(A collaborative work by Martin, Aya, and Katie)
Part Un
There once was a girl who hated leeches
“they’ve no purpose in life,” she preaches
She faces off with a buff
Thinking she’s tough
But in the end she jumps up and down and screeches
Part Deux
There once was girl who loathed bugs
She thought they were a bunch of thugs
She got cornered by a fly
She thought she would die
But was saved by a woman with jugs... of water
Part Trois
There once was a girl who hated nature
She thought it was ripe with danger
In ninety degree heat
She was covered in DEET
Thank god she’s studying the legislature
Part Quatre
There once was a girl from BA
Who met with the leader of the PLA
She saw flowers on his blinds
And thought is was fine
But questioned if he was gay
Part Cinq
There once was a student of rights
Who got involved in a couple of fights
But she picked one with a leech
With a much longer reach
And now she sleeps with the lights… on
fin
Friday, July 30, 2010
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Gundu Village Visit
Written July 19, 2010 by Keesler Welch
A couple weeks ago I visited the Village Development Committee (VDC) of Gundu which is in Bhaktapur district. (See map below)
The organization that I am based out of just completed a two-year long water and sanitation improvement plan for Wards no. 6 and 7 within Gundu village. Although Gundu VDC is in close proximity to Bhaktapur city, safe water and sanitation there was in very poor condition so ENPHO, with support from WaterAid Nepal, took immediate action in devising an improvement program. And in order to ensure that the water and sanitation issues (which were relevant to the community) were to be addressed in a comprehensive manner, ENPHO conducted a study with extensive participation from local communities. Therefore, the “Gundu Environmental Sanitation Improvement Programme” became a community-based initiative that utilized the households and centered on a community approach to improve sanitation and public health.
Before the implementation of ENPHO’s improvement plan, a survey that was conducted in the village showed that 24% of households were completely deprived of toilet facilities. But among those with toilets, most of them (79%) did not practice safe and hygienic sanitation. Furthermore, the quality of water in Gundu is very poor since there is lack of a proper treatment system and some households (38%) did not practice any type of filtration before consuming. Other households (35%) only used cloth filtration. This led to some diarrhea and fever problems (but fortunately no deaths!)
Since the improvement plan was only a two-year long project, the “Gundu Environmental Sanitation Improvement Programme” has come to an end but I wanted to see for myself how the community has carried on with what ENPHO started. So after lots of driving and asking for directions through unpaved roads uphill, we finally found Ward no. 6 and 7 of Gundu. While there I met with a water user committee member of Ward no. 7 who has been on the committee for awhile. First I asked him about the make-up of the water committee in Ward 7. He stated that there are 11 members on the committee but only 3 are women. The ages of the committee members range from 35 years old to 67, with him being one of the oldest. When I asked him how the community has been carrying on from where ENPHO left off, he said the biggest problem is that there still needs to be more awareness on why not to defecate in some areas. He went on to say that particularly during the monsoon season, when farmers are out in the field and far away from toilets, open defecation is quite common. However, the water user committee is struggling with ideas on how to enforce these new sanitation practices. He stated that the community members can be fined as a penalty but he doesn’t believe that this enforcement is strong enough to change people’s habits without some type of awareness campaign. Only when the water user committee members come walking around do households practice safe and hygenic practices, he added. However, "ENPHO did a good job of going door-to-door to educate the community members, which is unlike the other [NGO] groups who have come to implement projects in the past."
Below are some pictures of ENPHO's work that were taken during my site visit.
EcoSan toilet. It consists of two chambers which are used for defecation and an outlet for urine. This way urine and feces will be separated. When the first chamber is filled up with feces, it is closed for 6 months. In the meantime the second chamber is filled up. This converts feces into manure which can then be used as fertilizer.
Toilet with solar compost to be used as fertilizer.
ENPHO logo on ECOSan toilet.
Rainwater harvesting to increase water supply.
In sum, ENPHO's “Gundu Environmental Sanitation Improvement Programme” has led to better water quality, improved water pressure at tap stands, construction of toilets for every household, promotion of EcoSan toilets, a health and hygiene training program at school, storm water management and drainage system, solid waste management, and general awareness to the inhabitants on water and sanitation related issues so that the local government can take over once ENPHO has completed the project.
