May 3, 2010
Nationwide, daily life in Nepal has been amputated by the May 1 demonstration and the indefinite general strike enforced by the Maoists beginning May 2.
It came as a surprise to no one. Maoist agitation had been promised well in advance as a mean to impel the current government led by the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxists Leninists) – UML – and it’s Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal to step down so that the Maoists could form a new government with Prachanda at the helm.
On May 1, between 125,000 and 150,000 Maoists thronged the major intersections in the capital including Koteshwor, Chabahil, Gaushala, Maharajgunj, Gongabu, Kalanki, Balkhu, Satdobato, Padmodaya, Baneshowr, Ratnapark, Tripureshowr, among other places. Over 15,000 security forces were deployed to maintain law and order. No significant instances of violence were reported.
But the sea of protesters continued into Sunday in Kathmandu and other major urban centers. Maoists armed with bamboo sticks enforced a general strike (bandh) cutting off transport, closing shops, markets and industries and disrupting school examinations.
In effect, the nation has been shut down. The roads are
empty, forcing people to walk to their destinations.
And in the hinterlands, violence and coercion are more apparent than in the nation’s capital.
There was fear and panic in Chitwan, the popular tourist area for viewing big game, after a powerful grenade was found near a bridge. Though security forces were unable to say immediately who had planted it, Maoist involvement was suspected as last week a Maoist platoon commander of their People’s Liberation Army was arrested while traveling towards Kathmandu with a grenade.
The Maoists’ dreaded youth organization, the YCL, stormed educational centers where 12th grade examinations were being held. The YCL tore up the examinees answer scripts and question papers and the students were forced to vacate the premises. As security forces intervened, a battle ensued with the invaders hurling bricks and the forces retaliating by firing teargas shells.
In Pokhara, another popular tourist destination, the YCL were reported to have forced their way in to private residences to intimidate homeowners.
In Birganj, Nepal’s biggest trade centre after the capital, a pressure-cooker bomb was found in a public are, adding to the fear.
In Butwal, a government office was attacked for defying the Maoists’ strike call.
On Saturday evening, Prime Minister Nepal reiterated that he had no intention of being coerced into stepping down. He accused the Maoists of orchestrating anarchy so that they could get their own way, pointing out that the general strike was yet another means for the Maoists to weaken the young democracy.
But the Prime Minister has his work cut out for him. Backstage, 60 central committee members of the PM’s own party submitted a memorandum to party chief Jhalanath Khanal, reportedly urging him to exit from the coalition government. The campaign, led by former Home Minister Bamdev Gautam, has the support of at least one heavyweight, trade union leader and former foreign minister Sahana Pradhan. It seems likely that the intra-party feud can only gather steam as the strike drags on.
For the Maoists part, spokesman Janardan Sharma (one of the commanders of the ex-rebels) declared that the strike “was not a protest by the Maoists alone, but a people’s movement.”
The question is: Which people?
There is no doubt that the 125,000 demonstrators’
frustration was genuine. Most Nepalis share similar dismay over issues ranging
from inflation to corruption to chronic power outages to pervasive corruption.
The difference between the demonstrators and non-demonstrators are that the
latter aren’t so easily persuaded that the sole culprit is the current Prime
Minister, who – so the Maoists insist – is a puppet of India, the country
Maoists most love to demonize.
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