Draft for circulation and discussion waiting for justice in. With the worlds highest mountains, spectacular scenery, ancient religions and culture, nepal has been a popular and even mystic destination for many foreign visitors. Association for nepal and himalayan studies volume 27 number 1 dalits in nepal no. Dalit women are at the bottom of caste, gender, and class hierarchy in nepal. Dalits are recognized as a minority group by government of nepal. Major achievement for the dalit right movement in nepal in. This study focuses on the diverse ethnic group of dalits. Dalits in nepal and elsewhere have endured social segregation, discrimination and oppression. As in india, the term dalit is a politically coined word meaning the poor and the oppressed and is less sensitive than the meaning of harijan or acchhoot or socalled untouchable.
Although the dalit movement has started a long time ago and more acts have been passed for their protection, there is a need to focus on action now. Spcr program outputs are managed for results and lessons learned are incorporated into nepals climate change programming and. In the past, the cerd committee has recognized the importance of. Arjun thapaliya, sudeep jana and somat ghimire introduction to the case this case examines the grass roots struggle of a socially excluded low caste group in. An assessment of the situation of dalits in education policy. Table 1 below presents government of nepal data on poverty incidence among different caste and ethnic groups. Nepal, dalits, persons with disabilities, former bonded laborers, indigenous peoples such as the adivasi, janajati and madhesis and muslims continue to live on the margins of society in relation to the enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms, including economic, social and cultural rights escrs. The usaidsupported fertility awareness for community transformation fact project is a fiveyear 202018, global research, intervention, and technical assistance project that is developing and testing unique interventions in nepal, india, rwanda, and uganda. The census has listed 15 dalit castes of which 5 are hill dalits and 10 are madhesi dalits. Nutritional status and social influences in dalit and brahmin women and children in lamjung using mixed methods. Caste, ethnic and regional identity in nepal fa58 the dhs. It is evident that the dalits have the highest poverty incidence, which. Caste discrimination against dalits or socalled untouchables in india information for the consideration of the committee on the elimination of racial.
Nepals new constitution is the first in asia to explicitly mention the human rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender lgbt people. The global food security strategy gfss nepal country. Dalit identity in urban pokhara, nepal sciencedirect. Primary education and dropout in nepal shree prasad devkota and shiba bagale sustainable development and empowerment forumkathmandu university abstract this article tries to highlight the dropout rate of primary education of nepal. At the same time, however, nepal is also one of the poorest countries in the world, and within the country, a maoist struggle which dates back to 1996 is still being waged. The dissertation entitled dalits and their traditional medicinal practices in bhanu vdc of tanahun district, western nepal has been evaluated to accept for partial fulfillment of the requirement. Background information on dalit women in india by ruth manorama the dalits in india and other countries in south asia, people have been systematically discriminated against on the basis of.
The programmes support to implementation of nepals international human rights obligations including the upr and strengthening of the nwc and the ndc is expected to result in overall improvement of the human rights framework in nepal, as well as improved visibility of rights issues related to women, dalits and other vulnerable groups. Dalits and their traditional medicinal practices in bhanu. Dalits in nepal, formerly known as untouchables, are routinely denied access to religious. This seems to be true in nepal where dalits, the group at the bottom of the caste system, is also the group with the highest poverty rates. Increased partnership with different donors like save the childrenus, usaid, canadian cooperation, oxfam, pac nepal, unicef, action aid nepal and plan international. How does nepals child grant work for dalit children and their families. Barriers to education and school attainmentevidence from. Both documents call for better data and analysis of these disparities as.
As part of the consultation and planning process for nepals global food security strategy gfss country plan, the usg cosponsored a twoday workshop, in which more than100 food security. Strengthening the rule of law and human rights protection. Dalits and their traditional medicinal practices in bhanu vdc. Discrimination against dalits in nepal human rights watch has received information about human rights abuses against dalits in virtually every sphere of life in nepal, including marriage, religious practice, access to land, and access to education. Combatting caste discrimination in earthquake response human. Dalit community in general and women in particular have been treated as sub humans for ages. Dalit women in nepal dalit women comprise of more than half of sky space of dalit community in nepal. Out of 19,712 absentee population in the district,035 are males and 6,677 are females. Nndswo, the first registered dalit organisation in nepal. How dalits make sense of development in rural nepal. Human stories from dolakha, nepal is the collection of case stories as expressed by the communities, local and national elected.
