Nepalese in Burma
Listed in: Burma, Nepali | Nepalese
I came across this article so thought to share with all the Nepalese and friends of Nepal or anyone interested to read the article through NepaleseAbroad.com: Conversation between a Nepalese Burmese and Australian Fellow.
Map of Burma
Australian Fellow: How many Nepali people are there in Burma and how did they come to be there?
Nepalese Chap: We are half a million Nepalese people around Burma and generally we have been in Burma like two hundred years.
Australian Fellow: Two hundred.
Nepalese Chap: Some Nepalese; they have already been and some they came to Nepal as British mercenaries. They joined the British Army.
Australian Fellow: Mercenaries?
Nepalese Chap: Mercenaries. Yeah. Mercenaries. Fourth Rifle Gurkha Army.
Australian Fellow: Right.
Nepalese Chap: �was from Nepal and they settled in Burma and now they are third generation Burmese�
Australian Fellow: And your grandfather was a Gurkha?
Nepalese Chap: Yeah. He was a Gurkha
Australian Fellow: And he is still alive?
Nepalese Chap: Yeah. He is now ninety nine years (old) already.
Australian Fellow: Wow!
Nepalese Chap: And ..now he is a hundred years (old) I guess. Yeah. He is a hundred years (old). He joined the army in the First World War.
Australian Fellow: In the First World War!
Nepalese Chap: Yeah.
Australian Fellow: Wow!
Nepalese Chap: In the First World War. After the First World War. He said like in 1917. 1927 he started to�
Australian Fellow: He joined?
Nepalese Chap: Yeah.
Australian Fellow: Right ok. When did Burma become independent from the British Empire?
Nepalese Chap: First we became independent from the British in 1945 but the Japanese ruled for two years and we fought the Japanese for two years and then we got independence from Japan in like (about) 1947.
Australian Fellow: Right ok.
Nepalese Chap: Like that.
Australian Fellow: Ok.
Nepalese Chap: Now our situation in Burma is not so good. The Nepalese people do not get a lot of respect because these Burmese people; they do not know who we are.
Australian Fellow: So there is a lot of negative discrimination.
Nepalese Chap: Yeah. Negative discrimination. If we go some place they think we are�They have a word that they use for us. It is a very rude word.
Australian Fellow: It is a Burmese word?
Nepalese Chap: It is a Burmese word. They think that we are �kalaa�.
Australian Fellow: Uh-huh.
Nepalese Chap: But we are not �kalaa�.. We are (ethnic) Nepalese. We are Gurkha. Gurkha. Nepalese. After independence the Burmese government said after independence we are Nationals in Burma.
Australian Fellow: You are Burmese Nationals. Burmese Citizens.
Nepalese Chap: Yeah. Burmese citizens. But now to get a citizen card it is really difficult.
Australian Fellow: Mm.
Nepalese Chap: If we go to �like�immig..what do you call it (immigration)?
Australian Fellow: If you want to emigrate?
Nepalese Chap: If we go and apply for our ID card..
Australian Chap: Uh-huh.
Nepalese Fellow: We have to pay a lot more.. than Burmese people.
Australian Fellow: Have to pay more. Ok.
Nepalese Chap: Not like a little more. Maybe fifteen times. Maybe fifty times.
Australian Fellow: Wow! That is terrible.
Nepalese Chap: Yeah. It is like that.
Australian Fellow: Have you been to Nepal?
Nepalese Chap: Me; not yet.
Australian Fellow: Uh-huh.
Nepalese Chap: Nepal and Burma do not have such a good relationship.
Australian Fellow: Right. Ok.
Nepalese Chap: So we don�t go so I have not been but my parents have been many times.
Australian Fellow: What is the Nepal Government�s attitude to the Nepali people who are living in Burma? Will they give them a passport if they go there?
Nepalese Chap: No. No. No. We are Nepalese and we speak Nepalese very well. If we go to Nepal we don�t have that many problems there but still immigration knows that we are from Burma and they are also like �Passport!� or whatever (?) but mostly sixty seventy per cent (of the time) we don�t have so many problems.
