Identity and inclusion issues of indigenous ethnic groups are considered major obstacles to finalise new constitution in Nepal. I would like to share my understanding on major issue of the people in reference to current forest policies and practices.

Some Nepalese indigenous ethnic groups are still inhabited in forest and others are recently changed to sedentary lifestyles. They are at threat of extinction due to small size of population with dwindling growth rate. The ethnic groups include Raji, Kusunda, Raute, Kushbadiya, Bankariya, Suri, Kisan, Meche, Lepcha and Hayu. They are the most powerless people in socio-political system. Some of them (e.g. Raute, Kusunda, and Bankariya) are still inhabited in forest. They shun farming and live mainly on wild foods including tubers. The other groups have also meagre of private land. Historically the ethnic groups have managed livelihood by extracting non-timber products instead of extensively clearing lands for intensive farming - as practiced by the mainstream and European societies. Their land use practices contributed in retaining more areas of forest including biodiversity conservation. The ethnic groups adapted and lived on naturally grown food with high fibre, low fat and carbohydrates, and rich in mineral elements for many generations. They evolved genetically different from other societies who lived on the foods with high sugar and industrial production systems almost over 12000 years. According to evolutionary genetic theory, some genes of the indigenous ethnic groups store food sugar in the body much longer period than the genes of nontribal and or other sedentary societies. The genetic property made them able to adapt and survive in food scarcity and other environmental stresses. The genes on the other hand exposes the ethnic groups to higher obesity, other persistent diseases (e.g. diabetes) and shorter lifespan in high sugar food condition as proven in similar kinds of ethnic groups in Australia, New Zealand and the USA. Official statistics show that the difference of average lifespan between the indigenous and non-indigenous people living in same political zone and facilities is noticeably high such as over 10 years in Australia (ABS 2009). The people are found intolerant and addictive to some food that are produced in intensive agricultural system and industrial processing means. The properties make the ethnic society more vulnerable to some diseases than non-indigenous ones.

Looking global and local histories of land use change, availability of food resources of indigenous people started decreasing as the mainstream societies expanded their farming by privatizing common properties. Many practices of the common property management and uses of their products are legally criminalized. The quality of food essential to meet the health need of the groups have been short in supply from other sources. Inadequate access to naturally grown food has caused them to depend on sugar based, processed and chemical intensive (e.g. insecticides, fertilizer and additives) foods. Even if any payment or job given to the vulnerable groups the income is not sufficient to afford healthy food due to high in prices. The poor quality food including new types of foods (even some grain) have toxicated their health and resulted under-nutrition including weak immune systems. Consequently their immunity to cope environmental stresses in their natural/ poor living condition decreased and susceptible to many diseases increased. The food problems have adverse health effect particularly on conceiving of women, healthy borne of baby and survival of the people to the age of reproduction and full potential life period. The conservative policies also compelled the people to leave the forests and live close to other sedentary communities who have some diseases new to the tribal groups. Culturally the people do not use modern medical services and the loss of forest based habitat have made them very vulnerable to exotic diseases.

The policy interventions of mainstream societies have caused them to migrate in other places which have contributed to disintegration of family and isolation from communities. It causes psychosocial suffering and hampers population growth. As a result the population growth of the indigenous people has been stagnated to declined leading to extinction. The effect of mainstream living culture and practices on the indigenous groups can understand from the experience of stolen generations of the Australian Aborigine people. It was a past case where the government and churches forcefully took children of Aborigine families and kept with white families to orient to European cultures/ lifestyles for a hundred years (1869 - 1970). Removing children of endanger ethnic groups from their community, as done by some Nepalese NGOs and high profile people (e.g. actress –Rekha Thapa) also contributes to declining of the population of the groups. Their activities can be termed genocide. The national government agencies have given little attention on the serious issue due to serious degree of institutional weaknesses and bad governance.

The endangered ethnic groups require naturally grown products to cope their heredity and cultural problems. They cannot adequately produce the products from private land due to no access at all for some and meagre to other groups. Increasing their adequate access to common property resources would a realistic solution. Unfortunately, the production and accessibility of non-timber products decreased critically as international agencies intervened (by advocacy, fund and technical advices) on national policies and community practices of forest management. The agencies affected production of the non-timber forest products under community forestry development and protected area expansion programs. Reduced Emission from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD) program makes the production and supplies of the products worse. The policies increases tree cover which suppresses production of many non-timber products –valuable for their livelihoods. Some Nepalese political leaders and indigenous societies perceived that international agencies have favoured to the indigenous societies. In reality the activities and roles of the agencies have resulted genocide to the endangered indigenous societies. The incentives and support provided by the international agencies have motived the national agencies (government, NGOs, civil societies and consultants) to impose policies and management practices to benefit distance users (polluted industries and affluent societies in overseas and urban users and rich household in the country). The policies and practices have resulted harsh impact (contribute genocide) on production and access to the resources essential for survival and existence of the ethnic groups. Let’s take the case of REDD forest development programme in the Terai-belt, approved by the World Bank. The program activities proposed to reduce negative impacts cannot address their problems. The program makes worse (result genocide) not only the endangered ethnic groups but also severely hampers livelihoods of many other indigenous societies. We have well learnt from other areas that the program support for alternative livelihoods makes little difference. The REDD program most probably increases involvement of young people in life threatening and socially undesirable activities.

It takes many years and generations to make the endangered ethnic groups well adapted to the conventional foods of non-tribal groups. Increasing production of non-timber forest products and making their easy access to the resources are essential to protect them against extinction. Innovation of institution, management and product of common properties would help the societies to address long term suffering problem with utilizing opportunities of modern development services. Developing ethnic identity based federal political structure makes little difference for this ethnic groups. Introduction of “indigenous heritage” concept based policy would make a notable difference in their lives and livelihoods. It is responsibility of all conscious people to help them but the work under the initiation and leadership of indigenous people make effective. Many NGOs, INGOs (e.g. IUCN and WWF) and professional people claimed that they have worked in favour of the socially disadvantaged groups. If we analyse critically, knowingly or unknowingly, they (even from indigenous groups) have been working against the poor groups. There are many private incentives to work for other camp or against the endangered communities. Folk worship rising sun and close eyes on bad work of powerful agencies, societies or people.

Some references

1. The Local Environmental, Economic and Social Tragedies of Managing Community Forests for Global Environment Conservation: A Critical Evaluation. The Open Journal of Forestry. 4(1):58-69. http://dx.doi.org/10.4236/ojf.2014.41010
2. Nationalities of Nepal. Nepal Democracy. www.nepaldemocracy.org/ethnicity/nationalities_of_nepal.htm
3. Anonym. People in Nepal. http://www.bochi-bochitrek.com/nepal/people-in-nepal.html. Downloaded on 13-07-2014.
4. Bista, D.B. 1967. Peoples of Nepal. Kathmandu: Department of Publicity.
5. CBS. 2011. Preliminary Report of Population Census 2011. http://cbs.gov.np/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/National%20Report.pdf
6. NEFIN 2014. Facts, Figures and Information on Indigenous People. http://www.nefin.org.np/list/Indigenous-People-of-Nepal/5/0/5
7. Fact sheet: Stolen generation. http://www.racismnoway.com.au/teaching-resources/factsheets/52.html