A Nepali feeling in Copenhagen

Thursday 18th of February – it was finally time for our Nepal Eve in Copenhagen. It was also the first time after our trip to Nepal that the five of us who went there had the opportunity to meet live again – and what could then be better than cooking Nepali food, listening to Nepali music and trying to give the eager audience a proper insight in the chaotic but wonderful country?

Karin, Christina and I met after noon to large-scale shop in the local Netto (which is the retail chain for the poor, the stingy – and the students). Of course we couldn’t find as fancy stuff as lentils, so we had to send Christina on a wee trip to the posh Irma shop to ensure the mandatory Daal Bhat.

Casper and Christine arrived by train later in the afternoon and we tried to keep them out of the kitchen as long as possible – or to give them the simple and boring tasks, so they wouldn’t spoil the food with their gastronomic talents

At 7 pm most of 26 young people from Copenhagen were ready to consume their first Nepali meal, consisting of Daal Bhat (Daal = lentil soup, Bhat = rice), mango chutney, Trakari (mixed vegetable curry), Roti (fried bread) and pieces of carrots and cucumber. As being a part of the brilliant chef team my opinion could be considered as a bit subjective, but I sincerely feel it was a great success When we fail at everything else at least we know we might be able to get a 50 cent/day job in a kitchen in Kathmandu, while Christine and Casper do the dishes.

 

After dinner we did a presentation on Nepal. I started by giving a little introduction to the project and talked about the history of Nepal and the current political situation. Karin followed by giving an insight in the culture, religion and different ethnicities, and Christine and Casper explained the purpose of our seminar and told some great stories of our experiences during the time spent there. Christina ended the session by talking about the seminar participants’ post debates and the future of Nepal – putting it all into perspective.

During the presentations there were loads of questions from the very eager audience, so we really had some interesting and rewarding discussions on Nepal and its development – and some heartening remarks afterwards when people stayed to chat and have a few beers.

 

With this event a few more Danes gained an insight into the youngest republic in the world – this small, complicated Himalayan country with its turbulent political situation and very rich culture. We hope to organise another similar event in Århus, the 2^nd biggest city in Denmark.

/Mette

Day 5 – last day: pictures and goodbyes

It is now finally time for an account of day five of our training for trainers seminar. It feels strange to write this as I now am back in cold Denmark. But there’s a story to be told!

Most of the day was spent with the participants working on their presentations in groups of five. They discussed their action plans, ideas for debates and the actual debates ahead. After lunch in the sun on the hotel’s lawn it was time for the very last part of the seminar: evaluation and goodbyes. We handed out a questionnaire that will be used as a part of our final status report. The questionnaire was followed by an oral evaluation in Nepali. Once again we found ourselves in the peculiar situation of being able to understand the many English words that Nepali youth mix into their own language but not being able to understand the entire meaning of their sentences. But the evaluation seemed positive and high-spirited to me. It will be very interesting to have a closer look at the evaluations in the days to come!

After the evaluation came the sad part of the seminar: the closing ceremony. It was an emotional moment for me since this seminar really has been an experience for life. I have learned so much about Nepali politics, culture and Nepali people. Especially I have learned from the endless number of interesting conversations I have had with the participants. They all have so much to offer. I want to really let them know, that they have truly impressed us all. Their willingness to learn, listen and discuss had been great to experience. I cannot help but think that despite all the wrongdoings and problems in Nepal the country will be facing a bright future with young people like these. This also stresses the importance of the task that lies ahead for the participants. Not very many young Nepalese have the kind of opportunities that this group of participants have. It is now up to them to spread the word about involvement in society to those who are less fortunate.

Following the closing ceremony and the handing out of diplomas and t-shirts we had the mandatory photo session. I think more than a hundred pictures were taken within ten minutes. There will we plenty of pictures to look at while reminiscing the good times in Nepal. After the last picture had been taken we waited for a while before piling into the bus that drove us back to Kathmandu.

I have just one more thing to say – Dhanyabad to you all!

