The National Endowment for Democracy (NED) is mourning the tragic death of Nepalese democracy and human rights advocate Suvash Darnal, who was killed on August 15th in a highway accident outside Washington, D.C. "Suvash's death is a huge loss, for his family most of all and his friends, and also for his country," said Carl Gershman, President of the National Endowment for Democracy, where Darnal was a Reagan-Fascell Democracy Fellow in late 2008 and early 2009. "He had so much to give," added Gershman. "He was such an extraordinarily good and positive person, always with a sparkle and a smile. He is deeply mourned and will be sorely, painfully missed."
Credit:myrepublica.com
A leading Nepalese rights activist was killed in a traffic accident yesterday en route from Dulles International Airport on the outskirts of Washington, DC.
Suvash Darnal (right), the founder and executive director of the Samata Foundation, was returning from a fellowship program at Stanford University's Center for Democracy, Development and the Rule of Law, when the shuttle bus in which he was traveling crashed on the Dulles toll road.
Darnal was a prominent advocate for the rights of Dalits - also known as 'untouchables' - and his foundation, a Kathmandu-based research and advocacy organization supported by the National Endowment for Democracy, worked to counter anti-Dalit discrimination and to ensure that Nepal's new constitution includes guarantees for Dalits and other minority rights. "We can't enjoy a democracy without cleansing our thoughts of the outdated pure-impure dichotomy," he believed.
Darnal was a "wonderfully good and generous" person whose death is a "tremendous loss," said Carl Gershman, the NED's president. He was a "great human rights defender" who was "working for a new democracy" in Nepal.
"Suvash was a leading Dalit activist with fresh ideas and a progressive vision for his country," said Mona Dave, NED Program Officer for Asia. "He worked tirelessly to end discrimination against the Dalit community and other minority groups.
The first Dalit in his community to graduate from school, he jointly established the Collective Campaign for Peace, which emerged as a leading civil society actor during the Jana Andolan or pro-democracy movement of 2006 against the autocratic rule of King Gyanendra.
"At one point, it became the secretariat for the civil democratic movement in Nepal," Darnal said in an interview last year. Establishing the Samata Foundation was a necessary next step:
"I knew I wanted to take the Dalit issues further. But in order to do so, I knew I had to find a way of taking the discourse to the policy formation level. We needed research," said Suvash...... "The problem with our political parties, civil society, and intellectuals is that we don't see the political situation in Nepal in the casteist framework."Suvash speaks with feeling: "What I know is that more research needs to be done. And our policies must be focused. We can't enjoy a democracy without cleansing our thoughts of the outdated pure-impure dichotomy. I've seen it, felt it, and it's not a pretty or democratic practice."
The Jana Andolan's success in unseating the monarchy created an opportunity to redress long-standing grievances and injustices, he argued, but Dalit and other minority rights should be constitutionally-enshrined to guard against any backsliding.
"The voice and agendas of the Dalit community were for centuries alienated by the state and the different factions of society, and are now finally on course to getting recognition, as a result of the last People's Revolution," Darnal wrote. "This year, institutionalizing the achievements of the 60-year-old Dalit revolution will be of a huge priority."
Darnal was also the founding member of the Jagaran Media Center, established to cultivate media awareness about marginalized minorities and to train young Dalit journalists. "Not only was Suvash a dedicated and principled activist, he was also a creative thinker who was always willing to engage in discussions in an effort to refine his ideas," said Brian Joseph, NED's Senior Director for Asia. "He will be deeply missed by all who knew him."
During his Reagan-Fascell fellowship at the NED, Darnal explored strategies and techniques for including marginalized groups such as the Dalits into the political, economic, and social mainstream in Nepal. His presentation - Securing Dalit Rights: The Case for Affirmative Action in the 'New Nepal' - can be viewed here.
The NED is planning to organize a memorial symposium in recognition of Suvash Darnal's work. Further details will be available through the Democracy Digest.