August 2008 - Friends of Nepal

issue #3 August 2008
60,000 Bhutanese Refugees Resettling in US
by Dave Carlson, N-3
One of the world’s largest resettlement
operations began several months ago when
100 refugees from Bhutan left their camps
in Nepal for Kathmandu and then on to the
US. The refugees who are now arriving have
spent the last 17 years living in seven camps,
making it one of the most protracted refugee
situations in Asia. Of the 104,000 ethnic
Nepalese currently in these camps, the US
has agreed to accept 60,000 with others
going to Canada, Australia, New Zealand,
Denmark, the Netherlands and Norway.
protests broke out in 1990 which resulted
in violent clashes with both police and the
army and many arrests were made. The
authorities increased their intimidation of the
Lhotshampas by destroying their property
and arbitrarily detaining and torturing
activists. Finally, in 1990 the authorities
resolve the crisis with nothing having been
accomplished. International observers and
particularly human rights organizations have
concluded that Bhutan’s behavior towards
the Lhotshampas is ethnic cleansing. They
fear that accepting such state actions could
set a dangerous precedent for the region
and might result in the expulsion of minorities
from other South Asian countries.
The exile of these people for whom there
are few opportunities for employment and
education has resulted in increased suicide
rates, domestic violence, alcoholism and
trafficking in women and children. While
the office of the United Nations High
Commissioner for Refugees has done every
thing in its power to provide for the needs of
this huge population, it has had to confront
formidable challenges. These people have
been stateless for almost two decades.
There is a great deal of anger over the way
they have been treated by the governments
The ethnic Nepalese in Bhutan are called
Lhotshampas, a word meaning “southerner”
in the national language of Bhutan. Most are
descendents of Nepalese who moved into
Bhutan in the nineteenth century. Though
they continued speaking Nepali and never
successfully assimilated into Bhutanese
society, most think of themselves as
Bhutanese rather than Nepali.
Throughout most of the 20th century,
Lhotshampas were able to own land and
gain citizenship within Bhutan. By that 1980s,
however, the Bhutanese authorities began
to view the large Lhotshampa population
as a threat to the dominant Drukpa culture.
Laws were passed requiring Lhotshampas
to adopt Drukpa values, dress, language,
and the Buddhist religion. The 1988
census revealed that Bhutan’s population
was 48% Buddhist, 45% Nepali and 7%
other. Increasingly it became apparent to
the authorities that this demographic shift
threatened their privileged position as well
as their Buddhist culture given the rising
influence of a sizable Hindu minority.
announced that Lhotshampas who could not
prove they were residents of Bhutan prior to
1958 would be forced to leave. This was an
unreasonable requirement in a country that
was largely illiterate and had only recently
adopted modern documentation procedures.
As planned, the new requirement led to a
great exodus of refugees out of Bhutan and
into Nepal. The Nepali authorities, hoping
to persuade Bhutan to take them back,
restricted the refugees to seven camps.
Out of this growing concern, new eligibility
requirements for Bhutanese citizenship were
created that effectively stripped many ethnic
Nepalese of their Bhutanese citizenship. In
response to this crackdown, large-scale
Bhutan and Nepal have been at loggerheads
ever since over how to solve this refugee
problem. Since 1993, there have been more
than a dozen high-level meetings between
the governments of Bhutan and Nepal to
of Nepal, India, and Bhutan. And yet, many
would prefer to return to Bhutan than
resettle to the US. Above all, however, they
do not want to remain in the camps where a
single oil lamp can accidently burn down an
entire camp in a matter of minutes as it did
on March 1, 2008, at Goldhap, leaving eight
thousand people standing in a field with only
the clothes they were wearing.
continued on page 2...
friends of nepal • returned peace corps volunteers from nepal & community development grants
Refugees (continued from front page)
Most of the Nepalis who have come to
the US over the past few decades have
been relatively well educated and, with the
exception of those fleeing the Maoists, not
subjected to terror and intimidation. These
refugees who are now on our doorstep are a
much different group. Before being forcibly
removed from their homes 17 years ago, many
were simple villagers with a few animals and
little awareness of an outside world. Since
then, they have lived nearly two decades in a
state of limbo; their children have spent their
lives in these camps. These people are going
to need a great amount of caring and support
for them to avoid depression, acculturate and
find employment.
What You Can Do
for Refugees
RPCV Helps Win Justice for
Families of Slain Men
by Dave Carlson N-3
by Tamara Bhandari, N-194
As RPCVs from Nepal there is so much we
can do to touch the lives of these people.
