The Girl From Kathmandu
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Cheney and, 74, 133, 155–56
Cruikshank and, 133
Gulf War contract, 141
Iraq War and, 133–34
largest wartime contract in history and, 74
public opinion and, 134
spins off KBR, 217
stock in owned by Judge Werlein, 222
See also KBR
Handley, Matthew, 173, 174, 341–43
background, 181–83
civil action for the twelve murdered Nepalis (Adhikari et al) and, 212–13, 218, 221, 224–25, 231–42, 252, 271–73, 284, 287
compensation case for the twelve murdered Nepalis, 183–91, 194–97, 199–204, 209–13, 252–53
compensation cases from wars in Iraq and Afghanistan brought by, 267–69
honored in Nepalese village, 267–68
illiteracy of Nepalese clients, 190–91
involvement with Nepalese author’s asylum case, 176
lawsuit on behalf of Iraqi interpreters killed, 342–43
on leave from Cohen Milstein, 268, 271, 284
meetings in Nepal with families of the murdered men, 209–10, 271–73
new job with Washington Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs, 287, 343
as partner in Cohen Milstein, 268
in the Peace Corps, Nepal, 181–83
pro bono cases, 174, 176, 177–78, 183–84, 213–14
wife and marital problems, 183, 209, 213
Hari, Bishnu. See Tharpa, Bishnu Hari
Harrison, Geoffrey
Adhikari et al. lawsuit and, 330–33
lawsuit against KBR by Oregon Army National Guard members and, 330–31
Hausfeld, Michael, 174, 175
Adhikari et al. lawsuit and, 218–19, 221
case against Japanese government, 216
forced out of Cohen Milstein, 216, 221
Holocaust cases of, 215–16, 250
Nazi slavery case, 218
“Highway Through Hell,” 116–18, 119, 120, 127, 200, 218, 325
Hill, Robert, 314
Hobbs, Terri, 313, 314
Hoffman, Paul, 300
as Adhikari et al. co-counsel, 300–303, 311, 312, 316, 321, 322, 323, 325–27
Alien Tort Statute and, 323
global seafood industry case and, 343
KBR threats and, 320, 341
Kiobel case and, 323, 325
Hong Kong, 34
Houston, Tex.
Adhikari et al. argued in, 222–43
Bob Casey Federal Courthouse, 222, 225–26
Brown brothers influence in, 222
downtown of, 225
subterranean walkways of, 225
human trafficking, 8, 250
American anti-trafficking law, 249, 310–11, 325, 326, 331–32, 340n
American politics and, 344–45
bait-and-switch techniques used in, 68, 73, 82, 91, 98, 99, 101, 149, 307
“body shops” for war contractors and, 73, 74, 82, 120, 127, 217, 259
Bush waives rules for Iraq allies, 191
civil action against KBR and Daoud for human trafficking (see Adhikari et al. v. Daoud & Partners et al.)
conservative Christian groups fighting, 192
countries providing people for, 36–37, 65, 66, 82, 154, 345–47
criminal justice, executions, and, 66–67
dalals (middleman or agent) and, 95–96, 97, 98, 99–100, 103, 105, 288
debt bondage and, 68, 148–49, 154
dehumanizing terms used, 70, 73, 76, 119, 120
fall of wages for imported workers, 68
fate of those who return home, 347
Graves dissent in upholding dismissal of Adhikari et al. and, 340–41, 340n
human rights abuses and, 66, 93, 106, 107
human supply chain for, 73, 74, 107, 213, 260–61, 307, 308, 310, 345–47
as indentured servitude, 68, 148–49
KBR TCNs and, 148, 153, 308, 312–14
laborers imported into Jordan, 65–66
living conditions and, 66, 73, 129–30, 148–49, 308
Nepali men, sealed envelope carried by, 72–73
Obama executive order and, 345–46
passport confiscation and, 66, 106, 149, 193–94, 309, 313
