Ladies and Gentlemen, I have two questions for you. Who is an individual? What is power?
Well, an individual is YOU looked at separately from groups, community or society. An individual is single. Power is the ability or opportunity to make things happen. Now individual power is about how much power you have as an individual to bring changes and make difference in yourself or in the life of others. There are no shortage of examples of stories on how one person, one movement, one action, one word can make an enormous difference.
In might have come up with such examples in our own journey. However for many people, with demands of work and home and seemingly increasing pace of life and scope of issues on the world stage, we wonder just how much difference one person can make?
When you raise such questions. The trick here is to stop looking out worldly. You should bring your attention closer to home, neighborhood, our own days, our own society and our minds.
Let me give you few examples, which has brought differences in alignment to this concept. Firstly let’s look into the case of United States. How did slaves become free in the US? It all began with a man named Abraham Lincoln; he wanted to set the slaves free. But the southern states had larger plantation. They needed slaves to help. This was not good in their idea.
This controversy led to the civil war, which was eventually won by the north, and the slaves were set free in the US. An opinion of one man created a phenomenon in-group behavior that called reaction in a critical mass.
Now lets take our thoughts to the southern border. Mahatma Gandhi overthrew the British rule through his principle of “non-violence”. He said, ”Be the change that you wish to see in your world.”
Mother Teresa rightly pointed,” If you want change, pick up a broom.”
With these lines they are emphasizing on initiation of an action. They are asking us to revolt all within ourselves and be aware of our power. Then be the change that we wish to see in your world.
However be clear that this revolution of yours is a question rather than an answer. Revolutionary process in itself has to be understood as a process of asking, a process of moving out and not telling people the answers.
But it’s the process of involving people in a movement of self-determination to be the change that they want to see in their world.
My friends Abraham Lincoln, Gandhi, Mother Teresa like many others were more or less a normal people. However when the opportunities popped, they rose to the occasion in a smaller ways. In time their day-to-day decisions and actions added to their lifetime achievement.
That was their journey. They had their purpose. Every individual has his own purpose.
There are many ways within our reach. However it just begins with a conscious choice to make a positive impact and it should unfold from here.
It’s all about the self-realization of your power and conscious choice to be the change that you would want to see in your world.
Lastly let me repeat that one person can make a lot of difference. You can be the person who does, a entrepreneur who does, a teacher who does, a social worker who does, a writer who does, student who does, a civil servant who does……………

The oxford dictionary defines violence as, “Using, showing or caused by physical force that is intended to hurt or kill somebody.” The same source describes right as morally justified. Required law or duty.”
I dream of a “life free of violence-because I strongly believe it’s morally justified and required by law and duty.”
Now if I tell you more than 15,000 lives have been taken in this conflict facing the country, "Does it send shivers through your spines?”
Then this should, "Gender violence causes more death and disability among the age group of 15-44 than cancer, malaria, traffic accidents or even war.” Do you assume that such gender problems prevail only in developing and poor countries?
According to a report 59 % of the 796 women surveyed in Japan reported that their partners physically abused them. In a national survey conducted in the United States 28% of the sample said they had had at least one episode of physical violence by their partners. I could not find exact statistics for Nepal. However in the last four months 0f 2005 the women cell of Kathmandu logged 115 cases of domestic violence.
You should have guessed that the purpose of this writing is to inform you on rampant domestic violence. Also request you to join in this fight against such peril of society.
Domestic violence is not only a legal problem, which can be eliminated by incorporating specific law alone. It is a social and a psychological problem as well. Therefore fundamental changes need to be made in the social system and change in the attitude of people towards women to address the problem.
Various reports have stated that domestic violence is very common in Nepal. However it is rarely discussed and kept within the family. Strong male dominated and feudal socio- economic and cultural structure we live in are some the reason behind this.
The existing problem of poverty, illiteracy, religious superstition, subjugate conservative tradition, social injustice, legal discrimination against women can be other variant for this phenomenon.
Nevertheless I strongly believe the problem of domestic violence can be addressed with right measures.
We should share studies on negative impacts of domestic violence with children. Simple medium like stories, plays, movies etc. can be used. And also justify, why this is morally wrong and legally incorrect.
State bodies and civil societies can support trainings and counseling addressed to change the attitudes of adults who are perpetrators. The media can play a strong role in engineering opinions addressed to encourage a strong societal perspective against domestic violence.
There are various measures to stand against domestic violence from various walks of life.
I would like to appeal every reader to stand against it. It can be in a very small form. Like start from the family, do not tolerate it in the neighborhood and express your view strongly among your friends.
It can be just a drop in an ocean. But be reminded one action, one word or one person can be very powerful. A small action can create a phenomenon in the group behavior to bring changes you never imagined.

