2520ecological%2520corridor%252C%2520which%2520is,dependent%2520on%2520a%2520single%2520environment&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1613961396459000&amp;usg=AFQjCNG_gwjfaTuWzzPYurx3rDO8_4STqQ">ecological corridors</a> that help plants and animals spread, migrate, as well as rehabilitate environments. <figure><img width="900" height="600" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111011114/636ccced9c7e80680e08bc4bjpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Kathmandu’s river corridors have been designed purely for vehicular traffic. However, we can develop riverbanks as green corridors—which would also help reduce flooding. Last spring’s colourful blossoms along the river corridor show what is possible. Likewise, Kathmandu’s Ring Road and major road networks can create and connect green spaces. Tree-lined streetscapes will create an ecological corridor, providing a continuous shaded path to the urban population, and a movement corridor for birds, insects, and small creatures. Technically, connecting green spaces is possible if the city’s environment department stands up strong against destructive development. The bigger challenge is a social and political willingness to participate in preserving and taking ownership of nature’s aesthetics.Nilima Thapa Shrestha is an architect and urban planner. <img width="800" height="534" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111011114/636cccf19c7e80680e08bc4cjpeg.jpg" alt=""><img width="900" height="600" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111011114/636cccf59c7e80680e08bc4djpeg.jpg" alt=""><img width="900" height="593" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111011114/636cccf89c7e80680e08bc4ejpeg.jpg" alt=""><img width="800" height="534" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111011114/636cccfa9c7e80680e08bc4fjpeg.jpg" alt="">Kathmandu’s river corridors have been designed purely for vehicular traffic. However, we can develop riverbanks as green corridors—which would also help reduce flooding. Last spring’s colourful blossoms along the river corridor show what is possible. Likewise, Kathmandu’s Ring Road and major road networks can create and connect green spaces. Tree-lined streetscapes will create an ecological corridor, providing a continuous shaded path to the urban population, and a movement corridor for birds, insects, and small creatures. Technically, connecting green spaces is possible if the city’s environment department stands up strong against destructive development. The bigger challenge is a social and political willingness to participate in preserving and taking ownership of nature’s aesthetics. Nilima Thapa Shrestha is an architect and urban planner.

A green city is a smart city

<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109181144/636be73c9c7e80680e0877ecjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1044" height="1384"/>The brutal murder of school principal Rajendra Shrestha in the remote village of Miklajung of Morang district this week is a cruel reminder of the decade of insurgency in this country. And that was perhaps the intention of the Maoist-inspired Communist Party of Nepal (CPN) that claimed responsibility.The CPN led by Netra Bikram Chand is not to be confused with the ruling Nepal Communist Party (NCP), formed after the fusion of the erstwhile UML and mainstream Maoists led by Pushpa Kamal Dahal in 2017.Chand split from Dahal in 2012 and vowed to <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/its-a-crime-not-to-call-it-terrorism/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/its-a-crime-not-to-call-it-terrorism/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1607660186469000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEcJ9tyv5dkJd6SzXiZglSI6JTECw">continue the armed struggle</a>. After arson attacks, <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/from-the-nepali-press/extortion-in-a-federal-state/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/from-the-nepali-press/extortion-in-a-federal-state/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1607660186469000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEjw54mDpWgu7dejBAOKfr-EpOdeA">extortion</a> and <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/from-the-nepali-press/yes-we-put-that-bomb/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/from-the-nepali-press/yes-we-put-that-bomb/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1607660186469000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHjKpZ3ELYaH5c98_Ey3ionYaT3Pg">explosions</a>, the CPN was banned two years ago. Today, almost exactly a quarter of a century after the insurgency began, and fifteen years after it ended, the message from the Morang murder is that the revolution never ended.Indeed, several commentators have drawn parallels between the murder of Rajendra Shrestha, and the summary execution of another headmaster – <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=17894#.X9GFqS8RoWo" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id%3D17894%23.X9GFqS8RoWo&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1607660186469000&amp;usg=AFQjCNG1Cw3RC7y-zVnGRtYHqo7BqIDNKw">Muktinath Adhikari in Lamjung on 16 January 2002</a>.Both were abducted, taken nearby and killed. The intention was to <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=16781#.X9GFry8RoWo" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id%3D16781%23.X9GFry8RoWo&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1607660186469000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFO9zXvfECI8gaABZFqiVUzWVAOeg">strike terror</a> in the population, and make an example of someone who refused to be cowed down by violence. Besides being a teacher, <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=12522#.X9GFuS8RoWo" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id%3D12522%23.X9GFuS8RoWo&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1607660186469000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGYySG0R-KeC9nFSbaxcS8_yJzNBA">Adhikari was a human rights activist</a>. Shrestha is accused of being a police informant.Rajendra Shrestha’s killing is murder. It is not a war crime, because no war has been declared. It cannot be labelled ‘revolutionary justice’, it is a criminal act. It is not a reaction to structural violence, such crimes have no place in politics. Like any other killing, it must be investigated, perpetrators apprehended and tried in a court of law.What is Netra Bikram Chand trying to achieve anyway? There are plenty of avenues available to him within Nepal’s current dispensation to launch a political career.In fact, the field is wide open to mount a political challenge against Dahal and his former Maoist associates who have failed miserably to deliver on the utopian promises of the revolution in the past 15 years despite being at the helm of the party and government. That is, unless they are being egged on by other forces at a time when royalists are on the march, and geopolitical tensions are rising.Re-igniting a conflict now would not just be ruinous for the country, it would force Nepalis to relive the sorrows of the decade of war. The violence is also counterproductive for Chand’s own cause, if indeed there is a larger cause he is fighting for.We doubt it, though. Chand’s divergent path was a result of a falling out with Dahal, and a failure to reach agreement on sharing the spoils of war. Chand felt he was not rewarded a position commensurate with the sacrifices he made during the conflict. And there are quite a few in the rank and file who still think the revolution was abandoned halfway, and their contributions were never recognised.Chand is also trying to tap into growing public disenchantment with the government, even though he probably knows that most Nepalis now have no stomach for violence. In that sense, the murder, extortion and terrorism spree is just a bargaining chip to propel him to the corridors of power.There is precedent, after all: many of the comrades Chand fought shoulder to shoulder with during the conflict are now ministers or senior party functionaries, power brokers, or beneficiaries of state facilities. The message is that if you kill enough people you can leapfrog to power, and will not have to <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/No-justice-yet-for-the-victims-of-peoples-war,2984" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/No-justice-yet-for-the-victims-of-peoples-war,2984&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1607660186469000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGL-C71hgYbCf0u9sEzu4rpWbE4ow">answer for your crimes</a>.The driving force of most crime in this country today -- corruption on a grand scale, abuse of power, and even the epidemic of domestic violence, rape, abduction and homicide – is <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/editorial/state-of-impunity,2976" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/editorial/state-of-impunity,2976&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1607660186469000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGoVQuW85VhVQzHZ1rJkVT7fRV6rQ">impunity</a>. If people can literally get away with murder, there is no deterrent anymore.Netra Bikram Chand and his followers are also encouraged by the failure of the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepal-runs-out-of-excuses-to-address-war-crimes/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepal-runs-out-of-excuses-to-address-war-crimes/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1607660186469000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFu9Gtkg_kThaShH-8b7KVuVJ_r5Q">transitional justice process</a>. Dahal openly and publicly admits to being responsible for “only 5,000” of the 17,000 killed during the conflict, and yet nothing happens to him. No one was ever arrested or tried for <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=12522#.X9GFuS8RoWo" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id%3D12522%23.X9GFuS8RoWo&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1607660186469000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGYySG0R-KeC9nFSbaxcS8_yJzNBA">Muktinath Adhikari’s murder</a>, or the tens of thousands of other <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/regular-columns/One-To-Many/victims-waiting-for-justice,698" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/regular-columns/One-To-Many/victims-waiting-for-justice,698&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1607660186469000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHcDmN_H5VpDDONQZbCCaMt6LcwEA">killings and disappearances</a> by both sides.The <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepals-transition-to-peace-needs-justice/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepals-transition-to-peace-needs-justice/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1607660186469000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEhIZms_cEpsTli0TuAX_cm8V_QHQ">Truth and Reconciliation Commission, and the Commission on the Investigation of Enforced Disappearances</a> are just for show. History is repeating itself. But it is a farce. Nepalis have no wish to return to the barbarism of war.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/its-a-crime-not-to-call-it-terrorism/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/its-a-crime-not-to-call-it-terrorism/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1607660186469000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEcJ9tyv5dkJd6SzXiZglSI6JTECw">It is a crime not to call it terrorism</a> by Kunda Dixit