One place to start is to first locate the Office
of Refugee Resettlement in your state
to learn about ethnic Nepali Bhutanese
now in or soon to come to your area. Their
web site is www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/
orr/partners/state_coordina.htm. Below
are some of the many ways that RPCVs
to Nepal can be instrumental in helping
these people get a new start in the US:
Nearly four years after the murders, the
families of nine Nepali men executed in
Iraq won a court case against the men’s
employer and were awarded lifelong
compensation. Matthew Handley, N-184,
was the lead attorney representing the
families.
• Tutor refugees in English skills
• Help refugees write resumes and
prepare for job interviews
• Contact potential employers on
behalf of refugees
• Assist the local contract group to
provide cultural orientations for
refugees
• Accompany refugees to various
appointments
• Provide basic office support
• Mentor refugee families or individuals
If you are not in a position to directly
assist a Bhutanese refugee group in your
area there are other ways that you can be
of great help. Doug Hall is a Nepal RPCV
who has been working with Dr. Kamal
Adhikari to develop a Nepali-EnglishNepali dictionary for Bhutanese refugees
arriving in the US. Doug has created a
web site where you can order or donate
a dictionary and learn more about the
refugees. This web site is: http://it-web.
nhti.edu/student54/ .
2
• •
www.friendsofnepal.com
In August of 2004, Nepal was riveted by
images of 12 young Nepali men held captive
in Iraq by the Islamic extremist group Ansar
al-Sunna Army. The men had been abducted
as they entered Iraq, traveling without security on the deadly Amman-to-Baghdad
highway. Their captors branded them
“infidels” who were supporting the American
“crusade” in Iraq.
His investigation took him to Nepal, where
he turned up a disturbing detail: most of
the men had been tricked into going to Iraq.
They had left home believing they would be
working in the safety of a five-star hotel in
Amman, Jordan.
Reading Simpson’s articles in the Tribune,
Matt began to wonder whether he could
do anything to help the families of the
murdered men. Since the men had been
hired to work on an American base, their
dependents were eligible to receive death
benefits under an American law. His law
firm, though specializing in another aspect
of the law, had a reputation for taking on
human rights cases, and he was able to
convince them to take on this one.
Nepali authorities scrambled to negotiate
for their release, but within days the group “We thought it would be easy; just an
executed all 12 men: the first by slitting
administrative case. But we ran into
his throat, the rest by a bullet to the head. two problems. One was convincing an
When a video of the slayings was posted American court that the parents should
online, Nepal erupted into a week of rioting: qualify as dependents. The other was
the manpower agency that had sent the
that [their employer] just denied knowing
men abroad was looted and burned, as
anything about them,” said Matt. “So we
were hundreds of unrelated manpower had to litigate, and we litigated for two
agencies and Arab-owned businesses
years.”
including Qatar Air.
Simpson had reported that the men
“When I heard about it, at first I didn’t realize
had been sent by a manpower agency
it was anything other than a tragedy,” in Kathmandu to Daoud & Partners, a
said Matt. “I didn’t realize that there was Jordanian company that procured workers
anything to be done about it.”
for Kellogg, Brown, and Root. KBR, as
it is known, is a Halliburton subsidiary
The story received little coverage in
responsible for much of the logistical
the American press, and was quickly support for the American bases in Iraq.
forgotten as more tragedies unfolded in
But for months Matt was unable to prove
Iraq. However, one reporter, Cam Simpson
continued on page 6...
of the Chicago Tribune, pursued the story.
News from Nepal
Current Events in the Youngest Republic
by Ambika Joshee
On May 30, 2008 Nepal was declared
a republic, making it the youngest in
the world. Despite the optimism and
excitement among the general populace
on the birth of the new republic, more
than a month later, the country has yet to
resolve some major issues such as the
amendment of the interim constitution,
the formation of the new government, the
naming of the president, the merger of
the Maoist combatants into the national
army and the proper management of the
Young Communist League (YCL, a cadre
of CPN/M). Party leaders have been meeting
almost everyday but have failed to come to
an agreement regarding these issues.