Australian Fellow: And your family is from eastern Nepal?
Nepalese Chap: Yeah. The very very east like very near to Burma. The very east of Nepal.
Australian Fellow: Do you still have family members that you have contact with in Nepal?
Nepalese Chap: My Mum�s side all are in Nepal now. My Daddy�s side are in Burma.
Australian Fellow: Right ok.
Nepalese Fellow: My mum�s side are in Burma. And all are (university) graduates, teachers, professors.
Australian Chap: Great. Thanks very much.
Nepalese Chap: You are welcome, Sir.
NepaleseAbroad.com — For More Info:
Nepalese Burmese
Read More...
Comments (5)
Hi All!
I had a change to visit Myanmar(Burma ) in 2011. I visited Yangoon, Thaungi and Inle lake. Burma is a nice place and i liked the people. Friendly like Nepalese.
The term “Kaa-laa” means black and used(rudely) for dark indians. I am not fully aware if Gurkhas are also called Kalaas. What I know is that they are called “Ghurkhalee”. In fact, I met some Nepalis in Taungi. Many Burmese do not know that there is a large polulation of Nepalese in Burma.
sbs100@hotmail.com
I know there are many Nepalese origin people living in Burma. In Nepal, the UML leader Mrs. Sahana Pradhan also was born in Burma and had come to Nepal during the Second World War. She had her home in Kathmandu as well that made them easy. Even Nepal Government has not thought anything about the people living in Burma. During the War time many Nepalese have returned back to Nepal and they settled here. We can understand the situation from the story of Indra Bahadur Rai “Jayamaya Aafumatra Likhapani Aaipugi”. I also want to make contact with the Nepalese people in Burma. If anyone is there, they can contact me on facebook id Saroj Baral, my email address is saroj_baral123@yahoo.com, my contact number is +977-9842045415 or 977-25-560512, or 977-9804028928.
Those who wants to write:
Saroj Baral
Inaruwa Municipality
Ward No. 2, Shanti Chowk
District: Sunsari
Zone: Koshi
Eastern Nepal
i couldnt have said it any better. Does bring back memories of lazy afternoons at np. Would like to visit burma some day to see how the nepalese community have evolved in isolation.
my fellow GORKHAS Of BURMA,
during my school days at st joseph’s school northpoint darjeeling India, we had a novel in our 2nd language curriculume by Roopnarayan sinha called BRHAMAR. our nepali teacher was the renowned gentelman Dr hom br chettri. he made the 2nd language period very interesring even though we were very poor in nepali. he told us wonder full storys about our fellow gorkhas/nepalese living with dignity in the neighbouring countrys of bangladesh and burma. since the protagonist MAYA in the novel BRHAMAR is from burma, he delved a lot into the lives of our fellow gorkhas in BURMA. i still remember him saying “Irrawady ko Paschim bagar ma basnay gorkhali/nepali haroo ma, timi haroo ko kohi na kohi santan chan hola. bhawishya ma samay ra swathya lay sath diye uniharoolai bhetnu janu”. my health is fine but time is the factor. but i promise my fellow gorkhas of burma “ma ek din jaroor awchu”. u can contact me in facebook (bhushan rai) and my email id is raisashibhushan@yahoo.in.
J GARA, JASO GARA, JATA SUKAI LAIJAW MALAI…YO MAAN TA MERO NEPALI HO…
All the best….BHUSHAN RAI
C/O B.M RAI & SONS
M.R SHOPE NO:238
THULO DOKAN CHOWRASTA BAZAAR
MUNGPU DIV P.O: MUNGPU
DARJEELING Wesr Bengal INDIA
734313
Bhusan Ji,
Actually one of the protagonists, Gauri was frm Burma Her father Raghubir Rai finds indrashekhar on a ship form kolkata…
I read the same book in my High School and fell in love with the story, someday, maybe, someday, i hope to make afilm out of it
rituraj