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To create awareness and sensitize the public on the harmful effects of tobacco, the Annapurna Media Network (AMN) on April 27 launched the ‘No Tobacco Campaign for Healthy Nepal’ in collaboration with Nepal Development Research Institute (NDRI) and other relevant stakeholders. The three-month campaign will also pitch for an increase in tobacco tax in the upcoming fiscal 2022/23.

A panel discussion on ‘Tobacco, an ongoing crisis and taxation as a prominent mitigation’ was held on the occasion of the campaign launch, where speakers emphasized the important role of the media in promoting a healthy lifestyle.

They also recommended various ways, including taxation, to reduce the sale and consumption of tobacco products. As part of the campaign, AMN will host and cover all news and activities of the campaign in coordination with Simrik Foundation.

According to the World Health Organization, tobacco is one of the biggest global public health threats. Every day, tobacco products kill more than eight million people around the world. More than seven million of these deaths are the result of direct tobacco use while around 1.2m are the result of non-smokers being exposed to second-hand smoke. A study by NDRI shows that there were 37,529 tobacco-related deaths in Nepal in 2021. There were four deaths every hour.

The Nepal Teen Leaders (NTL) has organized a graduation and welcome ceremony for its third and fourth batch respectively amid a certificate distribution program at Hotel Royal Singi in Kathmandu on 16 April 2022. The event was inaugurated by former Deputy Prime Minister Bhim Rawal who urged youths to join politics. He added that it is not possible to improve our situation without youth’s participation and efforts on mainstream politics.

Surendra Basnet, vice president of National Youth Council showed his commitment to collaborate with NTL members in various youth-centric programs in the coming days.

Similarly, president of Higher Institutions and Secondary Schools’ Association Nepal (HISSAN) Ramesh Silwal thanked the executive team of NTL for conducting such a year-long program as it helps students to focus on their extracurriculars simultaneously. Chairman of Golyan Group, Pawan Golyan said, “Post teen phase is the time to grow oneself from every direction as this time has the hunger of learning.”

Editor-In-Chief of AP1 HD television Tikaram Yatri suggested students to know their passion and work to achieve expertise in the similar field. “I would not have succeeded if I were in politics as that’s not my expertise,” he added. Similarly, Manoj Gyawali, deputy general manager of Nabil Bank presented the importance of extracurriculars by giving the example of process during hiring a person for a job.

General Manager of Turkish Airlines for Nepal Abdullah Tuncer Kececi said that he is happy with the progress of NTL members and his company is ready to help students whenever in need.

The program was chaired by Shiva Danai, director of NTL. He requested the stakeholders for the collaboration with NTL so that they jointly help the scenario of students. Lastly, Bishal KC, member of the organizing committee and executive director of Career Point Education Services Pvt. Ltd. said, “Nepali academic houses have provided good education to the students but they have not been able to help in their entire development. NTL is hence helping the students to connect the missing dots.”

The constitution of Nepal has addressed the rights of LGBTIQA+ community in Articles 12, 18, and 42. Third gender has been legally recognized with its inclusion in voter rolls, immigration forms and the census. As the first South Asian country to recognize transgenders, Nepal has a progressive image. But the reality is different as the LGBTIQA+ community is still marginalized and faces discrimination of all kinds on a daily basis. ApEx organized a roundtable with a few representatives of the community to discuss how they are still victimized and what can (and should) be done about it. 

The government doesn’t care about us

Pinky Gurung, President, Blue Diamond Society

Everybody wants a dignified life. Nobody wants to be disrespected and humiliated. But the LGBTIQA+ community is treated as an outlier and has to deal with constant discrimination and mental abuse. We have been raising our voice and campaigning for equal rights for 22 years and though we have made some progress, there is still a lot of work to be done to ensure even our basic rights. The government hasn’t addressed our issues because it doesn’t care about us. We are also under-represented data-wise and that puts us at a disadvantage. We had a lot of hopes pinned on the 2021 census but it has let us down.

Apart from identity crisis and societal acceptance, one of our main concerns is lack of work opportunities. This forces many people from our community into sex-work. Then again, sex-work is illegal in Nepal and we land up in problems frequently. So, what do we do to survive? Another issue is that there isn’t an understanding of the different kinds of sexual orientation and gender identities within our own community. When we are unable to understand ourselves, how can we expect other people to do so?

I believe the media has an important role and responsibility in bringing out our issues. Media can be a watchdog and make the government and other sectors accountable for their actions (and inactions). 

Transgenders are portrayed as sleazy or comic characters

Neelam Poudel, model, make-up artist and activist

We are never judged by our skills but on how we look and what we wear. It doesn’t matter how much hard work I put in, the moment someone finds out I’m a transwoman they will look down on me and think of me as a sex worker. There is this underlying bias that a transgender can only be a sex worker and nothing else. A doctor has let go of my hand and walked out the moment he realized I was a transgender, denying me a consultation. That incident still makes me nervous about going to the hospital.