Before leaving, I asked our water user committee friend what's the next big challenge for Gundu. He stated that since drinking water supply is not a problem anymore, the next big issue is securing enough water for irrigating the fields. Currently the community relies solely on the monsoon rains although they are waiting to hear back on a project proposal which would help them build a canal so that water is better collected at their source point.
Signage for “Gundu Environmental Sanitation Improvement Programme.”
A couple weeks ago I visited the Village Development Committee (VDC) of Gundu which is in Bhaktapur district. (See map below)
The organization that I am based out of just completed a two-year long water and sanitation improvement plan for Wards no. 6 and 7 within Gundu village. Although Gundu VDC is in close proximity to Bhaktapur city, safe water and sanitation there was in very poor condition so ENPHO, with support from WaterAid Nepal, took immediate action in devising an improvement program. And in order to ensure that the water and sanitation issues (which were relevant to the community) were to be addressed in a comprehensive manner, ENPHO conducted a study with extensive participation from local communities. Therefore, the “Gundu Environmental Sanitation Improvement Programme” became a community-based initiative that utilized the households and centered on a community approach to improve sanitation and public health.
Before the implementation of ENPHO’s improvement plan, a survey that was conducted in the village showed that 24% of households were completely deprived of toilet facilities. But among those with toilets, most of them (79%) did not practice safe and hygienic sanitation. Furthermore, the quality of water in Gundu is very poor since there is lack of a proper treatment system and some households (38%) did not practice any type of filtration before consuming. Other households (35%) only used cloth filtration. This led to some diarrhea and fever problems (but fortunately no deaths!)
Since the improvement plan was only a two-year long project, the “Gundu Environmental Sanitation Improvement Programme” has come to an end but I wanted to see for myself how the community has carried on with what ENPHO started. So after lots of driving and asking for directions through unpaved roads uphill, we finally found Ward no. 6 and 7 of Gundu. While there I met with a water user committee member of Ward no. 7 who has been on the committee for awhile. First I asked him about the make-up of the water committee in Ward 7. He stated that there are 11 members on the committee but only 3 are women. The ages of the committee members range from 35 years old to 67, with him being one of the oldest. When I asked him how the community has been carrying on from where ENPHO left off, he said the biggest problem is that there still needs to be more awareness on why not to defecate in some areas. He went on to say that particularly during the monsoon season, when farmers are out in the field and far away from toilets, open defecation is quite common. However, the water user committee is struggling with ideas on how to enforce these new sanitation practices. He stated that the community members can be fined as a penalty but he doesn’t believe that this enforcement is strong enough to change people’s habits without some type of awareness campaign. Only when the water user committee members come walking around do households practice safe and hygenic practices, he added. However, "ENPHO did a good job of going door-to-door to educate the community members, which is unlike the other [NGO] groups who have come to implement projects in the past."
Below are some pictures of ENPHO's work that were taken during my site visit.
EcoSan toilet. It consists of two chambers which are used for defecation and an outlet for urine. This way urine and feces will be separated. When the first chamber is filled up with feces, it is closed for 6 months. In the meantime the second chamber is filled up. This converts feces into manure which can then be used as fertilizer.
Toilet with solar compost to be used as fertilizer.
ENPHO logo on ECOSan toilet.
Rainwater harvesting to increase water supply.
In sum, ENPHO's “Gundu Environmental Sanitation Improvement Programme” has led to better water quality, improved water pressure at tap stands, construction of toilets for every household, promotion of EcoSan toilets, a health and hygiene training program at school, storm water management and drainage system, solid waste management, and general awareness to the inhabitants on water and sanitation related issues so that the local government can take over once ENPHO has completed the project.
Before leaving, I asked our water user committee friend what's the next big challenge for Gundu. He stated that since drinking water supply is not a problem anymore, the next big issue is securing enough water for irrigating the fields. Currently the community relies solely on the monsoon rains although they are waiting to hear back on a project proposal which would help them build a canal so that water is better collected at their source point.
Signage for “Gundu Environmental Sanitation Improvement Programme.”
