Received: from mp.cs.niu.edu (mp.cs.niu.edu [131.156.1.2]) by library.wustl.edu (8.8.5/8.8.5) with SMTP id RAA18880; Tue, 11 Aug 1998 17:13:56 -0500 (CDT) Received: by mp.cs.niu.edu id AA21048 (5.67b/IDA-1.5 for nepal-dist); Tue, 11 Aug 1998 15:07:17 -0500 Received: by mp.cs.niu.edu id AA21044 (5.67b/IDA-1.5 for nepal-list); Tue, 11 Aug 1998 15:07:16 -0500 Date: Tue, 11 Aug 1998 15:07:16 -0500 Message-Id: <199808112007.AA21044@mp.cs.niu.edu> Reply-To: The Nepal Digest <NEPAL@cs.niu.edu> From: The Editor <nepal-request@cs.niu.edu> Sender: "Rajpal J.P. Singh" <A10RJS1@cs.niu.edu> Subject: The Nepal Digest - August 14, 1998 (19 Shrawan 2055 BkSm) To: <NEPAL@cs.niu.edu> Content-Type: text Status: O X-Status: X-Keywords: X-UID: 278
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The Nepal Digest Fri Aug 14, 1998: Shrawan 19 2055BS: Year7 Volume77 Issue5
Today's Topics (partial list):
Re: Ten Reasons
Mainstreaming Gender or Guff?
Even more amazed
Some clarification
A Possible South Asian Economic Union
Nepal India Debate, letter to the editor
Racism in Nepal
Nepali restaraunt in Manhattan
The Free Trade in South Asia Debate
Query to the Editor of TND
******************************************************************************
* TND (The Nepal Digest) Editorial Board *
* -------------------------------------- *
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* The Nepal Digest: General Information tnd@nepal.org *
* Chief Editor: Rajpal JP Singh a10rjs1@mp.cs.niu.edu *
* (Open Position) *
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* Co-ordinating Director - Australia Chapter (TND Foundation) *
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* TND Foundation: http://www.nepal.org tnd@nepal.org *
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* Rabi Tripathi, Prakash Bista tnd@nepal.org *
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* +++++ Food For Thought +++++ *
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* "Heros are the ones who give a bit of themselves to the community" *
* "Democracy perishes among the silent crowd" -Sirdar_Khalifa *
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******************************************************************************
******************************************************************
Date: Wed, 05 Aug 98 10:18:51 EST
From: "Paramendra Bhagat" <Paramendra_Bhagat@smtpgtwy.berea.edu>
Subject: Re: Ten Reasons
I am amazed that an attendant of the best liberal arts college in the US -
Middlebury - does not have the slightest hint of economic literacy in him. Mr.
Aryal needs to look at the European model. Are France and Germany, two proud,
rich, powerful nations, wanting to lose their sovereignity that they are so
eager to move towards an economic union? Is Tony Blair a fool to want to move
towards the same? Are the East European countries, the underdogs of Europe,
wanting to commit suicide that they sound so eager to jump onto the European
Union bandwagon? Are the North Americans fools NAFTA-wise? Closer to home, why
are the ASEAN countries talking the same language? And our own SAPTA, South
Asian Preferential Trade Agreement, that has been modified into SAFTA, South
Asian Free Trade Area, as a goal to be achieved! A South Asian economic union is
the best answer to the rampant poverty in the remote hills and mountains
districts of Nepal.
Paramendra Bhagat
http://www.geocities.com/CapitolHIll/9511
paramendra@hotmail.com
***************************************************************
Date: Wed, 05 Aug 1998 20:25:34
From: Seira Tamang <seira@seira.wlink.com.np>
Subject: Mainstreaming Gender or Guff?
Experienced in running programs to eradicate diseases
impeding the promotion of national progress, unity and happiness,
the bikas machine has now begun to churn its wheels for the latest
antidote to Nepal's backwardness: "the mainstreaming of gender". =20
In the "just add =91gender' and stir" recipes, trainings,
seminars and programs run amok. But sandwiched between the flurry
of words and the warmth of ideals, exactly what are we doing again?
What is being mainstreamed? How is it being mainstreamed? Who are
the "we" that are doing the mainstreaming? Who are the "we" that
are being mainstreamed? Surely, these are questions that need to
be asked.=20
Like a chicken without a head, "women" and "gender"
issues, roles, perspectives etc run all over the bikas landscape.=20
We have "gender and development", "women and governance",
"governance and gender equity," "gender and education" - the list
is endless. The words "women" and "gender" appear
unproblematically interchangeable - mere synonyms. To further the
argument that "women" and "gender" are distinct concepts would mean
that analyses should in some way differ. =20
Yet, despite the obligatory blurb explaining the difference
between "sex" (biological differences) and "gender" (the socially
constructed meanings given to biological differences) and the preamble
concerning the historical march from WID (Women in Development) to WAD
(Women and Development) to GAD (Gender and Development), papers presented
and reports written reveal no descriptive or analytical variation from the
Status of Women volumes done almost 2 decades ago. So what exactly is it,
if not just "guff", that we're mainstreaming?=20
The question as to "what is being mainstreamed" remaining ambiguous=
let us turn to the question of "how" this "gender" is being mainstreamed.=
This question is especially pertinent in that despite all the trainings,=20
lectures and conceptual clarity workshops, "gender" continues to be a much=
misunderstood concept. Predominant logic in Nepal would have it that more=
people need to undergo "gender sensitization" trainings. But
perhaps the fault lies not in the quantity, but the quality of
current endeavours.=20
For first of all, as with pre-packaged vacation tours tailored to=
suit your needs, these "gender trainings" run the gamut of gradations from=
months, weeks, days and morning or afternoon sessions. Aside from the=20
resemblance to just another capitalist enterprise and notwithstanding=20
current needs for the requisite stamp of "gender sensitized", how serious=
are these sorts of commitments?=20
Secondly, what is it that is being taught? This question
is relevant in view of the fact that some Nepali "gender trainers"
themselves have expressed confusion over, and dissatisfaction with,
the terminology. Key here may be the fact that there is no exact
translation for "gender" in Nepali. Furthermore, among the prominent
alternatives, the word "linga" (sex) remains central - as in "samajik
linga" (social sex) as opposed to "prakrithik linga" (natural sex).
As the term "sex" continues to part of the description, this somewhat
undercuts the power to be gained from understanding the "created"
nature of certain roles - which is precisely why the term "gender"
first came into being. =20
In many non-Western countries, "the feminist movement" did not
take off until a word for "gender" was created in the native language. Is
this something that maybe we in Nepal should be looking into?=20
The overall lack of conceptual clarity and analytical
stagnation becomes more worrisome (or actually makes more sense)=20
when one notices that the people churning out=20
speeches/papers/reports on "gender and governance", are doing
likewise for "gender and education" and "women in the economy" -
irrespective of academic training. It is not surprising then,
that these analyzes remain only at the very superficial and
general. =20
Most of them could have been whipped up by anyone with access to a
good library. Linked to this is the fact that at a recent conference on
women and politics, a very visible and respected speaker remarked how nice
it was to attend such functions as one gets to meet old friends and see
the same people again. Far from being pleasant, I find the idea of the
same people rotating around a seminar and report circuit alarming and
pause for concern, not joy.=20
This does, however, clarify to some extent the response to who are=
the "we" doing the mainstreaming. Absorbed as this bikas circuit is on=20
"big names" and warped notions of "the expert/specialist", these people are=
invariably the same old same olds.. ..
