<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20230112100132/63bfd3f89c7e80680e0d3082jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1115" height="738"/><figcaption>Estimated number of Nepalis studying, working and living abroad in selected countries. Source: VARIOUS SOURCES</figcaption></figure>At a recent graduation ceremony of one Australian university, 300 students paraded across the stage to receive their diplomas. All were Nepalis, except one. The only white people there were faculty members.A back-of-the-envelope calculation shows that at an average cost of USD30,000 per year for their undergraduate education Nepali students spent $15 million in just that one university in Australia.Just from January-June 2022, the Ministry of Education in Kathmandu approved 82,000 NOC (No Objection Certificates) for Nepali students going to Australia, Canada, UK, Japan and the US. This was more than double the figure for last year.A conservative estimate shows that Nepalis spent a whopping $3.3 billion for education overseas in just the first six months of this year. By comparison, Nepal’s annual petroleum import bill has risen to $2.5 billion, and tourism brought in less than $1 million in 2019.<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20230112100132/63bfd3fc9c7e80680e0d3083jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="227">Nepalis are essentially <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/from-the-nepali-press/rs40-billion-outflow-by-nepali-students/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">enriching first world countries with student out-migration</a> now costing the country more than what it earns from all its exports combined.Although some of the money students spend on fees and living costs are from what they earn from <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/why-nepalis-are-flocking-to-okinawa/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">part-time jobs</a>, much of it is funded by families in Nepal who sell their land or borrow money to send their children away.Since work and residence permits are difficult, getting a student visa is the easiest path to emigration for desperate Nepali youth. For host countries, this is a way to get cheap labour for low-skill jobs that their own nationals will not do.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20230112100132/63bfd4009c7e80680e0d3084jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="2048" height="1386"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>The <a href="https://amp.smh.com.au/education/why-is-australia-such-a-popular-destination-for-nepalese-students-20191217-p53ktf.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Sydney Morning Herald reported</a> recently that the ‘Nepal market’ was worth $2.6 billion to Australia in 2018-19, up from $1.6 billion the previous year. Nepal is the third biggest source of international students in Australia accounting for 7% of them."My best guess is that a majority of Nepalese students in Australia are here simply for work, hoping to make enough money in Australia both to pay off their tuition loans and return some extra to their families back in Nepal,” Salvatore Babones at the Centre for Independent Studies of the University of Sydney told the Herald.Countries like Australia, Canada, Japan, and increasingly the UK have deliberately left their immigration door slightly ajar to address their temporary labour shortage by giving out student visas, without a drastic liberalisation of their strict immigration policies. A bonus is the income that they earn from student fees.International students are an excellent business proposition. <a href="https://www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-europe-nordics-2022-12-danish-engineers-demand-removal-of-foreign-student-cap/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Danish Society of Engineers in Copenhagen</a> this week asked the government to drop the cap on foreign graduates and allow them to work after completing studies to fill a crippling shortage of engineers.Many Nepali students interviewed for this report admitted that getting a student visa was a one-way ticket out of Nepal. Indeed, the push-factors are strong: erratic and low quality instruction in colleges, and the lack of job prospects.Whereas abroad, students get better education and exposure, earn some money on the side because the host governments allow them to work a limited hours per week, and also because of the possibility of staying on.Read Also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/hardworking-students/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Hardworking Students</a>, Editorial<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20230112100132/63bfd4049c7e80680e0d3085jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="584">Another push factor, especially for young Nepali women is that by going abroad they can escape family pressure for an arranged marriage. Nepali youth are also <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/the-past-is-foretold-in-nepal-poll-results/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">frustrated with Nepal’s politics and leadership</a>, and most voted for the Rastriya Swatantra Party in November elections.“Three thousand Nepali youth are leaving the country every day either on work or student visas, but many of them will not be coming back,” says Pukar Malla of the non-profit Dayitwa which supports returnees with entrepreneurship in Nepal.Making it easy for students to leave allows the government to get away with not improving the state of education in Nepal. This is similar to labour migration which lets the government off the hook by not having to worry about job creation, and runs the country on the estimated $10 billion in remittance that Nepalis send home every year.The disparity between public and private education systems in Nepal is stark. And while there have been some notable improvements including world-class education in business administration, economics and public policy, much of this is centred around Kathmandu and not on the scale required.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20230112100132/63bfd4079c7e80680e0d3086jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="718"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>“The fact that our education is still very much <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/teaching-nepali-teachers-to-teach-better/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">rote learning with curriculum</a> not relevant to our context means we are producing graduates without actual skills required to meet challenges. Moreover, our education doesn’t even guarantee them jobs,” says educationist Narottam Aryal of King’s College.Speaking to Nepali Times from Finland where he is attending a conference on education reform, Aryal added: “We must shift our focus to innovation and entrepreneurship, to evidence-based research and interdisciplinary learning. Unless our policies put students at the centre, we will continue to lose our brightest young minds.”Some recommendations include reforming university law such that the focus is on quality instruction instead of infrastructure, and allowing autonomy in specific areas of study and their institutions.Says Pukar Malla: “Let’s get going by empowering our youth and women who are still in Nepal, providing them with leadership roles. Once we truly start changing politics and work for the people, even those who have left will start returning home.”Read Also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/migration-certificate/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Migration Certificate</a>, Prakriti Kandel<h4>Sima Gurung, 22</h4><h4>Bristol, UK</h4>I am from Sindhuli and I went to college in Kathmandu. After graduating in 2019, I am now doing a three-year undergraduate course in UWE-Bristol. I also work part-time as a bartender in a Latin-American restaurant here.It has only been three months since I left Nepal. The reason I left was that my college affiliated to Tribhuvan University in Kathmandu relied only on theoretical knowledge. I needed to have more practical knowledge and more exposure for better opportunities in future.Here in Britain, universities have decades of experience in working with international students. My annual tuition fee was £14,250 a year but I got a partial scholarship. In addition, I paid £5,700 for my CAS letter as per university regulations plus expenses for medical, visa and biometric fees.<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20230112100132/63bfd40a9c7e80680e0d3087jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="853">There are many international students in UWE-Bristol which also includes a lot of Nepalis. I have met some of them who took loans to be able to afford education here.I have many friends who have settled down abroad. There are a lot of opportunities here, and that discourages them from returning. But I have also met students who are here for learning and exposure and are determined to return to apply it back home.I haven’t thought much about my future plans yet. I will probably return to Nepal, but I’m not sure. I definitely want to contribute in some way for my country. But there must be jobs that pay well back home for me to return.<h4>Samjhauta Rai, 26</h4><h4>Winnipeg, Canada</h4>I am originally from a small town in Sarlahi district. I completed my bachelor's degree in social work in a college in Kathmandu before moving to Canada for a diploma course after paying a lot of money in the hope that I would get a quality education and exposure to the outside world.Since I arrived here in midst of the pandemic, I had to bear a lot of extra expenses from tuition fees to preparing additional documents, booking hotels for quarantine and so on. But the online classes were well planned, engaging and efficient. There was a stark difference with education in Nepal.Taking a loan to afford abroad studies is a common practice in Nepal and I had to as well to build my career and secure a future. I see students dying to go aboard, risking everything to get a visa that they think would open the doors to their imagined lifestyle.<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20230112100132/63bfd40e9c7e80680e0d3088jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="853">Most students who come here tend to stay on permanently. But I do want to return to Nepal ultimately. Maybe a couple of years down the line, I will be back home and set up something using the skills I have learnt here.Lack of jobs back home is the main reason for youth migration. It is the failure of the Nepal government that we are forced to leave. Even when they have a job on return, the salaries are low. The government should have a social safety net to help low income families.Canada has taught me a great deal of things. I’m more patient, calm and composed. But personally, I think it is best to return to our own country at some point. I cannot wait to get back home and add value to my experience here.

