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About Nepal
Nepal is the home of the great Sagarmatha (Mount Everest), and was the birthplace of Lord Buddha. Nepal is the only Hindu Kingdom in the world and contains some of the largest Hindu temples as well as four of the holiest Buddhist sites in the world. It’s land area is smaller than Victoria, however it reaches from the heights of Mount Everest to the sea level plains of the tropical Terai. In this mountainous land is a population of 26.3 million people.
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Nepal was only opened to the outside world in the 1950’s. Since then Westerners have been captivated by it’s incredibly rich spirituality and culture. Nepal is made up of over 40 different races and tribes and its people follow several different religions. Hinduism makes up about 87%, Buddhism 8%, Muslim 3% and other, such as Christianity, 2%. Common to all these religions is the integration of religious expression into every day life, resulting in over 50 festivals and numerous forms of daily worship. The festivals are celebrated with incredible enthusiasm and make for a very bright, colourful and exciting experience. The beautiful people and rich cultural treasures deeply touch the hearts of most visitors, resulting in many returning year after year.
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Amidst the joyous smiles and celebrations, the Nepalese people have faced great struggle and turmoil under corrupt government administration, political conflict, and limited access to new knowledge and education. Today, the average yearly income is only $US240, compared with $US21,650 in Australia. 49% of the population live in absolute poverty. Literacy is generously estimated at 29%.
In 1996 the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoists) declared a People’s War against the royal administration. This guerilla style conflict has killed over 13,000 people since the conflict began, with many more missing, in government jails or forced into military service for the Maoists. Thousands of children have been the innocent victims of this conflict. Many of these children are stranded in remote villages with little chance of their situation ever becoming known to those who can help. Left alone, these children end up begging, pressed into employment for pitiful wages, or girls may be sold in an underground slave trade to employers in India. Throughout Nepal it is estimated there are 2.6m child labourers working across various industries.
In Kathmandu alone there are over 150 orphanages. Many of these are professionally and lovingly run. Many however, are run by greedy profiteers who are seeking financial gain by entering the charity sector. We at SCAI are working closely with the Child Welfare Board in Nepal, so that Sunrise Orphanage is run in a professional and fully transparent manner, and so that we can help in closing down some of the more squalid, dangerous orphanages.
