Take 60: New year, new episode, new hopes, but same old himpathy
On with the new
Welcome to Cold Takes by Boju Bajai. In this newsletter, we bring a weekly round-up of news and feminist views from Nepal and the Nepali internet.
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Hello hello,
We are back from our much-needed winter break. And to be honest, we weren’t really able to take a break, break, if you know what we mean. A lot has happened in the last few weeks - from trigger happy Nepal Police killing protestors, to heartbreaking stories of Nepalis dying in the Russia-Ukraine war.
Not to forget, we kicked off the new year with a much awaited ruling and sentencing on a criminal case that exposed the blatant misogyny that shapes the cultural and social attitudes of our society, and is also at the heart of our political and legal institutions. What came as a pleasant surprise to many - which in itself demonstrates how little we expect from our judiciary - was the court ruling against Sandeep Lamichhane, the cricketer charged with raping a minor, who has been convicted of rape and sentenced to eight years of prison along with a fine.
There are still questions being raised about the court ruling on the survivor not being a minor at the time of the incident - the age of the rape survivor determines the prison sentence.
Even before Lamichhane’s lawyers announced they would appeal the court’s ruling, his supporters took to social media decrying “justice for Sandeep”. Former CAN official Britant Khanal even dedicated a long senti status on Facebook to “dear Sandy” calling him the country’s “Greatest Cricketer Ever” and wishing him “strength to face what future holds for you.”
And things took an ugly turn when people, including elected MPs and senior politicians on social media didn’t just express their support for the rape convicted Sandeep Lamichhane, but went a step ahead and revealed the identity of Gaushala 26. A card carrying member of Rastriya Swatantra Party, who was among the people revealing details about the survivor, was swiftly suspended by the party. Authorities even had to warn people of the consequences - a jail term up to five years - of encroaching on the privacy of the survivor and doing anything that might expose her identity.
The spectacle of the chest thumping himpathizers who have taken to social media attacking Gaushala 26 shouldn’t be surprising, given everything that has happened or made to happen to favour Sandeep Lamichhane since the rape allegations surfaced in 2022. From the Supreme Court allowing the “promising, young international kheladi” to represent Nepali in cricket tournaments abroad, to him being felicitated by taxpayers’ money and being photographed with the most powerful men in Nepal, and lest we forget, the numerous court hearings that were continuously postponed instead of being fast tracked, as is expected in cases of sexual assault and rape.
Last year, when I (Bhrikuti) spoke to Gaushala 26 about the ongoing case proceedings, she seemed frustrated but determined to fight till the end. And despite having gone through so much, including some attempts made back then as well to reveal her identity, she seemed to understand that this was going to be a long, uphill battle. She did speak about her fears - “what if some of his supporters find out my identity, and try to harm me.” But, despite the challenges, and despite the reservations with some aspects of the recent ruling, Gaushala 26 and her unwavering courage has paid off and what better way to kick off the new year than thinking of her and rejoicing with her in her victory.
During our break, we released our latest episode featuring Dr. Dovan Rai, who is a researcher, educator and writer.
In this episode, we talk about everything from Dovan’s experiences as a woman working in STEM and education, her writings about Nepal’s long history of failed political leadership, and the role and effectiveness of civil society in Nepal. But it’s not all serious guff gaff, between talking about देशको चिन्ता, नेताहरुको पारा & dealing with ल्वॉदे ब्रोस् in Nepal and abroad we managed to get some major LOL moments, because Dovan has some of the best lines about entitled ल्वॉदे men.
Happy listening, and here are some insightful pieces by Dr. Dovan Rai. So happy reading also:
नेपाल– आशा र निराशाको ढिकीच्याउँ, Setopati
www.setopati.com/cover-story/seto…ti-debate/308113
तरे संसार घुमिआम्ला, झरे माछा भइजाम्ला, Naya Patrika jhannaya.nayapatrikadaily.com/news-detai…2021-08-07
बहुसांस्कृतिक राष्ट्रमा धार्मिक सहिष्णुता, Naya Patrika
jhannaya.nayapatrikadaily.com/news-detai…2021-10-02
Until next time,
Take care.