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Tens of thousands of Nepali speakers in India’s north-eastern state of Assam feel let down by the upgraded National Register of Citizens (NRC) of India that was published on August 31. (Assam is the first Indian state to upgrade its NRC compo­nent.) As many as 80,000 Nepali speakers have been excluded from this NRC list and they are worried about being stateless. But Ganga Poudel, vice-pres­ident of the Gorkha Develop­ment Council, says all hope is not lost. Anyone excluded from the final list has 120 days to appeal against the decision through a foreigner’s tribunal. Poudel says he would do all he can to help those whose names did not appear on the list.

A total of around 31.1 million people in the state had applied to have their names listed, but about 1.9 million people were excluded. Most of them are people who migrated to Assam from Nepal, Bhutan and Bangladesh. Poudel says those people whose citizen­ship is questionable or whose surnames differ from those of their parents or children have been left out.

As many as 2.5 million Nepali-speaking people live in Assam. About 25 percent of them were missing from an earlier draft list. “We were confident that these names would appear on the final list, but that did not happen,” says Poudel. He adds that some may be rendered stateless if they are not able to submit certain documents to prove residency.

Indian media have men­tioned that if the victims do not get justice in international courts, they can knock on the doors of the Indian High Court and Supreme Court. Many independent bodies claim that although this option is available, as many as 25,000 Nepali-speakers would still not make it to the list. Those whose names did not appear on the list could be arrested and detained. But Assam’s Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal says that just because their names are not on the list does not mean they will be taken into custody.

Assam shares borders with Bhutan and Bangladesh and is considered a sensitive state. The Indian government claims that there is illegal trafficking of humans and animals into the state. It says the list was updated in order to check ille­gal immigrants from Nepal, Bhutan and Bangladesh. Secu­rity in Assam has been beefed up since the publication of the list.

There are Nepalis in every district of Assam. The major­ity of residents in Surajpur district are Nepalis, and there is a big group of people from western Nepal in Kamrup metropolis.

The All Assam Gorkha Stu­dent Union has asked for a thorough investigation as it believes the list is flawed. Pres­ident Prem Tamang has been protesting the process of cre­ating this list from the start, claiming that it discriminates against Nepali speakers.

According to the 2011 population census, there are about 31.1 million people in the 33 districts of Assam.

   Q. What is the most difficult part of your job?

A. Less ‘me’ time.

Q. Your makeup (style) icon?

A. Huda Beauty and Bobbi Brown. The story of them building their empire is inspirational.

Q. Favorite makeup brand?

A. No brand in particular but few things from every brand!

Q. What is the biggest project you’ve been a part of?

A. The Beauty Bar and its three branches.

Q. What is a makeup trend that you hope goes away and never comes back?

A. I love all makeup looks but perhaps the weird squiggly eyebrows.

Q. What are you proud of but never have an excuse to talk about?

A. That I came back to my country.

Q. What’s an opinion you hold that most people wouldn’t agree with?

A. Veganism.

Q. What’s one superpower you would not want?

      A. I wouldn’t want to know everyone’s thoughts... that would make life so sad.

Better sense prevailed and the nearly month-long standoff in the federal lower house over the twin ‘extra-judicial killings’ in Sarlahi ended after a deal between the ruling and opposition parties. Earlier, the Nepali Congress and the RJPN, the two opposition parties, had been stalling the house, asking for a parliamentary probe into the police shootings of Kumar Poudel, a leader of the underground Netra Bikram Chand Biplob-led CPN, and Saroj Narayan Singh, an RJPN cadre. Eventually, the opposition parties agreed that there was no point in running a parallel parliamentary probe when the National Human Rights Commission was already investigating the incidents.

Instead, a seven-member cross-party parliamentary panel has been formed under senior NCP leader Subhas Chandra Nembang to ensure that such incidents are not repeated. The panel is to submit its report to the parliament in a month. The resumption of parliamentary proceedings is great news. But it would be a travesty of justice if any attempt is made to quietly bury the twin incidents in Sarlahi. Now the onus is on the NHRC to unearth the truth. According to preliminary investigations by two other rights bodies, the Advocacy Forum Nepal and the Informal Sector Service Center, there is strong evidence to suggest that Poudel was not killed in crossfire, unlike what the police has been claiming.

They noted some peculiar activities in the lead up to Poudel’s death that made them doubt the official government version. The rights bodies found that locals had been barred from walking in the vicinity of the incident site from early in the morning of June 20, the day the CPN leader was supposedly killed. Also, no local they talked to said they had heard a gunshot throughout the day. The local police were also curiously kept in the dark about the whole affair. These are disconcerting findings.