History on replay

<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109191112/636bee404b0ad905ca02ef35jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1044" height="1384"/>The brutal murder of school principal Rajendra Shrestha in the remote village of Miklajung of Morang district this week is a cruel reminder of the decade of insurgency in this country. And that was perhaps the intention of the Maoist-inspired Communist Party of Nepal (CPN) that claimed responsibility.The CPN led by Netra Bikram Chand is not to be confused with the ruling Nepal Communist Party (NCP), formed after the fusion of the erstwhile UML and mainstream Maoists led by Pushpa Kamal Dahal in 2017.Chand split from Dahal in 2012 and vowed to <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/its-a-crime-not-to-call-it-terrorism/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/its-a-crime-not-to-call-it-terrorism/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1607660186469000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEcJ9tyv5dkJd6SzXiZglSI6JTECw">continue the armed struggle</a>. After arson attacks, <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/from-the-nepali-press/extortion-in-a-federal-state/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/from-the-nepali-press/extortion-in-a-federal-state/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1607660186469000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEjw54mDpWgu7dejBAOKfr-EpOdeA">extortion</a> and <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/from-the-nepali-press/yes-we-put-that-bomb/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/from-the-nepali-press/yes-we-put-that-bomb/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1607660186469000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHjKpZ3ELYaH5c98_Ey3ionYaT3Pg">explosions</a>, the CPN was banned two years ago. Today, almost exactly a quarter of a century after the insurgency began, and fifteen years after it ended, the message from the Morang murder is that the revolution never ended.Indeed, several commentators have drawn parallels between the murder of Rajendra Shrestha, and the summary execution of another headmaster – <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=17894#.X9GFqS8RoWo" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id%3D17894%23.X9GFqS8RoWo&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1607660186469000&amp;usg=AFQjCNG1Cw3RC7y-zVnGRtYHqo7BqIDNKw">Muktinath Adhikari in Lamjung on 16 January 2002</a>.Both were abducted, taken nearby and killed. The intention was to <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=16781#.X9GFry8RoWo" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id%3D16781%23.X9GFry8RoWo&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1607660186469000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFO9zXvfECI8gaABZFqiVUzWVAOeg">strike terror</a> in the population, and make an example of someone who refused to be cowed down by violence. Besides being a teacher, <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=12522#.X9GFuS8RoWo" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id%3D12522%23.X9GFuS8RoWo&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1607660186469000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGYySG0R-KeC9nFSbaxcS8_yJzNBA">Adhikari was a human rights activist</a>. Shrestha is accused of being a police informant.Rajendra Shrestha’s killing is murder. It is not a war crime, because no war has been declared. It cannot be labelled ‘revolutionary justice’, it is a criminal act. It is not a reaction to structural violence, such crimes have no place in politics. Like any other killing, it must be investigated, perpetrators apprehended and tried in a court of law.What is Netra Bikram Chand trying to achieve anyway? There are plenty of avenues available to him within Nepal’s current dispensation to launch a political career.In fact, the field is wide open to mount a political challenge against Dahal and his former Maoist associates who have failed miserably to deliver on the utopian promises of the revolution in the past 15 years despite being at the helm of the party and government. That is, unless they are being egged on by other forces at a time when royalists are on the march, and geopolitical tensions are rising.Re-igniting a conflict now would not just be ruinous for the country, it would force Nepalis to relive the sorrows of the decade of war. The violence is also counterproductive for Chand’s own cause, if indeed there is a larger cause he is fighting for.We doubt it, though. Chand’s divergent path was a result of a falling out with Dahal, and a failure to reach agreement on sharing the spoils of war. Chand felt he was not rewarded a position commensurate with the sacrifices he made during the conflict. And there are quite a few in the rank and file who still think the revolution was abandoned halfway, and their contributions were never recognised.Chand is also trying to tap into growing public disenchantment with the government, even though he probably knows that most Nepalis now have no stomach for violence. In that sense, the murder, extortion and terrorism spree is just a bargaining chip to propel him to the corridors of power.There is precedent, after all: many of the comrades Chand fought shoulder to shoulder with during the conflict are now ministers or senior party functionaries, power brokers, or beneficiaries of state facilities. The message is that if you kill enough people you can leapfrog to power, and will not have to <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/No-justice-yet-for-the-victims-of-peoples-war,2984" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/No-justice-yet-for-the-victims-of-peoples-war,2984&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1607660186469000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGL-C71hgYbCf0u9sEzu4rpWbE4ow">answer for your crimes</a>.The driving force of most crime in this country today -- corruption on a grand scale, abuse of power, and even the epidemic of domestic violence, rape, abduction and homicide – is <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/editorial/state-of-impunity,2976" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/editorial/state-of-impunity,2976&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1607660186469000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGoVQuW85VhVQzHZ1rJkVT7fRV6rQ">impunity</a>. If people can literally get away with murder, there is no deterrent anymore.Netra Bikram Chand and his followers are also encouraged by the failure of the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepal-runs-out-of-excuses-to-address-war-crimes/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepal-runs-out-of-excuses-to-address-war-crimes/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1607660186469000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFu9Gtkg_kThaShH-8b7KVuVJ_r5Q">transitional justice process</a>. Dahal openly and publicly admits to being responsible for “only 5,000” of the 17,000 killed during the conflict, and yet nothing happens to him. No one was ever arrested or tried for <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=12522#.X9GFuS8RoWo" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id%3D12522%23.X9GFuS8RoWo&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1607660186469000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGYySG0R-KeC9nFSbaxcS8_yJzNBA">Muktinath Adhikari’s murder</a>, or the tens of thousands of other <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/regular-columns/One-To-Many/victims-waiting-for-justice,698" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/regular-columns/One-To-Many/victims-waiting-for-justice,698&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1607660186469000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHcDmN_H5VpDDONQZbCCaMt6LcwEA">killings and disappearances</a> by both sides.The <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepals-transition-to-peace-needs-justice/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepals-transition-to-peace-needs-justice/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1607660186469000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEhIZms_cEpsTli0TuAX_cm8V_QHQ">Truth and Reconciliation Commission, and the Commission on the Investigation of Enforced Disappearances</a> are just for show. History is repeating itself. But it is a farce. Nepalis have no wish to return to the barbarism of war.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/its-a-crime-not-to-call-it-terrorism/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/its-a-crime-not-to-call-it-terrorism/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1607660186469000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEcJ9tyv5dkJd6SzXiZglSI6JTECw">It is a crime not to call it terrorism</a> by Kunda Dixit

<img width="1122" height="974" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109181112/636bdfe39c7e80680e083dc5jpeg.jpg" alt=""/>Going by official statistics, Nepal’s economy is doing splendidly. The economy grew at 2.27%, not bad considering that has been battered for the past eight months by Covid-19. Every expert had predicted that <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/business/remittances-from-nepali-workers-rise/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/business/remittances-from-nepali-workers-rise/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1604545529632000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGK8sRyj3qm0LozvU2GO_IyJ1rI7w">Nepal’s remittances would go down</a> with the pandemic, with the Asian Development Bank even putting a precise figure: a decrease of 28.7%. But it actually went up by 8.1% in July-September compared to the same months last year. Inflation is holding steady at 4.5% The balance of payments is Rs68 billion in the positive. Nepal’s hard currency reserves have hit a record-breaking $12.2 billion.The Ministry of Health’s statistics show that 1,004 people have died so far from the coronavirus. But the Nepal Army says it has cremated and buried more than 1,400, the mortality totals at hospitals do not add up, and no one has bothered to count those who have died during isolation at home. <a href="http://nepalitimes.com/banner/heat-map-of-nepals-covid-19-hotspots/">Heat map of Nepal's Covid-19 hotspots</a>, Sonia AwaleThe total number of positive Covid-19 cases in the country is now nearing 180,000, but the number is probably many times higher. That figure is just among those who tested. The Ministry of Health has an exact number for those who have recovered: 137,992. But who is counting those who have stopped quarantining? Since conclusions can be subjective, we rely on statistics to plan. But what if the figures are distorted or wrong? After all, statistics can be bent any which way to suit any argument.Economic indicators are designed for ‘normal’ times, not when the world goes upside down. Extraordinary circumstances need more than figures for GDP per capita and annual economic growth. National averages distort the reality: you could have one foot in the oven and another in an ice bucket and say that on average you are comfortable.Nepal’s macroeconomic picture may look rosy, but the ground reality is different. By themselves the numbers may be right, but they do not reflect the overall outlook for the economy. <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepal-plans-to-revive-economy-hit-by-covid-19/">Nepal plans to revive economy hit by Covid-19</a>, Nepali TimesEnterprises have gone out of business, millions have lost their jobs and sunk below the poverty line. Many middle class families have lost all their savings to pay hospitals for treating relatives with Covid-19. There are no official statistics on them.Official figures show that imports are down and the balance of payments is looking healthy, but domestic production is nearly zero. Pre-Dasain remittances may have gone up, but nearly 200,000 Nepali migrant workers are backlogged and have not been able to leave. Tens of thousands of workers and their families <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepali-workers-returning-to-india/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepali-workers-returning-to-india/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1604545529632000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFpY6UJSKIhLGjtjd7g88JkrA1jEA">have gone back to India</a> because of lack of jobs here, and paradoxically many Indian workers have streamed back to ply their trades in Nepal’s cities. It is the Central Bureau of Statistics that is supposed to keep track of economic activity, but its figures show that Nepal is not in an economic recession even though there are no accurate numbers for economic growth for the last two quarters to base that assumption on. The Nepal Labour Survey of 2018 shows there are 7 million people employed in Nepal, and of these two-thirds are in the informal sector. We have no idea what has become of them. We can only guess that most have no income, but there are no figures. You can only solve a problem if you know there is a problem.Pre-pandemic figures show 17% of the population living below the poverty line. <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/window-on-the-future/">Window on the future</a>, Nepali TimesInformally, economists estimate that one-third of Nepalis have now been pushed below the poverty line. But that is just a guesstimate. There are no surveys to show how many people from which sectors lost their income. Just like with Covid-19 tests and treatment, the government is telling citizens most at risk to fend for themselves.A 2016 Population and Health Survey showed that half of Nepal’s population suffered from food insecurity, with 10% of families facing chronic food shortage. Eight months into the pandemic, aside from sample surveys by <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/1-in-5-nepal-families-lack-food/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/1-in-5-nepal-families-lack-food/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1604545529632000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHzz7kNirEL_KnmBTHv5B9qPY7dSA">WFP</a> and <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/covid-19-impact-on-food-and-school-in-nepali-children/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/covid-19-impact-on-food-and-school-in-nepali-children/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1604545529632000&amp;usg=AFQjCNE37hdrJ6WrTiOAlU2rqUVObGhtNA">UNICEF</a>, we do not know for sure the scale of the nutrition crisis.Without these statistics, the already inadequate relief targetted for the most vulnerable will be side tracked by the politically connected. Which is what is happening. In the past eight years, the government has not even been able to identify the poorest families.Prime Minister K P Oli, preoccupied with a <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepals-communists-on-verge-of-split-again/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepals-communists-on-verge-of-split-again/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1604545529632000&amp;usg=AFQjCNE9ukuEol_jqrw5C-QhBOoNcm8vJw">perpetual power struggle</a> with his party nemesis Pushpa Kamal Dahal, relies on incomplete statistics to declare that Nepal is not in an economic crisis. You cannot wake up someone who is pretending to sleep.Ramesh Kumar

