I Write My Story with Blood
75
It is reported that between September and December 2003, Nepal Army (the then Royal Nepalese Army) arrested and detained hundreds of individuals at Maharajgung, Kathmandu, in the barrack named after Bhairav, the God of Terror. Their detentions were never formally acknowledged. At least 49 people went missing after they were detained in the Bhairabnath battalion according to the United Nations Office of High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) in Kathmandu.
On December 2008, a team from the National Human Rights Commission and the OHCHR found partially buried clothing, half burnt logs and other objects on a forested slope in the army-protected Shivapuri National Park, eight miles away from the barrack. This incident created ripples nationwide, for the team was about to find a mass grave, however, no developments have been reported on that matter so far.
Bhairavnath Barrack was Abu Ghraib of Nepal. British and American forces tortured Iraqi prisoners in Abu Ghraib, but the Royal Nepalese Army played with the souls of their own countrymen.
This is what happened in the Bhairavnath Barrack, in Kathmandu. I have reconstructed the scenes from the true accounts published in newspapers in Nepal.
I Write My Story with Blood
Please, don’t come near
I’m pregnant. Spare me
O brother! Don’t you have sisters?
See, I’m like your sister
You don’t do dirty things to your sister, do you
I’m eight months pregnant
My child will die
They pointed gun at me
Asked to cook, give them bed
How could I say no when I saw death before me
Please believe me
I’m a poor woman
I know nothing about the king
I don’t recognize Mao tse Tung
Who is Prachanda? What is Baburam?
I have to work dawn to dusk
To feed my family
My husband is a bonded labourer
Please don’t come near
Why are you pulling my maxi
You want to corrupt expectant mother
Don’t you fear God!
If I knew this was what I was to pay
For giving shelter to the terrorist
I would have faced the gun instead
At least my child would not have witnessed this horror
Forgive me, my unborn child
I could not save you
I did not know men can have voyeur pleasure
Seeing the protruding belly
That’s what I’m hearing
The voice is distant
Yet pierces my heart
I try to become insensible against her suffering
I place my clotted hands
On the cold cemented floor
The pain eases
Is she a terrorist?
A pregnant terrorist!
I hear cries,
I can’t understand what she is saying
Her voice is choked
Death would have been easier for her
I wish her death
How long does it take to self-heal
Wounds on your lips
I’m waiting for my turn
To be taken away
Blindfolded. Hands and feet cuffed.
Interrogated
And then face a death squad
Perhaps, I will be chosen to live
Here, everyone is not condemned to death
The old man who said
His son was a migrant worker in Afghanistan
Came back after the interrogation
He said they whipped him
Even fired a bullet that hit his left ear
But let him live
Two days later he came to me, dressed properly
Asked my address
Said, he will give message to my family
That I’m alive
Alive?
Is this the living?
My hunger never satiated
Thirst never quenched
I can’t ask them for water
They will pee over me
I pick up rice from the floor
I don’t want to waste a single grain
Don’t know when I will get
Another plate of steamed rice and watery lentil
I want to go to bathroom
But can I survive their batons before and after peeing
Even my barn is more spacious
We are cramped here
There I see a boy
Perhaps 14 years or maybe 15, but no more than 17
Was he a Maoist
Did he kill police
Hurl bombs over the patrolling army
He says he was going to school
Maoist kidnapped him
Made him dig a trench,
Carry bombs and ammunitions
Always on gun point
Poor boy,
From frying pan, he fell into the fire
I want to listen to his stories
But poor soul, could not sustain electric shocks
On the bare floor he remains unconscious
People's War in Nepal
- Short Story: People’s War in Nepal I
A story inspired by true events during the decade long Maoist insurgency in Nepal. - Short Story: People’s War in Nepal II
- Short Story: People’s War in Nepal III
- Flash Fiction: People’s War in Nepal I
A story inspired by true events during the decade long Maoist insurgency in Nepal. - Flash Fiction: People’s War in Nepal II
I don’t see that girl
Last time I saw her
She was bleeding below her waist
She tried to walk
But fell on the floor
Two men in fatigue
Pulled her by her hand and dumped in the corner
In the morning she was gone
I look at my swelling legs
Will I be able to walk to the interrogation room?