April 10, 2008 was a big day for Nepal. After
two postponements, the Constitutional
Assembly (CA) election finally took place
on that day. The two major political parties
of Nepal, the Nepali Congress (NC) and the
Communist Party of Nepal /United Marxist
Leninist (CPN/UML) were confident about
getting majority seats in the CA. However to
many people’s surprise, the election result
came out in favor of the Communist party
of Nepal /Maoist (CPN/M) and became the
biggest party in the C.A. There are three
main possible reasons that come to mind
that may have swayed the voters in favor
of the CPN/M.
a. In the past, Nepali people had tried
all the other major political parties
including NC, CPN/UML, Rastriya
Prajatantra Party (RPP), and Rastriya
Janasakti Party (RJP) and did not have
much faith on them. Most of these
parties turned out to be opportunists
and power mongers, and the Nepali
people looking for change wanted to
try a new party and decided to give
CPN/M a chance.
b. YCL went from house to house
before the election campaigning
and threatening people to face the
consequences if they did not vote for
CPN/M. The YCL started a rumor that
they had setup hidden cameras in every
polling booth and they will know who
did not vote them and will punish them.
c. CPN/M also threatened people by
saying that they will go back to the
jungle and start an insurgency again if
they do not win the election.
Regardless of what may have motivated
the voters, the election results are all in
and CPN/M came out as a clear winner
against all the other parties. However
they did not even get a simple majority.
According to the interim constitution,
two third majorities are needed to form
the government and to pass the vote of
no confidence. Since none of the parties
won even a simple majority, the parties
to this day, have failed to come to an
agreement regarding the formation of the
government.
As per the amended interim constitution,
CA decided to declare Nepal as a Republic
country. This asked for a complete
ousting of the king and the royalty. The
interim parliament had already stripped all
the power from the king leaving him as a
mere figure head of the country.
Since then Prime Minister Girija Prasad
Koirala has been enjoying the king’s power.
After the declaration of the republic, CA
gave King Gyanendra 15 days time to
leave the Narayanahiti palace. Narayanhiti
palace was converted to a historic
“Narayanhiti Palace Museum”.
The
government provided the former king the
Nagarjun palace as his temporary resident.
He moved to Nagarjun on the fifteenth
day. Queen mother Ratna (Gyanenedra’s
step mother) and King Tribhuwan’s
mistress Sarala Manandhar ( Gyanendra’s
step grand mother) were provided
separate palaces inside Narayanhiti as
their temporary residence. Finally when
Gyanendra left the Narayanhiti palace, he
handed over 65 government vehicles along
with the crown and other amenities. The
rumor is that Paras (former crown prince)
has moved to Singapore permanently and
his family will be following him shortly.
This was a historic event marking the
end of the Shah dynasty that ruled Nepal
for more than 240 years from B.S. 1825
to 2065.
To add to the current instability and
uncertainty, a new issue has claimed
the front page headlines of Nepal’s
newspaper. Ek Madesh Ek Pradesh ( One
Terai , One State) was the election slogan
of the different Terai based parties such
as Terai Madesh Lokatantrik Party (TMLP),
Nepal Sadbhawana Party (NSP), and
Madheshi Janadhikar Forum (MJF). These
parties won more seats than expected.
They want to have the entire Madesh
(Terai flat land) as one autonomous state.
Many Nepali political parties and many
think tanks of Nepali politics are afraid
that this may lead to a situation similar to
Sikkimization, when India with a majority
vote of Sikkim parliament annexed Sikkim
as the 26th state of India. (Currently India
has 29 states with three new states made
from Bihar and Uttarpradesh) People
think that India has its hands behind the
slogan of the Terai parties. Through many
riots and Terai bands (closures) , the Terai
parties had forced the seven party alliance
to accept their demands of Ek Madesh Ek
Pradesh before the CA. Now, the Terai
parties want their demands included in
the current interim constitution and they
are blocking the assembly saying they
would not let it function till their demands
are fulfilled. On July 8, the seven party
continued on page 6...
www.friendsofnepal.com
3
• •
Obituary
Mike Frame, 67, Founder of
Mike’s Breakfast
Memories of
Nepal
by Lucy Sotar, N-3
by Richard Godfrey, N-17
Michael Warren Frame, N-1, owner of the
popular Kathmandu restaurant Mike’s
Breakfast, died of multiple myeloma on
Friday, May 23, 2008. He was 67.
making very little disturbance...”), to where
to find fresh lard in Kathmandu, to Mike’s
experience with famine in his village while
he was a Peace Corps volunteer.
Born on October 28, 1940 in Northfield, Minn.,
Mike first came to Nepal in 1962 as a Peace
Corps volunteer. He stayed for seven years,
serving two terms with the Peace Corps and
a stretch with USAID. In 1969 he returned
home to study agricultural economics, and
spent most of the next decade running a
farm in Wisconsin with occasional breaks to
work as a trainer for Peace Corps Nepal. He
returned to Nepal in 1980 as associate Peace
Corps director for rural development.
