Ancient Labor Tradition Still Affects Women of Nepal's "Untouchable" Caste

KATHMANDU, NEPAL -- Sukundhara Pariyar hears the monotonous "thug, thug" of her sewing machine for as many as ten hours every day. Pariyar, 46, is surrounded by colorful threads and pieces of cloth, needles of all different sizes. She is engrossed in her work and she has much to do. Today, she is working from her home in Kirtipur, a municipality near Kathmandu.

Pariyar is a good tailor with many clients, yet she is never paid for her work. Pariyar is a part of an age-old tradition here called Baalighar -- a method of servitude which forces people from Pariyar's caste, the so-called untouchables, to labor as tailors and seamstresses in exchange for only small containers of grain, in lieu of actual wages. And on a day like today, when Pariyar chooses to sew at home, she will only earn half her allotment of grain.

Sukundhara Pariyar, has worked in the baalighar tradition for 14 years.

Sukundhara Pariyar has been following baalighar tradition for the last 14 years. Everyday, she wakes up with the first rays of sunlight and by 8 a.m., she arrives at her bista's houses. She works for several bistas, whenever they call her for work. Everyday when Pariyar receives the call from any of her bistas, she carries her sewing machine, which weighs 25 kilograms, on her back and heads to their homes. She works for up to ten hours each day, until all of the stitching, mending, and sewing is finished. "The whole day I have to sew clothes for people for Baalighar but we don't get proper fruit of our labor," Pariyar said.

Pariyar is from a Dalit community, the "untouchables" in the Nepali caste system. The Dalits in Nepal belong to three separate low caste groups -- the Kami, the Sarki, and the Damai. Traditionally each group is linked to a specific occupation. The baalighar tradition is mainly followed by the people of Pariyar, a group of people within the Dalit community who work only as tailors. Dalits in Nepal have followed the baalighar system since 13th century when King Jayasthiti Malla, a king from Malla dynasty, formalized the caste system.

In this system, people from Pariyar caste, and hence with the same last name, commonly known as baalighare, sew the clothes for "upper caste" people, popularly called bista. The bista pay their baalighare for their work with one kilogram of grain, like rice, corn or wheat, for a full day of work -- often as long as ten hours.

Despite the modernization and political advancements that have taken place in Nepal in recent years, the baalighar tradition is still common in many areas of the country, including Kathmandu. However, there is no data available about the number of people still working as baalighare here. The baalighar system violates Nepali labor law and the new interim constitution, yet no political commitments have been made by the new government here to put an end to this ancient system of servitude.

Nepalese Labor law calls for a 48-hour work week, with one day off per week, and limits overtime to 20 hours per week. The government has also fixed a minimum wage of 100 rupees per day. The baalighar system violates nearly every provision of Nepali labor laws and offers no protection or specialty clause for baalighare workers. Baalighare work, on average, for about 10 hours a day, for which they receive one kilogram of rice or other grains. While the grain feeds their families, baalighare workers are forced to sell that grain in the markets in order to earn cash for other living expenses. The market price for one kilogram of rice is about 35 rupees, about $ 0.45 USD, which is far less than the wage fixed by the local labor laws. As a general rule, bistas, those who employ the baalighare, do not provide shelter or other facilities to the baalighare workers.

Nepal's Interim constitution, which was drafted following the restoration of democracy in April 2006, guarantees the right to equality and employment to all citizens. Similarly the constitution mandates that the government work for the promotion of the interests of marginalized communities, including Dalits. Yet, the interim constitution and all political parties have yet to address the baalighar tradition and the threat it poses to the modernization of the country.

Ramprit Paswan, Nepal Communist Party (UML), a leader and member of the interim parliament here says the new government leaders have declared Nepal a discrimination free state. He says members of parliament are committed to the protection and promotion of Dalits in Nepal. "However [the] interim parliament has not made any specific laws or policies to address the problem of Baalighare," Passwan said.

