Rise of Ethnice Movements and contested rural Development in Nepal A case study of Tharu Movement

Abstract

The study was based on the interpretive epistemology and social constructive ontology with a critical-dialectical perspective. Empirically, it followed grounded theory approach for an in-depth case study and analysis of the Tharu movement in the two districts of the Tarai region: Dang in western and Sunsari in eastern Nepal. The study sites and research participants were selected by using the theoretical sampling method. Four Village Development Committees (VDCs), two from each district, were selected on the basis of their geographic-political setting, demographic structure and historical background of the Tharu movement. The nature of the study was thus qualitative, and sources of data were both primary and secondary. The methodological cut-off-point for the study has been remained from 2006 to 2015- the era of the popular movement and constitution-writing. However, subsequent analysis of the post-constitutional and federal context is also a part of the study due to rapidly changing political situations and fluidity in the scope of present research. The study concludes that the causes and characteristics of the movement were multidimensional, and often remained structurally rooted in the national politics in general and local development activities in particular. The Thesis notes that the Tharu movement has come up with three historical phases: a) phase of social and cultural mobilization in the Panchayat era; b) phase of political campaign after 1990-2006; and c) phase of ethnic and regional movement manifested as ‘identity politics’ in the post 2006-context. While the Maoist movement has contributed to shape out the political mobilization of the Tharus in the name of ‘Tharuwan’, the contemporary Tharu movement has been popularly known as ‘Tharuhat’ movement. The thesis arguably rejects this narrow world view of the movement as Tharuhat or Tharuwan and sees how the broader framework has been created to construct ‘Tharu movement’ in general. Historically, movements of Kamaiyas and Kamlaharis and the agitations for land rights and the peasants’ welfare have also contributed to shaping the present-day Tharu movement, though the agendas of these groups were still kept lagging behind in the framing of mainstreams of the Tharu movement. Moreover, the movement did not have a well-defined ideological base and unified leadership foundation in the villages inviting a number of spaces for political complexities in the region. The shifting of agendas from narrow material world-view to a broader political and non material world-view after 2006 was significant. However, the entry of Tharu movement in the national politics and international concern has occurred with a number of internal as well as external factors. The thesis outlines such factors as leading to the increase of political awareness among the Tharus and their thrust for identity, continuity in the ii movements of Kamaiya and Kamlahari, the rise of Madhes movement, ethnic movements, and identity-based claims, movements for and against the autonomous regions in the Tarai region and the subsequent debates in the process of constitution writing and state-restructuring. The findings reflect that the political dimension of the rural development has been extended both empirically and theoretically. Most importantly, the movement has also contributed to shaping and legitimizing the issues of ethnic identity, inclusion and proportional representation in the constitution. It has also widened the presence of Tharu movement as a detrimental factor of Tarai politics in the changing context of federalism. In spite of having significant achievements in civil and cultural rights and ethnic identities, the movement in grassroots still has some prominent issues related to political and economic rights, including the transfer of power in favor of poor strata of the Tharus, tenancy and land reforms, recognition of customary practices, rehabilitation of the Kamaiyas and Kamlaharis, and reduction of poverty and inequality. Along with these factors, the findings reflect that changing of power relations in the villages and widening of economic opportunities had been less prioritized at the grassroots as was being done with the ethnic and regional issues at the leadership and central level. The creation of multiple identities was evidently observed in the villages which brought many people (from different class, regional and ethnic backgrounds) together at the same place for collective movements (e.g. in land and gender issues). The study concludes that the consequences of the movement were politically value-loaded, which affected development outcomes in multiple ways for the benefits of the local elites who used to represent a wider sphere of power structures in the villages, including the movements of the Tharus and others, political parties, non-governmental organizations and the state- bureaucracy. Moreover, little changed for the mass of poor Tharus – indeed, the findings of the study confirm an important contemporary critique of many movements to represent renegotiation