Shortly before he died, Mike finished another
manuscript, one that told of the building of
his stone house in Pokhara, spiced up with
tales of Nepal. His friends hope to publish
it soon.
In 1988 he opened the business that would
make him famous, at least to food-savvy
expats and future generations of Peace
Corps volunteers: Mike’s Breakfast. Legend
has it that a plan for the restaurant came to
him and a friend, Devesh Shrestha, in a burst
of inspiration fueled by homemade Newari
raksi. A few days later, Devesh reminded
Mike of their plan, who couldn’t recall a thing.
But he thought it sounded great nonetheless,
and one bureaucracy-filled year later, Mike’s
Breakfast opened its doors.
The name quickly became inaccurate,
as Mike’s Breakfast expanded from one
meal to three. These days the restaurant
is famous not only for having the best
country breakfast in Kathmandu, but also
for its Mexican dishes such as burritos,
enchiladas, and tostadas, and its desserts.
In later years, Mike published a book called
Mike’s Breakfast: Cooking in Nepal and
Then Some. As Manjushree Thapa writes
in a review, Mike’s Breakfast is much more
than a cookbook. The topics range from
how to cook the perfect pot of rice (based,
clearly, on advice from too many people:
“stir pot continually, intermittently, at critical
times, when you remember, only once, or
not at all. Stir either vigorously, lazily or
•
4•
www.friendsofnepal.com
True to his bi-national life, Mike was
remembered with a memorial service at the
United Church of Christ in Northfield, Minn.
and a day-long Buddhist puja at Mike’s
Breakfast in Kathmandu.
“[Mike] was quiet, unassuming, and in my
mind’s eye he is still smiling that gentle
smile of friendship and openness. He
didn’t talk much about himself...but he
accommodated himself to Nepal just
about as comfortably as any [bideshi]
could. He was basically a great teacher,
and he taught by quiet example and true
character. He was one of the blessings of
my Nepal experience.”
—Bill Robinson, N-3
“He was just such a nice, pleasant person
you couldn’t help but like him. My main
memory of him was when we were all at
a dance at a hotel which had just gotten
a band. They played a polka. Mike and I
got up and started to polka. Well, Mike
was from Minnesota and could he polka!
I loved to dance and followed right along.
The floor quickly cleared of all but us—
guess we were a little quick-paced—and
we danced several wonderful, exhausting
polkas. For me it was truly a night to
remember.”
—Lucy Sotar, N-3
Bob Heavenrich (N-17) and I were headed
for Kathmandu, on a short break during
the hot season (115° F in the afternoon)
with plans to visit the “magic window” at
the Peace Corps office, where you could
collect rupees if you just asked for them.
Leaving the Terai, we crossed over from
Birgunj into the town of Bhirginia in order
to catch the westbound train, and once
we arrived it was a generous wait. That
is to say, more than a day in summertime heat.
There was a saddhu at the tea stand
wearing a light brown jacket. He had a
wrist watch and briefcase. He took a
large brass vessel, eyed me closely, and,
knowing I was a Westerner, said “This is
much better than alcohol. That’s what you
drink, isn’t it?” Then he raised the vessel
to his nose and imbibed water from it
through his right nostril. “Kya karte hai,
Babu-ji?” I asked him in my imperfect
Hindi. He responded in perfect, accented
English, “I am lubricating my mind!”
After it became dark, Bob and I grew
weary of waiting and decided to hop a
freight train hauling coal. Thinking we
would make it to the Rajpath in a few
hours, we tried to get comfortable, resting
on large, irregular black lumps. About six
hours later, somewhere in the middle of
northern Bihar in India, the train came to a
halt. There were many stars and no moon.
We spread out our sleeping bags and
rested our backs on the coal. Then for
reasons I will never know, the train started
going backwards. We ended up back at
Bhirginia, waiting for the train again.
Republic (continued from page 3)
Slain (cont. from page 2)
alliances met and decided to add a provision on article 138 of the interim constitution
stating that Federal Units will be delineated as per the expectation of Madhesis indigenous
communities and Dalits for harmony.
that Daoud & Partners had hired the men.
The break in the case finally came when
a Nepali man who had been in the same
group as the murdered men returned
home bearing a contract identifying
Daoud & Partners.
The search for the president of the new republic has been another issue in Nepal.