Although "untouchability" was abolished by the New National Code of Nepal in 1963 and was made punishable by the interim constitution in 2007, the principle and practice continue and are very common. Experts and activists say the people deemed "untouchable" here live in a swamp of illiteracy, exploitation, marginalization, poverty and, above all, caste discrimination. Dalit rights activist and attorney Ratna Bahadur Bagchand says, "Under the caste system, Dalits suffer from deprivation of economic opportunities, and general neglect by the state and society."

According to the National census held in 2001, the Dalit population constitutes 13 percent of the total population. While the average annual income of the upper castes, Brahmins and Chettris, is $240 USD, the average annual income of a Dalit is $39 USD. The census also showed that Dalits hold only one percent of total farming land in Nepal. More than 70 percent of Dalit children suffer from malnutrition, where as national malnutrition rate of 48 percent.

Dalit rights activists says poverty and a lack of other means of livelihood force the Dalits to continue their traditional occupations, like baalighar, where they do not get justifiable wages for their labor. Attorney Bagchand says, "Lack of modern technology skills, education and financial resources prevent Dalits from [being] employed in new industries or trade in the market where they can get fair wages." Pariyar agrees. She says she has no option but to continue to work within the baalighar tradition. "No matter how fast we stitch the clothes, it is impossible to stitch more than four, five cloths [per day]. We hardly get 1 kilogram of rice which is sufficient to feed my family only for two days," she said. Pariyar says during festivals and marriages, her workload drastically increases so she takes her two daughters, 18 and 23, to work with her. But her daughters do not get paid separately and at the end of the day, she takes home the same 1 kilogram of grain. "I know my daughter's labor is wasted but I have no choice," she said. Pariyar's daughters also work as baalighare themselves, as they too have been unable to find other jobs outside the tradition.

In slower times when Pariyar only has one or two orders from her bista, she says she looks for work as a field hand on a local farm. "The income that I generate by sewing clothes is barely enough to sustain my family for six months. So when I don't have orders I work as a field hands on a farm." Pariyar earns cash wages working on a farm but she says that one has to be lucky to get a job as a farm hand, as they are not easily available.

Pariyar is not the only woman in Kirtipur who has accepted the baalighar system. Many of her friends and neighbors also labor for grain because they have been unable to find other work that pays in actual wages. Bimala Pariyar of Nankhel village at Bhaktapur, a neighboring of Kathmandu district, says, "I don't have farm and to start a business I do not have money. So I have accepted baalighar."

Sailee Pariyar, 61, a resident of Dhapakhel at Lalitpur, also follows the tradition. She says the responsibility of her family fell on her shoulders after her husband died of heart attack seven years ago. "Since I could not find other way of income, I accepted baalighar tradition for the livelihood of my family," she said. But within the tradition, she says, it is still extremely difficult to mange for her family.

Sailee Pariyar, 61, began working in the baalighar tradition after the death of her husband.

Rights activists say that poverty and fear of losing what employment they do have, has rendered Dalit women unable to raise their voices about the labor and equality violations they face. Rita Acharya, another woman working within the baalighar tradition in Kathmandu says, "It is true that we do not get paid well, but if I complain I might even loose this work."

But what about the bistas? In a rapidly changing political climate where injustice of minority groups have been constantly highlighted in recent months, the bista who employ baalighare still say they are not doing injustice to their workers.

Januka Bista, 60,of Kirtipur, employs baalighares to sew her clothes. "Giving grains is the rule of baalighar tradition. We have been giving grains since the time of our forefathers. So we do not give money. I don't feel there is anything wrong in it," she said.

Members of the Dalit community and rights activists are hopeful that in the coming months and years the new government here will make good on their word to protect the Dalit community and criminalize the baalighar system according to the new labor laws. Bishnu Prasad Lamsal, joint-secretary of the Ministry of Women Children and Social Welfare, says he is hopeful that these traditions will end in the process of social change. "Many traditional ills of our Nepali society are still followed. Though these cannot be eliminated at one time, they will slowly end in the process of social change."

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