Monday, July 19, 2010
GURU (ng)
There is always a reason and science can explain everything. This is generally my position, whenever I have to cope with magicians, circus, fortune-tellers, astrologists, stories of ghosts, devils and curses, weird natural effects or alleged miracles. Maybe that is what happens when you have a biologist as a mother and a chemical engineer as a father. As a child, I have never heard of storks carrying babies in their beak. Babies come when, 9 months before, a spermatozoon meets an ovule. I have always known that, since the age when you start to come out with uncomfortable questions.
The ayervedical medicine is an illusion, the intolerance test works because of placebo effect. The sky is blue because of the way the Earth's atmosphere scatters light from the sun; Santa Clause exists just if you believe in it [so, Santa Clause do NOT exist].
Sometimes however, my skepticism and intense rationality fold up in the most unexpected moments.
During our field trip, we spent three days in a village named Mittikan, few hours from Pokhara. Mittikan is mostly a Gurung village. Gurung are a Nepali ethnic group migrated from Tibet in the 6th century, traditionally brave, strong and loyal soldiers, known for their contribution to the Gurkha and British Armies. The family I was hosted in was a relatively wealthy family: my father was a literate man in his 40s, and the children two teenagers students (the third child was in Saudi Arabia working as a waiter). Nobody in the family could speak or understand English, but gesticulation, face expressions, and some Nepali words here and there (thanks Dee!!) helped the communication. The second day I woke up 6 in the morning feeling really, really bad. Probably because of some not-so-boiled water, or a strange food reaction, I spent all the day and following night throwing up, trembling and in a semi conscious status. Therefore, while everybody else was joyfully playing volleyball and experiencing the village lifestyle, rice plantation and the typical Gurung dance, I was, instead, experiencing the typical Gurung toilet. I felt really sad, because I knew that that was the only occasion we had to be in a village, and I was not able to enjoy anything there.
My Gurung aama is the sweetest woman in the world. She decided to take care of me in her own way and I decided (consciously or unconsciously) to trust her own way. Basically we communicated just through expressions ( I feel that my facial expressions have incredibly “developed” since I have arrived in Nepal). When she entered in my room in the afternoon, without any reason I showed her the medicine I was taking, and not surprisingly she did not understand anything (“she is not a biologist, Eu!!” ). She just put back the medicine on the table and took a comb instead. She started slowly combing my hair and tie them in a pony tail. It was nice, slightly calming my stomach also. Later in the evening, after my noisy throwing up, she took my trembling arm and dragged me somewhere behind the house. I was really weak and confused. On the way, I saw Dee sitting with the aunt eating baked corn, and I was able to tell her to please come with me because I had no idea where I was going. Dee, my mum, the aunt and I entered finally in a dark room/house, where there was this little old man watching television, sited in a wooden bed. His glasses were deep, and his legs too short to touch the floor. My Aama explained to him something in Gurung, pointing at me. He made me sit in front of him, and looked at me. I tried to smile at him. He was holding some seeds on his right hand. Then he started whispering something while doing some large gestures with his arm around my body. I was silent all the time, and Dee too. I enjoyed that situation, taking it seriously. I did not ask any question to my Aama, what was happening and why. Making no opposition. Maybe because I felt really weak, I just trusted her, him, and in general trusted the situation around me.
My self-control, skepticism, rationality left room for a while to a more spiritual side of myself, and at the end of the day I thought experiencing that sensation was as much as intense as experiencing rice plantation or a Gurung dance.
I came back in my room. On the table my medicine, and, next to it, a comb.
Saturday, July 10, 2010
American Architects in Nepal
-Kim
So, what happens when you bring American architects to Nepal? Particularly, in the time frame of the 1960's? You get the royal palace, now the Palace Museum. Dee thinks it looks like some sort of Christian church, I think it looks much more like a Florida retirement home. For those of you who have never seen the palace, let me describe it for you. I agree with Dee, the outside looks like a weird version of an Episcopalian church, painted in what can only be described as Pepto-Bismol pink. Basically, think of the stereotypical Florida pink exterior paint color, and that what the palace looks like.
The interior was worse. Wood paneling, flowered upholstery, and lots of portraits of people in ridiculously large glasses. Unfortunately, no pictures were allowed. As we first walked in, we saw the grand entrance hall with a double staircase leading down into it. I seriously only thought those things were only in the movies, where one person goes down one side of the staircase and the other goes down the other side, and they meet at the bottom. On the side of the staircase were two giant tigers, rearing up on their back paws.
