Two years since Nepali workers were <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/used-and-thrown" target="_blank">evacuated from Afghanistan</a> after the Taliban takeover, it is important to remember the experience of the evacuees, and how they can shape the future of labour out-migration from Nepal especially in countries with conflict like Ukraine.&nbsp;
Work in <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/afghanistan-abandoned">Afghanistan was different </a>from other destination countries. Migration there tends to be less researched and have more legal ambiguity due to complicated permit policies and multiple periods throughout the war when work in Afghanistan was banned by the Nepal government.&nbsp;
As elsewhere, migrant workers often had to go through recruitment agencies that connected them to the employer in Afghanistan, but there was also a lot of irregular migration through labour brokers.&nbsp;
According to the Department of Foreign Employment, some 12,500 Nepali migrant workers had received first-time labour permits since 2021 for Afghanistan. This number does not accurately represent the true number of people who have migrated there for work.
Nepali people were hired for many different positions in support of foreign government operations in Afghanistan. Although, partly due to the Gurkha legacy, they were predominantly hired as security guards to protect compounds and embassies.&nbsp;
At the beginning of the war, security companies in Afghanistan exclusively hired retirees of the Nepal and Indian Army who already had combat experience and training, so they were well-prepared to work in a country in conflict. Ex-soldiers of the Nepal Army actually saw action during the Maoist conflict. &nbsp;
Guards interviewed by the authors who had served in both the Nepal and Indian Army explained that pension was not enough to live off of. One guard said, “खान मात्रै पुग्छ” (It’s only enough for food). Another stated, “पेन्सनले थाम्न साक्दैन”(You can’t live off the pension). Going to Afghanistan meant giving their families a life that they otherwise would not be able to afford.&nbsp;
The salary came with risks. There were frequent and unexpected bombings in Afghanistan, there was no freedom of movement. Nepali workers rarely ventured outside their compounds and workplaces. &nbsp;
As the Taliban took over, Nepali security guards were not formally informed by their workplace or employers about the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/news/bring-us-home-says-nepali-in-kabul">changing situation in the country</a>. Many had to make their own inferences from watching the news, speaking with locals and coworkers, and witnessing changing operations at their workplace. They were told only hours or days before their evacuation that their job was suddenly coming to an end.&nbsp;
Except for those working at the US Embassy in Kabul, all of the guards interviewed reported being the last to leave their workplace. <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/news/who-will-rescue-nepalis-from-afghanistan">Some were terrified</a>, others were more worried about losing their employment than making it back home to Nepal safely. On top of the abrupt loss of income, almost all of the guards lost their luggage in the process. Only some received compensation.&nbsp;
Some guards were not satisfied with the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/nepali-repatriation-from-kabul-starts">evacuation</a>, and organised a Facebook group to discuss and advocate for their needs, which led to a formal complaint they collectively filed to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Nepal with three demands.&nbsp;
First was to find new employment in Nepal or in another country, since all of them had abruptly lost their income and were no longer at the age where they could find new employment. The other two demands were for compensation for both their lost income and luggage.&nbsp;
The guards who filed the complaint said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs never followed up with them. Bibek, one of the guards, said: “We need support in the form of employment … because we need to look after our families… At present, many of us are past the age to find fresh employment. We feel really victimised.” Another evacuee explained that they are worried about their childrens’ future.
In a press release, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that an intra-agency task force had been formed to expedite the repatriation of Nepalis from Afghanistan and that it coordinated with other governments, international agencies and the Private Recruitment Agencies (PRAs) involved in sending Nepalis to Afghanistan to arrange repatriation flights. &nbsp;By 31 August 2021, 833 Nepali migrant workers were flown out.&nbsp;
Despite this, the evacuees explained to the authors that there was no presence of the government of Nepal throughout the process. The workers were largely evacuated by their companies, leaving their safety and well-being in the hands of private business owners with no background in human rights.&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.ceslam.org/uploads/backup/foreign_employment_act_2042.pdf" target="_blank">The Foreign Employment Act</a>, 2007 includes a provision stipulating that, ‘Due to War, epidemic or Natural Disaster in the country from where Nepali workers have to be recalled immediately, the Government of Nepal, through its Diplomatic Mission or the Labour Attaché, shall take necessary step to bring such workers back home.’&nbsp;
The <a href="https://www.ilo.org/dyn/natlex/docs/ELECTRONIC/95077/111803/F2006184373/NPL95077%20Eng.pdf" target="_blank">Foreign Employment Welfare Fund</a> was put in place through this Act. During the pandemic, the <a href="https://kathmandupost.com/national/2020/06/17/supreme-court-orders-government-to-use-welfare-fund-to-repatriate-nepali-workers-stranded-abroad" target="_blank">Supreme Court ordered the government to use this fund</a> in order to repatriate stranded workers abroad. This raises questions as to why the fund was not used for the government to take a more active role in rescuing Nepalis in Afghanistan when the Taliban took over.&nbsp;
Anurag Devkota, human rights lawyer at the Law and Policy Forum for Social Justice (LAPSOJ) in Kathmandu, explains that without accurate data on migrant workers abroad, the government struggles to effectively repatriate migrant workers in crisis situations. A robust database on the number of migrant workers abroad is especially important in countries such as Afghanistan, where Nepal does not have diplomatic missions to assist in communicating with workers and coordinating repatriations, he adds.&nbsp;
Despite the Nepal government's efforts to put in place mechanisms for regulated employment and support workers in Afghanistan, including bans on irregular migration still exists. Workers will always find a way to go, especially when there is no similar opportunity available to them in Nepal and their pension is not enough for them to be able to support their families.&nbsp;
Instead of placing Nepali workers’ well-being in the hands of private companies, their rights should be upheld by a government who shows up for them in times of crisis. There are lessons to be learnt from the Afghanistan evacuations.&nbsp;
The Foreign Employment Welfare Fund can be used when an immediate need for repatriation arises. It is important to call upon, strengthen and reinforce the protective mechanisms already in place to minimise the damage of future crises on workers abroad.&nbsp;
Prajesh Aryal is a Kathmandu-based researcher and <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/used-and-thrown" target="_blank">Jenna Mae Biedscheid </a>is a Fulbright Nepal Scholar.

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Afghanistan evacuation two years after