The president is supposed to replace the king. CPN/M brought forward their leader
Pushpa Kamal Dahal a.k.a. Prachanda as their presidential candidate. They wanted
to have both the president and the prime minister from their party but other parties did
not agree to that idea. Many names from different parties surfaced as the possible
presidential candidate. Some of those names are Girija Prasad Koirala, Prachanda,
Ramraja Prasad Singh, Shahana Pradhan and Madhav Kumar Nepal. As they could
not agree to any of the above names, they decided to have an election on Saturday,
July 19th.
Saturday’s election elected a former judge Mr. Parmananda Jha from
Madheshi Janadhikar Forum as the country’s first vice president whereas the CA could
not elect the president. Out of 598 votes, Dr. Ram Baran Yadav of NC secured 283
and Mr. Ram Raja Prasad Singha of CPN/M got 270 votes. As both of the candidates
could not get simple major-ity to get elected as the president, the second round of ballot
has been scheduled for Monday, July 21st. This Monday’s election will choose the
president and then Prachanda will become the prime minister, the person with the highest
level of power in the country.
The tug of war is still going on, on the formation of the coalition government. The interim
constitution says that there must be two third majority to form the government and also
to pass the vote of no confidence on the government. With such requirement, parties
other than CPN/M are worried that once CPN/M forms the government they will bulldoze
other parties and continue governing for many years as it has been the seen in many
communist countries. So, the other parties want to amend the interim constitution by
which they will be able to pass the vote of no confidence against CPN/M government
just by majority votes. CPN/M is reluctant to accept this. However they may not be able
to form the government without amending the constitution. It has been almost three
months since the CA election was held but the parties have not yet been able to form the
government. This is the current status of the youngest republic of the world.
Right Before His Very Eyes: An Encounter
with the Mysteries of Africa
by Donovan Russell,
PC/N Staff Member
The touching and true story
of Africans struggling in
a land of westernization, apartheid, and
a violent fight for power. Available online at
iuniverse.com and amazon.com.
In the spring of 2008, Judge Larry W.
Price ruled that the 12 men had indeed
been employed by a US subcontractor
and ordered a monthly compensation
of US $223 for the parents or widow of
each man, with an additional $75 for
any children. Of the 12 families, one was
unwilling to accept any compensation,
and two were declared ineligible, because
the deceased men had no parents, wives,
or children.
The victory was front-page news in Nepal.
When Matt traveled to Nepal with his wife
Nabina Sinha (N-184, Bajhang), in June of
2008 to help distribute the first checks, he
was welcomed as a hero. US Ambassador
to Nepal Nancy Powell presented him with
a certificate of appreciation on behalf of
the Former Peace Corps Nepal Employees
Committee, and Matt also met Prime
Minister Girija Prasad Koirala.
“The Prime Minister thanked me, but I told
him, ‘You don’t know how much you’re
helping me,’” said Matt. “It became much
easier to lobby the firm to continue with
this case when I could show them a picture
of me with the Prime Minister of Nepal.”
The compensation case may have been
won, but Matt is considering filing a humantrafficking case on behalf of the executed
men, and perhaps others as well.
“After this story came out, I started
receiving emails from other Nepalis saying
they were duped. Maybe this time we will
name an American company also. They
are really turning a blind eye to this,” he
said.
Long-time Peace Corps staff member
Shivaji Upadhyay expressed pride in
Matt’s work. “We felt very happy to
honor him in Kathmandu. The result of
volunteer’s contribution is everlasting and
is seen only after their service,” he said.
www.friendsofnepal.com
6
• •
Book Review
Love and Death in Kathmandu: A Strange
Tale of Royal Murder
by Amy Willesee and Mark Whittaker
Review by Colin Stimmler, N-194
Like most hardcover books, the cover of
Love and Death in Kathmandu: A Strange
Tale of Royal Murder by Amy Willesee and
Mark Whittaker, has a shiny cover with a
photograph over the book’s binding. The
book is out of print but can be purchased
for about $15 from Amazon.com. The
cover photograph is a portrait of the
former Nepali royal family, a tacky picture
similar to the photographs of the royals
seen hanging on the walls of every school,
government office, and most every home
or shop. The reds are too pink, the blacks
have no detail, the contrast is too high and
it’s all a little grainy. That’s a pretty good
analogy for the book itself. The massacre,
on which the book is focused, is detailed
with a Hollywood-esque sense of history
and drama, with florid details from palace
insiders to match the showy pomp of the
royal photograph on the cover. While the
book does provide a new way to view the
events of the royal massacre and its place
in Nepali history, in the end the book,
much like the photograph, is still only twodimensional. We the readers will never
really be able to get inside the head of
Crown Prince Dipendra to understand his
motivations for murdering his family, and
then shooting himself.
