Slavery In Nepal
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/6405373.stm
This article is basically about slavery in Nepal. Young girls, some as young as 13, are sent to work for landlords by their families. Sometimes, these girls are sent by their families because they desperately need the money or because they are in dept to the landlords. Others are orphans who are neglected by their guardians and are sent away. These girls do not earn any money at all. They do not go to school and are sometimes abused by their ‘employers’. These unfortunate girls are called Kamlari, or slave girls. Personally, I do not see how the way these girls are treated is different from the way the African-Americans were treated by the whites. They are both abused and treated as slaves, they do not get paid and they lead broken lives. However, the situation in Nepal is slightly worse as these girls are being mistreated by their own race. The African-Americans were mistreated by another, self-proclaimed, superior race.
When I first read the article, I was reminded of the foreigners from Indonesia, Sri Lanka, The Philippines and many other countries who come here to work as maids. These women are sent here to work because they have no other options. They often come from poor families and some of them are rather young. Sometimes they are mistreated and abused by their employers. Then I think to myself, ‘Can this be considered Slavery?’ In some circumstances, the only difference between the young girls in Nepal and the Indonesians in Singapore is the fact that the ones who work in Singapore get paid. After trying to figure out why such a system is legalised in many countries including Singapore, I realised that usually, the foreigners that come here to work as maids are treated well and become part of the family. Sometimes they form unbreakable bonds with their ‘families’ here. I know of a case where a Mother from Indonesia, who worked here as a maid, was given money to pay for her child’s education.
Now, back to the article at hand, towards the end of the article, it is mentioned that some former Kalmaris staged a play depicting the life of a typical kalmari. This play captured the attention of many people and even got some women to protest against the somehow legalised Kalmari system in Nepal. The FNC (Friends of Needy Children) is also taking measures to ensure that such a system is abolished.
Personally, I think that such a system should not even exist in this Morden world. We all preach about equality and lending a helping hand. Now, Nepal is not situated that far away from us and I think we can all lend a helping hand to stop the slavery. Such an incident has taken place, as mentioned, it was between the African-Americans and the whites. History has a cruel way of repeating itself.
Please, don’t let it.
This article is basically about slavery in Nepal. Young girls, some as young as 13, are sent to work for landlords by their families. Sometimes, these girls are sent by their families because they desperately need the money or because they are in dept to the landlords. Others are orphans who are neglected by their guardians and are sent away. These girls do not earn any money at all. They do not go to school and are sometimes abused by their ‘employers’. These unfortunate girls are called Kamlari, or slave girls. Personally, I do not see how the way these girls are treated is different from the way the African-Americans were treated by the whites. They are both abused and treated as slaves, they do not get paid and they lead broken lives. However, the situation in Nepal is slightly worse as these girls are being mistreated by their own race. The African-Americans were mistreated by another, self-proclaimed, superior race.
When I first read the article, I was reminded of the foreigners from Indonesia, Sri Lanka, The Philippines and many other countries who come here to work as maids. These women are sent here to work because they have no other options. They often come from poor families and some of them are rather young. Sometimes they are mistreated and abused by their employers. Then I think to myself, ‘Can this be considered Slavery?’ In some circumstances, the only difference between the young girls in Nepal and the Indonesians in Singapore is the fact that the ones who work in Singapore get paid. After trying to figure out why such a system is legalised in many countries including Singapore, I realised that usually, the foreigners that come here to work as maids are treated well and become part of the family. Sometimes they form unbreakable bonds with their ‘families’ here. I know of a case where a Mother from Indonesia, who worked here as a maid, was given money to pay for her child’s education.
Now, back to the article at hand, towards the end of the article, it is mentioned that some former Kalmaris staged a play depicting the life of a typical kalmari. This play captured the attention of many people and even got some women to protest against the somehow legalised Kalmari system in Nepal. The FNC (Friends of Needy Children) is also taking measures to ensure that such a system is abolished.
Personally, I think that such a system should not even exist in this Morden world. We all preach about equality and lending a helping hand. Now, Nepal is not situated that far away from us and I think we can all lend a helping hand to stop the slavery. Such an incident has taken place, as mentioned, it was between the African-Americans and the whites. History has a cruel way of repeating itself.
Please, don’t let it.
posted by iwasrobbed @ 9:23 PM
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