Almost two years after the war in Afghanistan ended, Nepali security guards who worked to protect the British Embassy in Kabul are still largely unemployed, facing uncertainty, and some even being <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2023/apr/03/nepalese-guards-airlifted-from-kabul-to-uk-now-face-deportation">targeted for deportation</a>.&nbsp;
One week after a raid which led to the arrest and detainment of 10 evacuees who served as guards at the British Embassy, international media attention has led the UK government to <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/apr/05/home-office-uk-nepalese-guards-afghanistan-embassy">pause deportation processing</a> and release some of the detained evacuees.
Throughout the war in Afghanistan, <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/afghans-in-nepal-await-resettlement">Nepali security guards served </a>as the first lines of defence, protecting the lives of military personnel, officials, and citizens of foreign governments. They risked their lives and, in some cases, watched their friends die in the line of duty.&nbsp;
Many of the Nepali guards who worked at the British Embassy had faith that the UK government or their company, GardaWorld, would <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/nepali-repatriation-from-kabul-starts">evacuate them safely </a>– and they did. But their job security and income for the future of their families was completely lost.&nbsp;
Private defence contracting, the hiring of armed combat and security services by private companies, has become an increasingly common method to lower the costs of war and military interventions in the 21st century. The labour required for prolonged military interventions, such as the war in Afghanistan, is outsourced to countries such as Nepal, whose GDP relies heavily on remittances from foreign labour migration.&nbsp;
Given the legacy of the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/queen-elizabeth-the-gurkhas-and-everest">Gurkhas</a> who have been serving in the British army for more than 200 years, international private security companies supplying labour to foreign embassies in Afghanistan looked mainly to Nepalis and Indians of Nepali descent to meet the security demands, as detailed in the book Under Contract: the Invisible Workers of America’s Global War.
According to the Department of Foreign Employment, approximately 12,500 Nepali migrant workers have received non-renewed, first-time labour permits for Afghanistan since 2001. Those who took informal routes are not included in this figure.&nbsp;
For Nepali guards, many of whom are retirees from the Nepal and Indian militaries, work in Afghanistan was lucrative. Many knew it would be dangerous but lack of opportunities with comparable salary in Nepal meant that they agreed to take on the job. This also benefited the private defence companies and governments that contracted them, as Nepali guards were willing to take lower salaries.&nbsp;
Niraj, an evacuee, explained that working in Afghanistan after retirement from the army meant that he could better support his family and give his children quality education. While the evacuees interviewed said that they were happy with the salary, they knew that it was lower than what was deserved considering the conditions, risks, and duties of the job.&nbsp;
As the Taliban advanced across new territories in Afghanistan, many of the Nepali guards still did not have a full picture of what was going on. It was not until a few hours before boarding a repatriation flight that they were told of the Taliban takeover.
Nepali guards who worked at the British Embassy in Kabul guarded the compound until the last minute, after most of the British forces and officials had already been evacuated. On 15 August 2021 they boarded a Royal Air Force plane to Dubai before reaching the UK.
Upon reaching the UK, they had received 6-month emergency visas and were placed in military housing facilities. While many returned to Nepal only two days after arriving in the UK, some were able to contact immigration lawyers and secure legal pathways to stay there.&nbsp;
Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-and-the-taliban-s-second-coming">Nepal and the Taliban’s second coming</a>
All third country guards working at the British Embassy, including the Nepali guards who were recently targeted for deportation, had an opportunity for resettlement in the UK under the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme (ACRS), as <a href="https://www.gov.uk/guidance/afghan-citizens-resettlement-scheme">listed on the UK government website</a>. The ACRS states that ‘the scheme will prioritise those who have assisted the UK efforts in Afghanistan...’
As GardaWorld contractors, Nepali security guards were eligible for indefinite leave to remain (ILR) status under Pathway 3 of the ACRS. The scheme states that ‘Pathway 3 was designed to offer a route to resettlement for those at risk who supported the UK and international community effort in Afghanistan’. However, this pathway was only open to GardaWorld contractors for the first year after evacuation.&nbsp;
It seems this opportunity for resettlement was not properly communicated to the Nepali guards. Now that the year of eligibility has passed, most missed their chance to gain ILR status. Those interviewed who did apply under the scheme were denied.&nbsp;
Things are not any better for those who returned to Nepal. In the rushed evacuations, Bibek, an evacuee who worked at the British Embassy, said that all of his belongings were lost, including his passport. Upon returning to Nepal, the guards explained, there was no follow up from GardaWorld, the British Embassy in Afghanistan, or the Government of Nepal. Those who lost their luggage or passports were not compensated or provided assistance in obtaining new documents.
Back in Nepal, the evacuees set up a Facebook group to combine their efforts in finding their lost luggage and gaining new employment. Together, they filed a formal application of complaint to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Kathmandu.&nbsp;
The complaint had three requests: help find new employment opportunities either in Nepal or the UK, compensation for their lost luggage and documents, and compensation for loss of income. Only some were able to receive compensation for loss of income due to abrupt repatriation after negotiating with the company.&nbsp;
Juddha, a Nepali evacuee, described the company as being reluctant to provide loss of income compensation, despite it being promised in employment contracts. The evacuees did not receive any follow-up communication regarding the application of complaint they submitted to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs either. Out of the 111 Nepali guards working at the British Embassy in Afghanistan at the time of evacuation, only a handful were able to secure their pathway to a life with more opportunity in the UK.&nbsp;
“We really felt we were used and thrown,” said Bibek after his evacuation. “We were there to provide security, and we did our job dutifully… They (the British government and GardaWorld) did not empathise with what we were going through. They did not understand that we had been rendered unemployed, or that we faced an uncertain future. They could have at least asked us what we wanted.”
The very concept of employing Nepali guards to create a barrier of security to protect British citizens inside the Embassy implies that these guards’ lives are somehow more dispensable than British citizens. The blatant disregard for their well-being after the evacuation only adds to this notion of the dispensability of the guards in the eyes of GardaWorld and the British government.&nbsp;
“We need support in the form of employment either in Nepal or in the UK because we need to look after our families. At present, many of us are past the age to find fresh employment. We feel really victimised,” added Bibek. Manish, another evacuee, is worried about his children, who would have a good future in the UK.&nbsp;
Instead of feeling “used and thrown”, these evacuees should feel respected, appreciated, and honored for the vital role they played in protecting peoples’ lives in the war in Afghanistan.&nbsp;
After all they have endured, at the very least, the Home Office of the UK needs to provide an explanation as to why those few guards who were able to secure a pathway to stay in the UK were treated as though they had done something illegal and threatened with deportation.&nbsp;
Further, all the security guards who risked their lives to protect the British Embassy should be given the opportunity to attain gainful employment to be able to provide for their families.
Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/afghan-women-expose-taliban-atrocities">Afghan women expose Taliban atrocities</a>

Jenna Mae Biedscheid

‘Used and thrown’