Willesee and Whittaker jump back and
forth through time, alternating between
their experiences as tourists in Kathmandu
and a detailed history of the Shah family’s
rise to power, culminating in the events of
June 1, 2001. The degree to which events
from the past mimicked the more recent
massacre pose fascinating questions
about the royal family as an institution,
and highlight how pervasive the culture of
violence really was that brought the Shah
family to power. Violence has historically
been an integral part of so much of the
struggle for power between the factions,
be they Shah or Rana. While the book
can only make guesses as to how much
this history influenced Crown Prince
Dipendra’s actions, it is interesting to see
the similarities laid out and the extent to
which history has repeated itself.
The authors also expertly show how
the long Nepali tradition of belief in
the connection between the mundane
and the supernatural influenced their
understanding of the massacre. The
child goddess Kumari, for example, had
a series of circular blemishes on her
face right before the royal massacre that
many took as a sign of coming tragedy.
And while this could be written off as
merely coincidental, the authors do an
excellent job of explaining how similar
omens had been seen and interpreted
by Nepalis during the tumultuous times
in the formation of modern Nepal and the
bloodless conquering of the Kathmandu
valley during the festival of Indra Jatra
in 1768. The fierce connection Nepalis
make between things that might seem
inconsequential to outsiders but to Nepalis
are clearly inspired (or at least influenced
by) the divine is a theme that is repeated
throughout the book.
that matter, his aunt, the current queen
of Nepal. I’ve learned to forgive myself if I
can’t remember how each member of the
royal family is related to the others; most,
like Dipendra and Devyani, are related
several ways.
Overall, the book was a quick and easy
read despite the tragic subject matter.
The strongest aspects of the book were
the connections between the violent
interactions of the Shah and Rana families
and the similar pattern that played out,
to a lesser degree, during the build-up
to the royal massacre. This book would
be interesting to Nepal-ophiles and those
interested in history.
Socially
Responsible
Home Parties
Contact Aaron for Details
401-709-4420
www.silverpeace.com
The book contains two family trees and a
cast of characters for those of us that can’t
keep the various Nepali names straight.
The idea that the marriage of Crown Prince
Dipendra and his sweetheart, Devyani
Rana, was forbidden on the grounds of
consanguinity is remarkable, because the
royal family was already extraordinarily
inbred. Dipendra’s mother was a Rana,
as was his paternal grandmother, and, for
www.friendsofnepal.com
7
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PCV’s Former Student Frees Child Servants
by Preb Stritter, N-95
In early April 2008 you may have been surprised to find David
Brancaccio’s NOW program on Public Television featuring
a story about ransoming indentured servants in the remote
district of Dang, Nepal. What you may not have known is that
this story is grounded in a Peace Corps experience.
The Indentured Daughters Program is sponsored by
Nepalese Youth Opportunities Foundation (NYOF) out
of Sausalito, CA. The guide on the trip was Som Paneru, director
of NYOF programs in Nepal. In the past eight years, NYOF has
almost completely eradicated in Dang the inhumane custom
of bonding little girls away to work as servants for families in
distant cities.
I first noticed Som in 1981 when he was a student in m y 8th
grade math class at the high school in Ghympesaal, Gorkha.
In that sea of 70 or 80 wiggly students, he stood out by his
eagerness to learn. He was the poorest of the poor, a ragged
kid from the backside of the mountain, but he was determined
to succeed.
Through the years I kept in touch with him as he earned a
hillboy scholarship to the Pokhara Boarding School and three
years later a government stipend to the Tribhuvan campus to
earn his elementary teaching certification. I encouraged him to
complete his BA degree, and later he went out to Khumbhu as a
secondary math/science teacher (“like Madam”).
While a student, Som developed an interest in social needs
in remote areas and started to work part-time at NYOF. The
Indentured Daughters Program, which Som had conceived
and already implemented before he became director of
NYOF programs in Nepal, was adopted by NYOF and vastly
expanded. Young girls who would otherwise be hired out as
maids in distant cities are “ransomed” with a piglet or goat for
the family and allowed to stay home and attend school—over
2300 girls have been liberated so far. The Indentured Daughters
program is currently expanding from Dang into other regions of
the country.