Sonia Awale

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Nepal’s hard working students overseas

<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109181148/636be8859c7e80680e087864jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1918" height="884"/><figcaption></figcaption></figure>The 20th International Migration Day on 18 December in the midst of the pandemic, with its disproportionate impact on migrants demands retrospection. We need to widen our time horizon to the last decades to see how far we have come and review the lapses along the way. We also need to focus on the virus-ridden year that is drawing to an end.Both time frames are intricately connected. Many lapses in the last 20 years in governance have had an acute, amplified impact on migrants this year. Covid-19 magnified the weaknesses and highlighted achievements that helped migrants cope better.Communication was critical during the pandemic as that made the long hours of waiting at labour camps, quarantine areas, and even isolation centres bearable. Smart phones have empowered migrant workers, given them the opportunity to be their own storytellers.In this paper, we reported stories of migrants who received support after they live streamed on <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/from-letters-to-landlines-phones-to-facebook/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Facebook</a> upon facing apathy from the authorities. The Malaysian Embassy’s weekly Facebook live programs answer queries of migrants need to be made the norm.We step into the 2020s knowing that technology has transformative power in <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/preparing-for-nepals-returnees/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">migration governance</a>. An example of this is the Department of Foreign Employment’s (DOFE) recent move to allow the renewal of labour approvals and acceptance of foreign employment fund contributions online.Abdul Sattar, a pioneer recruiter with over 40 years of experience, shared with me the struggles of obtaining job offers abroad in the early days. Nepalis then did not have access to the Gulf employers and they assumed Nepal was part of India. The only job offers for Nepalis came through Indian, Bangladeshi and Pakistani recruiters because employers were unfamiliar with Nepal. Once Nepalis proved themselves as hard workers, the employers became keen to hire more of them.“Times were different then. We were kept on a different pedestal and treated with respect,” Sattar says. Once <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/brokers-going-for-broke/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/brokers-going-for-broke/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1608342616438000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGTKPNu6nKn9fhflpVLArBRu6tRqg">profits, unhealthy competition and politics</a> entered the industry, <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/brokers-going-for-broke/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">things took a downturn</a>.“Have you ever considered how, since years, we have workers from far-flung areas like Rolpa who had never even come to Kathmandu, working and earning in Qatar or the UAE?” he asks.“Who made that possible?”As opportunities open up in non-traditional countries such as those in Europe, the same questions regarding familiarity and access of recruiters to employers come up. If diversification of migrant destination country is a priority, we cannot overlook the role of recruiters.The pandemic has further underscored the need for international cooperation in migration governance. At the same time, it has revealed the inadequacies of existing international cooperation mechanisms.The last 20 years saw the establishment of regional platforms like the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/win-win-migration/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/win-win-migration/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1608342616438000&amp;usg=AFQjCNH0ntaqdcyPPtGd3572i9bsvxs0lg">Colombo Process</a> between migrant sending countries in 2003, and the Abu Dhabi Dialogue in 2008 between both <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/bargaining-power/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">sending and receiving countries</a>, as well as the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/changing-the-headlines-on-migration/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/changing-the-headlines-on-migration/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1608342616438000&amp;usg=AFQjCNG0CD2D185qIa7HvCfhHva1WrcwVA">Global Compact on Migration</a>.These forums that allow countries with varying agendas and priorities in migration to come together for a larger shared cause, is a huge step in migration governance and a result of <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/for-nepals-migrant-workers-good-news-in-small-bites/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">persistent negotiations</a>.The past two decades also witnessed the signing of several bilateral <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/editorial/doubts-on-zero-cost-migration-deal-coming-into-force,2157" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">labour agreements starting with the one with Qatar</a> in 2005. However, their implementation has always been weak even when there is scope for mutually beneficial cooperation such as skills partnerships.When Nepalis working in India unexpectedly showed up at the borders in <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepalis-still-stuck-in-no-mans-land/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">the hundreds of thousands</a> this year, it reminded us of not one, but two elephants in the room. The first one was the India-Nepal border that we continue to overlook, and the second was the unpreparedness of local governments which should have been <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepal-and-india-stop-nationals-in-each-others-countries/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">well-placed to address the problems of migration</a>, but have not been mobilised.Nepal’s federalisation offers an immense opportunity in migration governance. There were initial small wins like allowing renewals of labour approvals at provincial levels or applying for welfare fund benefits at local levels. But the pandemic was a wake-up call, as the onus of managing tens of thousands of returnees from India has been placed on local governments amidst lack of data and resources.Moving forward, leveraging the proximity advantage of local governments and decentralised service delivery will be critical. It means making up for the last three years since local governments were given a bunch of foreign employment mandate including returnee management, data collection and information dissemination.Migration has been largely temporary in our part of the world, without a path to citizenship for workers in the Gulf nations or Malaysia. Reintegration never got due attention, while government documents do mention the need to mobilise returnees. There are some positive examples of financial assistance for returnees at local levels, but most migrants cannot afford to keep waiting to be ‘reintegrated’. This has <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/commercially-important-people/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">compelled them to find ways to remigrate</a>, instead.<a style="font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em;" href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepal-plans-to-reintegrate-returning-workers/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Policies on reintegration</a>, especially related to employment, are urgently needed. It is important to be mindful that unless the broader jobs and self-employment challenges faced by all regardless of your migration history are addressed, impact of specific reintegration interventions can be limited and incomplete. How will a job-search assistance program targeting returnees work if there are no jobs, for example?While migration from Nepal is considered “temporary”, we have seen high volumes of renewals. The song Saili aptly referred to returning at the age 40 to be with the sweetheart, and not sooner as one would expect if migration was actually ‘temporary’, since migrants leave at a young age.Whether hopping across different Gulf countries or staying in the same country <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/sons-of-their-fathers/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">for 20 years</a>, migrants spend a significant portion of their working age away from Nepal. Alongside reintegration programs, the emphasis on social security agreements with destination countries as well as the option to participate in contributory social security, is necessary. Nepal recently signed a <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/the-future-is-older/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">social security agreement with Malaysia</a> in favour of migrant workers — a good example that needs to be replicated elsewhere.In 2018, Nepal’s Foreign Employment Management Information System was a game-changer in providing comprehensive information on the outflow of Nepali migrant workers. But data on the total numbers abroad are not systematically maintained – an absence sorely felt during the Covid-19 crisis.A messy data collection exercise took up a good deal of time in the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/homecoming/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">initial period of the pandemic</a>. We also need to focus on nationally representative survey data collection for migrants that cover their aspirations and migration experience.When it comes to spending on migrant welfare, the Foreign Employer Welfare Fund (FEWF) is viewed as the only resource. As migrants were stranded abroad, the discussion did not move beyond who qualified for the benefits. We demanded that our undocumented workers across borders be treated well by authorities of destination countries, while the Nepal Government itself was discriminatory towards its citizens who did not have labour approvals and were considered ‘undocumented’.We limited ourselves to an endless back-and-forth on the contributory fund when there was an entire Covid-19 fund set aside just for the pandemic. For a country so highly reliant on remittances, government spending on this sector is abysmal.A critical learning highlighted during different emergencies, is the need for strong embassies. While there isn’t data on the stock of migrants, countries like Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Malaysia have well over 300,000 Nepalis. The recent <a style="background-color: #ffffff; letter-spacing: 0.01em;" href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepali-in-saudi-arabia-rescued-after-13-years/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepali-in-saudi-arabia-rescued-after-13-years/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1608342616438000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHVXxwvJO4UC2dOcj63Y_px97WZhA">rescue of a Saudi case</a> showed that despite having a consulate general office outside Riyadh where the embassy is based, just reaching one migrant worker in trouble took 14 hours, one way.Nepal’s embassies in <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepal-struggles-to-make-repatriation-easier/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepal-struggles-to-make-repatriation-easier/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1608342616438000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFRp2YIYNSsx38ROGvAt2yaxTx9IQ">Oman</a> and <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepals-women-envoys-make-a-mark/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepals-women-envoys-make-a-mark/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1608342616438000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHpMn3kmfMCDaktTW4jtCDU-8t8Ew">Israel</a> have been <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepals-women-envoys-make-a-mark/)" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">managing migration issues well</a>, but they have the advantage of the relatively low population of migrants. Embassy staffing and resources need to reflect migrant population and geography.Reviewing key policies on migration also demands a focus on the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/why-has-zero-cost-migration-not-happened/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/why-has-zero-cost-migration-not-happened/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1608342616438000&amp;usg=AFQjCNF-TURu4DT89eBaB_8zm-ukPvNi3A">free-visa-free-ticket policy</a> and ban on domestic workers. In 2015, when it was introduced, Om Astha Rai in Nepali Times aptly asked: ‘<a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/page/zero-cost-migration-qatar-nepal" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/page/zero-cost-migration-qatar-nepal&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1608342616438000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGfbnx9AO7yonZmI843L_0YFAGglg">Zero-cost migration, really</a>’? Five years later we are still asking the same question.As far back as 2006, Dambar Shrestha in this paper wrote about the <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=12746" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">ban on female domestic workers</a>: ‘There was a general consensus that the ban should be repealed, as a way to monitor overseas employment, and ensure women have legal recourse if mistreated.”Fifteen years later, the consensus remains while the demand in the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/demand-grows-for-nepali-caregivers-in-israel/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/demand-grows-for-nepali-caregivers-in-israel/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1608342616438000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGklv9SEpsnc19WUid3lhry0natjg">care sector</a> has increased globally and women have continued to leave via irregular channels. The question for us as we enter into the 2020s is: what do we do about these longstanding policies that are practically challenging to implement, but politically popular?Upasana Khadka writes this column Labour Mobility every month in Nepali Times analysing trends affecting Nepal’s workers abroad.