There were only 19 rooms open to the public; the rest of the palace was closed off. We saw a lot of the receiving rooms for foreign dignitaries, heads of state, Nepali parliamentarians, and others. The receiving rooms were pretty much the same- lots of photos, wood paneling, plush velvet couches, flower patterns galore, and a mix of Western and Nepali art and figurines/trinkets. We also saw the various dining rooms- one for just the visiting dignitaries, and a large banquet room for huge parties of visitors.
There was one hallway in the palace that was lined with pictures of the late King and Queen with various visiting dignitaries. The Bangladeshi heads of state visited quite a lot, but they also got visits from the Swiss Confederation, England, Yugoslavia, and other Asian states. Those photos were really fascinating to walk past, seeing who has visited officially.
We also saw the various bedrooms in the palace. They have one bedroom for the visiting head of state, another one for that person's relatives traveling, and a final one for the head of state's first lady. This, of course, begged the question of, what if the visiting head of state is a woman? I guess the husband would get sent there. Visitors were also allowed to view the king and queen's bedroom. I was very surprised at how modest it was. I would say it is only slightly larger than a typical master bedroom in an American house, and it was very much not ornate in its decorations. I expected the bedroom of the king and queen to be large, ostentatious, and richly decorated. Clearly, my assumptions were way off here.
After viewing the palace we viewed the gardens, which were sad. The whole palace seems in a state of non-upkeep. The lawns and gardens were overgrown. Also, the fountain looked quite terrible, in the same style as the palace. Jakub stated that it looked like a communist swimming pool from back home. It was all white and seafoam green paint, with a little bit of a garish mauve. We did see one animal in the garden, which I believe resides in the deer family (I'm not sure what exact kind of animal it was).
Outside, they also had the grounds open where the building was where the royal massacre occurred. Unfortunately, all that was there were the foundations, as the building was destroyed soon after the massacre. Honestly, this doesn't help much in refuting the conspiracy theorists that think Gyanendra or some other force was behind the massacre. You know, something about destroying evidence (and the whole damn crime scene) so soon after the incident. It was a little surreal to see the site, although I think it would have been even weirder if the building were still there and they let people in there (although I'm sure they wouldn't have done that).
All in all, it was quite an interesting experience, seeing this palace that we've read about and seen so many times in our time in Kathmandu. It was also slightly disturbing to see that the interior looks just as horribly retro as the exterior. Hopefully, the next time someone in Nepal tries to bring foreign architects in, they will pick someone a little more renowned and with better taste. Although, I guess in their defense that was the style then...
So, what happens when you bring American architects to Nepal? Particularly, in the time frame of the 1960's? You get the royal palace, now the Palace Museum. Dee thinks it looks like some sort of Christian church, I think it looks much more like a Florida retirement home. For those of you who have never seen the palace, let me describe it for you. I agree with Dee, the outside looks like a weird version of an Episcopalian church, painted in what can only be described as Pepto-Bismol pink. Basically, think of the stereotypical Florida pink exterior paint color, and that what the palace looks like.
The interior was worse. Wood paneling, flowered upholstery, and lots of portraits of people in ridiculously large glasses. Unfortunately, no pictures were allowed. As we first walked in, we saw the grand entrance hall with a double staircase leading down into it. I seriously only thought those things were only in the movies, where one person goes down one side of the staircase and the other goes down the other side, and they meet at the bottom. On the side of the staircase were two giant tigers, rearing up on their back paws.
There were only 19 rooms open to the public; the rest of the palace was closed off. We saw a lot of the receiving rooms for foreign dignitaries, heads of state, Nepali parliamentarians, and others. The receiving rooms were pretty much the same- lots of photos, wood paneling, plush velvet couches, flower patterns galore, and a mix of Western and Nepali art and figurines/trinkets. We also saw the various dining rooms- one for just the visiting dignitaries, and a large banquet room for huge parties of visitors.
There was one hallway in the palace that was lined with pictures of the late King and Queen with various visiting dignitaries. The Bangladeshi heads of state visited quite a lot, but they also got visits from the Swiss Confederation, England, Yugoslavia, and other Asian states. Those photos were really fascinating to walk past, seeing who has visited officially.
