Women of Nepal

Lila Nyaichai

Member of the Constituent Assembly
Central Member of the Nepal Revolutionary Women's Union
Alternative Member of the Central Committee, Nepal Workers Peasants Party

Born in July, 1980 in Bhaktapur

Lila Nyaichai represents a new type of women leader in Nepal, succeeding in securing a place in the Constituent Assembly at the age of 27. She was elected through the proportional representative system by her party Nepal Workers Peasants Party (NWPP), which holds five of 601 seats. She is presently contributing in the Fundamental Rights Committee in the Constituent Assembly (CA).

At a time most youths consider politics to be a 'dirty game', Nyaichai has fully dedicated herself to the peace building process through politics. She believes that while there are many clean and intelligent politicians in the country, the image of politics in Nepal has been soiled due to the domination of corrupt politicians.

Nyaichai was born the third child of a simple Newar family in the old town of Bhaktapur. Her father is a carpenter and farmer and her mother a housewife. Nyaichai was exposed to a major political event during her school days, studying grade four at Bhaktapur Basu Secondary School when she witnessed the aftermath of the August 21, 1988 earthquake in Bhaktapur. As the houses in the district were old, built with brick and mud, many weren't able to be rebuilt and had to be dismantled.

But more than the devastation caused by the quake, it was the then Panchayat government's response to the disaster which held the true tragedy. The government handed the responsibility of distributing relief goods to Rastriya Panchayat member Karna Heju, who had been expelled from the NWPP on grounds of embezzlement. In the case of the earthquake relief, the Panchayat government was actually using Heju as a scapegoat. On top of this, Heju distributed relief goods to high class and caste people whose houses had not collapsed in the quake, leaving the true victims still in need. Infuriated locals smeared a stain on his face and forced him to march the streets before beating him so severely he later died in hospital from his injuries.

Blame for Heju's death was placed solely on activists of the NWPP, and the party's leaders and cadres were arrested and held in jail for 20 months. Detained leaders were released only after the Panchayat system collapsed and the multi-party system was restored in 1990.

Besides this incident, Nyaichai closely witnessed the 1990's People's Movement, in which Bhaktapur locals were intensively involved. Security officials raided and patrolled schools and houses. Teachers were detained and innocent farmers were beaten by the police. School teachers in the district protested and encouraged students to participate in demonstrations. Nyaichai was one of the many young students who actively demonstrated against the Panchayat authority, organized by the NWPP.

Nyaichai first joined the student organization affiliated with the NWPP when she was in the 6th grade. To depoliticize the organization it was named the Students Welfare Committee (SWC), and now each public school in Bhaktapur district has its own committee under SWC. The committee focuses on maintaining discipline inside the classroom.

Nyaichai received average grades as a student, preferring to spend her time participating in extracurricular activities, such as quiz contests, debates, and poetry competitions, rather than being immersed in only text books. Teachers motivated students to read the biographies of successful personalities and Nyaichai read about people such as Clara Zetkin, Ho Chi Minh, Rosa Luxemburg and Gangalal Shrestha. She was particularly impressed with publications such as 'Gangalal ko Chita', a Nepali play written by Hridaya Chandra Singh Pradhan, and a biography of Vietnamese leader Ho Chi Minh, finding herself inspired by these struggling leaders who sacrificed even their lives for their countries. Gangalal Shrestha is a Nepali martyr killed by the autocratic Rana government in 1940. Nyaichai opined, "If these heroes didn't struggle during their time the next generation would not have had the chance to get educated. So, this is the politics done solely on behalf of the whole nation and its people."

As her School Leaving Certificate (SLC) exams drew near, Nyaichai's teacher suggested she not be distracted by such books. Despite her teacher's anxiety, she passed her SLC in 1996.

When she was in the 9th grade, Nyaichai became president of Bhaktapur district's SWC, responsible for the school welfare programs of the whole district, as directed by the NWPP. She updated the school activities across the entire district, visiting each VDC in the district so she could observe the reality through her own eyes.