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Lies and damned lies

<figure><img width="2048" height="1365" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109171156/636bdc6c9c7e80680e080315jpeg.jpg" alt=""/><figcaption>Photo: MONIKA DEUPALA</figcaption></figure>The coronavirus is here to stay. Vaccines will not be available for Nepalis till late next year. There are no proven therapies yet. The only way to stay safe is through prevention, since hospitals will be full.
That is the prognosis from health experts for the coming winter and into next year. Even before SARS-CoV-2, Nepal used to see a winter spike in deaths of the elderly from pneumonia. But with the added threat of the new virus, this winter is going to be even more dangerous than previous ones.
“This thing will keep going for another year at least, the only way to deal with it is prevention – that means masks, separation and handwashing,” says Buddha Basnyat at the Patan Academy of Health Sciences.
People above 65 and those with pre-existing conditions need to be especially careful –their family members have to take strict precautions not to bring the virus into the household.
<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/protecting-nepals-elderly-from-covid-19/">Protecting Nepal's elderly from Covid-19</a>, Alisha Sijapati
Doctors advise taking flu shots where available so that the high risk groups do not end up having to fight on two fronts in the coming months.
“In Nepal, data shows that winter is a killer of older people, so in the coming months  they need to minimise interaction with immediate family members who move about in public,” says Sameer Mani Dixit of the Centre for Molecular Dynamics. He advises that seniors isolate in their rooms, and meet relatives in open spaces wearing masks.
What makes high risk groups even more vulnerable is that in winter windows are closed, and they tend to mingle with the extended family with whom they share the home. They should also get as much exercise as possible, and expose themselves to direct sunlight to boost immunity. Similar precautions need to be taken by those with hypertension, diabetes, obesity and other conditions.
Says Dixit; “High risk individuals like the elderly and those with pre-existing conditions have to treat all members of the household and visitors as if they are Covid positive. That means wearing masks, keeping separation and meeting them only in open areas.”
<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/home-health-care-during-a-lockdown/">Home healthcare during lockdown</a>, Alisha Sijapati
The government, which seems to have more or less given up trying to control the virus by leaving it to the public to take precautions, needs to prepare for the winter surge. There has to be adequate oxygen supply to hospitals, more ICU capacity, separate corona wards in hospitals, and the new Nepal Army hospital could be turned into a Covid-dedicated facility.
The silver lining is that mask-wearing and handwashing have reduced other chronic infections in Nepal. Hospitals report a marked decrease in water-borne diseases like typhoid and dysentery, and airborne infections like COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease). Mask-wearing slowed the spread of seasonal flu in this year’s southern hemisphere winter.
Some in Nepal are promoting ‘herd immunity’ as an antidote to the expected winter surge. Scientists caution against this notion because there is still so much uncertainty about the virus. Says Buddha Basnyat: “Herd immunity is herd mentality, it is dangerous.”
Read also:
<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/covid-19-and-the-new-great-game/">Covid-19 and the new Great Game</a>, Editorial
<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/what-is-novel-about-the-novel-coronavirus/">What is novel about the novel coronavirus</a>, Buddha Basnyat

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Window on the future

<img width="794" height="1052" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109171156/636bdc659c7e80680e080313jpeg.jpg" alt=""/>One of Barack Obama’s White House staffers once got into trouble for saying that a hurricane disaster presented a good opportunity for the administration to show it could get things done. It was politically incorrect, but true. Indeed, here in Nepal, frequent natural disasters have been god-sent chances for governments of the day to prove themselves. We thought that would happen after the 2015 earthquake, but our rulers squandered the chance to invest in rebuilding with massive job creation. The Blockade was a time to rise to the occasion, and turn the crisis into an opportunity for the government to demonstrate it was serious about trade diversification and weaning Nepal away from petroleum dependency.  This monsoon’s landslides and floods with unprecedented loss of life could have yielded political dividends if only Prime Minister K P Oli’s government was not so obsessed with an internecine power struggle within his ruling party. The <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/declare-a-health-emergency/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/declare-a-health-emergency/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1603951536970000&amp;usg=AFQjCNE5a21Io-UJUEmHYCcUrhPRD4Wyuw">Covid-19 crisis</a> offers the Oli administration a chance to take the advice of scientists and act decisively to cushion the blow on Nepal’s most vulnerable citizens. Instead, it has fallen back on business as usual, coddling cronies and now, as we near year-end, to tell Nepalis that they have to take care of themselves. <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/nepals-leaders-are-in-isolation/">Nepal's leaders are in isolation</a>, Editorial To be fair, even the most accountable and well-governed countries in the world have been found wanting in dealing with the coronavirus crisis. Europe is struggling to contain the spread ahead of a predicted winter resurgence. In the United States, President Trump has no plan, and has surrendered to the virus.  The Dasain break offered the government a chance to regroup and reassess its Covid-19 strategy. Alas, leaders of the two factions in the ruling NCP appear to have wasted the time to <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/you-stab-my-back-i-stab-yours/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/you-stab-my-back-i-stab-yours/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1603951536970000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFRHcywZTZ_Tw7NW7ML6FtISdI9Hw">plot their next move</a> to undermine each other.  The surprise visit by Indian intelligence chief Samant Goel to Kathmandu on 21 October became another excuse for the two factions to lash out, and prove one was more nationalist than the other. NCP members loyal to <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/running-to-remain-in-place/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/running-to-remain-in-place/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1603951536970000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGLKhibNVJAkXWG-2-jbDa0IUXeYQ">Pushpa Kamal Dahal</a> were having a go at their own prime minister, as if they were members of an opposition party. Oli’s advisers did him no favours by flip-flopping on whether Goel was in Kathmandu on a private or official visit, and if he was sent by Prime Minister Modi, or invited himself. What got lost in all the Oli-slamming was that Goel also met Baburam Bhattarai at close quarters before he tested positive for Covid-19, as well as secretly meeting other Dahal loyalists.  <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/declare-a-health-emergency/">Declare a health emergency</a>, Shekhar Kharel It now appears that India’s top spook was indeed sent by Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a trusted emissary to patch up <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepal-passes-map-bill-india-reacts/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepal-passes-map-bill-india-reacts/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1603951536970000&amp;usg=AFQjCNG3Ty-Kl7zbVxvM10kCU3uhre4vGw">strained India-Nepal relations</a>, and address the perception spread by India’s jingoistic media that Nepal is drifting into the Chinese orbit. The timing is also significant -- it comes ahead of a three-day visit by India’s Army Chief Manoj Mukund Naravane on 4 November, which had been delayed by the pandemic.  Naravane is well remembered in Kathmandu for his <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepali-cartoonists-poke-india-over-kalapani/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepali-cartoonists-poke-india-over-kalapani/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1603951536970000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEgW95N1zenvE42Y4-xetGzoO1QKA">gaffe during the Limpiyadhura dispute</a> in May during which he implied that Nepal was being egged on by China to stake its claim on its territory. This remark was criticised even in India for his insensitivity towards Nepali nationals serving in the Indian Army, some of them deployed in Ladakh. There is much confidence rebuilding that Naravane needs to do in Kathmandu. The Goel jet dash to Kathmandu and the Naravane visit take on added meaning with the 2+2 meeting of top American and Indian foreign and defence officials in New Delhi on Tuesday, and the signing of the Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agreement (BECA) – which despite its awkward acronym is essentially a bilateral strategic pact.  <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/reconnecting-india-to-rest-of-asia/">Reconnecting India to rest of Asia</a>, Pradumna B Rana This is proof that the world is once more bipolar, as the Anglosphere plus Japan and India are pitted against China, and its growing dominance and influence in the world. With the flare-up in tension between India and China over their Himalayan border, Nepal has to tread carefully in this new Great Game between its giant northern and southern neighbours. <figure><img width="640" height="365" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109171156/636bdc689c7e80680e080314jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption>US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Defence Secretary Mark Esper at India's National War Memorial in New Delhi on 26 October to pay homage to soldiers killed in the Ladakh clash in April. Photo: PIB India</figcaption></figure>Meanwhile, in Kathmandu US-China rivalry was taken to a new level with Dasain diplomacy. American ambassador <a href="https://twitter.com/PRCAmbNepal/status/1320589152304263169" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://twitter.com/PRCAmbNepal/status/1320589152304263169&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1603951536970000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFTq_8Vnw6hFTtgPFAlxnMmMZXOiQ">Randy Berry made mutton curry</a> while <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/chinese-tourist-influx-to-nepal-in-2020/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/chinese-tourist-influx-to-nepal-in-2020/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1603951536970000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEHLgOrbfHiXBtY2AyTPZzLlBXsrQ">Chinese ambassador Hou Yanqi </a>outdid everyone by singing the popular trekking song <a href="https://twitter.com/PRCAmbNepal/status/1320589152304263169" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://twitter.com/PRCAmbNepal/status/1320589152304263169&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1603951536970000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFTq_8Vnw6hFTtgPFAlxnMmMZXOiQ">Resham Firi</a>. We wonder if the allusion to the scarf waving in the wind was to the New Silk Road to counter the American-supported  MCC.In the midst of all this high drama, it is easy for Prime Minister Oli to lose focus on the main crisis at hand -- managing the health and economic fallout of Covid-19. But it is a chance for him to use the disaster to prove that he can protect the people who elected him and his party to power.