Day 4: Learning, Discussing and Drinking

Waking up on the forth day of the seminar, we all felt enlightened by the evenings meet and greet with the Maoist politicians, which turned out just to be the Nepalese version of Helle Thorning Smith. The former Maoist Army-chief was also very formally dressed, the resemblance was astonishing to the Danish opposition leader.

The first lecture of the day was given by Mr. Anil Chitrakar, on the subject of promoting civic engagement among young people. It was a very interesting lecture using a lot of examples to inspire the participants to get involved. The examples went from Gandhi, to the tallest building in the world to The Tipping Point. All the participants felt very inspired by the lecture, especially by the point that change has always started with a few dedicated people.

The next lecture was from Mr. Rajendra Mulmi on the subject Rhetoric and Communication. It was a fun session for us, because Rajendra was the person that Mette and Christina meet with in the Philippines in 2008, which started the cooperation between Young Initiative and VU / RU. The lecture looked at one of President Obamas speeches, and also a video depicting all the classic tricks politicians uses when speaking in public. This resulted in some very good debates on how to use rhetorics, and proving to the participants that no universal answer exists on the area, it’s about discovering what technique each participant is confident with. Examples of some Bollywood actors was used, the Danish delegation didn’t really catch those references..

The participants then told us, that they would like to discuss democracy and human rights. We then arranged on optional discussion workshop, where all the participants engaged in very energetic debating. It was in Nepali, so we didn’t really get what was going on, but we were told it went very well

The participants then got time to work on their own lectures, that they have to present to the group before leaving the seminar, thus showing what they’ve learned.

In the evening we had a very nice social event, where people after dinner met for a few drinks and informal discussions in the bar. The Danes choose beers, and a few of the Nepalese followed us, even though most preferred non-alcoholic beverages (We still have work to due in terms of cultural integration). We realized that is was the birthday of one of the participants, and quickly arranged a lille birthday celebration, in which we sang a few Danish birthday songs. The celebration was unfortunately recorded by some of the participants, and we afterwards concluded, that all the Danes were really lousy singers, but at least we put some spirit into it. It’s quite sad to think about the fact, that this was our last evening together.

- Casper Henriksen

Day three: Constitution, Consensus and Maoist army chiefs in Kathmandu.

This just keeps getting better! The sun is shining and we are getting the hang of Nepali life (…or the life of a nice touristy Nepali hotel). Day three has definitely been diverse. We have covered both the Nepali constitution and the Danish administrative structures, we debated and reached a consensus on what to include in the new constitution and last, but not least, we mingled with local politicians at an informal get-together. Oh, and met a real army chief!

Nepal is facing the drafting of their 7^th constitution in little over 60 years. An impressive account, only further emphasizing the utmost importance of drafting a durable, long lasting constitution this time around. A task which, according to Dr. Bhimarjun, might prove impossible within the given time frame of 2 years. Many different interests and ideological approaches are battling for influence in the Nepali Constitutional Assembly and compromise and consensus does not always come around easily.

But that consensus is possible was proven by our participants in the “Create your own constitution”-workshop. Being given a list of 23 different things which could all be included in a new constitution, they were asked to prioritize and agree on a list of the 5 most important things. Fierce debating followed, but consensus was actually reached – even though almost every part of the political spectrum was represented. Way to go, there is really hope for Nepal with these people as the future leaders of the country.

After finishing the seminar program, we all set off for a restaurant where we met with politicians, both publically elected, student politicians as well as central persons from some of the parties. This was really a great experience. Not only for the participants who got to engage directly in dialogue with people they had only read about in the newspaper, but definitely also for the Danish delegation!

Up until now we had been really puzzled by the popular support for the communist movements in Nepal, since communism in our understanding has very little to do with neither development nor democracy. However, last night – new understanding came to us in the shape of some of Nepal’s provocative communists. As we were sitting at the table eating and debating, a variety of top communists came by. One of the lovely communists, a representative from the United Marxist Leninists sat and discussed with us for quite some time – and as we were debating he seemed more and more reasonable. Another cool communist was the army chief of the Maoists, mr.Barsha Man Pun. This cozy fellow sat down with us, smiled and answered all possible questions we had regarding the size of the maoist rebel army and why he as a young boy got into politics. As we reached time for dessert, we had really bonded with the nice army chief. Afterwards as we, the Danes, reflected on the events of night we could conclude, that these communist parties really weren’t communists in a European perspective. As none of the parties want a communist republic, nor wishes to act through militant actions(as we first perceived) – we decided for ourselves that perhaps the Maoists were more like social democrats than anything else in our book of ideologies. Who would’ve expected that we would conclude, that the Maoist army chief turned out to be more like Danish Social Democratic leader Helle Thorning than any of History’s aggressive communist leaders.

