A camp in the small seaside town of Sumaysimah, Qatar, April 2016. Photo: Frédéric Lecloux
Frédéric Lecloux: I’ve been travelling to Nepal since the mid-90s, usually flying with a layover in Abu Dhabi, Dubai or Doha [the capital of Qatar]. From the early 2000s, I gradually noticed that the passengers on the second leg of the trip were almost exclusively young Nepalese men. That's how I became aware of the extent of this migratory phenomenon.A pivotal moment came with the publication of Pete Pattisson's 2013 article in the Guardian, which condemned the first officially recognised deaths of Nepalese construction workers in stadiums in Qatar. Then, another article published by Florence Beaugé in Le Monde told the story of the Nepalese villages around Kathmandu where men had totally disappeared.
One of the main goals of Nepalese workers is building a bricks and mortar house for their families back home. Lakhanthari, Nepal, February 2016. Photo: Frédéric Lecloux
Yes, the whole Terai area is extremely affected. There are many villages where the only “men” you see are children or elderly people. But economic migration is not new to this region – Nepalese people have been leaving their country to support their families for decades.
It was not easy – these districts are extremely conservative. In Nepal, when young women get married, they go live with their in-laws and are often under the crushing control of their mothers-in-law and brothers-in-law. So, as a Westerner, directly reaching out to the wives of migrant workers was not possible, I needed an “in”. I eventually found a social worker who helped me with my interviews and photography.How do the women see the departure of their husbands?
The phrase that keeps coming back is: “We have no choice.” I tried to understand what was behind it and, after dozens of interviews, I would say it’s mostly about social pressure. Because their neighbour bought a house, a motorbike or a small grocery shop this way, they want to do the same.To get out of poverty, these families send their men to work far away, hoping they’ll come back and stay in Nepal. The Nepalese state is not able to ensure them a decent living, so they keep leaving.
N.'s father moved to Qatar a month before the picture was taken, to a city she and her mother don’t know the name of. Before that, he worked in Malaysia for six years. Morang, Nepal, February 2016. Photo: Frédéric Lecloux
Yes, I went there reluctantly and anxiously. I had the feeling I would be watched at every moment. I had read the testimonies of journalists who had had their photos confiscated while they were investigating the same subject.
Surprisingly, yes. Rajendra and I would park in front of the camp, the men would wait for us. If a guard asked what we were doing, we’d simply tell them that we were visiting so-and-so and we were friends of his family. Which was more or less true – I was the only person they could get in touch with to see their family, so I brought them photographs and news.We wouldn’t stay long in the camps, an hour or two at most, so as not to encroach on the few moments of free time they enjoyed after work. They’d often bring up the same feeling of having no choice but to go abroad for work, coupled with a powerful sense of weariness and boredom that this life carries.Does their choice pay off?
People talk a lot about the loans they had to take out to go halfway around the world. In Nepal, it’s common for middlemen to visit the villages promising a passport, a plane ticket and a contract for a few thousand rupees. Since the families don’t have this money, loans are a key part of their migration. Generally, everything the men make in the first year goes to repaying them and interests are extremely high. However, it’s important to put their earnings into perspective - their basic salary as an agricultural worker back home would be about €1.25 a day [less than what they’re making in Qatar].
The kitchen of a labour camp in Sanaya, the industrial area near Doha, Qatar, April 2016. Photo: Frédéric Lecloux
Although migration has declined in recent years, it has become a structural part of the way Nepal functions. Depending on the source and the year, between 25 and 30 percent of Nepal's GDP comes from migrant workers. So, the government is trying to make these migration processes as smooth as possible. NGOs [not-for-profit organisations] don’t focus on curbing migration, but rather making it safer.What’s striking is that, in Nepal, the topic of whether migration is good or bad for the country isn’t even a question anymore. For young men, it’s sort of an obligatory passage. Today, 10 percent of those leaving are women [some reports put the figure between 5 and 8.9 percent]. They mostly go to Gulf countries to become domestic workers. I fear they experience even more harrowing situations, since these young women live an isolated existence in their employers' houses.Scroll down for more pictures:
Family photos and the mobile phone of Sarada Devi Chaundary, 31, displaying an incoming call from her husband who's been working as a guard in a Qatar security company for the past seven years. Bhamri, Nepal, February 2016. Photo: Frédéric Lecloux
Barwa Commercial Avenue, an 8km-long shopping mall, shortly before its opening. Doha, Qatar, April 2016.
Barwa City District. Doha, Qatar, April, 2016. Photo: Frédéric Lecloux
