Dear friends,

We, the indigenous peoples of Nepal, would like to draw your attention to the civil and human rights movement currently taking place in Nepal. In this letter we are formally asking for your understanding and support for the plight of the indigenous peoples of Nepal.

Nepal is often portrayed in Western media as a beautiful country of mountains, including Mt. Everest, the tallest mountain in the world. However, behind the façade of its geophysical beauty, the country has been plagued by hunger, disease and malnutrition. Today, Nepal stands as one of the poorest countries in the world. The country’s governance system is crippled by caste, creed and nepotism. Of these, the primary culprit is the caste system, which the Brahmin-Chetries imported when they migrated to Nepal. They have used their caste system to rule Nepal for the past 250 years. The caste system, in other words, was designed and created by the Brahmin-Chetries to serve their interests at the expense of everyone else.

Nepal is a country of great diversity, with more than 100 ethnic groups and 29 million people, in a land that is smaller than the state of Missouri. Historically and socio-anthropologically, the people of Nepal are categorized into two groups: caste people (those who practice the caste system) and indigenous peoples (the natives of the Himalayas, mostly Buddhist). The indigenous peoples (Janajati in Nepali) constitute the majority of the population, at over 60%.

Because though of this imposed caste system, Nepal has been a de facto “Jim Crow” state since it became a single nation in the 1770s. For 250 years, the indigenous peoples of Nepal have been deprived of their basic human and civil rights. Until 2006, the country was ruled by feudal kings-- who are of the Chetri caste. During this 250-year period, the caste people, particularly the Brahmins and Chetries, have dominated the political, socioeconomic and cultural lives of Nepal. The indigenous peoples and the lower-caste Dalits have historically been the victims of injustice. A recent study shows that indigenous peoples, particularly Tamang, Rai, Limbu, Magar and Tharu are 600% more likely to be poor than Brahmins. Less than 5% of the indigenous peoples have access to post-secondary education. Indigenous languages have been banned in public schools and their cultural institutions have been destroyed by the Brahmin-Chetri regime. The language and culture of many of the indigenous peoples are on the verge of extinction. Indigenous women continue to be the primary victims of the modern slave trade -human trafficking in Nepal.

The government remains infested with corrupt people, almost all of whom are Brahmin-Chetries. Over 92 % of the administrative and bureaucratic system of the government, and the NGOs are controlled by Brahmin-Chetries. According to Transparency International, Nepal is the second most corrupt country in South Asia. All of the political parties are controlled by Brahmins and Chetries. The Nepal Communist Party (Maoist) is controlled by Pushpa Kamal Dahal (aka, Prachanda) and Mohan Bahadur Baidya/Pokhrel, both of whom are Brahmin. The United Marxist-Leninist Party is controlled by Jhala Nath Khanal, Madhav Nepal, K.P. Oli, and Bamdev Gautam, all of whom are Brahmin. The Nepali Congress Party is controlled by Shusil Koirala, Sher Bahadur Debua, Ram Sharan Mahat, Ram Chandra Paudel, and Prakash Sharan Mahat, who are all Brahmin. The Rastriya Prajatantra Party is controlled by Pashupati Shumsher Rana, Surya Bahadur Thapa, and Kamal Thapa etc. all of whom are Chetries. It is not too far a stretch to state that in public, these Brahmin-Chetries pretend to be fighting against each other-- to fool the public--, but in private they are well-connected to each other through kinship, marriage or business networks, and share the same caste, with its attendant wealth and privileges. All of the evidence points to the link between rampant corruption, and the caste-network. Even foreign aid ends up being used to stifle indigenous cultures.

In response to these historical injustices and the resulting institutionalized system of corruption, the indigenous peoples of Nepal have come together to ask for their fundamental human rights, freedom, social justice and better governance. They have come to the street to protest against the injustices, and to voice their concern to the government and people of the world. The movement in part owes its motivation to the American Civil Rights Movement. The demands of the indigenous peoples are Self-Rule and territorial Autonomy with Identity, federalism, proportional and inclusive representation election system, and secularism. Indigenous peoples want a guarantee of their right to self-govern their territories in the new constitution. Historically the national resources have been disproportionately used for the enjoyment of the Brahmin-Chetries through centralized government system. This undemocratic misallocation of funds and resources must be stopped.

Sadly however, rather than understand the fundamental justice of the demands of the indigenous peoples, and that granting them peacefully will result in a stronger Nepal, the Brahmin-Chetri regime has been arresting many of the peaceful protesters and illegally detaining them without charges. The government is instigating violence on a peaceful movement and then blaming the protesters for violence. The fear-mongering perpetrated by the current government of Nepal includes the launching of a propaganda campaign against the civil rights movement of the indigenous peoples. The regime-controlled media have distorted the facts, and presented the movement as a problem of ethnic conflict while, in fact, all of the ethnic groups have come together to support the movement. All private and public media outlets are controlled by Brahmin-Chetries. The voices of the indigenous peoples have not been allowed in the media. Indigenous leaders have been barred from speaking in public forums -violating their fundamental human rights and freedom of speech.

Through this letter, we are asking for your understanding and support for the cause of human rights and civil rights—particularly, the right to self-governance of the indigenous peoples of Nepal. There are rumblings of a potential civil war and we respectfully request that you warn or counsel the government of Nepal that the Brahmin-Chetri tyranny over the indigenous peoples of Nepal could result in a civil war and violence, and that the Brahmin-Chetri regime will be responsible for the eminent civil war. Since the U.S. government financially supports Nepal’s Brahmin- Chetri caste regime, not doing anything will make the U.S. government look complicit in the atrocities that Nepal government commits against its people.