/Christine Gyldenhof

Day 2: Bad governance and good constitution – or?

It’s morning time in the Himalayas – a very cold morning as usual. As heat installation is not really common in Nepal most participants are just wearing jackets while listening to todays’ first lecturer Dr. Bhimrjun Acharya from the Supreme Court of Nepal.

Meet and greet – the Nepali and the Danish culture

Last night, ending the first day of the seminar – the entire team of participants and organizers each presented their respective cultures, in a nice and easygoing setting. This cultural evening we got to see, taste, hear and wonder about the different ethnic groups in Nepal. The Danish delegation also brought souveniers, for instance – strange little black pieces of rock, also known as licorice. From the same little country were newspapers, music(aqua and Nik&Jay for the win!), coins and red and white colors. But there was absolutely no dancing, nor singing done by the Danes. The Nepali participants knew how to do this though! We heard wonderful singing, saw beautiful dancing and tasted new interesting foods from all parts of the country, both from the Himalaya, the hills and from the Terai. It was indeed a very nice evening, and in retrospect – putting focus on cultural heritage is also extremely important, considering the political focus of the seminar. Nepal is at the moment in a process of nation building, and it is my personal impression that the feeling of togetherness and solidarity unfortunately has some way to go. There are very many different ethnicities present in present Nepal. These are unique – and are a part of making Nepal such a beautiful country. But now these ethnic groups are facing an important challenge as a national community has to be created, including all citizens, whether from the Kathmandu Valley or from any other part. As of now, some areas in Nepal have declared independence from the rest of the nation. This, however, have not been recognized by the state. Fortunately, at the event last night – all seemed to be very open and interested in all of the represented ethnic groups. Hopefully, the rest of the Nepali society will be influenced by this great attitude. – Karin Loch Hansen

Day 1, January 13, 2010

Today is the first day of our seminar “Training for trainers: the rights and possibilities of the individual in a society. The seminar is taking place at a nice hotel outside Kathmandu. We are surrounded by beautiful mountain ranges and the sun has been shining most of the day. We are off to a great start. We all arrived at the hotel early this morning and after an opening ceremony we have started the actual program.

Mr. Bishal Khanal, secretary of the National Human Rights Commission in Nepal, was our first lecturer today. Mr. Khanal told about the historical perspective of human rights in Nepal and former Nepali constitutions. It gave a very interesting insight into the background of the current situation in Nepal. Also, Mr. Khanal told about the UN human rights and the relation between these principles and Nepali human rights law. The challenges with adopting UN human rights conventions without the necessary preparations in the legal system was also an interesting point.

The first workshop was followed by a workshop which gave the participants a chance to discuss their understanding of democracy and the structure of society. The caste system, economical and social classes were discussed. The participants also put some though to how they would think that Denmark functions in regards to democracy. The assumption, that some Danes take democracy for granted could not be more accurate. A situation like the one in Nepal makes people think way more about their current situation and what they believe in, than do people in Denmark.

Later Mr. Lars Peter Christensen, program coordinator for Danida HUGOU, led the participants through a joint SWOT analysis of the political transformation in Nepal. Through group work and discussions the participants analyzed the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of their country’s situation. The views on the current situation differs a lot, but it was discussed in a good manner. It was also an interesting experience to see a SWOT analysis used as a participatory tool. I definitely think, that I will use that at an appropriate time.

After Mr. Christensen’s we had another workshop that again gave the participants a chance to discuss five statements related to human rights. I am very impressed by the way the participants’ discuss very difficult subjects with great intensity and interest. As all other Nepali people I have met they are very open, curious and talkative. I am certain that we can learn a lot from each other in the days to come.