percentage of workers in forced or coerced labor, 192
privatizing of warfare and, 192
Rumsfeld memo on, 154–55
as slavery, 66, 68–69, 314–15, 346
U.S. Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons, 191
U.S. officials concerned about, 153–54
U.S. use of imported labor in Iraq, 106–7, 147, 307–10, 314–15, 345 (see also KBR)
watch list, 69, 107, 153, 191
Huston, Jay, 314
India
as source for cheap labor, 65, 154
workers held against their will in Iraq, 312–13
Internet
Berg killing posted on, 46–47, 50
genre of global terror productions, 46
Magar killing posted on, 50, 51–55
videos of killing of Blackwater employees, 52
Iraq and Iraq War
American troops in, 62
Amman-to-Baghdad highway (“Highway Through Hell”), 116–18, 119, 120, 127, 200, 218, 325
Anbar Province, 117
Baghdad International Airport, 145
Berg kidnapping and beheading in, 46
“body shops” for war contractors and, 73, 74
Cheney and, 134
civilian contractors in, 63, 75, 146, 147
“Coalition of the Willing,” 44, 53
compensation to survivors of murdered workers required by U.S. law, 128–29, 180
Fallujah killing of Blackwater employees, 52
Halliburton and, 74, 133–34
hijackings, kidnappings, beheadings and, 46, 117–18
human trafficking in U.S. contracting operations, 69, 106–7, 147–48, 214–15, 307–16, 346
insurgents targeting civilian contractors, 52
Karbala murders of Americans and their interpreter, 146–47
KBR and, 4, 147–49, 156–59, 220–21, 241, 263, 266, 306–10, 312–20, 322
KBR LOGCAP contract, 144, 157, 314, 315
Nepal and, 44
Nepali men kidnapping and beheading, 8–9, 43, 51–55, 105
privatization of warfare and, 61, 75, 147
Second Battle of Fallujah, 307–8
TCNs killed in, 157
workers sent to via Jordan, 70–71, 104
See also Al Asad Air Base, Iraq; specific U.S. bases
Ishimaru, Stuart, 295
ISIS, 46–47, 62n
Israel, 65
Jennings, Peter, 51–52, 53
Johnson, Lyndon B., 135, 136n, 155, 222
Brown brothers as backers of, 135–37, 139, 140
construction of the Mansfield Dam and, 136, 136n
defense contracts with Brown and Root and, 137–40
expansion of the Navy and, 138
naval air station in Corpus Christi and, 138–39
Jones, Jamie Leigh, 228, 278–79, 284, 290
Jordan
foreign investment in, Iraq War and, 63
garment factories in, 65–66
importation of cheap labor and, 65, 71–74
Iraq War, prosperity, and construction boom, 62–63
Nepalis sent to Iraq via, 70–71, 104
skimmed U.S. dollars in, 63
U.S. Congress incentive for manufacturing in, 65
See also Amman, Jordan
Karbala, Iraq, 146–47
Kathmandu, Nepal, 7, 159
execution video viewed in, 5, 55
landing by plane in, 89–90
modernity in, 44–45
New Bamboo Cottage restaurant, 96, 97
pollution in, 92
rioting in, following execution video, 55–56, 91, 103
schools in, 20
Shangri-La Hotel,
209
Tribhuvan International Airport, 36, 109, 112
tuk tuks in, 92
Tulsi Meher Ashram, 109, 112–15, 160–70
KBR (KBR Halliburton, formerly Brown and Root), 4, 6–7
Al Asad Air Base, Iraq and, 43, 82, 116, 158, 159, 220–21, 241, 263, 266, 307–10, 312–19, 320, 322
Army-Navy Production Award, 139
author’s investigation of, 151–52
Balkans LOGCAP contract, 143, 144, 156
Barko’s lawsuit against, 316–19
as biggest wartime contractor in American history, 9
Bush administration and, 144–45
case of bribing Nigerian officials, 227
charges of overbilling by, 227
civil action for human trafficking against (see Adhikari et al. v. Daoud & Partners et al.)
