I have just measured myself up to provide baseline figures for the fitness drive I am going to embark upon in the lead up to my participation in the BUPA 10km run in London next year. The data are not impressive.
Height - 1.74m
Weight - 80kg
Waist - 99cm
Hips - 101 cm
Oh dear. Consultation with the BUPA website indicates that it's currently not looking good for my prospects of avoiding a heart attack. My Body Mass Index (BMI) which is calculated by dividing weight in kg by height in metres stands at 26.42; a figure of between 25-30 is considered "overweight". Encouraged by the recent medical evidence that BMI is a less reliable measure of risk than Waist to Hip ratio I calculated that one enthusiastically. My optimism was short lived. The ratio works out at 0.98 - a figure of greater than .90 takes me into the high risk zone.
Anyway, encouraged by a family member's contribution of £2k towards my sponsorship page this morning the fitness drive begins today. As I am nearing my first fundraising target of £1k for every km of the run I am going to set myself a real challenge. I am no athlete, decreasingly so as the years go on, and have little chance of realising my idle boast to friends of being first across the line. Instead I am going to try to set a record for the amount raised by an individual and maybe also by a charity running team in this particular event. I am awaiting information from the event organisers as to what the highest sponsorship has been in the past.
Guinness Book of Records here we come!
Tuesday 11 November 2008
Monday 10 November 2008
The banality of evil
When Adolf Eichmann, the infamous architect of Hitler's "Final Solution" against th
e Jews, was finally captured and presented in an Israeli court in 1963 the public was in for a surprise. For his was not the face of an ogre. Instead a very ordinairy, diminutive, bespectacled bureaucrat was being accused of the most horrendous of charges. This experience led to a book being published called "Eichmann in Jerusalem" with the subtitle "The banality of evil". My mind turned to this last evening after I received this picture of Kaajiman Shrestha, a Nepali who is currently facing charges of trafficking children to the Indian circuses. He was apprehended by Esther Benjamins Trust staff after allegedly having been involved in sending scores of children to a living hell that masqueraded as circus life. He's of course not remotely in the same league as Eichmann, but he looks a fairly benign kind of a chap, one that you wouldn't look twice at if you met him in the street. If convicted he faces twenty years in prison.
e Jews, was finally captured and presented in an Israeli court in 1963 the public was in for a surprise. For his was not the face of an ogre. Instead a very ordinairy, diminutive, bespectacled bureaucrat was being accused of the most horrendous of charges. This experience led to a book being published called "Eichmann in Jerusalem" with the subtitle "The banality of evil". My mind turned to this last evening after I received this picture of Kaajiman Shrestha, a Nepali who is currently facing charges of trafficking children to the Indian circuses. He was apprehended by Esther Benjamins Trust staff after allegedly having been involved in sending scores of children to a living hell that masqueraded as circus life. He's of course not remotely in the same league as Eichmann, but he looks a fairly benign kind of a chap, one that you wouldn't look twice at if you met him in the street. If convicted he faces twenty years in prison.
Monday 3 November 2008
Flickr
I have just embraced "Flickr" which allows me to share Trust photographs through an online album and that automatically places pictures onto this blog, Facebook and to my charity run fundraising page (hint, hint). I have uploaded a few pictures from our circus rescue in June, but I would recommend that you have a look at the trekking collection that I have uploaded this morning. Essentially the older refuge children who are taking part in the International Award scheme become involved in a range of activities from community work to adventurous training that develops them as well-rounded citizens, even the leaders tomorrow. Thanks to the Body Shop Foundation we were able to purchase trekking and camping equipment which has allowed the children to go off on regular trips with their carers and with guides.
The images of the happy children in the trekking collection belie the grim backgrounds that they've all come from. It is so common for our work to attract comment about "institutionalisation". Do these children look institutionalised to you?
The images of the happy children in the trekking collection belie the grim backgrounds that they've all come from. It is so common for our work to attract comment about "institutionalisation". Do these children look institutionalised to you?
Saturday 1 November 2008
Feet of clay
I have just returned from Saturday lunch with the children at the refuge. It's a lovely sunny 
day in Kathmandu and I was pleased to see upon arrival at the refuge that Shailaja, typically, was not lazing in the sun. Instead she had put the sun to work for her with two solar ovens up and running, baking bread for the children's lunch. And very good it was too. We are working towards using the larger, trailer mounted, solar oven commercially as it bakes more bread than even our voracious children can eat. That could provide a handy income to the local organisation, albeit a modest one. 
However that which can lead to intrinsic strength can also foster the weakness of dependence. And what happens when these social and family bonds fail and children end up sent to prison because there is no one prepared to bear the stigma of caring for the children of prisoners (even if they are relatives) or when children get sold and are trafficked into modern day slavery in the Indian circuses? Usually this represents an irretrievable breakdown of those bonds as families dissolve around the trafficking victims. The only answer surely is to "empower" (a grossly overused word within the development sector) the survivors and prepare children and young people to face the adult life in a tough country without being solely reliant upon support that may well be founded upon feet of clay.
day in Kathmandu and I was pleased to see upon arrival at the refuge that Shailaja, typically, was not lazing in the sun. Instead she had put the sun to work for her with two solar ovens up and running, baking bread for the children's lunch. And very good it was too. We are working towards using the larger, trailer mounted, solar oven commercially as it bakes more bread than even our voracious children can eat. That could provide a handy income to the local organisation, albeit a modest one. 
Next week will see the start of an external evaluation of our work and yesterday I was revisiting a previous evaluation from 2005 which needs to be taken into consideration 
by a different evaluator, Jason Hoke, who will be conducting a more in-depth review. The evaluator at that time was very naive, surprisingly so since he'd lived for 20 years in Nepal and spoke the language, taking pretty well everything that the (then) local staff said to him at face value. Much of his report still grates with me. But one particularly unfair comment that was made was that by teaching children independent living and how to fend for themselves we were erroneously bringing them up in a Western way. In Nepali culture there is a great deal of interdependence within the family and the community. These links are reinforced through religious practice and festivals like the ones we've just had, Dashain and Tihar, when parent/child and sibling/sibling relationships are re-affirmed. Undoubtedly these practices can add a great deal of strength to family life, an inherent strength that we could indeed learn from in the West.
by a different evaluator, Jason Hoke, who will be conducting a more in-depth review. The evaluator at that time was very naive, surprisingly so since he'd lived for 20 years in Nepal and spoke the language, taking pretty well everything that the (then) local staff said to him at face value. Much of his report still grates with me. But one particularly unfair comment that was made was that by teaching children independent living and how to fend for themselves we were erroneously bringing them up in a Western way. In Nepali culture there is a great deal of interdependence within the family and the community. These links are reinforced through religious practice and festivals like the ones we've just had, Dashain and Tihar, when parent/child and sibling/sibling relationships are re-affirmed. Undoubtedly these practices can add a great deal of strength to family life, an inherent strength that we could indeed learn from in the West.However that which can lead to intrinsic strength can also foster the weakness of dependence. And what happens when these social and family bonds fail and children end up sent to prison because there is no one prepared to bear the stigma of caring for the children of prisoners (even if they are relatives) or when children get sold and are trafficked into modern day slavery in the Indian circuses? Usually this represents an irretrievable breakdown of those bonds as families dissolve around the trafficking victims. The only answer surely is to "empower" (a grossly overused word within the development sector) the survivors and prepare children and young people to face the adult life in a tough country without being solely reliant upon support that may well be founded upon feet of clay.
Friday 31 October 2008
Bailo
During the festival of Tihar Nepalese children perform "Bailo" going around people's houses singing and dancing in return for a donation and some treats - a bit like "trick or treat" in the Western world. Yesterday the refuge children came to my home and I recorded a short video of their trip. I have just now posted that footage to my charity run fundraising page in the hope that any viewers will contribute something to my online sponsorship in appreciation, just as I was pleased to put my hand into my pocket yesterday:
http://www.justgiving.com/philipholmesbupa
A donation can be modest and I don't expect many to compete with the gentleman who added £5k to the kitty yesterday!
http://www.justgiving.com/philipholmesbupa
A donation can be modest and I don't expect many to compete with the gentleman who added £5k to the kitty yesterday!
Wednesday 29 October 2008
I hate mobile culture
It became a running joke with my friends that I didn't possess a mobile until I reluct
antly accepted one a couple of years ago. And then only because one of them bought me one out of exasperation at being unable to reach me. My problem was not with the technology per se - I love communications and ease of accessibility, particularly when trying to run a UK charity from Kathmandu and to stay in touch with friends and supporters. Instead I was troubled by becoming part of mobile culture, within which those who own the confounded things feel compelled to use and answer them, however inappropriate, wherever they may be and whatever the occasion. Take a look at the picture I received this morning of former circus girl Maya who I have mentioned in a previous post as being a talented distance runner. She's just 15 but yesterday came 9th in a 3km run against national adult athletes. In the picture she's receiving a prize from the local MP but just look at the geezer in the background who is so subtley (not) concealing his use of his mobile.
antly accepted one a couple of years ago. And then only because one of them bought me one out of exasperation at being unable to reach me. My problem was not with the technology per se - I love communications and ease of accessibility, particularly when trying to run a UK charity from Kathmandu and to stay in touch with friends and supporters. Instead I was troubled by becoming part of mobile culture, within which those who own the confounded things feel compelled to use and answer them, however inappropriate, wherever they may be and whatever the occasion. Take a look at the picture I received this morning of former circus girl Maya who I have mentioned in a previous post as being a talented distance runner. She's just 15 but yesterday came 9th in a 3km run against national adult athletes. In the picture she's receiving a prize from the local MP but just look at the geezer in the background who is so subtley (not) concealing his use of his mobile.I am considering bringing Maya over to London for a future running event if my Trust can find some sponsorship for her nearer the time. That would be the chance of a lifetime for her and well deserved.
On the subject of which, don't forget my online sponsorship form for the BUPA 10km run:
Sponsorship is developing nicely as is interest from fellow runners. Two of my London-based staff, Chris Kendrick and Nadia Kamel, will be joining me, as will six other supporters (so far). If you would like to come too, registration for the race opened yesterday:
Laxmi
We are in the midst of the Nepalese festival of Tihar which is equivalent to Diwali, the festival of lights in India. Yesterday prayers were being offered to the goddess of wealth, Laxmi. It's remarkable how theologically opposed this is to Christianity which rejects prosperity - at least in principle. In bygone years devotees would place an array of little oil lamps around their houses to attract Laxmi to their hearth but these days they drape buildings with huge lengths of fairy lights for the same purpose.
Last evening was one of the three evenings per week of scheduled power cuts. The electricity went off at 5.45 as per normal but to my surprise it came back on again half an hour later (normally the power is off for three hours). Then I realised that someone somewhere must have realised that the cut would have meant no fairy lights and no enticement of Laxmi.
This morning it was back to "normal" with no power when we awoke, the reality of Nepal's poverty and our getting up in the dark with a screaming Alisha who is now firmly in "the terrible twos".
Last evening was one of the three evenings per week of scheduled power cuts. The electricity went off at 5.45 as per normal but to my surprise it came back on again half an hour later (normally the power is off for three hours). Then I realised that someone somewhere must have realised that the cut would have meant no fairy lights and no enticement of Laxmi.
This morning it was back to "normal" with no power when we awoke, the reality of Nepal's poverty and our getting up in the dark with a screaming Alisha who is now firmly in "the terrible twos".
Tuesday 28 October 2008
Jane and Olwyn go to Hetauda
During their volunteer attachment with The Esther Benjamins Trust in Nepal,
Jane McKears (pictured right with Programme Coordinator Binod Bhujel) went with Olwyn Cupid to assist at our branch office in Hetauda. Hetauda is the principal town in Makwanpur District which before our work had its positive impact was the main child trafficking area to the Indian circuses. This is what Jane wrote about her time there:
We were drawn to the project by a number of things. I had briefly visited the project at Bhairahawa and was attracted to the positive and optimistic attitude at the centre. It quickly became clear to me that this really is a charity which is here for the benefit of the children and not the Directors. With my having a background in Health Visiting and Child Protection, and Olwyn being an Inspector of schools, we soon recognized the project as being totally child-centred. Our first few days were spent at Godawari, which is five miles outside of Kathmandu. In this gentle oasis, we picked oranges from the trees in our garden [I wondered where those had gone to...] and enjoyed views from our rooftop towards Everest. Outside in the road, goats and hens wandered amongst brightly painted lorries.
