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COVER STORY |
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COVER STORY |
NEPAL BANDH Frequent Nepal bandhs and
violent activities organized by the major political parties have generated apathy among
the common people about the virtues of the liberal democratic process. Political parties,
knowingly or unknowingly, step in with their destructive ways whenever there are signs of
economic recovery. Just a couple of days after the Finance Ministry announced that the
country's economy is heading toward recovery, eight student unions - having different
objectives and contradictory stands - called a series of general strikes, sending a wrong
message to the world. Renewed vandalism and violence have dimmed the nation's economic
hopes. By KESHAB POUDEL The Nepali Congress, whose central
committee issued a press statement in December 2000 publicly denouncing bandhs and urging
its workers not to organize them, has openly backed the latest series of general strikes
called by an alliance of student unions that includes its own supporters. "Our party has given moral support to
the agitation launched by the student unions," said Nepali Congress spokesman Arjun
Narsingh K.C. "The circumstances are now different, since we are demanding the
restoration of the people's sovereignty."
The press release two and a half
years ago was issued by the Nepali Congress, which was the ruling party then, in response
to the two-day Nepal bandh called on January 1 and 2, 2001 by nine left parties, and was
published in all daily newspapers. Three days earlier, five leftist student
organizations had called a valley-wide bandh. Backing the Nepali Congress, CPN-UML leader
K.P. Sharma Oli also publicly declared that his party, too, would not call Nepal bandhs.
Coincidentally, the Nepali Congress denounced the bandh when its government increased the
prices of petroleum products. The UML's stand did not last long. It
announced a three-day bandh from May 27, 28, 29 2001 the same year, pressing for the
resignation of prime minister Girija Prasad Koirala, who was facing allegations of
corruption in the Lauda Air lease deal. Since both parties are out of power now,
they have adopted an entirely different tone, justifying the cycle of vandalism. Supported
by the Maoist student union, which the other seven student unions regarded as their mortal
enemy until a few months ago, the latest campaign means the country will have to pass
through four bandhs in April. Although leaders of the Nepali Congress and
the UML refuse to look back, the people still remember their public commitments against
launching destructive activities in the name of advancing their political agenda. The
Nepali Congress kept its word for more than three years. UML leaders broke it in six
months. The two rivals now stand together in supporting a spree of shutdowns when the
country can least afford it. The first bandh in the series on April 20
passed away with the torching of a store at the Tribhuvan University and a couple of
public vehicles. The valley was scheduled to be shut down again on April 23 at the call of
the student union allied with the Nepali Congress (Democratic) of former prime minister
Sher Bahadur Deuba.
With firm backing from their
political bosses, the alliance of student unions have called another two-day bandh on
April 28 and 29, a few months before the golden jubilee celebrations of the first ascent
of Mt. Everest are to begin. Koirala and UML leaders are justifying
their support for the shutdowns by arguing that it would fortify their campaign of
pressing King Gyanendra to correct his "constitutional mistakes" that began with
his assumption of full executive powers after dismissing the Deuba government on October 4
last year. "The students' agitation is aimed against the oppression of state,"
thundered the octogenarian Koirala at a party gathering. "If the state continues to
use oppressive methods, the student will be forced to step up their agitation." The political parties are in effect
pressing the king to correct his "unconstitutional" decision by encouraging
their sister organizations to adopt unconstitutional methods. "If a political force
justifies illegal means to achieve its ends, others will follow similar methods in the
future. The cycle of violence is a never-ending process," said an analyst. "In
1990, the major political parties used all illegitimate means to overthrow the Panchayat
system. The Maoists are holding the gun to end the multiparty system. Next time other
parties will follow more violent ways," said the analyst. "Violence invites
another cycle of violence." Fed up with frequent meaningless general
strikes called by different political parties over the last 12 years, Kathmandu valley
residents do not have anyone to look up to for succor. When the politicians they trusted
the most continue to go back on their words, the people do not see any credible leader. In
a country where the people continue to be terrorized by vandalism and destruction, no one
dares to open their businesses during bandhs irrespective of who the organizer happens to
be. This may be true in Nepalese society where
people fed up with lawless activities like general strikes and other violent means
supported and promoted by political actors who ruled the country and supposed to rule the
country again. The situation is that businessmen and common people have lost faith in
political actors and the political process.