We also saw the various bedrooms in the palace. They have one bedroom for the visiting head of state, another one for that person's relatives traveling, and a final one for the head of state's first lady. This, of course, begged the question of, what if the visiting head of state is a woman? I guess the husband would get sent there. Visitors were also allowed to view the king and queen's bedroom. I was very surprised at how modest it was. I would say it is only slightly larger than a typical master bedroom in an American house, and it was very much not ornate in its decorations. I expected the bedroom of the king and queen to be large, ostentatious, and richly decorated. Clearly, my assumptions were way off here.
After viewing the palace we viewed the gardens, which were sad. The whole palace seems in a state of non-upkeep. The lawns and gardens were overgrown. Also, the fountain looked quite terrible, in the same style as the palace. Jakub stated that it looked like a communist swimming pool from back home. It was all white and seafoam green paint, with a little bit of a garish mauve. We did see one animal in the garden, which I believe resides in the deer family (I'm not sure what exact kind of animal it was).
Outside, they also had the grounds open where the building was where the royal massacre occurred. Unfortunately, all that was there were the foundations, as the building was destroyed soon after the massacre. Honestly, this doesn't help much in refuting the conspiracy theorists that think Gyanendra or some other force was behind the massacre. You know, something about destroying evidence (and the whole damn crime scene) so soon after the incident. It was a little surreal to see the site, although I think it would have been even weirder if the building were still there and they let people in there (although I'm sure they wouldn't have done that).
All in all, it was quite an interesting experience, seeing this palace that we've read about and seen so many times in our time in Kathmandu. It was also slightly disturbing to see that the interior looks just as horribly retro as the exterior. Hopefully, the next time someone in Nepal tries to bring foreign architects in, they will pick someone a little more renowned and with better taste. Although, I guess in their defense that was the style then...
Not an “I” in “Inclusive” of Nepal’s Inclusive Democracy (Start with the Victims)
July 10, 2010 post by Dragica
It is hard to believe that this beautiful adventure is coming to a close (this said with 4 weeks left still, 3 more in Nepal and the rest in India). It feels like that to me. I am not ready to go, even though my mom, for example, is in disbelief when I said my summer was flying by too quickly (she misses me). Today, I replied to a friend who asked “how is Nepal?” that it was a “beautiful chaos.” This is a good description for it. It is the place where the most beautiful colors of the world come from, among other things. Nepal has taught me so much in a very brief period of time, and it forever has a place in my heart. I keep thinking about the overall unpredictability of life, and when I tell my Nepali family, colleagues and friends that I will come back soon, I am not certain how my life’s path is going to wind its way back here. I feel that somehow it will. That is the thrill of fate that I am willing to accept.
The last two weeks at my internship were spent researching and in the field, conducting interviews with victims and victims’ leaders of the ten-year conflict (1996-2006), along with NGOs and others concerned with the topic of victims’ organizing and transitional justice. It will be challenging to synthesize, but it is amazing how quickly one can gather research for a good overview, and I hope to do my findings justice in the remaining weeks to be spent on finishing my report, and writing the next portion of my academic paper (excluding our retreat to gorgeous Pokhara and Chitwan starting this Sunday). I always say that the most valuable aspect of the International Field Program at GPIA is the opportunity to self-reflect and position oneself in a given “career” for a while to see what fits and what does not. I am discovering that everything I have done all along in my academic path has been leading to the work on human rights. It just so happens sometimes that what one is pursuing ends up having a name, but one needs to find themselves in a position to recognize that. This will be the key legacy of my Nepal 2010 IFP.
Many conversations, firsthand accounts, observations and intellectualizing later (in any one day of my summer work, I would change my mind about something after each encounter, as I was learning), I am still convinced that societies recovering from war cannot move forward on their path to reconciliation and peace until the past is confronted head on, and in the process, victims – the many who have suffered directly and indirectly – are completely included and made compensation for in the process. This is why in the last 10 months, I chose to focus on a particular policy to facilitate that, transitional justice, and the more I see it criticized, the more I think about it in the perspective of any other policies out there – we are just trying to understand our world, break down the phenomena, and come up with a solution. However imperfect, these are malleable plans that can be perfected under close study and follow-up, as long as the theories they stand upon are strong. I wish the least powerful to gain their rightful place in the process – at the center. On the surface, victims-based approach seems so utterly logical if the very problems one is seeking to address via given post-conflict policies concern the very recipient of the abuses during the war – the victims. However, nothing is quite like it seems. Not in Nepal.