The conclusion of the two rights bodies that there has of late been a disturbing increase in the number of ‘fake encounters’ is not reassuring. It suggests that the federal government is intent on taking the law into its own hands. Whether or not the government wants to sit down for talks with the Biplob outfit, there can be no justification for killing its cadres in cold blood. If it does so, public sympathy for the banned outfit is bound to grow, which will be a troubling development. It will also seriously undercut the legitimacy of perhaps the strongest government in Nepal’s democratic history, an even more worrisome consequence

Q. Three words you would use to describe yourself?

A. Persistent, genuine, realist.

Q. One quality of yours you would like to work on?

A. I have a habit of getting anxious in certain situations. I would like to work on remaining calm.

Q. An actor you would want to do a film with?

A. Shahrukh Khan.

Q. Who inspires you the most in the entertainment industry?

A. Aishwarya Rai and Dipika Padukone.

Q. What is that one thing you enjoy the most about your profession?

A. I get to travel!

Q. What superpower would you like to have?

A. Being able to teleport.

Q. If you had only one day left to live, what would you do?

A. I would spend that day with my family and my boyfriend.

Q. If you could wish for anything, what would it be?

A. To see more genuineness in this generation.

Q. What would you like to say to your fans?

     A. It is not necessary to go to a foreign country to earn money. There are many problems in Nepal but then it is important to create opportunities in           Nepal.

We’ve read hundreds of arti­cles describing the miserable condition of the Maoist guerillas, the state security personnel, and ordinary citizens alike. But not much has been written about the journalists who were tortured, disappeared or brutally murdered during the war, and even less about their families who continue to live with the wounds that may never heal. Children of the slain journalists not only lost a parent but also an opportunity for a hap­py childhood.

With the government paying little attention to these children, an unnamed organization under The Asian Journalist Association has been financing their education since the war ended with the help of funds from the Australian Press Association.

We tried to interview some of these children to find out their current situation and their aspi­rations for the future, but most of them chose to stay mum because of security concerns. Only two were willing to speak on record.

Dev Kumar Acharya and Navraj Sharma were two of the journal­ists murdered during the war. Their children who, despite hav­ing to overcome trauma since a tender age, are still fighting for justice for their families.

Born in Jhapa, Trishna Acharya is the second daughter of Dev Kumar Acharya, who worked in several newspapers like ‘Janaastha’, ‘Janad­isha’, and ‘Swadhin Samwad’. Acha­rya was abducted on 23 July 2002 on the accusation of being a Maoist and his corpse was delivered to the family the following day. “When we got his dead body, his thumbs were mutilated and it was clear that he was hung upside down and tortured for an entire day,” says Trishna. Then began the struggle for her family as they had to face social ostracism and even rape threats. A small cottage industry of light snacks on which the family depended was also seized. Trishna left the village with a traumatized brother, an agonized mother, and a confused elder sister.

Trishna then came in contact with the organization under the Asian Journalist Association which assisted her financially to pursue her studies. She recently com­pleted her Masters of Arts degree from Tribhuvan University with a gold medal. “My father dreamt of becoming a gold medalist and was working on his Master’s thesis just prior to his murder, so I dedicated my medal to him,” says Trishna.

Her case was filed with the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in September 2014 with the assistance of the organization itself.

“My family members—and even my nephew—still get threats. All I want now is to regain the identi­ty and dignity that my family lost years ago. I want to be the last girl with a tragic story like mine,” says Trishna.

Born in Kalikot, Sangita is the second daughter of Navraj Sharma, who is considered the first journalist killed during the insurgency. He was the editor of a weekly named ‘Kadam’ and also worked at a radio station. Sharma was well liked in the community and his murder came as a complete shock.

“There was a program in my village from where lots of men including my father were abducted. All were released except my father,” says Sangi­ta. What makes the case more disturbing is the fact that the reason behind the abduction and murder of her father is still unknown. After the passing away of her mother a few years later, Sangita came in contact with the organization which then helped her pursue her studies.

She is currently pursuing a Bachelor’s degree in business management and is in her sec­ond year. She wants to work in the banking sector, but is also considering a career in the civil service. Her two siblings have been taken under the wings of the SOS Children Village at San­othimi where they are pursuing their studies.

Sangita’s case has also been registered with the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, but justice has proved elusive so far.

Besides Trishna and Sangita, the organization currently sup­ports 24 other children of con­flict victims. But with the fund­ing from the Australian Press Association coming to an end in 2020, the children’s future is far from secure. “Even when the funding stops, we’ve decided to personally contribute to edu­cate these children,” says one of the two chairmen of the orga­nization, who prefers to work quietly and remain anonymous.

