Showing posts with label Non Resident Nepali Association. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Non Resident Nepali Association. Show all posts
Sunday, January 25, 2015
Monday, November 24, 2014
सगुन, अंजन, छेपाक, डिल्ली, विनोद, कृष्ण (२)
सगुन, अंजन, छेपाक, डिल्ली, विनोद, कृष्ण
एउटा टेक स्टार्टअप ले राउंड २ मा जान का लागि राउंड १ मा २०-३० हजार डॉलर ले पनि पुग्ने बाटा हरु छन, ५० हजार देखि एक लाख डॉलर सम्म चाहिने बाटा पनि छन, मैले न्यु यर्क को नेपाली समुदाय का २-४ जना सँग विगत केही महिना गफ गर्दा एउटा टीम लाई दुई लाख डॉलर राउंड १ मा चाहिने जस्तो एस्टीमेट भएको थियो। साढ़े तीन देखि पाँच लाख लाग्ने बाटा पनि छन।
तर राउंड १ मा ३०-५० हजारले पुग्ने यदि छ भने पनि सफल भएको खण्डमा आखिर त्यसै स्टार्टअप ले पनि राउंड २ मा गएर ५ लाख डॉलर, एक मिलियन डॉलर fundraising गर्ने र खर्च गर्ने हो।
So it really is a matter of scheduling. कुनै स्टार्टअप २०-३० हजार मै हुने, कसैलाई ५-१० लाख चाहिने भन्ने होइन। सबै सफल स्टार्टअप त्यो मिलियन डलरको बाटो बाट जाने नै हो। नौबिसे हो त्यो रोड मार्कर।
एउटा टेक स्टार्टअप ले राउंड २ मा जान का लागि राउंड १ मा २०-३० हजार डॉलर ले पनि पुग्ने बाटा हरु छन, ५० हजार देखि एक लाख डॉलर सम्म चाहिने बाटा पनि छन, मैले न्यु यर्क को नेपाली समुदाय का २-४ जना सँग विगत केही महिना गफ गर्दा एउटा टीम लाई दुई लाख डॉलर राउंड १ मा चाहिने जस्तो एस्टीमेट भएको थियो। साढ़े तीन देखि पाँच लाख लाग्ने बाटा पनि छन।
तर राउंड १ मा ३०-५० हजारले पुग्ने यदि छ भने पनि सफल भएको खण्डमा आखिर त्यसै स्टार्टअप ले पनि राउंड २ मा गएर ५ लाख डॉलर, एक मिलियन डॉलर fundraising गर्ने र खर्च गर्ने हो।
So it really is a matter of scheduling. कुनै स्टार्टअप २०-३० हजार मै हुने, कसैलाई ५-१० लाख चाहिने भन्ने होइन। सबै सफल स्टार्टअप त्यो मिलियन डलरको बाटो बाट जाने नै हो। नौबिसे हो त्यो रोड मार्कर।
Monday, November 17, 2014
जैक्सन हाइट्स मा ५० समुदाय
खगेन्द्र जस्ता मानिस जैक्सन हाइट्स मा मात्र कमसेकम १०० जना होलान। किनभने जैक्सन हाइट्स मा ५० भन्दा बढ़ी देशका मानिस बस्छन्। ती ५० समुदाय मध्येको सानोमा पर्छ नेपाली समुदाय। नेपालीभन्दा त भुटानी बढ़ी छन।
खगेन्द्र जस्ता मानिस बंगलादेशी समुदायमा मात्र १० जना होलान।
त्यो जैक्सन हाइट्स मा वडा अध्यक्ष छ एक जना, सिटी कॉउंसिल मेम्बर। यो राष्ट्रपतिहरु भेंट हुने शहर। एक चोटि जॉन लिउ सिटी कॉउंसिल मेम्बर हुँदा खेरि भेटेको।
सानो देश, सानो समुदाय ---- तर NRN अमेरिकालाई ४,००० बाट २०,०००, त्यहाँ बाट ५०,००० सदस्य सम्म पुर्याउनु र संगठनलाई democratization र digitization का उच्चतम स्टैण्डर्ड सम्म लानुको नेपालको आर्थिक क्रांति संग सीधा सम्बन्ध छ।
खगेन्द्र जस्ता मानिस बंगलादेशी समुदायमा मात्र १० जना होलान।
त्यो जैक्सन हाइट्स मा वडा अध्यक्ष छ एक जना, सिटी कॉउंसिल मेम्बर। यो राष्ट्रपतिहरु भेंट हुने शहर। एक चोटि जॉन लिउ सिटी कॉउंसिल मेम्बर हुँदा खेरि भेटेको।