<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110141132/636cfd5b9c7e80680e0a0bddjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="2058" height="1514"/><figcaption>The 2nd Battalion 5th Gurkha Rifles at Ahnai Tangi in Waziristan on 14 January 1920 as part of Britain's 'Third Afghan War'. Painting by Fred Roe at the National Army Museum.</figcaption></figure>Even though Nepal and Afghanistan are separated geographically, Nepali and Pashtun warriors have met face-to-face over more than 200 years. While the Pashtun were in their home territory, the Nepalis were fronting for others, and now with the Taliban’s second-time total victory in Afghanistan, new dynamics will have to evolve.As current chair of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), Nepal must take the lead in, on the one hand, helping the world accept the fait accompli of the Taliban victory, while on the other get the didactic, xenophobic Taliban to accept the values of pluralism and multilateralism. As a country which holds these values dear, Nepal should reach out of its own cocoon to do what it can.The history of Afghan-Nepal relations goes back two centuries, with what the British colonisers called the ‘First Afghan War’ and continued through the ‘Third Afghan War’ against the Pashtun in 1919.  These were Britain’s wars in Afghanistan, and the Nepalis who joined at various times were straight-off mercenaries, parts of the British Gurkhas, and even the national Nepali army. Most recently, British Gurkhas were fielded as part of the ISAF/NATO force, or were recruited by western military contractors to guard Western bases and embassies.<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110141132/636cfd5e9c7e80680e0a0bdejpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="751">The Army of the IndusNepal is situated in the mid-Himalaya, while Afghanistan sits astride the Pamir and Hindu Kush, 2,000km away. Even at its height, the expansionist Gorkha Empire could not go beyond the Sutlej River. But these are the only two countries in South Asia that fought off colonialism. Afghans are known for their fierce resistance to foreign hegemony, as were Nepalis, but Afghanistan has nevertheless been serving continuously as a ‘fighting field’ for outsiders, while at best Nepal has been a ‘playing field’.Historically, there were indirect links between the central Himalaya and the Hindu Kush/Pamir: from the ancient Aryans down to the Moghuls, it was through the Khyber Pass and other northwestern passages that migrations and conquests of the Indus-Ganges plains occurred. Afghanistan stretched outside the country’s modern boundary, and included the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa region of present-day Pakistan.It was the colonial British that separated the Pashtun people with a new boundary called the ‘Durand Line’. This forced demarcation has relevance today because, while Afghanistan is ethnically diverse with Kyrgyz, Baloch, Hazara, Uzbek and other communities, the Taliban leadership and rank-and-file are dominated by Pashtuns.Even though Afghanistan and Nepal were spared colonial rule, Afghanistan suffered much more foreign interference than Nepal. Located between Czarist Russia, Central Asia and the British Empire and with Persia to the west, Afghanistan was (and remains) a strategic prize. Nepal, on the other hand, was protected by malarial jungles to the south and the world’s highest mountains to the north, and neighbouring powers found it more advantageous to maintain it as a buffer state.When the Gorkha Empire felt threatened by the East India Company in the mid-1700s, it sent feelers for help to the Maratha and Sikh kings. Though probable, we do not have historical evidence to indicate that Kathmandu also appealed to the rulers in Kabul.Meanwhile, even before the end of the Anglo-Nepal war of 1814-1816, some Nepali soldiers had already gone over to the British side, marking the beginnings of the ‘Gurkha’ brigades. After the bloody defeat at Nalapani, the Gorkhali general Bal Bhadra Kunwar escaped to join the forces of Sikh king Ranjit Singh in Lahore. The Nepali word लाहुरे for soldiers and workers who go abroad is derived from the name of this city.We do not know what happened to the other Gorkhali troops who went with him, but Bal Bhadra himself was killed in battle when the Sikhs were fighting the Pasthuns in Naushera, which was then Afghan territory.There are other indirect Afghan influences in Nepal. The words रुपियाँ and अशर्फी were introduced in India by Sher Shah Suri, who became ruler of Mughlan after briefly ousting emperor Humayun from Delhi. The terms percolated up to Nepal. Although Sher Shah was born in Bihar state bordering Nepal, his ancestral village was Sur in the Sulaiman Range, within Afghan territory.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110141132/636cfd619c7e80680e0a0bdfjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="945"></figure>British forces together with Nepali soldiers of the 'Army of the Indus' entering the Bolan Pass en route from Quetta to Afghanistan in 1839. The campaign ended in a bloody disaster. Engraved by Louis and Charles Haghe.Nepalis and Pashtuns came into more direct contact during the East India Company’s Afghan Campaign of 1839-42 when an ‘Army of the Indus’ was assembled to invade Afghanistan. This was part of the Great Game, when British India felt it had to contain the expansion of Czarist Russia. Thousands of troops from the early ‘Gurkha’ units were deployed on the Afghan front, and as was the practice in those days, the soldiers were accompanied by camp followers which included their wives and children.The ‘Army of the Indus’ was routed, and legend has it that only one British officer straggled out to Peshawar, though there would have been a few more. There is no count of how many Nepalis were cut down with swords in Herat, Ghazni and Kabul, or those who froze to death in the dreadful Afghan winter. Many women and children would have been enslaved by Afghan warlords.North of Kabul in Charikar Fort, hundreds Gorkhali fighters were under siege for months, with the water source blocked. When the Gorkhalis tried to break out, most were killed, except a sipahi named Motiram who managed a dangerous and arduous trek down to his cantonment in the Punjab plains to tell the tale.Najibullah to GhaniThroughout the 19th, 20th and 21st centuries, <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/who-will-rescue-nepalis-from-afghanistan/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Nepalis kept going back to Afghanistan</a> – to fight. Gurkha soldiers assigned to the Durand Line engaged in frequent skirmishes with Pashtun fighters. And in 1919, while other Nepali soldiers were returning home from Belgium, France and Gallipoli, soldiers of the Nepal Army were sent to Afghanistan by Prime Minister Chandra Shumshere Rana to help the British counter a rebellion in Waziristan. Those troops for the ‘Third Afghan War’ were led by Gen Babar Sumshere.In the modern era, the people of Afghanistan suffered as super-powers muscled their way in. In 1974, Afghan king Zahir Shah was overthrown, and at the end of the Mujahideen war that followed against Soviet occupation, President Najibullah was dragged out of the UN compound where he had sought refuge, tortured and hung at the gates of Kabul in 1996 by the Taliban.Unable to face the resistance of Afghan guerrillas, the Soviet Union withdrew in 1989 and cast off Najibullah in 1991, just as the Americans abandoned Ashraf Ghani in 2021. During this whole time, Afghan polity was decimated as a result of interference by the Soviets, the Americans after 9/11, NATO forces, Pakistanis and Saudis, who together spent trillions of dollars.While all that money landed up at the hands of the Afghan elite and warlords, ordinary Afghans died and suffered. Millions became refugees in Iran and Pakistan, and more refugees are streaming out as this is written – the desperation is seen in Afghan men trying to attach themselves to C-17s on the runway at Kabul Airport this week.The irony of it all was that some of the descendants of the Gorkhali troops who fought in Helmand and Kabul nearly 200 years ago were back as part of the Gurkha units in the British deployment in the same places as a part of NATO’s ISAF mission. The blood and sweat they sacrificed seems to have been in vain, as President Ashraf Ghani flew out of Kabul on 15 August. Ghani said he wished to prevent bloodshed, and would doubtless have also feared meeting the same fate as Najibullah. But all this seems to have been part of a larger withdrawal deal worked out between the Americans and the Taliban in talks in Doha.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110141132/636cfd649c7e80680e0a0be0jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1474" height="816"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>One of the consultants that the World Bank brought to Nepal in 2006 to advise leaders here about post-conflict rehabilitation was <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=13470#.YRvjiS1w3OQ" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id%3D13470%23.YRvjiS1w3OQ&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1629372271640000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHeMUVxCU735OL-66D-E9bbRhVIQw">Ashraf Ghani himself. </a>The author of the book he co-wrote with Clare Lockhart, Fixing Failed States: A Framework for Rebuilding a Fractured World, Ghani wrote in one of his columns for Nepali Times then: ‘Surely the people of Nepal deserve leadership from their politicians to ensure that Nepal embarks upon a path towards a new future. A new future is no longer a dream, it has become possible.’Nepal has not been brutalised and ravaged by a series of proxy wars like Afghanistan has for the past four decades. It did suffer the violent 10-year internal conflict, but the peace process took hold, and the country held two elections to a Constituent Assembly that wrote the new Constitution. Afghanistan’s violence, the killing of innocents and religion-laced extremism, have been at a whole different level.If it was soldiers that Nepal used to send to Afghanistan in the past two centuries, in the last two decades it was Nepali development experts, gender and media consultants and governance advisers who went to Kabul on behalf of the UN or other partners. And then there are the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/nepali-repatriation-from-kabul-starts/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">estimated 15,000 security guards</a> protecting various embassies, hotels, bases and installations in Kabul. Nepali were attracted to dangerous work in Afghanistan because it paid much better, even though they were often hired as guards of the Western soldiers.While some Nepalis are starting to return on repatriation flights this week, there are many stranded in Kabul and fearful about their future. The Nepal government must proactively establish contact with the new regime in Afghanistan in order to ensure the safety of its citizens there. It is also hoped that the soft language emanating from the Taliban victors, about allowing safe passage to all who seek to exit, reflects a genuine commitment.Nepal is currently chair of SAARC, and it could use its tenure to bring Afghanistan back into the South Asian fold even as the Taliban go about establishing themselves. Kathmandu must strive to establish bilateral relations, while remaining outside sphere of Indian, Chinese, Pakistani, Saudi or Western interests there.China and Russia have already made their moves to establish relations with the Taliban government. New Delhi has been stung by Ashraf Ghani’s downfall, given their steadfast support for him, while there seems to be some rejoicing in Islamabad. If Nepal takes a proactive diplomatic approach (in a manner that would be wholly new to it) Kathmandu could use its bilateral relations to usher a new era of peace in the region. For Nepal as a country that has been so insular in past two decades, that may seem a tall order, but some self-confidence in foreign policy can make it happen.The immediate priority of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, however, is to ensure the security and repatriation<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/nepali-repatriation-from-kabul-starts/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> </a>of <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/bring-us-home-says-nepali-in-kabul/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Nepalis presently in Kabul</a> and across Afghanistan. Meanwhile, Nepali civil society members must reach out to their counterparts in Afghanistan and offer safe haven should it be required.While the Taliban spokesman has said all are safe, there is no saying when Afghan <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/call-to-evacuate-afghan-journalists/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">journalists,</a> gender and human rights activists may not need support and refuge. Afghanistan is the only country in South Asia whose nationals must get a visa to come to Nepal. In the name of South Asian solidarity, ‘visa on arrival’ should now also be available for Afghan citizens.The Taliban has been using Sharia law to justify its extreme form of patriarchy to prevent women and girls from equal rights, agency and education. It has also been violently suppressing minorities like the Shi’a and Hazara. The group that blew up the historical statue of the Buddha in Bamiyan in 2001 is now ruling Afghanistan, and there are genuine fears that the Taliban will return to its old ways.The fact that the Taliban is in control in Kabul is a fait accompli. Nepal must accept this and, while working to extricate its citizens from Afghanistan, must help Kabul rejoin the South Asian sphere.