Code of Business Conduct, 152, 158, 228, 281, 317
complaints made to about alleged use of slave labor, 314–16
Congressional testimony and, 156–58
corporate corruption of American politics and, 137
corruption allegations and, 156, 317–19, 341
“cost-plus” contracts and, 138, 139, 140, 142, 155
Daoud and Partners as contractor for, 82, 116, 119, 147, 151, 157, 158, 194, 197–98, 262, 263, 307–10, 317–18
expansion of the Navy and, 138–39
First Kuwaiti as subcontractor for, 105
government contracts and, 137–39
Halliburton acquires, 140–41
high marks from servicemen and women for, 143
influence of founders, 222
insurance company for, 199
Iraq contracts and, 155, 157, 306, 317 (see also Al Asad Air Base above)
Johnson and, 135–39, 155
knowledge of alleged human trafficking and, 153, 311, 312–14, 316, 321–22
lack of contact with dead Nepalis’ families, 153
lawsuit by Biplav Bhatta against, 341
lawsuit by Jamie Leigh Jones against, 228, 278–79, 284, 290
lawsuit by Oregon Army National Guard members against, 330–31
lawsuit vulnerability and, 9, 153
lawyers fired by, 327
lawyers on retainer for, 228
LOGCAP contracts, 142, 143–45, 146, 147, 148, 156, 157
NCIS investigation of human supply chain, 314
number of civilian employees in Iraq, 147
Pentagon hires for logistics report, 141
press accounts alleging coercion and deception of workers, 240
Prime Projects International as subcontractor for, 150
reputation of, 134
Restore Iraq Oil (RIO) contract, 331
TCNs (third-country nationals) working for, 8, 9, 74, 105, 116, 147–48, 151, 152, 157, 309–14
transport of Nepalis to Iraq and, 119
twelve murdered Nepalis and, 151–52 (see also Adhikari et al. v. Daoud & Partners et al.)
Victory Base Complex and, 145–46, 147
in Vietnam, 140, 155
war profiteering and, 134–40, 155–56
Kennedy, John F., 139, 246
Khadka, Ramesh, 190, 308
statement on execution video, 108–9
Kiobel, Esther, 280, 281, 325
Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum, 279–81, 282, 322–24, 332, 335, 339–40
used in Ellison’s ruling, 325–27
Kirkuk Air Base, Iraq, 308
Klausner, Gary, 221
Krug, Zachary, 302
Kuwait, 34
deceived, coerced Nepalis in, 106
importation of cheap labor and, 68, 105
KBR and, 156
on U.S. government’s human trafficking watch list, 69, 69n, 191
labor brokers
attacks on, following execution video, 55
duping prospective workers, 66
fees for, 37, 38, 67, 72
fraudulent contracts, 66
Mansour and, 61
method of operation, 35, 37–38
“middlemen” or “agent” (dalah) and, 95–96
as profitable, 72
promises by, 37
seizure of workers’ passports, 38, 66
shift of risk from, to workers, 67–68
See also Moon Light Consultants; Morning Star for Recruitment and Manpower Supply
Laredo, Tex., 248
Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs, 287, 343
LeapFrog Enterprises, 174
Le Royal Hotel, Amman, Jordan, 39, 127–28, 307
labor broker for, 39
Jeet Magar and, 38–39, 41
Nepali men exported to work at, 39, 64, 91, 96
Levy, Roger, 195, 196, 198, 202, 203–4
Limbu, Mangal, 48–49, 53, 308
Lowes, Mark, 290
Madhani, Aamer, 146, 158
embedded in Camp Liberty, 148, 149–51
Magar, Gana, 98
Magar, Ganga Thapa, 45, 85–86, 88–89
information on his brother Jeet sought by, 46, 47–48
questions about his brother Jeet in Iraq war zone, 45
rituals of death for his brother Jeet and, 56–58
Magar, Jeet Bahadur Thapa
appearance, 28
Bhatta’s testimony and, 308–10
as bridegroom, 24
childhood in India, 25–26
desire to work abroad, 37–38
diplomatic efforts to free, 48
elopement of, 26, 27
execution video and, 4–6, 9–10, 50, 51–55, 273–74, 293
execution video statement, 108
family of, 24
family’s economic status and Gurkha pension, 25, 38
farewell to Nepal and family, 39–40
father’s death, 28–29
house of, 25
justice for his killing, 274, 304, 305
in Kamala’s dreams, 87
KBR and, 263
kidnapping of, 43, 45, 48
lack of contact with family, 41
marriage to Kamala, 27–28, 30–33
mother of, 28, 29–30
mother’s reaction to murder of, 50–51, 85–86
music of, and popularity, 21, 26, 28, 32
name of, 24, 43, 43n
passport photo, 122
photo by kidnappers, 45
record of Jordan arrival and departure, 127
recruitment for hotel work in Jordan, 38–39, 41
See also twelve murdered Nepalis
Magar, Kamala Thapa, 290
American lawyers meet with, 272–73
appearance, 3, 110
author meets with, 109–10
background and early years, 7, 11–24
birth of, 12
character and personality, 11, 17, 18, 20–21, 24, 87–88, 168–69, 205, 293
charity for, from Nepalese government, 110–11
civil action against KBR Halliburton and Daoud and Partners for human trafficking and (see Adhikari et al. v. Daoud & Partners et al.)