सानो देश, सानो समुदाय ---- तर NRN अमेरिकालाई ४,००० बाट २०,०००, त्यहाँ बाट ५०,००० सदस्य सम्म पुर्याउनु र संगठनलाई democratization र digitization का उच्चतम स्टैण्डर्ड सम्म लानुको नेपालको आर्थिक क्रांति संग सीधा सम्बन्ध छ।
Tuesday, November 11, 2014
NRN America: Democratization, Digitization
ANTA: Democratization, Digitization: Diwali, Chhath, Holi
राजनीतिक अधिकार बिनाको नागरिकता भनेको निर्दलीय प्रजातन्त्र जस्तो हो। प्रजातन्त्र पनि कहीं निर्दलीय हुन्छ? राजनीतिक अधिकार बिनाको पनि कुनै नागरिकता हुन्छ? कि त NRN हरुलाई visa दिन खोजेको हो भने visa दिन खोजेको भन्ने।
नेपाल एउटा अत्यन्त गरीब देश हो। तर संसारको सबैभन्दा ठुलो र तेस्रो सबैभन्दा ठुलो अर्थतन्त्रबीचको देशलाई आर्थिक प्रगति गर्न धेरै गारहो नहुनुपर्ने। शिवरात्रीको मेलामा भीड़मा बीचमा उभि दिए मात्र पनि भीड़ले नै मंदिर भित्र पुर्याइदिन्छ। त्यस्तै नेपालमा basic law and order र basic democracy मात्र maintain गरेको खण्डमा भारत र चीनको सामीप्यले देशको धुरन्धर विकास हुन्छ।
नेपाल जस्तो गरीब देशले देशका मान्छेलाई बाहिर जान सकेसम्म सजिलो पारिदिने, र प्रवासमा रहेका नेपालीलाई नेपाल फर्कन र/अथवा नेपालमा योगदान पुर्याउन सकेसम्म सजिलो पारिदिने। द्वैध नागरिकताको कुरा त्यो हो। शिक्षा र आर्थिक opportunity कालागि विदेशीएका नेपालीलाई नेपालको अर्थतन्त्रमा सकेसम्म बलियो हिसाबले बाँधने concept द्वैध नागरिकता हो।
अमेरिकामा ४,००० नेपाली NRNA सदस्य भएपछि बल्ल काठ्माण्डुमा NRNA लाई seriously लिन थालियो। विश्वमा अमेरिकाको, न्यु यर्क शहरको विशेष स्थान रहेको देखियो। तर अमेरिकाको NRN संगठनले आफ्नो आङ्गको जुम्रा पनि देखन सक्नुपर्यो।
चुनाव सकिएपछि सदस्यताको ढोका बन्द गरिएको भन्ने हल्ला छ। आफुलाई जिताउने जस्ताले सदस्यता लिई हाले, नया नया सदस्य किन चाहियो भन्ने thinking हो भने त्यो गलत thinking हो। सदस्यता ४,००० बाट २०,०००, त्यसपछि २०,००० बाट ५०,००० बनाउँदै जाने तर्फ सोँच्नुपर्छ। र सदस्यता लिने १२ महिना हुनुपर्छ। आफुलाई इच्छा लागेको बेला NRN अमेरिकाको वेबसाइटमा गएर सदस्यता लि हाल्ने। यो membership drive NRNA अमेरिकाको नम्बर एक जिम्मेवारी हो जस्तो लाग्छ।
बरु चुनावको दिनभन्दा एक महिना अगाडि एक किसिमको cut off point बनाई दिन सकिन्छ। त्यो दिनभन्दा पछि पनि सदस्य बन्न चाहिं पाइने तर त्यस चुनावमा सहभागी हुन त्यो दिन अगावै सदस्य भई सक्नुपर्ने।
Online voting बड़ो राम्रो व्यवस्था हो। तर दुई वर्षमा एक पटक online voting गरेर दुई वर्षकालागि आम सदस्यलाई bye bye गर्नु भने राम्रो होइन, लोकतान्त्रिक होइन। अमेरिकामा सबैभन्दा बढ़ी नेपाली न्यु यर्कमा छन, तर अमेरिकाका नेपाली जति सबै न्यु यर्कमै छन भन्ने सोँच्नु हुँदैन। Event जति सबैलाई फोटो र video मार्फत digitize गरेर सकेसम्म सबैलाई सहभागी बनाउने प्रयास भइराख्नुपर्छ।
NRNA अमेरिका को Executive Committee को बैठक जति सबैको minutes online राख्दै जानु पर्दछ। ताकि आम सदस्यले आफ्नो प्रतिक्रिया दिन सकुन। Bookkeeping त्यसरी नै transparent हुनुपर्यो।