Upasana Khadka

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Nepali migration in the 2020s

<img width="1500" height="1000" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109181148/636be86c9c7e80680e08785ajpeg.jpg" alt=""/>2020 turned the world upside down, and in Nepal, one of the most dramatic impacts was on the country’s economic mainstay – overseas contract workers who sent home nearly $8 billion during the pandemic.The year forces us to re-examine long-held assumptions about Nepal’s remittance economy. And on International Migrants Day, Friday 18 December, Nepali Times has a special package of reportage, analysis and commentary on the subject.When citizens are treated shabbily by a government, their health and education needs are neglected, they have no meaningful employment at home – they will leave. And it may be naïve to expect a state that has created the very conditions for millions of Nepalis to migrate to suddenly be conscious about their welfare. Nepal’s past governments have used migration as a safety valve, so millions of unemployed youth do not create political instability at home. The money they send back keeps the economy afloat. Nepal’s remittance-to-GDP equivalence highest in Asia at 28% — much more than Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, or the Philippines, and among the Top 5 globally. Yet, it has never been a priority for Nepal’s bureaucrats, political leaders or legislators to ease the process so workers are not fleeced every step of the way and ensure that their work is gainful, dignified and safe. <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/blood-sweat-and-tears/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The rare politician</a>s who have tried to address exploitation have been dismissed. Paying lip service to ‘national heroes’ every International Migrants Day is not enough. Like it or not, out-migration has been a prominent feature in Nepal’s history and is here to stay. One of them is a man named Hari Sharma, who has featured in previous reports in this paper, and whose story captures the hardships, uncertainties and inevitability of migration.Hari made an <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/the-long-journey-to-nepal/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">arduous journey</a> to Banke district from Ahmedabad in May when the lockdown forced millions of labourers to head home, many on foot. “It is better to die in my own country,” he told us then, as he trudged to the Nepal border on India’s Shramik train.  <img width="1181" height="530" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109181148/636be86f9c7e80680e08785bjpeg.jpg" alt="">Five months later, he is back in Ahmedabad with the same employer despite the Covid-19 crisis in India. On the phone this week, he asked us rhetorically: “How will my family survive if I don’t migrate?Migration is inevitable, so we have to manage it better. There is a whole checklist of things to do, and a lot of it begins at home:- Ensure a clean and transparent process- Reduce the economic burden of recruitment- Upscale vocational and pre-departure training- Eliminate bureaucratic hassles and fees- Control extortion and corruption every step of the way- Sign bilateral labour agreements and implement them- Prompt help by embassies to workers in need- Soft loans for business development of returnees- Invest in mass-job creation at home All this is not going to happen overnight. <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/irresistible-forces-wage-differentials-and-demographic-trends/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Demographic shifts worldwide</a>, salary differences and aspirations of youth are real. Even as Nepal develops, its youth gets better education, the push factors for migration will continue to grow. The destination may change from India to Qatar, or Qatar to the UK, but it is all mobility nonetheless. The choice ahead of Nepal is not whether we can curb migration (we cannot) but how <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/irresistible-forces-wage-differentials-and-demographic-trends/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">we can benefit</a> from this phenomenon while giving the youth attractive economic opportunities back home so that deciding to stay is not an unusual choice.As 2020 draws to a close, we must also ponder how the pandemic did not just limit outmigration but also prevented Nepalis from coming back home. The inaction has been stunning. The Labour Minister was AWOL. Repatriation flights were a mess, with flip-flopping rules, lack of information for workers in limbo. When flights did resume in July, the government could not decide who should benefit from airfare support – undocumented workers were not eligible for the ticket scheme when they are the ones who needed the help the most. Many Nepali workers overseas did not even bother to register to return, preferring to hold on to the jobs they had, even when wages and hours were not ideal.Through all this, remittances defied expectations and continued to hold strong. Nepal’s migrant workers contributed directly (by engaging in critical essential work in host countries) or indirectly (by sending remittances to Nepal). International Migrants Day celebrates their sacrifices, but we need to do much more than just appreciate them.