But the question of how long these children can depend on an NGO remains unanswered. The state has a responsibility to take care of these children who have already suffered so much O

The integration and rehabilitation of Maoist combatants were major parts of Nepal’s peace process that started in 2006. Of around 19,000 Maoist combatants eligible for integration, around 1,300 were integrated into the Nepal Army. But many child soldiers who went through the verification process were disqualified for integration and for rehabilitation packages.
In January 2010, 3,000 young ex-combatants who were under 18 at the time of the ceasefire were let go as minors. They were assured of formal schooling, vocational training, and help with setting up small businesses. Lenin Bista, a child solider who had joined the Maoist insurgency at the age of 12, was among those disqualified because of his age. In the past few years he has been fighting for justice for minor Maoist soldiers and other disqualified personnel.
He has sought to internationalize the issue of the use of child soldiers in Nepal, a war crime. He currently serves as the President of Peace Envisioners, an NGO. Bista talked to Biswas Baral and Kamal Dev Bhattarai about his campaign.

In 2010 the Madhav Kumar Nepal-led government had decid­ed to discharge minor soldiers in the Maoist ranks with some kind of compensation. What did you get?

At that time, the state had assured us jobs and education. There was a tripartite agreement between the government, the Maoist party and the United Nations Mission in Nepal (UNMIN) on our issues. But they did nothing for us. They made commit­ments but did not keep them. We were discharged with no more than Rs 10,000 in cash.

You mean there was no follow-up from the state after you were discharged?

Yes, there was no follow-up. We waited for six or seven months before we organized ourselves and formally made our demands. First, we urged the Maoist leaders to settle our issues. Later, we tried to draw the government’s attention by sub­mitting a Memorandum of Under­standing, but again to no avail.

How many of you were disqual­ified as minor soldiers in the UNMIN verification process?

Around 4,000 were discharged after being labelled ‘disqualified’. Of them, 2,973 were child soldiers and the remaining were late recruits. There were also more than 10,000 minors who had served as child soldiers during the insurgency but were not part of the verification process. Many child soldiers were killed. The first Maoist cadre killed by the police was Dil Bahadur Ram­tel, who was 12 when he was shot dead. After their discharge from the cantonments, eight of our friends committed suicide as they faced social humiliation due to the ‘dis­qualified’ tag.

Similarly, there were no jobs, and there was the question of live­lihood. Many of our friends, fearing humiliation and harassment, did not return to their original homes and stayed in other places to hide their identity.

We had joined the Maoist move­ment to change the society but we ended up being tagged ‘disquali­fied’. It was not easy to adjust in the society. Around 25 percent of child soldiers went to Gulf countries and India in search of jobs. Around 15-20 percent have joined the Biplav-led Maoist party believing that the objec­tives of Maoist movement remain unfulfilled.

But child soldiers were offered either continuation of educa­tion or vocational training. Why didn’t you take them?

That was not the case. I am a witness. After the peace process began, I completed my Plus Two studies from inside the canton­ment. In a meeting at the UN, I expressed my desire to pursue a Bachelor’s degree. They said they could not help me with that. No one was given such an option. We had been told we would be part of the national army. With that mind­set, we could not accept training to become mechanics and cooks. Such trainings were a humiliation. We had been told that verification was just a show for foreigners and we would all be integrated into the national army.

Now you are raising the issue of child soldiers in international forums. What are your demands?

The first thing is responsibility for and justification of the Mao­ist war. Another is accountability. Many people were killed and several child soldiers were used but who is accountable for that? We also want a guarantee that child soldiers will never be used in Nepal again. We should also get some kind of a package that’s enough to support our lives.

Some in the government say international organizations are using you to wreck the peace process.

It is the responsibility of state agencies to find out who is using us. I would welcome such an inves­tigation.

You threaten to register cases against former Maoist leaders in international courts. On what basis?

First we should be clear that the issue of child soliders relates to war crimes. In this case, international law can be invoked because Nepal is a signatory to several international treaties and conventions. We want­ed to resolve these issues through national mechanisms but they closed all doors for us. At the same time, the issue of human rights does not have borders. No one can pre­vent us from filing cases in interna­tional courts. If we settle this issue, we can set an example for the rest of the world.

You have been making many for­eign trips of late. Why?

My purpose is to raise the issue of child soldiers. The Nepali state and political parties wanted to wipe out the history of the use of child soldiers, which amounts to erasing our contributions. So I informed the International Criminal Court, the European Union, the German Parliament and other several organi­zations of the same. Now, the world knows the issue of child soldiers is alive in Nepal.

What did you learn on those trips?