तर संगठन जति नै मजबुत गरे पनि, र संगठनले मदत गर्न सके पनि, नेपालमा आर्थिक क्रान्तिमा सहभागी हुन चाहनेले सफल entrepreneur भएर देखाउन जरुरी छ। Entrepreneurship का आफ्नै principles छन। संगठन एउटा कुरा हो। Entrepreneurship अर्को कुरा हो।
राजनीतिक अधिकार बिनाको नागरिकता भनेको निर्दलीय प्रजातन्त्र जस्तो हो। प्रजातन्त्र पनि कहीं निर्दलीय हुन्छ? राजनीतिक अधिकार बिनाको पनि कुनै नागरिकता हुन्छ? कि त NRN हरुलाई visa दिन खोजेको हो भने visa दिन खोजेको भन्ने।
नेपाल एउटा अत्यन्त गरीब देश हो। तर संसारको सबैभन्दा ठुलो र तेस्रो सबैभन्दा ठुलो अर्थतन्त्रबीचको देशलाई आर्थिक प्रगति गर्न धेरै गारहो नहुनुपर्ने। शिवरात्रीको मेलामा भीड़मा बीचमा उभि दिए मात्र पनि भीड़ले नै मंदिर भित्र पुर्याइदिन्छ। त्यस्तै नेपालमा basic law and order र basic democracy मात्र maintain गरेको खण्डमा भारत र चीनको सामीप्यले देशको धुरन्धर विकास हुन्छ।
नेपाल जस्तो गरीब देशले देशका मान्छेलाई बाहिर जान सकेसम्म सजिलो पारिदिने, र प्रवासमा रहेका नेपालीलाई नेपाल फर्कन र/अथवा नेपालमा योगदान पुर्याउन सकेसम्म सजिलो पारिदिने। द्वैध नागरिकताको कुरा त्यो हो। शिक्षा र आर्थिक opportunity कालागि विदेशीएका नेपालीलाई नेपालको अर्थतन्त्रमा सकेसम्म बलियो हिसाबले बाँधने concept द्वैध नागरिकता हो।
अमेरिकामा ४,००० नेपाली NRNA सदस्य भएपछि बल्ल काठ्माण्डुमा NRNA लाई seriously लिन थालियो। विश्वमा अमेरिकाको, न्यु यर्क शहरको विशेष स्थान रहेको देखियो। तर अमेरिकाको NRN संगठनले आफ्नो आङ्गको जुम्रा पनि देखन सक्नुपर्यो।
चुनाव सकिएपछि सदस्यताको ढोका बन्द गरिएको भन्ने हल्ला छ। आफुलाई जिताउने जस्ताले सदस्यता लिई हाले, नया नया सदस्य किन चाहियो भन्ने thinking हो भने त्यो गलत thinking हो। सदस्यता ४,००० बाट २०,०००, त्यसपछि २०,००० बाट ५०,००० बनाउँदै जाने तर्फ सोँच्नुपर्छ। र सदस्यता लिने १२ महिना हुनुपर्छ। आफुलाई इच्छा लागेको बेला NRN अमेरिकाको वेबसाइटमा गएर सदस्यता लि हाल्ने। यो membership drive NRNA अमेरिकाको नम्बर एक जिम्मेवारी हो जस्तो लाग्छ।
बरु चुनावको दिनभन्दा एक महिना अगाडि एक किसिमको cut off point बनाई दिन सकिन्छ। त्यो दिनभन्दा पछि पनि सदस्य बन्न चाहिं पाइने तर त्यस चुनावमा सहभागी हुन त्यो दिन अगावै सदस्य भई सक्नुपर्ने।
Online voting बड़ो राम्रो व्यवस्था हो। तर दुई वर्षमा एक पटक online voting गरेर दुई वर्षकालागि आम सदस्यलाई bye bye गर्नु भने राम्रो होइन, लोकतान्त्रिक होइन। अमेरिकामा सबैभन्दा बढ़ी नेपाली न्यु यर्कमा छन, तर अमेरिकाका नेपाली जति सबै न्यु यर्कमै छन भन्ने सोँच्नु हुँदैन। Event जति सबैलाई फोटो र video मार्फत digitize गरेर सकेसम्म सबैलाई सहभागी बनाउने प्रयास भइराख्नुपर्छ।
NRNA अमेरिका को Executive Committee को बैठक जति सबैको minutes online राख्दै जानु पर्दछ। ताकि आम सदस्यले आफ्नो प्रतिक्रिया दिन सकुन। Bookkeeping त्यसरी नै transparent हुनुपर्यो।
