Tag Archives: Eastern Subcontinent

Gender

Bangladesh Feature | Women

Sewing Clothes, Sewing Futures

A new initiative is providing Bangladeshi women working in garment factories with the opportunity to earn a college education. Through a partnership with the Asian University for Women (AUW), garment factories, many affiliated with popular global brands, are sending select workers to school while maintaining their pay. Factories’ reputations have taken a blow in the fallout from the Rana Plaza disaster in 2013, and some employers are keen on improving their public image through social responsibility initiatives. The Guardian takes a look at the program and a few of its bright young student-workers.

Read more:
“Dresses to degrees: university opens its doors to Bangladesh garment workers” (The Guardian)

(Image Credit: David Levene/The Guardian)

Gender

Nepal News | Women

Nepal elects first woman president following establishment of new constitution
  • Bidhya Devi Bhandari, a member of the Communist Party of Nepal-United Marxist Leninist (CPN-UML), was elected Nepal’s second president by the Nepalese parliament.
  • Though the presidency is largely a ceremonial role, Bhandari has had a long political career that began after the death of her husband, a Nepali politician, in 1993.
  • Although she worked to secure a one-third quota for women in Nepal’ parliament, Bhandari has been at the center of controversy surrounding the inclusion of women’s rights in Nepal’s new constitution, having made comments construed as supporting gender inequality in the country.

Read more:
“Bhandari is Nepal’s 1st female President” (The Kathmandu Post)
“This Woman Is Now Nepal’s First Female President” (BuzzFeed News)
“A Himalayan first” (The Indian Express)

(Image Credit: Navesh Chitrakar/Reuters, via BuzzFeed News)

Ideology + Affiliation

Bangladesh News | Secularist Writers

Secular Bangladeshi book publisher murdered, three others attacked in separate incidents in Dhaka
  • Faisal Abedin Deepan, a publisher affiliated with the Jagriti Prokashoni publishing house, was hacked to death in the Bangladeshi capital.
  • Publisher Ahmed Rahim Tutul was attacked at his home along with writers Ranadipam Basu and Tareq Rahim in a separate incident.
  • Both publishers had published work by Bangladeshi-American blogger Avijit Roy, who was murdered earlier in the year in a spate of attacks on secular bloggers.

Read more:
“Avijit’s publisher Dipan slaughtered” (Dhaka Tribune)
“Avijit Roy’s publisher, 2 bloggers hacked in Dhaka” (Dhaka Tribune)
“Secular publisher hacked to death in Bangladesh” (The Guardian)

(Image Credit: Zakir Hossain Chowdhury/Zuma Press/Corbis, via the Guardian)

Nationality + Migration

Bangladesh News | Japanese

Japanese man killed by unidentified gunmen in northern Bangladesh
  • Bangladesh-born Kunio Hoshi, 65, was murdered in the district of Rangpur after being stopped on his rickshaw by three men on a motorcycle.
  • Four men were detained for questioning for killing Hoshi as authorities investigated the regional Islamic State affiliate’s claim of responsibility for the attack.
  • Following the similar death of an Italian national days earlier, international embassies began issuing alerts and international groups and schools in the country began restricting their activities.

Read more:
“4 detained over Japanese national murder” (Dhaka Tribune)
“Japanese man shot dead in Bangladesh; Islamic State link probed” (The Japan Times/Reuters)
“Second foreigner killed in Bangladesh” (The Guardian)
“Hoshi murder: US urges quick probe; Japan, S Korea issue alert” (Dhaka Tribune)

(Image Credit: Ripon Islam/AP, via The Guardian)

Nationality + Migration

Bangladesh News | Italian

Italian man killed in Bangladesh capital
  • Cesare Tavella, 50, was killed in Dhaka by unidentified gunmen in Dhaka’s diplomatic zone.
  • Tavella worked for a Netherlands-based NGO in the city.
  • The death comes at a moment of increased threats from Islamist militants in the country.

Read the full story at Reuters.