Jane McKears (pictured right with Programme Coordinator Binod Bhujel) went with Olwyn Cupid to assist at our branch office in Hetauda. Hetauda is the principal town in Makwanpur District which before our work had its positive impact was the main child trafficking area to the Indian circuses. This is what Jane wrote about her time there:"Olwyn and I came to Nepal to do five weeks voluntary work over the Desai holiday period. Both of us are widely travelled, and Olwyn in particular has seen most of the world.
We were drawn to the project by a number of things. I had briefly visited the project at Bhairahawa and was attracted to the positive and optimistic attitude at the centre. It quickly became clear to me that this really is a charity which is here for the benefit of the children and not the Directors. With my having a background in Health Visiting and Child Protection, and Olwyn being an Inspector of schools, we soon recognized the project as being totally child-centred. Our first few days were spent at Godawari, which is five miles outside of Kathmandu. In this gentle oasis, we picked oranges from the trees in our garden [I wondered where those had gone to...] and enjoyed views from our rooftop towards Everest. Outside in the road, goats and hens wandered amongst brightly painted lorries.
After a couple of frustrating days when we did not even know where the children were, we were able to join them at last. It was such fun, teaching them to play "What's the time Mr. Wolf" and other games. They actually screamed with excitement. It was only later that we discovered some of the "children" were 19 years old, but having had their childhood destroyed, they were learning to play. I gave an impromptu First Aid Course with an almost empty First Aid box, but the children appreciated practicing covering an open wound.
The following week we were transferred to Hetauda. Nothing in our previous travels prepared us for the ten hour bus journey there. Cramped into the small back seat which we shared with 2 men, we could not move our legs at all, but felt more fortunate than those sitting on the roof…especially when the late monsoon flooded our road. The 14 seater bus conveyed 26 of us along, not counting those sitting on the roof. It was stifling hot, and the pot-holed road was emphasized by the lack of suspension. Bouncing along as though we were horse-riding, I was once bounced up so high I banged my head on the ceiling of the bus. Respite came with a loo stop. Looking out through the large hole, which replaced a window, I was able to enjoy beautiful rural views whilst having a wee. Naturally when we unpacked our cases, which had been strapped to the roof throughout the downpour, the entire contents were soaking!
So why did the morning find us relaxed and contented? Nepali people are amongst the friendliest in the world. And the children at our project were welcoming and helpful. By lunch time I had had my toe nails and left hand finger nails painted scarlet by the children, and Olwyn had enjoyed showing them how to use her camera. Plentiful meals of dhal bhat were provided, which were delicious but mountainous! We had great fun singing English and Nepali songs together, and then had ball games which reminded me how much fun childhood can be. It wasn't all fun of course. The regular water and electricity cuts were frustrating, but we followed the lead of the children who took it all in due course. Neither did we like the mosquitoes which seemed particularly attracted to us.
Highlights for me included, taking a pregnant girl to hospital for a check up, where it was interesting to see the ante-natal check up. We both loved visiting the families of circus returnees to see if the girls had settled well back at home. Seeing families live in 2 roomed mud huts was not a new experience for us, but gaining insight into the social causes of child trafficking was an eye-opener. It is not just simply illiteracy that leads families to believe their children will be transformed into film stars, but a simplicity which is associated with the geographical limits of their lifestyles. One family we visited, were of the Chepang tribe. They are the poorest tribe in Nepal and live their entire lives in the jungle, eating only what can be found there. They live in houses of mud and branches, and never leave the area. Imagine how tragically simple it would be to fool them that their daughter was about to be given a great future in the circus. As Hetaudu is prone to child trafficking, the staff have been out with loudspeakers , conducting awareness campaigns. Let's hope this reduces the incidence.
Our time at Hetauda was also used to conduct a research project to find the current state of the circuses in India,. This will inform the future direction of the work of the Trust.. most of what the circus returnees, and ex-circus managers told us, only reinforced knowledge already available to the Trust. It was extremely painful for us to hear the girls describe their treatment, but this just served to strengthen our commitment to supporting the work of the Esther Benjamins Trust.
If you are thinking of coming here as a volunteer, please bring with you an open mind. Nepali culture is complex and diverse. Would I recommend that you come here as a volunteer? Well, yes – if you have the skills and knowledge which are useful to the Esther Benjamins Trust. Remember that the volunteer experience is primarily to benefit the children, and our own enjoyment is secondary. For both of us this has been a wonderful experience, peppered with a great sadness at suffering which we cannot erase."
Table Tennis
Yesterday I opened a mini youth club at the Trust's children's refuge at Godaw
ari, Kathmandu and inaugurated the table tennis table. The facility isn't lavish - it's all we can afford - but it will mean a lot to the kids who are getting older and more energetic by the day. Afterwards I welcomed new volunteer Carole Swithern and bade farewell to outgoing volunteers Jane McKears and Olwyn Cupid. This has been a record year for the number of volunteers who have come to help us out and quantity has been matched by quality.
I now have seven runners (self included) pledged to take part in the BUPA 10km run for which online registration opens today. We are planning to do the run with clowns' (sad) faces with the message that the Indian circus is no laughing matter. I am those who have been very quick off the mark to sponsor me. I have been so encouraged that I have upped the fundraising target to £10,000, aiming to raise £1,000 for each kilometer that I run in the year of the Trust's 10th birthday. New runners and sponsors most welcome!
I am very proud of our new look website, which has had a total makeover and went live at the weekend.
ari, Kathmandu and inaugurated the table tennis table. The facility isn't lavish - it's all we can afford - but it will mean a lot to the kids who are getting older and more energetic by the day. Afterwards I welcomed new volunteer Carole Swithern and bade farewell to outgoing volunteers Jane McKears and Olwyn Cupid. This has been a record year for the number of volunteers who have come to help us out and quantity has been matched by quality.I now have seven runners (self included) pledged to take part in the BUPA 10km run for which online registration opens today. We are planning to do the run with clowns' (sad) faces with the message that the Indian circus is no laughing matter. I am those who have been very quick off the mark to sponsor me. I have been so encouraged that I have upped the fundraising target to £10,000, aiming to raise £1,000 for each kilometer that I run in the year of the Trust's 10th birthday. New runners and sponsors most welcome!
I am very proud of our new look website, which has had a total makeover and went live at the weekend.
Saturday 25 October 2008
Dashain fall out
Earlier this month I described in a post how most of our refuge children go back to their villages to stay with family members for the main Hindu festival of Dashain. On the face of it our sending them back makes good sense as it's fulfilling the wishes of children to enjoy some semblance of family life and it keeps them in contact with families. Family bonds are very important in Nepal. However, this practice carries huge risks and once again we've had our annual raft of disasters. I met with the children's carer, Shailaja, yesterday to discuss the fall out from Dashain and the non return of a few children and teenagers.
It seems from our discussion that a large part of the problem comes from children leaving the structured routine of our refuge in Kathmandu to the unstructured (indeed chaotic) lifestyle back in their villages. Unsupervised by parents, the children are free to roam around the place, make acquaintances (some of which can be very unhealthy) and develop alternative naive visions for their short term futures. And so they come to the decision to drop out of education or training and in the case of at least four of those who are not coming back to us, to get married. Needless to say, the education and training that we offer provide a real future, but the children/teenagers don't necessarily see it that way and their families are too ignorant to counsel them otherwise.
Shailaja was clearly saddened during our discussion as she is very emotionally involved with the children. She has known some of them for years and it was she more than anyone who turned a few of them around after they emerged as basket cases from the abuse of the Indian circus. She's also upset in the knowledge that the children haven't realised their full potentials and won't get another chance or as good a chance again. And she knows that, after making a personal visit to the see the children at their homes this week that they won't be persuaded to come back to us. We have to therefore console ourselves in the knowledge that we have provided a stable emotional bridge between the circus and return to the community. Without that bridge the returnees' reintegration would have been difficult, if not impossible.
The vacant places at the refuge will be filled again soon; there are plenty of other young children - vulnerable siblings of returnees - who could use those vacancies and be offered a chance in life. However we decided yesterday that in future we will obtain a commitment from children and their parents that in the final four years before taking the all important School Leaver's Certificate examination (at age 16) refuge children will not return to their villages for Dashain or any other festival. Parents can come to see the children if they so wish. We have to ensure that expensive charity refuge/education places are used to their full potential and that children don't find themselves in the village environment which is so conducive to taking wrong decisions at a critical time for their future.
It's very hard to strike the right balance in this kind of work but if you keep at the forefront of your mind what is in the best interests of the individual child then you won't go far wrong.
It seems from our discussion that a large part of the problem comes from children leaving the structured routine of our refuge in Kathmandu to the unstructured (indeed chaotic) lifestyle back in their villages. Unsupervised by parents, the children are free to roam around the place, make acquaintances (some of which can be very unhealthy) and develop alternative naive visions for their short term futures. And so they come to the decision to drop out of education or training and in the case of at least four of those who are not coming back to us, to get married. Needless to say, the education and training that we offer provide a real future, but the children/teenagers don't necessarily see it that way and their families are too ignorant to counsel them otherwise.
Shailaja was clearly saddened during our discussion as she is very emotionally involved with the children. She has known some of them for years and it was she more than anyone who turned a few of them around after they emerged as basket cases from the abuse of the Indian circus. She's also upset in the knowledge that the children haven't realised their full potentials and won't get another chance or as good a chance again. And she knows that, after making a personal visit to the see the children at their homes this week that they won't be persuaded to come back to us. We have to therefore console ourselves in the knowledge that we have provided a stable emotional bridge between the circus and return to the community. Without that bridge the returnees' reintegration would have been difficult, if not impossible.
The vacant places at the refuge will be filled again soon; there are plenty of other young children - vulnerable siblings of returnees - who could use those vacancies and be offered a chance in life. However we decided yesterday that in future we will obtain a commitment from children and their parents that in the final four years before taking the all important School Leaver's Certificate examination (at age 16) refuge children will not return to their villages for Dashain or any other festival. Parents can come to see the children if they so wish. We have to ensure that expensive charity refuge/education places are used to their full potential and that children don't find themselves in the village environment which is so conducive to taking wrong decisions at a critical time for their future.
It's very hard to strike the right balance in this kind of work but if you keep at the forefront of your mind what is in the best interests of the individual child then you won't go far wrong.
Monday 20 October 2008
A long time in charity
Former UK Prime Minister, the late Harold Wilson, once said that "a week is a long time in politics". After my fundraising experiences of the past week I am inclined to the view that it can also be a long time in the charitable sector. For at the start of the week I was quite bullish about our chances of being able to balance The Esther Benjamins Trust's books next year through a new raft of funding applications to grant making foundations that we have just issued. However last week we received rejection after rejection, including from traditionally generous historical funders. I can only infer that those foundations are as worried about donating as has become the general public in the present global financial crisis.
On Saturday I wrote to my Trustees to share my concerns and propose that we cast the fundraising net even wider than before in the coming year. One of the new initiatives that I have suggested is the Trust's participation in the annual BUPA 10km run in London on the 25th May next year. Online application will open on 28th October but the Trustees have agreed that we will purchase an additional 30 guaranteed places to ensure that we can field a good team. And I have decided to put my feet where my mouth is and join the run myself. I'll be inviting supporters to join me but if you can't do so please sponsor me through the online form that can be accessed through this blog.
On Saturday I wrote to my Trustees to share my concerns and propose that we cast the fundraising net even wider than before in the coming year. One of the new initiatives that I have suggested is the Trust's participation in the annual BUPA 10km run in London on the 25th May next year. Online application will open on 28th October but the Trustees have agreed that we will purchase an additional 30 guaranteed places to ensure that we can field a good team. And I have decided to put my feet where my mouth is and join the run myself. I'll be inviting supporters to join me but if you can't do so please sponsor me through the online form that can be accessed through this blog.
