Kamaiyas speak their heart

By a Post Reporter

KATHMANDU, July 10 - We did not get enough to eat; the landlord did not care when we felt sick; we only know how we survive. We are suffering a lot; we have no house; we have been working as Kamaiyas (bonded labourers) from generations; we are here in the hope of emancipation, said Kamaiyas here today.

They were answering to the queries raised by the participants in an interaction programme on Kamaiyas speak about the Kamaiya Mukti Andolan organised by Martin Chautari here today.

"My sister lost her life while building zamindaar’s house," said a Kamaiya Raj Dev Chaudhary, "but he (zamindaar) did not provide any compensation." Another Kamaiya Ramesh Magar said, "Unless we get a written letter of emancipation from the landlord, we do not feel like emancipated."

"Zamindaar Sidda Nath Pant of Geti VDC sold my young daughter somewhere in Gopraila at Mahendranagar and increased sauki up to Rs 98,000," said another Kamaiya Thapa Chaudhary.

Another Kamaiya Ram Prasad Chaudhary of Ram Shikhar Jharko VDC expressed his disappointment saying, "Zamindaar Jaisur Deuba battered me when I expressed inability to pay sauki (debt)."

These were among the 10 Kamaiyas present today who were among the ones who after refusing to work for the landlord, had come to BASE for help. BASE provided them food for the first ten days and provided them with money equivalent to tentative one month rent.

"Now, I work as a daily wage labourer and earn about Rs 60-80 a day," said Hira Devi Choudhary. Now, they are involved in wage earning works such as rikshaw pulling and pottery.

An Indian activist in Kamaiya emancipation, Vivek Pundit, said, "Law is not scanty in dealing with Kamaiya emancipation but the government lacks interest," adding "The landlords do not have fear from law, so, if the government or the court convicts a landlord, they will start fearing the law and comply."

General Secretary of INSEC (a human rights organization) Subodh Pyakurel said, "The yearly value of the work of Kamaiya family comprising 5 members is only Rs 21,200 though they work all the day throughout the year."

It was informed that the Kamaiya Mukti Andolan got started in the Geta VDC in the Kailali district from May 1 of this year. Till now, the movement, has successfully released 92 Kamaiyas and their family members in the Kailali district alone.

Tale of deaf and dumb who passed SLC in first division

By Rabindra Upreti

MAHOTTARI, July 10 - For Deepak Jha, 18, he had reasons to be a bit more delighted than all others who got hold of their SLC results last week.

He made through the iron gate in the first division, all right. But for a person who was born deaf and dumb...the entire episode was something very very special.

"I am perhaps even happier than the SLC topper," Deepak wrote on a piece of paper to The Kathmandu Post.

Born in 1982 in Auraha VDC of Mahottari district, he has suddenly turned a star in his local village school ever since he came as one of the few ones who came out with flying colours amongst his batchmates. Mohan Jha, Deepak’s father and a primary school teacher, is equally delighted.

But at the crucial moment, when the results were declared, all Deepak could do was shed tears without realising whether they came with joy or distress. His other friends who had passed were shouting in joy.

"I was equally speechless for my friends who had failed. It was the rarest moment when the feeling of anguish and inferiority came in my life for being unable to hear and speak for them," Deepak further scribbled.

Deepak, added more on his success story.

"Learning becomes quite difficult when someone cannot hear or express curiosity that occurs to him...I was only expecting a second division as my handwriting was not that good."

Deepak was equally supported by his family, relatives and, most of all, the school teachers. Deepak’s parents first taught him alphabets and numerical figures through pictures. Then, he was finally on his own reading and got regular promotion.

Mohan Jha, Deepak’s father says: "Initially, we were worried about his studies. We took him to a school for the disabled in Kathmandu to admit him. However, Deepak who was then seven-years-old, did not like to stay there with the boys who were shabby. We were compelled to admit him to a village school."

Deepak’s guardians, on the other hand, had made their all efforts to cure him. They took him to Kathmandu as well as Delhi, Kathmandu for medical examinations. Alas, to no avail, many medical reports still remain, with no improvement in Deepak’s health. Recollecting one incident about Deepak’s treatment in All-India Medical Institute - Delhi, his father says, "After 17 days of diagnosis, the doctors attending him recommended the use of a hearing aid. But that showed no results even after two months...Deepak wept bitterly."

"From then on, we decided to focus on his education," Deepak’s father laments.

