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Insurgency & Displacement; Prespectives
on Nepal
INTRODUCTION
Eight years of brutal civil war has devastated the kingdom of Nepal.
In February 1996 the Maoist launched a ‘Peoples War’ to effect through
armed conflict a structural change in Nepal’s politico-economic system.
It has left nearly 8000 dead (Informal, INSEC,2003) and untold more
victims of human rights atrocities. In November 2001 a state of
emergency was declared and the army deployed producing a massive
escalation in violence. Civilians have been caught between the barbarity
of the two warring factions and the population surrounded by generalised
violence and in a state of fear. On January 29, 2003 the Palace backed
by the Royal Nepal Army and the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoists)
declared a ceasefire. However the prospects of a sustainable ceasefire
and a politically negotiated settlement look uncertain.
Amongst the victims of the conflict are the displaced, those that have
become escapees in their own nation. Forced to flee from violence and
deprivation, thousands of people have left their homes for safer
grounds. Many have sought refuge in district headquarters whilst others
have moved to urban centers or to other countries. It has been estimated
that 150,000 to 200,000 people have left their homes as a result of the
conflict (Nepal IDP Research Initiative Findings 2003). Many will be
absent from their homes and communities for years, leaving their
livelihoods, families, homes and social networks in disarray. Age, sex,
access to resources and length of relocation will influence whether they
return.
The effects of displacement are long-term and far-reaching. Displaced
people become impoverished – subject to unemployment, ill-health,
interrupted education, discrimination, broken social support mechanisms
and vulnerable to coerced recruitment into the armed forces of both
sides. Furthermore, the impact of displacement extends beyond those
displaced. Often it is the most vulnerable who are left behind,
children, the elderly and women. The people left behind must adjust and
compensate for the loss of family or community members. Indeed the
‘internally stuck’ need to be recognised as amongst the most
impoverished and the most vulnerable (Martinez 2002). Not all those who
are forcibly displaced are without resources, however the last couple of
years of the state of emergency in Nepal has seen the flight of much
poorer and younger people who generally would not have been involved in
the cycle of seasonal migration and therefore would not have access to
the migration coping mechanisms.
The long-term health of Nepal is also at risk. Food security is
threatened as farms are abandoned and urban centers decay as
insufficient infrastructure struggles to cope with sudden influxes of
people. The economy is drained by low productivity, unemployment,
falling wages, a generation is at risk of missing out on education.
Further, IDPs are tomorrow’s refugees with socio-economic and security
consequences for neighbouring countries. In the case of Nepal the open
border with India disguises the extent and scope of conflict induced
displacement as thousands cross over to India. The noticeable fall in
daily wages in the cross border districts is an indicator of the
pressure of waves of displaced people crossing over.
In some regions of Nepal, entire villages have been abandoned by men and
youths, but the problem of displacement has largely gone unrecognised.
Generally, both national and international agencies in Nepal have tended
to render invisible the scope and scale of Nepal’s internally displaced
people (IDPs) by regarding them as swelling the pattern of traditional
migration in search of employment and education. However after the state
of emergency was imposed and violence spiraled, displacement reached
crisis levels and entire families began leaving their homes the problem
became too serious to ignore.
The response of the government thus far has been unsatisfactory and
discriminatory. Although much of the displacement is a direct result of
state action, only those people displaced by Maoist violence are
officially recognised. And even they are not receiving any thing like
appropriate levels of assistance. Some international agencies and
non-government organisations (NGOs) have demonstrated a greater
recognition of the situation. They have initiated efforts to monitor and
assess the numbers of IDPs with the intention of developing effective
long-term strategies to alleviate the problem. Their efforts are
essentially directed at awareness raising. To this end, it is essential
that Nepal’s IDPs displacement be recognised as deserving serious
attention so that a coordinated policy and action can be devised.
The root causes of the Maoist conflict, poverty and inequity, will need
to be addressed before violence and displacement in Nepal cease.
Currently the ceasefire remains fragile and the peace process has yet to
begin. Moreover, once peace is achieved, the problem of displacement
will not suddenly disappear. Those who choose to return to their homes
will need assistance to re-establish their livelihoods and communities.
Infrastructure will need to be rebuilt and farms rejuvenated. Most
importantly, trust and emotional well-being will need to be re-created.
Many IDPs will not return home. They and their new communities will
require long-term assistance to integrate and adjust.
Objectives
• To provide an interim directory of materials on displacement in Nepal.
• To provide information on the causes and consequences of displacement
in Nepal.
• To examine the responses of government, non-government and
international agencies as well as the media.
• To document the experiences of IDPs in Kathmandu through a series of
interviews.
• To make recommendations for action
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