At a time when political actors are
changing their stand almost every hour, the credibility of the entire political leadership
is being questioned. "After the announcement of the cease-fire a few months ago, we
thought that the normalcy was within our reach, but the recent street violence of student
unions and political parties show that it is just a myth," said a tourism
entrepreneur. "We were receiving good booking for the coming golden jubilee
celebration of the first ascent of Mt. Everest, but the recent violence has sent a
negative message." Economic Implications Bandhs and the street violence they
generate hit a wide-range of other economic activities, including export-oriented
industries, pushing the economy deeper into the mire. "General strikes will
definitely harm the productive sectors, but we cannot do anything to prevent it,"
said Binod Bahadur Shrestha, acting president of the Federation of Nepalese Chamber,
Commerce and Industry. "We are tired of talking about the economic implications of
general strikes with politicians. When all major political parties turn a deaf year to us,
it is a waste of time to discuss these things with them. No one has the time to listen our
genuine complaints and suggestions." This is a sentiment well-wishers of Nepal
share. The World Bank's Economic Updates and reports of donor countries also point to the
negative impact strikes have on economic growth† "The economic situation in the
country is disturbing and political parties must urge their workers to withdraw all
strikes and lock-outs and other modes of actions favoring physical force and coercion for
a certain period," said a leading economist. "The Maoists and liberal democratic
parties seem to stand together when it comes to launching violent agitation." That connection is not lost on political
analysts, either. "I find it difficult to distinguish between the former terrorist
party and the leading liberal democratic party of the country," one analyst said.
"When students affiliated with Nepali Congress and the UML join Maoist students in
destroying public and private property, how can we have hope in the political process? No
one will be able to bring economic development in the country this way."
As one of the poorest countries of
the world, Nepal cannot sustain losses of millions of rupees every year because of
strikes. Apart from financial and physical losses, vandalism and violence creates terror
in the minds of the people that may not die soon. "Experience shows that general strikes
harm the economic sector in such a way that it will take many years for Nepal to
re-establish its credibility in the world," says another economist. "Whether it
is agriculture, tourism or export-oriented industry, Nepal requires peace and tranquillity
to prosper." Agrees Dr. Shanker Sharma, vice-chairman of
the National Planning Commission. "The general strikes will turn all economic
activities into a standstill and it will affect the productivity and value addition."
Farmers are forced to dump their produce, the tourism industry gets cancellations and
garment and carpet industries are in no position to make deliveries in time. Irresponsible Political Actors All the major political parties understand
the implications of general strikes, since they have experience in governing. However,
they do not want to remember these difficulties whenever they are in the opposition. If
people asked what 12 years of self-government have taught them, they must admit ruefully
in the words of T.S. Eliot: "We had the experiences, but missed the meaning." With the restoration of democracy,
politicians have remembered disorder, violence and indiscipline and have portrayed bandhs
as an expression of the freedom of the people. They justify their unconstitutional methods
to challenge another unconstitutional step. The Nepali Congress and the UML, which have
tasted power, are in the forefront of double standards. "Be it the King or political
leaders, all of them seem to have been trapped in a game designed by others. They are
showing no sign of flexibility to bring normalcy. The King and leaders of political
parties are so generous to the Maoists, why don't they have similar faith among
themselves?" asks an analyst.
The longer the political anarchy and
general strike lasts, greater the loss the economic sector has to suffer. Since political
actors are in confrontational mood, escalation in violence seems inevitable, pushing the
economy into deeper trouble. "If things remain unstable and volatile, we won't have
any option other than to shut down the business," said a shop owner at New Road.
"The king, political leaders and other professionals do not seem serious about our
problems. King Gyanendra in his addresses to the nation has reiterated his commitment to
peace and prosperity but he is yet to show the way to achieve them." As the King is now running the show, having
given just an administrative role to Prime Minister Lokendra Bahadur Chand, it is his
responsibility to bring the normalcy in the country and hear the voices of business
community. When the parliament is dissolved and other elected representative institutions
are put aside, the King has to face the situation directly. Economic Cost According to a survey conducted by an
economic team, the country loses more than Rs.80 million during each day of Nepal bandh.