Nepal and the Taliban’s second coming

<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110141128/636cfd419c7e80680e0a0bd4jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1440" height="960"/><figcaption>118 Nepalis arrived in Kathmandu from Afghanistan via Kabul on Tuesday.</figcaption></figure>Although Nepali security guards at Western embassies in Kabul have been evacuated and some have arrived in Kathmandu, there are <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/call-to-evacuate-afghan-journalists/">thousands of others</a> who are stranded in Afghanistan and <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/bring-us-home-says-nepali-in-kabul/">fearful about their future.</a>Of the over 500 Nepali security guards employed by a private defence contractor to protect the US, German, UK and EU embassies in Kabul, 118 guarding American facilities arrived in Kathmandu on Tuesday via Kuwait.‘The US government has facilitated the departure of all Nepali Gurkhas who worked at the US Embassy in Afghanistan,” US Ambassador to Nepal Randy Berry tweeted. ‘We are grateful for their bravery and service.’However, there are said to be hundreds of other Nepalis guarding other embassies who are awaiting for flights out. The British Embassy is still operational and the ambassador is still in Kabul, although not in the Embassy itself. All Nepalis working for the British Embassy have now been evacuated. There are several hundred Nepalis employed by the United Nations and its field offices across Afghanistan.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110141128/636cfd449c7e80680e0a0bd5jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="2010" height="1488"><figcaption>Manuel Micaller, deputy chief of mission US Embassy Kathmandu, welcoming the first batch of 118 Nepali security guards who were protecting the US Embassy in Kabul at Kathmandu airport on Tuesday. Photo: US Embassy</figcaption></figure>Nepal’s embassy in New Delhi has been trying to coordinate the repatriation of Nepalis, and the concern now is about the thousands of Nepalis who are not guarding western embassies, those who are outside Kabul, and undocumented workers. Collecting them in safe places in Kabul and arranging the dozens of flights needed to bring them out would be a challenge.The task is made more difficult because of the lack of a Nepali embassy in Kabul, and the embassy in Islamabad not being accredited to Afghanistan. A land evacuation through Pakistan would be possible, but would need careful coordination between the foreign ministry in Kathmandu, embassies in Islamabad and New Delhi.“Not having an embassy on the ground makes things more difficult,” says foreign policy expert Rajan Bhattarai. “Our embassy in Delhi needs to be in close touch with the embassy in Pakistan and other western governments. They have to use all means possible, including personal contacts.”Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba’s government is embroiled in coalition politics, and there has been no designated foreign minister for the past month. However, Foreign Secretary Bharat Raj Paudyal, who used to be Nepal’s ambassador to Pakistan, was handling Afghanistan and is familiar with Kabul.The chief of the Central, West Asia and Africa Section of the Foreign Ministry Harish Chandra Ghimire is heading a special task force to arrange repatriation flights in coordination with embassies, the UN and foreign governments.<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110141128/636cfd489c7e80680e0a0bd6jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="384" height="462">Kabul airport is still closed for commercial flights, so any repatriation has to be done in coordination with military evacuation of countries in whose embassies the Nepalis are stationed. For the others, Nepal will either have to send special flights, or arrange for repatriation via Pakistan. But the government does not even have accurate figures for the exact numbers involved.According to the Department of Foreign Employment, more than 10,000 Nepalis obtained labour permits to work in Afghanistan in the past six years, and 2,122 of them were issued just in the last two years. Some of the Nepalis have returned, others had renewed their contracts and recently returned to Afghanistan. However, there are said to be at least 5,000 more Nepalis, mostly working as security guards in hotels, banks and other institutions in Kabul and major cities.However, one of the Nepali security guards guarding the US Embassy who arrived in Kathmandu on Tuesday told Nepali Times the security situation in Kabul was not as bad as portrayed in the media with the videos of the airport chaos, and that Nepalis there were in no imminent danger.“Foreign workers are safe in Kabul, in fact the Taliban have promised that they will ensure the safety of foreign workers in future when the situation returns to normal, they might call them back,” said 41-year-old Prakash Shrestha of Lamjung.A Nepal Airlines jet has been chartered for next week by a Dubai-based recruiter to bring back 70 Nepali workers, but that would just be a small fraction of those in Afghanistan.“There are at least 15,000 Nepalis in Afghanistan who have gone there either through legal channels or are undocumented,” estimates Sujit Shrestha of the Nepal Association of Foreign Employment Agencies (NAFEA).<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110141128/636cfd4b9c7e80680e0a0bd7jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="750" height="500"><figcaption></figcaption></figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110141128/636cfd4d9c7e80680e0a0bd8jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="413"><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110141132/636cfd509c7e80680e0a0bd9jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="427"><figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110141132/636cfd549c7e80680e0a0bdajpeg.jpg" alt="" width="960" height="640"><figcaption></figcaption></figure>He explains that Nepali workers in Afghanistan fall in three main categories: ex-soldiers who have been hired long-term officially by private military contractors mainly to guard embassies in Kabul, another 4-5,000 Nepalis who work as security guards who have gone to Afghanistan on their own via Dubai or Delhi, and three there are Nepalis who work in hotels and offices as support staff.“It is the second and third categories who are most at risk,” Shrestha says, who adds that there could be up to 400 Nepalis who are undocumented.The Nepal Embassy in Delhi has asked all Nepalis still in Kabul to fill out online forms with contact details. There are said to be at least 450 Nepali security guards waiting for flights in a special section of Kabul airport.Even before Kabul fell to the Taliban, 260 Nepalis employed by the private defence contractor Forca and 150 with Eagle had been repatriated to Nepal.A Nepali in Kabul who did not want to be identified because he is undocumented told Nepali Times by phone: “We hear the Nepal government is trying to get Nepalis back. We are waiting for information. <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/who-will-rescue-nepalis-from-afghanistan/">Our only hope is our own government.</a>” He is hiding in a room in the city with three other Nepalis.

Nepali repatriation from Kabul starts

<figure><img width="1538" height="1020" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110141128/636cfd2f9c7e80680e0a0bcejpeg.jpg" alt=""/><figcaption>Photo: RSS</figcaption></figure>There are anywhere between 2,000-15,000 <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/guarding-guards-afghanitan,3370" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Nepalis in Afghanistan</a> — most of them working for private military contractors as security guards.But there are also others whom labour recruiters have lured to Afghanistan promising jobs, and who are undocumented with <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/a-military-migrant-economy/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">jobs as security guards</a>.Read also: <a style="font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em;" href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/who-will-rescue-nepalis-from-afghanistan/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Who will rescue Nepalis in Afghanistan?</a>The Nepal Embassy in New Delhi which is also accredited to Afghanistan has issued a statement asking Nepalis there to fill out form with contact details. The letter says workers should contact their recruiting agencies for flights out, even though all commercial flights to Kabul have been cancelled and only military evacuation flights are allowed. The Embassy statement also says the Nepal government has asked foreign embassies in Kabul to facilitate the evacuation of Nepalis. This is hardly likely since those governments have their hands full taking care of their own diplomats and nationals. <figure><img width="2020" height="1208" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110141128/636cfd329c7e80680e0a0bcfjpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>One Nepali who was reached by phone said he could hear gunfire on the streets outside the room where he was hiding. He did not want to be identified, and these are his words: "I came to <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/blogs/thebrief/2016/06/20/kabul-attack-condemned/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Kabul</a> along with 18 other Nepalis in January 2020 after an agent in Kathmandu assured us of jobs here. All but three of us got jobs as security guards. We had paid Rs800,000 to the recruiter, but there is no job and no income here.A few months ago, some of us got <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/delta-variants-wake-up-call-for-nepal/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Covid-19</a>. We are hiding in this room, and luckily we have managed to get food to eat. I don’t know how many of us Nepalis there are here illegally, but I know of at least 150 other Nepalis in Kabul. We are all stranded.It is quite scary here in <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/kathmandus-little-kabul/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Kabul</a> at the moment. In fact, it is quite alarming. We can hear gunfire outside, and we heard that Taliban are on the streets. When the government troops see Talibans approaching they surrender immediately. There is also a lot of looting going on in broad daylight. People with guns are just robbing any richer person they see on the streets. We cannot venture out. Actually there isn’t that much of a problem for those with regular jobs as <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/regular-columns/GUEST-COLUMN/Nobodies-who-are-somebody,750" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">guards in security agencies</a>. They have been assured by their employers that they will somehow be evacuated to Nepal. In fact some are leaving tonight. But those like us who are undocumented do not have any support. We are desperate. Even our recruiting agency says it cannot take us back. We hear the Nepal government is trying to get Nepalis back. We are waiting for information. Our only hope is our own government."