तर संगठन जति नै मजबुत गरे पनि, र संगठनले मदत गर्न सके पनि, नेपालमा आर्थिक क्रान्तिमा सहभागी हुन चाहनेले सफल entrepreneur भएर देखाउन जरुरी छ। Entrepreneurship का आफ्नै principles छन। संगठन एउटा कुरा हो। Entrepreneurship अर्को कुरा हो।
Friday, October 10, 2014
दोहोरो नागरिकता
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| Brain Drain (comics) (Photo credit: Wikipedia) |
र त्यसरी दोहोरो नागरिकता पाएको मान्छे आफुले मात्र होइन, उसका सन्तानले पनि चाहेमा त्यो दोहोरो नागरिकता पाउने भन्ने हुन्छ।
तर आइन्स्टाइन वामदेवले यो कुरा बुझ्ने कुरा आउँदैन। अनि उसले NRN लाई राजनीतिक अधिकार बिनाको नागरिकता दिलाउने कुरा गर्छ। उसलाई लाग्छ सर्प पनि मर्ने लट्ठी पनि नभाँच्ने। किनभने उसकोलागि सीके राउत जस्तो कैंब्रिज यूनिवर्सिटीबाट PhD गरेको मान्छे त सर्प नै हो। झुक्किएर राजनीति गर्न आइदियो भने भएन आफ्नो पसल बन्द? परेन आपत?
Friday, October 03, 2014
Dual Citizenship: A Boon To The Home Country
Only steam leaves the pot. For a country like Nepal, some of the most educated, some of the most enterprising people have left the country over decades. But the love for country is intact, it is strong. And the homeland could benefit hugely from that crowd.
In this era of the Internet and globalization, the phrase "brain drain" is old fashioned, it is passe. I personally think the best I can do for Nepal is by planting one foot in NYC and another in Nepal.
And the dual citizenship concept is key. It has so far been thwarted by the sick people who form the current political class in Nepal. These people have a vested interest in keeping the country poor. These people are untouched by the daily arrivals of body bags from the Gulf states. This political class feels threatened by the Nepali diaspora. They dragged their feet on the dual citizenship issue for as long as they could, for close to a decade. And now they have offered a citizenship without political rights to the NRNs. It would be a grave mistake to accept it. I am less concerned about the NRNs. For me this arrangement would be the biggest hindrance to Nepal's rapid economic growth anyone could put in place.
Why would people who are supposed to lead Nepal to prosperity are so hellbent on getting in the way of the country's rapid economic growth? Obviously we have a democracy in name only in Nepal right now. The political leaders don't feel the need to act in the best interests of the people.
They will do what they will do. But it is shameful the most educated, the most accomplished Nepalis on the planet would be so eager to accept this deal. No deal would be better than this bad deal.