Covid-19 and the new Great Game

<figure></figure>										<img width="3950" height="2374" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109171156/636bdc4c9c7e80680e08030cjpeg.jpg" alt=""/><figcaption>Since Sunday night, Nepali tv viewers are greeted with this message on their screens for 120 of the most popular international sports, entertainment and news channels.</figcaption>												On Sunday night, television viewers across Nepal browsing channels on their satellite and cable systems suddenly found that they could not access their favourite sports channels, BBC News, as well as many Hindi entertainment programs.On the eve of Dasain, the government decided to enforce the rule requiring television distributors to provide advertisement-free foreign channels. Suddenly, 120 of the most popular channels got blacked out of the cable menu. The Ministry of Communication and Information said it had given satellite and cable operators one year’s notice to implement its ‘Clean Feed’ policy, and it had to stop the distribution of foreign tv channels that contained commercials. The theory is that customers should not be charged for television programs that contain advertising, but between the lines the directive had a nationalistic rationale against Indian commercials. In June, Nepal got distributors to delete most Indian news channels from their feed for airing content that was derogatory towards Prime Minister K P Oli. There was also an argument that Clean Feed would encourage Nepal-based content and upgrade the quality of Nepali commercials. However, most analysts say that will take time, and for now it will be Nepali viewers who will be deprived of the most popular channels, and have to pay more expensive cable tariffs. “So what if the government says its decision is final? We have not been able to bring in the necessary equipment needed for clean feeds,” said Sudhir Parajuli of Subisu Cablenet. “And the foreign channels also have to be ready to beam us programming without commercials. It’s not entirely up to us.”Direct-to-home satellite and cable distributors say they have been negotiating with international channels to provide clean feeds, but not all of them have complied, while others have cited delays caused by the Covid-19 crisis. “They are working on the technical details of providing the clean feed, some are in the testing stage, and a few of the channels should be back on air in a few days,” said Dhruba Sharma of the Nepal Cable Television Operators Federation.The Federation had asked for a six-month extension in implementing the Clean Feed provision, citing the pandemic. The Indian Broadcasters’ Forum, Discovery Network, BBC News and others had also requested the Ministry for an extension to work out the technical details, but the government decided not to grant that. While advertising agencies have generally welcomed the decision, the government’s move has been greeted by outrage from the public in social media, mainly because it was enforced during Dasain, and also while most people have been forced to stay home because of the rapid spread of the coronavirus in Nepal. “The children do not have school, and we are all confined to our homes because the virus is everywhere, and watching television was a way to pass the time, now the kids cannot even get to follow the sports channels anymore,” complained Putali Tamang of Dhobighat. Among the popular channels affected are all those under Star Sports, Star Sports Select, Star Plus, Discovery, BBC, Colours, and others. The ban has hit hardest Nepali fans of the English Premier League, Indian Premier League, and other football and cricket games.All news and entertainment programs under India’s Zee banner, Sony, HBO and Cinemax are still available because they do not carry commercials. Al Jazeera is also still being beamed, and CNN is also available depending on the distributor.What this means is that while the monthly fees for satellite dish or cable may not go up right away, as the agreements with various international channels are renewed, operators will be forced to pass on the added cost of commercial-free programming to Nepali customers. Of the 90 pay tv channels, 60 are said to be completing their technical preparation for clean feeds. The government’s argument is that international channels that charge Nepali customers through their local distributors should not also be making money from commercials. It says this follows the international practice that if customers pay for a feed, it should not carry commercials.However, the government seems to be unaware that many Nepalis are now paying for live streaming of sports events and entertainment programs through the internet. The Clean Feed policy also does not include IPTV, which does not need any permission to beam uncensored content directly to Nepalis through their internet service providers.The Android IPTV box is becoming popular, and allows ISP customers to bypass distribution via cable and satellite.

Nepalis denied tv channels over Dasain

<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109171152/636bdb389c7e80680e0802b0jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1250" height="1145"/><figcaption>Illustration: BHANU BHATTARAI</figcaption></figure>In 2017, Nepal held its first local election after two decades. A generation of Nepalis had grown up without any experience of electing mayors or ward chairs. Bureaucrats were appointed to municipalities.Those were not just any local elections, they were the first under a federal structure. Hopes were high, and expectations higher. But how to make fiscal federalism work, and particularly municipal financing? What has been the experience of the past two years?There are two schools of thought about how municipalities should fund themselves. The first is that they have limited resources to invest in socio-economic development, and even added fiscal transfers from the federal and provincial governments on top of local revenues, are not enough for infrastructure and service delivery.The second is that local governments are unable to use available resources due to lack of technical and financial capacity, and that financial deficit is irrelevant when local governments are not even able to spend their allotted budget.<a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/editorial/nationally-local,3705">Nationally local</a>, EditorialWhile both these narratives ring true, the challenges are not faced in isolation and are cyclical in nature -- they feed into each other. The lack of capacity of local governments has led to underutilisation of funds available through the market and the federal government. Administrative and policy restraints set by the federal government also limits local governments’ access to finance.However, lack of spending capacity or lack of financing is not a challenge unique to local governments.  It is in fact part and parcel, a hereditary defect passed on from Kathmandu to rest of the country.Under the federal structure, significant power has been devolved to local governments than previously imagined. However, the expenditure responsibilities of local governments do not match their ability to generate revenues -- their power to govern through constitutional mandate has been restricted by their financial ability to govern.The revenue municipalities raise from taxes and levies is insufficient to cover operational expenses, let alone finance infrastructure or service delivery. Local governments are criticised for bloated operational expenses, but while this may be  justified, municipalities will still not be able to finance big ticket infrastructure and service delivery projects with merely internally generated revenues.Local governments therefore have fewer avenues to raise funds. To decrease their finance deficit, they can either steal, beg, or borrow to meet their requirements. In the crudest sense, local governments can either raise taxes, or utilise federal government transfers, or borrow from banks.<a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/regular-columns/Analysis/how-decentralised-is-federalism,776">How decentralised is federalism?</a>, Kiran NepalAn obvious mechanism to increase the funding base of municipalities is to increase their own source revenue generated through property taxes and business registrations, among others. However, municipalities already have a smaller tax base which restricts their revenue-generation capacity. They also cannot increase tax rates twice within their 5-year term limit, as it would be politically unpopular. The other mechanisms to access finance are largely dependent on local governments’ ability to raise revenue locally.Another option is to use the four intergovernmental transfers (grants)provided by the federal government. Fiscal equalisation grants disbursed to local governments is generally inadequate to cover municipal expenses which drives local governments turn to conditional grants.However, this reliance on conditional grants can only support piecemeal projects that do not always meet local needs and priorities. With Covid-19, the ability of the federal government to generate revenue have been hit, and subsequently, transfers to local governments.<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/local-governments-lack-resources-to-tackle-covid-19/">Local governments lack resources to tackle Covid-19</a>, Nepali TimesLocal governments can also take internal loans through Nepal’s banksand financial institutions to cover their deficit. As of this fiscal year, municipalities can borrow up to 12% (a two-percentage point increase from last fiscal) of its revenue and revenue distribution from the federal and provincial governments.For instance, a larger municipality like Bharatpur could borrow up to Rs130 million in internal loans in the last fiscal year. Smaller municipalities like Birendranagar and Damak could borrow only up to Rs50 million. The minor increase in the debt ceiling does not increase their borrowing limit significantly. Considering the infrastructure and services delivery needs of growing urban centres that requires billions in investment, this amount seems grossly inadequate.There are regulatory and institutional restraints and reluctance to empower local governments to finance their capital deficits. However, the lack of technical capacity of  local governments contributes equally to this problem. Nowhere is this more obvious than in their inability to spend their annual budgets.This is also evident in the underutilisation of some of their federal grants, mostly because applying for these grants require project planning skills that are absent at the local level. Lack of capacity to plan, execute and monitor large scale projects is fuelling their inability to proactively seek federal grants to increase the revenue.This limitation has been amplified due to restrictive banking and financial practices in Nepal. Financial institutions are inclined to provide collateral backed lending, which allows banks to sell the land (commonly used as collateral) if a project fails to deliver.However, financing institutions are reluctant to lend to municipalities as municipal land cannot be used as collateral. While non-collateral based lending is an alternative, they are rare and limited to projects with guaranteed revenue streams such as hydropower projects with signed Power Purchasing Agreements with Nepal Electricity Authority.<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/federalism-rule-of-law-and-the-judiciary/">Federalism, rule of law and judiciary</a>, George Varughese and Iain PayneThese are not just structural challenges, municipalities also face a crisis of confidence. Most municipalities are averse to borrowing and have not utilised the 12% internal borrowing threshold. Current borrowing, on average, comprises only 0.85% of municipal total revenue. Several municipalities say that despite their growing financial needs, they are less likely to take internal loans. Even if they do borrow, loans are used to manage working capital deficits rather than to finance municipal projects.In absence of long-term vision and prior plans, costly projects that may exceed the allotted fiscal transfers are not included within municipal plans and budget. Plans are limited to short to medium term projects and larger infrastructure or service delivery improvements which could potentially increase local governments revenues are ignored. The crux of the matter is, rather than municipal needs informing the budget, fiscal transfers dictate policy priorities of local governments.Local governments are locked in this vicious cycle. The federal government’s reluctance to ease up its fiscal hold on municipal finances constricts their capacity to deliver on their constitutional responsibilities. In parallel, limited institutional capacity of municipalities to deliver on their budget drives the federal government to maintain its regulatory and administrative hold.These constraints subsequently limit municipalities access to adequate finance. Unless this cycle is broken, local governments, much to our disappointment will only end up delivering short sighted piecemeal projects.The effectiveness of federalism rests on enabling municipalities and the leadership to identify, create, plan, and implement sustainable long-term projects. Despite the authority provided by the Constitution to local governments, their heavy reliance on fiscal transfers and inability to seek internal loans as an alternative for financing projects weakens their autonomy and governing power.After all, adequate fiscal autonomy is a key tenet of effective decentralisation which should not be undermined by poorly designed federal controls.Read also:<a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/editorial/government-to-governance-editorial,4200">Government to governance</a>, Editorial <img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109171152/636bdb3b9c7e80680e0802b1jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="93" height="111"><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109171152/636bdb3c9c7e80680e0802b2jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="76" height="114">Anna S Gautam and Nishu Baral are analysts with Infrastructure Development and Financial Sustainability project supported by The Asia Foundation at VRock and Company.

