Globalisation and ethnicity

Deepak R Joshi in his article “Globalisation and ethnic minorities” published on April 20 reflects the same know-all attitude that has spawned the “ethnic movement.” He seems to suggest that in this age of globalisation, the ethnic minorities are not being “modern.” It’s the same old argument all over again.

I am a member of an ethnic minority and I hail globalisation. It has empowered the ethnic minorities to cast away the lid put on Nepal’s multifarious culture by a narrow-minded establishment. Thanks to the internet, FM and TV, Nepal’s national languages have made greater advances in the past decade than in the last century. I don’t see globalisation as some intergalactic force imposing its culture on the people of the world. I see it as expanded economic opportunities, greater cultural exchange and increasing irrelevance of political boundaries. If globalisation has brought pizzas to Kathmandu, it has also taken chhoylas to New York.

But what adds fuel to the ethnic movement, for example, is the irony that Newari is taught at Tokyo University, but Newar kids in Kathmandu have no opportunity to study their mother tongue. I would like to assure Joshi that the ethnic minorities embrace globalisation wholeheartedly.

Bhai Kaji Tamrakar,

Kathmandu

King right

Bijay Aryal’s article published on April 20 smells “khaobadi rat.” His contention that the King should surrender to the corrupt and incompetent political parties is highly deplorable. How can he assert that King, the custodian of the constitution, has snatched people’s power and should return it to the disgraced political parties?

It is true that the last 18 months have not brought expected results, but we cannot blame the King alone for this. His fault is that he firmly believed in the multi-party system but could not break the Khaobadi syndicate of the corrupt politicians and bureaucrats, which was sine qua non to streamline the degraded system. His timely intervention has kept the nation away from absolute anarchy following series of Maobadi bloodshed. Even the corrupt politicians cannot deny the fact that they owe their lives to the King. On the other hand, the King wrongly expected these political parties to regret their sinful past and act like honest political parties. The appointment of Lokendra Bahadur Chand and Surya Bahadur Thapa — both important contributors of 12 years plundering — as prime ministers to woo other corrupt politicians for the sake of so-called unity of constitutional forces was a blunder on the King’s part. Now he should go ahead with people’s wish to conduct polls.

S P Lohani, via e-mail

Stop bandhs

It is needless to say everyone is suffering from bandhs and strikes. Unfortunately, we face strikes and bandhs several times a month. Some five months ago when I got a message that my father was seriously ill, I managed to move to Kathmandu. But because of the curfew, the bus stopped in the middle of the forest in Pathlaiya till next morning. Then after passing through tight check posts, I reached home the next day at 4:00 pm only. When I reached home, my father was no more in this world. Sadly, I could not be with him when he was breathing his last.

If I were rich, I would have come by air. Thus, poor people like me are suffering in one way or the other by this nuisance of bandhs and strikes. Please understand the voice of the poor and stop strikes or bandhs forever.

Ishak Tamang ,Chabahil