Marginal professionals, predatory Nepalese elites, and emigration to the “Dreamland”

• Main Author: Tamot, Raju
• Format: Dissertation
• Language: English
• Published: ProQuest Dissertations & Theses 01.01.2008
• Subjects: Cultural anthropology; Sociology
• ISBN: 0549845291; 9780549845294

This dissertation analyzes how the marginalization of Nepal's professional cadre has contributed significantly to the high level of brain drain from that country to the United States. It argues that the brain drain is situated within the deeply rooted Nepalese ruling elite's culture of marginalizing and excluding from the professional work settings and polity of Nepal those who are not afno manches ("one's own people"). Specifically, it explores the Nepalese state's indifference towards the positive externalities its professional cadre could generate for the society and country. This dissertation also examines the levels of comparative satisfaction the professional Nepalese cadre derive from their careers and overall life in Nepal as opposed to in the United States, as well as their perceptions of the ongoing leftist insurgency in Nepal. It details how these two factors influence their decisions to remain in the United States or return home. This dissertation employs the anthropological concepts of "Self" and "Other" to understand the marginalized identity construction processes of the Nepalese professional cadre. It also employs the concept of identity, and the emerging conceptual frameworks of globalization and transnationalism to understand how immigrant Nepalis construct and strive to give continuity to their collective cultural identity in the United States, how their lives are anchored at multiple sites, and how these Nepalis attempt to influence outcomes and political processes in Nepal despite the Nepalese state's intention to limit such involvements.