If indirect losses are included, then the amount would go significantly higher. Farmers
cannot sell their produce and industrial output plummets. Tourism and education are
affected the most. There may be political benefits to the organizers, but the country
incurs a heavy loss. As the economy was limping toward recovery,
following a spell of devastating economic performance, the fresh strikes have brought more
pain. "The student agitation and general strike will badly hurt the Nepalese tourism
sector, which is already hurt by SARS virus scare," said Jai Dewan, president of
Nepal Association of Travel Agents. "I hope wisdom will prevail in the minds of
students and people will see normalcy again."
Transport entrepreneurs have been hit
from both sides. "We are badly hurt by the increase in the diesel price, but this is
not the way to organize protests. Some of our vehicles were damaged by the student mobs.
Unfortunately, those who till a few years ago came to request us to operate transport are
now urging us put our vehicles in the garage," said Hom Prasad Adhikary, a leader
transport entrepreneur. The frequent general strikes will have
larger economic implications for export-based industry, tourism and other sectors. At a
time when the garment and carpet industries were beginning to receive orders, the outlook
has again turned gloomy. The standstill in all economic activities will affect production
and value addition. "If the country continues to witness
political instability and chaos, carpet importers will search for another market,"
said A.G. Sherpa, chairman of Nepal Carpet Association. "No one wants to give orders
for new consignments, given the country's conditions." Fruit and vegetable importers are among the
hardest hit, since a one-day strike would destroy their perishable commodities. Nepal
imports fruits and vegetables from neighboring states of India, which have to be
transported into the country. Because of political instability and
violence in educational institutions, many middle-class parents are sending children to
schools in India. This outflow of Nepalese money would have a lasting impact on the
national economy. History of Nepal Bandh Undisciplined demagogy, it is said, is as
dangerous as undisciplined student power; and undisciplined trade unionism is as dangerous
as undisciplined capitalism. The history of bandhs is not new in Nepal. During the
Panchayat days, student unions often called shutdowns, but they were not effective. During the campaign for the restoration of
democracy in 1990, the major political parties called more than half a dozen general
strikes. Communists are leading in the business of bandhs. Communist countries represent
the dictatorship of the proletariat, where the working classes themselves are supposed to
be in power, and strikes are banned and people inciting or taking part in them are
promptly imprisoned. However, communists enjoy unprecedented freedom to call strikes and
smash public property in a democratic society. The Nepalese people believed that bandhs
would disappear following the restoration of democracy, since the new constitution
guarantees political freedom. But political parties continue to call shutdowns on the
flimsiest of grounds. The Nepal Communist Party Unity Center was the first to call a Nepal
bandh after the restoration of democracy, on March 1, 1992. The following year, the UML
and other nine left parties called a shutdown. In 1996, no political party called strikes,
but the following year broke the record with 10 shutdowns. In the last 12 years, more than
75 days was declared as a bandhs. Out of them, the UML called more than 52 bandhs, which
18 were organized by the Maoists. The remaining were launched by other parties. Although this is the first time the student
wing affiliated to the Nepali Congress has joined a two-day bandh, the UML has the record
of organizing a three-day shutdown. The Maoists surpassed everyone by calling five-day
bandhs twice. Legal Challenge Although some legal efforts were taken in
India to discourage such costly disruptions, Nepal is yet to have any law on controlling
bandhs. The Kerala State High Court four years ago declared the general strikes illegal
and asked the Election Commission to de-recognize political parties that called them.
