色吧亚洲

CU 色吧亚洲 PhD candidate Tracy Fehr鈥檚 research examines the intersecting identities limiting Nepali women鈥檚 access to disaster relief funds following the devastating 2015 earthquakes

The devastating 2015 earthquakes in Nepal affected nearly 30% of the country鈥檚 population, causing an estimated 9,000 deaths, displacing 2.8 million people and destroying or severely damaging more than 800,000 homes.

In the years following the disaster, entrenched cultural, political and economic inequalities and social practices meant post-disaster recovery did not happen uniformly among those affected. Nepal鈥檚 National Planning Commission even acknowledged in a 2015 report following the earthquakes that differentiated gender norms and divisions of labor for women in Nepal鈥攊ncluding a narrow asset base, the burden of domestic labor, limited access to economic resources and a lack of alternative livelihoods鈥攃ould lead to a longer and more difficult recovery.

For many widows, or single women, in Nepal鈥檚 mid-hill region, existing social stigmas were often exacerbated following the earthquakes.

However, by Tracy Fehr, a University of Colorado 色吧亚洲 PhD candidate in sociology, shows that the complexities and contradictions of post-earthquake recovery for single women in Nepal is only part of the story. With more than 125 caste and indigenous nationality groups, Nepal is one of the most diverse countries on earth. And the widows鈥� experiences reflect that heterogeneity.

Despite housing reconstruction relief often being predicated on citizenship and property ownership, precluding many single women, the post-earthquake development context 鈥減rovided an opportunity to create local women鈥檚 centers that provided space for single women to unite in a collective identity, facilitating a shift of longstanding stigma and an emerging renegotiation of what it means to 鈥榖e a widow鈥� in Nepal,鈥� Fehr wrote.

Observing inequality

Following the devastating earthquakes in spring 2015, Fehr volunteered with (WHR), an non-governmental organization (NGO) helping single Nepali women鈥攊ncluding widows and women who are separated, divorced, are unmarried after the age of 35, or whose husbands are disappeared鈥攇ain socio-cultural, economic and political rights. The organization also provided post-disaster relief and support for single women across the country.

During her time in Nepal, Fehr observed how difficult it was for many single women to get relief funds. And she noticed that their access to resources often depended on the intersection of various aspects of their identities.

Motivated, in part, by what she learned and observed volunteering with WHR, Fehr returned to Nepal in 2018 as a graduate student and researcher to formally study how social factors intersect to inform Nepali widows鈥� post-earthquake experiences.

鈥淚 think there鈥檚 this monolithic story of widows in Nepal as victimized and non-agentic,鈥� she says. But through 33 interviews and three focus groups, Fehr鈥檚 research told a different story鈥攐ne that was more nuanced and more accurate. 鈥淚n fact, each woman鈥檚 experience is dependent on so many different intersecting identities and social factors beyond marital status,鈥� she explains.听

Social factors influencing women鈥檚 experiences

In response to the earthquake鈥檚 widespread destruction, the government of Nepal created an 鈥渙wner-driven鈥� housing reconstruction (OHDR) program to offer financial assistance to those who had to rebuild their homes. Under the program, only Nepali people with citizenship and documentation of property ownership were eligible for assistance.

But while the law stipulates that widows have the right to their deceased husbands鈥� property, many women have found it difficult or impossible to take ownership of it鈥攚hich cut off their access to the government assistance that they desperately needed. 鈥淭here鈥檚 statutory law, which is what鈥檚 on the books, and then there鈥檚 customary law, which is what鈥檚 actually happening,鈥� says Fehr.

Factors like education and location played major roles in women鈥檚 access to relief resources. 鈥淓ducation allowed women to understand more about what their rights were and how to access them,鈥� Fehr says. Meanwhile, the farther women lived from the district center, the harder it was to access services. For example, government services and NGOs had difficulty reaching rural communities, which often lacked roads, says Fehr.

At the same time, Fehr found that women鈥檚 experience in the public sphere鈥攐r lack thereof鈥攁lso impacted their access to aid. Women who worked, whether as teachers, merchants, or manual laborers, were generally more comfortable navigating social spaces, a skill that helped them go through the appropriate channels to utilize relief funding.

Complicating matters further were women鈥檚 relationship with their in-laws, says Fehr. Because Nepali women typically live with their husband鈥檚 family, many widows were socially and financially dependent on their in-laws. Some experienced conflict with their in-laws in relinquishing the deceased husband鈥檚 property鈥攅specially if they were young enough to remarry. Meanwhile, many higher-caste families adhere to stricter gender norms, which in some cases made it more difficult, if not impossible, to assert their rights or challenge their in-laws for property, says Fehr.

Implications for children

While Nepali social norms have shifted significantly over the past two decades鈥攚omen can now inherit property without the consent of involvement of a male relative, and they can document their citizenship without requiring permission from a male鈥攖here is still progress to be made, Fehr says. 鈥淥ne of the most pressing concerns at the moment for single women is the legal right for Nepali women to confer citizenship to their children, which is a legal right for men in Nepal.鈥�

This issue came up in several interviews during her research, because citizenship will significantly affect access for single women鈥檚 children to future post-disaster relief and government services.

鈥淎lthough legal changes are slow to be reflected in day-to-day life, having laws in place does provide some legal and political leverage for single women,鈥� says Fehr. 鈥淭he hope is that with a more nuanced understanding of the impacts of legal and cultural forces on women鈥檚 lived experiences, government relief programs can become more effective and inclusive, now and into the future.鈥�

Top image and images below by Tracy Fehr