Friday 17 October 2008
All things to all people
Many of the local NGOs in Nepal seem to think that their best chance of securing overseas funding is to try to be all things to all people (potential donors). Take for example this bid that I received yesterday from an NGO that I had never heard of before. In spite of having a very broad range of NGO interests (objectives) that cover just about everything imaginable within the development sector, the activity in this "proposal" comes down to nothing more than indiscriminate spraying of village houses with pesticide (not sure that I'd care for that much around my home):
Main Objective of the NGO:
A.) To launch the various activities for the development of Agriculture & Veterinary Sectors.
B.) To implement Rural Water Supply & Sanitation and Toilet Construction Programme.
C.) To implement world charter of child rights and their development.
D.) To implement various activities for the people under natural disaster.
E.) To improve the living standard of deprived lower caste & scheduled tribe by mobilizing them into groups.
F.) To implement various activities in health sector.
G.) To assist in poverty alleviation of low income families.
H.) To disseminate knowledge about education & conduct training for self employment.
I.) To improve internal infrastructure of tourism. And
J.) To mobilize women into groups to improve their living standard, skill development and income generation.
B. Project Details:
Name of the project: Pest Control
Project Site::District: Dhanusha VDC: Nanupatti, Pachharwa, Sonigama, Chakkar, Aurahi, Duhabi, Bafai, Lakhauri, Dhabauli, Hattipur Harwara ,Sabela, Satokhar, Kharihani, Deori Parbaha & Dhanauji.
Project Duration:Date of Commencement: Jan, 2009
Date of Completion: Feb, 2009
Project Status: NewProject
Sector: HealthProject
Selection Criteria:
I) Pest Control is the basic need of all living being. Like cockroach, mosquito & flees are spreading the disease in to the life. As the people of these areas highly demanded to have pest control spray in to their home from donor based organization like us.
II) Cholera, Malaria & Viral Fever like disease are attacking to the healthy people due to heavy attack of flees & mosquito.
Project Objective: Get rid off from the pest attack and spreading disease.
Project Implementation Process:We will hire the expert in the field and then by spray the dilution of DDC Chemical in each village by door to door at the pre-information to the house holder.
Target No. of Beneficiaries: More than 50000 people
Expected Out come: 100% result oriented based on pest control.
Monitoring & Evaluation of the Project: The work will be monitored by the joint committee from the NGO, District Health Organization and local community.
Preparation and submission of progress report: At the end of Project (one copy to the Donor Agency and One copy to the Social welfare council).
Sustainability of the project: Every year we have schedule to inspect the areas whether pest control is required or not if yes we will conduct the project on the donation basis of donor agency.
Proposed Amount: Total Proposal of amount for the project: NRS. 11, 00,000 (Financial) Cost of Programme: 650000 Cost of Administration: 450000 (Including Over head)
Personnel Required: No Of Local Staff: 15 people Inspection Team: 3 People"
I can think of better ways of spending £10,000 in Nepal.
"Proposal for the Pest Control
Main Objective of the NGO:
A.) To launch the various activities for the development of Agriculture & Veterinary Sectors.
B.) To implement Rural Water Supply & Sanitation and Toilet Construction Programme.
C.) To implement world charter of child rights and their development.
D.) To implement various activities for the people under natural disaster.
E.) To improve the living standard of deprived lower caste & scheduled tribe by mobilizing them into groups.
F.) To implement various activities in health sector.
G.) To assist in poverty alleviation of low income families.
H.) To disseminate knowledge about education & conduct training for self employment.
I.) To improve internal infrastructure of tourism. And
J.) To mobilize women into groups to improve their living standard, skill development and income generation.
B. Project Details:
Name of the project: Pest Control
Project Site::District: Dhanusha VDC: Nanupatti, Pachharwa, Sonigama, Chakkar, Aurahi, Duhabi, Bafai, Lakhauri, Dhabauli, Hattipur Harwara ,Sabela, Satokhar, Kharihani, Deori Parbaha & Dhanauji.
Project Duration:Date of Commencement: Jan, 2009
Date of Completion: Feb, 2009
Project Status: NewProject
Sector: HealthProject
Selection Criteria:
I) Pest Control is the basic need of all living being. Like cockroach, mosquito & flees are spreading the disease in to the life. As the people of these areas highly demanded to have pest control spray in to their home from donor based organization like us.
II) Cholera, Malaria & Viral Fever like disease are attacking to the healthy people due to heavy attack of flees & mosquito.
Project Objective: Get rid off from the pest attack and spreading disease.
Project Implementation Process:We will hire the expert in the field and then by spray the dilution of DDC Chemical in each village by door to door at the pre-information to the house holder.
Target No. of Beneficiaries: More than 50000 people
Expected Out come: 100% result oriented based on pest control.
Monitoring & Evaluation of the Project: The work will be monitored by the joint committee from the NGO, District Health Organization and local community.
Preparation and submission of progress report: At the end of Project (one copy to the Donor Agency and One copy to the Social welfare council).
Sustainability of the project: Every year we have schedule to inspect the areas whether pest control is required or not if yes we will conduct the project on the donation basis of donor agency.
Proposed Amount: Total Proposal of amount for the project: NRS. 11, 00,000 (Financial) Cost of Programme: 650000 Cost of Administration: 450000 (Including Over head)
Personnel Required: No Of Local Staff: 15 people Inspection Team: 3 People"
I can think of better ways of spending £10,000 in Nepal.
Friday 10 October 2008
Goose-a-laying
My charity's Christmas cards are now available for purchase. The cover shows a mosaic entitled "Goose-a-laying" (as per the 12 Days of Christmas carol) that was made by Kumari, a former circus girl who is a graduate of the art workshop that we've been running in Kathmandu this year. The cards sell at £3.99 for a 
pack of 8, with postage and packing costs of:
Up to 4 packs - £1.65
Up to 6 packs - £1.75
Up to 8 packs - £2.00
Up to 10 packs - £2.55
Once again, through the kind sponsorship of leading London-based engineering company Ramboll Whitbybird, 100% of the purchase price represents a donation to The Esther Benjamins Trust (EBT). Recipients of the card will be able to order an original of the mosaic - which is from a limited edition - that will ensure trafficking survivors are kept
in work making them well into January. So beat that for a charity Christmas card offer!
You can place your order by contacting EBT through e mail - info@ebtrust.org.uk - by telephone - 020 7600 5654 or through placing an order via the Trust's website - www.ebtrust.org.uk/site/home.htm
pack of 8, with postage and packing costs of:Up to 4 packs - £1.65
Up to 6 packs - £1.75
Up to 8 packs - £2.00
Up to 10 packs - £2.55
Once again, through the kind sponsorship of leading London-based engineering company Ramboll Whitbybird, 100% of the purchase price represents a donation to The Esther Benjamins Trust (EBT). Recipients of the card will be able to order an original of the mosaic - which is from a limited edition - that will ensure trafficking survivors are kept
in work making them well into January. So beat that for a charity Christmas card offer!You can place your order by contacting EBT through e mail - info@ebtrust.org.uk - by telephone - 020 7600 5654 or through placing an order via the Trust's website - www.ebtrust.org.uk/site/home.htm
Thursday 9 October 2008
Vijaya Dashain
Today was Vijaya Dashain, the tenth and main day of the festival of Dashain. Normally it's when young people visit family homesteads to receive a blessing and "tika" mark on the forehead from the family elders. Also included in the package is a few barley shoots tucked behind the right ear of the recipient of the blessing and a gift, that usually involves a small amount of money.
I went to our children's refuge this morning to act as the "family elder" for about
50 children who had nowhere to go to this Dashain. They included children who were HIV positive that had been rejected by their families but probably also a few of our older boys and girls who had given up on their natural families and preferred their friends' company rather than attending a shallow family celebration. Often these same family members had trafficked them to the circuses or wrecked their lives through alcohol abuse and various misdemeanours that had led to prison sentences.
The occasion went well and it was as moving for me as ever. For the first time five of the older boys (aged 16-18) after receiving my blessing (which is of rather dubious merit) bent down and touched my feet with their heads as a mark of respect. This leaves you feeling very awkward but it brought home to me just how much these kids realised what had been done for them, not just by me but by the charity as a whole - trustees, staff, volunteers and supporters. At times I rant about the trials and tribulations of working in this very difficult society - including in this blog - but today all the effort felt very worthwhile.
I went to our children's refuge this morning to act as the "family elder" for about
50 children who had nowhere to go to this Dashain. They included children who were HIV positive that had been rejected by their families but probably also a few of our older boys and girls who had given up on their natural families and preferred their friends' company rather than attending a shallow family celebration. Often these same family members had trafficked them to the circuses or wrecked their lives through alcohol abuse and various misdemeanours that had led to prison sentences.The occasion went well and it was as moving for me as ever. For the first time five of the older boys (aged 16-18) after receiving my blessing (which is of rather dubious merit) bent down and touched my feet with their heads as a mark of respect. This leaves you feeling very awkward but it brought home to me just how much these kids realised what had been done for them, not just by me but by the charity as a whole - trustees, staff, volunteers and supporters. At times I rant about the trials and tribulations of working in this very difficult society - including in this blog - but today all the effort felt very worthwhile.
Wednesday 8 October 2008
Vehicle worship
I returned to our children's refuge in Godawari this morning to continue with my experiments in smoking food. The results of yesterday's fish smoking looked very appetising but might
have been a little overcooked. The taste was great though and received the thumbs up from the local staff members who'd helped me with the smoking yesterday. Today I am trying to produce tandoori smoked chicken in advance of letting the refuge children try all the products when I attend the main Dashain ceremony there tomorrow.
have been a little overcooked. The taste was great though and received the thumbs up from the local staff members who'd helped me with the smoking yesterday. Today I am trying to produce tandoori smoked chicken in advance of letting the refuge children try all the products when I attend the main Dashain ceremony there tomorrow.Driving through Kathmandu it's very quiet at the moment with most shops closed and few vehicles on the road. Dashain is the main Hindu festival and
it's really a time for being at home with family or going back to one's ancestral village to visit relatives, hence the deserted streets. There are quite a few homemade swings ("pings") made out of bamboo poles to be seen in open spaces (including one at the refuge) that are designed to take the child literally and metaphorically heavenward and away from earthly things. However to my eye this doesn't quite fit with some of the other, more material, devotions. As I left the refuge today the staff were decorating the NGO's vehicles - bus, jeep and motorbike - with garlands and sugar cane leaves as part of a worship procedure while children were playing on a ping in the background. The Director, Shailaja, who is a practising Roman Catholic, smiled indulgently and told me that if she didn't allow this then if there were any future breakdowns she'd be blamed for not have allowed "puja" or "prayers" to have taken place. So she's gone with the flow which is actually a very Nepali thing to do and this easy going, tolerant approach I suppose is part of the charm of this place.
Tuesday 7 October 2008
No way to treat a filing cabinet
In August I attended a one day course at "Smoky Jo's" near Shap in the English Lake District, learning everything that you could ever want to know about how to smoke meat, fish, vegetables - anything really. My picture appears on the Smoky Jo's website gallery:
The purpose of my attending the course (which I would highly recommend) was to establish if I could learn some basic skills that could be transferable to Nepal as a form of income generation for the girls we've rescued from the Indian circuses. Jo and Georgina were fantastic and very knowledgeable hosts and I
came away all fired up (so to speak) with enthusiasm for the technique.
Last month New Zealand expatriate volunteers in Kathmandu, Sarah and Ian Broughton built a smokery to my guidance. This isn't exactly rocket science; essentially you can convert a metal filing cabinet to meet the demands of smoking. All you need is to cut a hole in the top of the cabinet and add a chimney. The bottom of the cabinet becomes a heat source, one drawer up from that is where you do your hot smoking and the top drawer is reserved for cold smoking. Delightfully simple.
