POLITICS-NEPAL: People’s Defiance Rises with Number of Strikes

By Damakant Jayshi Reprint | | Print |

Damakant Jayshi

KATHMANDU, May 23 2004 (IPS) - For years, people in the world’s only Hindu kingdom have enjoyed a forced day off from work whenever a ‘bandh’ or general strike is called by mainstream political parties or by the Maoist rebels.

Students gleefully welcomed these total or partial work shutdowns, thankful for the unexpected ‘holidays’ that the hundreds of strikes over the last 14 years have brought.

But these days, the signs of defiance against ‘bandh’ that claim to be for the citizens’ benefit are growing as the shutdowns continue to deal blows to the nation’s economy and psyche.

”How long can I stay indoors? Bhairab Giri, who was carrying a sofa on his head, told IPS. ”I did my work on Thursday (the last of three-day Maoist strike that ended May 20)) as well since my ‘sahu’ (the furniture shop owner) asked me to carry a cupboard.”

”Moreover, I wanted it too, for not doing it would have meant another day without money,” he said.

For people like Giri who depend on daily wages, the strikes are a curse, no matter who calls them and whatever the reason for them.

”I really do not know what these strikes are all about. For me, a one-day strike means a loss of about 300 to 400 rupees (4.1 to 5.47 U.S. dollars). I have a question to ask all those who profess to fight on our behalf: Who are they hurting the most with their frequent strikes?”

Many Nepalis defied the latest bandh despite the bomb blasts caused by the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) on May 19, the second day of the three-day strike.

The rebels blew up a parked passenger bus near the city’s biggest bus station. At another place, a bomb they left in the back seat of a taxi went off, damaging the vehicle. But instead of being cowed, operators of public transport vehicles had them plying the streets the following day, though the number was nowhere near those running on normal days. Still, the defiance was for all to see.

During the strike, long-distance travel came to a complete halt for fear of running into mines laid by Maoist rebels determined to deter any travel.

Their three-day strike was just the latest of the shutdowns, since it was preceded by a two-day ‘bandh’ by the five political parties that have been fighting to restore democracy in the kingdom for the past year.

In April too, there was a one-day ‘bandh’ called by the parties, followed by a three-day closure by the Maoists.

But during these strikes, people in the capital and other major cities, by and large, walked to their work. The streets were not crowded like on a normal day, but were not deserted either. Government-run buses were packed.

The Royal Nepalese Army and the police personnel patrolled the streets more frequently than usual, and the home ministry issued a stern warning against any disruption of normal movement.

”We are just fed up with this strike business. It’s time for the ‘bandh’ callers to have some kind of introspection on whether they are employing the right means to achieve their end,” said Hari Pandey, an executive in a travel agency. ”I am not at all surprised at the turnout on the streets despite the threats.”

Worried by the rising number of strikes, the business community, especially the tourism sector, wants the Supreme Court to intervene just as it has in neighbouring India.

”Some of my colleagues have petitioned the court, seeking a ban on strikes,” says Binod Bahadur Shrestha, president of the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI).

However, he realised even if the Supreme Court issued a ban, it would not be effective so long as outlawed Maoist rebels refuse to abide by it. Still, Shrestha said, ”If we are all united on this, I am confident it can be done.”

The economic losses caused by the strikes to this already impoverished nation are staggering. In just one day of total closure, the economy suffers losses to the tune of over 16 million U.S. dollars, according to Kathmandu Research Centre.

Since the restoration of democracy in 1990, there have been 85 general strikes in both the whole country and in Kathmandu Valley, according to Home Ministry.

Besides these, there have been hundreds of regional strikes, both 24-hour and dawn-to-dusk ones, educational institutions’ shutdown as well as blockades that bring the movement of people and goods to a grinding halt.

One visible consequence of the ‘bandh’ has been that the tourists have been coming here for shorter durations and avoiding the ‘risk’ areas for trekking and sightseeing. Those living in the far-flung areas and depending on the tourists’ adventure trekking are the worst hit.

”Although the air passengers show a surge by 40 percent in arrival figures (January 2004 Immigration Department), it means little to those who earn livelihood in and around the trekking areas,” pointed out B P Acharya, owner of a travel agency and Hotel Impala in Thamel, the tourist hub in the capital.

”We can only hope the bandh callers, both on the streets and in the jungle, realise the adverse impact of the now regular strikes,” he added. His hotel’s best room is going for a mere 850 Nepali rupees per night (11.6 dollars), 50 percent less than even four years back.

Schools have also been affected by the schedule disruptions, not to mention the risk of violence, brought by strikes.

Agya Poudyal, a first-year development studies student of the National College here, says she has to attend classes even on Saturdays and other holidays to compensate for the loss of school days due to the strikes.

”It becomes difficult to complete our syllabus in time,” she said. These frequent disruptions are also the factor behind the mushrooming of private tuition centres, she adds.

Suprabhat Bhandari, president of the Guardians Association of Nepal, the country’s largest group of parents and guardians, said: ”It is high time that the schools and other educational institutions be left untouched. We urge all concerned to sign a document declaring schools as zones of peace.”