The tragedy of the Nepali situation is that it is highly political, and everyone and everything is overly-politicized, so that the movements, such as the one I am studying (victims’ movement) become divisive, and thereby weakened in their divisiveness. So are the victims who tried to strengthen their voice through organizing for their own security and protection, power leverage and greater justice gains. The climate in which they operate is so complex. There are too many manipulations and forces that exert various pressures on them, and meanwhile, they are just trying to discover their lost family member, or asking their government for an acknowledgment of their suffering, an apology. How does one empower them while letting them know there truly is strength in numbers? That victim is a victim, no matter the victimizer; no matter the ideology; no matter the caste, class, or gender; no matter the severity of their suffering.
The biggest flaw of any public policy is that it cannot possibly, realistically encompass every single case in its unique form, as these incidents were so varied, no matter how context sensitive the policy is. The pain is so real and the incidents so different, each a solitary experience deep down, but some generalizations can still be made, as long as we are able to be inclusive and hear everyone’s voice. That part is realistic.
It is possible to create common platforms where these stories can be told. I’ve seen it done during my internship by the human rights community, and I have created my own space and the space for others to speak up. I am leaving here with a sense of greater concern for the top leadership in Nepal than their grassroots.
How can a person live peacefully in a country that either terrorized them, or allowed terror to occur, where the same faces are still in power, institutions of authority meant to protect the public good that abused their people are still in place? How can people who received this kind of treatment move on without being reassured that it will not happen again; that somebody takes responsibility for these acts; that somebody is sorry it all happened? How can a government possibly gain legitimacy in the eyes of its people if it refuses to merely engage in a dialogue when they are crying out for help, exasperated, broken, poor, humiliated, forgotten? I feel for the innocent people who are never asking for wars to be fought, but are always irresponsibly pulled into them by the power-hungry few, then re-victimized when it comes time for repair. I’ve seen it all. I never forget the 150,000 who never made it alive in Bosnia.
Nepal is in deep trouble with its leadership. It is a patronage-meets-corruption system of rule, and the government is accountable to no one. The politicians are running pretend-democracy and everyone sees through them, but how to fix this? I see no end to impunity, while I see no way it can go on either. In a democracy where no one seems to be included, how does one choose to vouch for a particular voice (as I am doing with victims)? Sometimes (really!) I wonder why we let idiots (excuse me) run our countries? It is a universal flaw. I wish for Nepal’s peace process to run somewhat like the traffic in Kathmandu – chaotic, in all directions, but flowing without any major clashes. However, even to this, the status quo will expire and eventually we’ll need a traffic light. Something that sets the rules, and can stand in stability, while the rest respect the rules (a stable government perhaps? the rule of law? no conflict).
No conflict.
Dragica
It is hard to believe that this beautiful adventure is coming to a close (this said with 4 weeks left still, 3 more in Nepal and the rest in India). It feels like that to me. I am not ready to go, even though my mom, for example, is in disbelief when I said my summer was flying by too quickly (she misses me). Today, I replied to a friend who asked “how is Nepal?” that it was a “beautiful chaos.” This is a good description for it. It is the place where the most beautiful colors of the world come from, among other things. Nepal has taught me so much in a very brief period of time, and it forever has a place in my heart. I keep thinking about the overall unpredictability of life, and when I tell my Nepali family, colleagues and friends that I will come back soon, I am not certain how my life’s path is going to wind its way back here. I feel that somehow it will. That is the thrill of fate that I am willing to accept.