The purpose of my attending the course (which I would highly recommend) was to establish if I could learn some basic skills that could be transferable to Nepal as a form of income generation for the girls we've rescued from the Indian circuses. Jo and Georgina were fantastic and very knowledgeable hosts and I
came away all fired up (so to speak) with enthusiasm for the technique.Last month New Zealand expatriate volunteers in Kathmandu, Sarah and Ian Broughton built a smokery to my guidance. This isn't exactly rocket science; essentially you can convert a metal filing cabinet to meet the demands of smoking. All you need is to cut a hole in the top of the cabinet and add a chimney. The bottom of the cabinet becomes a heat source, one drawer up from that is where you do your hot smoking and the top drawer is reserved for cold smoking. Delightfully simple.
Today I trialled their smoker for the first time, cold smoking a drawer full of fish (salmo
n, trout and king fish that I had suitably primed beforehand). I'll see what the results are like tomorrow morning before continuing the experiment with a hot smoke of chicken.
n, trout and king fish that I had suitably primed beforehand). I'll see what the results are like tomorrow morning before continuing the experiment with a hot smoke of chicken.No one in Nepal is smoking any foodstuffs to the best of my knowledge and early indications are that there could be a lot of mileage in refining this technique for an increasingly discerning local market.
Sunday 28 September 2008
A home in Makwanpur
In a previous post I reported on how one of our teams last month intercepted a child trafficking agent with nine children who was on his way to The Rambo Circus in India. The agent is now in custody while the children are staying at our Godawari refuge. The mother of one of the children has since 
left her home to find work in Kathmandu but it's more likely that she is under pressure from the agent's family to help get him off the hook. Meanwhile the siblings of the child that we rescued have been placed with their maternal uncle. Our Programme Coordinator in Hetauda has just been to visit the uncle's home in trafficking-prone Makwanpur District and sent me the adjacent picture. Following that visit we have agreed to admit the two youngest sisters, aged 5 and 6, to the Godwari refuge. So the arrest of that agent last month has led to not just nine extra children to care for but now eleven.
This is one of the greatest underlying problems in our work against child trafficking; the abyss of poverty that child survivors or potential victims originate from.
left her home to find work in Kathmandu but it's more likely that she is under pressure from the agent's family to help get him off the hook. Meanwhile the siblings of the child that we rescued have been placed with their maternal uncle. Our Programme Coordinator in Hetauda has just been to visit the uncle's home in trafficking-prone Makwanpur District and sent me the adjacent picture. Following that visit we have agreed to admit the two youngest sisters, aged 5 and 6, to the Godwari refuge. So the arrest of that agent last month has led to not just nine extra children to care for but now eleven.This is one of the greatest underlying problems in our work against child trafficking; the abyss of poverty that child survivors or potential victims originate from.
Thursday 25 September 2008
A home in Butwal
It's coming up to the Dashain festival, a time for family reunions and one occasion 
in the year when we endeavour to get our refuge children back to stay with relatives, including parents, for some semblance of family life. Today my colleague Gunraj Gurung visited the home in Butwal of one of the boys at the Bhairahawa "White House" refuge to check that all was in order for this temporary reunification. The house is pictured right.
in the year when we endeavour to get our refuge children back to stay with relatives, including parents, for some semblance of family life. Today my colleague Gunraj Gurung visited the home in Butwal of one of the boys at the Bhairahawa "White House" refuge to check that all was in order for this temporary reunification. The house is pictured right.Inside the house Gunraj found the boy's mother lying in some kind of a stupor. A neighbour told him that her husband had died eight months ago. No one had advised the organisation. So her son, who was of course in ignorance of this, would have had the most traumatic of returns instead of a happy festival. Gunraj also found at the house the boy's sister dressed in filthy clothes. He has asked if we can admit her to our refuge and I have agreed.
So often organisations like ours can be criticised for providing "institutional care" for children who would surely be better off with their families. Those dewy-eyed critics can't have had much exposure to the downright misery that goes with rural poverty in Nepal.
Tuesday 23 September 2008
Seasonal visitors
The birdlife of my garden and continues to fascinate. Considering how close
I live to central Kathmandu it's amazing what passes through. The other day I had a white-throated kingfisher in one of the trees but it seemed even less willing to pose for a photograph than Shankar Basnet (see my previous post). Other recent arrivals have been grey-headed myna birds which are seasonal visitors that have descended in flocks to feast on the nectar in the flowering shrubs just outside my study window.
I live to central Kathmandu it's amazing what passes through. The other day I had a white-throated kingfisher in one of the trees but it seemed even less willing to pose for a photograph than Shankar Basnet (see my previous post). Other recent arrivals have been grey-headed myna birds which are seasonal visitors that have descended in flocks to feast on the nectar in the flowering shrubs just outside my study window.
This afternoon I went up to visit The Esther Benjamins Trust's art workshop in Godawari to see how recently arrived volunteer artist Margaret Fehn was getting along. Under her supervision a couple of girls were engaged in painting a still life of flowers, with one of them, Bunnu, creating a very lively interpretation. Next 
door Rina was working on a butterfly mosaic based upon a photo that I took in my garden a couple of weeks ago. Meanwhile in another room girls were busy painting exquisite figurines of village women that they had designed.
door Rina was working on a butterfly mosaic based upon a photo that I took in my garden a couple of weeks ago. Meanwhile in another room girls were busy painting exquisite figurines of village women that they had designed.Tomorrow three more volunteers will join us, Jane McKears, Olwyn Cupid and Jill Hamilton. Their arrival is very timely on the eve of the main Hindu festival of Dashain next month when those kids at our refuge who have absolutely no family members to go to will need some spoiling.
The Thinker
Shankar Basnet, (alleged) child trafficking agent, has now been charged and is awaiting 
trial. Apparently he is now protesting that he doesn't even know the girl who has given evidence against him. So we'll have to strengthen our case by gathering further evidence against him however he's probably preparing the way for a longer sentence for himself by not pleading guilty. Today I was sent a picture of Basnet, wearing handcuffs and not looking terribly happy in a pose that is rather reminiscent of a Rodin sculpture. By the look of it I am not sure that my colleague, Binod Bhujel, had the subject's full consent before taking the photo.
Meanwhile, the report issued by the Nepal Central Child Welfare Board last week on the state of Nepalese circus children (based loosely upon our work) has received publicity right around the world. Yesterday its publication in Australian papers led to my giving interviews to two Australian radio stations. You can hear my broadcast on Radio Australia through this link:
http://www.radioaustralia.net.au/programguide/stories/200809/s2371567.htm
Sadly, because of the editing of a non-commercial radio station, the report sounds more upbeat than it ought to. I made it clear that the biggest obstacle to future success wasn't lack of commitment or organisation but the economic struggle between us as a charity (who have to scrabble around for what funds we can get) and the traffickers who have plenty of ill-gotten financial gains to draw upon. We may yet fail solely because of this financial imbalance.
trial. Apparently he is now protesting that he doesn't even know the girl who has given evidence against him. So we'll have to strengthen our case by gathering further evidence against him however he's probably preparing the way for a longer sentence for himself by not pleading guilty. Today I was sent a picture of Basnet, wearing handcuffs and not looking terribly happy in a pose that is rather reminiscent of a Rodin sculpture. By the look of it I am not sure that my colleague, Binod Bhujel, had the subject's full consent before taking the photo.Meanwhile, the report issued by the Nepal Central Child Welfare Board last week on the state of Nepalese circus children (based loosely upon our work) has received publicity right around the world. Yesterday its publication in Australian papers led to my giving interviews to two Australian radio stations. You can hear my broadcast on Radio Australia through this link:
http://www.radioaustralia.net.au/programguide/stories/200809/s2371567.htm
Sadly, because of the editing of a non-commercial radio station, the report sounds more upbeat than it ought to. I made it clear that the biggest obstacle to future success wasn't lack of commitment or organisation but the economic struggle between us as a charity (who have to scrabble around for what funds we can get) and the traffickers who have plenty of ill-gotten financial gains to draw upon. We may yet fail solely because of this financial imbalance.
Sunday 21 September 2008
A circus owner speaks out
Last week, for the first time, I received an e mail from a circus owner in India. Sujit Dilip of The Rambo Circus, India's second largest, wrote to me taking exception to our negative comments about his circus that appeared recently on the Trust's website. This followed our arrest of child trafficking agent Kirta Tamang who was on his way to the Rambo Circus last month with nine Nepalese minors. Mr Dilip has asserted that his is a good circus that looks after everyone very well and he has invited me to visit the circus to find out for myself.
From what I can gather, based upon intelligence gleaned from returnees, the Rambo Circus is one of the better circuses in India, employing overseas artists (including British ones) and paying local and Nepali performers for their services. However, there is still the problem of its use of performers who found their way to the circus through having been trafficked to enter employment on the basis of illegal contracts. On top of that, although Mr Dilip advised me this morning that his performers receive proper education and training within the circus, he will have been preventing children from receiving the full education that their peers outside the circus receive. A full education is a fundamental human right. In doing so he is also denying the children a future for when after the circus is finished with them.
That said, Mr Dilip is clearly not a villain as per some of the other circus owners and I will take up his offer to pay him a visit. Back in 2003 we tried to persuade the circus owners of the time to change their ways and begin operating legally and after their non-compliance we began the process of raids in 2004. Maybe now at least one circus owner is ready to move in the right direction and that is to be encouraged. Perhaps Mr Dilip can lead the way.
From what I can gather, based upon intelligence gleaned from returnees, the Rambo Circus is one of the better circuses in India, employing overseas artists (including British ones) and paying local and Nepali performers for their services. However, there is still the problem of its use of performers who found their way to the circus through having been trafficked to enter employment on the basis of illegal contracts. On top of that, although Mr Dilip advised me this morning that his performers receive proper education and training within the circus, he will have been preventing children from receiving the full education that their peers outside the circus receive. A full education is a fundamental human right. In doing so he is also denying the children a future for when after the circus is finished with them.
That said, Mr Dilip is clearly not a villain as per some of the other circus owners and I will take up his offer to pay him a visit. Back in 2003 we tried to persuade the circus owners of the time to change their ways and begin operating legally and after their non-compliance we began the process of raids in 2004. Maybe now at least one circus owner is ready to move in the right direction and that is to be encouraged. Perhaps Mr Dilip can lead the way.
The Times of London, 20th September
The Times published this article on the situation of circus children yesterday:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article4790779.ece?Submitted=true
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article4790779.ece?Submitted=true
Saturday 20 September 2008
Success for Maya
Three years ago I took a very controversial - and in some quarters highly unpopular - decision to relocate the children who were in the care of The Esther Benjamins Trust from rural Bhairahawa in the southwest of the country to Kathmandu. Although this increased our running costs significantly, my reasoning was that the transfer was very much in the best interests of the children, presenting them with opportunities that they would not otherwise enjoy in the comparative backwoods of Rupendehi District.
Since then the children's academic progress has improved dramatically but on top of that, three athletic kids, two boys and a girl, attend daily training at the National Stadium before going to school. The boys, Aman and Bijay, are now number one and two in gymnastics in Nepal, while the girl, Maya, has become an accomplished distance runner. All are former circus children.
Today Maya came first in an inter school running tournament, completing 3km in 13 m
inutes 25 seconds. She picked up a medal, a certificate and 3000 rupees (about £25) the latter equating to almost a month's wages in Nepal for an adult and certainly more than the monthly income of her impoverished father. Maya is such a self-effacing little girl that this will come as a great boost to her growing confidence. She's not good at smiling for the camera though, a common trait in Nepalese people who seem to spend all of the rest of their time smiling.
Since then the children's academic progress has improved dramatically but on top of that, three athletic kids, two boys and a girl, attend daily training at the National Stadium before going to school. The boys, Aman and Bijay, are now number one and two in gymnastics in Nepal, while the girl, Maya, has become an accomplished distance runner. All are former circus children.
Today Maya came first in an inter school running tournament, completing 3km in 13 m
inutes 25 seconds. She picked up a medal, a certificate and 3000 rupees (about £25) the latter equating to almost a month's wages in Nepal for an adult and certainly more than the monthly income of her impoverished father. Maya is such a self-effacing little girl that this will come as a great boost to her growing confidence. She's not good at smiling for the camera though, a common trait in Nepalese people who seem to spend all of the rest of their time smiling.
