Bhim Shrestha

Bhim Shrestha is the co-founder and executive director of Shramik Sanjal. He worked in Qatar as a migrant worker and experienced first-hand the poor working conditions that many Nepali migrant workers face. While in Qatar, he, along with some like-minded Nepali migrant workers, formed an informal group. Later, the group grew and transformed formally into Shramik Sanjal, an advocacy group for migrant workers. His work puts migrant workers’ voices at the center of migration and development and serves as a voice advocating for dignity and fairness. The direct outcome of his advocacy is that Shramik Sanjal now advocates for millions of Nepalese migrant workers, most of whom are low-income migrant workers in the Gulf countries and Malaysia.

Bhim learned from his experiences and was inspired to work to improve the well-being of those migrant workers who are deprived of enjoying even the most basic human rights in many countries of destination. Along with his inspiration to be the voice for the voiceless, he strongly practices the values of his life—Honesty, Humility, Humanity, and Hard Work. These values inspire him to engage more in community work, initiate and lead the grassroots movement for creating workers’ agency to combat social injustice and empower those marginalized people to amplify their voices. The goal of his work is to share the voices of migrant workers with the ear of decision-makers and policymakers.

Additionally, he holds a Bachelor of Business Studies (BBS) degree from the Tribhuvan University of Nepal. He is also pursuing a Master’s in International Cooperation and Development (MICD)—a two-year master’s programme run under the partner of the Cooperation and Development Network of Pavia University, Italy (CDN), run by the Mid-West University of Nepal.

Art

Poetry

खाडिको खबर
नसोध्नु आमा
म !
मजराको माझमा खजुरको
बोटमुनी सितलता खोज्दैछु ।
मनहरूले, त्यो कल कल खोलाको चिसो पानी,
अम्खराले घुड्की लगाएको यादमा डुब्दैछु ।

यो प्रचण्ड खाडीको तापमा
छाला त पोल्छ मात्र, तर मनहरू जल्छन्
यादको रापले मनहरूमा सोला हान्छन्
चैतको खङ्गरीदो सुख्खा दिनमा पनि
सल्लाको सुस्केराको सितलताका दिनहरू घोर्दै छु
बन उजाडिएनी, मन सिन्चित नै भएको बिम्बहरू कोर्दै छु ।

यहाँ बनपनि उजाड, मन पनि उजाड
खैरो बालुवामा बाफिलो बतास
यो हपक्क गर्मिमा, याद आउँछ
चिसो हावाको, सेतो हिमालको
अनि कल कल बग्ने खोलाको

औशीँको दोस !

तिमी औँशीमा जन्मेर के भो त?
म पुर्णिमामा जन्मिएको मान्छे
तिम्रा सबै काला दोषहरु म काटुँला
मेरा सबै सेता गुणहरू तिमीसँगै बाँडुला

औँशीमा जन्मेको गोरेलाई पनि काले संज्ञा दिइन्छ रे!
पुर्णिमामा जन्मेको अपुर्णलाई पनि पूर्ण ठानिन्छ रे!
औँशी अवगुणी रे, पुर्णीमा पूर्ण रे!
खै ! औँशीकै साँझ महालक्ष्मीले पूर्ण प्रण दिन्छिन् रे।

लक्ष्मीप्रसाद देबकोटा त्यही दोसले महाकाव्यका सर्जक बने
सायद कती अरु हजारौँ गुणी बने
खै ! किन तिमीलाई नै सबैले दोसी देखे
औँशीमा तिमी जन्मनु न त तिम्रो रहर ,न त तिम्रो माताकै कहर
नाइटो चुँडियो, एक ढिक्का शरीर भुइँमा खस्यो
म पनि त्यसरी नै झरेको हुँ यो धर्तीमा, अपुरै, अपूर्ण नै।