“Bring us home,” says Nepali in Kabul

<figure><img width="1804" height="1310" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110141128/636cfd269c7e80680e0a0bcbjpeg.jpg" alt=""/><figcaption>Ex-Nepal Army soldier Dhan Singh Dhami worked for a US defence contractor guarding the American Embassy in Kabul and assisted NATO forces in Helmand Province from 2004-2015. As the Taliban advances in Kabul, many other Nepalis in Afghanistan are at risk. Photo: NEPALI TIMES ARCHIVE</figcaption></figure>As the Taliban closes in on Kabul, international media attention on the rescue of Western diplomats has overshadowed the plight of thousands of international contract workers, including Nepalis, stranded there.There is no exact count of how many Nepalis workers there are in the war-torn country, but figures range from 2,000 to 15,000. The Nepal Embassy in New Delhi, which is also accredited to Afghanistan, says it is in touch with Nepalis there but seems to be laying its bets on Indian rescue flights.If flights are not possible, the only way out would be to negotiate a safe passage out for Nepalis through Pakistan. This will need coordination with the Pakistan government though the Nepal embassy in Islamabad. Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/they-fail-we-fall/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">has not been able to expand his cabinet</a> even a month after his coalition government came to power, and there is no foreign minister. Preoccupied with politics and fighting the pandemic, the government has left the Nepalis in Afghanistan to their own devices.The opposition RPP is the only party so far that has called on the government to bring back Nepalis from Kabul. In a joint statement, the party’s leaders Kamal Thapa, Pashupati SJB Rana and Prakash Lohani on Sunday demanded that the government ‘ensure the safe return’ of Nepalis in Afghanistan.The end-game in Afghanistan has also coincided with Gurkha veterans in the British Army on hunger strike in London demanding equal pension with US soldiers. The RPP statement also expressed ‘solidarity with their struggle’.Besides Nepalis in the British Army who used to be deployed in Helmand and other provinces and were withdrawn, there are still many retired Nepali veterans from the British and Indian Armies, Singapore Police, as well as Nepal Army and Police who worked as <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/canada-settlement-with-families-of-nepali-guards/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">security guards for private defence contractors</a>.They worked as security guards for US and British defence contractors based in Kabul, Bagram Air Base, Kandahar and other military installations. While some third country workers left as the US withdrew from Bagram and other bases last month, there were still many Nepalis guarding Western embassies in Kabul. American and British troops arrived in Kabul this weekend to evacuate their diplomats and nationals, but the contract workers will have to find their own way out on very limited flights.Some Nepalis working for private contractors who managed to get out on some of the last flights are now stranded in Dubai, and cannot get home because of <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/how-nepal-must-prepare-for-3rd-covid-wave/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Covid-19</a> restrictions in the UAE. <img width="640" height="751" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110141128/636cfd299c7e80680e0a0bccjpeg.jpg" alt="">Many of the Nepalis worked for logistics companies like the Texas-Based Fluor or Turkish sub-contractors, while security guards were hired by the American private security firm DynCorp International, or the UK-based Aegis Defence.Aegis alone used to have more than 1,000 Nepalis on contract in Afghanistan before the latest Taliban offensive. Besides working as security guards, military escort and in demining operations, Nepalis have also been hired as construction workers, cooks, cleaners and as support staff. Many of the Nepalis who have managed to get out are said to be ready to be recruited again to go to other dangerous countries like Iraq. In 2004, 12 Nepalis working for a private contractor in Baghdad were massacred in cold blood by extremists, prompting the Nepal government to ban Nepalis from going to that country.Again, after the death of <a href="http://www.nepalitimes.com/blogs/thebrief/2016/06/23/lives-of-our-brothers/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://www.nepalitimes.com/blogs/thebrief/2016/06/23/lives-of-our-brothers/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1629113964967000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFo-y7ikyGPJ_LXBEsZqeaMUNgKEQ">13 Nepalis</a> guarding the Canadian Embassy in a <a href="http://www.nepalitimes.com/blogs/thebrief/2016/06/20/kabul-attack-condemned/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://www.nepalitimes.com/blogs/thebrief/2016/06/20/kabul-attack-condemned/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1629113964967000&amp;usg=AFQjCNH3EX-wbri9zWNVZoysmf-N3m7rkA">terrorist attack in Kabul</a> in June 2016, the Nepal government had banned nationals from going to Afghanistan.However, a government fact-finding team visited Afghanistan later that year to assess the danger, and the Labour Ministry later lifted the ban and recommended measures, including approval of work contracts that included safety provisions. <figure><img width="2020" height="1208" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110141128/636cfd2c9c7e80680e0a0bcdjpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption>Nepal Embassy in New Delhi on Sunday 15 August released security advisory for Nepalis in Afghanistan.</figcaption></figure>Legally, Nepalis and other foreign workers in war zones like Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya fall between the cracks. The US and Britain get to lessen exposure to their own troops by hiring nationals from other countries through private contractors for much less money and fewer facilities. There is also no legal obligation during emergencies like this.The Nepali guards at the Canadian Embassy in Kabul in 2016, for example, were hired by Sabre International, a private contractor. Families of the security guards <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepali-guards-sue-canada-government/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepali-guards-sue-canada-government/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1629113964967000&amp;usg=AFQjCNF_vbyXjkznQcgethYi-VAXg_lldg">sued the Canadian government </a>in 2018, and finally <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/canada-settlement-with-families-of-nepali-guards/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/canada-settlement-with-families-of-nepali-guards/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1629113964967000&amp;usg=AFQjCNE8GgyoW7SKOcucIKsvMUT19KI1fw">reached a settlement</a> verdict on compensation at the Ontario Superior Court of Justice in Toronto last year. Five of the Nepali soldiers wounded in the attack and 13 widows of those killed were awarded a total of $20.4 million in compensation. <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/guarding-guards-afghanitan,3370" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/guarding-guards-afghanitan,3370&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1629113964967000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEVDrjU4r49vZyjGUrngw5_Cig9ZA">The guards were killed</a> when a lone suicide bomber blew up the unarmoured bus taking them to the Canadian embassy for their duty.After the attack Sabre International terminated its contract with the Canadian embassy, and shut down operations. Representing the Nepali plaintiffs, Canadian lawyer Joe Fiorante had told CBC: “These men died in the service of our country and have basically been cast aside…They were abandoned by our government and we thought that was dishonourable and frankly unacceptable.” The American and NATO withdrawal from Afghanistan, has now left Nepalis and other nationals working for them in a similar predicament. Although a Taliban offensive was expected, what has shocked many is the speed at which the US-trained, equipped, and funded Afghan security forces have either surrendered or been defeated. There are no accurate figures for the number of foreign contract workers still in Afghanistan, but many had been leaving, and the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction put the number at 7,000. It is not clear how many are still there. However, besides registered Nepalis there are also said to be many other undocumented workers of which neither the government in Nepal nor the embassy in New Delhi have exact figures. Many have been <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=15312#.YRjkLy1w3OQ" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id%3D15312%23.YRjkLy1w3OQ&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1629113964967000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGop6Gp8JOg2gil_DovcJlzScCJJw">cheated by their recruiters</a>, and are stranded there.“Everyone has been so focused on the U.S. troops, and also the Afghans, interpreters and others who could face revenge killings by a resurgent Taliban," said John Sifton, Asia advocacy director at Human Rights Watch to <a href="https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2021-08-10/contractors-who-powered-u-s-war-in-afghanistan-stuck-in-dubai" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2021-08-10/contractors-who-powered-u-s-war-in-afghanistan-stuck-in-dubai&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1629113964967000&amp;usg=AFQjCNG_gLNys429Cdv8JTQb-_aJrNvBlA">Los Angeles Times. </a>“About the stranded foreign workers, the Biden administration can say, well, their companies and their governments should have moved heaven and earth to get them home.”Meanwhile, <a href="http://s.ca/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Globalnews.ca</a> reported that Canada had not approved the evacuation of 100 Nepali guards from its embassy in Kabul, even after its other staff were flown out.

Who will rescue Nepalis from Afghanistan?