Postfederal analysis on marginalised communities in nepal. Among these, the most populated dalit caste is kami with 895,954 appendix a1. Nepal now joins a handful of countries around the world such as south africa 1996 and ecuador 1998 that provide protections for lgbt people in their national constitutions. Nepal interim report page 1 of 44 1 nepal a country profile nepal is a landlocked country sandwiched between two neighbouring giants china in the north and india in the east, south and west. Whilst all dalit castes have suffered various forms of castebased discrimination, the problems associated with these communities are not the same. The nepal government has generally ignored to implement the positive constitutional rules strictly and effectively. We partner with communities to build and grow rural economies that are beneficial to the poorest farmer. Two years ago, nepal was hit by two devastating earthquakes. This report presents findings from a further analysis study undertaken as part of. The main essence of the article is to explore the situation of dropout of primary education. They are doubly dalit because they bear the burden of both caste. Dalit women include a section of women who belong to the socalled lower castes within the nepali hindu caste hierarchy and are being treated as untouchables.
Social exclusion and discrimination against dalits, janajatis, muslims and madhesis is now. Reasons for the exclusion of dalits include insufficient education facilities, poor teaching methods and. However, the educational access and school attainment of girls, janajatis indigenous, disadvantaged groups, and dalits the lowest caste are far below the national average bennett et al. Dalits in nepal, formerly known as untouchables, are routinely denied access to religious sites. Key demographic information 1 in sindhupalchok 24% of households 16,037 are headed by women out of a total of 66,688 households. Our experiences reflect that possibilities are numerous message from the country director. Nepal is a signatory state to a number of international conventions regarding to the dalits, but there are problems in its implementation. Nepal interim report page 1 of 44 1 nepal a country profile nepal is a landlocked country sandwiched between two neighbouring giants china in the north and india in the east, south. The dalits of nepal and a new constitution international dalit.
The committee has also called on the government of nepal to improve its legislative framework ensuring equal rights for all and prohibiting discrimination against dalits. Other countries with this system are india, bangladesh, pakistan and sri lanka. Nepal february 7, 2018 election day for women for dalits for persons with disabilities for more information, visit. For these marginalised communities, memories of and narratives about past conflicts, struggles. We provide relief in emergencies and help families restore their lives. The five hill dalits are badi, damai, gaine, kami and sarki. The table below shows the trends of school enrolment of dalits in which the average annual growth of dalit students is highest in terai belt and lowest in the valley. Postfederal analysis on marginalised communities in nepals. Enrolment trend of dalits at primary level by ecobelts, 20072011 ecobelts school year.
Nutritional status and social influences in dalit and. Prevalence of stunting among children under five in western nepal is estimated at 50. Discrimination against dalits in nepal department of justice. As per census 2011, the proportion of dalits to total population is 14. The dissertation entitled dalits and their traditional medicinal practices in bhanu vdc of tanahun district, western nepal has been evaluated to accept for partial fulfillment of the. For these marginalised communities, memories of and narratives about past conflicts, struggles and injustice can become powerful. Ethnic and caste diversity nepal is populated by 103 caste and ethnic groups who are largely hindus, buddhists, animists, some muslims, and in some cases a combination of two or more of these. The 2001 census records 106 languages and dialects, of which the indoaryan language family constituted. Printed by format printing press for ilo office in nepal. Dalits in nepal are a historically state victimised disadvantaged community who have been compelled to lag at the bottom of the social structure and excluded from national development mainstream due to the caste system and extreme hinduism for centuries. Collectively, dalits represent 80 percent of the ultra poor in nepal, dramatically increasing their vulnerability to bonded labor, slavery, trafficking, and other forms of extreme. Combatting caste discrimination in earthquake response.
Some major issues of dalits have been incorporated in the interim constitution but many issues raised by the dalit movement of nepal are left out as usual. The dalits of nepal and a new constitution 1 i this publication the origin of this document is explained in the preface. Impact of local governance and dalit participation in nepal. Nepals topography, climate, religion, and population are very diverse. Reasons for the exclusion of dalits include insufficient education facilities, poor teaching methods and discriminatory attitudes towards dalits by teachers and children of other caste. Inclusion of dalit women in nepals new constitution.
