Help our workers
I am against the government's decision to send women to work in middle-eastern countries ('Helping workers abroad', Roundtable discussion, #532). Women and poor people are treated like slaves there. Everybody knows the human rights situation–their attitude is even worse. Most of the people there believe women who leave home to work are loose and don't deserve respect. There have been many of reports of women workers being raped and abused there.

R Rai

First and foremost there needs to be at least 10 representatives from the overseas workers in parliament to raise the concerns of migrant workers in Nepal. There are more than 3 million overseas workers bringing in billions of rupees annually; their woes must be addressed and the government must take action. They must be treated as heroes who have saved the country from economic debacle.

Shanti Dhami

Keep on hammering on the subject to get the rules and system updated. The Nepal Government needs to employ a new policy to make their people skillful and trained and search for global demand for appropriate recruitment. Putting manpower agencies under close supervision and applying the ILO convention will not be enough. Secondly, government should provide an information desk in the labour department so that a honest and helpless Nepali can easily get the real information about recruiting companies, so he can judge for himself whether the job is suitable or not.

Engr. Arjun Bhattarai,
Nepal Engineer Association,
Qatar Centre, SAAC Nepal- Adviser

This news provides me with immense pleasure that the Nepali community has started a discussion on Safe Migration at a responsible level. My Filipino community developed practices based on strict rules and regulations over 50 years. If the Government of Nepal is determined to control the Cats, Wolves & Jackals dealing in the migration trade it will be SAFE enough. You need help from external experts, as your own strength is not enough. Wishing you success.

Rodel Cawicaan

Bad boys
How many in Nepal have fired guns, and even killed people ('Who's bad?', Editorial, #532)? Have all of them been censured by the press, and have all of them been punished under the law? And how many are still free, even when convicted by the Supreme Court? Should the law not apply to all, without exception?

K. K. Sharma

Nothing wrong with this editorial, in my opinion. If you do not like it, that's your right, but it seems we are up for a fight between the old monarchy and the new oligarchy. It is indeed good to see that the government actually has the cojones to do its job and follow due process. Time will tell if anything substantial comes out of this or, as is expected, the government with its tail between its legs will let it pass after the dust settles.

Binoy Yonzon

Dumbocracy
Cannot disagree with the points raised in the article but to be fair, it would have been better if the Gachchadars, the Yadavs, and the Guptas were also mentioned along with the lessons that they have taught ('Hollow loktantra', Prashant Jha, #532). The writer may have his reasoning but to some it may look like selective sermonising.
Also, does this mean that the Nitish government in Bihar has no corruption and treats all law and order situations equally? Universally, the Haves were and are in a better position to be treated more favourably by the law than the Have Nots. This still is the case even in the most democratic or law-abiding countries in the world. Corruption, law and order (maybe selective) are one thing; vision, management, and deliverance something else. Take China for example– it has all of the above. Therefore, they are not mutually exclusive.

It is all about priority, it should be the people and country first, party second, and individual third. In Nepal it is the other way around. With rights come responsibilities; the only responsibility these days seems to be "me first".

Reb

Finance for the poor, not the rich
Microfinance is always linked with poverty reduction ('Small is beautiful', Paavan Mathema, #532). But what we also need to consider is what level of poverty it addresses. Generally, microfinance caters well only to people who are not destitutely poor, people who are better off than the worst. People at the lowest base of the pyramid find it hard to benefit from microcredit because they do not have sufficient time, energy and patience to wait for the incubation period of an enterprise. Such people want instant results.

Lending to groups and establishing group liability is a feature of the Grameen model. India's apex development bank NABARD came up with the SHG (Self Help Group) model. The problem related to microfinance in Andhra Pradesh, India is more because of the over-commercialisation of the microfinance sector. In India, the microfinance sector was becoming a very attractive sector for investors and many fund/wealth managers were canalising investments towards it. If we really want to link microfinance with poverty reduction, we should never forget to address it as a social weapon or poverty alleviation tool and not interpret it as a commercial booster serving investors alone.

Prashanta

Blowing hot and cold
A balanced view on wind power ('Riding the wind', Rubeena Mahato, #532). Great that Ms Mahato does not push wind power as the panacea for the power crisis in Nepal. Solar or wind, nothing can ever compare to hydro and the reporters who go gaga over alternative energy without understanding the basics need to learn their abcs first.
I like the idea of promoting wind in off-grid places without scope for microhydro. And Ms Mahato's signature style of showing people taking the lead is great as always. Way to go Mr. Thapa and all the students who built the turbine.

kaji