The Year of Migrant Workers

<img width="1500" height="1000" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109191120/636bef614b0ad905ca02efa3jpeg.jpg" alt=""/>2020 turned the world upside down, and in Nepal, one of the most dramatic impacts was on the country’s economic mainstay – overseas contract workers who sent home nearly $8 billion during the pandemic.The year forces us to re-examine long-held assumptions about Nepal’s remittance economy. And on International Migrants Day, Friday 18 December, Nepali Times has a special package of reportage, analysis and commentary on the subject.When citizens are treated shabbily by a government, their health and education needs are neglected, they have no meaningful employment at home – they will leave. And it may be naïve to expect a state that has created the very conditions for millions of Nepalis to migrate to suddenly be conscious about their welfare. Nepal’s past governments have used migration as a safety valve, so millions of unemployed youth do not create political instability at home. The money they send back keeps the economy afloat. Nepal’s remittance-to-GDP equivalence highest in Asia at 28% — much more than Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, or the Philippines, and among the Top 5 globally. Yet, it has never been a priority for Nepal’s bureaucrats, political leaders or legislators to ease the process so workers are not fleeced every step of the way and ensure that their work is gainful, dignified and safe. <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/blood-sweat-and-tears/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The rare politician</a>s who have tried to address exploitation have been dismissed. Paying lip service to ‘national heroes’ every International Migrants Day is not enough. Like it or not, out-migration has been a prominent feature in Nepal’s history and is here to stay. One of them is a man named Hari Sharma, who has featured in previous reports in this paper, and whose story captures the hardships, uncertainties and inevitability of migration.Hari made an <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/the-long-journey-to-nepal/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">arduous journey</a> to Banke district from Ahmedabad in May when the lockdown forced millions of labourers to head home, many on foot. “It is better to die in my own country,” he told us then, as he trudged to the Nepal border on India’s Shramik train.  <img width="1181" height="530" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109191120/636bef634b0ad905ca02efa4jpeg.jpg" alt="">Five months later, he is back in Ahmedabad with the same employer despite the Covid-19 crisis in India. On the phone this week, he asked us rhetorically: “How will my family survive if I don’t migrate?Migration is inevitable, so we have to manage it better. There is a whole checklist of things to do, and a lot of it begins at home:- Ensure a clean and transparent process- Reduce the economic burden of recruitment- Upscale vocational and pre-departure training- Eliminate bureaucratic hassles and fees- Control extortion and corruption every step of the way- Sign bilateral labour agreements and implement them- Prompt help by embassies to workers in need- Soft loans for business development of returnees- Invest in mass-job creation at home All this is not going to happen overnight. <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/irresistible-forces-wage-differentials-and-demographic-trends/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Demographic shifts worldwide</a>, salary differences and aspirations of youth are real. Even as Nepal develops, its youth gets better education, the push factors for migration will continue to grow. The destination may change from India to Qatar, or Qatar to the UK, but it is all mobility nonetheless. The choice ahead of Nepal is not whether we can curb migration (we cannot) but how <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/irresistible-forces-wage-differentials-and-demographic-trends/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">we can benefit</a> from this phenomenon while giving the youth attractive economic opportunities back home so that deciding to stay is not an unusual choice.As 2020 draws to a close, we must also ponder how the pandemic did not just limit outmigration but also prevented Nepalis from coming back home. The inaction has been stunning. The Labour Minister was AWOL. Repatriation flights were a mess, with flip-flopping rules, lack of information for workers in limbo. When flights did resume in July, the government could not decide who should benefit from airfare support – undocumented workers were not eligible for the ticket scheme when they are the ones who needed the help the most. Many Nepali workers overseas did not even bother to register to return, preferring to hold on to the jobs they had, even when wages and hours were not ideal.Through all this, remittances defied expectations and continued to hold strong. Nepal’s migrant workers contributed directly (by engaging in critical essential work in host countries) or indirectly (by sending remittances to Nepal). International Migrants Day celebrates their sacrifices, but we need to do much more than just appreciate them.

<img width="528" height="668" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109181148/636be8509c7e80680e08784ejpeg.jpg" alt=""/>Twelve years after she left Nepal, and after a dramatic rescue from the home of her abusive Saudi employer, Lilamaya Dhimal (pictured above) returned to a sunny Kathmandu airport on Wednesday morning to say: "I feel safe now, at least I know I will live."   She was saved from a cruel man of the house in a well-planned rescue in the town of Tabuk by her brother, the Nepal embassy and other Nepalis. She is ecstatic to be back and reunited with her family in Jhapa, who had given up hope that she was alive.The Nepal Consulate in Jeddah, where she had been sheltering, told her to get up at 9AM on Tuesday to catch her flight via Kuwait. But the anticipation was too much for her.“I was so excited that I could barely sleep. I was up by 3AM and was on the phone with my children,” Lilamaya said after landing.Lilamaya Dhimal (who is also known by her alias Sharmila Kisan Magar) had been out of touch with her family for over a decade since first going to Saudi Arabia in 2009. One day, by sheer chance, she connected with a man from Nepal on IMO, and pleaded for help.He shared her contact information with his sister in Jhapa, who lived near Lilamaya’s house and was kind enough to go to her home to pass on her details to her family.“It was such a shock when I received a call and heard my brother say दिदी,” Lilamaya recalls. “I learnt that my husband, who was in ill health and drank, passed away three years back. My children were young when I left, but I have six grandchildren now. I was out of touch for years, and they had given me up for dead.”Lilamaya’s employer was abusive and did not pay her. When she couldn’t bear the torture, Lilamaya used to ask him what they would do if she died in Saudi Arabia? His response — a nonchalant “Maafi mushkil” (no problem). <img width="528" height="960" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109181148/636be8529c7e80680e08784fjpeg.jpg" alt="">“I landed in the hands of a monster,” she says. “All five of the family’s children were below 10 years and were quite a handful. They were gullible and emulated their parents in mistreating me. My days would begin before 6 AM and end after 1 AM.”Lilamaya’s brother, Hem Raj Magar, was based in the UAE and helped coordinate her rescue via the Riyadh-based Nepal Embassy which referred her case to the Jeddah-based Consulate.“My sister can barely read and she had no idea where she was in Saudi Arabia,” says Hem Raj. “It took me a long time and several failed attempts so she could finally send her WhatsApp location.”Labour Attache Prem Upadhyaya at the Consulate in Jeddah recommended that she also send pictures of nearby landmarks. Lilamaya  managed to sneak out of the house one day and took pictures of a neighbourhood shop. That was enough to begin the rescue effort.“The location was in Tabuk, over 1,200 km from where we are based,” says Upadhyaya. “So we mobilised Nepalis in the town to confirm the location as we hit the road. We advised her to come outside the next morning once her employer had left for work. We instantly recognised her and took her away in our vehicle.”Lilamaya recalls her nervousness, “My heart was pounding as I was scared I would be caught. I managed to take two small bags of my clothes even though I had been advised not to bring anything.” <figure><img width="588" height="292" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109181148/636be8549c7e80680e087850jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption> </figcaption></figure><figure><img width="640" height="383" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109181148/636be8569c7e80680e087851jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Consulate staff coordinated with Saudi authorities to ensure that Lilamaya was fairly compensated. “The employer was a no-show at the Labour Office on the first day but he came in the second day,” says Upadhyaya. “After much back and forth, they have finally paid her 30,000 Riyal (Rs 953,000).” Lilamaya said she had been paid for the first few years, although she could not recall the exact details of the time period and amount. While her exit documentation was being sorted out and she got compensated, Lilamaya lived under the protection of the Nepal Consulate in Jeddah and Non-Resident Nepali Association in Tabuk, and then in the Consulate for over one month.She recalls, “One day, there were many Nepalis who had come to the Consulate to talk to me and show their support. I was overwhelmed as I had not seen so many Nepalis since so long. Even though I didn’t know any of them personally, just being around Nepalis who were referring to me as their sister felt very safe. I wept uncontrollably in front of them and could not say much.”“I never met my six grandchildren, even as I took care of five of my employer’s children of similar ages. My brother and daughters try to remind me of the names of my grandchildren, but it is impossible for me to keep up. I will have to re-introduce myself to my own children whom I had left behind a long time ago. They are unrecognisable after all these years,” she says.Lilamaya knows life in Jhapa once she is back will not be without challenges. Her son is facing mental health issues. She breaks down as she says: “A धामी shaman is treating him and he is confined to a room. It pains me to think about my son, and I cannot wait to hold him. I have my own health problems, especially with one of my eyes. I am also mentally stressed. But I am glad they found me."  <img width="1181" height="530" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109181148/636be8589c7e80680e087852jpeg.jpg" alt="">Lilamaya ’s case is not isolated, and most Nepalis know about the risks. Yet this does not deter Nepali women from undertaking similar journeys. Lilamaya has an explanation: “When everyone else is going abroad to work from the village, you also think it is OK. There were people in my village who were younger and more informed than me who were leaving via India and sending money home. I was unlucky to land a monstrous employer.”The possibility of a better life is real, especially because of rising demand abroad in the care economy. The partial and blanket bans on women travelling abroad can be by-passed through the open border with India. Also, there are few domestic employment options for Nepali women. A recent World Bank Jobs Diagnostic shows that three-quarters of new jobs taken up by women between 2008 and 2018 were in non-wage, self- employment or unpaid family work like farming.In any age group, less than half of the female population participates in the labour market and it is limited by traditional gender roles, family responsibilities, and mobility and security concerns.The willingness to bypass the ban to improve their lives is also fuelled by the pressing demand for domestic workers abroad which was growing in the Gulf at 9% annually pre-pandemic. Now, with family members are home at all times, domestic workers are under added pressure to work more without adequate compensation. While many sectors face the brunt of pandemic-induced economic fallout, the care economy is expected to grow in the Gulf region and beyond. For Nepali women, whose share in overseas employment has been limited at around 10% annually, overseas options in non-care sectors has remained poor.But defying the ban means women are not recorded as migrants by the government. It also results in lack of pre-departure training, inability to hold agents accountable, and makes them ineligible for welfare programs — all part of the legalised recruitment process.After years of the ban being decried for its ineffectiveness and unintended consequences, in October the Parliamentary Committee on Industry, Commerce, Labour and Consumer Interest instructed that the ban be removed under certain conditions.Says Bimal Prasad Shrivastav, Chair of the Committee, who led a review trip to the Gulf before the pandemic to assess the situation of domestic workers: “Rather than a blanket ban, we have recommended that country- specific policies be taken to address the situation of domestic workers.” For example, the committee has recommended that the ban be lifted for the UAE, which has taken proactive steps in domestic worker reform, and with which Nepal has signed a labour MOU. A similar agreement is also being signed with Oman.“With countries like Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, there are currently no MOUs and they need to be prioritised urgently,” says Shrivastav, “while an MOU is an essential condition, it is not sufficient and we have made a series of other recommendations after considerable deliberations.”In addition to a comprehensive bilateral labour agreement, these preconditions include a separate domestic worker law, a strong joint mechanism to resolve issues faced by domestic workers, pre-departure training — including of the local language — and post-arrival training, equality of treatment between Nepalis and locals, penalties for sponsors who abuse domestic workers, and easy access of domestic workers to communicate with consular officials and families back home.In early November, Saudi Arabia made some reforms to foreign worker regulations, including giving workers the freedom to change jobs legally to travel outside the country without their employer’s permission. However the changes, which will be effective from March 2021 and are considered a bold effort to dismantle the infamous Kafala system, do not apply to domestic workers. Similar reforms made in Qatar in August this year do,however, apply to domestic workers.But as with all lofty policies, it all boils down to implementation. Bilateral agreements and other policies are only useful if they prevent other migrant workers like Lilamaya Dhimal from abuse by inhumane employers.Om Thapa and Lekhnath Khatiwada helped in reporting this piece.