How to Obtain Dual Citizenship
Dual Citizenship in the Age of Mobility
In the past, including the recent past, policymakers considered dual citizenship a problem. Leading politicians of previous centuries saw it as an abhorrence of the natural order, the equivalent of bigamy. Citizenship and political loyalty to the state were considered inseparable. Policymakers worried that dual citizens would not integrate into the country to which they had emigrated but rather would maintain exclusive loyalty to the country of original citizenship. And, in times of war in the 19th and early 20th centuries, they feared “foreign” interference by citizens belonging to the enemy......... Moreover, democratic legitimacy was at stake. Policymakers feared that dual citizenship would violate the principle “one person, one vote.” Also, diplomats were worried that they could not protect their citizens in the country whose citizenship the newly naturalized citizen also held........... Yet, over the last few decades, an astonishing change has taken place: an increasing number of policymakers regard dual citizenship not as a problem for integration, legitimacy, foreign policy, and diplomatic protection, but rather as a possibility that needs to be negotiated from various standpoints, ranging from simple pragmatic tolerance to active encouragement. Certainly, dual citizenship is not a completely new phenomenon, but we have witnessed its rapid spread only recently. More than half of all the states in the world, countries of immigration as well as emigration, now tolerate some form or element of dual citizenship.
राजनीतिक अधिकार बिनाको नागरिकता
- निर्दलीय (partyless) प्रजातन्त्र (democracy)
- आत्म निर्णयको अधिकार (right to self determination) बिनाको संघीयता (federalism)
- राजनीतिक अधिकार (political rights) बिनाको नागरिकता (citizenship)
All three are very similar concepts. But of the three, the most primitive has got to be the citizenship without political rights. And that is what the most educated Nepalis on earth are agreeing to in a deal with the scoundrels running Nepal today. The thugs are calling the shots, looks like.
NRN लाई दोस्रो दर्जाको नागरिक बनाउने तैयारी NRN लाई दोस्रो दर्जाको नागरिकता
Thursday, October 02, 2014
NRN लाई दोस्रो दर्जाको नागरिक बनाउने तैयारी
२००५-०६ को लोकतान्त्रिक क्रान्ति र त्यसपछिको मधेसी क्रान्तिमा मैले फुल टाइम दिएको हुँ। उड़ाउनेले "पत्रकार" भनेर उड़ाईदिने गरेका पनि छन। तर मैले त्यति बेला पत्रकारिता गरेको होइन। मेरो काम नितान्त राजनीतिक थियो। पत्रकारिता भन्नु पुर्वाग्रह हो। तर मैले न कुनै संगठनको सदस्यता लिएँ, पद त लिने कुरै भएन। त्यसको कारण थियो। मैले डिजिटल tools प्रयोग गरेको थिएँ। रणभुमि नेपालमा थियो।
सीके राउतको रिहाईकालागि फेरि २० दिन जागियो। संघीयताको मुद्दामा बेइमानी हुने खतरा छ। तर मेरो दिल र दिमाग भविष्य तर्फ मुडिसक्यो। आर्थिक क्रान्तिको मुद्दा। २०-३० वर्ष चल्ने मुद्दा।
NRN को चुनाव भयो अमेरिकामा। पहिलो पटक NRN movement अमेरिका पसे जस्तो। अहिले मात्र होइन, १०-१५ वर्षपछि पनि NRN संगठनको कुनै पद मलाई खानु छैन। तर हालै भएको एउटा ठुलो निर्णय डिस्टर्ब गर्ने किसिमको छ। यसले नेपालको आर्थिक क्रांतिलाई डिस्टर्ब गर्छ।
NRN लाई दोस्रो दर्जाको नागरिक बनाउने तैयारी भइरहेकोछ। यो बड़ो चिन्ताको विषय हो। नेपाल पछाडि पर्नुको नम्बर एक कारण नै नेपालको राजनीती हो। राजनीतिक अधिकार बिनाको द्वैध नागरिकता NRN लाई दिन खोजेर नेपालका नेताहरुले पुच्छरले कुकुर हल्लाउने षडयन्त्र भैरहेको छ। बड़ो गलत निर्णय हुन लागेको छ। सावधान।
सीके राउतको रिहाईकालागि फेरि २० दिन जागियो। संघीयताको मुद्दामा बेइमानी हुने खतरा छ। तर मेरो दिल र दिमाग भविष्य तर्फ मुडिसक्यो। आर्थिक क्रान्तिको मुद्दा। २०-३० वर्ष चल्ने मुद्दा।
NRN को चुनाव भयो अमेरिकामा। पहिलो पटक NRN movement अमेरिका पसे जस्तो। अहिले मात्र होइन, १०-१५ वर्षपछि पनि NRN संगठनको कुनै पद मलाई खानु छैन। तर हालै भएको एउटा ठुलो निर्णय डिस्टर्ब गर्ने किसिमको छ। यसले नेपालको आर्थिक क्रांतिलाई डिस्टर्ब गर्छ।
NRN लाई दोस्रो दर्जाको नागरिक बनाउने तैयारी भइरहेकोछ। यो बड़ो चिन्ताको विषय हो। नेपाल पछाडि पर्नुको नम्बर एक कारण नै नेपालको राजनीती हो। राजनीतिक अधिकार बिनाको द्वैध नागरिकता NRN लाई दिन खोजेर नेपालका नेताहरुले पुच्छरले कुकुर हल्लाउने षडयन्त्र भैरहेको छ। बड़ो गलत निर्णय हुन लागेको छ। सावधान।