Som has never directly asked me for anything. But last fall he
e-mailed that he was coming to California for the NYOF annual
Board meeting and was to give a presentation at Stanford. He
asked me to come out as he wanted to introduce me as an
example of what one ordinary American can do to influence a
Nepali hill kid to pull out of poverty and turn around and serve
other kids. I was just out of shoulder surgery and still confined
to a demobilizing sling, but I declared a 5-day break to my PT
therapist, and boarded a plane to be there for him.
You can view the NOW program at www.pbs.org/now/shows/414/
video.html or learn more about the Nepalese Youth Opportunity
Foundation at www.nyof.org
Broughton Coburn has presented this illustrated program at more than
90 venues around the US, to audiences ranging from corporations, associations and annual meetings, to colleges, religious groups and keynote events.
Aama’s Journey
Aama’s Journey
A Pilgrimage Between Continents and Cultures
8
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www.friendsofnepal.com
For your next meeting, lecture or gathering, formal or informal, consider
inviting Broughton Coburn to take your audience on Aama’s alternately
hilarious, poignant and thought-provoking journey, her end-of-life pilgrimage in search of the soul of America. Please visit www.unusualspeaker.com
for more information and to view a demo tape, or call Didi Thunder at
(307) 733-4124, or email [email protected].
Also, ask about Broughton Coburn’s other illustrated programs, Everest: To
the Top of the World, based on his two national bestsellers, and The Mystery
Caves of Mustang, which follows last spring’s discoveries, covered widely in the
international press, of ancient texts, paintings and archaeological items uncovered in several human-excavated caves near the Tibet border. The August,
2008 Mustang expedition is being filmed as a National Geographic Special.
Language Corner
by Tamara Bhandari, N-194 and Shom Bhandari
Sometimes it pays to know a few sayings in Nepali. I tend to learn
them the hard way from my husband. Just the other day, in fact,
we had a very educational conversation while cooking dinner. It
started with me burning my hand.
“Ow!” I cried, rubbing my hand.
“st kata? Where?” he asked. It’s a standard joke of his, but today
he didn’t seem to get as much enjoyment out of it as usual. “sDKn g] \
gu/ / cfkm \ gf ] sfd x /] . dnfO{ ef s] nfUof ] . kamplen nagara ra aafno
kaam hera. malaai bhok laagyo. Stop complaining and watch what
you’re doing. I’m hungry,” he added unsympathetically.
“ ltd LnfO{ Tot L ef s
] nfu s] f ] 5 g} xf n] f . ltd Ln ] 3/ cfPk5 L gf:t vPgf } ?“
timilaai tyati bhok laageko chhaina hola. timile ghar aaepachhi
naasta khaenauñ? You can’t be that hungry. Didn’t you eat a snack
when you got home?” I asked, equally unsympathetically.
“xf ], t/ Tof ] xQ Lsf ] dvdf lh/f h:t } lyof ] . ho, tara tyo hattiko mukhmaa
jeera jastaai thiyo,” he said, grumpily.
“Why would you put cumin on an elephant’s face?” I asked. He
looked at me like I was an idiot.
“Tof ] eg s
] f ], ;db d| f Ps 7f k] f h:tf ] lyof ] . tyo bhaneko, samudramaa ek
Thopaa jasto thiyo. It means, it was like a drop in the ocean,” he
said. “ Pp6f h L/fn ] xQ Lsf ] k 6] c3fpb g} . n;g to/ eof ] ? euTa jeeraale
hattiko peT aghaaudaina. lasun tayar bhayo? A bit of cumin doesn’t
fill an elephant’s stomach. Is the garlic ready?” he added.
“ Ps 5 Lg kv, x <} d; Lg agfpb } 5 . ek chhin pakha, hai? masina banaudai
chhu. Wait a moment. I’m still chopping,” I said. I impulsively
decided to throw in the one Nepali expression I knew as he cast
my cutting board a disparaging look. “xtktsf ] sfd ntkt . hatpat ko
kaam latpat. Haste makes waste.”
“dnfO{ ef s
] nfUof ] . malaai bhok laagyo. I’m hungry,” he repeated,
grabbing the partially-chopped garlic and tossing it in. “gxg eGbf
sfgf ] dfdf lgsf ] . nahunu bhanda kaano maamaa niko,” he said, and
then translated, “A one-eyed mama is better than none at all.”
“g k] fn Lx?n ] Tof ] aH5g< nepaliharule tyo bujchhan? That makes sense
to Nepali people, does it?” I asked.