Blood clotted shirt is stuck on my body
Do I have to take out my shirt to face the squad?
Can my sore throat utter
Words to justify myself
At the last hour
What will I remember
Wife? Son? Daughter?
Or God?
My country people, forgive them
But do not forget what happened to me
What happened to us!
Inside the Bhairavnath!
vote upvote downshareprintflag
- Useful (9)
- Funny
- Awesome (14)
- Beautiful (7)
- Interesting (12)
CommentsLoading...
Voted up and across. Is this what we all have to look forward to? I fear it is. The demon of control and power is on the loose. Most shut their eyes to not see it.
I voted up. I found your article - and your poetry regarding this horror in Nepal - heart-rending. These horrors are happening so often in the third world and they're getting more and nore apalling. What is the world coming to?
Wonderful hub, my friend.
Wow. The horrors of war seen through your eyes make it more real. Thank you for sharing.
what a poignant hub! You make the horror very real to the reader and my heart is still aching for I know it is true.
vote up
i voted up(whatever that means) and voted AWESOME! Because it is. Awesomely presented and awesomely terrifying in it's scope! News desensitizes us, Vinaya, but your delivery method brought it home and made it real. Horrifyingly real! Well, well done!
OH MY GOD! WOW! What touching story. I could feel the people's pain, especially that woman and her unborn child. That was a terrible time.
Vinaya, this is both intellectual and fiercely portrayed...we can't begin to imagine the environment of anger and aggression you have undoubtedly witnessed. So young and so mature...
There are rumblings of unrest and uprising all over the world, and times they are a'changin'...too many suffering..."have" countries crumbling from the inside out...and it's not differences in religious beliefs that are tearing the foundations of a free world apart, but financial greed. There's no justification for these huge differences...anywhere.
Great jounalism with sensitive, dynamic poem.
That is a nightmare of a depiction you painted. I couldn't imagine dealing with such conditions in my country. I guess I am more fortunate than I believe sometimes. That is truly a terrible ordeal to have to live through.
Very intense and touching story. Well written. Like the combination of personal touch with the journalism and pictures. Did not know too much about this. Thanks for getting this out there.
This is so powerful, every word draws us in to this nightmare world.
It's hard to believe, that man are still capable of causing such suffering to each other, when will learn?
I am so sorry this happened to you and the woman, the boy, Why must the world hate? When are the people going to stand and say, " ENOUGH? " It takes people like you, who have lived the horror, to enlighten the world. I know you write from your heart. I am thankful for your spirit..Thank you Vinaya..
Thank you for sharing, no matter how shocking things are, it is best to know. Jamie
Your article is well written and your poem is so very descriptive.
It is so hard to believe that humans can commit such atrocities as these, and yet it does happen. What sort of world do we live in?
I was just reading yesterday that the British government have pledged 20 million pounds towards the peace process in talks with Baburam Bhattarai in Kathmandu. Also that employment will increase with over 200,000 jobs to build road over the next three years. So it is nice to hear Nepal is getting some outside aide.
Gosh...Vinaya it's beautiful but heart rendering.
May mankind improves it's ways of dealing with another man in this lifetime...Amen!
I recommend these wonderful hub authors. They not only write beautifully but also are very supportive to their fellow hubbers.I hope you will read and follow their works.
http://frankatanacio.hubpages.com/
http://jackielynnley.hubpages.com/
http://sheilanewton.hubpages.com/
http://picklesandrufus.hubpages.com/
http://breenbergstrome.hubpages.com/
http://phillydreamer.hubpages.com/
Radha
http://tobusiness.hubpages.com/
http://alwaysexploring.hubpages.com/
http://rosemay50.hubpages.com/
Thank you my dear friends for appreciating my work, condemning brutalities and showing concerns for humanity.
