In a democratic system, political parties are supposed to be the articulators of people’s interests. But in that role, Nepali political parties have in recent times made it appear like people care only about big-sounding political issues: federalism, redrawing state boundaries, socio-economic transformation, etc. That is far from the case. First and the foremost, people want to secure the bare minimum conditions for decent living.
This is the reason there has been such an outpouring of outrage at the recent spate of news about adulteration of food and beverages, or over the subsequent strike called by private water suppliers. The valley citizens’ frustration with what seems like an interminable road expansion project that is hampering both their health as well as their freedom of movement is also a case in point. The good news is that in a democratic polity, the political class has to heed the common voice, sooner or later. [break]
For a post-conflict society also being buffeted by unrelenting winds of globalization and modernization, mental health has emerged as a growing concern. Yet it is among the most neglected public health issues in Nepal. The state allocates under a percentage of health budget to mental health, at a time every two out of ten Nepalis are estimated to be suffering from some form of mental health problems. So far there has been very little political commitment to tackle mental health issues, which is not entirely the fault of our politicians. After all, our political representatives are only a mirror of the society they come from. The society itself is very poorly informed on this emergent issue. Thankfully, the message is finally starting to get through.
At a function jointly organized by Nepal Mental Health Foundation and Initiatives of Media Women on Sunday, leaders from all big political forces committed themselves to addressing mental health issues. Senior Nepali Congress leader Sher Bahadur Deuba pointed out the need for more budgetary allocation for mental health and emphasized how addressing the issue at political level had become vital. CPN-UML Chairman Jhalanath Khanal highlighted how the new constitution could be a potent tool to address policy-level mental health deficits.
UCPN (Maoist) vice-chair Narayan Kaji Shrestha brought up the very important issue of how to address the mental health problems of hundreds of thousands of old people, especially women, who have been left to fend for themselves after their near and dear ones migrated abroad. MJF (Democratic) spokesperson Jitendra Dev expressed the commitment of Madhesi parties to mental health. In a moving speech that many conflict-affected families can relate to, Dev talked about how the unexpected murder of his elder brother had affected the mental health of the whole family.
Most crucially, the leaders signed a ‘Kathmandu declaration’ whereby they vowed to include the issue of mental health in their electoral manifestos, and to give it a proper place in the new constitution. The credit for this must go to all those who have been working tirelessly to mainstream mental health in the national debate. Of course, since hundreds of thousands of Nepalis were directly affected by the decade-long war, the mental health of this sizable subsection could be a part of the political parties’ electoral calculus. Whatever their underlying motive, to see the likes of Deuba, Khanal, Shrestha and Dev discuss mental health was certainly a breath of fresh air.
Related story
The shots of happiness
_20240311121839.jpg)
