Moktan campaigns for Nepali art

By Subina Shrestha

KATHMANDU, March 16 - It is not often that young people from some remote parts of Nepal develop their skill in fine arts and venture out into the wilds of the world to persue a dream -- a dream as vague as promoting art and craft of Nepal.

Bimal Moktan, from Attarpur, Sindhupalchowk is one of those rare people, who not only developed his own style in art but has also been campaigning for Nepali art around the world and specially in the USA, despite living in his village for the two out of three decades of his life.

Moktan’s career began with thanka paintings. At a very early age, he started learning the art from his uncle, a guru at his village. He was just 15 when he had his first exhibition in the October Gallery, Kathmandu. "Most of my paintings were sold then- bought by foreign buyers," says he. He has even painted murals at some monasteries in Sindupalchok.

"Around 20 years ago, thanka was not in vogue as it is now," says he. According to him, the market for thankas was also very low and the art was in a dire need of promotion. "There were hardly any art collectors here," says he.

In the later years,his brother, Binod Moktan, developed a new style in thanka painting. With the technique of thanka art, he started painting landscapes and cityscapes. "Initially, I did not follow his technique but later, I took a part of his style and developed my own," says Moktan who reveres his elder brother for his art.

After numerous experiments, in the early 90s’ his work reached Japan. "It was the Kala Chakra Mandala, done in traditional thanka style," he says.

For the past seven years, Moktan, who is in his early thirties has been exhibiting his work and other Nepali art pieces in different parts of the USA. As an artist himself, he could have exhibited his own works only. But he did not limit himself to self-promotion, "With each piece of art or craft sold, it creates an employment opportunity for some Nepalis," he says.

The first time he went to the USA, in 1993, he had gone to exhibit his own work. "In the stores there, I could see goods of every other country except Nepal and that used to irk me," he says.

Seeing a potential market there, Moktan decided to bring in artworks of other artists and exhibit them there. So, he travelled, from one university to the other, throughout the east coast of the USA, displaying Nepali art and crafts. He has even exhibited in different parts of Europe. According to Moktan, he has already transacted works worth Rs. 100 million. Moreover, Moktan has allocated 10 percent of his profits for the education of children in Sindhupalchowk.

"It is not easy to be an artist and art promoter even in the USA," says Moktan who has been in Kathmandu for the past few days. But for this man with a mission to introduce Nepali art to the world, the little impediments do not stop him. His next stop with a whole lot of Nepali arts and crafts is going to be in Paris. Moktan works from Philadelphia, Pennselvenya.

‘Vulgar’ dances in restaurants prohibited

By a Post Reporter

BIRGUNJ, March 16 - Local dance restaurants will not be allowed henceforth to show dancing girls exposing their breasts and parts of the legs above knees.

The decision was taken at a meeting held at the District Administration Office on Wednesday and attended by representatives of administration, police, industry and commerce sector and hotel association.

It has also been decided that cabin restaurants will not be allowed to employ women workers (waitresses) and all the hotels will have to close down their operations by 9 p.m., Chief District Officer Dolakh Bahadur Gurung told The Kathmandu Post on Thursday.

Initially, the hotel representatives were reluctant at the decision but they finally agreed at the meeting, according to a participant. Proprietor of a dance restaurant told The Kathmandu Post on condition of anonymity that the restaurants would lose 50 percent of their customers as a result of this decision.

On the other hand, about two to three dozens of women workers are going to lose their job following the decision not to permit cabin restaurants to employ waitresses. Police strictly directed the cabin restaurants to remove waitresses from their restaurants since Wednesday, according to DSP Bhakti Nath Majhi.

There are six dance restaurants and six cabin restaurants in Birgunj which employ about 100 women workers and dancers. Employing women workers is the latest fashion here. This can be felt from the fact that even half a dozen shops located at Chandal Chowk, about seven kilometres from Birgunj, have hired dozens of women with beautiful make-up to attract customers.

According to the Chief District Officer, the decision was taken after it was widely felt that the obscene dances presented by the dance restaurants had a degenerating impact on the youth and the cabin restaurants had encouraged prostitution. The decision taken on Wednesday by the administration has been welcomed by the local people.

The meeting also decided to increase the number of police force in Birgunj and monitor the activities of people walking on the street after midnight.

Girl knocked down to death

By a Post Reporter

DHADING, March 16 - A truck coming from Kathmandu knocked down and killed on the spot a 10-year-old school girl Sangita Rupakheti of Naubise in front of local Machhindra secondary school on Wednesday.