Influenced by the Indian case, two students, Achut Raj Budathoki and Trilochan Mishra,
filed a writ in Nepal in September. Since many political issues have been
settled in the kingdom through physical force and brutal violence, every political party
and student union sees general strikes an easy option to press the government. With the
restoration of democracy in 1990, Nepal bandhs have been called against all prime
ministers. From the liberal democratic Nepali Congress
to extreme leftist and moderate left parties and other rightist groups, all formations
have called Nepal bandhs to press their demands. No one seems to be worried by the heavy
economic losses to the country. Although all politicians know that the tool of bandh can
be used against them, nobody wants to give up these easy and destructive methods. Although senior leaders of the Nepali
Congress and the UML are explaining to western diplomats that their struggle is peaceful,
their student affiliates are busy destroying public property. "The political forces
must come closer to resolve political problems through peaceful means," said a
western diplomat. "What type of peaceful demonstration is this? How can the parties
justify the burning of college buildings, libraries and public vehicles?" Political actors say this is their
compulsion. The people do not know who is inspiring them toward vandalism. Moreover, who
is encouraging this widening of the gap between the country's major political forces by
projecting them as destructive forces? The student unions damaged property worth
millions of rupees on the first day of the general strike and five days of agitation. It
seems inevitable that the country will face similar vandalism during the other three days
of the general strike. The tranquillity created by the
announcement of the government-Maoist cease-fire a few months ago seems to have ended. The
country has entered a new phase of violence and destruction under the cover of legitimate
parties. With violence shifting to urban areas, economic recovery would be a more elusive
prospect. 'Bandhs Will Not Solve Our Problems' — HARI MAN LAMA
HARI MAN LAMA, a
leading tourism entrepreneur, is an executive member of Trekking Agents Association of
Nepal (TAAN). He spoke to SPOTLIGHT on various issues related to Nepal bandh and its
impact on the tourism sector. Excepts: How do you assess the frequent
Nepal bandhs? Frequent Nepal bandhs create more trouble
to the tourists in terms of transport. The tourists have to face the hardships coming
downtown from the airport. Tour operators manage transport to their groups but as far as
back-packers and individual tourists are concerned, they have to face all kinds of
hardship to come to the city. It will send the bad image. Many tourists are lured because
of the natural image of the country. If we continue to organize such demonstrations, it
will affect the tourism industry. What steps have you taken to
convince political parties about the negative impacts of general strikes? Being a member of trekking agents
association of Nepal and a tourism entrepreneur, I have made many efforts to convey the
message to the political leaders. We have requested political leaders of CPN-UML, Nepali
Congress not to call Nepal bandhs and they reiterated their commitment not to do so.
Contradictory to their stand, however, political parties are calling bandhs. We have also
made a similar request to the Maoist leaders. We have been making these efforts for a long
time. How do you provide transport to
tourists who arrive during bandhs? We have managed vehicles taking a risk.
Travel agencies have somehow managed the bus and minibus to fetch the tourists. Even we
reserved rickshaw to ferry tourists. In some cases, we also urge tourists to trek. The
government has at least to manage bus from airport to downtown. Have you received any
cancellations? Such activities definitely affect the
overall tourist arrivals. We have also received cancellations of reservation. It will not
affect us immediately but will have a long-term impact on the tourism sector. Peace and
tranquillity are pre-requisites for the promotion of the tourism sector. In many cases,
when tourists leave the home country, they will proceed. What do you suggest political
parties should do? Bandh is not solution of all. I have not
seen any demand fulfilled by calling bandh. There are many ways of protest. The bandh
organizers have to realize whether their activities have any political meaning. It is not
a solution. I would like to request political parties, students unions to consider other
alternatives. Bandhs Total Bandhs: 67 (From 1991 to 23 April,
2003) Days: 72 Called by Parties: 1.. ANNFSU (UML student wing)— 12
times 2.. CPN-UML — 12 3.. Left Front (including CPN-UML) — 5 4.. RPP — 1 5.. ANFSU (Revolutionary)— 15 6.. RPP — 1 7.. Pashupati Sena — 2 8.. Linguistic Right Groups — 1 9.. Newa Khala — 1 10..Democratic National Youth Organization
(UML youth wing) — 1 11.. CPN-ML — 1 12.. United People Front — 4 13.. Nepal Student Union (Nepali Congress)
— 4 14.. Federation of Nepalese Chamber of
Commerce and Industry — 4 15.. Nepal Student Union (Deuba)— 1
(valley bandh) 16.. Nepal Sadbhavana Party — 2
(terai bandhs) 17. Maoist party including its
student wing has called 15 number of bandhs at national and regional levels. Sources: Different Newspapers |
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