The last two weeks at my internship were spent researching and in the field, conducting interviews with victims and victims’ leaders of the ten-year conflict (1996-2006), along with NGOs and others concerned with the topic of victims’ organizing and transitional justice. It will be challenging to synthesize, but it is amazing how quickly one can gather research for a good overview, and I hope to do my findings justice in the remaining weeks to be spent on finishing my report, and writing the next portion of my academic paper (excluding our retreat to gorgeous Pokhara and Chitwan starting this Sunday). I always say that the most valuable aspect of the International Field Program at GPIA is the opportunity to self-reflect and position oneself in a given “career” for a while to see what fits and what does not. I am discovering that everything I have done all along in my academic path has been leading to the work on human rights. It just so happens sometimes that what one is pursuing ends up having a name, but one needs to find themselves in a position to recognize that. This will be the key legacy of my Nepal 2010 IFP.
Many conversations, firsthand accounts, observations and intellectualizing later (in any one day of my summer work, I would change my mind about something after each encounter, as I was learning), I am still convinced that societies recovering from war cannot move forward on their path to reconciliation and peace until the past is confronted head on, and in the process, victims – the many who have suffered directly and indirectly – are completely included and made compensation for in the process. This is why in the last 10 months, I chose to focus on a particular policy to facilitate that, transitional justice, and the more I see it criticized, the more I think about it in the perspective of any other policies out there – we are just trying to understand our world, break down the phenomena, and come up with a solution. However imperfect, these are malleable plans that can be perfected under close study and follow-up, as long as the theories they stand upon are strong. I wish the least powerful to gain their rightful place in the process – at the center. On the surface, victims-based approach seems so utterly logical if the very problems one is seeking to address via given post-conflict policies concern the very recipient of the abuses during the war – the victims. However, nothing is quite like it seems. Not in Nepal.
The tragedy of the Nepali situation is that it is highly political, and everyone and everything is overly-politicized, so that the movements, such as the one I am studying (victims’ movement) become divisive, and thereby weakened in their divisiveness. So are the victims who tried to strengthen their voice through organizing for their own security and protection, power leverage and greater justice gains. The climate in which they operate is so complex. There are too many manipulations and forces that exert various pressures on them, and meanwhile, they are just trying to discover their lost family member, or asking their government for an acknowledgment of their suffering, an apology. How does one empower them while letting them know there truly is strength in numbers? That victim is a victim, no matter the victimizer; no matter the ideology; no matter the caste, class, or gender; no matter the severity of their suffering.
The biggest flaw of any public policy is that it cannot possibly, realistically encompass every single case in its unique form, as these incidents were so varied, no matter how context sensitive the policy is. The pain is so real and the incidents so different, each a solitary experience deep down, but some generalizations can still be made, as long as we are able to be inclusive and hear everyone’s voice. That part is realistic.
It is possible to create common platforms where these stories can be told. I’ve seen it done during my internship by the human rights community, and I have created my own space and the space for others to speak up. I am leaving here with a sense of greater concern for the top leadership in Nepal than their grassroots.
How can a person live peacefully in a country that either terrorized them, or allowed terror to occur, where the same faces are still in power, institutions of authority meant to protect the public good that abused their people are still in place? How can people who received this kind of treatment move on without being reassured that it will not happen again; that somebody takes responsibility for these acts; that somebody is sorry it all happened? How can a government possibly gain legitimacy in the eyes of its people if it refuses to merely engage in a dialogue when they are crying out for help, exasperated, broken, poor, humiliated, forgotten? I feel for the innocent people who are never asking for wars to be fought, but are always irresponsibly pulled into them by the power-hungry few, then re-victimized when it comes time for repair. I’ve seen it all. I never forget the 150,000 who never made it alive in Bosnia.
Nepal is in deep trouble with its leadership. It is a patronage-meets-corruption system of rule, and the government is accountable to no one. The politicians are running pretend-democracy and everyone sees through them, but how to fix this? I see no end to impunity, while I see no way it can go on either. In a democracy where no one seems to be included, how does one choose to vouch for a particular voice (as I am doing with victims)? Sometimes (really!) I wonder why we let idiots (excuse me) run our countries? It is a universal flaw. I wish for Nepal’s peace process to run somewhat like the traffic in Kathmandu – chaotic, in all directions, but flowing without any major clashes. However, even to this, the status quo will expire and eventually we’ll need a traffic light. Something that sets the rules, and can stand in stability, while the rest respect the rules (a stable government perhaps? the rule of law? no conflict).
No conflict.
Dragica
Thursday, July 8, 2010
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