“xf ] . ho. Yes,” he said. “Tof ] eg s
] f ], sltklg gxg eGbf yf /] } klg /fd f| ] xf ]
. tyo bhaneko, katipani nahunu bhanda Thorai pani raamro ho. It
means anything is better than nothing.” He tasted the food and
grimaced. “vfp“ . khaauñ. Let’s eat.”
Grants Committee Update
Oppressed Society
Concern Centre
by Val Stori, Projects Committee Coordinator
Friends of Nepal’s grants program continues to provide
funding to non-profit organizations in Nepal who are
providing valuable development assistance at the
local level. Currently, we have three ongoing projects
which we’ve provided funding for: 1) Wrench Nepal—an
organization providing disadvantaged Nepali youth
with bicycle mech-anic skills; 2) Filters for Families—an
organization addressing the issue of arsenic in wells. FoN
has provided funds for hiring a health sanitation worker;
and 3) Empower Dalit Women of Nepal (EDWON)—a
human rights organization empowering women through
education and micro-finance grants. FoN has provided
funds to strengthen EDWON’s Kathmandu staff.
In addition to the three ongoing projects, FoN provided
funding to the Oppressed Society Concern Centre based in
Pokhara for a community development project in the Kaski
district. The project focused on improving the lives of rural
dalit women by providing them with training and education
on goat rearing. The project’s objectives encompassed
empowering these women to develop local women’s
groups to raise goats and improve their economic status.
The project aimed to improve the dalit women’s access to
household finances.
Within a year, OSCC provided basic goat-raising training,
distributed goats to all established women’s groups, and
monitored their progress. In their final report, OSCC
indicated that the dalit community formed four women’s
groups (comprised of sixty women)—three of which were
able to turn a profit. These monies will be used to sustain
the goat-raising program in future years. In addition, the
newly formed women’s groups have been active in their
local communities in diverse activities such as sanitation,
trail maintenance, and community development.
Friends of Nepal is pleased to have been able to fund
OSCC for a second year and is excited by the progress
of their outreach to rural communities. This project, and
all projects funded by FoN, are made possible by the
generous contributions of our members and friends. Thank
you for your contribution to FoN.
If you would like more information about any of
FoN’s funded projects or the Projects Committee,
please contact Projects Committee Chair, Val Stori at
[email protected].
www.friendsofnepal.com
9
• •
Contact Us
Membership
Our small organization relies on membership dues for most of our operating budget. There
are two ways to join: 1) Renew your membership to the National Peace Corps Association
(www.rpcv.org) and choose Friends of Nepal as your “Affiliate Group”. 2) Join Friends of
Nepal directly (www.friendsofnepal.com). You can join on the website or use the form below.
Basic membership to Friends of Nepal is $20. The expiration date of your membership is
listed next to your name on the address label. If your membership is not current please
renew today. Your support goes a long way and in the future only active members will
receive this publication.
Please make your check out to Friends of Nepal and mail to: Suzie Schneider, 1126 Collyer
Street, Longmont, CO 80501. You can also us a credit card on the website:
www.friendsofnepal.com.
Please check our website for more
frequent updates and an electronic
version of this newsletter:
www.friendsofnepal.com. To get
involved in any of our programs
email [email protected].
Board Members
President, Aaron Rome
[email protected]
Treasurer, Suzie Schneider
[email protected]
First Name: Last Name:
Membership, Lucy Sotar
[email protected]
Address:
Grants Committee Chair, Troy Kofroth
[email protected]
Phone Number: Email: MEMBERSHIP ONLY:
q Newsletter
Project Coordinators
Micro Grants, Valerie Stori
[email protected]
q $20
MEMBERSHIP PLUS DONATION:
VOLUNTEER:
PCV Group Number:
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q Grants Committee
Announcements
Please notice the date next to your name.
This is the date that your membership
with Friends of Nepal expires. If expired,
please send in the membership form
enclosed or sign up through our website.
Thank you for your support.
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Newsletter, Tamara Bhandari
[email protected]
Friends of Nepal
PO Box 1200
Charlestown, RI 02813
Contributions to the newsletter are always
welcome. Pictures from Nepal can be
used to illustrate stories and interesting
stories from your Peace Corps days may
be written up in Memories from Nepal.
Updates on your own life, your Peace
Corps friends, or Nepali staff members
will be included in the Group Notes
and Staff Notes sections, and contact
information for Nepali staff is always
needed.
Send any submissions to
[email protected].
To advertise in this newsletter visit www.
FriendsofNepal.com/Info/Advertise.cfm.
friends of nepal • returned peace corps volunteers from nepal & community development grants