According to Inspector of Police Rajendra Kumar Thapa of Gajuri Ilaka Police Office, the enraged crowd of local people then damaged and set fire to the truck with plate No Na 2 Kha 248 involved in the accident.

Fire-fighters were brought from Kathmandu to extinguish the fire. As the fire was not brought under control from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m., vehicular movement on the highway was disrupted.

Truck driver Hark Bahadur Gubhaju has been taken into custody and investigation of the case is going on.

According to another incident, a group of people who identified themselves as Maoist workers destroyed furniture of Sana Kisan Sahakari Sanstha in Kiranchok VDC on Tuesday night and set fire to the ledger books of the office.

According to Inspector Thapa of Gajuri Ilaka Police Office, they had snatched the key from the watchman and entered the room. They also carried away land owners’ certificates and one thousand rupees in cash from the office.

According to two employees of the office, the Maoist workers had shouted Maoist slogans as they left the office.

Elocution contest on good governance held

By a Post Reporter

KATHMANDU, March 16 - Seventeen students from nine different colleges participated in the elocution competition on "The Role of Political Leadership in Good Governance" organised by the Nepal Administrative College.

The competition, organised by the Free Students’ Union (FSU) of the campus, aims at exercising the minds of students to think about political situations and governance.

Speaking at the inaugural function, Professor Sudarshan Risal from Tribhuvan University said that the energy of the students needs to be tapped through such activities. "It brings their energies to the right tract," he said. He said it would also be necessary to fill the gap in good governance.

Madhukar Khanal from FSU said the educational environment in the country is very delicate adding professors and lecturers have to take up responsibilities in activities that would help in students’ development.

Street children leading pitiable life

By Kul Chandra Neupane

DAMAULI, March 16 - About 30 children aged between 6 and 14 years are earning their livelihood by selling groundnuts and biscuits of the proprietors at seven cinema halls in Pokhara.

Living away from home, these children earn 15 to 20 rupees a day from their employer. Most of them living at Sukumbasi Tol have fallen into bad habits like drug abuse because of bad company and negative impact of films.

Apart from spending money in food, they also spend their hard-earned income on cigarette, alcohol and other beverages.

Deprived of love from their parents and relatives and educational opportunity, these children have become hardened like the adults. They smoke 10 to 15 sticks of cigarettes a day with their friends. They say they had come here since early childhood because their parents could not send them to school due to poverty.

About one thousand 800 children including street children and child workers are leading a miserable life in Pokhara and Lekhnath municipality areas after they deserted their homes following mistreatment, death of their parents, maltreatment in the hands of stepmother, lack of love and affection at home and so on. According to UNICEF data, there are one thousand 600 child workers employed in different hotels, restaurants, homes and factories of Pokhara and Lekhnath municipality. CWIN has further said there are 150 street children in these areas. As the condition of the street children is still worse, a few organisations like CWIN are working for their protection and development. According to CWIN in-charge Kumar Bhattarai,

they have identified the street children and executed some relief programmes. They have helped the street children to save the money they earned during the day.

Apart from this, arrangement has been made for their treatment at clinic and hospital and CWIN has also made some arrangement for free education of some of them depending on their condition.

"This will not be enough. The government should try to rehabilitate them after enhancing their skill through different trainings," Bhattarai said.

There are five thousand street children in Nepal. CWIN has made arrangement for their shelter and medical treatment but their rehabilitation programme has yet to be started. With a view to declaring Pokhara free from child labour, a programme has been going on in Pokhara and Lekhnath municipality for the last six months. ILO and IPE are assisting this programme. In addition, Pokhara Sub-Metropolitan City, Lekhnath Municipality and Pokhara Chamber of Commerce and Industry are extending their cooperation to this programme. About 10 organisations are also engaged in uplifting the street children and child labour in Pokhara.

Teachers against police fire in Dolakha

By a Post Reporter

DOLAKHA, March 16 - Local teachers have called on all the school authorities here to close their institutions on March 29 to protest recent indiscriminate police firing in Garjandhunga secondary school.

Under a united banner, the decision was announced at a joint press conference held here today by the country’s all three teachers’ associations - Nepal Teacher’s Association, Nepal National Teacher’s Council and Nepal National Teacher’s Association.

The teachers, caught in the cross fire between the Maoists and the police forces, have voiced concern for their safety stating that the dangerous climate has made it difficult for them to do their job.

Last Tuesday about 30 policemen opened fire randomly inside the school premises which forced the school to close for an indefinite period. Allegedly, the police were in search of two armed Maoist rebels. No one, however, was hit in the incident.