Finally to the question of "who are the "we" that are being
mainstreamed?" The simple answer would be "gender is being
mainstreamed". But what is missed is that "gender" as the social
meaning given to being a particular sex does not have a "pure
form". Socially constructed notions of "being female" are
intertwined with other societal identities such as race, ethnicity
and religion.=20
Consequently the gendered identity of a Sherpa woman in Solu
Khumbu is very different to that of a Brahmin middle-class woman living in
the Terai. Yet we still find an overwhelming resistance to acknowledging
the fact that given this situation, it is inherently problematic to talk
about "Nepali women" and to presume to be able to speak about "their"
needs and wants without reflexively acknowledging the position from which
one speaks. "The problem of speaking for others" has been summarily
dismissed by those who presume to be women leaders, academics and
"experts". If not some generalized, fictive "Nepali mahila", on whose
social, economic and political reality is this "gender" based?=20
To reiterate: What is being mainstreamed? How is it being=20
mainstreamed? Who are the "we" that are doing the mainstreaming? Who are=
the "we" that are being mainstreamed? And to end, one final question:=20
exactly what is it again that "gender" is being mainstreamed into?
Seira Tamang
Kathmandu, Nepal
*****************************************************************
Date: Wed, 5 Aug 1998 11:10:54 -0400 (EDT)
From: pradeep paudyal <pradeep@cse.bridgeport.edu>
Subject: even more amazed
I am even more amazed to see a person pinpointing other( and
sarcasting
on his educational background ) when he/she doesn't know the
difference between being part of another country and being part of an
economic union...i don't think the person who came with ten reasons to
merge with India was talking about being part of an economic union..
couldn't stop from responding..
Pradeep
***************************************************************
Date: Wed, 5 Aug 1998 11:17:58 -0400 (EDT)
From: Anit Aryal 99 <aryal@panther.middlebury.edu>
Subject: Some clarification
In response to Mr. Bhagat's reply I would like to state that I have not
stated in what I wrote that I am against economic cooperation among South
Asian countries. It is wrong of Mr. Bhagat to make a statement
like " I am amazed that an attendant of the best liberal arts
college in the US - Middlebury - does not have the slightest hint of economic
literacy in him". I am an economics major and believe that I do know what
I am talking about. Economic cooperation among nations will indeed bring
forth more opportunities of trade and ability to improve the economy. I am
against the idea of India taking over Nepal. France, Germany and other
European nations do not loose their sovereignty by cooperating with each
other for economic union. Even when sentiments for union is great why
haven't European nations merged into a single country? It took years just
to bring forth monetary union and some forecasters even doubt the success
of monetary union.
We cannot compare ourselves with the Europeans. South Asia is much more
heterogenous and consists of a vast diversity in culture, religion and
ethnicity. How would you unite India and Pakistan when there is so much
tension and differences between the countries? Bangladesh was separated
from Pakistan because the people of Bangladesh were oppresed by the Paks.
Would they be willing to accept control of their land by the Paks again?
Ask any Bangladeshi and he will say he is proud of the independence of
his nation and the revolution that separated Bangladesh from Pakistan.
The point is that cooperation among countries is a good sign but
independence and sovereignty have their own benefits. As an independent
country Nepal may be able to bargain with India on issues of trade etc.
for benefit of Nepalese people. However, if Nepal becomes just another
state of India we will lose some of our voice. (I don't mean to say we
won't have one at all, because this may be an issue of another debate.)
Anit
***********************************************************************
From: "Sitaula, Raju" <RZS@crai.com>
Subject: RE: Re[2]: Ten Reasons Why Nepal Should Join India! (fwd)
Date: Wed, 5 Aug 1998 11:14:20 -0400
Mr Bhagat, Mr Shah, and others,
Personally I believe nationalism is not about material success. It is
loyalty to one's country independent of what the country was, is, or will
become. If people think nationality should be traded for better life, they
are free to subscribe to that opinion. A subjective debate like this cannot
be conclusive. However, I am amazed by the economics argument favoring an
union with India. Mr. Bhagat, before you accuse "an attendant of one of the
best liberal arts college of this country" on his lack of economic
knowledge, let me give you some.
European economic unification is different than what we are talking about
between Nepal and India. France and Germany, for example, are equally strong
nations. Even then do you know the undercurrent of opposition to the
economic union in these two countries? Germany's Kohl is moving more and
more to the right and sounding like a real nationalist these days due to the
fear that he might be losing support. You talk about Nafta. Who has
benefited from Nafta? Only US multinationals, who can now move to Mexico for
cheaper labor , have benefited from Nafta. But what about thousands of
Mexican's businesses who are out of business because they can no longer
compete with American products. What about thousands of American low skilled
workers who are no longer useful because companies prefer low wages across
the border in Mexico. Policy makers both in Mexico and the US don't take
these into account because, unlike big multinationals, little people don't
have lobbying power or money to buy newspaper support so that people like
you can understand. As Anit said, unification does not mean India will come
to Nepal with big investments. There are many states in India far poorer
than Nepal. Economic unification only makes sense when two uniting countries
are of same strength and have things they can exploit from each other. This
is not the case here.
I have a big respect for India. But why would anyone on his right mind want
to unite with India.
India has bigger economic, social and political challenges than Nepal does.
The Indian nation as a whole faces an identity crisis as it can't find its
right place in the world order. It believes it is great and yet it knows it
is not. Indian's secularism is bankrupt. Its politics is totally
criminalized. Even those who believe that nationality can be traded for
better life, can't they see Nepal will be far from better after uniting.
-Raju
*************************************************************************
Date: Wed, 05 Aug 98 11:58:46 EST
From: "Paramendra Bhagat" <Paramendra_Bhagat@smtpgtwy.berea.edu>
Subject: A Possible South Asian Economic Union
My response in brackets ().
Anit Aryal 99 <aryal@panther.middlebury.edu> at Berlink
8/5/98 11:15 AM
......I have not stated in what I wrote that I am against economic
cooperation among South Asian countries.......I am an economics major and
believe that I do know what I am talking about. Economic cooperation among
nations will indeed bring forth more opportunities of trade and ability to
improve the economy.
(what you say right below does not rhyme with what you say above!)
I am against the idea of India taking over Nepal.
(I don't think there has been a suggestion that India take Nepal, Sikkim-style.
Why are you deliberately miseducating yourself?)
France, Germany and other European nations do not loose their sovereignty by
cooperating with each other for economic union.
(So why are you worried in Nepal's case?)
Even when sentiments for union is great why haven't European nations merged
into a single country? It took years just to bring forth monetary union and
some forecasters even doubt the success of monetary union. We cannot compare
ourselves with the Europeans. South Asia is much more heterogenous and
consists of a vast diversity in culture, religion and ethnicity.
(Who ever suggested the process will be easy? It will require the skills that
the South Asian politicians to date have failed to exhibit. Don't underestimate
the heterogeneity of the European continent. There is more beyond the skin
color!)