Architecture can be a powerful agent of change, shaping not just spaces but the way people live, connect, and experience the world.&nbsp; For Nepal, which is <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/natures-fragile-gift-to-nepal">gifted by nature</a> and rich in <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/ambassador-fund-cultural-preservation-nepal,2092">cultural heritage</a>, &nbsp;reviving rural architecture with modern amenities could hold the key to more <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/what-sustainable-tourism-means-in-practice">sustainable tourism </a>that benefits local people more. “<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/bayalpata-hospital-in-nepal-wins-global-design-award">Design and architecture</a> are amazing tools to create a unique experience for visitors,” says Spanish architect Tomeu Esteva of Esteva i Esteva Architecture Studio. “Difficult destinations have beautiful hotels with design and comfort.” Esteva was in Kathmandu with his colleagues at an event organised by the Spanish Honorary Consulate at Dwarika’s Hotel last week to showcase buildings which Nepali architects can adapt with local material and design inputs.&nbsp; Rural architecture holds a unique significance: it is more than a shelter and must reflect <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/inking-an-idenity">local identity, culture</a> and <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/saving-humla-from-heritage-loss">heritage</a>. An area’s natural and cultural harmony can be upset by <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/protecting-protected-areas-from-infrastructure?fbclid=IwAR1wK0MDFlFST_2EYb3f54LS4-fPt6rYfLG1DJ1JaQsU3w8-ezyXIxGOqzk">poorly planned development</a>, speakers at the event said, but the environment can be improved and revitalised by well-integrated structures.&nbsp; Another Spanish architect, Belen Moneo, has designed hotels at elevations of 3,700m in her home country Spain that supply natural spring water spas. “<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/lost-in-reconstruction">Creativity in construction</a> must be encouraged. Rural architecture always shows possibilities of what we can do better,” Moneo explains, adding that designs must enhance <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/the-healing-power-of-nature">the beauty of nature</a> and give a natural feel at a time when steel, glass and cement dominate <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/rebuilding-kathmandu-after-the-1934-quake">urban design</a>.&nbsp; This is why the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/weaving-nature-into-craft">use of natural products</a> such as bamboo, local timber, straw and rammed earth are in demand from customers who want a fresh eco-friendly look encouraged in construction of rural architectural structures. The demand for boutique hotels has increased world over, with &nbsp;more and more tourists favouring aesthetics, experience and comfort over price. While creativity is an important part of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/architecture-for-mountains">construction and architecture</a>, incentives to build and use <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/Building,370">rural construction materials</a> still remain minimal, and Moneo emphasises the significance of design and execution.&nbsp; Esteva helped design the Vana Retreat in Dehradun that kept the natural environment in focus, with the structure giving an elaborate aesthetic experience to visitors. Another example is Hotel Las Mercedes in the Dominican Republic which was designed and constructed by Moneo and the company she co-founded Moneo Brock, respecting and revaluing the traditional architecture of the area. Hotels providing such experience could attract tourists and revenue. The Spanish ambassador to Nepal Juan Antonio March Pujol said, “The role of architecture and architects in developing tourism is crucial, not only in urban areas but rural settings as well.”&nbsp; The concept of rural boutique hotels gained traction in Spain during the 1990s, particularly in regions like Majorca with economic and environmental sustainability as the main focus. In Nepal <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/12-full-opinion/guiding-nepal-s-tourism-industry">the tourism industry</a> directly employs about 1 million people, and makes up about 8% of the country’s GDP. In Nepal, the stone homes of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/reviving-himalayan-vulture-and-culture">Mustang and Manang</a>, bamboo and mud structures of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/the-tarai-s-shrinking-forests">the Tarai</a>, and the Kathmandu Valley’s terra cotta tile skylines, graceful temples, and tranquil bahal courtyards are all examples of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-s-traditional-seismic-resistant-designs">Nepal’s traditional architecture</a>.&nbsp; Nepali architect Sarosh Pradhan has been working for the past eight years on the Brakka Village project in Manang Valley north of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/municipalities-want-to-manage-annapurna">the Annapurnas</a>. Other examples of this kind of rural architecture for high-end tourism are the Shinta Mani Hotel in Mustang and Khumbu Lodge below <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/mt-everest-pvt-ltd">Mt Everest</a>. Says Pradhan, “There are places in Nepal that radiate purity and embrace simplicity. Creating projects in such settings require deep reflection and thoughtful planning.”  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250421030444_a07a23f6b60fa89c0f35b9dc1aaf19937da4881e6bfb2e1858f3c27dff91729f.jpg" data-media-id="editor_19" data-image-id="20250421030444_a07a23f6b60fa89c0f35b9dc1aaf19937da4881e6bfb2e1858f3c27dff91729f" data-rendition-name="original" width="4608" height="2184" loading="lazy" alt="A new architecture for Nepal's tourism"> </figure>  Rural architecture is not easy, and sometimes more expensive. Inflation, energy efficiency, <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/those-who-stay">the climate crisis</a>, and <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/cost-of-living-in-a-big-city">increased costs of living</a> pose obstacles to sustainable rural architecture. Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/forgotten-international-starchitects-in-nepal">Forgotten international starchitects in Nepal</a>, Anne Feenstra and Varun S Bapu Esteva says faith and trust between client and architect is necessary for any project to be successful. He adds that architects must practice being humble, the process of designing always involves learning and not imposing their ideas on clients. Nepal is uniquely positioned for the growth of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/hiking-up-the-benefits-of-tourism">rural tourism</a> because of its stunning countryside as well as its internationally renowned traditions in holistic wellness. Creating infrastructure that is small, thoughtfully planned and that respects both tradition and contemporary hospitality standards is crucial. “Projects in Nepal can be made cost effective by using materials from houses that have been brought down,” says Esteva. “Pilot projects involving <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/local-government-by-the-people-for-the-people-of-the-people">local people </a>and simple designing also helps the process.” <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/vacant-homes-become-homestays-in-nepal">The growth of homestays in Nepal</a> is a step in the right direction, but they are still a bit too rustic for the international traveller who also wants comfort and is willing to pay extra for it. Upgrading the facilities in homestays and ensuring that the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/an-archive-of-nepali-heritage">architectural heritage</a> of the locality is preserved using locally sourced building material could allow owners to charge more. Says Sangita Shrestha of Dwarika’s Hotel, “Our effort is to build upon rural architecture by empowering local communities and using what is available locally. We can fine tune and encourage indigenous design and training.” The vision goes beyond just boosting the economy, it is about building a future where tourism helps villages grow in a healthy and lasting way. Instead of using up resources, it gives back to the land and the people. It supports local communities by<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/staying-in-nepal-to-create-jobs"> creating jobs</a>, improving infrastructure, and protecting natural beauty. When done right, tourism can be a tool for <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/progress-and-or-preservation">preserving culture and nature</a>, not harming them. Architects must therefore see their work as more than just designing buildings, they also need to care deeply about people and places, especially in rural areas that can benefit the most.&nbsp; With global interest in sustainable and off-the-beaten-path travel increasing, Nepal stands at the cusp of a <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/missing-out-on-nepal-s-tourism-potential">tourism transformation</a> that values community-driven, eco-conscious hospitality. A mix of modern ideas and traditional knowledge could transform rural tourism in Nepal. Says Shrestha, “Young architects should spend time with <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/latest/the-unsung-heroes-of-conservation">local and indigenous communities</a>, listen to their stories, and learn from their <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/life-and-livelihood-in-remote-nepal">ways of living</a>. These communities have deep knowledge about the land, materials, and climate. If this wisdom is used in new designs, it can help create tourism spaces that truly benefit everyone.” &nbsp;