compensation case and money received, 211, 253–55
daughter, Kritika, and, 31–33, 169, 205, 273, 293, 294, 305, 337–38
dreams of Jeet, 87
dress shop of, 255, 328, 343
earthquake of 2015 and, 328–30, 336–37
education of, 15, 17, 19–20
execution video of husband and, 4–6, 9–10, 50, 51–55, 273–74, 293
families of other murdered Nepali men and, 208–9
father of, 17–18
father’s support for breaking widow taboos, 84–85
friendship with widow, Heera, 88, 89, 113, 114, 163, 206–7
Ganesh Gurung and U.S. lawsuit, 169–70, 190, 209–13
home village of, 12, 18, 19, 21
husband, Jeet Bahadur Thapa Magar, 24, 30–31, 32–33, 39–40
husband’s family demanding share of compensation money, 254–55
husband’s recruitment for Jordan hot
el job and, 38–39
justice for her husband desired by, 274, 304, 305
legal deposition, Washington, DC (March 2013), 3–10, 290, 291–300, 304–5
at Manakamana temple, 274
married life, 30, 42
mother-in-law and, 29–30, 32, 42, 85–86, 88–89, 110–11, 114, 114n, 169, 255, 336–37
mother’s death, 15–16, 28–29
mourning and funeral ceremony for Jeet, 56–58
news of her husband’s kidnapping and murder, 43–44, 45, 50–51
prayer for independence answered, 211–12, 255
proposed marriage for and elopement with Jeet, 22–28
rural life in Nepal, 21–22, 41, 42, 49–50, 86, 87–88
settlement money used to help family and friends rebuild, 337
sewing skills learned by, 167
sisters Maya, Shusan, and Sanu-didi, 15–20, 87–88, 168–69, 205, 207
suitor Surya Bhujel and, 208, 329, 330, 343
treatment of, by husband’s family following his death, 85–86, 88–89, 110–11, 113–14, 169, 254–55, 336
at the Tulsi Meher Ashram, 109, 114–15, 160–70, 204–7
visits to rural home village, 207–8
wedding gifts of jewelry to, 29, 89
widowhood of, 83–87, 109, 160, 161, 167–68
Magar, Kritika Thapa, 3, 5, 7, 9, 33, 41, 56, 86, 89, 110, 111, 113–14, 336–37, 343–44
birth of, 31–33
care and education at the ashram, 165, 205
earthquake of 2015 and, 328–30, 336
Jeet’s family and, 169, 255
shielded from father’s fate, 273
visits to relatives, 207
Mahat, Prakash, 119
Malaysia, 34, 345
Manakamana Temple, Nepal, 17, 270–71
Manaslu Mountain, Himalayas, 12, 14, 19, 21, 28
Mansour, Amin (aka “Abdullah”), 121
author confronts at No. 58 Malfuf Street, 129–32
Bhatta identifies, 310
phone number used by murdered men belonging to, 126, 127–28, 130–31
photographing of, 128, 129
residence where murdered Nepalis held and, 126, 127, 129–32, 310
Mansour, Eyad, 61
AP report and, 63–64, 71
background, 65
cash collected by, 73–74
Daoud and Partners and, 75–76
demand letters from, 307
Giri and, 104–5
interviewed by author, 70–74, 116, 120–23
as labor broker, 63–64
lexicon of, 70
murdered Nepali men and, 64, 65, 70–71, 91, 92, 116, 120–23, 127
Pentagon and, 69
transport of Nepalis to Iraq and, 119
Marcos, Ferdinand, 323
McOwen, Molly, 341, 343
Adhikari et al. and, 216, 218, 221, 256, 269, 287
assisting Handley, 186–87