Pratik Rimal

"The charm of mortal life, since her arrival has been joy, thoughts and longing of togetherness...a wish to be always behind her and protect her...maybe life after all gives us a second chance. And with your arrival, I now indeed believe that it sincerely does for our heavenly father cannot be heartless, as he instilled us with hearts of love, trust, faith, compassion and joy! .....

......Time tickles in joy and passes with a melancholic song. The hollow cry of penetrable sounds from the wild beasts underneath the moonlight alerts me of your hopeful
presence...and I am waiting..."

(extracted from: Stars Fall Down)



About Me

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Kathmandu, Nepal
Ever since I first started to write my first poem and article, I've loved to write. I continue to learn to write. In doing so, I let my feelings, thoughts, and emotions run wild and let people know what I intend to say, what I want to say. For me, writing is a creative expression to express what we never can say by speaking... Your readings and feedback are always important to me. Therefore, I wish that you'd write to me. My email address: pratik.rimal@hotmail.com Cell: +977-98511-42610

Sunday, May 11, 2014

YOUNG VOICE


Only overthrowing regimes, I believe isn’t the road to development. (We have thrown a lot of regimes—the Rana, Panchayat and the King was the jackpot!) Development is more, and if we, as citizens and political leaders of Nepal fail to recognize this, we will, once again be doomed. Every day, people increasingly have apathetic as well as skeptical view to the government: Nepalese rely on the government for their basic needs, while being skeptical.

The Nepali Congress overthrew the Rana Regime and marked the dawn of Democracy in 2007 BS. While the change supposedly was a step towards development, histories show otherwise. I firmly believe that democracy came at a time when no individual knew what democracy meant. Our leaders, especially those belonging to the Nepali Congress failed to explain what the values of democracy uphold—maybe because they themselves were fully unaware of what democracy meant themselves, or may be because they were afraid that by explaining the values of democracy to people, the common man would revolt—just like the Nepali Congress revolted against Rana Regime, or maybe because they were trying to figure out what democracy meant themselves. More than that, the dawn of democracy, I believe became more of a calculated misfire than the paths to development. Only after a country meets all the elements of democracy can a country really be democratic.  These elements include education, employment and food for thought.

Democracy is defined as being people centric. It is what we call, “By the people, for the people, to the people”. This simple line is easy to say but hard to keep—as people choose what they want. 

A country of sheep will select sheep as their leaders. They cannot choose a Lion because they are only a flock of sheep and they only have a sheep to choose. Even if they select a Lion, they cannot look up to a Lion for a few reasons. Firstly, they feel threatened and insecure that while the Lion gives them necessary needs, they feel that the Lion can pounce and eat them anytime. Secondly, the Lion itself becomes too powerful that he could use his powers otherwise, and eat the sheep whenever he wants. And finally, while both depend on the other, neither the sheep nor the Lion trusts one another because one is too weak before the Lion, and the Lion is always too powerful. 

Hence, we choose leaders according to what we are. Nepal is no different. We are a country of sheep selecting sheep. We fail to bring in more powerful leader because we ourselves cannot act according to the Lion’s strength, or work hard to become close to the Lion’s strength.

The values of Democracy relies primarily on education, employment and free speech. A citizen must be educated enough to know what democracy means along with upholding its ideals. (After 50 years of democracy, a vast majority of Nepali citizens cannot say what it means. Many pronounce it just because the word has stuck with them throughout their lives.  Nepal is a democratic country, a line in Social Studies
book in early school years say.)

Nepal hasn’t gotten far with employment after five scores of years. Nepal used export rice grains to India and other countries because of self sufficiency. There is a “Dhan Adda” in Maitighar, if anybody seems to recall. Now, we import rice. Nepal’s government prides in its citizens migrating towards the Gulf for employment; which should be the last thing on a country’s mind. Throughout all these years, never once has it occurred as a national agenda to look back at why people are migrating and what the country could do. No wonder, we are a country supported by remittance, a remittance economy.

Another crucial power of democracy is free speech. Free speech comes with education.  Free speech isn’t just about talking freely. It is about talking sense freely. Free speech is not defamation, neither it is about creating rifts between the citizens of Nepal. It is about uniting people to work for national goals. It is about maintaining checks and balance, creating accountability between both the people and the government.

Nepal wasn’t ready for a democratic government when the country rose to democracy. Neither it now is ready for a federal system. This would be an appalling remark from a youth who stands as the future of the country—I am a youth in dilemma. I am the future of Nepal, but before being called one, my future depends on what the country can give and what I can give to the country without leg pulling people. My future depends whether I’ll be able to find or establish sufficient wage income to feed and support my family in the country. If I can, I will stay in Nepal. If I cannot, I will have to think of other options. I’ll be one more to the migrants list and a citizen cut from the country’s population of youth residing in the country. Now, when we multiply this across the 2.7 million population, what is the result? After a decade, Nepal will be a country of aging population , and the vast majority of my friends hold this view as well. Now, the important question arises. Why hasn’t the government been able to stop, check and bring back the youths towards their Motherland?  The answer lies on the country’s failure to promote employment that is self sustaining along with basic infrastructures of development—education, food, shelter, health, transportation and communication.  

When we answer these questions, we come back to the same cycle that our leaders have repeatedly said all these years, and the same answers that we’ve always made us believe. The leaders know that Nepal is a country of fools, and we are more the fools to accept their beliefs. We protest when there’s petrol shortage. But have we ever protested when the results of TU gets delayed? Have we protested against people who do not use the overhead bridge? Never. We pride in our ability to cross a busy street from the middle rather than walking for two minutes. We pride ourselves in crossing the road successfully while abusing the driver for not stopping when they see us crossing the road. We are fools and we will always be—as long as we develop the decency and morality of a good citizen through sound education and awareness—right from the scratch.

This existing system is beyond repair and the only way youths like me can see a different Nepal, a New Nepal as political leaders advocate is when we remove these very lines of dreamers and the system they have and build one from the scratch.

Every day, youths are losing their beliefs on the system. I almost have an apathetic stance towards the government. Not long ago we went through a decade long Civil War that cost the country billions of rupees and further pushed back development. Now, I see a spillover of the Arab Spring—a Nepal Spring. This time, it will not uphold to the principles of democracy. It rather will uphold the spirit of youth—“BY THE YOUTH, FOR THE YOUTH, TO THE YOUTH”.

As a citizen of Nepal, I can foresee Nepal Spring. Such uprising, while every young individual sees as a necessity (because youths believe that they’ve long been made fools of the ever existing system of “endless youth” –the old always feel they are young!) will, undoubtedly hit hard on the country’s economy and development.

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