Join Hands for Peoples' Sovereignty Over Forest Resources

In general, the progress on CF in Terai is much slower than in hills due to the less attention of the government. Due to the policies (concept paper MoFSC, 2002, OFM, 1995) and administrative hurdle (illegal directions and circulations) of Ministry of Forest and Soil Conservation (MoFSC), the Rights of Terai people over the forest resources have been deprived. As the result, the GoN has been not launching CF programme in Terai in wide range.

As the pioneer and leading civil society organization of natural resource management sector, the FECOFUN has been raising strong voice against the discrimination of government toward the Terai's people on the rights over the natural resources.

Community rights are the main issue of Terai forest management. It is real fact that, local people are victimized by ban mafia and their allies who are penetrated in the political parties and government bureaucracy. Their influence in the policy making process has been reflected in the existing policies, circulations, and directions of the Ministry and department especially for high yield forest of Terai /Inner Terai. As the results, the common property rights of the local community and indigenous people over the forest resources in the Terai/inner Terai have been trapped by government with vested interest.

The FECOFUN has clearly visualized on this ground reality and been struggling against the Ban mafia and their allies who are penetrated into the political parties and government bureaucracy since its establishment.

Advocacy on the people rights over the natural resources especially forest resources is core value of the FECOFUN. And advocacy is the part of people empowerment. With respect to this, FECOFUN has been conducting series of activities related to people empowerment to focus the local people, indigenous people including other distant users of the Terai and inner Terai too on the rights and justices over the forest resources. Likewise, FECOFUN has been working to make common understanding and the building up constituency among the policy makers, political parties, civil society organizations, and NRM based networks/federation including donor agencies and GLA through interactions, policy discourses and social campaigns in the different level on issue of community rights and its implication in biodiversity conservation. These events also are helping in creating conducive environment and strengthening institutional linkage among the NRM based federations and networks/groups specially FECOFUN and ACOFUN (Association of Collaborative Forest Users' Nepal).

With considering political change of the country and community demand, FECOFUN has developed inclusive constitution during the 3rd national assembly held in 2006 at Kathmandu. Based on the constitution, FECOFUN has restructured its organization and decision making process with integrating ethnic groups, minority groups and indigenous groups including, ecological, and geographical representations. As the results, CFUGs have also started to replicate this inclusive model in forest users' group formation and decision making process. Now community forest users groups in Terai have started to reformulate forest users group with integrating distant users / different interest groups in the respective places (examples Morang, Bara, Sarlahi, Dhanusa, Sunsari, Kapilbastu, Nawalparsi, Banke, Bardiya etc ). They have also been adopting different modalities of forest products distribution system covering with large numbers of local community including distant users.

The movement of FECOFUN is not only confined in particular ecological and geographical locations. But it is important for securing the rights of local people on forest resources throughout the country. Now, the advocacy has become a main stream of the right based movement of NRM based federations/networks in the country. It is also helping to contribute to strengthen community based institutions and widening the scope of community based forest management system.

The National workshop ''Issues and Options for Forest Management of Terai, Inner Terai/Churia in Nepal" (17-18 Sept 2008) which held in Hetauda has become a milestone of the advocacy movement of FECOFUN where hundreds of people and representatives of different NRM based networks/ federations (CFUGs/ FECOFUN, ACOFUN, Buffer zone Community Forest Users Groups etc) civil society organizations, political parties participated and actively engaged on the discussions. During the workshop the NRM based federations specially FECOFUN and ACOFUN expressed their solidarity and commitment to work together to secure peoples' rights over the forest resources in Terai/Inner Terai and hills/high hills. As a result of the joints efforts, the MoFSC has reached agreements among the FECOFUN and ACOFUN separately to resolve the issue of community forest handover in Terai. It is a great achievement toward the community based forest management in Teari/Inner Terai.

Unfortunately, some so-called experts and so-called policy makers (panchyat concept holder) has ignored the reality and trying to divide the people at the name of the forest management systems and enjoying as autocratic rulers.

The movement of FECOFUN/CFUG against the autocratic nature of MoFSC, department of forest , some donors and their allies (individuals also) is not only confined to the CF movement, but it has also greater implications in restructuring of the forestry sector in the favor of community people, minority and indigenous people across the country. The existing forest conservation status has proved that, government has no big expertise being a forest manager however, they have big academic degrees on this regards. Therefore, question has been rising in several forum/discourses: who are the real manager and owner of the forest resources??

If CFUG can function as autonomous body? If CFUG can mobilize the fund and distribute the forest products independently? If CFUG can prepare constitution and operation plan as per their decision (they have legal power)? The question is here; why government has still reluctant to hand over above-mentioned legal rights to local community, local bodies of CoFM? What are the vested interest of so-called policy makers and some politicians on this issue? Why so-called experts are encouraging autocratic policy makers and politicians?

Now, it is time to work together and encourage local people and leaders of both community forest and CoFM to securing the people rights over the local resources. Therefore, I suggest that FECOFUN/ CFUG and ACOFUN including other NRM based networks and federations should work together, think together and need to analyze benefit sharing and decision making mechanisms in different management system. Then we can make common agenda, common advocacy plan and common social movement to minimize governmental roles and their interference on the peoples' rights over natural resources specially forestry resources.