How would you unite India and Pakistan when there is so much
tension and differences between the countries?
(Kashmir is the thorn there. Did you notice considerable progress has been made
on the North Irealand question? It has now become irrelevant whether North
Ireland becomes Irish or British territory when both Irealnd and Britain
themselves are preparing to merge into a larger European Union. Therein lies the
answer to the Kashmir problem. Surprise, surprise, a South Asian economic union
happens also to be the best solution to the Kashmir problem!)
Bangladesh was separated from Pakistan because the people of Bangladesh were
oppresed by the Paks. Would they be willing to accept control of their land
by the Paks again? Ask any Bangladeshi and he will say he is proud of the
independence of his nation and the revolution that separated Bangladesh from
Pakistan.
(A South Asian economic union does not mean India takes Nepal and Pakistan takes
Bangladesh. I accuse you of economic illiteracy one more time.)
*******************************************************************
Date: Wed, 05 Aug 1998 11:09:29 -0500 (EST)
From: BIPULENDU NARAYAN SINGH <singhb@wabash.edu>
Subject: Nepal India Debate, letter to the editor
To: NEPAL@cs.niu.edu
I read with great interest, the debate on whether Nepal should be a
part of india or not? To me despite all the issues raised, the
matter comes down to the basic question Why India? (Why not China? or
some other country). If it is a matter of just economic benefits
would this not suffice as well ? But no, this scenario would be
completely unacceptable to most of us. China despite the common
borders we share seems as far as India seems closer. (Can you name
one Chinese actor, actresses, singer, etc)
So all this basically means that the issue we are dealing with is
primarily a cultural and religeous one. (We feel that there is a
piece of us lying there in India which would complete our being I
guess) And it is on this front itself that I want to voice my
objections.
By being a part of India we have everything to lose and nothing to
gain.
Nepal is a Hindu country. I mean Hindu in the truest sense of
the word. Our little world has virtually remained untouched for
as long as we can go back in history. And it is here that Hinduism
still breathes, lives and flourishes the way it was meant to be.
India is a salvaged remain of what once was a great hindu
civilisation (our hindu civilisation). Hinduism in India has been
tortured, looted, converted, first by the Islamic invaders and the
Christian British. Like was to be expected, Hinduism has changed
there. It has become bitter, angry and fanatical. So much
so that it is starting to loose its most basic characterstics -
tolerance (Remember VHP, Babri masjid, the riots).
In becoming part of india it is this distinct Hindu identity that we
risk losing It is this anger and bitterness that we risk letting
seep in.
We are poor but uncomplicated and peace loving - we nepali people.
This is the most priceless treasure we have. We don't want to
lose it. Do we?
Bipul Singh
*************************************************************
Date: Wed, 05 Aug 98 12:31:04 EST
From: "Paramendra Bhagat" <Paramendra_Bhagat@smtpgtwy.berea.edu>
Subject: Re[4]: Ten Reasons Why Nepal Should Join India! (fwd)
My response in brackets ()>
"Sitaula, Raju" <RZS@crai.com>
8/5/98 11:20 AM
........nationalism is not about material success. If people think
nationality should be traded for better life......
(People like you are the greatest enemy the poor people in the remote hills and
mountains districts of Nepal have.)
I am amazed by the economics argument favoring an union with India.
(I never was in favor of "an union with India." I am for a South Asian economic
unon, which is a different concept altogether.)
European economic unification is different than what we are talking about
between Nepal and India.
(No. We are talking the same thing.)
Even then do you know the undercurrent of opposition to the economic union
in these two countries? Germany's Kohl is moving more and more to the right
and sounding like a real nationalist these days due to the fear that he
might be losing support.
(On that note, did you notice the US Congress denied President Clinto fast track
authority! When did I ever claim the process will be easy. Democracy is a far
better concept than the Panchayat ever was, but it still took time to
materialize.)
You talk about Nafta. Who has benefited from Nafta? Only US multinationals,
who can now move to Mexico for cheaper labor , have benefited from Nafta.
But what about thousands of Mexican's businesses who are out of business
because they can no longer compete with American products. What about
thousands of American low skilled workers who are no longer useful because
companies prefer low wages across the border in Mexico. Policy makers both
in Mexico and the US don't take these into account because, unlike big
multinationals, little people don't have lobbying power or money to buy
newspaper support so that people like you can understand. As Anit said,
unification does not mean India will come to Nepal with big investments.
There are many states in India far poorer than Nepal. Economic unification
only makes sense when two uniting countries are of same strength and have
things they can exploit from each other. This is not the case here.
(Free trade is a good idea also between a rich and a poor country. That is basic
economics. Free trade is a sound economic concept. The best thing that can
happen to the economies of the African continent is if there were a total trade
liberalization in the global agricultural sector, if the rich countries stopped
subsidizing their farmers, and pulled all their tariffs and trade barriers down.
The poor countries have not been given fair deals in the WTO as is.
Yes, an economic union means old industries will shut down, there will be
competition, inefficient sectors of the economy will be weeded out, new
industries will emerge. There will be massive, healthy restructuring of the
economy. What's your problem?
A free trade regime in South Asia will benefit all the consumers in South
Asia. Why should the poor people in Nepal buy expensive stuff only to support
the industries owned by the rich in Nepal?)
I have a big respect for India...... It believes it is great and yet it
knows it is not.
(.....two sentences written by one person! I really don't see how it is okay for
the P-5 to have nuclear weapons but not okay for Pakistan and India to have the
same. But the fact remains that the Pakistani and the Indian leaderships have so
far failed to see the competition at the global level now is economic. India
needs to focus on its economy with the intensity of a laser beam, to paraphrase
Bill Clinton, to attain its rightful place in the global order.)
Even those who believe that nationality can be traded for better life, can't
they see Nepal will be far from better after uniting.
(An Economic Union is not a good concept only for rich countries like France
ancd Germany. Infact it is a better concept for the poor countries becasue : (a)
the global trade agreements have tended to be unfair to the poor countries, (b)
the poor countries need to pool their resources together to emerge stronger at
the bargaining table, and (c) it will speed up their collective rates of
economic growth.
So India does not have to be a big economic powerhouse for a South Asian
economic union to become possible. But it is. It is the 8th industrial power in
the world. Its software industry is growing 33% a year....And so on.)
Despite the deprivation and underdevelopment, people feel that they want
to live as Nepalis.
(The pride is despite, not because of. My point being, should "the deprivation
and underdevelopment" be gotten rid of, the Nepalese will still be Nepalese. And
a South Asian economic union is the best way to get rid of "the deprivation and
underdevelopment.")
giving up Nepal's sovereignty and joining India is a panacea to all the
problems. He assumes that all these problems will automatically disappear
once we become a part of India.
(...wrong assumption. As President Clinto said at the MIT commencement : "You
cannot click your way to success." Hard work will still be wont. But, an
economic union is a way to not only to work hard, but also to work smart.)
reminds me of what John Keynes had to say to the classical
economists who kept insisting that things would be fine in the long run: In
the long run we are all dead.
(Precisely. Keynes also said: "When my information changes, I change my opinion.
What do you do, Sir?")