Health and population, government of nepal, ramshahpath, kathmandu. Dalit community in general and women in particular. To measure nutritional status, of women 1844 years and children under five 659 months, of dalit and brahmins by taking anthropometric measures in lamjung district, western nepal. Human stories from dolakha, nepal is the collection of case stories as expressed by the communities, local and national elected representatives, and dalit ngo consortium. A mixedmethods assessment of programme delivery and impact in bajura and saptari jessica hagenzanker. The 10 madhesi dalits are bantar, chamar, chidimar, dhobi, doom, dusadh, halkhor, khatwe, musahar and tatma. As part of the consultation and planning process for nepals global food security strategy gfss country plan, the usg cosponsored a twoday workshop, in which more than100 food security and nutrition stakeholders from diverse sectors, including the gon, civil society, and the private sector convened to discuss a coordinated path forward. Nepal is indeed very rich in biodiversity and sociocultural diversity due to its unique and varying physiographic regions. Nepal has the staffing, skills and knowledge required to understand and manage climate risks across a range of key infrastructure sectors, stakeholders, and agencies. Strategic program for climate resilience spcr nepal. The earliest inroad of hinduism was in 5h century a. Nepal is a society in which different castes and ethnic groups live together in various compositions depending on the village and area. Article pdf available december 2017 with 227 reads. The national dalit commission of nepal ndcnepal has identified about 26 castes of which 7 are hill dalits of which two belonged to the newar community and the remaining 19 madhesi.
Nepals new constitution is the first in asia to explicitly. It contains a number of documents collection on the situation of the dalits of nepal, exploring the discrimination and oppression they suffer in their daily lives, in almost all spheres of life, in both state and society. Nutritional status and social influences in dalit and brahmin. Pdf situational analysis of dalits in nepal yogendra b. Dalits in a positive development, in september 2009 nepal announced its support for the draft united nations principles and guidelines to eliminate caste discrimination, which were. The nepal legal code of 1854, the muluki ain, formulated on the basis on hindu orthodoxy included five hierarchical categories. As the country still struggles to recover, evidence from research conducted by the asia foundation reveals that. How does nepals child grant work for dalit children and. A mixedmethods assessment of programme delivery and impact in bajura and saptari jessica hagenzanker, richard mallett and anita ghimire recipient households are using the child grant effectively to contribute to expenditure on food, medicine and more. A resource on the situation of dalits in nepal, their demands and. Nepal education sector analysis global partnership for. The global food security strategy gfss nepal country plan. In total, 44 percent of dalits in the terai are landless and 44. Caste, ethnic and regional identity in nepal further analysis of the 2006 nepal demographic and health survey.
A case of terai dalit movement for right to community forestry in eastern nepal country. Dalits lag behind other social groups in terms of educational attainment in nepal also. Dalits, are concerned about growing hindu nationalism in the country, which they perceive as a threat to religious and communal harmony. Dalits are defined as historically and traditionally, socially discriminated so called lower caste or untouchable according to hindi caste division. Dalits untouchables suffer from endemic discrimination, especially in the economic, social, and cultural spheres. Draft for circulation and discussion waiting for justice.
The rise of dalit activism by christine hart on july 19, 2010, the hindustan times reported that a dalit untouchable woman was gangraped and murdered in the indian. Government in its engagement with nepal, uscirf recommends that the u. Ethnic and caste diversity nepal is populated by 103 caste and ethnic groups who are largely hindus, buddhists, animists, some muslims, and in some cases a combination of two. An assessment of the situation of dalits in education. The women fold as a whole became the victim of manu order. Dalits in nepal are a historically state victimised disadvantaged community who have been compelled to lag at the bottom of the social. The table below shows the trends of school enrolment of dalits in which the average annual growth of dalit students is. It contains a number of documents collection on the situation of.
Dalits in particular, and muslims from three provinces 2, 5 and sudurpaschim province. Orientation nepal at the periphery of the hindustan plain was originally a congeries oftribal units. Discrimination against dalits in nepal human rights watch has received information about human rights abuses against dalits in virtually every sphere of life in nepal, including marriage. The national dalit commission of nepal ndc nepal has identified about 26 castes of which 7 are hill dalits of which two belonged to the newar community and the remaining 19 madhesi dalits. Dalit identity in urban pokhara, nepal article pdf available in geoforum 75. We were not left out following the worst earthquake to hit nepal in the last 80 years, life became even more difficult for the dalits, the most marginalized ethnic group in nepal. However, there are no estimates of the prevalence of stunting among dalits and brahmins innepal.
Usaid nepal fertility awareness for community transformation. Within the dalit community of nepal, there are eight major caste groups and twentyfive. The struggle for full citizenship for dalits in nepal core. But if we include many dalit groups as noted by the dalit vikas samity such as newar dalits groups, batar, tatma. Dalits left behind as nepal slowly recovers the asia. It a great challenge for the whole dalit movement to eliminate caste based discrimination. She recently visited the feminist dalit organization fedo in kathmandu, nepal, to find out how dalit communities.