To beg, borrow or steal?

One smoggy winter morning in February 2019, Ekta regretted coming to her sculpture class. It was the first day of her period, and the 19-year-old wished she was home, curled up in bed with a hot water bag to soothe her cramps.
Her class was at Kalapremi Ceramic Studio, a dark room on the ground floor of a house in Maharajganj, and Ekta’s teacher was the artist Gopal Das Shrestha ‘Kalapremi’, a noted sculptor.
Two other students were already there, using all their muscle strength to knead the sculpting clay. Ekta, now 24, recalls how Kalapremi asked her if she was feeling all right. She avoided him, as she did not want everyone to know she was menstruating.
Kalapremi repeatedly asked Ekta what was wrong. She finally muttered that she was having her period, after which he grabbed her hand and led her to a partitioned corner of the studio and sat her on a chair. Before she could stop him, he slid his hand under her dress, and started massaging her abdomen.
“I was horrified,” Ekta recalls. “I told him to stop, but he didn’t listen, asking me not to be shy, saying he knew how to relieve my pain. He stopped only after I protested furiously.”&nbsp;
The art tutor then said, “You’re like my daughter. I’m doing it out of love to make you feel better, but you’re so stubborn.”&nbsp;
“Instead of saying sorry he acted like I was the one having crazy thoughts,” remembers Ekta, adding that from April 2016 to August 2020 beginning the time she was 16, the artist sexually abused and harassed her on several occasions. &nbsp;
Now, Ekta and the artist’s other former students are finally sharing their experiences and some are pressing legal charges against him, hoping that others do not have to endure what they did.&nbsp;
Award-winning artist and teacher Gopal Das Shrestha ‘Kalapremi’ (the name means ‘Art Lover’) is known for his ceramic art, sculpture, and contemporary pottery. He was <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/review/the-house-of-kalapremi">profiled in Nepali Times after a collaborative exhibition</a>, ‘Where the Wild Things Are’ at the Siddhartha Art Gallery three years ago.&nbsp;
His pieces, titled Gaalis, featured sculpted female figures with the heads of dogs, sheep, and donkeys (pictured) to depict derogatory terms for women. Some critics said the collection was a satire on feminists.
Kalapremi started his artistic and teaching career in 1983 and over the years taught at Bhanubhakta School, Kathmandu University School of Arts, Lalitkala Campus and at his private Kalapremi Ceramic Studio. He has also lectured at Jeonju University in South Korea and recently at Tabor Academy in the United States.
Seven of Kalapremi’s former students were interviewed for this story. Five female students said he touched them inappropriately in his studio or at Kathmandu University. Two male students said they witnessed him abuse and harass the women. In all cases, the students struggled to recognise the abuse when it occurred, and the lack of reporting systems left them to cope on their own for years.&nbsp;
Earlier this year, students shared a social media post hinting at Kalapremi’s history of abusive behaviour following which more students of the artist reached out sharing similar experiences. Some students spoke of abuse that happened as long as 20 years ago.
Kalapremi, 60, has denied the allegations. He told Nepali Times: “Some years ago, there was a movement encouraging people to hug and kiss. I used to do it purely out of friendship and love. But after seeing posts on social media last year calling out my behaviour, I realised my actions may have hurt some people. I understand now that I should have been more mindful.”
He added: “I am also an auxiliary health worker, so I know the exact points to massage to relieve menstrual pain. It’s not just menstruation, I take anyone who is ill to the hospital.”
Sexual abuse is much more rampant than reported given how difficult it is to prove it in court. The law defines sexual abuse as occuring when someone touches another’s private parts, coerces them into touching theirs, uses vulgar language, shows degrading images, or behaves indecently towards them without consent.&nbsp;
Ekta and her fellow students are consulting lawyer Suneeta Regmi Pokhrel, who says they know that even if the court decides in their favour, it is difficult to survive after speaking up, and influential men defend themselves saying they are being framed.&nbsp;
“They are in a lot of pain and weep when recalling how he abused them,” Regmi Pokhrel told us. “They are angry and have filed a case against him, but they are also terrified. They know he is a powerful man and they have seen how our society treats women who speak up against abusers. Unless people speak up, perpetrators will be emboldened.”
Art and academia in Nepal simply reflect the power imbalances in society where people with intersecting identities experience worse forms of abuse. Theatre actors Raj Kumar Pudasaini, Rajan Khatiwada, and Sunil Pokhrel were called out during the #MeToo movement in the Nepali theatre scene in 2019. Even after the allegations Pokhrel went on to receive national awards, while others continued to work without repercussions.
“If you speak up against abusers, you gradually get sidelined from projects,” explained a theatre artist who wished anonymity fearing professional setbacks. “The theatre scene in Nepal is quite small, you just have to make peace with the perpetrators and work with them if you want to sustain yourself.”&nbsp;
In academia there is a history of faculty members sexually harassing students and getting away with it. After Tribhuvan University (TU) lecturer Krishna Bhattachan was accused of harassing women students, the university said it would follow Nepal’s sexual harassment law and set up a reporting mechanism. But nothing happened to the professor, who had already retired. Instead, he counter-accused the students of 'attacking the indigenous people’s movement with baseless allegations' as <a href="https://kathmandupost.com/letters/2019/01/29/bhattachan-responds">he told the Kathmandu Post in 2019</a>. He continues to be featured as a prominent speaker including at TU.
Other faculty members previously accused of sexual harassment include Jagadish Murti Koirala from TU, Bishnu Prasad Acharya from Ratna Rajya Campus, and Bodha Raj Tripathee from Lalitpur Madhyamik Vidhyalaya. A woman staff member from TU also filed a sexual abuse complaint against Dambar Chemjong from TU.
Prominent figures like <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/the-rise-and-fall-of-nims-purja">mountaineer Nims Purja</a> have been <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/31/sports/mountaineering-sexual-harassment-abuse-nims-purja.html">accused of sexual assault</a>, and cricketer Sandeep Lamichhane, actor <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/celebrity-rape-case-spotlights-nepal-laws">Paul Shah</a>, and former speaker of Parliament <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/mahara-arrested">Krishna Bahadur Mahara</a> have been accused of rape, but society-at-large has let off the alleged perpetrators amdist a larger debate about justice for survivors and punishment of perpetrators.&nbsp;