Subject: Racism in Nepal and the relevance of the Sadbhavana Party
(from the book Sangram Morcha : A New Political Party that I wrote in Fall 1993)
The Nepal Sadbhavana Party
The regional Nepal Sadbhavana Party demands the Terai peoples of the southern
plains compose roughly half of all spheres of national life populationwise.
Gajendra Narayan Singh, a disciple of BP Koirala and a Nepali Congress activist
working as the NC Chairperson of his home district until the great leader's
death, leads this party. A Moscow-educated Hridayesh Tripathy, originally an
influential communist, good-looking, bearded, and surprisingly young for the
attention he commands, is second in command.
[later on, the Nepal Samajwadi Janata Dal, which ended up with two of the four
Sadbhavana MPs, although Anis Ansari, the third MP, was also rumored to follow
suit for a while, had the following people at its helm : Rameshwar Raya Yadav
(then MP in the Upper House...a stalwart in Sarlahi..ended up in the cabinet
later on), Chairperson; Hridayesh Tripathy (from Nawalparasi, Chaired the Public
Accounts Committee, raised plenty of dust, went on into the cabinet), General
Secretary; Harkalalsingh Rajbanshi (from Jhapa, got over 10,000 votes but lost),
Vice-Chairperson; Naresh Bhatta (a former DSP, from Nawalparasi), Vice General
Secretary; Sarita Giri (an Indian married to a relative of the Koiralas...her
daughter attends Budhanilkantha School), Vice General Secretary; Paramendra
Bhagat, Vice General Secretary; Rajendra Mahato (from Sarlahi..got over 10,000
votes...the joke in the Dal was all the Sadbhavana people who got more than
10,000 votes came with the Dal, the rest stayed back with the Sadbhavana!),
Spokesperson; Arun Kumar Singh (from Sarlahi), Central Committee member; Dilip
Dhadewa (a Marwadi from Biratnagar who got only slightly fewer votes than
Shailaja Acharya, now Deputy Prime Minister), Central Committee Member; Mohammed
Mohsin, Central Committee Member; Murli Singh (he knew Ram Raja Prasad Singh),
Office Secretary; Damodar Shreshtha, Office Assistant. - paramendra]
Racist Hate
This country is racist.
If you hate an African American in the United States, you call him or her a
"nigger." In Nepal, if you hate a Teraiwasi, you use words like "madisey,
marsya, dhoti, bhaiya." This hate is most evident out in the streets of the
capital city, a fertile valley in the central hills, where the poor southerners
selling fruits and vegetables and collecting garbage in the form of used paper
and emptied bottles are constantly abused. Some get beaten up. Passing remarks
at southerners, tie-suited or barefooted, are as common as the smoke and dust
of this polluted city.
A capital, by definition, is a place to which the entire nation can feel
emotionally attached to. If the Kathmanduites cannot understand this basic
fact, Kathmandu does not deserve to be the national capital. Capitals can be
moved if history is any lesson.
Before the advent of democracy, the state declaredly treated the southerners
non-citizens. Participation was denied in most arenas of national life. Even
after the advent of democracy, little has changed. True, now every southerner
carries a vote just like any northerner, but the historic differential treatment
remains. In terms of population, the south is half of the country, but out of
the 205 parliamentary constituencies, only 80 lie in the south. The south is
denied participation in the Royal Nepalese Army, composes maybe two per cent of
the police force and probably six of the civil service. Of all the Nepalese
ambassadors to foreign lands, probably one is a southerner. This imbalance is
portrayed in all state involvements starting from the ruling party's cabinet
where the south is given only token representation. These are far cries from
the fair 50 per cent.
The first Prime Minister after the recent advent of democracy, the Nepali
Congress stalwart Krishna Prasad Bhattarai, on his state visit to India, was
asked by the local journalists there as to why the Teraiwasis were not enlisted
to serve in the Nepalese army.
"It is because they are cowards," he swiftly replied and was applauded in the
hills back home for saying that.
Were it not the Terai peoples who helped the Varanasi Babus like Bhattarai
capture the southern districts from the Ranas in 1951? If he were talking about
those Teraiwasis who are members of his party, it would have been
understandable. For if they continue to belong to the Congress party even after
such an insulting remark by the Congress Chairperson, what are they but cowards
indeed? But Bhattarai did not specify as such. No southerner whose backbone
stands vertical to the ground can digest this humiliation.
If there is anybody coward in this country, it is the Congress politicians who
hold the view Nepal cannot feel safe unless it accepts a pigtail existence to
Delhi.
The tourist magazines in the country describe Nepal a hilly country, as if the
Terai were a different nation altogether. The accented way in which the
Teraiwasis tend to speak Nepali, the state language, is a very popular theme
among the Kathmandu-based comedians and is perpetually cashed on. How many
hillsfolk can speak Maithili, Bhojpuri, Awadhi, Tharu, Bengali, Urdu or Hindi?
The Nepali-speakers, the largest linguistic group in the country, tend to feel
closer to the Nepali-speaking communities in India, numbering 20 million, than
to the Terai. When the educated and the travelled among the hillsfolk say the
rest of India is okay, it is only Bihar and Uttar Pradesh that are dirty, can it
be because the Biharis and the UP people, like the Teraiwasis, are dhoti-kurta
people? Is dhoti-kurta dirty? Do not the Nepalese in the Himalayan region look
like Tibetans and the Indians of Ladakh? The interaction and matrimonial links
between the Nepalese of the far eastern and the far western hills with the
Indians across the border and of the Himalayan Nepalese with Tibetans is taken
for normal, but the same by the Teraiwasis alarms the hillsfolk. Hinduism and
Buddhism are seen twin sisters. They are the two largest religions in the
country. Almost all the Nepalese Buddhists live in the hills and mountains.
But Islam is seen a stepson. Is it because the Nepalese Muslims are largely
Terai-based?
The "liberal" among the northerners are quick to comment to the southerners they
get to become friends with that the latter are too good to be southerners and
could easily be wronged for northerners. This is intended to be politeness.
The Diseses Called Indophobia
Nepal is a land-locked population of 20 million. India, the neighbor to the
south, east and west, is a large population of about one billion people. There
is an underlying, barely hidden suspicion among a significant proportion of the
Nepalese in the hills that India carries a perpetual, hidden intention to eat up
Nepal. A lot of hills politicians mould their entire careers out of this anti-
India feeling. The Nepalese of the southern plains have great cultural
similarities to the people of the Gangetic plain. The lifestyle, languages and
clothings are similar. For example, holy town of Janakpurdham in the eastern
Terai is the cultural capital of the more than 35 million Maithili-speaking
peoples spread out geographically in south-east Nepal and north Bihar, India.
The Indophobic Nepalese from the hills tend to think the Teraiwasis are Indians
who have migrated north to Nepal across the open border to take it over
gradually.
I carry a citizenship card in Nepal. My father has been a Nepalese all his
life. So have been my grandparents and great-grandparents and their parents
were from the same village. My great-grandfather passed away in 1989. When he
was on his death bed, coming to realize that was my last hope of extending my
knowledge of my family tree, I tried to communicate with him, but his sensory
decay had gone too far. He could not remember the first word he had spoken by
the time he reached the second. People from the nearby villages, especially the
most elderly ones, would come to see him claiming someone who had lived for so
long and had met so many succeeding generations in line - one of my cousin
sisters had given birth to a son - must be a godly person and not an ordinary
one.