Given the opportunity, Deepak -- who still is ignorant on any symbolic script meant for the deaf and dumb -- wants to study computers. He is also a good painter. Deepak can also tell the entire movie story after watching it once, his family members said.

According to Arun Koirala, District Education Officer at Mahottari said that Deepak’s success is most glorious in the district’s educational history. "It is very inspiring," he said.

Dhakal back to UML

By a Post Reporter

KATHMANDU, July 10 - Left intellectual and former parliamentarian Narayan Dhakal today formally returned to CPN-UML. UML General Secretary Madhav Kumar Nepal welcomed him by smearing vermilion powder amid a function held at the party headquarters, Balkhu.

Dhakal had remained a central working committee member of UML’s breakaway faction, CPN-ML which split from UML in early 1998. The famed litterateur-cum-journalist, however, disassociated himself from ML a few months back, citing "ideological and political crisis" inside CPN-ML.

"I signed in to split UML thinking that I could help make a better communist party, but that was not to be," Dhakal told reporters at the UML party office. "I had joined ML in my search for truth and justice, but I could not. Now I have returned to our old home."

He added, "My presence in the socialist movement for two years and four months turned bitter...This self-introspection led me to return to the mainstream of democratic and progressive movement."

He dismissed speculations that he returned to UML for the sake of power and position, though he admitted having hurled sharp comments against UML as an active ML member.

An active left political worker, Dhakal’s nearly 25-year-old political career took a fresh turn after he won by-election from Kathmandu constituency 1 in 1995. He is also a columnist for national daily, Kantipur, sister publication of this newspaper.

General Secretary Nepal welcomed Dhakal’s homecoming saying, "Dhakal is an honest party worker and a great treasure of Nepali journalistic and literary realm".

Unqualified people photographed for voter’s identity card

By a Post Reporter

MAHOTTARI, July 10 - Hundreds of people who do not qualify for receiving voter’s identity card were photographed yesterday for the purpose, according to the government employees who were involved in the exercise.

These employees said they had gone to each of the Village Development Committees (VDCs) of Constituency No. 2 (out of four) and were pressurised by locals to take photographs of around 700 minors and equal number of non-Nepali citizens.

They also said the voters’ list of this constituency, having one municipality and 18 VDCs, contains about 4000 names of minors between 10 and
16 years.

There was a furore when local representatives demanded inclusion in the exercise of all those whose names were on the voters’ list and the officials refused to comply.

Dhruva Prasad Upadhyay, Head Assistant from the District Administration Office, who took part in the exercise said, "We turned down a majority of children aged 10-12 years who had come to be photographed." He said a boy of Class 4 in Dhirapur VDC was photographed after the VDC chairman showed him as an 18-year old.

Computer operator Suman Koirala told The Kathmandu Post, "We gave in to the locals as any argument would have delayed the exercise."

Koirala added that there were instances of people posing in someone else’s name. He also said they faced problem dealing with women in veils.

According to reports MP Ram Chandra Tiwari, former minister of state Mahendra Rai, CPN-UML’s District Working Committee Chairman Ram Dayal Mandal and other political activists have still not taken part in the exercise.

Locals protest SPCEA

MAHENDRANAGAR, July 10 (PR) - Locals within Shukla Phant Conservation Extended Area (SPCEA) staged a sit-in at the District Administration Office, Kanchanpur here yesterday protesting the SPCEA management.

Villagers from Padawa village in Pipaladi Village Development Committee-3 staged the sit-in against the SPCEA management saying it was baselessly accusing them of encroachment of the conservation area which they have been using for years. The extended area gets tense every year during the harvest season over the encroachment issue which involved both the SPCEA management and the locals from 18 villages in the area.

According to Rangabir Chaudhary, a local, the villagers were compelled to stage the sit-in because the SPCEA management arrested a local charging him of intrusion at the conservation area while he was sowing rice in his own field. People of Rana and Dagaura the Tharu communities have been living in the area since the past 33 years long before the SPCEA was formed. The extended area was formed in 1984.

Earlier, the SPCEA management was forced to release two local farmers whom it had arrested over the same issue.

"Government has never taken the topographical survey of Padawa village and hence it can’t give us compensation if we were to leave the village," said Chaudhary.

District Development Committee on Ashar 20 formed an All- Party Committee to resolve the SPCEA encroachment problem.

It had urged the government to resolve the problem at the earliest before it gets too complicated.