On many counts, it was fair to criticise the PM's speech. Yet, maybe, Dahal shared some inconvenient truths, and a bit more optimism among the young people of this country would not harm
Recently, there was an uproar when Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal complained about the fact that there was too much pessimism, especially among the youths, about the current status of the nation. To compound the barrage of negative feedback on what the PM had said, the Balkumari incident occurred, in which two youths were killed while protesting against the government over a change in policy in relation to the Korean language test, a mandatory step to find a job in South Korea.
The words of the Prime Minister had somehow struck my attention. I had a mixed reaction on what he had said during his "Speech to the Nation", marking its first anniversary of his third stint leading the government. On the one hand, I see a nation that, despite the mounting challenges, is resilient. The new generation is ambitious, ingenious and capable of setting high goals. Confident and strong in the English language, it looks as if they represent the "Start-up nation". I am referring to those from a business and management background but also to those youngsters studying law, engineering and science.
Unfortunately, on the other hand, this sparkling, shining snapshot of Nepal is not representative of the whole nation. If you come from families with money, then the future, despite the downsize of the economy, can be really rosy. Living in Kathmandu with its posh coffee shops and restaurants can be really pleasant no matter the level of air pollution. Also, for young adults from solid middle and upper class, whose parents for example work in INGOs, banks, the future is likely to be good.
Then there is the rest. Lower middle-class kids are pulled by what I called the "Down Under Syndrome", the attraction that Australia is having on so many young people of this nation. Testimony to this, we had over a dozen of national football players, all good, migrating there. Technically and legally speaking, "migrating" is the wrong word, but it is a default understanding that all those who go to Australia to study, mostly in second- and third-class higher learning institutions, are going there to stay.
Then, one or two leagues below them, there are the young people, especially from the Tarai, who are going in droves to the Gulf and to Malaysia. Unfortunately, there are also those desperate or disingenuous enough to enroll in foreign armies or those trying to enter the USA illegally through a dangerous, expensive around-the-world journey.
Reflecting on the scenario just described, it is almost impossible not to disagree with the multitude of complaints towards the words of Prime Minister Dahal. While he admitted that there is still so much to be done and acknowledging his own unsatisfaction with the Federal Government he is leading, he effectively invited criticisms.
Yet at the same time, I had a feeling that what the PM was saying was not totally wrong. Over the past months and previous years, I have been engaging in activities with amazingly smart young people. While none of them were from "big families", all in all, they were doing quite ok.
Potentially, they had great prospects here in Nepal and, surely, I would have bet on their future success. Yet many of them decided to "study abroad". After all, what they would have earned here, even at the peak of their careers, would not even be close to what they could have made in Australia.
On the other side of the coin, I did believe that, by staying in Nepal, they could have led meaningful lives with satisfying jobs. It is not that labourer type of occupations are not meaningful. Yet, overseas, many youngsters do struggle a lot with many of them putting at risk their mental well-being. So, I believe there is a difference if someone is really compelled to find a job abroad and someone who decides to migrate in the hope of finding a better life.
Those in the first category, have no other options. Their families do depend on them. If the Tarai is now more prosperous, more developed and more educated, it is because of them. On the other hand, I am not too sure that a bigger pay check is worthy of the high price of leaving your own country while enduring stress, loneliness and discomfort.
I am not here to judge, and my thinking is surely limited by the experiences I am making as a foreigner. Yet I just wish that more people, more young people would not give up on Nepal, on its potential and possibly high prospects for the future.
It is hard to deal with frustrations, given that in this country, even the simplest of things get overly complicated.
I wrap up this piece with a story. After a long walk, I sit in a tiny coffee shop nearby Chhetrapati. I was served by the staff, a young lady maybe 21 years old.
She was very professional, also relaxed and confident. It really seemed she was enjoying what she was doing – making coffee and serving it, and helping with the wi-fi passwords.
I do not know anything about her and her future plans. Maybe she is mastering her barista skills because she is determined to pay for her studies in Australia, a few months from now. But there is also another possible scenario.
Maybe this young barista is just professional and nice in all the tasks she takes on, not only behind a coffee machine or patiently inserting passwords a zillion times in a day. Maybe she won't leave Nepal and is planning to set up her own chain of coffee shops or even a restaurant and hotel.
Or maybe she will thrive in the banking sector as she is now earning some money to pay for her business studies. I will never know, but I did appreciate her way, her style as if she was working in a five-star hotel but with more naturalness and joy and genuine, rather than faked, smile.
On many counts, it was fair to criticise the PM's speech. Yet, maybe, Dahal shared some inconvenient truths, and a bit more optimism among the young people of this country would not harm.