We hope you will consider all diplomatic means and take appropriate steps to promote human rights, democracy and social justice for all the people of Nepal. In particular, we recommend the following actions, which are consistent with the mission of the human rights organizations, human welfare organizations, democratic governments and peace-loving people of the world --to assist Nepal’s development as a peaceful, prosperous, and democratic nation:

1. Promote self-governance of the indigenous peoples. Indigenous peoples’ land and other resources have been expropriated by the Brahmin-Chetri regime under the pretext of land- reform or other developments. Since the poor people of Nepal are largely the indigenous peoples and since indigenous peoples are the population majority, this is the best way to help Nepal develop and prosper. Self-governance is also the best way to protect the property rights of the indigenous peoples and decentralize the governance system.

The indigenous peoples of Nepal want a united Nepal, which is representative of the diversity in people and cultures. Indigenous peoples propose a federal structure, similar to the structure of the U.S. federal government, in which each state can exercise state laws that are reflective of the peoples and culture of that state. The country’s constitution will be the overarching laws of the country, within which state laws (self-rule) will operate. The federal government of Nepal will be represented by each of the ethnic groups directly elected by people. The federal government will ensure the equitable distribution of national resources across the states and citizens. Currently, Nepal has a centralized structure based on the caste system, which is inherently divisive, unequal and inhumane; and serves the interest of only the Brahmin-Chetries. The current 75 districts and 14 Zones were designed to disfranchise the indigenous peoples. The head of the districts (Chief District Officers) are appointed by central government, almost all of whom are Brahmin-Chetries. Indigenous peoples are opposed to any structure that will disfranchise their communities.

2. Disengage and delegitimize ethnocentric politics. The Nepali Congress (NC), Nepal Communist Party (Maoist), United Marxist-Leninist (UML), and Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP) are all ethnocentric parties. These parties represent and serve the interest of only one ethnic group – the Brahmin-Chetri caste. These parties do not have legitimacy as a national political party. The political fights among these parties have always been about power grabs between Brahmins and Chetries and never about democracy -- keeping the Nepali public and international communities in the dark.

3. Promote freedom of speech. Although there is a press freedom in Nepal, the media is controlled by the Brahmin-Chetri caste. There is no representation of the views of over 100 ethnic groups in the media. The indigenous peoples lack resources to develop their own media house or train indigenous journalists. We recommend programs for training indigenous journalists and investing in media outlets for indigenous voices.

4. Invest in the true Nepali people. From the 250 years of history, it is clear that the Brahmin-Chetries have never considered Nepal as their home. They have used the Nepali peoples and resources for their enjoyment, but they always kept India as a second option. Many of the Brahmin-Chetri political leaders are tied to Indian political leaders through marriage or other kinship network -- Gyanendra Shah, Pashupati Shumser Rana, Sushil Koiral, to name a few. The indigenous peoples are the only true Nepali who have best interest in a developed and prosperous Nepal.

Historically, Brahmin-Chetries have been welcomed to the indigenous villages as also being Nepali --on the basis of equality and fairness. The younger generation Brahmin-Chetries claim to be true Nepali. Their culture though, in attitude and behaviors-- as reflected in their daily rituals, language, movies, songs, dances or other practices--, more often than not promote the culture of India, rather than those of the native Himalayans. Perhaps unintentionally, such practices have contributed to the destruction of the native civilizations of the Himalayas. Prior to the Brahmin-Chetri migration and Hinduization of the country, Nepal was considered a Shangri-Lah by many – a heaven on the earth. Still today, Nepal’s identity hinges on such native heritages as the Jhyrong Khashyor (Boudha Stupa), Phapa Singun (Swayambu Stupa), Namo Buddha, Chomolungma (Mt. Everest), or as the land of the Buddha. Nepal is to many of the Buddhists of the world what Israel is to the Christians of the world – a holy land. Unless Brahmin-Chetries stop destroying the native heritages and prove to the indigenous peoples that they are genuinely interested in a developed, prosperous, equitable Nepal, that also respects non-Hindu cultures, they will always be considered outsiders. Any development programs in Nepal must reflect the cultural heritages and sentiments of all of the native peoples.

5. Capitalize on the indigenous assets. Indigenous peoples are largely Buddhists whose intrinsic value is peaceful coexistence among diverse groups. Because of this value, indigenous peoples have restrained from violence despite the onslaught by Brahmin- Chetries on their peoples and communities for centuries. Today’s indigenous youths, however, are less tolerant about the atrocities and injustice against their people and communities. If the Brahimin-Chetries continue to capture the national government and leave the masses in poverty, there is a real risk of communal violence between Brahmin-Chetries and indigenous peoples. The outcome of this can only be imagined. We ask that the U.S. government be fair in distribution of its assistance by assisting indigenous peoples directly, and not through mechanisms controlled by the Brahmin-Chetri regime. Examples of this may include, but are not limited to, providing educational opportunities and trainings to indigenous children in the country or abroad, investing in indigenous villages directly, investing in indigenous education system – developing an indigenous university and so on.

Your interest in improving the condition and political freedom for the people of Nepal is deeply appreciated.