Forgive me for I could not thank you individually.
Thanks Vinaya, for recommending my hubs!
Rlaha, its my plesure
You are indeed a gentleman, Vinaya
and generous to your fellows.
Hello Breen Bergstrome
Thanks for coming back.
Cheers
Frank Atanacio said that your poem's title was metaphorical, but I don't see it as metaphorical in the least. This poem was written obviously by hands on a computer, but in order to get this story out...there was most definitely blood shed, as you talk about in this poem, Vinaya. It saddens my heart to know that people, innocent and hard-working people, have to go through such terrors in life. I can't begin to fathom the horrors that the people in Nepal have gone through in the past ten to twenty years. Just know that I feel empathy and I thank you for sharing these stories with the world...most of us don't even realize that these things occur until someone tells us. I voted up and beautiful, of course.
Vinaya, so many people appreciate your work because you touch us. Thank you for being so generous .
@Kitty,
thanks for showing concern for the people in Nepal. I have always been tempted to give voice to voiceless.
@tobusiness, thanks for coming back
words again eluded me, as horror pierced my soul?where to go?what to do?if the very people who are supposed to take care of you, protect you are the ones violating your rights...you are a brave man Vinaya for coming out in the open and let the world know what is happening there...each of us has his/her own story to tell...I may not be that bold but I salute you my friend...
Hello raciniwa, thanks for showing concern and appreciating my endeavor.
We all are here to share our stories.
Cheers
Oh when will man be man? Humane we say and deny humanity of any dignity.. These tales of woe just makes me wonder are we really humans.... even the wild beats kill only for food... Thanks for raising your voice. Have a peace filled day! Shimmering Dawn.
Shimmering Dawn, thanks for your concern. Maybe death and decadence await the humanity.
I appreciate your comment.
While reading this story i remembered the Japanese Occupation to our country.Women were harassed , children were killed , men were beheaded. So heartbreaking..
Hello Angel, thanks for sharing your story. In a way, irrespective of culture and country, we all seem to have suffered the same horror.
What a powerful, heart wrenching, gripping poem of the atrocities that were done in Bhairavnath Barrack.
I am always filled with sadness and horror when stories like this are exposed. It seems to be a story that occurs time and again throughout many different cultures and time periods and yet it's still shocking every time we learn of yet another set of atrocities that occurs in our own time period.
Hello Happyboomernurse,
Since time immemorial powerful people have always been inflicting violence against the weak. Around the world horrors of Bhairavnath have been committed for thousands of time. WW II is one example.
Thanks for your valuable comment.
What horror - a powerful and heartbreaking account of these terrible events of man's inhumanity to man.
Excellent writing and voted up.
Best wishes Lesley
Hello Movie Master,
Thanks for reading and stating your position.
Thanks for being my loyal reader.
Cheers
Sorry I have not read this sooner. This is a powerful narrative poem and one that makes me feel lucky to live where I do. I'm not happy with what the Canadian government is doing right now, but here they can be voted out of office and there never has been a civil war here.
Vinaya,
It breaks my heart to know that humans are capable of such cruelty.
Thank you for writing this poem in memory of those who lost their lives and those who have to live with the terrible memories.
Voted up and away.
Take Care
@Flora
@Sueswan
Thanks for reading and taking time to comment.
Thank you for being my loyal readers.
Cheers
Reading that makes me feel sad and helpless. Also thankful for the life I live. I am sorry that the world is a cruel place for some people.
Blessings to you.
Hello Annadavis, yes we must be thankful for god that we are spared from this horror. However, we have to show concern for those who suffer.
Cheers
Vinaya, you have paid a very high price in life. All the more to cherish and now share with the world.
