Nepali radio programme builds peace

Tharu man playing Madal, traditional musical drum.

Naya Nepal (meaning ‘New Nepal’) offered an exciting mix of news items, commentary and popular music aimed at informing people about political and social ferment in the country. Leading political figures Ram Chandra Pudel (Minister of Peace and Reconstruction), Krishna Pahadi (a human rights activist and leader of a citizens’ movement for democracy and peace), and Bishnu Neupane (leader of a movement for proportionate representation of women in the ‘new’ Nepal) all came to the studio to be interviewed.

Similarly, media pundits offered their views on developments in Nepal, which is currently gearing up for constitutional reform. Kamala Shakya, chief editor of Nawa Talash Weekly, talked about the role of women in restructuring the State. Ameet Dhakal, news editor of the English-language daily The Kathmandu Post, outlined the roles and responsibilities of the interim government in resolving the problems facing the country on its road to peace.

One episode of Naya Nepal reported on people who have disappeared. Hundreds of people have gone missing in Nepal owing to activities by government forces, rebels and Maoists. Bardia is the district with the highest number of disappearances. It is in a remote part of Nepal and is the hardest hit by decade-long violence. The radio team visited the district to prepare a special report.

On another occasion journalists went to Karnali Pradesh, one of the most marginalized and underdeveloped regions of the country. Here, people have minimal access to basic resources and have been virtually excluded from the nation’s development and peace processes.

These fortnightly programmes have successfully highlighted the concerns of people from many different walks of life in the country whose voices are largely ignored. Kamal Raj Sigdel, coordinator of the project, pointed out that the voices of the Tharu (the largest tribal group), Kammayas (ex-bonded labourers) and Madhesis (a deprived community in the Terai valley) were heard in several episodes.

One problem the programme makers faced was the lack of an editing studio outside Kathmandu. This meant a lot of extra travel. Another was language. An item recorded in a dialect such as Maithali could not be broadcast nationwide. The solution was to opt for multilingual broadcasts with something for everyone.

Subaltern Forum has demonstrated the democratic potential of radio in a country undergoing political and social upheaval. Balanced reporting focusing on the likely impact of recent developments and new policies on the poor and marginalised has clearly been welcomed on all sides. By most standards, it is a success story!