A ROLE MODEL WOMAN
65 years old, Geeta Devi Kafle of "Janaklyan Women's Group", Mahottari district gave up the long held caste discrimination practice.
She has been a role model of the Khayarmara VDC of Mahottari district. Now she eats what so-called Dalit (Untouchable) people give her. She allows Dalits in her home. The women's group participated in the Cornerstones training and changed their philosophy toward the age-old caste discrimination practice.
In Nepali phenomenon the society is divided into caste groups with hierarchy. Those of the so-called higher caste (Brahmin, Chhetrri) discriminate against the lower caste (Dalits). The level of discrimination is inhumane to the effect that Dalits are considered untouchable and ostracized from the society.
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Success Stories
Lok Kumari Upreti
A leader with true spirit
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Lok Kumari was born in Thanapati, a rural village of Nuwakot, a central district of Nepal, as the fourth child among eleven. The poor economic condition of her parents forced her to work in fields, collect firewood and take care of her younger siblings from very young age. She was always supportive to her parents and tried her best to help them. In a rural Nepali society where girls are married at their teens, she dared to break the tradition and helped her parents raise her younger brothers and sisters.
At the age of 26, she was married to a local who was working at Indian Army. When they got married, her husband did not own any house or land. So they leased a piece of land and built a one-room thatch roofed hut. One month after the wedding, her husband went to report to his duty leaving her all alone. She worked as an agriculture labor for sustenance. Her husband visited her only once a year. Within five years, she was a mother of two boys. Two new members in the family meant more mouths to feed and added responsibility. She however handled the situation bravely.
But one day, her landlord forced her to leave her hut and get out of his land. During that time, her community assisted her to build a hut in her neighbor's land. She lived in that hut for almost seven years, until her husband came back after retirement and bought a small piece of land with a house.
Lok Kumari never forgot the kind help of her neighbors. So she started to assist the needy people of her community in any way she could. Her husband was always supportive to her. In the mean time, she approached Community and Rural Development Society Nepal (CARDSN) and sought its help to help her neighbors. CARDSN assisted her to form a group in her community and she became the chairperson of the group. She introduced monthly savings in the group, which could be loaned by the members when needed. She supported four of her very poor group members to pay the monthly saving fee in the group for one year.
In 1998 CARDSN with Heifer’s assistance, implemented Thanapati Goat Raising Project. Lok Kumari's group participated in the project and each member received two goats, training on goat husbandry, fodder grass seeds, and seedlings. They were also trained on group function and management, cornerstones and gender justice. Lok Kumari now became more equipped to mobilize her group.
Within 18 months, her goats gave birth to two female and three male kids. She used the income from the sale of one castrated male to open a small grocery shop in her house. She passed on three females instead of two to other families amidst a function in October 2000. During that time she also provided scholarship to a girl child for one year to cover school dress, fees and stationeries. Now, she has two pregnant does and a castrated male with her. She has planted fodder trees and grasses in the marginal area of her land. She has been participating in the grass-seed multiplication program of district livestock extension service, and has been sharing the grass seeds with her group members.
Lok Kumari’s contribution to her society is remarkable. In 1999, when a NGO working for drinking water project in her community was about to abandon the project after the community failed to deposit NPR 50,000 (5% of the project cost) as community contribution guarantee, Lok Kumari personally loaned NPR 50,000 from a local merchant and deposited the sum on behalf of her community. When she was asked how sure she was that the community would pay her that sum, her response was; "We all know we can not survive without water. We were about to lose this important project. In such a situation, a leader has to show the leadership and that's what I did. It was my duty. I am confident that sooner or later people will realize this and pay their share." Later, the community honored her by requesting her to lay the foundation stone during the reservoir construction. She was also elected the Chairperson of the drinking water users' group. Lok Kumari's group members are providing volunteer unskilled labor to the project. Besides physical labor, she is also sponsoring snacks and tea to the working team.
Lok Kumari has been playing a dynamic role as a conflict solver in her community. She has also been active in raising fund and in renovating the old building of her community high school. She took leadership in soliciting help in cash and kind during the sudden death of Mr. Thapa, husband of Mithu Thapa, one of her group members. During that time all the members, including the ones from Dalit caste (so called untouchable) donated food grain and money. Mrs. Thapa accepted this donation, despite the protest of her priest. Lok Kumari stood as a pillar to Mithu in this moment.
She is a strongly self-motivated and dedicated leader of the community. She has learned to read and write from her sons who are studying in grade 5 and grade 8 in the local high school. She is always eager to lead her community towards development and encourages people to involve themselves in developmental activities. As a reward to her contribution to the community, CARDSN has nominated her in its executive board. She says, “I feel satisfied when I can be of help to others.”
Written in May 2001
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