The threats to women in Nepal

Kamala Sarup, USA

The chaos and danger facing Nepali women, especially outside Kathmandu, continue to face serious threats to their physical safety, denying them the opportunity to exercise their basic human rights. Even on the other hand, some of the most significant threats that continue to challenge women include the increase of crime. Violence, political intimidation, and attacks on women are discouraging political participation and endangering gains made on women’s rights in Nepal over the last year. Women are increasingly veiling themselves and remaining indoors. Because soldiers and Maoists both are targeting women, especially in rural areas, making it impossible for them to go to work. In many places, human rights abuses are driving many Nepali families to keep their girls out of school.

The fact is that most girls in Nepal are still not in school. Women and girls are abducted outside of their homes. In some areas girls have been abducted on the way to school. Women form the majority of the internally displaced who are forced to flee conflict situations are raped in their homes. As the economy failed and increased poverty that accompanies conflict have contributed to a rise in prostitution, which threaten Nepali women’s health.

Nepali women are the majority of the poor who stand to lose access to critical social services in a free-market Nepal. Women’s security encompasses safety from chronic threats of hunger and, disease. It is true, since the Maoists started their war, women in rural areas have been among the targets. Most casualties are no longer among soldiers, but women. The threats to women’s human security, are getting worse. These dangers are continually present and increasing in the lives of women.

Even in Kathmandu, however, many Nepali women outside Kathmandu, the situation is one of acute general lawlessness and insecurity, as there is no control security conditions. In these areas, more than in Kathmandu, Nepali women continue to face serious threats to their life.

The general climate of corruption and market price have further complicated the situation in Nepal that stimulates excessive violence affects the women’s life as well. Bad governance and political instability, political violence, and unresponsive state institutions are inevitable consequences of corruption and conflict in Nepal. Women’s unemployment rate is even higher. Crime, economic uncertainty are curtailing freedom for especially young women. It is social, economic, political and gender inequalities that are at the heart of conflict in Nepal and which keep it underdeveloped.

Women’s security entails an understanding that threats to women’s physical emotional and material well-being are threats to society as a whole. In order to protect women in situations of violent conflict, the human security should be placed formally on the agenda of security organizations. The impunity of perpetrators of women rights abuses must be ended. This will require community strategies and humanitarian assistance. Personal security and freedom from violence are basic human rights, without which women cannot hope to participate in building democracy, or peace.

One of the looming threats to women security in Nepali societies is HIV/AIDS. There is gender inequity women are less able to protect themselves from HIV or from the sexual violence that may expose them to HIV. The various ways in which women’s health is compromised within conflict societies who traditionally have been denied any political influence over national security issues. Moreover the targeting of women in counter-insurgency is a designed task of war to destroy women’s life.

Political disorder forced numbers of women migrating from rural to urban areas. Women’s human security and their social protection raise some of the most difficult challenges, in humanitarian emergencies, rehabilitation and development of societies is a major concern to be addressed on an urgent basis. Lack of human security of women in situations of armed conflict, a wide range of old and new threats can be considered challenges to women’s security. Nepal can never be at peace unless women have security in their daily lives.

"We are aware of the daily experiences of women in danger in Nepal. Sice conflic started, rape and kidnapping have increased, while killings continue to occur. Many Nepali women are frightened to leave their homes because they still face constant threats to their personal security from armed groups. Prostitution increased. Kidnap and torture still take place. Prolonged conflicts also affect rural areas; crops are destroyed, crippling productivity in subsistence farming and agriculture and leading to chronic food shortages.

Some Nepali women are still being sold by their husbands and own families". Feminist activist Sunita Thapa made the above comments while speaking to The Telegraph recently at Philadelphia. She said the current system for monitoring and reporting on women’s security in armed conflict is ‘’woefully inadequate’’. ‘’The time has come for follow-up action,’’ Sunita added.

She further said "Women’s security connects different types of freedoms. Women and Human Security challenges us to raise difficult questions and find real answers. We must ask ourselves: What did security mean if at night, women cannot walk down a street in Kathmandu? So, how can we apply our knowledge and experience to actions that make Nepal safer for women?

The Government needs to carry out the success of the landmines initiatives through to other, more comprehensive arms control initiatives. If citizens disarm, the government must provide for their safety. Government also has a responsibility to help firearms victims through health care, legal assistance, and counselling. Some NGOs are working on women’s rights and on peace but If NGOs and Government had used the funding they have received well, the lives of many women would have been different today. It is common knowledge that the number of NGOs has grown tremendously in the last decade. Our Government and NGOs are overwhelmingly dependent on foreign funding only". She said.