Monday, September 29, 2014
NRN लाई दोस्रो दर्जाको नागरिकता
अमेरिकामा संगठन विस्तार नभएसम्म काठमाण्डुका नेताहरुले NRN अभियानलाई गम्भीरतापुरबक लिएन। तर अहिले जुन Mission Accomplished को प्रचारबाजी गरिँदैछ त्यो misleading छ। राजनीतिक अधिकार बिनाको नागरिकता भनेको के? NRN हरुलाई कमैया बनाएको हो? नागरिकता भनेको दुई किसिमको हुनै सक्दैन। NRN को dual citizenship को माग पुरा भएको छैन, ज्युँका त्यूँ कायमै छ।
Thursday, June 19, 2014
NRNA USA: The Next Steps
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| Regions and eligible countries for the Diversity Visa lottery (Photo credit: Wikipedia) |
I think the membership drive by now has hit an autopilot mode. There is a natural rush among the people to join the organization. That is a far cry from the ground reality only a few years back. The use of digital tools has made a major contribution to that end.
But the membership drive is only part of the story. Modern digital tools make possible for an organization to become truly grassroots, not just during membership drives and elections, but also after. A candidate with a public Facebook page that gets updated regularly allows for an election to go beyond name and face recognition to actually igniting discussions on issues. Photos and videos from events shared on such a public Facebook page draw people in, regardless of if they showed up or not, and most can’t.
A national organization necessarily has to hold its regular meetings over conference calls. International meetings can be held over Skype. There are still conferences people show up for, but digital meetings allow for broad participation.
But the most cutting edge thing the NRNA could do would not be digital at all. Encouraging ordinary members to organize monthly home meetings would go a long way to turning the organization truly grassroots. In person is still supreme, and will continue to be.
Those monthly home meetings could be about discussing agenda items sent from the central committee, but also about suggesting agenda items that the central committee should discuss. The communication has to be two way. But the primary thrust of such meetings has to be the upward mobility of members. Most Nepalis in NYC make less than 10 dollars an hour. How can more and more members be guided to possibly making more than 10 dollars per hour? There has to be brainstorming, there has to be note sharing.
The local NRNA has to build formal vehicles to encourage more and more people in Nepal to apply for the diversity visa lottery, and make it smoother for lottery winners to transition their way into America, whether they personally know someone or not. But once here most Nepalis stay stuck in where they started for a decade or more. I think the monthly home meeting could help steer people to look beyond where they stand right now.
A lot of socioeconomic mobility is about exercising the muscles between your ears. There is so much to learn online for free or cheap that can help people move up the income brackets. And being organized helps. There is a clear social component to learning.
Shared wifi can cost as little as $10 per person. You can get a Chromebook for $250. And that is all you need to go to university. We live in an era of lifelong education. No Nepali I know is too educated to learn some more.
So far NRNA membership drives feel like an exercise to help a few dozen people get their fix of politicking and for abstract far flung concepts like dual citizenship. NRNA membership has to be made of month to month immediate relevance to its ordinary members. Beyond taking the membership of the organization past 20,000, that push should be the real thrust of the association.
Keeping all book keeping transparent online, keeping all meeting minutes transparent online would go a long way to making the organization truly grassroots. Heck, in this day and age it should be possible to produce and share video minutes of meetings on Facebook. You get a minute here, a minute there, and edit and share.