A new architecture for Nepal's tourism

Extract from an addendum to Nepal's Two Wars, Chapter 2 in the updated edition of Essays on Nepal: Past and Present by Sam Cowan, a retired British Army general with a long association with the Gurkhas. The book was first published in 2018, and republished earlier this month by FinePrint exclusively on Amazon. The addendum details a one-to-one conversation the author had in the <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=8884">Royal Palace </a>with the <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=8371">King Gyanendra</a> in November 2002 just after he had taken his initial steps on the road that ultimately led to <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=14681">the abolition of the monarchy</a> in Nepal in 2008. In the early evening of September 16, 2002, in my role as Colonel Commandant of the Brigade of Gurkhas, I had my second and last official audience with King Gyanendra to give him an update on the Brigade’s activities over the previous 12 months. I had some 6 or 7 such audiences with <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/preserving-king-birendra-s-family-home">King Birendra</a>.&nbsp; These were official affairs with the British ambassador of the day present, along with key <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=12233">palace officials</a> and a representative from Nepal's Foreign Ministry. The two monarchs were very different in character and temperament, but both treated me with the utmost civility and made the audiences as relaxed and easy for me as possible.&nbsp; It is, however, worth recording that when the official business had been covered, King Birendra, with a twinkle in his eye, often ended by asking, “Now General, what’s the gossip in London?” The second audience with <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=8026">King Gyanendra </a>was my last official act in uniform. We came back to Kathmandu in the first week of November (after treks) to stay for a few nights with our Defence Attaché before heading back to the UK. Waiting for me was a message from the Palace saying that King Gyanendra would like to meet me informally: <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=6933">no uniform</a> and no ambassador.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250421080420_f9046f9882d4481781d14f2b64f18c7fbbea62562e1d74e3465de6d01fb43750.jpg" data-media-id="editor_7" data-image-id="20250421080420_f9046f9882d4481781d14f2b64f18c7fbbea62562e1d74e3465de6d01fb43750" data-rendition-name="original" width="1750" height="2406" loading="lazy" alt="Gyanendra crowned page 1"> <figcaption>Nepali Times Special Edition of 6-14 June 2001 with enthronement of Gyanendra. </figcaption> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250421080424_21333d6ae21828eb47fe3f849438d215fe2804460d47bb2896ef4aee4e895ad2.jpg" data-media-id="editor_8" data-image-id="20250421080424_21333d6ae21828eb47fe3f849438d215fe2804460d47bb2896ef4aee4e895ad2" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="1857" loading="lazy" alt="Royal massacre"> <figcaption>Nepali Times 22-29 June 2001 covering the royal massacre after which Gyanendra became king. </figcaption> </figure>  Although I had no idea what the purpose of the meeting might be, events in Kathmandu since I last saw the king put me on edge. On October 4, 2002, Gyanendra had dismissed Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba, allegedly for failing to hold <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/what-goes-on-in-nepal-s-elections">elections</a>. He had put in place a new prime minister and a cabinet personally selected by him. When I heard the news on my travels, the people I met were generally supportive of the king’s actions. There was a general view that something had to be done, the country was going nowhere, and the king deserved his chance, not least to solve<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/latest/14-years-after-conflict-no-closure-in-nepal"> the Maoist </a>problem. Back in Kathmandu, views were not so sanguine. The chosen prime minister, Lokendra Bahadur Chand, was a relic from <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/mob-movement-and-mayhem">the Panchayat period</a> whose party had failed to win a single seat in the last elections held in 1999. Some of the chosen cabinet ministers had, to put it mildly, dubious reputations, and others had no record of proven competence in any field. There was a fear that the king’s real motive in dismissing <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/deubas-denouement">Deuba</a> was to start to reverse the democratic gains made since 1990. I informed <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/nepal-britain-mark-centenary-of-1923-treaty">the British ambassador</a> about the invitation. He was strongly against accepting it, which was probably the clinching reason for my decision to do the polite thing and accept it. On the evening of November 7, 2002, I presented myself at the royal palace, alone and in civilian attire.&nbsp; As in the past, the Military Secretary, Major General Vivek Shah, met and escorted me into the presence of the monarch. This time, however, he was politely asked to leave the room and shut the door behind him. King Gyanendra greeted me warmly and invited me to sit down.&nbsp; Read also:<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/the-ghost-of-monarchy-returns-to-haunt-nepal"> The ghost of monarchy returns to haunt Nepal</a>, Shristi Karki  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250421080424_e382af945d0ad2a04ae41fabe5393f793dd10f54cb1220f111c7c9e7423eb558.jpg" data-media-id="editor_15" data-image-id="20250421080424_e382af945d0ad2a04ae41fabe5393f793dd10f54cb1220f111c7c9e7423eb558" data-rendition-name="original" width="1000" height="993" loading="lazy" alt="Gyanendra coup"> <figcaption>Nepali Times 4-10 February 2005 after king Gyanendra's coup imposed media censorship. anendra became king. </figcaption> </figure>  I had wondered, and to be truthful, had worried, not just about the purpose of the meeting, but about how the conversation might start and develop. I reduced my resolve to two points: be polite but speak candidly. The latter resolve was quickly put to the test with the king’s opening words: “Sam, [in previous meetings it had been ‘General’, you walk the highways and byways of this land more than most, tell me what the common man is thinking?” &nbsp;“Your Majesty, I have no idea what they are thinking, but they are waiting.” “Waiting?” “Yes, Your Majesty, they are waiting to see whether what you did some weeks ago in appointing your own prime minister and cabinet ministers is going to make any difference to their lives or whether it is just going to be more Kathmandu hot air.” “Everything is going to be difficult and is going to take time, a lot of time.” “Your Majesty, time is the one thing you don’t have. You must act quickly and decisively to take advantage of the opportunity you have created. Everyone knows that you have appointed these new ministers. Why don’t you get them in here one by one and tell them that they have three months to deliver a programme in their area of responsibility that is going to make a difference to people’s lives? Most will fail to do so. Sack them! It will be a powerful signal of your strong intent to deliver real change.” I can express the opening of our conversation in this way because just about every word is still etched in my mind. The king’s response to my last quoted words was to challenge me to give an example of something that could be delivered quickly. I can give a verbatim record of what I said in response to this unexpected challenge: “Health posts, Your Majesty, there is no shortage of them throughout the country as building them has been one of the sources of local corruption, but very few have any medicine to issue at present or have skilled people to assess and meet medical needs. Your Majesty, children are dying for lack of a few pills. Given the right priority, over a period, say of six months, every health post could be fully stocked with medicine and manned with trained people. This is something I could help to lead for you as I know it would have strong international backing. At last, people would know that you mean business.” As I warmed to the theme, I could see no sign of the king having any enthusiasm for the idea, and I quickly disengaged as it dawned on me, as it had clearly dawned on the king, that the reason for the deficiencies in health posts was to prevent any Maoist combatant from gaining access to any <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/tech-away/nepal-s-health-tech-industry-is-here-to-stay">medical support</a>, and if this meant people suffering, so be it. The subject of the Maoist insurgency inevitably came up, and I took the opportunity to elaborate on what is written in the final four paragraphs of the article above. I advised King Gyanendra that, self-evidently, since there were three parties in the conflict—him, the Maoists, and the political parties—it was imperative that he form an alliance with one of them, preferably the political parties; otherwise, he would find himself isolated, as the other two parties would inevitably, at some stage, form their own alliance. However, it quickly became apparent that the king’s mind was on a totally different track. On the Maoists, he told me that he had channels open to them, but he was scathing about the political party leaders. He made it clear that they would be waiting for a very long time before he gave any power back to them, and that is a polite way of expressing the actual words he used, but “crawling through the door” is a phrase which has stuck in my mind.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250421080424_5403455ff6168f0d202a96cb53edea69136d74d59b989cfcc7cc4a1d57672cb5.jpg" data-media-id="editor_17" data-image-id="20250421080424_5403455ff6168f0d202a96cb53edea69136d74d59b989cfcc7cc4a1d57672cb5" data-rendition-name="original" width="2000" height="1317" loading="lazy" alt="fall of monarchy"> <figcaption>Nepali Times 28 April-3 May 2005 with cover image by Ajay Joshi of jubilant protesters after street demonstrations sidelined king Gyanendra, paving the way for a ceasfire and restoration of democracy. </figcaption> </figure>  As the conversation developed, it became ever clearer that King Gyanendra had decided to go in alone, relying on the misleading assurances he was constantly receiving from <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=14954">the army</a>, and no doubt his close advisers, that the Maoists could and would be quickly defeated militarily, and taken out of the equation. This would obviate the need for him to do any deal with the political parties.&nbsp; Thus, the way would be clear for him to establish a version of his father’s Panchayat system, under a constitution that would be granted to the people by him, their sovereign, as his father and brother had done in 1962 and 1990. As in those constitutions, ultimate power would have remained in the sovereign’s hands. This proposed direction of travel was very clear from what the king said to me. In sum, King Gyanendra was motivated by a desire to emulate his immediate predecessors by granting his people a constitution that would restore his father’s Panchayat system in a modern form and give him a central role in decision-making. What was particularly dispiriting was that beyond this single objective he had no plan worthy of the name, nor demonstrably did he have the people with the skills to implement an appropriate plan even if one had existed. Crucially and depressingly, there was little or no indication from the king that he realised that such a course of action could put Nepal’s monarchy into serious jeopardy, as indeed proved to be the case. <h2>King Twice</h2>  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250420110436_315d519fe3d68d2406ebe1480fed54720fbf21b8907a4da5cde751fdc623d445.jpg" data-media-id="editor_19" data-image-id="20250420110436_315d519fe3d68d2406ebe1480fed54720fbf21b8907a4da5cde751fdc623d445" data-rendition-name="original" width="1302" height="632" loading="lazy" alt="“Tell me what the common man is thinking!”"> </figure>  <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=8371">Gyanendra Bir Bikram Shah has been king twice</a>. In 1950 he was enthroned briefly as a child king (left, above) by the Rana Prime Minister Mohan Shumsher when his grandfather, King Tribhuvan, fled to exile in India. In 2001 he was crowned king again after the massacre in the royal palace in which his brother King Birendra and nine other members of his family were killed by Crown Prince Dipendra.&nbsp; During his second reign, Gyanendra gradually asserted power by sacking Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba in 2002, and then taking full control after the 1 February 2005 coup. He was sidelined after the ceasefire in April 2006, and became a commoner after the Constituent Assembly finally <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/from-nepali-press/Ftnp-abolishing,624">abolished the monarchy in 2008</a>. In the past year, Gyanendra has tried to exploit public dissatisfaction with the political parties to restore the monarchy.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250421080432_26ef4a4b0e3cee9fdc6794446702efe16550d293904b4f6dd46fe35d4d10c788.jpg" data-media-id="editor_22" data-image-id="20250421080432_26ef4a4b0e3cee9fdc6794446702efe16550d293904b4f6dd46fe35d4d10c788" data-rendition-name="original" width="1136" height="702" loading="lazy" alt="Essays on Nepal by Sam Cowen"> </figure>

“Tell me what the common man is thinking!”