We must do more than theorize about the Women’s security: we must be able to recognize and identify situations that support it. The number of conflict-related deaths is only a small indication of the tremendous amount of suffering but assaults on the fundamental right to life are widespread, indiscriminate attacks on women and civilians. Torture is common in conflicts, as are measures restricting women’s freedom of movement forcible relocations, mass expulsions, denial of the right to return to one’s home.

Armed conflicts clearly illustrate the indivisibility and interdependence of all women’s rights. The collapse of infrastructure and civic institutions undermines the range of women, economic, political and social rights. Changes in political, economic and social systems are necessary is often neglected. Because of gender discrimination, the needs of women themselves have been the first to be sacrificed during these difficult times. Women have been excluded from political decision-making, jeopardizing their rights for the future.

Today, we recognise that many other threats to women’s security may also be a source of conflict. The intimate relationship between social justice, material well-being and peace must also be taken into account, if action is to be pursued far enough to prevent conflicts from escalating.

(Kamala Sarup is a doctoral student of Armed conflict and women at Pennsylvania, US and can be reached at kamalasarup@gmail.com )

Curbing Corruption through IT

Rajeeb L. Satyal, Management /Social Marketing Consultant, NEPAL

Millions of rupees have already been spent in curbing corruptions. In the process, millions more have already been smuggled out of the country due to fear of confiscation by the government. Corruption has become a normal way of life in the country. It is one of the major factors responsible for the country’s slow development.

In fact, every effort done to curb corruption has failed to produce any creditable result. Most of the programs implemented so far to address corruption in the country seem only to raise false hope. What could be more ironic than the fact that those who are supposed to guard against corruptions themselves are corrupt? Furthermore, they are not arrested even when the court convicts them. Nepal’s every development is hindered by corruption; even the international communities have been increasingly concerned and vocal. They have been offering technical and financial assistance to address poor governance and corruption. But there is no guarantee that the international funds granted for this purpose will be justly and meaningfully used. In the lack of proper design and method to address such issues, how can it be ensured that such international funds yield some creditable results? What could be the basic premise and foundation of Corruption Reduction and Good Governance Programs in the face of country’s deteriorating value system in which even the court judges are facing corruption charges?

The only logical strategy in such a circumstance to curb corruption could be to minimize the direct human involvement and human discretion so it becomes technically impossible to manipulate the process and therefore the result. Thanks to the advance IT technologies. We can successfully use Information Technology (IT) and automated systems for unbiased, effective and efficient compliance of the agreed process and procedure, leaving a very minimal human role for manipulation. We already have many examples whereby use of IT have improved the quality of public services and have minimized corruptions. For example if Taxi Meter can produce receipts of fare for passengers, it will automatically control human manipulations at different levels- owners who will know the exact money collected, the passengers if s/he is staff of some office will get exact amount reimbursed, not more or less or likes. Electronic registration of lands and fixed assets will automatically control manipulations and therefore control present level of irregularities.

Yes, use of IT to can be technically relied to improve governance, public service and to curb corruption to considerable level. It starts with simply entering the new data in the computer and follow the process as guided by the software program. But looking at the past trend we can deny the fact that there could be strong opposition to adapt IT technology probably from various sectors that are so used-to controlling the system to their own benefit. Here International Communities and private sectors can play significant roles. If they are genuinely interested to improve governance in the country, they can put sufficient pressure on the government and implementing agencies to increase or make use of IT (Information Technology) compulsory as a precondition to provide their fund or support. It does not have to be started big.. We can start small as a pilot project and later expand it to wider area with the help of private sectors. Public Investment in modern electronic information technology will prove far more economic and result-oriented for a country like ours.

Some example of obvious areas from where we can beneficially start using computerized systems could be: income taxes, provident funds, passports, citizen certificates, voters list, customs postal services and immigrations, and other area where public revenue is involved. Even the total census of population can be maintained in computers with private-public partnerships. Once the entire population is entered in the computers, it has only to be updated regularly- which happens automatically if government makes a rule to register every new birth/death for citizen certificates Social Marketing approach can effectively be used to reinforce these systems, by informing and motivating the public. Until, we come up with any better solution to curbing corruption in the country, IT seems to be the only hopeful way.

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