Is It Land Or Educational Reform That Is Needed?

Land reform in Nepal has created much controversy and debate. The matter has been written about extensively and brought before the courts. Land is a matter of concern equally for the rich and the poor, rural and urban populations. The varied nature of these different social groups also translates into different and often opposing land demands. I am afraid if the proposed reforms will be able to guarantee the realisation of a comprehensive reform that would fulfil the right of poor peasants, especially in a society like ours where real estate transactions are controlled by cartels and brokers. The landless will never be able to hold onto the land especially if it is reasonably good land once the feudal have set their goons and guns on them. Enforcement of land reform will have to be maintained by official muscle for at least a couple of years or more. The authority may have to defend the poorest of its citizens against the oppression of the rich. To ensure neutrality and fairly, morality of those deployed for the law enforcement plays an important role. It will be far more cost-effective and it is upto the government to decide if fragile economy like ours can sustain additional burden. In the coming days fragmentation of fertile land will lead to the lowering of agricultural productivity which will result in increase in price of basic food commodities making life harder for the poor and will in the long run affect the national economy. Without actual implementation, access to credit and water, preparations for storage facilities, roads, transport and markets, land reform will remain a sham. A land reform process that is sustainable needs to incorporate a number of principles like; certainty in land law and policy; increased drive towards decentralisation; comprehensive legal and institutional framework for all land matters; legal and institutional structures to resolve land disputes; transparency in all procedures in land matters; direct participation and representation of land owners/users in the decision making process for all land related matters; and promotion and enhancement of accountability and responsibility of government institutions. I personally think the government has to bring about reform in the educational sector as well. The children of corrupt politicians, bureaucrats and Mafia make their way to Universities abroad but what about the children of the rural poor who don’t have their share of benches to sit in the classrooms in remote parts of the country? It’s high time to promote education that will bring about social and technological changes in the long run. Just handing over the land to uneducated landless poor without any farm finances and market will make things more complicated rather than ensuring social justice. Courts will get flooded with property dispute petitions, criminal cases and divorcee applications. Rivalry in society will increase and division among the classes in society will be more prominent than ever. One cannot ignore that feudal landlords will create their own militia like Ranvir Sena in Bihar. Our independence and freedom should bring joy and not the suffering that we have today.

Hari Bansha Dulal
Cottbus, Germany