“It's Kathmandu.” Just as the family was sitting down for one of its extended lunches, that jubilant cry was from François Driard’s grandfather announcing the next posting for his diplomat parents.&nbsp; Driard (pictured) was 18 in the summer of 1996,<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/suburban-tales/chasing-a-nomad"> a bit of a hippie</a> already, and his life was about to change forever with the magical word “<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/time-capsule-of-kathmandu">Kathmandu</a>”. “I was awed with that information from my grandfather, nothing else mattered … In France <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/tales-of-courage-and-suffering-cx95f89e">in the 1990s</a>, Kathmandu had a mythical aura,” Driard recalls. He came to Kathmandu for Christmas that year to visit his stepfather, the French Ambassador Michel Lummaux. It was to be the first of many visits during school holidays, before he decided to permanently settle down in Nepal. “Kathmandu, and Nepal, were very different then, it was magical, I liked the nature, the people, civilisation, temples, trees,” says Driard, who explored the country sitting on the top of buses. “Visitors talk about the crazy <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/cost-of-living-in-a-big-city">urbanisation</a>, traffic jams today, and all that is true. But Kathmandu has not <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/loss-of-soul-and-soil">lost its soul</a>.” After his stepfather’s tenure in Nepal ended, Driard worked as a business reporter for international publications but decided he did not want to be anyone’s employee anymore. In 2007 he landed in Kathmandu with €20,000 in savings to invest.&nbsp; He knew a few crucial things about himself: he liked food and nature, which is very much tied up with his upbringing--full of lively conversations during lunch and dinner at the family table between <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepals-yak-cheese-is-on-world-map">abundant cheese, wine and cigars</a>. So he decided it would be cheese, and registered Himalayan French Cheese and went to the French Alps for a month to learn how to make Tomme de Savoie. “<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/the-story-of-langtang-cheese">Cheese making is such an ancient craft </a>and so I thought I won’t need much money or studying which I hated and indeed, if you have a tamako bhado and fire you are set,” explains Driard. But Nepal’s temperature and humidity were not ideal, even at higher altitudes. The first customers for his cheese were the Hyatt Regency and Nina and Hager. But he needed to create a market for cheese in a country which only knew hard churpi in the north and soft paneer in the south. He started selling his cheeses at the Summit Hotel weekend market, expanding to his own 1905 Farmer’s Market which later moved to Le Sherpa in Maharajganj, where it is now, and also a market at Labim Mall in Pulchok. He had cow dairies in Nuwakot and Dhulikhel, and finally a yak cheese unit at 3,379m in Ramechhap. It was the yak blue cheese from here that went on to win a Gold Medal in France, putting Nepal’s French cheese on the world map. “People come and try our cheese at the market, they ask questions. There is a lot of education to be done about cheese,” adds Driard, who also has three cheese shops in the Valley. Driard now makes 25 types of cheese. The products are being noticed and every year he has French students coming to Nepal to learn the art of yak cheese making. “In France, one family or company makes one kind of cheese for generations. In that I’m very unique as a cheese artisan,” he says. “The students come in to learn but I tell them to also teach us something too, add another cheese to my collection.” Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/langtang-after-10-years">Langtang after 10 years</a>, Sonia Awale Being a foodie, Driard is now also dabbling in meat with his own charcuterie at Meatini with bacon, ham, sausage and pâtés. All of this is now served at his Emilio’s Pizza, a leafy hideaway in Lazimpat. His South Side in Moksh is probably the smallest wine bar in the world. “I call the process sublime,” says Driard of his ventures, which have grown organically. “You need the same temperature and humidity of 12°C and 80% for cheese, meat and wine.” Emilio’s speciality is the eight-cheese pizza (which has eight types of cheeses), and a pizza with bhutan topping (not the country but fried intestines and organs Nepali-style). He has opened a small branch at Courtyard in Pokhara.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250426070456_bacae302c040dc18eeecdeafda72ddf06a6d2cec138ea9be7e45fe94cdf8b5b3.jpg" data-media-id="editor_8" data-image-id="20250426070456_bacae302c040dc18eeecdeafda72ddf06a6d2cec138ea9be7e45fe94cdf8b5b3" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="1125" loading="lazy" alt="8 cheese pizza"> <figcaption>Eight-cheese pizza</figcaption> </figure>  With two artisanal cheese units, two farmers’ markets, a <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/the-meat-of-the-story">meat processing unit</a>, a bakery, and wine bar he now envisions a vineyard so he can add Nepali wine to his repertoire. Another future plan is to start up an agri-tourism business where customers can drink, eat and work in peace. In the past 20 years in Nepal, Driard has not always succeeded in his ventures but this hasn’t curbed his enthusiasm. He is learning as he goes, and like an old wine, Nepal is growing on him. Its slowness suits his French art de vivre with eating slowly outdoors, having conversation, importing less.&nbsp; “I have proven that with even a little money you can do a lot of things in Nepal,” adds Driard. “In the West, they easily invest half a million euros on a cheese factory, I invested 10 times less.”&nbsp;

Fromage, vin et charcuterie Népalais

Bhuthan भुठान starts with Bishnu Bahadur KC played by <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/dhuwa-smoke-telefilm,2671">Hari Bansha Acharya</a> on a call, requesting to speak to the visa officer. By this point, he had <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-should-now-allow-visa-on-arrival">applied for a visa </a>to Bhutan 10 times, but was denied each time. KC was a <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-s-women-excel-in-sports-in-2024-z9ramyct">national football player </a>in Bhutan in 1988 before he and other Nepali-speaking Lhotsampa people were forced out of the country in the 1990s as part of the Druk regime’s ‘One Nation One People’ campaign. Over 100,000 Bhutanese Nepalis were forced out, driven across India and dumped in Nepal where they lived in seven<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/elderly-left-in-bhutan-refugee-camp"> refugee camps</a> supervised by the United Nations and other charities until they were resettled in the United States, Australia, New Zealand and some European countries starting in 2007. In the fictional movie with the satirical English title The World’s Happiest Man, KC has resettled in the state of Ohio in the US but wishes to visit his home country once before he dies. Between flashbacks, we learn KC has died without having fulfilled his wish. &nbsp; The drama then focuses on KC’s two families from two marriages as they debate whether to cremate him as per <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/from-nepali-press/muslim-hindu,2996">Hindu rites </a>or give him a Christian burial. A mediator played by Hollywood actor Bruce Dern urges them to take a firm decision before it is too long.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250430140420_b398a08091b866da2b0b8f6c1e6e26781609749aba896bfd2c68a10a519295c3.jpg" data-media-id="editor_5" data-image-id="20250430140420_b398a08091b866da2b0b8f6c1e6e26781609749aba896bfd2c68a10a519295c3" data-rendition-name="original" width="945" height="945" loading="lazy" alt="Bhutan, the movie"> </figure>  There are drawn out scenes of KC being baptised and when he is confronted by his first wife from Darjeeling played by Anuradha Majumdar, he says he changed his religion in the hope that he will be <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/comment/bhutan-s-refugees-between-hope-and-despair">allowed back in Bhutan</a>.&nbsp; We find out KC has a second wife, a Christian Nepali played by Puja Chand. Dayahang Rai as the younger son doesn’t have much screen time to flex his acting chops. &nbsp; Acharya competently portrays a man that is equal parts haunted by the memories of and longing for his home country. KC’s pain and loss is acute when he is teaching football to Gungun but between mid-scene, he freezes, perhaps lost in memories of being in Bhutan’s national team. &nbsp; In another scene, KC recalls his mother singing a lullaby in Dzongkha. He also has a box filled with medals, photographs and a football which he deflates with a knife in a powerful depiction of his <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/searching-for-a-homeland-away-from-home?fb_comment_id=1506516030025634">complicated emotions about his homeland</a>. KC keeps checking his mailbox in the hopes that his <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=4977">visa application</a> has been accepted. He says in Nepali: “If a tree that has already struck roots in one place is shifted to another, it will not survive.”  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250430140420_4a9c27410326489576c04dedf40016bda3825e8f9663317f54fbfec4cbda6d34.jpg" data-media-id="editor_9" data-image-id="20250430140420_4a9c27410326489576c04dedf40016bda3825e8f9663317f54fbfec4cbda6d34" data-rendition-name="original" width="1422" height="2048" loading="lazy" alt="Bhutan, the movie"> </figure>  Dern’s character says that the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/comment/nepal-s-transitional-justice-and-the-west-s-recalibration">western world</a> has become “lonely in pursuit of happiness”, another reference to Bhutan’s obsession with its Gross National Happiness index. Scenes shift quickly throughout making the story difficult to follow at times. The use of symbolism is a trite overdone. Nonetheless, भुठान is a nuanced depiction of raw pain and agony of losing one’s homeland. But one cannot help but leave the theatre feeling deflated. KC dies without having visited <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/small-bhutan-dreams-big">Bhutan</a>, but perhaps he does in his afterlife. It is up to the audience to create its own ending to this sad story of exile. भुठान Mad Monkey Films, 2025 Directed by Binod Paudel 102 minutes In cinemas in Nepal

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