Thursday 18 September 2008
Rule of the mob
When I first visited Nepal back in late 1999 I was advised during the course of a car journey what the best approach was in the event of the vehicle being involved in an accident that led to injury or fatality. It was to run and to run like blazes. For in Nepal a mob of enraged locals forms at the drop of a hat and, irrespective of who might have been at fault, one's life is at risk.
In today's Himalayan Times I read of an incident of similar mob justice yesterday in Uttar Pradesh, the lawless state (which the Indian circuses love to operate in) just across the border. Two men went took a mobile phone recharging coupon from a shopkeeper without paying for it; when he protested they shot him dead. They made off on motorcycles but a mob of villagers went after them, eventually felling them through a barrage of stones. Once grounded they were beaten to death and their motorcycles were set on fire. Without the slightest hint of irony The Himalayan Times reported that their bodies were about to be burned but that "timely intervention" by the police prevented that from happening.
There was an instance of attempted mob rule yesterday that impacted upon our staff in Hetauda, south Nepal. For most of this week our staff members have very courageously been trying to press for the charging of an (alleged) child trafficker, Shankar Basnet. Yesterday no fewer than 100 people who were supporting the agent blocked our staff's access to the police station and the Deputy Superintendent of Police was loath to proceed with the case. Following intervention last evening by Shailaja, our local Director, who spoke with the local inspector the case was finally filed at the District Court today.
If Basnet is convicted he faces a 20 year prison sentence. This has been nice news for us to end the week on.
In today's Himalayan Times I read of an incident of similar mob justice yesterday in Uttar Pradesh, the lawless state (which the Indian circuses love to operate in) just across the border. Two men went took a mobile phone recharging coupon from a shopkeeper without paying for it; when he protested they shot him dead. They made off on motorcycles but a mob of villagers went after them, eventually felling them through a barrage of stones. Once grounded they were beaten to death and their motorcycles were set on fire. Without the slightest hint of irony The Himalayan Times reported that their bodies were about to be burned but that "timely intervention" by the police prevented that from happening.
There was an instance of attempted mob rule yesterday that impacted upon our staff in Hetauda, south Nepal. For most of this week our staff members have very courageously been trying to press for the charging of an (alleged) child trafficker, Shankar Basnet. Yesterday no fewer than 100 people who were supporting the agent blocked our staff's access to the police station and the Deputy Superintendent of Police was loath to proceed with the case. Following intervention last evening by Shailaja, our local Director, who spoke with the local inspector the case was finally filed at the District Court today.
If Basnet is convicted he faces a 20 year prison sentence. This has been nice news for us to end the week on.
A day of frustration
All the ducks were in a row by lunchtime today, ready for our raid on a circus in the south of India. Paperwork had been prepared, flights booked, media alerted....and then at 1.30 p.m. Kelvin Symon of ChildLine India Foundation phoned me to say that the circus had moved location. So the trip was off, postponed until the circus arrives at its next location in early October. My expectations of a major success were thwarted, at least for now. The most I could do was revisit Interpol in Kathmandu this afternoon and present the paperwork that should be enough for the circus owner to be extradited to Nepal to face trafficking charges in the very near future.
Meanwhile in Hetauda, there has been apparent stonewalling on the part of the police in the pursuit of the case against alleged trafficking agent Shankar Basnet who was picked up by our field team on Monday evening. Statements had been taken against him from a witness who was trafficked by him to end up being allegedly raped at the circus. The case should have been lodged within one day of this at the District Court and all seemed done and dusted to us. Four days later we were appalled to learn that the police have still done nothing and we gather that the girl is being summoned to the police station again tomorrow. In short she is being put under a great deal of mental pressure (perhaps in the hope that she will retract her statement). The pressure is exacerbated by the incident having attracted the attention of local media who have been at the police station. Moreover Basnet's idiot neighbours have been adding to the intimidation by protesting at the station - trafficking really is something that can involve conspiracy and collaboration by whole communities.
Tomorrow we will take firm action to protect this girl who has been so courageous as to give evidence before her trafficker and we'll ensure that her will doesn't break under this unacceptable pressure. The local police are effectively treating her like a criminal and they should be ashamed of themselves as police officers and as men.
Meanwhile in Hetauda, there has been apparent stonewalling on the part of the police in the pursuit of the case against alleged trafficking agent Shankar Basnet who was picked up by our field team on Monday evening. Statements had been taken against him from a witness who was trafficked by him to end up being allegedly raped at the circus. The case should have been lodged within one day of this at the District Court and all seemed done and dusted to us. Four days later we were appalled to learn that the police have still done nothing and we gather that the girl is being summoned to the police station again tomorrow. In short she is being put under a great deal of mental pressure (perhaps in the hope that she will retract her statement). The pressure is exacerbated by the incident having attracted the attention of local media who have been at the police station. Moreover Basnet's idiot neighbours have been adding to the intimidation by protesting at the station - trafficking really is something that can involve conspiracy and collaboration by whole communities.
Tomorrow we will take firm action to protect this girl who has been so courageous as to give evidence before her trafficker and we'll ensure that her will doesn't break under this unacceptable pressure. The local police are effectively treating her like a criminal and they should be ashamed of themselves as police officers and as men.
Tuesday 16 September 2008
Faces on a hillside
This afternoon I went once again to the Nepal office of Interpol in Kathmandu where I had a very useful discussion with Superintendent of Police, Dhiru Basnyet, regarding our plans for next week's circus rescue. I was joined by colleagues Shailaja and Dilu who brought with them statements from parents of 
missing girls who may be at the target circus. These statements are often accompanied by pathetic pictures of the child trafficking victims sometimes pictured with their impoverished parents. One such picture from today's file of statements is shown right. The poverty stares out at you as the child and the father stand on a barren hillside in rural Nepal with the father's vest having a gaping hole worthy of a rabbit. I hope we find this little girl next week.
missing girls who may be at the target circus. These statements are often accompanied by pathetic pictures of the child trafficking victims sometimes pictured with their impoverished parents. One such picture from today's file of statements is shown right. The poverty stares out at you as the child and the father stand on a barren hillside in rural Nepal with the father's vest having a gaping hole worthy of a rabbit. I hope we find this little girl next week. While we have been working hard for Nepal's children a fraudster was busy last week trying to take vast sums of money out of our bank account. Three very amateur cheques for around £13k, complete with spelling mistakes of the bank address, were picked up very readily by our bank.
It's not really such a funny old world.
It's not really such a funny old world.
Monday 15 September 2008
Closing down child traffickers
I learned this morning of the arrest of two more (alleged) leading child trafficking agents who have been taking children to the circuses. The first, a man called Shankar Basnet who has been operating in the south/southeast of the country, was picked up by our staff in Nepal and is now being held at Hetauda police station. I gather that, bizarrely, Basnet has been under the protection of the wife of one of our own former staff members so she may well soon find herself under arrest too. The other, a female called Tamang, has been arrested on the Indian side of the border from where she was (allegedly) sending children to circuses including The Raj Mahal, the one that we raided in June. Our Indian partner, ChildLine India Foundation, instigated that arrest. She has now been charged and awaits trial.
Our next circus rescue operation will take place next week. Details to follow, but for security reasons I will report these after the event.
Our next circus rescue operation will take place next week. Details to follow, but for security reasons I will report these after the event.
Sunday 14 September 2008
Melange
Yesterday marked a significant milestone in my not-for-profit business initiative in Nepal, Himl
ayan Mosaics. For the first time the girls' exquisite products were on sale in a retail outlet, a new shop called "Melange" in the upmarket Durba Marg area of Kathmandu. The shop was packed with friends and well wishers to shop owner Pratima Thapa on her first day of business. We managed to sell eleven mosaics yesterday with the most popular one being of koi carp, a design by former volunteer art teacher with the Trust, professional artist Rebecca Hawkins. Most intriguingly I was approached by a visitor who has the responsibility of re-designing one of Kathmandu's leading hotels which has 80 bedrooms and who is interested in talking about mosaic possibilities. Often these things come to nothing but if it did this would give the new company just the boost that it needs and work to a LOT of our beneficiaries.
Himalayan Mosaics presents a great opportunity as it gives my circus survivors rewarding employment and an income but I still have the need to fundraise significant amounts of funds for the Trust's ongoing work as the credit crunch is already starting to bite hard. With my about to go on another circus rescue next week, I feel the need of those funds very acutely.
ayan Mosaics. For the first time the girls' exquisite products were on sale in a retail outlet, a new shop called "Melange" in the upmarket Durba Marg area of Kathmandu. The shop was packed with friends and well wishers to shop owner Pratima Thapa on her first day of business. We managed to sell eleven mosaics yesterday with the most popular one being of koi carp, a design by former volunteer art teacher with the Trust, professional artist Rebecca Hawkins. Most intriguingly I was approached by a visitor who has the responsibility of re-designing one of Kathmandu's leading hotels which has 80 bedrooms and who is interested in talking about mosaic possibilities. Often these things come to nothing but if it did this would give the new company just the boost that it needs and work to a LOT of our beneficiaries.Himalayan Mosaics presents a great opportunity as it gives my circus survivors rewarding employment and an income but I still have the need to fundraise significant amounts of funds for the Trust's ongoing work as the credit crunch is already starting to bite hard. With my about to go on another circus rescue next week, I feel the need of those funds very acutely.
Wednesday 10 September 2008
The Last Dance
When I first came out to live here in 2004 nightlife in Kathmandu seemed pretty tame, with pubs calling for last orders at around 10.30 p.m. as the shutters came down on adjacent restaurants. Then with a breakdown in society's values - or a liberalisation depending upon your point of view - Kathmandu went through an entertainment revolution. Dance bars and massage parlours appeared on the scene and, as I wrote in a recent blog, recently you'd even see signs advertising "Striptease". Those of us in the development sector were very concerned at this deterioration as we witnessed Kathmandu becoming a sin city, a new venue for the sex tourists and final destination for naive and vulnerable girls trafficked from their village areas.
Last evening over dinner a friend of mine told me that apparently Thamel has changed within the last couple of weeks with it reverting to its former benign self. I hadn't noticed this - I don't go for nightlife so much as I once did - but his impression was confirmed when I read in the papers today that the new Government has vowed to shut down all dance bars within a few days. I think this reflects the conservatism of the Maoist-led government and this decision will go far to prevent Kathmandu's descent into becoming a cess pit.
Tuesday 9 September 2008
Enjoy your telly
If anyone out there is unhappy with the content of your television programmes just count yourself fortunate that at least you can switch your set on as and when you feel like it.
Nepal, potentially one of the largest sources of hydroelectric power in the world, suffers under regular scheduled power cuts or "load shedding". Last dry season this peaked at 42 hours of cuts per week. Then with the onset of the monsoon in June the power cuts dwindled but, very unusually and ominously, didn't entirely go away. Last week load shedding was unexpectedly increased to 17.5 hours with the rationale being that the reservoirs were unseasonally low and, ironically, that the grossly mismanaged surplus of water that caused extensive flooding in south Nepal and north India had destroyed a vital electrical link with India. Today it has been announced that the load shedding burden is to be doubled to 35 hours with immediate effect - and we are still two weeks short of the end of the monsoon. Heaven alone knows how things will stand at the peak of the coming dry season. But we'll not be able to turn on our TV when we feel the urge for quite some time to come. Predictions are that in the absence of plans for any new dam constructions these power restrictions will continue for another five years, paralysing the nation's development and degrading its quality of life.
On a lighter note, I noticed the other day a huge advertisement for insurance cover
that appears in the car park of our local department store, Saleways in Lalitpur. It offers substantial pay outs in the event of a range of unforeseen calamities that might occur as you browse the supermarket shelves oblivious to the dangers that may lurk behind them. However the compensation paid is linked to how much you have spent in the store over the preceeding twelve months and, hilariously, after the deduction of the cost of your shopping on the day of the injury or untimely death. I wonder how this compares with public liability insurance at Tescos?