Marty Logan

Nepali in Saudi Arabia rescued after 12 years

<img width="528" height="668" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109191116/636bef464b0ad905ca02ef97jpeg.jpg" alt=""/>Twelve years after she left Nepal, and after a dramatic rescue from the home of her abusive Saudi employer, Lilamaya Dhimal (pictured above) returned to a sunny Kathmandu airport on Wednesday morning to say: "I feel safe now, at least I know I will live."   She was saved from a cruel man of the house in a well-planned rescue in the town of Tabuk by her brother, the Nepal embassy and other Nepalis. She is ecstatic to be back and reunited with her family in Jhapa, who had given up hope that she was alive.The Nepal Consulate in Jeddah, where she had been sheltering, told her to get up at 9AM on Tuesday to catch her flight via Kuwait. But the anticipation was too much for her.“I was so excited that I could barely sleep. I was up by 3AM and was on the phone with my children,” Lilamaya said after landing.Lilamaya Dhimal (who is also known by her alias Sharmila Kisan Magar) had been out of touch with her family for over a decade since first going to Saudi Arabia in 2009. One day, by sheer chance, she connected with a man from Nepal on IMO, and pleaded for help.He shared her contact information with his sister in Jhapa, who lived near Lilamaya’s house and was kind enough to go to her home to pass on her details to her family.“It was such a shock when I received a call and heard my brother say दिदी,” Lilamaya recalls. “I learnt that my husband, who was in ill health and drank, passed away three years back. My children were young when I left, but I have six grandchildren now. I was out of touch for years, and they had given me up for dead.”Lilamaya’s employer was abusive and did not pay her. When she couldn’t bear the torture, Lilamaya used to ask him what they would do if she died in Saudi Arabia? His response — a nonchalant “Maafi mushkil” (no problem). <img width="528" height="960" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109191116/636bef484b0ad905ca02ef98jpeg.jpg" alt="">“I landed in the hands of a monster,” she says. “All five of the family’s children were below 10 years and were quite a handful. They were gullible and emulated their parents in mistreating me. My days would begin before 6 AM and end after 1 AM.”Lilamaya’s brother, Hem Raj Magar, was based in the UAE and helped coordinate her rescue via the Riyadh-based Nepal Embassy which referred her case to the Jeddah-based Consulate.“My sister can barely read and she had no idea where she was in Saudi Arabia,” says Hem Raj. “It took me a long time and several failed attempts so she could finally send her WhatsApp location.”Labour Attache Prem Upadhyaya at the Consulate in Jeddah recommended that she also send pictures of nearby landmarks. Lilamaya  managed to sneak out of the house one day and took pictures of a neighbourhood shop. That was enough to begin the rescue effort.“The location was in Tabuk, over 1,200 km from where we are based,” says Upadhyaya. “So we mobilised Nepalis in the town to confirm the location as we hit the road. We advised her to come outside the next morning once her employer had left for work. We instantly recognised her and took her away in our vehicle.”Lilamaya recalls her nervousness, “My heart was pounding as I was scared I would be caught. I managed to take two small bags of my clothes even though I had been advised not to bring anything.” <figure><img width="588" height="292" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109191116/636bef4a4b0ad905ca02ef99jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption> </figcaption></figure><figure><img width="640" height="383" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109191116/636bef4c4b0ad905ca02ef9ajpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Consulate staff coordinated with Saudi authorities to ensure that Lilamaya was fairly compensated. “The employer was a no-show at the Labour Office on the first day but he came in the second day,” says Upadhyaya. “After much back and forth, they have finally paid her 30,000 Riyal (Rs 953,000).” Lilamaya said she had been paid for the first few years, although she could not recall the exact details of the time period and amount. While her exit documentation was being sorted out and she got compensated, Lilamaya lived under the protection of the Nepal Consulate in Jeddah and Non-Resident Nepali Association in Tabuk, and then in the Consulate for over one month.She recalls, “One day, there were many Nepalis who had come to the Consulate to talk to me and show their support. I was overwhelmed as I had not seen so many Nepalis since so long. Even though I didn’t know any of them personally, just being around Nepalis who were referring to me as their sister felt very safe. I wept uncontrollably in front of them and could not say much.”“I never met my six grandchildren, even as I took care of five of my employer’s children of similar ages. My brother and daughters try to remind me of the names of my grandchildren, but it is impossible for me to keep up. I will have to re-introduce myself to my own children whom I had left behind a long time ago. They are unrecognisable after all these years,” she says.Lilamaya knows life in Jhapa once she is back will not be without challenges. Her son is facing mental health issues. She breaks down as she says: “A धामी shaman is treating him and he is confined to a room. It pains me to think about my son, and I cannot wait to hold him. I have my own health problems, especially with one of my eyes. I am also mentally stressed. But I am glad they found me."  <img width="1181" height="530" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109191116/636bef4e4b0ad905ca02ef9bjpeg.jpg" alt="">Lilamaya ’s case is not isolated, and most Nepalis know about the risks. Yet this does not deter Nepali women from undertaking similar journeys. Lilamaya has an explanation: “When everyone else is going abroad to work from the village, you also think it is OK. There were people in my village who were younger and more informed than me who were leaving via India and sending money home. I was unlucky to land a monstrous employer.”The possibility of a better life is real, especially because of rising demand abroad in the care economy. The partial and blanket bans on women travelling abroad can be by-passed through the open border with India. Also, there are few domestic employment options for Nepali women. A recent World Bank Jobs Diagnostic shows that three-quarters of new jobs taken up by women between 2008 and 2018 were in non-wage, self- employment or unpaid family work like farming.In any age group, less than half of the female population participates in the labour market and it is limited by traditional gender roles, family responsibilities, and mobility and security concerns.The willingness to bypass the ban to improve their lives is also fuelled by the pressing demand for domestic workers abroad which was growing in the Gulf at 9% annually pre-pandemic. Now, with family members are home at all times, domestic workers are under added pressure to work more without adequate compensation. While many sectors face the brunt of pandemic-induced economic fallout, the care economy is expected to grow in the Gulf region and beyond. For Nepali women, whose share in overseas employment has been limited at around 10% annually, overseas options in non-care sectors has remained poor.But defying the ban means women are not recorded as migrants by the government. It also results in lack of pre-departure training, inability to hold agents accountable, and makes them ineligible for welfare programs — all part of the legalised recruitment process.After years of the ban being decried for its ineffectiveness and unintended consequences, in October the Parliamentary Committee on Industry, Commerce, Labour and Consumer Interest instructed that the ban be removed under certain conditions.Says Bimal Prasad Shrivastav, Chair of the Committee, who led a review trip to the Gulf before the pandemic to assess the situation of domestic workers: “Rather than a blanket ban, we have recommended that country- specific policies be taken to address the situation of domestic workers.” For example, the committee has recommended that the ban be lifted for the UAE, which has taken proactive steps in domestic worker reform, and with which Nepal has signed a labour MOU. A similar agreement is also being signed with Oman.“With countries like Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, there are currently no MOUs and they need to be prioritised urgently,” says Shrivastav, “while an MOU is an essential condition, it is not sufficient and we have made a series of other recommendations after considerable deliberations.”In addition to a comprehensive bilateral labour agreement, these preconditions include a separate domestic worker law, a strong joint mechanism to resolve issues faced by domestic workers, pre-departure training — including of the local language — and post-arrival training, equality of treatment between Nepalis and locals, penalties for sponsors who abuse domestic workers, and easy access of domestic workers to communicate with consular officials and families back home.In early November, Saudi Arabia made some reforms to foreign worker regulations, including giving workers the freedom to change jobs legally to travel outside the country without their employer’s permission. However the changes, which will be effective from March 2021 and are considered a bold effort to dismantle the infamous Kafala system, do not apply to domestic workers. Similar reforms made in Qatar in August this year do,however, apply to domestic workers.But as with all lofty policies, it all boils down to implementation. Bilateral agreements and other policies are only useful if they prevent other migrant workers like Lilamaya Dhimal from abuse by inhumane employers.Om Thapa and Lekhnath Khatiwada helped in reporting this piece.