Nobody wants to talk about our issues as we make people uncomfortable. The society, unfortunately, is still only used to male and female. There isn’t any room for anything that doesn’t fit those two boxes. The police give us a lot of suggestions but they won’t support us when we need them to. Our stories make it to the papers and television but we aren’t given important positions in those newsrooms. The LGBTIQA+ community is sidelined because we are thought of as incapable and inept.

I think a large part of the problem lies in how we are presented and how people thus perceive us. Transgenders are portrayed as sleazy or comic characters or shown as sex workers lined up on the streets of Thamel in Nepali movies. We need normal, if not positive, representation in stories which can be crucial in changing people’s mindset about us. 

Starting a family is next to impossible

Bhakti Shah, activist, Blue Diamond Society

The government doesn’t allocate a budget for our community. Even when it has a couple of times in the past, it hasn’t been dispensed. Where did it go? Why wasn’t it used to uplift our condition, to make life easier for us?

The constitution has granted our rights but there’s no practical implementation of that. As a transman, I should be able to get a citizenship identifying as a male. A transwoman should be able to get it as a female. Not everybody within the LGBTIQA+ community wants to be identified as ‘others’. But that’s the only provision available to us, unless we have a sex change certificate. The thing is not everybody can afford sex-change surgeries. They are expensive. They might not want one either since it’s risky.

Then there’s the issue of child adoption by couples within the LGBTIQA+ community. Starting a family is next to impossible. The government has a provision whereby a man and a woman who have been married for 10 years and don’t have children can adopt. It clearly says a man and a woman. So, two people of the same sex or unmarried couples can’t adopt. Many couples in our community go through a lot of mental turmoil because of that. There are legal loopholes preventing us from enjoying constitutionally guaranteed rights. 

People still don’t understand what LGBTIQA+ means

Swastika Nepali, province coordinator, Mitini Nepal

The LGBTIQA+ community is ostracized and harassed on a daily basis. People think we are different, a deviation, and we are discriminated on that basis. It doesn’t help that ours is largely a patriarchal society that values men above all else. We are also limited by our rigid mindsets. Many of us are unable to share our problems with our families and not having anybody to turn to is the main reason for mental health issues in the LGBTIQA+ community.  

When I came out as a lesbian, people started wondering if I was faking my periods. Many people thought gays and lesbians don’t have any sex organs. It’s appalling how people still don’t understand what LGBTIQA+ means. Unawareness and misunderstanding promote violence, abuse, and even suicide. A lesbian was raped by her father after she disclosed her sexual orientation. He thought she felt the way she did because she didn’t know what it was like to be with a man.  

There are many issues that need to be addressed by the government to ensure our desires and rights aren’t sidelined. One of the main ones is our right to have families of our own. Legal recognition of LGBTIQA+ relationships, including but not limited to same-sex marriages, could be the start of establishing a more gender-neutral society as well as guaranteeing those of the community their basic rights. 

Self-acceptance a huge issue in our community

Elyn Bhandari, activist, Blue Diamond Society

I look like a man but I have a uterus. I dread hospital visits. There have been times when I’ve visited gynecologists and they have outright refused to treat me, judging me by my appearance. I’ve received an ultrasound report with the size of the prostate gland, an organ I obviously don’t have, clearly written on it. The registration forms at hospitals only have the option of male and female and that in itself feels like harassment.

Many of us are undergoing hormone therapy but there are very few professionals who understand and are empathetic towards us. The health system should access our needs and create facilities according to our requirements. Health policies and plans aren’t LGBTIQA+ community friendly at the moment.

Self-acceptance is also a huge issue in our community and that stems from having nowhere to go. This leads to a lot of stress and we need counseling. But, again, there aren’t good counselors. We are always in a quandary about where to seek help and usually find all doors shut. Many people say they don’t know what LGBTIQA+ means but I don’t think in this day and age that should be used as an excuse for poor, discriminatory behavior anymore.

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between Turkish Airlines  Kathmandu office and Siddhartha Arts Foundation. Mr. Abdullah Tuncer Kececi, General Manager of  Turkish Airlines, and Mrs Sangeeta Thapa, Founder/Director of Siddhartha Arts Foundation entered  into an agreement to implement the joint collaboration for the event: “Kathmandu Triennale” a  non-commercial art event of an international standard organized by Siddhartha Arts Foundation  (SAF) to promote Nepali arts and culture. The dates for Kathmandu Triennale are from  Feb 11 to March 31.

With this joint collaboration Siddhartha Arts Foundation and Turkish Airlines as the International  Airline partner will together promote the arts and culture in Nepal and beyond. The event presents contemporary (and traditional) art by Nepali and international artists on particular edition themes  and develops programming and outreach to explore the impact of the arts on society. For more, click here.