‘Gaushala-26’ is the court name given to the 18-year-old who accused Sandeep Lamichhane, former captain of Nepal’s national cricket team and skipper of Biratnagar Kings in the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/here-comes-the-nepal-premier-league">ongoing Nepal Premier League</a>, of rape. She left the country citing society questioning her character affecting her mental health while Lamichhane got an outpouring of support. In May, the Patan High Court overturned a prior verdict that found Lamichhane guilty of rape and had sentenced him to eight years in prison. During the 23-month legal battle to pursue justice, Gaushala-26 faced threats of gang rape and acid attacks.&nbsp;
Exhausted by the struggle, Gaushala-26 sought to “move to a new world” where she could live free without hiding her identity.
Actress Samragyee Rajya Laxmi Shah in an Instagram video now deleted detailed the harassment she faced from a filmmaker during a movie shoot. She did not name any name but veteran actor Bhuwan KC filed a defamation case against Rana, but the court ruled that the charge lacked sufficient evidence.&nbsp;
Former Kathmandu mayor <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/theytoo">Keshav Sthapit also mocked the #MeToo movement</a>, calling accusations against him by journalists Rashmila Prajapati and Ujjwala Maharjan “a rape of men’s rights”.
Serial Abuse
Back at the Kalapremi Ceramics studio, another former student, 24-year-old Rajiv, says he felt the need to speak out after seeing his female classmates being abused.&nbsp;
“He frequently kissed them on their cheeks,” he told Nepali Times. “Whenever they walked into the studio he flailed his arms like a child asking for a hug. They awkwardly hugged him from the side, but he pulled them closer, held their chin, and kissed their cheeks.”&nbsp;
Rajiv says he also saw Kalapremi pull the women’s bra straps, touch their breasts, and slap their buttocks. The young students would freeze, not knowing how to react, and if they protested, he would say it was “normal in art”. Rajiv, 19 at the time like his classmates, remembers thinking perhaps the well-respected artist was right after all.
Another student, Luna, who took lessons at Kalapremi’s studio from 2020 to 2022 did try to confront the tutor after he made an obscene proposal to her. She recalls: “One day when the other students had left the studio and it was just the two of us, he told me that God had given him special artistic talent and he could transfer those powers to me. But to do that both of us will have to be naked, inside a dark room, and have sex.”
Luna, who was 18 then, was livid and told him she did not want any of his powers, but she says he laughed at her as if he was joking. She did not tell her family about the incident because she thought no one would believe her.&nbsp;
“They were all in awe of this famous artist and felt I should be grateful that to be learning sculpting from him,” she says. “I was scared to be alone with him in case he talked about sex again. My coping mechanism was to be rude so he wouldn’t try to come close to me.”
Seeing how some classmates were standing up to Kalapremi, Ekta too tried to push back against his advances, but she said he found ways to coerce her. Since Ekta, Rajiv, and Luna could not afford Kalapremi’s Rs30,000 monthly fee for lessons, he had offered them all a stipend to assist him in the studio.
“He had spondylosis and took me to his therapy sessions to learn massage techniques, then he often made me and other students massage him,” says Ekta. Whenever she refused, he would feign pain to make her feel sorry for him. “He would insist that I put my hands under his shirt so that I could massage him better,” she adds.
The art tutor often tried to “seduce sympathy” from Ekta by sharing how he had never been loved as a child and was “sexually frustrated” as an adult.&nbsp;
“At 7PM, he would pour himself Signature whiskey and immediately go off again about how he was sex-starved. I didn’t know how to respond. It took me time to realise alcohol was just an excuse to talk about sex,” Ekta says.
If convicted, Kalapremi could face financial penalty and/or a prison sentence of up to three years according to Section 224 of National Penal (Code) Act 2017.&nbsp;
Data suggests that victims of child sexual abuse on average take nearly 24 years to tell someone about their trauma, and some may never disclose it at all.&nbsp;
“In our culture, children are rarely taught about boundaries. They often react, show anger when adults pinch their cheeks. But adults insist they did it out of love, and force the children to accept it,” says Sita Lama, a psychotherapist at Manka Kura. “And even when someone touches them inappropriately they struggle to identify and verbalise it.”
When perpetrators claim to be “acting out of love”, Lama says survivors are likely to perceive it as something safe, rather than recognising it as abuse.&nbsp;
“It may take years for them to realise they were abused,” she explains. "And even when they become aware, the power imbalance with the abuser and the associated shame often prevents survivors from speaking up."
Other former students from the School of Art at Kathmandu University have also come forward years later, saying Kalapremi sexually abused them. As young adults, they felt his behaviour was off but were uncertain if it was inappropriate, illegal, or they did not know how to respond. After having understood that it was indeed abuse, they say they are speaking out now to protect others.&nbsp;
Amina Singh, a visiting faculty member at Kathmandu University, says there is no clause against sexual abuse in contracts of teachers, and there is no formal grievance handling mechanism for the students.&nbsp;
“So the only way students can to deal with sexual abuse is approach someone they trust,” she says.
Eight other former art students of Lalit Kala Campus and Srijana College of Fine Arts of Tribhuvan University and other private art studios in Kathmandu say they were also sexually abused by their art teachers. Three faculty members interviewed from these institutions said they saw the abuse, but felt it was futile to report it given how powerful the teachers were.
In the absence of a formal system, some longtime women artists warned each other about “problematic” artists. They shared &nbsp;a “heads-up” to be more cautious when collaborating with them, and avoided responding to their calls and texts after work hours.
To ensure art institutions are safe for all, galleries, museums, artist studios, and smaller art spaces need to develop policies on sexual harassment. This would include a code of conduct or studio policies that hold the leadership accountable and outline the principles of professional ethics.&nbsp;
Students and employees should inquire about accountability mechanisms for raising concerns, both formally and informally, advocates say.
Three years after Ekta left the ceramics studio, she learnt that Kalapremi had harassed many other women. Still trying to get a footing in the art industry, she attended a workshop in Kathmandu where women artists discussed ways to stay safe in the art sector.&nbsp;
Since it was a close-knit group Ekta opened up about how she felt violated and realised she was not alone, he had been abusing underprivileged students for years, and this was common knowledge among artists in Nepal.
Ekta says that even after she quit, Kalapremi continued sending her text messages like ‘I am thinking of you’, ‘Why have you stopped speaking with me’, or ‘I am waiting for your call’.&nbsp;
But what really forced her to act was when Ekta found out that he was sending similar texts to her younger sister.&nbsp;
“I’ve had enough,” she told us. “He abused me all these years but I won’t let him abuse my sister.” &nbsp;
Ekta, Rajiv and Luna are not the real names of the students.&nbsp;