<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108151124/636a66ba9c7e80680e05999fjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="3000" height="2000"/><figcaption>Photo: GOPEN RAI</figcaption></figure>Migration is often portrayed as a doom and gloom story of desperation, <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/kleptocrats-of-kathmandu-and-kualalampur/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">exploitation</a> and abuse. The only positive stories are about migrants-turned-millionaires, or <a href="https://nepalitimes.atavist.com/back-to-the-land" target="_blank" rel="noopener">returnees who started commercial farming</a>.What rarely gets attention is the incremental improvement in the lives of workers. An average migrant worker is neither stranded, nor a millionaire -- usually it is the story of someone earning enough overseas to build a concrete house or afford better education for the children.We also expect <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-and-malaysia-rewrite-rules-for-migrant-labour/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">policies on migration</a> to be uprooted overnight, and entrenched business practices cleaned up. But change is rarely so dramatic, it is mostly incremental, which is perhaps why it does not grab public attention. On International Migrants Day on 18 December, we must reflect on these individual stories of small successes."Salaam Alaikum, Bhai," says Ramesh Thapa on IMO to a Kerala person he made friends with while working for five years in a department store in Saudi Arabia. The two recall their time there, and update each other about their lives. Ramesh is trying to run a fancy clothing shop in Kathmandu.His life has not dramatically changed, nor is it without struggles, but he credits his time in Saudi Arabia for betterment in life – greater level of confidence, a stronger work ethic, a business acumen, and with what he saved he could start something on his own back home.There are also small changes happening at the policy level: migrant workers can now renew paperwork at the provincial level labour office, saving them time and money. Till recently, a family that lost a member working abroad had to come to Kathmandu to access survival benefits from the Foreign Employment Board. Now, these application can be done through local governments and received through individual bank accounts, saving them expensive travel to Kathmandu.Bilaterally, between 2008 and 2017, there were no agreements signed by the Nepal Government. But in the past two years Nepal has signed or renegotiated labour agreements with Jordan, <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/win-win-migration/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Malaysia</a>, <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/nepalis-from-chitwan-to-chidoya,4110" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Japan</a>, UAE and Mauritius, including provisions for zero cost recruitment and equality of treatment. Many of these agreements include specific clauses like requiring a migrant worker to be received at the airport within six hours of arrival, or allowing workers to return home for personal emergencies regardless of whether or not they have accrued holidays.To be sure, the some of these provisions are challenging to implement on a large scale, and have not gone into full effect yet. A lot more needs to be done by the government to ensure that the provisions make a tangible impact. There are <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/reducing-labour-pain/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">vested interests at play</a>, receiving countries have lax laws for outsiders, workers have unequal bargaining power, and those who profit from workers have political protection.The Department of Foreign Employment's efforts to ramp up unannounced investigation against recruitment agencies which are overcharging workers, or increasing intra-agency coordination with the Police and Department of Immigration are promising. Yet, to expect overnight change in current recruitment or employment practices would be unrealistic, as was seen in the attempt to reduce the cost burden on Malaysia-bound workers.The <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/ban-the-ban/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ban on domestic workers</a> has been ineffective and takes away agency from aspirants. This means stealing from a prospective worker her dreams of taking better care of her children or compelling her to use an unauthorised channel if she is desperate enough. Nepal has yet to find a champion who can uproot this well intentioned, but ineffective policy.However, it is also time to acknowledge that we have come a long way. The challenges of the last decades was to bring the <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/The-cycle-of-migration,3230" target="_blank" rel="noopener">topic of migrant workers</a> into the spotlight, and the success so far has been noteworthy as evidenced by the Global Compact for Migration. The challenges of the next decades will be to achieve the principles embodied in these documents.Nepal has a lot working in its favour. Most of its destination countries have endorsed the Global Compact, and there is a common position as we advocate better treatment of workers. Countries are increasingly adopting mandatory supply chain due diligence laws that increase the pressure to ensure worker rights are respected.Furthermore, as many destination countries are facing the brunt of demographic pressure and severe worker shortage, it has forced countries to reconsider their policies on foreign worker management. There is a lot that can be done, and needs to be done, but the global climate is in favour of workers, and that in itself is worth celebrating on December 18.