Sexual + Gender Minorities

Nepal News | LGBT

New Nepal constitution enshrines rights of LGBT citizens
  • Along with wide-ranging inclusion of vulnerable classes, gender and sexual minorities were identified as being entitled to political protections.
  • The constitution is the first to be approved since the 2008 abolition of the Nepalese monarchy.
  • Marriage is not defined in the constitution, but a special tribunal called upon by the Supreme Court has recommended the extension of marriage rights to sexual minorities.
“The nation’s leadership has affirmed that its LGBT citizens deserve the constitutional right to live their lives free from discrimination and fear.”
Read the full story at the Washington Blade.
Sexual + Gender Minorities

Nepal News | Transgender

Nepal issues its first trans-friendly passport
  • Monica Shahi, a trans LGBT activist, was awarded the passport, which includes a third category for gender minorities.
  • The issuance follows the amendment of Nepal’s passport regulations earlier in the year.
  • Nepal joins Australia and New Zealand in designating a third gender option on passports.

“Today is an important day in my life and I hope the younger generation is encouraged by the move.”

Read the full story at Firstpost.

Ideology + Affiliation, Religion + Belief

Bangladesh News | Secular Atheist

Secular Bangladeshi blogger murdered in Dhaka
  • Niloy Chakrabarti was murdered in his home by hacking at the hands of a gang whose work was claimed by al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent.
  • Chakrabarti was the fourth secularist advocate against political Islam to have been murdered in the officially secular country this year.
  • Chakrabarti had reportedly requested police protection after being listed on a target list as groups called for the murder of atheists.

Read the full story at the Guardian.

(Image Credit: The Guardian)

Nationality + Migration

India & Bangladesh News | Immigrants & Nationals

Indian and Bangladeshi enclave residents decide on citizenship as deadline nears
  • In May, India and Bangladesh agreed to return enclaves within their respective borders to one another.
  • More than 50,000 enclave residents must now choose which citizenship they would like to have by July 31st, which will determine whether they will have to move.
  • Despite having officially been citizens of their country of national origin, the residents have effectively been stateless as they lack access to public services in their country of residence.

Read the full story at the BBC.

(Image Credit: via BBC)

Nationality + Migration, Race + Color + Ethnicity

Interregional Feature | Bhutanese

Bhutan’s Refugees

Al Jazeera traces the history and future of the more than 120,000 ethnic Nepalis who have been driven from the country by an authoritarian government hostile to their culture and presence.  The feature follows a group of Bhutanese refugees as they make their way from their refugee camp in Nepal to the U.S.

View the full feature at Al Jazeera.

Sexual + Gender Minorities

Nepal News | LGBTQ

Nepal’s LGBT community faces unique challenges atop already precarious social conditions after earthquakes
  • The Blue Diamond Society has been a leading organization for the support of Nepal’s sexual and gender minority community, and their tents have provided a place of refuge for individuals alienated from families and communities in the aftermath of the country’s devastating earthquakes.
  • Some in the community face challenging situations during the rebuilding period, such as lack of health services and facilities for third-gender-identifying individuals.
  • The Red Cross has designated staff devoted to providing support to society’s most vulnerable, and it has worked closely with the Blue Diamond Society to provide services and raise awareness about the community among volunteers.

“What Nepal is going through is beyond imagination. But we, the LGBTIQ people of Nepal, pledge with all Nepalese, that we will rebuild our lives, our families, our societies and our nation.”

Read the full story at Gay News Network.

(Image Credit: Paula Bronstein/Gay News Network)

Religion + Belief
China opens new path to Tibet holy site for Indian pilgrims
  • The new land passage offers a route from India through the Himalayas to Mount Kailash.
  • In addition to its geographic isolation, Kailash has remained out of reach for Hindu and Buddhist pilgrims due to China’s tight visa restrictions on travel to Tibet.
  • The opening comes as China and India work to improve relations and remove obstacles–including ongoing border disputes–to improved economic and political ties.

Read the full story at Reuters.

(Image Credit: Jacky Chen/Reuters)

Nationality + Migration

Some Nepalis working on World Cup construction projects in Qatar denied leave to return to Nepal for funerals and family visits. More from The Guardian.