Beyond my great-grandfather's parents I lack knowledge of my family tree. Long
long ago my ancestors might have been from India. I do not know. But, if that
be the case, similar is the story of the reigning monarch in the Narayanhiti
Palace.
The suspicion of India is not something unique to the hills of Nepal. Even
within India, large segments of its own people, due to the overly centralized
character of politics there - why not reorganize India into a hundred states
with greater powers to each - eye Delhi with suspicion. The suspicion is not
the point. The point is it is not realized the Indians and the Teraiwasis aret
two separate stocks of people, that Indians are Indians and the Teraiwasis are
Nepalese. The suspicion of India is moulded into a suspicion of the Terai. If
Nepal were to go to war with India, will the Royal Nepalese Army, composed
entirely of northerners, gun down the Terai peoples before launching an attack
further south?
The northerners like to think they are the genuine inhabitants of this country.
The historical truth is no community ever emerged on this land the way the
Himalayas did. Long long ago the present-day land-locked Nepal was not even a
piece of land it is today but a sea. The ruling houses for the past two
milleniums have all been immigrants. Who is a "genuine" Nepalese, who a fake
one?
If the Terai was all forests and no people until only a few decades back, as the
myth in the hills goes, why has history constantly talked of the kingdom of
Mithila in the eastern Terai? Gautama Buddha, one person who, more than anyone
else this country ever gave birth to, has made Nepal known all over the world,
was a Teraiwasi. Would it not have been a more native doing if the monarch of
Mithila had militarily unified Nepal instead of the Rajasthani Rajput Prithvi
Narayan Shah? Where did Prithvi's grandson find the Maithil widow whose son
succeeded him? Was the widow nurtured on the milk of wild animals? Was her
first husband a tree?
The elderly members of my family (my family lost three elderly members - my
grandmother, great-grandmother and great-grandfather in that order - within a
span of two years 1988 and 1989) told me stories of how life was under the Ranas
(they liked to claim life was better in "our" times!) and as to what happened to
them during the great earthquake of 1934. All of them managed to come out
alive. My second grandfather whom I could not meet, the most renowned wrestler
in the region, was lost later but that was during a malarial epidemic. One of
my grandmothers liked to tell me for my bedtime stories that she was fat and
spread out because she got "pressed" in a heap of mud rubbles during the great
earthquake. It was only much later that I started noticing now much she ate.
It is all in the family!
The migrations of Indians into Nepal and assimilation into Nepalese citizenry is
not the short trek across the open border, as another myth in the hills goes.
It is legally prevented. Some rich Indians do manage to get in, however, by
bribing the government officials who, more often than not, are northerners.
Still another myth, this one partly true, is the Terai is full of snakes!
If Indophobia, a foolish sentiment (foolish because Nepal is never going to be
militarily conquered by another country - what is the Roayl Nepalese Army there
for! - and any bilateral and multilateral treaty affecting us cannot come into
effect unless we become a signatory to it), is to continue, it may not be
translated into a hatred of the Terai. India is probably our second most
important, science and technology being the undoubted first. India does not
scare me, for fear and suspicion is not the language friendship speaks.
Infact, the Indians across the border do not much attach with the Terai either.
They call Teraiwasis small-nose people, hillspeople because "from the Terai you
can see the hills and hence you must be low intelligence people."
Hate, Hate And More Hate
The Sadbhavana's dogged adherence to Hindi as one link language for the entire
Terai makes an important point that the racist hate directed against the south
cuts across all linguistic, religious and caste boundaries within the Terai. A
Mithilawasi is subject the same hatred as a Bhojpuri or Awadhi speaker or
someone whose mothertongue in the Tharu language, a Terai Muslim as a Hindu,
male as female. The Sadbhavana must be credited for bringing this hate into
national political debate. Before the emergence of the Sadbhavana party, it was
not even discussed openly. Today it is a major political issue is the country,
probably the third in complexity, the issue of women's rights being the second
and the national economy the undoubted first. If there is anybody communal in
this country, it is not those Terai leaders who speak for the dignity of the
Terai but those Kathmanduites who harass the poor vendors from the south out in
their streets and those who think the Teraiwasis are cowards.
When you are sidelined in the rat-race of life on racist grounds, you pause to
think. When you are thrown off balance and into the deep wells of loneliness
from where the happenings around you look the small roti of sky at the top by
the casaul utterance of hate-words by your otherwise "intimate" hillsfolk
companions, you pause to wonder. As long as you speak Nepali, you are
"acceptable." As soon as you assert your cultural identity, you are
psychologically outcast. You feel uncomfortable. When you see the beam of
quiet pleasure on the faces of the so-called liberal and unprejudiced hillsfolk
when they watch the mistreatments poor southerner vendors are put to, you feel
restless.
Self-Hate
Yet the most hurtful aspect of this drama of racism lies not outside but within,
in the thick sentiment of self-hate in the communities of the Terai. Quite a
lot of those southerners who somehow manage to become notable government
officials in a civil serivice basically hostile to the Terai tend to look down
upon the less well-off southerners and build an if-you-are-hated-it-is-becasue-
you-deserve-to-be-hated mentality. They desperately try to shed their skin off
and get into the fair-color skin of the northerners. They zealously teach
Nepali to their children for their first language and slap them hard whenever
they retort back to their mothertongue. They work hard to design mental
movements under their dark skin to get as far away from it as possible to devour
the superior-thought ways of the hillsfolk.
In the Terai at large, fair-skinned children are preferred to dark-skinned ones.
Fair-skinned daughters are easier to marry off. (Yes, married off....Daughters
do not get married, they are married off.)
The tie-suited southerners try to argue among themselves that were it not for
the bare-footed southerners who do the "lowly" jobs in Kathmandu and hence
rightly get abused, the rest of the southerners would have been able to live a
life of dignity. "Decent" southerners are supposed to act as if nothing is
wrong, all is normal.
It is these self-hating southerners more than the northerners who are the
strongest and most energetic opponents of the Sadbhavana party.
"Show me where the Terai is discriminated against," they say, as if that were
the most courageous statement made in the history of the world.
The Way Ahead
The Terai's greatest strength is it is half of the country. The mechanisms of
electoral politics are the most potent weapons at the Terai's disposal.
******************************************************************
Date: Wed, 5 Aug 1998 16:13:11 -0700 (PDT)
From: Ram Sah <rnsah@ucdavis.edu>
Subject: Re: Racism in Nepal and the relevance of the Sadbhavana Party
A well written article. Many times a troubling question come in Nepal as
to who are original Nepali and who are immigrants. To the best of my
knowledge, the present rulers, their soldiers (today's Chhetries), their
priests (today's hill Bahuns) and their commanders/family members
(today,s Ranas and Shah) took shelter in hills of Nepal after being
defeated by
muslims, could be the most recent immigrants in today's Nepal. After
defeating Mallas and other kings of Kathmandu valley and establishing
Nepal as a country, the Kathmandu-based Shah and Rana rulers ruled (not
governed) other parts of Nepal including Terai as their
territory/colony/property (I can not find a suitable word). Terai existed
before them since the Time of Ramayan (Janakpur), Mahabharat (Biratnagar
of king Birat) and Gautam (Kapilbastu). These most recent immigrant
rulers did not seek participation Terai and probably most of hills in
ruling Nepal. The Panchayat system followed the course of earlier
rulers. Kathmandu people became the real powerholders of Nepal reaped
most, if not all, benefits from the nationhood of Nepal. No wonder, they
do not want to lose their benefits. Irony is that these are the people who
claim themselves bonafide Nepali.