Some in Nepal are saying that the cases of rights violations during the war cannot be taken to interna­tional courts. But that is not true. Even the cases of Iraq and Myanmar have reached international courts. First, the UN Security Council can take such cases to the ICC. Second, some state party can take such cas­es to international courts. Third, the victims themselves can register such cases. This last option has been concealed in Nepal. But we want to settle the case within the country, and we child soldiers want high-level security trainings.

What type of high-level training do you want?

We could opt for various trainings such as fire-control, industrial secu­rity, forest security and hydropower security. Our friends have knowl­edge and expertise in these fields. We cannot be taxi drivers and bar­bers. We need training in keeping with our abilities.

Have you given the Nepali gov­ernment a deadline to fulfil your demands?

We have given it three months to meet our demands. The Acts relat­ing to the Truth and Reconcilia­tion Commission and the Commis­sion of Investigation on Enforced Disappeared Persons should be amended to incorporate the provi­sion of child soldiers. We want to settle the issue domestically. There should be a political consensus on it. If they are reluctant, we will reg­ister our case in the International Criminal Court.

What kind of resistance are you facing?

It is all about political will. They do not want to resolve this issue.

Why didn’t you lodge your com­plaints with the TRC?

We have objected to the TRC pro­cess right from the start. The Act does not address the issue of child soldiers. We submitted a memoran­dum but our voices were not heard. On the other hand, appointments to the TRC were based on political consensus. The commissioners can­not act against political leaders who appoint them.

EXPLORE ANCIENT KALASH IN KATHMANDU
Kalash (Gha) is a traditional Newar ‘material culture’ that dates back at least to the Licchhavi period. What can be better than a walking tour of Kathmandu valley to catch a glimpse of the rich ancient heritage of Kalash, and explore its connection with the people of old Kathmandu? As this free walking tour is conducted in Nepali, it may not be relevant for people who do not understand the language. The SherpaShah Heritage fund-facilitated tour that happens every Wednesday starts at 2:30 pm from Sigal and ends at 4 pm near Basantapur, Kathmandu. Call 9843241490 for details.

RISE HORSE RIDE IN POKHARA
Horse riding is a great way to explore the beauty of the Pokhara valley. If you wish to go to World Peace Stupa or Sarangkot, you may want to travel on a horse. The Pokhara Horse Riding Tour starts from Lakeside and ends at Sarangkot or World Peace Stupa, as per your choice. ‘Pokhara Tour, Pokhara Sightseeing & Adventure Activities’ organizes these tours every morning starting 7 am. The tour is for 6 hours and costs around Rs 10,000. To book, call 9802014557.

LEARN TO PLAY SARANGI IN LALITPUR
Project Sarangi Center has opened registrations for Sarangi classes for its July intake. Located at the Arun Thapa Chowk in Sanepa, this music lesson and instruction school has been providing formal classes to promote the melody of the handmade Nepali Sarangis. The school also organizes various “Sarangi Bhela” musical nights for the purpose of awareness and recreation through the mesmerizing traditional music. The project is ideal for students with an interest in traditional Nepali music, specifically the “Sarangi”. Classes run from 10 am to 6 pm on workdays. For details, contact 015553511.

 ‘Sabin Rai and the Pharaoh’ released their first studio album “Dhanyabad” this week at Tangalwood and the band’s fans can’t thank them enough for the music they’re distributing for free through Facebook and other digital music platforms.

The seven-track album is an ode to the band’s fans and supporters, the band says, and it has been made completely free to reach out more to their audience. “We do not want to reserve the album and wait for our listeners to buy it,” says Binod Lama Tamang, drummer and manager of Sabin Rai and the Pharaoh.

“We want our fans from all over the world to listen to it right now.” The band took over a year to complete the album amid their packed schedule of shows and tours, Binod informs, and all the recording, mixing and mastering was done locally in multiple studios.

In this album, Sabin Rai’s music has advanced technically and it completes his metamorphosis from a pop icon to a rock star. With accomplished musicians in the Pharaoh, Sabin’s style of singing and performing has evolved in virtuosity and the audience can feel the power he packs with the band in his recordings as well as live performances.

Comprising the Pharaoh are John Shrestha on guitars and Jeevan Lama on bass—both good students and educators of music—along with the versatile Nikesh KC on guitars, accompanied by Binod, who is one of the steadiest hands on the drums in the current music scene.

Just two and a half years of playing together as a band has brought them unprecedented success with the band already touring all over Nepal and extensively in India, UK, Bahrain and Australia. “This is the best lineup I have ever performed with,” Sabin tells APEX.

“The guys are extremely talented and supportive. We understand each other perfectly and hence have been able to give our very best in this album”.