If there are two million Nepalis outside South Asia, and if 200,000 of them are in America, the country’s share comes to about 10%. Funny that the top country on the planet has been the last to get organized to some extent as far as the Non Resident Nepali movement is concerned. Perhaps some day NRNA USA might even aspire for global leadership. Going decidedly grassroots and being number one in the use of digital technology is how you get there.
Tuesday, May 13, 2014
Democratic Fermentation: NRN Style
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| Nepali architect - Arniko in Miaoying Temple (Photo credit: Wikipedia) |
This makes the NRNA the largest Nepali organization in America, and now there is no more need for another umbrella organization. There must be a few hundred Nepali organizations across America, big and small. And that is all good. But there was a need to have one organization that brought everyone together from all parts of the country. That void has been filled.
Other than a large membership base, and perhaps more important, the basic democratic process seems to have taken root in the organization, starting from the election process itself. When an organization has 4,000 members spread across America, you have no choice as a candidate but to wage a decent campaign. You have to go out there and ask for votes, or go online.
I like to joke, which is the most socio-economically backward ethnic group in NYC? Is it the Nepalis, the Tibetans, or the Bhutanis? Considering Nepal is the poorest country outside of Africa, if Nepalis are not number one from the bottom in NYC, the crowd has got to be close to the bottom, there must be a pool of such ethnic groups.
How do you organize such people? Is it possible to buck the trend? As in, could Nepal continue to be the poorest country outside of Africa, but Nepalis in NYC organize themselves in such ways that the community makes major advances as a group over a period of something like 10 years?
I think that is possible. And turning the NRNA into a mass based organization is key to any such attempt. It is not just about dual citizenship. It is also about making socio-economic advances here itself, right here in New York City. Being better organized as a community helps, and that is to do with applying the basic democratic process.
For the longest time it felt like the minuscule ANTA had more members than the giant sounding NRNA. All that has changed. 2014 is proving to be a watershed year for the organization.
When you move from 200 members to 4,000 members, that is a move in the right direction. When members can register online, that is good. When members can vote directly for those running for office, that is swell. Online voting is a tremendous idea. A candidate creating a public Facebook page elevates the conversation.
The issue of dual citizenship remains the top item on the agenda, as yet the perennial unfulfilled goal. Politicians in Nepal are scared shitless that if they were to allow the NRNs dual citizenship, some of them might show up in Nepal to run for office, and then where are we? I remember one Holi in the 1980s when all planets in the solar system came to form one straight line, and that was supposed to be the end of the world. Nothing happened. At the end of the last century, all computers of the world were supposed to go haywire. Nothing happened. There is nothing to fear and everything to gain from the dual citizenship idea. In today’s globalized world Nepal has to think of all members of its diaspora as its ambassadors. Like I like to say, you can bring in Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) or you can keep sending your workers out to Malaysia, Qatar, and where have you.
But then basic democracy is not enough. Recently I jotted down some ideas as to what a new Madhesi organization in the city might look like. Even with its recent love for basic democracy the NRNA will remain an organization where ordinary members have nothing much to do after they have paid their membership fee of 10 dollars and voted for somebody. Then all activity shifts to the few dozen active ones. I am not a big fan of that arrangement.
The basic building block of organizing Nepalis in the city has to be the Home Meeting, perhaps once a month, about 10 member strong. The emphasis has to be on helping more of the Nepalis who wish to come over to the US to come over, to help with the first phase of seeking lodging and a job. Most of that gets taken care of informally right now. Maybe there is room for something more organized. And then there has to be major emphasis on people making $10 per hour or less to help them get past that barrier. A lot of that might be to do with education and training, much of which can be done online for cheap these days. And there the social element can be a huge factor between someone moving upward, or staying stuck in third gear.
I think the same basic model of organizing can also work for Nepalis in the higher income brackets. In case you have not noticed, most of the top earners among Nepalis meet regularly, and compare notes, and help each other out.
The NRNA in NYC and in America should not just focus on the distant, seemingly abstract goal of dual citizenship, important as it is, but should primarily focus on helping its ordinary members advance socio-economically locally. Part of that also is about being efficient. Don’t get in the way of these Nepalis and the city itself and all that it has to offer. When you put together disorganized events that don’t have much focus or direction, you are basically inviting people to show up and waste their time. They work crazy hours for little pay. On their day off, they’d rather do laundry, or go visit Times Square, than show up for your event.
Can you blame them?