Hello mckbirdbks, thanks for showing concern.
Cheers
Very powerful and also very sad: what makes it even more sad is the fact that it is so true.
Thanks for sharing your work with us all on here because you really are so very talented .
Take care and enjoy your day.
Eddy.
Hello Eddy,
Thanks for sincerely following my works.
I'm very grateful to you for always being appreciative.
Cheers
Wow. This is such a powerful article. I'm new to HubPages and just came across your work. These images are heart wrenching. I truly appreciate that you've shared these images with us, in addition to putting sincere words behind them. I look forward to reading more of your work. Many blessings to you and your family.
Jill
Hello Jill, thanks for stopping by. I truly appreciate your concern. Thanks for your appreciative concern.
Cheers
You are so welcome Vinaya. Thanks again for sharing this story and these profound pictures with us.
Jill
Thanks for coming back, Jill
Your welcome! :)
Such a deep and troubling set of events--and your poem lets us see the heart and soul of only one victim--how can we go on hurting people so---
Hello Audrey, thank you very much for reading and commenting on my poem.
Cheers
this is the best read I have read in so long. I am crying. fantastic poem.. and so deep and moving. it shows us how it really is in this horrible world we live in while everyone turns a blind eye.'thank you for writing it
Debbie
So sad that things like this happen, and so sad that many turn their backs and pretend that they don't. your words painted such a sad picture that I read, heard and felt all at the same time.
@Deborah
@homesteadbound
I feel glad that you were too much involved with this poem. Thanks for reading and leaving comments.
I was hesitating to read this hub because of the title but found it to be necessary. This is terrible and something unknown here in the U.S. This violence is something I don't ordinarily associate with the Nepali. Voting this Up and Interesting.
Hello alocsin, I'm glad that you are finally here. Nepal is the country where the Buddha was born, so since many years Nepal was promoted as the land of peace. But then Maoist War began, our notion of peace loving nation dissipated.
Thanks for reading and commenting.
What an incredible and sad story. I love your poem as well. Voted up and awesome.
Hello savanahl, thanks for reading and leaving appreciative comment. I'm so grateful for that fan mail.
What a tragedy. And everywhere in this world innocent people are victims of barbarians.
Voted up, well-written, informative and tragic.
Hello Marite Coester, it is true that during the political upheavals and civil war, everywhere innocent people become victims.
Thanks for appreciative.
Fascinating...powerful...beautifully written...you are a master of words my friend.
The horror of man against man is illustrated here in stark real detail. I can only hope for a future when man (Some People) escapes from this evil darkness that he is so accustomed to living.
Powerfully illustrated my friend!
This hub is astounding, amazing. I don't have words for how it makes me feel. I can barely breathe after reading it. Thank you for recording the evil and the darkness of which we humans are capable-- we need to know so that we don't forget. Thank you.
I recommend these wonderful hub authors to the hub community.
Thank you my dear friends. Thank you for your wonderful comment.
Thank you so much Vinaya for sharing this hub as well as our links.
Hello Curiad, thanks for coming back.
tragically beautiful, Vinaya. Thanks for enlightening me!
Justin, thanks for your wonderful comment.
Cheers
So far all your hubs are excellent , no question for that..but this hub is my favorite.... I love your spirit in here..so so touching , i can feel the activist blood you got here..I am having a high respect and admiration to people who fight for their right and who is so brave to shed for their country..
I will be reading this hub more and more...
..
Dear Angel,
thanks for always being around my hubs.
Cheers
I'll keep rereading this hub for this is my favorite of all your works..I like and envy a blood that boils and fights !
Angel, so nice of you. Though not my personal experience, I cried while I wrote this.
Frank Atanacio Level 8 Commenter 3 months ago
the world we live in can sometimes shake you to the bone.. a great telling here VG and I know the title I write my story with blood is a metaphor.. but it still stings the heart :( Frank voted up my friend