After becoming district president of the SWC, Nyaichai began to edit a student-run paper called 'Prachesta (Special effort)'. Although her family suggested she take a science course after passing her SLC and she attained a high score in the entrance exams for the subject, she instead decided to join the Department of Humanities as she wanted to continue her activities towards students' welfare. If she had chosen to study science she would have had to go to Kathmandu to attend classes and spend more time in practical classes, taking time away from her student activism and the paper, which she believed would eventually cease circulation.

Nyaichai continued with student politics even after joining Bhaktapur Multiple Campus, compiling a list of books to read to sharpen her knowledge of politics and the world. Along with her friends, she tried to counter the widely-held notion among students that "Politics is a dirty game" and instead tried to convince young people of the importance of politics. Nyaichai believes only young, educated leaders can bring some stability and ethics into Nepal's ruined political discipline.

Vandalizing public property, burning tires on the streets and forcibly calling 'bandh (general strike)' are not politics. "The objective of politics is to serve people and the nation. We need to do fair politics. Only then can people be served in a better way. Until and unless good people become involved in politics, dirty games will be carried out by poor political players," said Nyaichai.

Nyaichai entered the field of party politics in 1996 when the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist) led government signed the Mahakali Treaty with the Indian government. Considering this treaty detrimental to Nepal's interest, various communist parties jointly protested the decision. Nyaichai also joined the demonstration and took the lead to publicize the anti-treaty movement.

Being politically-conscious, Nyaichai undertook economics, political science and English literature studies in her certificate level at Bhaktapur Multiple Campus. She took bachelor's courses on economics and English literature in Ratna Rajya Laxmi Campus before obtaining her master's degree on Information Science from Tribhuvan University's Central Campus.

Nyaichai's involvement in political activities was always directed by her party - NWPP. While working with the student organization Nyaichai, along with NWPP, focused on a new qualitative educational system. Their method of protest was totally different to that of other student organizations and political parties. According to Nyaichai, their organization never burnt tires in front of colleges or disrupted classes in any way. Nor did they vandalize public property.

After working in the student organization for eight years she shifted to the women's organization in 2005 when the Jana Andolan II (People's Movement II) against the royal takeover was rising. Nyaichai participated in each and every protest program her party launched against royal rule, even going to the villages to raise awareness against anarchist rule. 

She became an alternative central committee member of NWPP during the party convention in 2008. Nyaichai who is circled by discipline, something most young Nepalese lack, respects her seniors. She paved her way up to the CA with the help of senior leaders who had faith in her.

A critic of Nepal's contemporary political system, Nyaichai really began to feel the social hurdles after joining the women's organization, as student issues pale in comparison to the issues faced by women. "Nepal lacks educated women leaders. Many women in Nepal approach education to acquire a better job or to have a better husband, not to change the appearance of society and politics."

Bhaktapur, once considered one of the backward districts, changed a lot as a result of the development programs the NWPP initiated in the area. The local body is now providing various skill-developing programs targeting women and poor people.

Though her party is deemed small in Nepal, she believes it has an important role in Nepali politics. She opines large parties are responsible for immense mistakes made in Nepal's history, mistakes which are sadly being repeated. Nyaichai's party, though small in size, does not cheat people for the benefit of the party. Nyaichai thinks large parties forget their vows once they reach success whereas the NWPP refuses to be lured by power and position.

Led by Narayan Man Bijukchhe (aka Rohit) who is originally from old town of Bhaktapur, the NWPP has its strongest support base in Bhaktapur district. At the initiative of the NWPP, farmers who work as tenants in Bhaktapur have now registered their names to claim half the land they have tilled for landlords. Although a law exists to provide half the land to tenants, it has only been implemented in Bhaktapur. Consequently, almost all Bhaktapur's poor have faith in the NWPP. Nyaichai believes her party will further help these people as well as Nepalis in general by helping to draft a proper constitution. The NWPP aims to establish the poor people's reign to secure their rights equally in the nation. Its manifesto proposes to run trade industries and whole institutions under the government, rather than the private sector.

Nyaichai now bears the national responsibility of drafting a new constitution. The time has come to prove her dedication to her party, the people of Bhaktapur and the whole country. In future, she plans to extend her efforts towards women's rights and be a pillar cadre to change society.

Written by Binju Sitaula