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Source: Reuters
About 200 women marched through the Nepali capital to denounce a
government scheme to pay cash incentives to men for marrying
widows, witnesses said.
Nepal's centre-left coalition announced a plan last month to pay
men the equivalent of $973 for marrying widows, angering the
widows.
Women shouting slogans such as You can't sell your mother, and We
don't want government dowries, marched towards a government complex
that houses the prime minister's office.
They were stopped by riot police, but there were no arrests or
violence.
Durga Neupane, an organiser and a widow, said activists would
mobilise widows throughout the Himalayan nation if the government
failed to scrap the decision.
"If that is not done we'll gather widows from across the country
and organise more protests," she said.
The government says the scheme seeks to help widows who face social
and cultural barriers in a majority-Hindu society.
But Neupane said it would only add to their woes as men would marry
widows for money and later abandon them.
Widows, she said, should instead be given jobs, better health care and education.