‘Art Lover’ accused of sexual abuse

It was 8:15 in the evening of 25 March 1968 when everyone in the village of Batulechaur near Pokhara heard a deafening sound like thunder as a bright flashing object hurtled down to land in a field.&nbsp; That field belonged to Kul Timilsina, and the next morning he retrieved a sheet of metal about 2m by 1m and carried it home with the help of a few others, thinking it would be useful for his buffalo shed.&nbsp; Before he died at age 83 three years ago, Timilsina had told photo archivist Sunil Ulak that the black metal sheet was not rectangular and had rounded corners. There are a few witnesses still alive who have a clear recollection of the object that fell from the sky that night.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2024120707128_75cc85aac56b9cc4a77366471f058d7b3eb6868776811b0923845c2d0a61f014.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="2024120707128_75cc85aac56b9cc4a77366471f058d7b3eb6868776811b0923845c2d0a61f014" data-rendition-name="original" width="1170" height="601" loading="lazy" alt="UFO over Pokhara"> <figcaption>The field in Batulechaur belonging to Kul Timilsina where fragments of a flying object fell from the sky in 1968.</figcaption> </figure>  One of them is Timilsina’s wife Gyanu, who was 22 at the time. She had been at home, and remembers hearing the big bang and the sky becoming very bright. “We saw the thing in the field in the morning,” she told us. “It looked like a lid, a covering of some sort. The way it was stuck in the ground, it must have fallen from the sky. We thought we could use it to dry clothes on, and took it home.”&nbsp; Another witness is Kul Narayan Paudel. “I was only eight then. We ran to the field to see what had fallen. It was a four-sided metal sheet. The elders took it away, and I don't know what happened to it.” &nbsp; Ram Bahadur Baniya, a teacher at the local school, says he had heard the sheet had been brought to the school, and later handed over to the Zonal Commissioner at the time, Nanda Prasad Malla. “But that is all hearsay,” he says.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2024120707128_0bf207a12063fb8155b3c8d9a00a94887b126380c9e0627527c84cf5e1101f54.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="2024120707128_0bf207a12063fb8155b3c8d9a00a94887b126380c9e0627527c84cf5e1101f54" data-rendition-name="original" width="1170" height="610" loading="lazy" alt="UFO over Pokhara"> <figcaption>Gyanu Timilsina, wife of Kul Timilsina.</figcaption> </figure>  There are two versions of what happened to Kul Timilsina’s metal sheet. One is that an American Peace Corp Volunteer teaching at the nearby Bindyabasini School took it, and another is that it was handed over to the government. Recently declassified Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and US State Department documents from the time say that the US Embassy in Kathmandu tracked down the object two years later and had it shipped back to the US. A telegram from the Department of State and Department of Defense tagged as ‘MOON DUST / Space Fragments’ dated 1 March 1972 stated: ‘1. Restored space fragment will be on board Embassy support flight 115 arriving Kathmandu on or about March 10. Fragment is packed in shipping crate (cargo no. 72-33365) marked in care of DAO.&nbsp; 2. State and Defense representatives examined fragments prior to shipment finding restoration acceptable.’  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241207071212_929d903ee06d41baa4f6040e981cd7c7d7bd75cc9c37c9b617d307fc8538d2df.png" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="20241207071212_929d903ee06d41baa4f6040e981cd7c7d7bd75cc9c37c9b617d307fc8538d2df" data-rendition-name="original" width="856" height="568" loading="lazy" alt="UFO over Pokhara"> <figcaption>Declassified CIA documents about the investigation into the object sighted in Pokhara. </figcaption> </figure>  The documents show that the US government, military and intelligence agencies investigated this incident thoroughly when it occurred, and have continued to revisit it ever since, as recently as five years ago. What is even more intriguing is that the object that fell in Pokhara was not the only unidentified space object that fell to earth that year. There were similar sightings of objects falling from the sky in Ladakh, Sikkim and Bhutan between 19 February and 25 March 1968.&nbsp; These mysteries were the subject of a CIA investigation in 1968 titled ‘<a href="https://www.cia.gov/readingroom/docs/CIA-RDP81R00560R000100070007-8.pdf">Sighting of Unidentified Flying Objects in Ladakh, Nepal, Sikkim and Bhutan</a>’, and the report is part of the recent online declassification of 800,000 top-secret documents from the period.&nbsp; &nbsp;Although unidentified flying objects (UFOs) have a connotation now of being alien craft, it could be pieces of satellite, missile, rocket or even aircraft. The CIA report documents six sightings in 1968 and quotes local sources as describing all of them having similar characteristics: bright blue or red streaks in the sky accompanied by loud sounds like lightning and thunder and objects falling to the ground. Aside from the metallic object that was found in Batlechaur, there were other items also found nearby in Tallakot, Tureypasal, Armalakot and Maidan. Whatever the object was, it seems to have disintegrated even before it hit the ground.&nbsp; The CIA report records the first sighting on 19 February 1968 in various parts of Sikkim and Olangchung Gola and Ghunsa in eastern Nepal. The light was said to be ‘long and thin’ and giving out ‘green and red light’. &nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241207071212_c3c825027d966a2aedc846970390eebe063957503c7eacc8e01e0517843f9bbb.png" data-media-id="editor_4" data-image-id="20241207071212_c3c825027d966a2aedc846970390eebe063957503c7eacc8e01e0517843f9bbb" data-rendition-name="original" width="892" height="596" loading="lazy" alt="UFO over Pokhara "> </figure>  Two days later on 21 February, a soundless blue object was seen traveling fast across the sky above Thimphu in Bhutan. Then on 4 March there were multiple daytime sightings or white streaks in the sky at Chang La Pass, Fukche and Koyul in Ladakh. There were more sightings in Ladakh on the very day fragments fell near Pokhara on 25 March 1968.&nbsp; After the sightings in Pokhara, rumours started flying in Kathmandu that these were aliens trying to land on Earth, it could be Russian or Chinese spy planes or satellites, and some even say it as a sign from heaven that the end of the world was near. This was at the height of the Cold War. The Russians and Americans were testing their thermonuclear devices as well as intercontinental ballistic missile delivery systems. The Washington-Beijing rapprochement had not yet happened, and China was making quick progress testing atomic bombs. Within two years after its first atomic test, in 1966 China exploded its first hydrogen bomb at the Lop Nur site in Xinjiang, 3,000km to the north from Nepal. After neary six decades, what is still intriguing is that all the sightings within a few months of each other in 1968 were along the Himalayan arc bordering Tibet: from Bhutan, Sikkim Nepal, to Ladakh. The US military intelligence seems to have concluded that this was not a coincidence and there were frequent research trips to the site in Pokhara by American officials in the months after the incident. With the help of the Royal Nepal Army, the region north of Pokhara was thoroughly searched.&nbsp; A confidential memo dated 25 June 1968 by Jerry C Trippy to a ‘Mr Farley’ mentions that the US Air Force’s Foreign Technology Division had decided that the debris could be important because it may be related to a Chinese missile test or a Soviet ‘Vehicle Venik’ rocket.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241207071216_feb5425692dc36b20187de4e4fcc2ce9fd12b6d9e1b8724398e50bcdbf9032fe.jpg" data-media-id="editor_5" data-image-id="20241207071216_feb5425692dc36b20187de4e4fcc2ce9fd12b6d9e1b8724398e50bcdbf9032fe" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="UFO over Pokhara"> </figure>  On 28 August 1968 the US Embassy in Kathmandu sent a letter to Washington DC saying that the object could be of Soviet origin, possibly from when the rocket carrying the ‘Kosmos 208’ satellite re-entered the atmosphere. But why were the fragments falling to earth several weeks apart, and in the same region? No one knows where the metal sheet that Kul Timilsina recovered is now. It was definitely packed in a crate and taken to the US, and although it is rumoured that it was returned that is not very likely. Archivist Sunil Ulak heard from the Timilsina family that CIA officials had returned to the site five years ago. &nbsp; Interest in UFOs peaked in the US in the 1950s, with the Cold War space race and tests of atomic weapons and delivery rockets. CIA and scientists were being sent to investigate sightings, both publicly and privately. Could the Pokhara fragments as well as the sightings in Ladakh and Bhutan actually be alien craft falling to earth? The renewal in interest in space travel in large part due to Elon Musk’s SpaceX, UFOs and sightings are again subjects of public interest.&nbsp; Even 57 years later, even if there was definitive proof about whether the Batlechaur fragment was from a Chinese missile or a soviet rocket, it has not been made public in documents declassified so far. We may never know.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20241207071216_b6938795f40731e7657fd6dcbb3cf460a326186a15eb11d4f832f602201ff598.jpg" data-media-id="editor_6" data-image-id="20241207071216_b6938795f40731e7657fd6dcbb3cf460a326186a15eb11d4f832f602201ff598" data-rendition-name="original" width="642" height="320" loading="lazy" alt="UFO over Pokhara"> </figure>  Sunil Ulak speculates if the debris actually came from an American aircraft, perhaps on an intel mission upon China. “Which could explain why they were so thorough in collecting the fragments in Pokhara,” he says. But that still does not explain the multiple sightings weeks apart in 1968.&nbsp; Indeed, US military aircraft were at that time flying frequent night-time missions from air force bases in India to supply weapons to Khampa guerrilla camps in Nepal located north of Pokhara in Mustang. It could very well be that the Chinese shot down one such aircraft. The other sightings could have been contrails of US spy planes, or Chinese anti-aircraft missiles.&nbsp; There were quite a few developments regarding UFOs in 2024. In a US congressional hearing in July, former intelligence officer David Grusch claimed that the government had long been involved in a program to investigate and retrieve non-human craft crashes, and then try to reverse engineer them. However Grusch did not show any evidence.&nbsp; The UAP Disclosure Act of 2024 was signed into law by Joe Biden in December 2023. It plans to oversee the public disclosure of UFO information. However, there is a clause in it that prevents disclosure if it would cause threats to military defense, intelligence operations or foreign relations.&nbsp; It is unlikely that the declassified documents about sightings in the Himalayan will cause any real surprise about definite evidence of alien life even if it was found. It seems humanity will continue, at least for now, to wonder about curious lights in the sky and whether there is anybody out there.&nbsp;