Friday, October 04, 2013
The Word Madisey
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| English: Abhishek Pratap Shah is a Nepalese politician, belonging to the Madhesi Janadhikar Forum. (Photo credit: Wikipedia) |
The Word Madisey
By Paramendra Bhagat
www.paramendra.com
The word madisey is like the word nigger. It is hate speech. There is no nice way to say it. There is no tone of voice that is right. You can call someone a Teraiwasi. You can call someone a Madhesi. There is a Madhesi Janadhikar Forum, there is no Madisey Janadhikar Forum. Someone from Mithila is a Maithil. I take great pride in my heritage. But hate speech is inexcusable. You can call me Indian, I am half Indian. But hate speech is a whole different paradigm.
Suman Timilsina was national president of the Non Resident Nepali Association when he said the m-word, in a public speech too. I took great exception to it. My blog post taking offense is still in the archives online. Timilsina is nowhere to be seen anywhere in the public space. He does not belong.
I was at the Woodside Café with some friends a few months ago. Someone at an adjacent table but within hearing distance kept saying the m-word. He also used the “dhoti” term quite liberally. He was not anyone I knew or who knew me. He was not talking to me. The guy was using the hate terms to talk about his Indian boss in the city. Obviously he would not say that to the boss’ face. This was not racism that was coming out of any claim to superiority. I did not speak a word of protest. But I arranged to have tea with my friend a week or two later. And I asked about that guy. Who was that “namak haram,” I asked. The underwear that guy is wearing he must have bought with the money his boss gives him, I guessed out loud. But look at the racist way he was talking about his boss.
Some of the poorest white folks in the deep South are some of the most racist white folks in America today. White folks in the northeast and along the West Coast look down upon them, so they look for people to look down upon too. They look in the direction of Africa. Poor Nepalis talking racist about Indians fall in some similar weird category. That is like low income senior citizens in my homevillage in Nepal thinking white Christians are lower than the so-called untouchables. It is a fabricated superiority mindset that might not go away anytime soon but it has absolutely no basis in reality. The socio-economic indicators provide no leverage to that way of thinking.
The word madisey is like the word nigger. The word Madhesi is like the word Negro. The word Teraiwasi is akin to the term African American. Teraiwasi is a respectable term. But the word Madhesi has cultural connotations. 40% of the Teraiwasis today are of hill origin. They are not culturally Madhesi. The word Madhesi encompasses the Maithili, Bhojpuri, Awadhi, Tharu, Urdu, Hindi and Marwari speakers.
Madisey, bhote, and jyapu are not nice terms. I hear in Britain Paki is a similar derogatory term for all South Asians. The respectable term of course would be Desi. Many Nepalis protest the use of that word. To me that is like saying a Nepali is not South Asian. Of course a Nepali is a South Asian. Of course a Nepali is a Desi.
The term Bahadur and pakhey are also derogatory. I disapprove of the use of the word Bahadur in India. It is hate speech. But that use does not justify the use of the word madisey. I support the idea of a Gorkhaland state in India and all peaceful action that will lead to its creation.
There is some major work to be done to create a positive pan South Asian identity in Jackson Heights. The community is at peace and the crime rate is low, but it is too fragmented. Most people stay within their comfort zones socially. There are the country groups, and there are the various ethnic groups within those country groups. The right to peaceful assembly is a basic human right and rightly so. So I am not going to protest the various pretexts people find to come together. But I think effort has to be made to create a larger tent.
At one end you are an individual and you need your personal space and dignity. At the other end you are part of the humanity at large. And there are many groups in between, all of which deserve to co-exist peacefully.
You can make a practical case to simply ignore some Neanderthals making peaceful use of hate speech. The positive change might not come fast enough. But I think it is a fairly simple proposition to say hate speech should meet social ostracism. A community that makes the effort towards positive interactions will be a more productive community.
There are practical implications. Hate speech gets in the way of the riches. A community that tolerates hate speech will not cut all possible business deals and will lag behind. New, higher levels of cooperation will not be an option for a Nepali community that is okay with the use of the word madisey. That word creates roadblocks and gets in the way of wealth creation.
Jackson Heights is only a few blocks of India but it is the most famous Indian neighborhood in all of North America. For a Nepali to talk hate speech against Indians in a place like Jackson Heights has got to be one of the less wise things. Don’t do it.
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