---Ram Sah
***********************************************************************************************
***********************************************************************************************
Date: Sun, 14 Jan 1990 11:16:10 +0530
From: "F. A. H. ('Hutch') Dalrymple" <hutch@wlink.com.np>
To: editor Contributions <nepal@cs.niu.edu>
Subject: posts...
I'm sorry, I don't understand... Makes no sense to me... Please explain...
After living in Kathmandu for five months there are things (after observing)
that just don't make any sense to me...
But, that isn't to say that Kathmandu, Nepal, is the only place where
there are things that don't make any sense to me... There are many things in
the U.S. that don't make any sense to me either...
But, since I'm now living in Kathmandu, maybe Nepali people can help me
'adjust' to their 'ways'...
1) Motorbike operators are required by law to wear helmets, but not their passengers, like little children... Make any sense...? Please explain...? The operators of motorbikes generally wear helmets, but only shower shoes or sandals on their feet... Obviously, they don't care about their feet... Make any sense... I'm sorry, doesn't to me... Please explain...
2) Cows are treated better in Nepal than people... Make any
sense... I'm sorry... Please explain...
3) Nepal (Kathmanduans), especially those in the tourist business want more
tourists (revenue)... Yet, they have turned the Kathmandu Valley into a
garbage dump ('shithole' a U.S. tourist described it recently). Make any
sense...? I'm sorry, I don't understand...?
4) Dogs are supposed to be 'good luck,' in Nepal, yet I see them eating
garbage and dying on the streets! Wouldn't you want to take care of a good
luck symbol...? I'm sorry, I don't' understand... Please explain!
5) Every year there are another 780,000 new mouths to feed in Nepal, a country
that can't support the people it already has... Make any sense... Please
explain...?
6) The border (between India and Nepal) is open to any Indian who can fall across. Yet, the Nepali Government makes it 'difficult' for others, of other nationalities, that want to stay and make a contribution (whether that
be effort or $). Make any sense...? I'm sorry, I don't understand...
7) People on wheels, here in Kathmandu, as in a monstrous hurry, rushing around like their lives depended on it... This jeopardizes theirs and other's lives. But, take those same people off or out of the 'wheels,' and suddenly they're in
no hurry at all. In fact, walk very slowly... Make any sense...? I'm sorry... Please explain...?
8) People here in Nepal (like everywhere else) want a better life, the economy to turn around, etc. Yet, these same people are very negative about the chances of any such thing(s) happening... Thus, life for them
becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy, and of course, things never do get any better for them (continuing to complain)... Please explain... It's so
simple to be positive (out of necessity, mostly!). Why the negativity...? I'm sorry, I don't understand!
9) People complain about corruption in the Nepal Government, yet they don't
pay their taxes...? Make any sense...? Please explain...? Doesn't integrity begin at home...? In a democracy... YOU ARE THE GOVERNMENT!
10) Now, I tend to avoid the tourist areas, as I have grown weary of street hustlers and beggars (although I always give money to them)... And I'm the very potential customer that shop owners, etc. want (in these areas). Tell me what
sense it makes to create an 'environment' that your potential customers want to avoid...? Please explain...? Make any sense...?
11) With the highest per-capita hydroelectric potential in the world in Nepal, there is
no regular running tap water, or electricity in Kathmandu... Please explain...? And Nepalis just accept it... Make any sense...?
12) For the sake of tourism (tourist revenue) keep and renovate the old buildings, the old Rana palaces, Hindu shrines, Buddhist stupas, etc. Tourists love the historic ambiance of Kathmandu (one element that makes it so charming). Yet, they tear them down to put up
new and modern-looking buildings. In a decade part of Kathmandu will look like Dallas, Texas/U.S.A. (ugh!). Please explain...? Is this going to help bring tourists...?
13) Does it make any sense to call for the 'surveillance' of 'foreign' cultural pollution when you accept millions of dollars in foreign aid...? I don't think you can have one without the other...? Please explain...?
14) Woman dress up like 'flowers,' in freshly washed (colorful) saris... Then they go walking in sandals (with painted toes) through the
slim (of the monsoon)...? Make any sense...? Please explain?
15) It is the custom in Hindu countries to remove thy 'shoes,' before entering an abode. Yet, I observe that many people wear 'shower shoes' on the street which they are constantly falling out of, their feet theninto the mud and grim (animal shit). These are the unwashed feet they take inside (to walk on your floors). I'm sorry, makes no sense to me...? Additionally, why don't we consider cleaning up the streets (and Kathmandu Valley) so we can wear the shoes inside. (Note: I'd keep all the cows in parks, and reduce 'dramatically' the 'slum-dog dying' canine population.)
'God' to Beggars! (for R.R.)
'You are God to beggars!'
The young man said,
Walking down the street!
'I like you!'
'And I like you!'
I told him,
Majoring in biology and the
'Science' of observation!
'Where are you from?'
He wanted to 'no' as always!
I said,
'From the U.S.,
Trying to garner 'points' for such!
'New York?' he asked.
'Well, I've lived there,
'Noing' better than to confuse the question!
There are Nepali people who tell me,
I spoil beggars!
I try to spoil even you!
As I am spoiled!
We are all Gods,
All we have to do is realize,
And be blessed!
Blessed be the beggars
Who give us the chance
To become Gods!
No beggars! No Gods!
Rejoice in the chance to become...
'God' to Beggars!
Copyright 1998,
F.A.H. ('Hutch') Dalrymple
Swayambhu, Kathmandu, Nepal
**************************************************************
From: "Eknath Belbase" <eknath@ad-co.com>
To: <nepal@cs.niu.edu>
Subject: Nepali restaraunt in Manhattan
Date: Thu, 6 Aug 1998 12:12:10 -0400
Does anyone know if there is one? I have a bet going that there isn't a
'real' one - ie
not counting Indian restaraunts which claim to have some Nepali food.
*****************************************************************
Date: Thu, 06 Aug 98 16:43:50 EST
From: "Paramendra Bhagat" <Paramendra_Bhagat@smtpgtwy.berea.edu>
Subject: The Free Trade in South Asia Debate
I invite you all to read the following articles on the web and then meet again
on The Nepal Digest forum to participate in some informed discussions on the
topic-
http://www.iie.com:80/9615.htm
COMPETITIVE LIBERALIZATION AND GLOBAL FREE TRADE:
A VISION FOR THE EARLY 21st CENTURY
C. Fred Bergsten
INSTITUTE FOR INTERNATIONAL ECONOMICS
http://www.oneworld.org/odi/odi_developing.html
DEVELOPING COUNTRIES IN THE WTO
Overseas Development Institute
Respectfully-
Paramendra Bhagat
http://www.geocities.com/CapitolHill/9511
************************************************************************
Date: Thu, 6 Aug 1998 19:49:03 -0400 (EDT)
From: Ram Subedi <subedi@panther.middlebury.edu>
Subject: Re: Re[2]: Ten Reasons Why Nepal Should Join India! (fwd)
We have come a long way since King Prithvi Narayan Shah proudly
declared, "Nepal char jaat chhatis barnako phulbari ho." The present
population of Nepal includes much more than the ethnic groups the Great
King had in mind although the essence of his saying still carries a
considerable weight. The present problems of ethnic and national issues
that we are discussing so fervently here also remind me of his another
saying, "Mera saana du:khale arjyako muluk hoina, sabailai chetana bhaya."