Can you guess,” Which are the four districts which do not have prisons?” Well, the answer is four, namely; Bhaktpur, Bara, Sunsari and Dhanusha.
I assume we are well aware of the fact that South –Asian prisons are notoriously famous for inhumane treatment of their inmates.
The prisons are overcrowded, way above their capacity. The inmates are deprived from civil liberties and fundamental rights. The prisoner is restricted from formal education and various skilled-based training. The convicts are also banned from recreational facilities. A measure of counseling and opportunity to reintegrate into the outside society is absent.
The jails in Nepal are no exception. In my voluntary association with Prisoner’s Assistance Nepal (PAN) I could not believe what I learnt.
“There are many children and infants living inside the prison with their convicted parents, they do not have anyone in the outside society to look after them.” These innocent children live in the same harsh conditions as their parents. All the civil liberties and fundamental rights are deprived from these nation builders of tomorrow.
Let me remind you once again that these are innocent kids with no criminal history. It is also important to note that this is happening despite the fact that Article 11 of constitution of Kingdom of Nepal –1990 required that state make special provision for advancement of such children.
The civil society has to be careful that such provisions are also added in the new constitution of state of Nepal. In addition we should ensure that state builds muscles to implement these issues facing the prisoners.
Raise these issues with the prison authority and they will proudly tell you,” Yes we do provide Rs. 5.50 as allowance on daily basis. In addition we provide 250 Gms of rice to each child.”
This should give you the picture of the miseries facing these children. However not every child is lucky for such privilege. There are many who have had problems to register themselves with the concerned authority.
Nevertheless it is also important for us to understand the financial crunches of the state. As a responsible citizen we cannot always raise fingers at the state. It is also the responsibility of the civil society to contribute, revolutionize the Penal System of Nepal and replace the old Penal System.
It is high time we understood that “Prisoner themselves are the reflection of the society.”
There are number of NGOs that have extended their help and support to the prisoners and their dependants. But only few have been able to bring a significant impact to the working environment.
Prisoners Assistance Nepal (PAN) founded by a famous writer and a human right activist Parijat is one organization, which has been successful in meeting their objectives. PAN is the only organization, which specifically rescues children from prisons. They have rescued more than 121 children.
PAN provides residential care for children who would otherwise be in jail with the convicted parents. They also organize skills trainings for prisoners, advocacy on behalf of prisoners and their families, support for women released from prison and provide special support to the mentally ill convicts.
This NGO has been recognized for their determination and dedication by awards and media coverage both in national and international level. Recently successor of Parijat, Ms Indra Rana Magar has been awarded the Goddess Shakti for her work. The Boss Excellence has also recognized her as the 50 most influential women in Nepal. PAN has been lucky to receive a partial funding by the Ashoka Foundation –US.
Ms Rana has received this recognition for her sincere devotion to replace the old unjust penal system in Nepal with more pragmatic support system for the prisoners, their children and maintaining the links between the inmates and their families. Now she believes she can replace the concept of punishment centers with correctional center approach. However her hands have
been tied due to financial crises.
In this hard times facing the organization on the behalf of PAN I would like to request humanitarian support from the civil society. Presently PAN has 100 children in their residential centers. The cost of living, education, medical facilities and various programs designed to provide opportunity for the child’s advancement and reintegration into the outside society would cost Rs. 1500 per month. This means Rs. 1800 per annum.
You could contribute in two ways on personal basis or through institutional support .If you want to help on a personal basis; you could raise funds like me. Doctors could organize free health camps; teachers can help in teaching, student can volunteer etc. You know the best how you can contribute.
I personally recommend the institutional approach, as this is a sustainable approach. An organization can contribute X amount of their corporate social responsibility (CSR) for Y number of years. If you do not have a CSR, it’s a right time to establish one.
You can benefit as your partnership with PAN can provide you wide media coverage. As I mentioned earlier they are the darlings of media house globally.
Above all you will be contributing your money to replace the conventional penal system with more practical support system for prisoners, their children and maintaining links between the inmates and family.
Ladies and gentlemen, let me repeat,” Prisoners themselves are reflection of the society.” It’s our responsibility to recognize this fact and join hands to address their issues.

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