Nepal, potentially one of the largest sources of hydroelectric power in the world, suffers under regular scheduled power cuts or "load shedding". Last dry season this peaked at 42 hours of cuts per week. Then with the onset of the monsoon in June the power cuts dwindled but, very unusually and ominously, didn't entirely go away. Last week load shedding was unexpectedly increased to 17.5 hours with the rationale being that the reservoirs were unseasonally low and, ironically, that the grossly mismanaged surplus of water that caused extensive flooding in south Nepal and north India had destroyed a vital electrical link with India. Today it has been announced that the load shedding burden is to be doubled to 35 hours with immediate effect - and we are still two weeks short of the end of the monsoon. Heaven alone knows how things will stand at the peak of the coming dry season. But we'll not be able to turn on our TV when we feel the urge for quite some time to come. Predictions are that in the absence of plans for any new dam constructions these power restrictions will continue for another five years, paralysing the nation's development and degrading its quality of life.
On a lighter note, I noticed the other day a huge advertisement for insurance cover
that appears in the car park of our local department store, Saleways in Lalitpur. It offers substantial pay outs in the event of a range of unforeseen calamities that might occur as you browse the supermarket shelves oblivious to the dangers that may lurk behind them. However the compensation paid is linked to how much you have spent in the store over the preceeding twelve months and, hilariously, after the deduction of the cost of your shopping on the day of the injury or untimely death. I wonder how this compares with public liability insurance at Tescos?
Sunday 7 September 2008
Lies, damn lies and statistics.
Driving past Nepal's Central Bureau of Statistics in Kathmandu I often think of 
that old quotation from Benjamin Disraeli and amuse myself by reflecting on what must go on inside this not insubstantial edifice and what whoppers must emerge as a result of its staff's creativity. But in today's Himalayan newspaper there was a hint of the sound value that the these good offices deliver. At a conference held in Kathmandu on alternative toilet technology the Bureau contributed the statistic that fourteen million of Nepal's twenty five million population defecate in the open. I wonder how they arrived at that little nugget?
that old quotation from Benjamin Disraeli and amuse myself by reflecting on what must go on inside this not insubstantial edifice and what whoppers must emerge as a result of its staff's creativity. But in today's Himalayan newspaper there was a hint of the sound value that the these good offices deliver. At a conference held in Kathmandu on alternative toilet technology the Bureau contributed the statistic that fourteen million of Nepal's twenty five million population defecate in the open. I wonder how they arrived at that little nugget?
Monday 1 September 2008
Marketing for Dummies
A couple of weeks' back I advertised for the post of Marketing and Sales Manager with Himalayan Mosaics. The process for applicants involves complying to an instruction to download and complete an application form from a website. This avoids my being swamped with CVs and cover letters from candidates who are unqualified and feel inclined to take pot luck at job advertisement that appears in the papers. Hopefully this approach also attracts candidates who are capable of some fresh thought. Of the 21 responses, only six elected to complete the form, the remainder hoping erroneously that their CVs alone would carry them through.
One of those who did see fit to complete the application form one wrote winningly in his personal statement:
"Whenever I observe to my marketing executive during the field work, they always prejudge the people. They have a bad concept why they will buy our produce because might be they are old, too young but these are all bulls**t. Marketing is all about the create the demand and give best ideas to your client. According to me anyone can buy your product if you make him/her realize it could be useful for you. It was my practical knowledge of marketing. During my official session I took lot of interviews for the position of marketing executive but I did not get a single person who really knows the mean of marketing. I believe marketing is a kind of work which we can comparison with this quotation “Monkey see Monkey do” ."
The job interviews promise to be interesting.
Today I found my mind wandering to higher things and to reflecting upon the marvellous holiday I enjoyed just a month ago on the island of Bryher in the Scilly Isles. With a population of 80 it was just right as retreat from Nepal. Bryher is home to one of our regular Nepal volunteers, Marian Bennett, who seems to be a regular feature on television programmes about the islands and is a splendid host through her holiday lets. It is also the location of a delightful little church which has four splendid modern day stained glass windows by local artist Oriel Hicks. Their subjects based around local flora and fauna are set off beautifully by the backdrop of the island landscape outside and represent a wonderful piece of contextual art. 
Thursday 28 August 2008
Cry, The Beloved Country
In recent months I have been working my way through some literary classics. It has to be said that many have left me cold, perhaps through heightened expectations beforehand that would be dashed. Nobel Prize winning "The Old Man and the Sea" by Hemingway is an example of one recent read that in my humble opinion is a very overrated book. However, a notable exception has been the novel by Alan Paton, "Cry, The Beloved Country" which I finished reading this evening. Set in the South Africa of apartheid it is a very stirring story indeed, yet written without sensation and all the more moving for it.
Reading that book and the emotions that it generated took me back to my honeymoon in South Africa in 2002. After covering The Garden Route, doing some whale spotting and the like I went with Bev at the end of the trip to visit Robben Island, the former prison of Nelson Mandela. I had gone there really as a tourist but was impressed with how rather than its being a museum it had become a living testament to reconciliation. The staff numbered amongst them both former prisoners and guards working side by side. I will never forget how one former inmate, who had become a guide, described with such dignity the indignities that had been visited upon him and his fellow prisoners. He told in a measured way of the harsh punishments that would be meted out by the prison regime for the most trivial of misdemeanours. A very rare thing happened to me then as I listened to him; tears came to my eyes as I really felt for the first time the pettiness and inhumanity of apartheid.
There is talk now of Nepal having to go through a "truth and reconciliation" process in the post conflict situation. That should be difficult given that in my experience the truth of any situation seems to be very difficult to arrive at in Nepal and reconciliation, shaking hands and moving on, certainly doesn't come naturally to the locals. I hope the Trust has a role to play in that overall process, focussing on picking up the pieces of children's lives that have been broken through the violence. This month we have taken our first three "conflict affected children" into refuge care - all lost their fathers through their being killed by the security forces for being Maoists or suspected Maoists. A huge legacy of child trauma must lie out there, unrecognised, and if we can manage at least some of that then we'll be continuing to make a worthwhile contribution towards humanity.
Reading that book and the emotions that it generated took me back to my honeymoon in South Africa in 2002. After covering The Garden Route, doing some whale spotting and the like I went with Bev at the end of the trip to visit Robben Island, the former prison of Nelson Mandela. I had gone there really as a tourist but was impressed with how rather than its being a museum it had become a living testament to reconciliation. The staff numbered amongst them both former prisoners and guards working side by side. I will never forget how one former inmate, who had become a guide, described with such dignity the indignities that had been visited upon him and his fellow prisoners. He told in a measured way of the harsh punishments that would be meted out by the prison regime for the most trivial of misdemeanours. A very rare thing happened to me then as I listened to him; tears came to my eyes as I really felt for the first time the pettiness and inhumanity of apartheid.
There is talk now of Nepal having to go through a "truth and reconciliation" process in the post conflict situation. That should be difficult given that in my experience the truth of any situation seems to be very difficult to arrive at in Nepal and reconciliation, shaking hands and moving on, certainly doesn't come naturally to the locals. I hope the Trust has a role to play in that overall process, focussing on picking up the pieces of children's lives that have been broken through the violence. This month we have taken our first three "conflict affected children" into refuge care - all lost their fathers through their being killed by the security forces for being Maoists or suspected Maoists. A huge legacy of child trauma must lie out there, unrecognised, and if we can manage at least some of that then we'll be continuing to make a worthwhile contribution towards humanity.
Tuesday 26 August 2008
Artistic creativity
At the start of this year when volunteer sculptor 
Rebecca Hawkins joined our art workshop for trafficking survivors she expressed interest in encouraging the girls (who have mostly been rescued from Indian circuses) to produce some items to their own design. I was deeply sceptical at the time as Nepal is very much a copycat society where "artists" have a tendency to copy the ideas of others or work from photographs. Indeed, when she prompted the students to design their own mirror frames in mosaic she found that they did so only under extremes of protest. But they produced results nonetheless and I was appropriately humbled.
Rebecca Hawkins joined our art workshop for trafficking survivors she expressed interest in encouraging the girls (who have mostly been rescued from Indian circuses) to produce some items to their own design. I was deeply sceptical at the time as Nepal is very much a copycat society where "artists" have a tendency to copy the ideas of others or work from photographs. Indeed, when she prompted the students to design their own mirror frames in mosaic she found that they did so only under extremes of protest. But they produced results nonetheless and I was appropriately humbled.
Last week the latest volunteer sculptor from the UK, Denise Bryan (pictured right), was very proud to be able to show off to me little figurines that the girls had made in private after banning her from the studio for a couple of hours! These represent village women and each figure has its own identity reflecting the work of an individual artist - so the girls hadn't been copying from one another. I believe these figures can now be turned into very marketable ceramics that have a very ethnic, almost aboriginal, feel to them.
Reflecting on this surprising outcome, I can only attribute this to the success with which 
we have developed a relaxed "creative space" at the Godawari workshop and in how the girls have grown in self-confidence. The aims of the workshop have been achieved and I am sure much more success - and surprises - lies ahead.
we have developed a relaxed "creative space" at the Godawari workshop and in how the girls have grown in self-confidence. The aims of the workshop have been achieved and I am sure much more success - and surprises - lies ahead.
Monday 25 August 2008
Nepali deaf art students demonstrate how to mount wall mosaics
Last Friday I called down to Bhairahawa to see how British art tutor volunteers Dan Newnham and Zoe Childerley were getting along. They have been supporting the art workshop for deaf school leavers for the past month and I was treated to a demonstration of how to mount wall mosaics. I was particularly thrilled to see the first ever mosaic that is specific to Bhairahawa!
There are now 25 deaf young people on the course and they're loving it. I believe that there are clear local income-earning opportunities for these young men and women after they complete their training.
We owe so much to Dan and Zoe for their amazing contribution; I hope to be able to raise the funds to cover their costs for a 6-12 month attachment in Bhairahawa next year. That will give the initiative the boost that it needs and merits.
Press report on our last circus rescue operation
In my post of 27th June I described how Sunday Times journalist Dean Nelson had visited Hetauda to meet the girls that we rescued from the Raj Mahal Circus on 13th June. During my holiday last month his report appeared in the Sunday Times:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article4364184.ece
I was very pleased with Dean's coverage even though it seems to have led to just one or two donations, although more journalistic interest has followed. But maybe someone out there was considering writing their Will around the time that they read the article. One never knows and you can only keep trying.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article4364184.ece
I was very pleased with Dean's coverage even though it seems to have led to just one or two donations, although more journalistic interest has followed. But maybe someone out there was considering writing their Will around the time that they read the article. One never knows and you can only keep trying.
A funding challenge
In my last post I mentioned how my blogging had lapsed in part due to being a little preoccupied and distracted by a funding shortfall. The truth of the matter is that while we are enjoying remarkable successes on the ground in both Nepal and India, the rapid growth of our work is starting to outpace our income. On top of that we are having to find funds at short notice (when lead in times to securing those elusive grants are measured in months) to meet unexpected and unpredictable new commitments.
An example of this is the interception of a leading child trafficking agent, 68 year old Kirta Tamang, earlier this month. We had received a tip off from a villager in the south of the country that Tamang was heading to India with nine children that he was taking to the Rambo Circus. My partner Director in Nepal, Shailaja, responded immediately by leading a team of our field staff in hot pursuit. After a lot of searching at two railway stations in the northern state of Bihar, they found the agent hiding in bushes with the children. He was apprehended and the party returned to Nepal with the children. It transpired that Tamang was grandfather to two of the children that he was trafficking; it is not unusual for traffickers to be related to their victims.
Kirta Tamang is now in police custody (the adjacent picture shows him handc
uffed and in the back of a police vehicle) and he now faces a trial that could lead to the maximum prison sentence of 20 years. The children have come to our refuge in Godawari, near Kathmandu, as they are at risk of being re-trafficked or, more imminently, of being influenced by Tamang's family members to concoct a story as to what they were doing in India. Perhaps some kind of a family excursion with dear old grandad?