rather than a transformation of unequal power relations. The study recalls that already in the 1950s, organizations emerged (e.g. the Tharu Welfare Society-TWS) that started to engage with the faith of Tharus – though more along welfare and reformist agendas (e.g. fighting against child marriage, and promoting girls’ education). However, Tharu-related activism exploded after 2006 in the context of the peace agreement and the subsequent negotiations for a new constitution within the Constituent Assembly and outside it. In this context, Tharu leaders quickly realized that framing demands along identity lines was a powerful iii political strategy. Here, the study asserts that these leaders on the one hand consisted of the old Tharu elite, but on the other hand, of newly emerging persons who saw these dynamics as an opportunity for upward mobility. As a consequence, the number of leaders and organizations claiming to represent the cause of the Tharus mushroomed, including, among others, existing and new NGOs that now turned political. This heterogeneity in the leadership got reflected in the ambiguity of demands. On the one hand, there was the unified demand for recognition of the Tharu identity (as a whole). On the other hand, the implications of this demand were contested. While some demanded a separate Tharuhat state (including struggles against other groups in the Tarai), others wanted a quota system or positive discrimination in the allocation of funds, or even joined other groups (including Madhesi) too. But most leaders were united in the view that priority was to be given to the identity issue; once 'the Tharu' got recognition, economic improvements would follow automatically. The thesis critiques this identity-based strategy through the eyes of the grassroots. In short, the empirical data allow to argue that the masses of poor and ultra-poor Tharus – though initially supportive of the movement – increasingly got disillusioned. Through a number of evidence-based reflections and narrations, the study shows how people assess many of their old and new leaders as actually responsible for their misery, and that the emphasis on Tharu identity as a whole hides intra-Tharu exploitations. He gives many empirical examples of Tharu leaders having kept Tharu bonded labor, or newly emerging leaders appropriating state schemes that were meant for the poorer strata. The study then shows that the leaders' emphasis on Tharu identity at times created tensions in villages between Tharu and other groups – people that were neighbors before. This theoretical and methodological approach allowed the thesis to generate highly interesting, differentiated and relevant insights into the Tharu Movement. The study then details, for example, that the Tharus are a highly heterogeneous 'ethnic group' which is almost impossible to generalize as “one people”. Above all, empirical works at the grassroots show the socioeconomic differentiation within this group, with a mass of households struggling with utmost poverty, and a small stratum of influential and well-off families on top. These strata are interlinked through social relations of dependency incl. tenancy and even bonded labor relations. Coming to the conclusions and recommendations, the study takes a careful and differentiated position as well. The Thesis concludes with a theoretical framework of iv “Movement Mobilization Framework of Contested Rural Development”. Through this grounded theory of the empirical findings, the study seeks to make apparent the power relations and their implications that are exerted by the state to the Tharu movement and vice-versa. This framework demands to contextualize the Tharu Movement as closely interwoven with its (changing) context, i.e. within the broader historical, social, political and economic conditions and processes in the Tarai region, and this region's position vis-à-vis Nepal (in general) and adjoining India. To some extent, the movement has challenged the institutions of the state through its advocacy and campaigning against the dominant nature of the development. Yet ironically, the movement has played a critical role in creating an elite-manipulation through different channels of civil society and political activism. The findings thus conclude that, contrary to the rhetoric of liberal foundations, there was an increasing manipulation of identity, welfare and democracy to promote elite interests. This manipulation, in turn, has been evident with the fluid nature of networks and alliances. This research was framed within the Swiss National Centre of Competence in Research (NCCR North-South) core issues of comparative and transdisciplinary study of ‘Contested Rural Development’ (CRD). Through the present study it is therefore expected to contribute to the emerging debates in the fields contested development through the viewpoints of social and ethnic movements in Nepal and the beyond. In particular, the rationality of this study lies in understanding the post-conflict agitations of the Tharus in Tarai-Nepal and their nexus with the state-restructuring process, identity politics and the idea of development in the federal context.