Shangri-La to hell in ten years: How did Nepal, a peaceful landlocked
country, become home to the most dramatic Maoist insurgency in modern
history? RETURNED: Child Soldiers of Nepal's Maoist Army is an HD
documentary that follows several Nepali boys and girls as they attempt
to reintegrate into civil society after their associating with armed
Maoist groups to fight the "People's War." The film examines why
these children are compelled to join armed groups and explores the
prevention of future recruitment through the voices of two girl
soldiers, two boy soldiers, and experts in the field.
The children describe their dramatic recruitment and participation in
the Maoist People's Liberation Army during the eleven-year civil war
between the Maoists insurgents and the Hindu monarch of Nepal. The
girls' stories in particular demonstrate how joining the violent
Maoist struggle became their only option to escape the gender
discrimination and sexual violence of traditional Hindu culture in
Nepal. With the major conflict ended and the Maoists in control of
the government, these children are now discarded by the Maoist
leadership and forced to return home to communities and families that
want nothing to do with them. For many of the children of Nepal's
Maoist Army, the return home can be even more painful than the
experience of war.