Stoned kids outside Bir Hospital

Rajeeb Tamrakar

It was distinctly visible in his eyes. He was in a trance due to the glue he was sniffing just a few minutes ago. And I could hear nothing else, see nothing else, no outcry over these kid’s condition, except the stoned rhapsody of this 12-year-old Deepak of Okhaldhunga who came to the capital city three years back to escape from his drunk father’s daily abuse.

He is among a growing number of street children who come to this capital city in pursuit of a better future from different parts of the country. But many, like Deepak, just land up on the city’s unscrupulous mean streets. And now many are falling into the stupor of glue sniffing.

According to Bishwo Bajracharya, of Sath Sath, an NGO working together with these street kids, about 200 out of 1,500 such children are into this trend. "But the number is also growing rapidly," he warns. According to their study, the trend of sniffing the drug originated from Thamel just a few months back and was introduced to them by foreigners.

Ironically, if you happen to go around the capital’s major hospitals, especially Bir hospital, you can run into these street children sticking their mouths and noses into polythene bags inhaling the intoxicant. This is a new trend of getting high as other drugs remain expensive and inaccessible to these street children, commonly know as "khates."

Just a few years back, they used to make their living either by begging or picking up junk and plastic from the garbage dumps. But this is changing as their population is growing rapidly due to the economic, political and social changes that the country has undergone ever since the restoration of democracy. Some have terrible stories to tell of the suffering endured under the shadow of the escalating violence of the Maoist insurgency back in their village.

Among the recent changes they have experienced is the introduction of drugs, especially the scent of Dendrite (a kind of adhesive) to keep themselves oblivious to the hardships and the misery they have to endure in their everyday life. "I enjoy sniffing glue as it makes me forget everything...I don’t get scared of anything after I inhale its scent," says Deepak.

He also admits that he enjoys the psychedelic effect that he gets after its use. "Once I fantasized fighting with Rajesh Hamal and then I saw myself eating chicken tandoori with my favourite actress," he adds. According to Deepak, he picked up the habit of sniffing dendrite about three months back from the older guys who made him beg enough money to buy the quota of glue they needed each day.

As these children get addicted to the kick they get from these drugs, they also carry out petty crimes like pick-pocketing, shoplifting and even mugging as they grow older. Panhandling outside restaurants and begging money from tourists is on the decline, for with their growing number, competition for survival is getting fierce and the more street wise kids are employing the easiest and the surest ways to make a living. Some even openly admit of selling their bodies for easy money.

Politicians even use them for their personal benefit, as these kids are ready to do anything for money to sustain their habits. The recent Hritik Roshan episode also saw the maximum use of these children to spread terror among the general public.

They are very often picked up by police in apprehension of possible trouble they might start to settle scores with them during such riots.

Likewise, a 15-year-old-lad named Uttam of Kavre district recalls the incident when his friend Tsering was killed by a bullet fired by the police during one of these Bandhs. He left his village hoping to become rich. However, he says that he is trying to forget the bitter truth of landing up on the streets and the humiliation he has to daily face from society.

According to these kids, they have their own family, which they prefer to call as a "gang" and they are ready to do anything for the sake of their fellow mates. And the interesting part is that they too have their own territory and it is very common for members to get beaten up by other gang members whenever they go beyond their territory.

One of these groups of kids living in and around Gaushala area prefer to call themselves the "Bichhu Gang" or scorpions, a name they picked up from one of those movies. The group, which even includes four girls, is made up of about 15-20 children at a time.

Another reason for sniffing glue according to them is that they get the courage to face these sorts of encounters. Hari, one such street kid living in the vicinity of Gaushala says that he started taking it just a few days back because he heard that it would give him courage. " I wanted to take revenge on those kids who beat me up so I took it," he says.

Most of the kids say that they have been to one of those NGOs which looks after these street children. But fond memories of the time they shared with their peers on the streets lure them back to its dark promises. Deepak, who stayed in one of those NGOs for about three months says that he could not stay any longer because he missed his friends too much.

The reason, he elaborates for sniffing glue is because it kills the pangs of hunger and makes him oblivious to the fact that he has nobody in this world except a group of friends who he hangs out with for days on end.

The future, for these street children, is bleaker than ever. And the use of new found and more easily accessible forms of drugs is rapidly spreading to other major thoroughfares of the city.

Lakota weaves hope through hoops

Dikshya Thakuri

It seems that the Kathmandu audience are still not ready for alternative shows, judging by the large crowd of expats and a slim minority of local people who turned up to watch Native American performer Kevin Locke play his Lakota flute and weave through his complex multi-coloured hoop dance. On the evening of May 17 the show "Kevin in Kathmandu", organised by Friends of K.I.S.V and the American Embassy largely impressed whatever crowd had come.

It is unusual to go back to one’s roots once we begin to branch out but for Kevin, his passion for his native music and dance was what pulled him back even after acquiring a master’s degree in Education Administration at the University of South Dakota. He is an indigenous traditional Northern Plains flautist, hoop dancer, storyteller and recording artist. He is also known by his Lakota name, Tokeya Inajin which means ‘The first to rise’. He has toured around 70 countries performing and spreading the beliefs and messages of the Native American culture through his hoop dance and music.

Somewhere in between the show when he is playing flutes along with story telling, somebody in the crowd mentions in a bored tone "he keeps telling stories". But he enthralls the same person who got bored with his flute numbers and stories and the whole crowd with his flexible and free movements of the hoop dance using 28 hoops along the beat of the recorded music of the traditional frame drum and the voices of Pow-wow singers. They lean forward on their seats and crane their necks for a better view. One girl who is with a group of friends, even leaves her seat and sits right under my nose for a better view but blocking mine.

The hoops with four colours symbolize the four seasons. Just like a story teller and a teacher he gives a recap of his dance by disassociating the meaning of his movements and the various patterns formed with his hoops. Outlining the transition of the seasons and the message behind them, he explains each step, "Winter is cold and lifeless and there is a general feeling of anger and hatred which creates problems. Then spring brings everything to life — beauty, fragrance and movements. Life penetrates into our heart". To everybody’s pleasure, he dramatically goes on, "Don’t applaud me, applaud flowers and birds. Yellow and white hoops symbolise the Sun and the Moon. Sun is knowledge and progress. As we go on a journey of life, we pass through different stages. I’m 47 years old and I’m facing a mid-life crisis (showing a movement of getting stuck in his hoops)". He comes out of the hoops.

Back on his feet, he continues, "We begin to see each other as a big part of the whole design whether American, Nepali or African". And again resumes his movements making a chain, "We’re all branches of this tree. You and I can blossom, shine like stars". Making wings out of the hoops, just like a teacher, he moves on, "You and I can fly from this wing of Knowledge. Now give yourself a big hand". Satisfied laughter reverberates through the hall.

His message to the crowd is more or less united we stand and divided we fall. Almost hypnotising the viewers wrapped in a design of his own making, "There’s no black hole, everything is hand in hand, if one falls everything collapses. With the chains linked together we’re strong and we can strive to go forward beyond racism, intolerance and climb the ladder of the Himalayas and soar like the wings of knowledge". He invites the audience to participate in the dance teaching them step by step. Somebody in the crowd whispers with excitement, "Oh I saw a Red Indian for the first time in my life".

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