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Child minstrel a leading light in democracy fight

Thomas Bell

His words and music have helped inspire Nepal's pro-democracy movement and he is on the run from security forces, but Rubin Gandharba is no ordinary political player - the minstrel-turned-activist is just 13 years old.

'I haven't been to my room for 10 days because I was threatened by the security forces,' he said yesterday. 'Last week I was sleeping at a relative's house and the army came, but they didn't arrest me because I hid under a cloth. I was quite lucky.'

Rubin says he has already been arrested five times, and was held for 15 days without charge following the coup which brought King Gyanendra to power a year ago.

His song lyrics poking fun at the bad debts some government ministers have with state banks have annoyed the authorities and delighted their opponents in equal measure.

On one occasion, the police smashed his sarangi, the simple folk violin with which he accompanies his songs. A benefactor gave him the US$11 he needed to buy a new one.

Rubin is part celebrity, part street urchin. As a member of the Gandharba caste of wandering minstrels, he is regarded as 'untouchable' in the Hindu system.

He says that even in the democracy movement, which is dominated by upper-caste Brahmins, he sometimes suffers humiliations because of his lowly status.

Rubin and his father moved to Kathmandu six years ago, literally planning to sing for their supper, but his father fell sick and returned to their village. Now Rubin sometimes dines at the table of former prime ministers and opposition leaders, but mainly subsists on meagre donations and credit from shop keepers.

'I am loved by people because of my sarangi and my singing,' he says.

Gandharbas were once an important source of entertainment, singing traditional laments for young Gurkhas who had joined the British army and never returned. They also served as propaganda tools, carrying news of the ruling Shah dynasty's greatness.

A year after the king again seized power, democratic leaders have seized upon the propaganda potential of Rubin's singing. He has been taken to rallies all over the country, and is rapturously received whenever he performs.

King Gyanendra says his unpopular power grab was necessary to crush a 10-year Maoist insurgency, but many foreign governments say his move has only made the situation worse.

The democratic opposition is not the only political force in Nepal to exploit the folk music scene. The Maoists, who control much of the countryside, broadcast slickly produced songs with revolutionary lyrics on pirate radio broadcasts.

As I spoke with Rubin, a popular Nepali singer came into the cafe and, whipping out his sarangi, he performed a love song from her new album.

Then she listened as he sang one of his own: 'The berries of the jungle are for the birds of the jungle to eat,' it began.

Rubin's many fans hope the following lines are equally true: 'Monarchy will only last a few more days, but democracy will be forever.'

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