Thou shalt not be a Bystander

My name is Anne Rittman, I am a teacher and human rights activist. I am part of a group that has built a school in a remote village in Nepal. The school's purpose is to provide educational opportunities for those who attend and to impact issues such as child trafficking, poverty, witchburning and pollution.


The initiative for the school came when I was reunited recently with Ram in Kathmandu. I had befriended Ram as a small boy in 1970 when I found him on the streets as a beggar and sent him to school. Meeting Ram again was an emotional moment as I never really thought I would see him again. In speaking together we realised we had an opportunity to make a difference to his village. Ram said without those 3 years at school he would have died. It gave him the ability to talk to tourists and make a living.


I said to Ram, "you organise the village to build the school and I will raise the money back in Australia". Three years later the school was built. It now has 50 students, 4 teachers, general teaching rooms, an art and craft room and a guest room for visiting teachers.

What is needed now is a guesthouse to provide an income to sustain the rapidly growing school into the future. We already have bought the land and we are ready to start building as soon as we get the funds.