We seem to have forgotten all these along the way.
I will try to summarize what we have discussed so far and along
the way so that we will not lose track of how we came to a point where we
are. I'll also add my opinions if I have any. The issues raised in our
discussions can be broadly divided into three categories:
1. Gender Issues
The plight of women across the country, as we all know, is
anything but good. Equally embarrassing is the selling of our "chelibeti"
to Indian brothels by our own people. These issues, though they have been
discussed at other places in the past, have not made a strong presence in
our discussion. Paramenra Kumar Bhagat's remarks on "the politics of race
and sex" in the US could have been yet another chance to sparked off
discussions along these lines to seek better solutions to the problem.
2. Ethnic Issues
Diversity in Nepal existed long before we were born, and we have
to respect that. The problem of racism that smears Nepal stems from the
misunderstanding among different ethnic groups. It is "Indophobia" and
"Bhutanophobia" originating in the south, "Tibetophobia" in the north, and
the caste system throughout the kingdom. Racism as it exists in Nepal is
UGLY. Nothing can justify our adherence to such immoral practices.
Though issues about caste system, and Tibetan and Bhutanese
refugees may have appeared in our discussions, it is the Terai issue that
left us charging our arguments back and forth. Bhagat, Bijay Raut, and
others have shed some light on that. There are, however, some issues that
some of these people have failed to understand and therefore failed to
properly illustrate a true picture of the Terai situation against the
Pahadi situation. One such case is the characterization of a "genuine
Nepali" by Raut. From his arguments it seems that a "Pahadi" falls
squarely on the "genuine Nepali" mold and no one else. Absolutely wrong! A
"Pemba Sherpa" from the north is as Nepali as an "Anarkali" from the south
and a "Harka Bahadur Thapa" from the hills provided that they fall under
the constitutional definition of a Nepali. I am not saying constitutional
mandates guarantee all our rights in practice otherwise we'd have thrown
the caste system off the face of Nepal decades ago. Not all people can
see through the differences among people and this is where the problem of
racism arises. The solution is to enable people to rid any such
misunderstanding that they have about people different from them. This
would enable people to exercise their constitutional rights more
realistically.
Another argument that the use of Nepali as an official language is
nothing but an imposition of "Pahadi" people's language is utterly wrong.
So is Raut's assertion that there exists a distinct ethnic group called
Nepali in the hills. What nonsense! It's like looking at the sea from a
mountain and saying that it's a smooth surface. Not at all. Just get a
closer look and you'll see all sorts of waves dancing about. Similarly,
the hills folks are not the same. I know that because I come from the
hills. Right next to the village I grew up, were the villages of Magars
and Gurungs, and in the town I roamed around to find discarded Gorkhapatra
to make myself a kite, lived a throng of Muslims, Newars, and people of
all sort. Magars, Gurungs, Newars, and Muslims- they all spoke their own
language, but this didn't prevent me from having friends from those groups
because we all spoke Nepali. Some of you might say, "Ah, but see, they had
to learn Nepali to be friends with you." Well, when it comes to uniting
people the language(s) spoken by the majority should be used as "vehicle"
language just as the dollar is the "vehicle" currency of the world. Each
and every language spoken in Nepal is dear to me. All these languages
should definitely be promoted at the national level. However, just because
Nepali, which BTW is not unique to a certain privileged group of people,
is not spoken by all the people in the country does not mean that to
provide a fair share to everybody we have to invent a new Esperanto. Why
is Raut silent about having to study English to pass SLC? The hell with
English, it does not even belong to our continent!
There are other ethnic issues we have in Nepal- Tibetan and
Bhutanese refugee problems, SETAMAGURALI issues etc. that could be
discussed here but I'll leave that for the future.
3. Nationality Issues
By far the most heated discussion has revolved around the
possibility of joining the Indian Federation suggested as a "hypothesis"
by Raut. He stated this hypothesis merely as a solution to the increasing
migration of Indians to Nepal but Bibhuti Nepal pushed this issue one step
ahead with his explanations of possible benefits for Nepal by joining
India. Some of Bibhuti's reasoning lacked clear understanding of economic
fundamentals (Reasons 1, 2, 6, 7 and 10), some of which were pointed out
by Ram Khadka and others. Though collectively a flawed argument both in
economic and socio-political sense, it served to put the sensitive issue
of national identity in crisis. It was quickly picked up by others as
being "anti-nationalistic". Nevertheless some people have been in favor of
the proposal.
As Pradeep Poudyal pointed out there seems to have been a
confusion between economic union and political union with India. The
former was proposed by Bhagat and the latter was suggested as a hypothesis
by Raut. In my opinion, the idea of political union is blasphemous whereas
an economic union is just another false hope. The arguments in favor of
the economic union suggested by Bhagat lack economic justification. He
claims, "A South Asian Economic Union is the best answer to the rampant
poverty in remote hills and mountain districts of Nepal," but I fail to
see his explanation as to why and how; just pointing your finger to the
EMU does not serve the purpose. Another interesting possibility is
suggested by Prasanna Dhungel: What if people in the north want an
economic union with Tibet/China? Will not the country get embroiled in a
civil war torn between the sentiments of people of the north and the
south?
The claim that purchasing power (PP) will increase (Ram Sah and
Bibhuti) is a myth as pointed out by Khadka. An increase in money stock
will necessarily lead to an increase in price level and inflation unless
counteracted by the Indian federal government. The cost and effectiveness
of counteraction, however, might not be appealing to the federal
government. To fight inflation the federal govt. has to tighten the money
supply (economic union means loss of sovereignty over monetary policies)
to increase the interest rates. Will India be willing to do that? What
will its implications be to the level of investment in India with
increased interest rates when it becomes increasingly expensive for the
industrialists to borrow money for their investments? All this trouble
just for salvaging the Nepalese economy? How about a fiscal expansion by
India? Consequences will be an increased Indian budget deficit, increased
interest rates, and an upward pressure on the Indian rupee. If the IRs
appreciates, Indian export to the rest of the world will be negatively
affected as it becomes more expensive for the rest of the world to acquire
IRs to buy Indian goods. Hallelujah baby... Any attempt to rescue Nepal
will have severe consequences in the Indian economy. Sah also points out
that the abolition of tariffs will help lower the prices of imported goods
in Nepal-well, first tell me "ceteris paribus".
As a physics student I totally see this as an inevitable
manifestation of the second law of thermodynamics- entropy always
increases with time. Nepal is in high state of entropy-disorder- and to
create any order-development- energy is needed. Is India going to provide
the energy? If order is instituted in Nepal, where would disorder increase
as predicted by the second law of thermodynamics? Is India willing to take
such steps?