Later on today we will get to know each other better through social activities and a cultural evening. I am especially looking forward to the cultural evening. It will be interesting since our participants come from different regions in the ethnically diverse Nepal. Also, I am looking forward to see if any Nepalese will enjoy piratos!

/Christina

First pre-meeting in Kathmandu

This evening both Anita and Prakash from Youth Initiative and Mette and myself, Karin, met up in Kathmandu to discuss some of the final details for the seminar. We are all very excited and very busy getting all things ready – because, as I am strongly beginning to realize; this is no indifferent, random seminar. The topic we are dealing with during this seminar is something extremely important for the development of the political situation in Nepal and for the understanding of democracy. To put into perspective, when looking through the list of participants and lecturers – you will be able to see representatives from many completely different parties and organizations. Such broad participation, I for myself at least, hope will influence the debates to become very exciting and lively.
So for you participants – hope you are as much looking forward to the seminar as we, the organizers.
– Karin Loch Hansen

Entering present day rural Nepal

Before starting the seminar med Youth Initiative in Kathmandu – I decided to go visit some family of mine living in rural Nepal. And as my somewhat hippie aunt and uncle are development workers working with local democracy in the western part of Nepal for Mellemfolkeligt Samvirke, otherwise known here as MS Nepal, then, with their guidance – I have gotten just a blink of insight into how democracy is developing in these villages.
Though it took some time on bumpy mountain roads to get all the way out here, it was no bad experience. This was because of the beautiful scenery and how I got to observe the goings of everyday life for ordinary Nepali people outside of Kathmandu. People working in front of the houses, preparing foods, small children taking care of smaller children, women carrying almost impossibly heavy burdens up and own the hillsides. And the topic being on the never ending possibility of “bandh”. It took me quite a while to figure out what this big annoying threat was all about, but it simply is a shutdown of society, implemented by different groups of society when being unsatisfied. Instead of having some channel for people to communicate issues to the state – then, shops have close, road blocks are made, lockouts are made on workplaces. And apparently this happens quite frequently, started by unions or other political organizations to put focus on an unjust situation. This can be the ethnic minorities wanting rights, busdrivers wanting less of a free market because of a decrease in earnings, students wanting a canteen at the university, a family wanting compensation from the person who killed a member in the traffic. All different types of groups, all different types of problems – many being solved by this method, by waiting till someone able to act does so. At the moment Nepal can indeed perhaps be said to be the exact opposite of a harsh dictatorship, as neither the police nor judicial system interferes with bandh. Some are saying that this may be because of the reaction from the people that could come if the police ever caused the death of a demonstrating person. This way of demonstrating can be view upon as lack of trust between citizens and the official state, something I only see to be solved by a change of mentality by all participants in the political arena.
And luckily, initiatives are being made in the hope of achieving an actual democratic relation between the people and the state. I attended an event in a small village called Pokharathok, that was to celebrate the handing in of applications for village development. Representatives from all 22 villages in the district had shown up to hand in approximately five suggestions each for new development in their local society, such as better roads, a building for the community to gather in, a course in craft skills. These applications are necessary in Nepal as there is no elected local municipality, but instead at district level representatives from the local political parties led by an official appointed by the government. So for the communities to set focus onto what they need – they go through this process, as it is declared in Nepali law. But unfortunately this handing in of applications is something usually not done, as the law describing the procedure simply is too complicated for all parties involved. Therefore this event was very special, and though all the speeches were in Nepali, it was still easy for me to understand how happy these representatives from the villages were for finally being heard.
From my few days in rural Nepal I have experienced an amazing political participation. Who knew that a country having a history of dictatorship, could in these past years have developed such a flourishing political life? The goings of the world is definitely debated in Nepal, by the newspaper salesmen to the busdriver to the organizations – and to the politicians. Unfortunately the political actions show no trust in the present political system, which indeed does seem not have much effort done to then become trusted, a process that I fear may take quite some years.

- Karin Loch Hansen

Facing Nepal for the 1st time

I arrived in Kathmandu this morning. Had a really long journey from Varanasi in India by train, a bus to the border and a 14 hours bus ride from there to Kathmandu.