A letter from the United States with a genuine allegation

So goes a letter penned by a Nepali women living in the United States. The letter begins:

Dear Chief Editor:

After reading the 2nd impression of the Telegraph dated 1 January 2003, I have decided to jot down some of my thoughts.

Thanks for appreciating international readers for making it possible to have greater outreach of the "Telegraph". Being a woman, I might symbolize as a minority reader of your newspaper; however, I myself presumed that I do fall in that category of international readers. I just want to make small concern where you have said, " It is you gentleman who…. …swelling figure." It depicts that you have envisioned the international readers as men only. Because that covers the majority and majority always counts. It is an irony that only a few Nepalese women could read your newspaper because of their educational background or some other reasons. I wish in coming years more and more women could have an opportunity to read your newspaper. I must confess that the Telegraph has enabled me to update myself on different national and international issues.

Finally, I would like to request you to encourage more and more women writers, academicians, lawyers, politicians and so on to express women’s perspectives on different pertinent issues so that your newspaper could create gender balance to some extend. Eventually, the "Telegraph" could be an important avenue to empower its readers especially women.

Thank you.

Soni Thapa, Graduate Student of Women’s Studies
Texas Woman’s University, Texas, USA

Dear Soni jee!

Namaste and best wishes to you

Please accept my heartfelt apology for the Himalayan blunder that I committed unintentionally. Take it for granted that my intention was not to demean a population that has ever remained instrumental in th advancement of our society beginning 1950s and that fortunately continues till to date.

I do agree that most of the Nepali newspapers, I can’t escape either, deliberately or otherwise neglect the tremendous contributions made by our own sisters in the nation-building task caring little that they have invested a lot of time and energy in giving a shape to this country. If male leaders could boast that they have contributions in the building of the nation, so do the female folks possess the right to claim the same.

Comparatively speaking, my newspaper has ever remained sensitive towards the female folks of the country and in the process The Telegraph Weekly has interviewed outstanding ladies like Dr. Mina Acharya and Ms. Lily Thapa, to name a few. These female luminaries have done well and at times performed tasks that their male counterparts would take years to achieve. I salute them all.

Believe me, when I received your letter and got to know that you have pointed such a blunder that I unintentionally referred to in my Second Impression column, I considered myself exposed to the hilt. However, I assure you Ms. Thapa, that in the future I will remain alert while penning such articles that some how or the other pinches the hearts of my own sisters living within or without.

I thank you very much for your timely intervention. I wish you a very bright future.

Narendra Prasad Upadhyaya.

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