The fundraising challenge that was dropped on me was to find the additional care costs of the children (pictured right with Shailaja, centre back). This amounts to £45 per child, per
month. That's means a total of £405 per month or £4860 per year has been suddenly added to the budget. And of course there is every possibility that these children will stay with us until they come of age so multiply the total annual figure by 10 and you're getting close to the actual long term costs. Already one kind supporter (and blog reader) has responded by covering the first month of costs.
The fight against child trafficking comes at a price. Any takers for another month?
An example of this is the interception of a leading child trafficking agent, 68 year old Kirta Tamang, earlier this month. We had received a tip off from a villager in the south of the country that Tamang was heading to India with nine children that he was taking to the Rambo Circus. My partner Director in Nepal, Shailaja, responded immediately by leading a team of our field staff in hot pursuit. After a lot of searching at two railway stations in the northern state of Bihar, they found the agent hiding in bushes with the children. He was apprehended and the party returned to Nepal with the children. It transpired that Tamang was grandfather to two of the children that he was trafficking; it is not unusual for traffickers to be related to their victims.
Kirta Tamang is now in police custody (the adjacent picture shows him handc
uffed and in the back of a police vehicle) and he now faces a trial that could lead to the maximum prison sentence of 20 years. The children have come to our refuge in Godawari, near Kathmandu, as they are at risk of being re-trafficked or, more imminently, of being influenced by Tamang's family members to concoct a story as to what they were doing in India. Perhaps some kind of a family excursion with dear old grandad?The fundraising challenge that was dropped on me was to find the additional care costs of the children (pictured right with Shailaja, centre back). This amounts to £45 per child, per
month. That's means a total of £405 per month or £4860 per year has been suddenly added to the budget. And of course there is every possibility that these children will stay with us until they come of age so multiply the total annual figure by 10 and you're getting close to the actual long term costs. Already one kind supporter (and blog reader) has responded by covering the first month of costs.The fight against child trafficking comes at a price. Any takers for another month?
Sunday 24 August 2008
Don't buy Wai Wai noodles
I have returned to blogging after a respite of five weeks. The prolonged break was due to a combination of having been on holiday and of being over-worked ever since my return. I have become most concerned at the fundraising need that is increasingly out of step with our growing project needs; more of that anon.
Passing through Bhairahawa domestic airport on Friday I found myself with an excess of time awaiting my Buddha Air flight that allowed me to study the advertisements in the departure terminal. Don't believe eve
rything that you see in Nepali advertising. In the midst of uninspiring advertisements for cooking oil and dry cell batteries there's a board there pushing the dubious delights of the Hotel Maharaja Palace which is on the airport road in Kathmandu. The architecture, as you can see from the adjacent picture, could best be described as neo-Stalinist however note the backdrop of the Himalayas which is surely a strong point in the hotel's favour? It would be if this wasn't a doctored image. In reality there isn't a mountain in sight.
Last Monday the Koshi river in south Nepal burst its banks. This led to a war of words between India and Nepal as to who was behind the mismanagement of this water resource that led to 50,000 people being displaced, destruction of homes and farmland and the loss of many (an as yet unquantified number) lives. There has been an immediate and significant response to this national disaster with the European Commission donating a million euros in emergency relief. There has been a local response too, however in many cases the contribution from various corporates has been for me too much of a public relations exercise as photographs appear in the papers of comparatively modest amounts being donated at ostentatious cheque handover ceremonies.
But today I was disgusted to see one corporate, Wai Wai noodles, offering through an advertisement in The Himalayan newspaper to donate 10 paisa (a fraction of a penny) for every packet of their noodles that are sold over the next month. To me it seems obscene and insensitive that this company should be using the floods with their associated loss of life as a marketing ploy.
Passing through Bhairahawa domestic airport on Friday I found myself with an excess of time awaiting my Buddha Air flight that allowed me to study the advertisements in the departure terminal. Don't believe eve
rything that you see in Nepali advertising. In the midst of uninspiring advertisements for cooking oil and dry cell batteries there's a board there pushing the dubious delights of the Hotel Maharaja Palace which is on the airport road in Kathmandu. The architecture, as you can see from the adjacent picture, could best be described as neo-Stalinist however note the backdrop of the Himalayas which is surely a strong point in the hotel's favour? It would be if this wasn't a doctored image. In reality there isn't a mountain in sight.It's felt good to have been blogging again. More to follow.
Friday 11 July 2008
Optimist World
The Esther Benjamins Trust is currently featured on the new website Optimist World. If you can spare a couple of minutes to register on the site, you can then vote for us - free - to become their Charity of the Week and hopefully win the cash prize that goes with it. We need that money really badly!
Visit www.optimistworld.com/Charities.aspx to register. You can vote for the Trust in the left-hand column of the ‘Charities’ page. Voting has just opened today, Friday 11th, and will last for one week only. If we are successful, we could then become a candidate for a really big cash award as their Charity of the Year.
And pass the message on to your address book please. Ours is a great cause.
Visit www.optimistworld.com/Charities.aspx to register. You can vote for the Trust in the left-hand column of the ‘Charities’ page. Voting has just opened today, Friday 11th, and will last for one week only. If we are successful, we could then become a candidate for a really big cash award as their Charity of the Year.
And pass the message on to your address book please. Ours is a great cause.
Unique Selling Proposition
Trustee Paddy Magee and staff member Chris Kendrick joined me on yesterday's interview board. Try as we might we were unable to find a female board member but in the end with six females and one male shortlisted for interview it would be hard to accuse us of having been at all discriminatory.
In line with good equal opportunities practice, the questions were identical for all candidates, but we did try to avoid those standard ones like "What has been your greatest/most rewarding achievement in life?" the answer to which can be rehearsed in advance by a savvy candidate. That said I did include the predictable, but horrible, question "What is your greatest weakness?". All the interviewees bar one resorted to the trick of presenting a virtue such as "being too conscientious" or "too much the perfectionist" as a weakness but their ploy was very transparent. The one who was honest enough to declare a true weakness said that she might be shy of asking for money off important people. She didn't get the job but made a good impression nonetheless through her frankness.
The first question, asked by Paddy, was "Who was Esther Benjamins?" to test if the interviewee had studied our website and could then make the link to me after I had previously introduced myself as being the Founder of the charity. All the candidates knew the answer to that apart from one girl who, amazingly, declared that she had absolutely no idea. We graciously continued the questions but, as Paddy said afterwards, her interview started badly and got worse with her remarking that she had a tendency to have her head in the clouds.
The other question planned and posed by Paddy was "What do you see as being the unique selling proposition (USP) of The Esther Benjamins Trust?". I mused further on his question this morning as I jogged past the home of the late Dr Kingsley Whitmore, who lived two doors down from my in laws' home in Welwyn Garden City. Kingsley, a retired consultant paediatrician, passed away in April last year at the age of 93. He had been introduced to the work of the charity by my mother in law and became a regular and generous donor in the two years preceding his death. On my return visits from Nepal he would be invited up to the house where he would sit with a sherry and listen bright-eyed and attentively to my accounts of the work of the charity in Nepal and India. Afterwards he told me that he wished he were years younger so that he could do something for us over there but that he was in any case "full of admiration" for our work.
The last time I saw him was in February last year when walking past his home I spotted him rummaging in his garage. I went over to say hello and after a short conversation he told me that he had been diagnosed with throat cancer. He was quite philosophical about it, telling me that he'd had a good life and, wrinkling his nose, that he might manage another year. Before we parted he advised me that he had remembered the Trust's work in his Will. Kingsley died peacefully in his sleep just two months later. I was relieved for him that he had been spared the pain and discomfort of a slower death.
From our exchanges I expect for Kingsley the USP was the very edgy nature of our work with its tangible highly worthwhile outcomes, but most of all the very personal nature of the Trust. Unlike the big charities we are still very close to our roots, with my link to Esther and two Trustees (including Paddy) who knew her very well. We pride ourselves in how we interact on a very personal level with supporters by e mail, letter, and face to face both in UK and Nepal.
Nadia Kamel, the successful (and very impressive) candidate from yesterday, should be very proud that she has been selected to join such an organisation and given the opportunity to play her part in upholding its core values.
In line with good equal opportunities practice, the questions were identical for all candidates, but we did try to avoid those standard ones like "What has been your greatest/most rewarding achievement in life?" the answer to which can be rehearsed in advance by a savvy candidate. That said I did include the predictable, but horrible, question "What is your greatest weakness?". All the interviewees bar one resorted to the trick of presenting a virtue such as "being too conscientious" or "too much the perfectionist" as a weakness but their ploy was very transparent. The one who was honest enough to declare a true weakness said that she might be shy of asking for money off important people. She didn't get the job but made a good impression nonetheless through her frankness.
The first question, asked by Paddy, was "Who was Esther Benjamins?" to test if the interviewee had studied our website and could then make the link to me after I had previously introduced myself as being the Founder of the charity. All the candidates knew the answer to that apart from one girl who, amazingly, declared that she had absolutely no idea. We graciously continued the questions but, as Paddy said afterwards, her interview started badly and got worse with her remarking that she had a tendency to have her head in the clouds.
The other question planned and posed by Paddy was "What do you see as being the unique selling proposition (USP) of The Esther Benjamins Trust?". I mused further on his question this morning as I jogged past the home of the late Dr Kingsley Whitmore, who lived two doors down from my in laws' home in Welwyn Garden City. Kingsley, a retired consultant paediatrician, passed away in April last year at the age of 93. He had been introduced to the work of the charity by my mother in law and became a regular and generous donor in the two years preceding his death. On my return visits from Nepal he would be invited up to the house where he would sit with a sherry and listen bright-eyed and attentively to my accounts of the work of the charity in Nepal and India. Afterwards he told me that he wished he were years younger so that he could do something for us over there but that he was in any case "full of admiration" for our work.
The last time I saw him was in February last year when walking past his home I spotted him rummaging in his garage. I went over to say hello and after a short conversation he told me that he had been diagnosed with throat cancer. He was quite philosophical about it, telling me that he'd had a good life and, wrinkling his nose, that he might manage another year. Before we parted he advised me that he had remembered the Trust's work in his Will. Kingsley died peacefully in his sleep just two months later. I was relieved for him that he had been spared the pain and discomfort of a slower death.
From our exchanges I expect for Kingsley the USP was the very edgy nature of our work with its tangible highly worthwhile outcomes, but most of all the very personal nature of the Trust. Unlike the big charities we are still very close to our roots, with my link to Esther and two Trustees (including Paddy) who knew her very well. We pride ourselves in how we interact on a very personal level with supporters by e mail, letter, and face to face both in UK and Nepal.
Nadia Kamel, the successful (and very impressive) candidate from yesterday, should be very proud that she has been selected to join such an organisation and given the opportunity to play her part in upholding its core values.
Thursday 10 July 2008
A World of Difference
My last few days in Nepal before returning to UK on Tuesday evening were so hectic with trying to fit everything in that I was even denied my little pleasure of blogging. Business has now resumed, but only temporarily before I go for two weeks' holiday to The Scilly Isles on Saturday. I don't expect there to be any blogging from there and I really hope that there is very little to report upon in any case.
Driving from the airport on Tuesday I was struck by the clarity of the air - a stark contrast from the car exhaust polluted air of Kathmandu - and the beauty of the landscape even when viewed from the M25 motorway. Those who live in the UK and complain about it don't know their good fortune. Mind you I was beginning to wonder a little myself yesterday as I contemplated the incessant rain and took on board the flood warnings that were being issued by the Met Office. I thought that I had been escaping the monsoon.
Stepping out of the door of my in laws home in Welwyn Garden City for my early morning (6.00 a.m.) jog, I knew immediately that this would be quite a different experience, a world away from pounding the back streets of Kathmandu. The air was crisp and clean and all felt fresh after a thorough soaking yesterday. But there was more to savour, as I enjoyed the security and comfort of even footpaths and pavements, the manicured gardens and hedges and the silence of public woods. The well trodden forest paths (probably kept in control by the genteel locals with their labradors) were a delight, with no hint of the dog mess that one has to avoid in Kathmandu. This was my longest run since I resumed regular exercise two weeks ago however that was not a case of my being virtuous. The truth of the matter is that I became lost in the oneness of it all and eventually had to retrace my steps to trudge my way home.