For Nepal’s migrant workers, good news in small bites

In the black and white photograph, General Wangdu smiles broadly in front of the dusty cactus garden in Kathmandu’s Annapurna Hotel. With an ill-fitting jacket and shaggy hair he looks benign enough, but this was the last leader of the Tibetan freedom fighters who led the resistance against the Chinese from their remote mountain hideouts in <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/comings-and-goings-in-mustang">Mustang</a>. Five months later, Wangdu was dead. Snapped in March 1974, I had only recently arrived in Nepal. How did I meet this legendary fighter? Possibly with his devoted camp follower, Lynne Klapecki, and probably in the Om Restaurant near Freak Street which was the preferred <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/hippie-trail-nostalgia-in-kathmandu">hippie hang-out</a>. Om Lobsang and his brother Yeshe were <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/page/earthquake-brings-back-memories-of-camps-for-tibetan-refugees">refugees from East Tibet </a>whose cafe offered a friendly welcome and<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/multimedia/momo-loco"> the best momos</a> - they became my in-laws after I married their eldest brother Tenzin, but that was a decade later.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025052403054_4573b34282b0f5395c007243d6bef12c7ba76bfd520419e994cdcea048d795a1.jpg" data-media-id="editor_4" data-image-id="2025052403054_4573b34282b0f5395c007243d6bef12c7ba76bfd520419e994cdcea048d795a1" data-rendition-name="original" width="1000" height="1583" loading="lazy" alt="The last days of the Khampa NT"> <figcaption>Photo: LISA CHOEGYAL</figcaption> </figure>  Wangdu’s English was enthusiastically rudimentary, but even riding around town with him on the back of an aging <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/kathmandu-s-new-motorbike-museum">motorbike</a>, he was a commanding presence. Always flanked by armed outriders, impressive scars marked his forearms and a pistol hung from the cord around his neck. A charismatic guerrilla leader, Wangdu was celebrated by his followers for his tough commitment and respected for his measured pragmatism. He seemed so young to have shouldered such a responsibility of command, leading hundreds of hardened <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/50-years-after-the%20raid-into-Tibet,1012#google_vignette">Khampa combatants </a>through what had been a particularly <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/heavy-snowfall-over-nepal-himalaya">brutal winter in Mustang</a>, the last bastion to hold out against the Chinese invasion of their Tibetan homeland.&nbsp; The freedom fighters of Tibet, known as the Chushi-Gangdruk, had emerged to resist the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/territorialism">Chinese takeover</a> of Tibet during the 1950s. Estimated to be 80,000-strong at the time of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/what-or-who-after-the-dalai-lama">the Dalai Lama</a>’s final escape to India in 1959, the sheer number of Chinese deployed into Tibet eventually forced the Chushi-Gangdruk to retreat to Mustang, From this high Himalayan stronghold, they continued cross-border raids on the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) throughout the 1960s.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025052403054_8a4a935ba25ae79dc3a63bb5c14626927020e5ec098093c45ccb9a5982e009fd.jpg" data-media-id="editor_10" data-image-id="2025052403054_8a4a935ba25ae79dc3a63bb5c14626927020e5ec098093c45ccb9a5982e009fd" data-rendition-name="original" width="1114" height="676" loading="lazy" alt="The last days of the Khampa NT"> <figcaption>Guerrillas known as the Chushi-Gangdruk emerged to resist the Chinese annexation of Tibet during the 1950s. Photo courtesy: MIKEL DUNHAM</figcaption> </figure>  Their Kathmandu base was a small discreet lodge in a back lane near Rani Pokhari. Sipping sweet tea from a blue mug with a chipped lid, I sat bemused in a corner of the Mustang Hotel room whilst Wangdu and his cohorts received a battered brown suitcase from their CIA connection, a tousle-haired American in a leather jacket. Heaved onto the dingy bedspread that covered the thin mattress, it was clicked open to reveal piles of neatly stacked dollar bills.&nbsp; I cannot think why Wangdu allowed me to witness this handover but I was clearly no threat, a newly arrived world traveller with no understanding of the stakes nor any Nepali or <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/multimedia/tibetan-music-in-nepals-sacred-valley">Tibetan language</a>. Despite armed guards in the corridor,Wangdu radiated confidence and bravado, and there was a practiced familiarity to the tense transaction. This deadly dance for many years had been funded by the Americans, tolerated by <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/the-kingdom-within-a-republic">Mustang’s residents</a>, and permitted by King Mahendra and the Nepali authorities who it suited to turn a blind eye.&nbsp; But Mahendra died in 1972, and times were changing. Richard Nixon’s ping-pong diplomacy thawed the cold war and signalled a fresh entente with China. Nepal’s yet-to-be-crowned <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/if-birendra-was-alive-nepal-could-still-be-a-monarchy">King Birendra </a>was under pressure to curb the irritating incursions against the PLA launched from the Nepali territory of Mustang. Keen to appease his northern neighbour, on several occasions the King summoned Wangdu for peace talks but, despite increasingly overwhelming odds, Wangdu refused to surrender.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025052403054_a8efd5cfb92cd997bd7cb74296a936fef46e2f7428f9cd642b03f1ac4ea11ecb.jpg" data-media-id="editor_14" data-image-id="2025052403054_a8efd5cfb92cd997bd7cb74296a936fef46e2f7428f9cd642b03f1ac4ea11ecb" data-rendition-name="original" width="1055" height="885" loading="lazy" alt="The last days of the Khampa NT"> <figcaption>General Wangdu flanked by two Tibetan resistance fighters in Mustang in the 1970s. Photo courtesy: MIKEL DUNHAM</figcaption> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025052403054_75969125a745847a2ef82b6fe8b9106c0b21a116d85b8efdf5d2ee89a347bb31.jpg" data-media-id="editor_15" data-image-id="2025052403054_75969125a745847a2ef82b6fe8b9106c0b21a116d85b8efdf5d2ee89a347bb31" data-rendition-name="original" width="1044" height="792" loading="lazy" alt="The last days of the Khampa NT"> <figcaption>King Birendra with General Wangdu (right in dark glasses) taken in 1974 possibly in Mustang after one of their few attempts at negotiation. Photo courtesy: RAJRNDRA KUNWAR</figcaption> </figure>  While I naively rode pillion around Kathmandu in the spring sunshine, Wangdu was in the midst of what turned out to be his final round of negotiations with the Nepal government. Refusing to cease hostilities with the Chinese, Wangdu must have suspected the cost of his decision, making his cheerful smile in the photograph all the more poignant and brave. It was only much later that I appreciated the significance of the moment. Wangdu had been sent to replace the first resistance leader in Mustang, Baba Gen Yeshe, a much derided corrupt character who stole money meant for his troops and exploited fleeing refugees by seizing their treasures. Baba Gen Yeshe never forgave Wangdu,and sought revenge in May 1974 by betraying him and his commanders to the Nepal authorities. Renewed Chinese incursions from the north, active PLA collusion with the Nepali forces under the new King, and treachery from within the Chushi-Gangdrukranks combined to seal their fate.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025052403054_e0987a7c90d76431b0d7d5e6115ebfe3dbda7ab939e5941e079c18d722e884c0.jpg" data-media-id="editor_16" data-image-id="2025052403054_e0987a7c90d76431b0d7d5e6115ebfe3dbda7ab939e5941e079c18d722e884c0" data-rendition-name="original" width="1400" height="769" loading="lazy" alt="The last days of the Khampa NT"> <figcaption>British television journalists George Patterson and Adrian Cowell embedded themselves with Khampa guerrillas and accompanied them from Tsum Valley on a cross border raid on a Chinese Army convoy in 1964. Photo: ESSAYS ON NEPAL / SAM COWAN</figcaption> </figure>  Mikel Dunham, renowned author of Buddha’s Warriors, writes: ‘It is possible that Wangdu was waiting for some cue from the Dalai Lama’s government-in-exile in Dharamsala, India. It is equally possible – during that last, <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/multimedia/the-human-cost-of-nepal-s-yarsa-gold-rush?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR31-Cqw8oyIwMPzf_35e4Skr0ululJvLf3_vDkzHn-AYG2h8uPw2rqqErg_aem_tGVn5coY1-jA7fze_xqhew">desolate winter </a>– that he made the decision to go out in glory rather than admit defeat. Over the last fifteen years, Wangdu had experienced Tibet’s organized resistance being squeezed and shoved around by every conceivable outside force.&nbsp; First they had been pushed out of their own country by the PLA; then they had been refused sanction while on <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/borderlines/nepal-india-trans-boundary-bonds?fbclid=IwAR0PpJ5zUEbwdug3g_U3ar6FUugngRY0S8Tl2v_7wqzrsHmXWcXsKjvL4t4">Indian soil</a>; then they were abandoned by the Americans because, apparently, Nixon wanted to make friends with Wangdu’s mortal enemies, the communists; then they had been betrayed by the vampiric Baba Gen Yeshe – a Tibetan and, even worse, a fellow Khampa; and now, finally Wangdu’s army was being evicted by the Nepalis. One thing was certain: Wangdu was a warrior. To imagine Wangdu simply giving up and settling down in the pacific squalor of a <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/elderly-left-in-bhutan-refugee-camp">refugee camp </a>was unthinkable.’  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025052403054_8fc1ffef4ae751628b90ae781b66e11e51e4fdde2787207c9042efbee345ce49.jpg" data-media-id="editor_20" data-image-id="2025052403054_8fc1ffef4ae751628b90ae781b66e11e51e4fdde2787207c9042efbee345ce49" data-rendition-name="original" width="500" height="746" loading="lazy" alt="The last days of the Khampa NT"> <figcaption>The much derided Baba Gen Yeshe, the first Tibetan resistance leader in Mustang, who betrayed Wangdu for personal gain. Photo courtesy: MIKEL DUNHAM</figcaption> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025052403054_b1d833cdb00d3ac4416b844d8730475cd88c238caaaf8da69889a584eea229a3.jpg" data-media-id="editor_21" data-image-id="2025052403054_b1d833cdb00d3ac4416b844d8730475cd88c238caaaf8da69889a584eea229a3" data-rendition-name="original" width="500" height="656" loading="lazy" alt="The last days of the Khampa NT"> <figcaption>Aditya SJB Rana of the Royal Nepal Army whose team ambushed Wangdu and his cohorts at the top of Tinker Pass in Darchula, West Nepal. Photo courtesy: GAUTAM SJB RANA</figcaption> </figure>  By August 1974 the game was up. Wangdu and six of his exhausted party were killed on their horses by <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=7270">the Royal Nepal Army</a> on the brink of escape. The officer in charge, Aditya SJB Rana, cleverly predicted their route into India after they failed to silence a police radio in Yari. A carefully laid ambush trapped them near the summit of the Tinker Pass in Darchula,at 5,000 meters the highest military operation of its time. Wangdu’s body was helicoptered to Kathmandu, and a big show made of the royal Nepal victory.&nbsp; The Tibetan armed insurgency against China had reached its end.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250524030520_3ff9c6fc85a65bc9a2c3afe9736d9f5f9413de752e790a5d9dca0981ea94f9b4.jpg" data-media-id="editor_23" data-image-id="20250524030520_3ff9c6fc85a65bc9a2c3afe9736d9f5f9413de752e790a5d9dca0981ea94f9b4" data-rendition-name="original" width="1136" height="702" loading="lazy" alt="The last days of the Khampa NT"> </figure>