Before discussing the EMU as a role model for the proposed
Nepal/India union, lets briefly visit the German unification. Germany, now
united, is an economic powerhouse in the world but how did East Germany
got united with West Germany? Immediately following the union, West
Germany invested a lot of its resources in reconstructing the East German
infrastructure. Industries were reformed and wage earners were paid up
their salaries in firms that were losing money. Are there any grounds to
believe that India will go through similar pain to salvage Nepal? Will it
suffer the consequences? I don't think so. India does not have the
economic power that West Germany had enjoyed.
So what's up with EMU? The beauty of an economic union lies in the
fact that the negative consequences of the federal monetary policy can be
counteracted by domestic fiscal policies. There is certain truth in Raju
Sitaula's claim that "Economic unification only makes sense when two
uniting countries are of same strength and have things they can exploit
from each other." Lets talk about EMU (for the benefit of those who are
yet unsure about what it really is).
The European Monetary System (EMS) started in 1979 which
restricted the mutual exchange rates of its member countries to a "target
zone" until its crisis in 1992. In 1992 Maastricht Treaty was signed with
the hope of creating a single European Monetary Union (EMU). Of course
there were other treaties and acts that have helped shape the notion of
EMU as it is today.
The Maastricht treaty set up "convergence criteria" (see footnote)
that would help all the member countries have steady and healthy economies
suitable for EMU. The "core" countries (France, Germany, Luxembourg) are
already within or very close to the limits set by the convergence criteria
while the "peripheral" countries (Spain, Italy, Ireland) are struggling
hard with some success to reform their economies to bring themselves
closer to the Maastricht standards. In January 1, 1999, the introduction
of a single currency, the Euro, will set history. Britain and Denmark have
opted out although they are eligible for joining the currency union.
The ultimate success of a monetary union rests upon the presence
of "optimum currency area" (OCA) presented in the early sixties by Robert
Mundell. An OCA is a region the use of a single currency does not
undermine the economic effects of its monetary policies. As Mundell
originally argued factor mobility and wages and price flexibility are
important for the constituent economic entities in the currency union. Why
do we see the European countries stripping off their protectionist
policies in the nineties? What is the relevance of the Maastricht
standards here? A high degree of factor mobility across these economic
regions will tend to stabilize wages and unemployment as labors move to
regions of high employment. Flexibility in wages and prices will help
reduce inflationary pressures and unemployment associated with differences
in productivity of the economies. A high product diversification within
regions will diversify the risks associated with economic shocks.
Furthermore the degree of openness of the individual economies would
facilitate financial market integration.
Do we even remotely see any resemblance of these facts in the
proposed Nepal-India union? Some of you might say that you cannot view the
problem at hand with the theoretical construct designed for the West; the
economic scenario in our part of the world is totally different. Then tell
me through what channels do you see the union working? Don't just tell me
the PP will go up or the salaries will go up, but show me the channels
through which they work. Only then I will believe you. Labor mobility in
our region seems to be significant given the inordinate number of Indians
in Nepal and Nepalese in India but I'll have to do more research before I
could confidently say that. Wages and price flexibility- I don't think so.
Before we consider a union with India we have to understand what similar
mergers in the world tell us and what could be the optimal situation for
striving for such a union.
Regional differences in economic activities produce destabilizing
tendencies or unnecessary inflation (or unemployment) when different
economic regions use a single currency. Suppose, in the same vein as
Mundell, there are only two states in the Indian Federation- Nepal and
Karnataka. Karnataka is an industrial state whereas Nepal produces
agricultural products. And suppose that an increase in productivity of the
industrial sector increases the supply of say computers and the demand for
agricultural products. This shift in demand will result in an increased
unemployment in Karnataka and inflationary pressures in Nepal. To fight
unemployment in Karnataka the Indian federal bank has to expand its money
supply but this will lead to in increased inflation in Nepal. If the
federal bank chooses to fight inflation in Nepal it has to decrease money
supply but this would lead to an increased unemployment in Karnataka.
Therefore there is a trade off between the level of unemployment and
inflation the central bank can achieve in a such system of currency union.
The situation gets complicated when other states are taken into account.
Almost always the federal government will put its interest ahead of the
states otherwise we'd have seen development of infrastructure in poor
Indian states like Bihar rather than the detonation of nuclear bombs.
Since the goods and financial markets in the Indian states are not
well integrated and there is a lack of product diversification within the
states any internal or external economic shocks will not be felt evenly
throughout the federation. The states in the union will not have any
monetary authority having surrendered it to the federation but they will
nonetheless could respond to economic shocks to their state by appropriate
fiscal policies. This, however, will not solve the problem because some
states which are already suffering fiscal deficits will be less willing to
undergo an accommodating fiscal policy in an aftermath of such shocks.
Economic union with India is therefore not an immediate solutions to our
problems at present. Maybe later.
I have discussed, though at varying length, the three broadly
defined issues of gender, ethnic, and nationality issues that have plagued
Nepal. The solution to all these issues, I think, lies in raising the
awareness of people as Anit Aryal suggested. In Raut's words:
"[Nepal] lacks coherent national unity. The real problems of our country
are therefore hunger, poverty, illiteracy and underdevelopment. All the
social and political problems we have been discussing are but the
manifestations of the dire economic conditions."
As Raut pointed out, that's where the sources of all our problems lie. The
sure shot way to success is nothing but a radical development in
education, health, human rights, and government. These will prepare
grounds for domestic and foreign investments both in agricultural and
industrial sector, and this will in turn stimulate development in other
sectors as well. Only then will our country be ready for an economic
matrimonial with another nation of similar strength. The thrust for
globalization will be inevitable.
Om Shanti!
-----------------------
Convergence Criteria:
1. inflation within 1.5% of the average of the lowest three countries.
2. interest rates no higher than 2% of the lowest three countries.
3. exchange rate within the ERM target zone.
4. deficit/GDP ratio of less than 3%.
5. debt/GDP ratio of less than 60%.
6. stability and growth pact.
Philosophy: all these are vital to the stability of the single currency.
____________________________________________________________________
Sometime ago I had told Raut that he should write short articles
so that people will have time and patience to read all the way through. I
seem to have miserably failed to do what I advocated but I hope some day
you'll have the patience to read what I have to say.
Comments/Suggestions to:
Ram Subedi
MC 3638 Middlebury College
Middlebury, VT 05753.
************************************************************************
Date: Tue, 11 Aug 98 15:30:49 EST
From: "Paramendra Bhagat" <Paramendra_Bhagat@smtpgtwy.berea.edu>
To: nepal-request@cs.niu.edu, raut@panther.middlebury.edu
Subject: Query to the Editor of TND
Dear Sir,
I have been sending messages to TND. It is my understanding that you "publish"
on your web-site every message you get, unedited. If that is not the case, I
would like to know. Recently I have been sending a lot of messages to TND. If
despite the understood policy, you might choose not to put out some of my
messages I would appreciate it if you were to please tell me so. I know the
recent message you have sent out (August 12) is only a partial list, so I am
hoping all my messages will come out in the subsequent lists, but if that not be
the case I would appreciate a message to me saying so, stating the reasons why.
Thank you.
Your regular reader
Paramendra Bhagat
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