UFO over Pokhara

When Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) president Rabi Lamichhane was arrested in October on charges of defrauding depositors of cooperatives, the party’s vice president Swarnim Wagle gifted him Fareed Zakaria’s book, Age of Revolutions.
Since then, Lamichhane has been shunted around from Kathmandu to Pokhara to Chitwan and back to Pokhara to attend police investigations and court proceedings. He was being flown to Birganj via Kathmandu on Buddha Air on Monday. There is another pending case in Janakpur.
Human rights groups and civil society have criticised the government for hounding Lamichhane with inhumane treatment that borders on physical torture. The two parties in the coalition, Nepali Congress (NC) and the UML, see Lamichhane’s RSP as a potentially formidable challenge to their power.
Even if the fraud charges against Lamichhane are true, the Nepali public is increasingly looking at the government’s actions through the police and courts as political vendetta.
Despite all the travelling, sometimes by plane and often by road at night, Lamichhane appears to be in high spirits, waving to supporters who often gather if they know he is going to be driven around. A social media video shows him giving high fives to fellow passengers on a recent flight to Pokhara.&nbsp;
In the past weeks, streets in Pokhara have erupted with parallel protests by Lamichhane’s supporters as well as depositors of cooperatives who lost their savings to the scam.&nbsp;
Although family visits are allowed, prison officials in Pokhara told Nepali Times that not many people visit Lamichhane these days. He added, “When he does get visitors, he asks them to bring him books.”
Lamichhane is currently Nepal’s most high-profile public figure in custody, and highlights the stark difference between how influential prisoners are treated compared to ordinary inmates.
There are six prison cells at Kaski District Police Office’s two-story detention centre, three on each floor. And while authorities pack prisoners into already overcrowded cells, Lamichhane has an entire room on the second floor to himself.&nbsp;
He has also been allowed to call his family every few days. Other prisoners are not permitted phone calls except for emergencies.
Meanwhile, Lamichhane’s former business partner Chhabilal Joshi, an ex-Deputy Inspector General of Police with whom he established his Gorkha Media Network, is in custody under the same charges in the prison cell next to him.
Lamichhane is accused of siphoning off depositors' money to the tv network in which he was part-owner and anchor. &nbsp;
Both Lamichhane and Joshi are able to buy food from the police canteen instead of being served the regular meal like other prisoners. Joshi has also given his statement to authorities in Rupandehi and Kathmandu for his alleged role in the scam. Lamichhane is yet to be presented in Kathmandu for questioning.
While he was in custody at the Kathmandu District Police Complex, Joshi expressed his desire to sleep in a police officer’s office, reportedly assuring authorities that he would not run away and he was entitled to certain facilities as a former officer of the law.
“He seemed to be under the impression that he is still a police officer,” says a source at the Kathmandu District Police. “We made it clear to him that as someone accused of a crime, he was not entitled to special treatment.”
Former ministers Balkrishna Khand and Top Bahadur Rayamajhi, and ex-home secretary Tek Narayan Pandey, who were arrested in connection with the fake refugee scam last year, were similarly housed in the offices of law enforcement officials instead of prison cells. Khand has since been released after six months in jail.
While there is no legal provision to keep high-ranking officials in separate detention centres when they are arrested, authorities granting them special facilities is not uncommon. Law enforcement officials say VIP detainees expect preferential treatment while in police custody.
Among those is former Kosi Province minister Lila Ballav Adhikari, who was arrested from Biratnagar on 10 November over his alleged involvement in human trafficking and brought to Kathmandu. Adhikari had flown to Japan without government approval with three individuals on 29 October to attend a cultural conference, but had been sent back to Nepal from Narita.&nbsp;
His three companions were arrested at Kathmandu airport upon their arrival, but Adhikari was able to exit unscathed from the VIP lounge. Adhikari had resigned as the Kosi Province Minister for Internal Affairs and Law when it became public that his companions had been taken into custody, and was himself arrested shortly after. He has since been cleared by the courts.
Throughout his detention, Adhikari was kept separately from other inmates. Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Basant Rajouri, head of the Bhadrakali complex, says that while there is no separate detention area for VIPs, some detainees are kept separately depending on the nature of their crime.
However, sources say that arrangements were made for retired judges and others to visit Adhikari frequently worked at the office of a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) during his time in custody.&nbsp;
“He used to constantly pester the authorities to let him sit outside in the sun, and to be able to use the police officer’s shower area,” added an officer.
Adhikari was released on 25 November after the government prosecutor’s office decided not to charge him in a move that was seen to expose the government’s double standards.
Over at Kathmandu’s Dilli Bazar Prison, former Kist Bank CEO Kamal Gyawali emerges from his prison cell into the courtyard of the prison’s ‘Ka (क)’ block every morning with a thick book in his hands, ready to give his daily sermon.
With his long beard, Gyawali, who is serving a prison sentence for banking fraud, looks the part of a religious guru as he implores his rapt listeners to “walk the right path, abandon bad thoughts and turn to scripture and spirituality”.&nbsp;
Afterward, the attendees gather to discuss politics and current affairs. Inmates at his daily sermons at the prison include other high-profile detainees, including former MP Ichchha Raj Tamang, who is in jail for money laundering and cooperatives fraud, former joint secretary Chudamani Sharma, who was convicted of corruption, as well as NC leader Chandra Bahadur Lama and Krishna Bahadur Upreti of the UML both of whom are on trial for embezzling billions of rupees.
Victims of the cooperatives scam that former lawmaker Tamang was involved in have made trips to the prison and requested visits, but he has refused to meet with any of them.
“Tamang often complains that the state has prevented him from returning the money to the victims by locking him up,” says a police officer at the Dili Bazar jail.
“All you hear every day from the VIP prisoners is that they have been framed,” adds the officer. “No one admits that they were involved in misdeeds.”
But while most high-profile prisoners complain about prison conditions, one exception is former provincial lawmaker Deepak Manange, who is serving a sentence at Dilli Bazar Jail for attempted murder.
“He is the happiest prisoner here,” says a warden. “Unlike the others, he doesn’t claim to have been framed, in fact he doesn’t seem to care that he is in prison.”
Manange is detained in the ‘Kha (ख)’ block of the prison complex, which he renovated at his own expense. The block previously housed female prisoners, but Manange used his influence to transfer them elsewhere. He faces no shortage of visitors, who range from political leaders to people from the underworld.
Along with Manange, other well-known prisoners in this block include Nepal Telecom Managing Director Sunil Poudel, and former executive director of the Surakshan Printing Centre Bikal Poudel, who are serving time for corruption.
Former prisoners at Dilli Bazar prison include ex-ministers Khum Bahadur Khadka and Shyam Sundar Gupta, NC leader Ganesh Lama, Maoist MP Balkrishna Dhungel, Nagarik Unmukti Party leader Resham Chaudhary, as well as former IGs Ramesh Chand Thakuri, Om Bikram Rana, and Hem Bahadur Gurung.
Section 54 of Nepal’s Prison Act assigns each prison’s internal administration the
responsibility of governing its prisoners, which means the more favourable the jail management is, the more comfortable it is for prisoners.
Dilli Bazar prison has been the prison of choice for many high-ranking prisoners, especially those convicted of white collar crimes, due to its more accommodating administrators. The prison, which has the capacity to house 700 inmates, is also less crowded than other jails.
Anuj Bhattarai, spokesperson of the Department of Prison Management, says that there is no legal classification in Nepal for felons to be assigned prisons based on the nature of their crimes.
“That Dilli Bazar Jail has a higher number of prisoners convicted of crimes like corruption is most likely a coincidence,” says Bhattarai. “There is no provision for influential people to be able to choose where they will be incarcerated.”&nbsp;
Translated by Shristi Karki from the Nepali original published in himalkhabar.com

What Nepal’s VIP prisoners do in jail

If you were raised in Nepal, you must have picked up its unique set of vocabulary: आन्दोलन, चक्का जाम, बन्द, राँके जुलुस, आफ्नो मान्छे, हाम्रो दल, कर्फु and many more words connoting political protest.
We became familiar with the acrid smell of burning tyres, and eyes smarting from tear gas. And yet, everyone speaks of another revolution in the making. Not by desire, but by suffocation.
We heard speeches about नयाँ नेपाल, but the New Nepal never arrived. The governance system changed, but it did not reflect on people’s lives — except for those close to centres of power. The state is still unreachable and is not bothered about <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/matter-of-life-and-debt">victims of loan sharks</a>, cooperative scams and other injustices.
Politicians continue to speak in sound bites, but fail to deliver. They have mastered the game of pointing fingers towards an external enemy and convincing people that they are never at fault. The political narrative is so disconnected from the actual analysis of the problem that suffocation doesn’t go away after every revolution.
No genuine effort has been made to deliver at all, which is why there is a palpable sense of disillusionment in the air forcing us to seek another revolution, even if Nepal may not be able to afford it.
How has the current system successfully held power, even if the public is deeply frustrated? How is it that for three decades we continue to be led by the same faces, who have time and again, proved to us that they may be great politicians but not national leaders?
<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/improving-internet-governance-in-nepal">My experience at the epicentre of politics</a> has led me to identify three cultures that have enabled political parties to keep a tight hold on power: acceptance, silence and dependency.
We accept things the way they are. We use fatalistic phrases like “नेपालमा यस्तै हो” or “नेपालको कानुन दैब जानुन”. While this resilience enables us to rise back up from devastating calamities, it is also a reason for our compliance with the status quo.
Despite so many ‘revolutions’ that have led to significant reforms, these phrases keep getting reinforced, to the point that the upcoming generations have made it their lingo.&nbsp;
This acceptance is not a symbol of law-abiding citizens, but citizens living in fear of those in power, unable to ask the whys and why-nots.
Innovation suffocates in this culture of acceptance of the status quo. This is manifested in remarks like “but we don’t have any laws for this,” or “we don’t have the capacity to implement this”. An innovator or entrepreneur therefore has to spend that energy to become a political lobbyist, often educating and convincing the bureaucracy.&nbsp;
Remember when locally assembled <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/designed-and-made-in-nepal">Yatri motorbikes</a>, despite having willing customers, had to suffer to secure license numbers because of a lack of regulations? Instead of creating new laws, the government kept chanting the “We will promote Nepal-made goods” mantra, leaving entrepreneurs in a labyrinth of bureaucracy. The weight of acceptance of the law lies heavily on innovators. Fatalism is a tactic used by those in power to generate mass fear in society.
When we accept, we become silent. This is a pervasive phenomenon. We are trained to keep quiet, lest we ruffle feathers, burn bridges, or not get the help we need in future. We know, yet we don’t speak.
Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/bureaucratic-hurdles-in-researching-nepals-bureaucracy">Bureaucratic hurdles in researching Nepal's bureaucracy</a>, Daniel W Edwards
Here is one example: the 2021 census shows that the number of baby boys born for every 100 baby girls is 112. This is a clear indication of female foeticide because of boy preference in society.
Despite such horrifying realities, there is finger-pointing within the government between the Ministry of Health and Population with the Ministry of Home Affairs. At the citizen level, we know those who are involved in killing girls. Yet, we don’t speak up. The Nepal Medical Council reports state that despite this gender imbalance at birth, there is no indication of any action.
But why would anyone speak against one's own fraternity, no matter how vile the act is?
When we accept and keep quiet, we become dependent on those who yield power. From getting our government procedure completed on time to getting transfers, to accessing any of our legally protected rights as well, we are forced to depend on our networks of चिनेको मान्छे people we know by blood, village, relations, political affiliation.
The culture of dependency has been the established way in Nepal. If you drive a two-wheeler or four-wheeler, and you get into a small accident, you will be asked to sort it yourself, dialing up the most powerful person you know. It becomes a competition of who knows who.
Recently I was told that there were calls from the Ministry of Health and Population and another from the Prime Minister's Office for just one medical position in a private hospital. Each was pushing its own candidate. Guess which candidate got the position.&nbsp;
The dependency of people is not on the laws or the state, it is with people in power, a reliance on the network of somebody who knows somebody, including those not officially in power.
These cultures are deeply ingrained in our heads, and in society. Collectively they form a vicious circle that helps those in power to retain power. This is not the society we want to live in.
Then, what do we do as a collective to break away from this? How do we break away from the cultures of acceptance and silence that have created this dependency? What can we do to ensure that our children do not have to learn the jargon of आन्दोलन before they learn about the state?
These are the cultures political parties need to shed rather than use them to perpetuate their power. This is what <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/comment/an-alternative-to-alternative-politics-in-nepal">alternative politics</a> needs to be about.
Sumana Shrestha is a member of Parliament’s Education, Health and Information Technology parliamentary committee and represents the Rastriya Swatantara Party.

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