This afternoon I will be chairing an interview board for a replacement for one of my two London office staff members, Camilla Kinchin, who has resigned her appointment after a great four years' service to the Trust both in UK and Nepal. This will represent a temporary setback for us as we have to stand the (unavoidable) costs of advertising in the national press for a replacement who will then of course have to be trained up to meet our needs. But yesterday there came an unexpected bonus.
Earlier in the day I had been telling my father in law how I felt that I needed not just a replacement for Camilla but an extra staff member to support me in Nepal. Even that would still represent skeleton staffing but it would give the balance of having two staff in each country and allow me a better chance of meeting those deadlines that seem to slip all the time.
The Good Lord was one ahead of me for hours later in came an e mail from a young lady who had seen the advertisement for the vacancy in the London office. She is intending to apply to the Vodafone "World of Difference" programme that pays the salary and expenses for a staff member for one year and wishes to do so on the basis of joining our team. It may not come to anything but she has very strong credentials within the sector and if successful that would allow the two appointments in London to be shared by three individuals allowing rotation of support to the Nepal office.
Ours is a very small charity that achieves a great deal and has big ambitions in the fight against child trafficking. An extra pair of hands really would make a world of difference.
Driving from the airport on Tuesday I was struck by the clarity of the air - a stark contrast from the car exhaust polluted air of Kathmandu - and the beauty of the landscape even when viewed from the M25 motorway. Those who live in the UK and complain about it don't know their good fortune. Mind you I was beginning to wonder a little myself yesterday as I contemplated the incessant rain and took on board the flood warnings that were being issued by the Met Office. I thought that I had been escaping the monsoon.
Stepping out of the door of my in laws home in Welwyn Garden City for my early morning (6.00 a.m.) jog, I knew immediately that this would be quite a different experience, a world away from pounding the back streets of Kathmandu. The air was crisp and clean and all felt fresh after a thorough soaking yesterday. But there was more to savour, as I enjoyed the security and comfort of even footpaths and pavements, the manicured gardens and hedges and the silence of public woods. The well trodden forest paths (probably kept in control by the genteel locals with their labradors) were a delight, with no hint of the dog mess that one has to avoid in Kathmandu. This was my longest run since I resumed regular exercise two weeks ago however that was not a case of my being virtuous. The truth of the matter is that I became lost in the oneness of it all and eventually had to retrace my steps to trudge my way home.
This afternoon I will be chairing an interview board for a replacement for one of my two London office staff members, Camilla Kinchin, who has resigned her appointment after a great four years' service to the Trust both in UK and Nepal. This will represent a temporary setback for us as we have to stand the (unavoidable) costs of advertising in the national press for a replacement who will then of course have to be trained up to meet our needs. But yesterday there came an unexpected bonus.
Earlier in the day I had been telling my father in law how I felt that I needed not just a replacement for Camilla but an extra staff member to support me in Nepal. Even that would still represent skeleton staffing but it would give the balance of having two staff in each country and allow me a better chance of meeting those deadlines that seem to slip all the time.
The Good Lord was one ahead of me for hours later in came an e mail from a young lady who had seen the advertisement for the vacancy in the London office. She is intending to apply to the Vodafone "World of Difference" programme that pays the salary and expenses for a staff member for one year and wishes to do so on the basis of joining our team. It may not come to anything but she has very strong credentials within the sector and if successful that would allow the two appointments in London to be shared by three individuals allowing rotation of support to the Nepal office.
Ours is a very small charity that achieves a great deal and has big ambitions in the fight against child trafficking. An extra pair of hands really would make a world of difference.
Thursday 3 July 2008
Surveying Godawari
Over the last few years I have been working to break out of the static inward-looking "children's home" mentality that is so prevalent in Nepal. This has been reflected in offering more to the children who are in our care than merely catering for their basic needs and education. Accordingly our Child Education, Development and Reintegration (CEDAR) Programme incorporates elements like introducing children to activities that will identify and develop other, non-academic, talents (see my post of 11th Feb on The International Award) and encourage children to become good young citizens who are socially aware and up for a challenge in life.
Recently I have been considering out to take CEDAR a step further by broadening our service provision to the communities that lie in the locality of our children's facilities in Godawari, near Kathmandu. This would allow us to work beyond the refuge walls offering rewarding activities to underprivileged children in the neighbourhood and to fully incorporate our resident children better within the wider community through involving them in projects with village children.
To get the ball rolling on this embellishment we've just started an in depth needs analysis to establish what we might do in future to help the local community's children. Over the last week UK-based volunteer Mike ("Mac") McCurry has been trudging through rain and muddy hillside with our local researchers Bijay Karki and Reena Paudel to lay the foundations for the study. Their early findings have been thought-provoking. Although Mac goes back to UK on Saturday he will continue to support Bijay and Reena from afar in their research and report writing for the guidance of the Trustees of the charity.
I joined them for a stroll today, looking over possible landsites for our future children's facilities that will serve as refuge and community centre. One in particular that caught my imagination was a very verdant one that I gather could one day have the planned Kathmandu outer ring road ploughed through it. Maybe if we can get there first we can develop it very sensitively preserving its wealth of flora and fauna and hope that the ring road skirts around us and through a less environmentally sensitive area. An intriguing project.
At the end of the tour I called to see our local Director's home which is now under construction. Shailaja is very proud of her bungalow, not least of the large hall that she has incorporated into the construction. With a chuckle she told me how she could use this as a children's recreation facility during the school holidays.
Shailaja can never resist the temptation to take some "work" home.
Recently I have been considering out to take CEDAR a step further by broadening our service provision to the communities that lie in the locality of our children's facilities in Godawari, near Kathmandu. This would allow us to work beyond the refuge walls offering rewarding activities to underprivileged children in the neighbourhood and to fully incorporate our resident children better within the wider community through involving them in projects with village children.
To get the ball rolling on this embellishment we've just started an in depth needs analysis to establish what we might do in future to help the local community's children. Over the last week UK-based volunteer Mike ("Mac") McCurry has been trudging through rain and muddy hillside with our local researchers Bijay Karki and Reena Paudel to lay the foundations for the study. Their early findings have been thought-provoking. Although Mac goes back to UK on Saturday he will continue to support Bijay and Reena from afar in their research and report writing for the guidance of the Trustees of the charity.
I joined them for a stroll today, looking over possible landsites for our future children's facilities that will serve as refuge and community centre. One in particular that caught my imagination was a very verdant one that I gather could one day have the planned Kathmandu outer ring road ploughed through it. Maybe if we can get there first we can develop it very sensitively preserving its wealth of flora and fauna and hope that the ring road skirts around us and through a less environmentally sensitive area. An intriguing project.
At the end of the tour I called to see our local Director's home which is now under construction. Shailaja is very proud of her bungalow, not least of the large hall that she has incorporated into the construction. With a chuckle she told me how she could use this as a children's recreation facility during the school holidays.
Shailaja can never resist the temptation to take some "work" home.
Wednesday 2 July 2008
A Study on Male Trafficker Prisoners
Last evening I read a report by The Daywalka Foundation, Nepal, on their research conducted in March 2006 of male trafficker prisoners inside Kathmandu jails. Of the 4,153 prisoners nationally (90% male, 10% female), 252 were males who had been convicted for trafficking and 91 female. Although the purpose of the study was stated as being designed to explore human trafficking from a "holistic" point of view it was not clear why it should have been based solely on interviews with male prisoners. Nor was it clear why prisoners in the rural jails were excluded from the research.
The principal investigator was a lawyer, Adv Shyam Pokharel. The information he obtained from the prisoners was very useful in terms of how they had gone about their activities and the economics of buying and selling human beings. But I was really shocked at how in a detached way - as if it seemed perfectly normal - he reported on the use of physical and mental torture on suspects while in police custody. The former includes practices like handcuffing, beating, electric shocks, denial of water and solitary confinement while the mental torture ranges from abusive language to death threats to promises to parade the suspect's wife naked in public. Almost 73% of those interviewed reported some form of torture, with 15% of these indicating physical torture and the remainder mental torture.
That was all bad enough, but then I read of how the researcher's analysis (and he is clearly no fool) suggested that almost 17% of those convicted were probably innocent of any crime. They were more likely to have been in jail because of the denunciation of others due to a personal vendetta (common practice in Nepal) or because of a misinterpretation of evidence. The inmates concerned were considered too poor to be able to fight a legal battle to establish their innocence. Pokharel gave an example of four youths who had joined a young girl on a trip to India at the promise of "work" by an agent. They were stopped by the police and themselves charged with trafficking. The prosecutor asked the court to impose a 5-10 year sentence but the court in the end awarded terms of 2.5 years. Pokharel felt that the reduced term indicated that the court recognised that they were innocent! In another case report he tells of how an uncle denounced his nephew as a cross border trafficking agent following the uncle's wife leaving home after a domestic quarrel. The nephew received a 12 year prison sentence. One year later when the aunt heard about this (she had settled elsewhere in Nepal and re-married) she came to Kathmandu to set the record straight and secure the lad's release. However The Supreme Court ruled against her as an appeal should have been lodged within 70 days of his original conviction.
Rather remarkably, considering that the report has been written by a lawyer, it gives no indication as to what action (if anything) has been taken or should be taken over these apparent miscarriages of justice. While I haven't the slightest sympathy for legitimately jailed agents - I know only too well the consequences of their crimes upon children - I am appalled at the injustices that go with the conviction of supects and the subsequent lack of redress for those who have been wrongfully jailed. Of course in the West, those 73% who experienced some form of torture (if true) would have had their cases thrown out of court on the grounds of inadmissable evidence irrespective of whether or not they were really guilty.
Nepal needs some really good human rights lawyers who will stand up for the prisoners as well as for their victims.
The principal investigator was a lawyer, Adv Shyam Pokharel. The information he obtained from the prisoners was very useful in terms of how they had gone about their activities and the economics of buying and selling human beings. But I was really shocked at how in a detached way - as if it seemed perfectly normal - he reported on the use of physical and mental torture on suspects while in police custody. The former includes practices like handcuffing, beating, electric shocks, denial of water and solitary confinement while the mental torture ranges from abusive language to death threats to promises to parade the suspect's wife naked in public. Almost 73% of those interviewed reported some form of torture, with 15% of these indicating physical torture and the remainder mental torture.
That was all bad enough, but then I read of how the researcher's analysis (and he is clearly no fool) suggested that almost 17% of those convicted were probably innocent of any crime. They were more likely to have been in jail because of the denunciation of others due to a personal vendetta (common practice in Nepal) or because of a misinterpretation of evidence. The inmates concerned were considered too poor to be able to fight a legal battle to establish their innocence. Pokharel gave an example of four youths who had joined a young girl on a trip to India at the promise of "work" by an agent. They were stopped by the police and themselves charged with trafficking. The prosecutor asked the court to impose a 5-10 year sentence but the court in the end awarded terms of 2.5 years. Pokharel felt that the reduced term indicated that the court recognised that they were innocent! In another case report he tells of how an uncle denounced his nephew as a cross border trafficking agent following the uncle's wife leaving home after a domestic quarrel. The nephew received a 12 year prison sentence. One year later when the aunt heard about this (she had settled elsewhere in Nepal and re-married) she came to Kathmandu to set the record straight and secure the lad's release. However The Supreme Court ruled against her as an appeal should have been lodged within 70 days of his original conviction.
Rather remarkably, considering that the report has been written by a lawyer, it gives no indication as to what action (if anything) has been taken or should be taken over these apparent miscarriages of justice. While I haven't the slightest sympathy for legitimately jailed agents - I know only too well the consequences of their crimes upon children - I am appalled at the injustices that go with the conviction of supects and the subsequent lack of redress for those who have been wrongfully jailed. Of course in the West, those 73% who experienced some form of torture (if true) would have had their cases thrown out of court on the grounds of inadmissable evidence irrespective of whether or not they were really guilty.
Nepal needs some really good human rights lawyers who will stand up for the prisoners as well as for their victims.
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