The Last Days of the Khampa

Starting 17 September Turkish Airlines will fly daily to Seville, one of Spain’s major tourist draws. This is Turkish’s sixth destination in Spain after Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, Malaga, and Bilbao. Seville is in the Andalusia region on Spain’s south coast with a rich Moor history. There are approximately 30,000 Nepalis living in Spain.&nbsp;

Turkish to Seville

Fenerbahçe Beko won the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague finals in Abu Dhabi, held 23-25 May, defeating Monaco 81-70 in the final. Olympiacos, who defeated Panathinaikos 97-93, finished the series in third place. The Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the final match, Nigel Hayes-Davis from Fenerbahçe Beko, received a prize of 1,000,000 Miles&amp;Smiles from Turkish Airlines’ Chief Commercial Officer Ahmet Olmuştur. The carrier has been the title sponsor of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague, a top tier tournament, since 2010.

Turkish Basketball

The newly-formed Himalayan Art Council is set to launch Nepal’s National Art Protection Platform that seeks to preserve <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/the-history-of-heritage">Nepal’s unique cultural heritage </a>using<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/artificial-censorship"> AI-powered tools</a>. The Council seeks to safeguard <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/nepali-art-going-places">Nepali art works</a> from neglect, theft and counterfeiting as well as preserve existing artwork and celebrate living masters by giving them a cultural space to continue the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/sacred-survival">sacred art traditions</a>. "We are introducing a new digital platform designed to preserve, verify and elevate <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/nepals-new-generation-of-alternative-artists">Nepal’s art for generations to come,</a>” says a statement from the Council, adding that the digital platform will use AI told for authentication and blockchain to keep track of works of art. Artists can now be protected by <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/multimedia/ayo-ai?fbclid=IwAR1uwmTVq4gUB70ljfRezjzukD9ArWXPuMnUikopeQ8PoiZMjicToPSwhKE&amp;=1">AI tools</a> that detect forgeries, identify their work even when unsigned, and ensure they receive proper recognition and credit. The archives will be searchable with translated inscription and interactive guides. Says curator Meena Lama: “AI and blockchains are tools that give us the power to detect fakes and identify unsigned paintings and track every piece. With these tools we can restore trust, secure authorship and give artists the dignity they deserve.”  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250514170544_2ab58f6313c0458f75114a692b0016bd9efb3b59d5f8f07f0da72e1e37b82f53.jpg" data-media-id="editor_6" data-image-id="20250514170544_2ab58f6313c0458f75114a692b0016bd9efb3b59d5f8f07f0da72e1e37b82f53" data-rendition-name="original" width="1300" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Artwork at the Traditional Art Exhibition at Patan Museum."> <figcaption>Artwork at the Traditional Art Exhibition at Patan Museum.</figcaption> </figure>  The Council is also holding an exhibition of Nepali cultural masterpieces with 50 historical <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/Buzz-the-art,671">thangka and paubha </a>by past masters and <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/review/between-the-sacred-and-everyday">contemporary works by current artists</a>. This curated collection is a living tribute to <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/when-yaks-go-so-does-culture">Himalayan culture</a> with economic depictions of deities, mandala and sacred narratives. The exhibition at <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/multimedia/a-portal-into-patan-s-past-and-present">Patan Museum</a> also provides an opportunity to meet painters and custodians of art and culture. Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/review/golden-deities">Golden deities</a>, Sewa Bhattarai ‘The exhibition is only the first step in a long journey to ensure that Nepali art is no just seen but fully understood, <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/Narratives-of-Faith-and-Memory-Remembering-the-Lost-Sculptures-of-Kathmandu-exhibition,987">protected and remembered</a>,’ the Council says. Artist Kailash K Shrestha of Artudio has spent decades promoting thankha and paubha traditions because of their beauty and devotional meaning. But he also says artists are underpaid, exploited and ignored. He adds, “AI and blockchain are not just buzzwords, they are powerful tools that can protect Nepal’s artists from fraud, verify authenticity and build a permanent record of provenance.” Traditional Art Exhibition Till 17 May Patan Museum

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The Year of Migrant Workers

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The Last Days of the Khampa

Turkish to Seville

Turkish Basketball

Digital protection for Nepal’s art