of jatras and julus'

movement monologues

April 25, 2006

People Power Wins!

Today was truly an amazing day to be in Nepal although it was only late yesterday evening that everyone was pointing to today as the ultimate showdown between the people and the palace. Yesterday was actually a rather light day for demonstrations (2 million were apparently resting up for today’s onslaught) and with a reduced curfew of 11:00 am to 6:00 pm, I headed off to the office on my bicycle (with a packet of noodles and milk for the chai). During lunch, I watched from the window as security personnel circled around the Gahana Pokhari (sacred pond) around and around again (apparently one of them was learning how to drive?) and cows took over the nice grassy area around the pond to chow down without interference.

Not knowing what tomorrow would bring and desperately wanting to get out of the house, we met a few local friends and decided to track down a restaurant that would open. Shops were abuzz with people stocking on items--a rather familiar sight over the past 20 days during breaks in curfew, and bicycle rickshaws (a renewed trade in Kathmandu!) did brisk business shuttling goods and people up and down the streets. We witnessed truckload after truckload of security forces and army being shuttled in the direction of the ring road for the planned confrontation. A light rain fell and the streets became deserted with the exception of the ubiquitous street dogs digging through goldmines of 20 days worth of uncollected rubbish lining the streets... We received word that the curfew was on for Tuesday from 1:00 am to 9:00 pm, so rather than go home we popped into a pub still open (run by jazz loving kathmanduites!).

We watched a bit of BBC news and soon got word that King Gyanendra would deliver a national address at 11:30 pm (in itself very odd considering that most of Kathmandu is in bed by 10:00 pm). I must admit that I was rather surprised when HM announced that he was reinstating parliament on Friday rather than calling for martial law/state of emergency, which was pretty much everyone’s guess. On the short walk home, we could hear large crowds in the distance cheering wildly and just as we had reached our home someone on the street gave us the nicest “namaste” and then said in English, “tomorrow there will be peace.” He was right; we woke up to no curfew and the day’s protest marches were retooled as people’s victory marches. Smiles were contagious. People shook hands and chatted freely with security forces. By noon, it was announced that Koirala (the last real PM back in 2002) would be the reinstated prime minister.

Although the mood was overwhelmingly celebratory, some commented that HM hadn?t gone far enough by not publicly stating that he would assume a ceremonial role (that he still might linger in the background). He did, however, in his address, apologize for the loss of life and injuries sustained during the past few weeks, which is something that I have never known him to do. There is also the not-so-small matter of the Maoists, who
immediately released a statement saying that the political parties had broken one of the key components of their agreement by not calling immediately for constituent elections/assembly, although the political parties clarified their statement later in the afternoon that, of course, constituent elections were on their agenda as were renewed talks with the Maoists. The Maoists have faintly threatened more blockades, but I think it is mostly a case of just more blather from them and having the political parties steal a little bit of their thunder. Or at least I hope that’s the situation.

Mostly, I am pleased for the people of Nepal who have needed this small victory for a very long time. The political parties have squandered numerous opportunities in the time I have been here and they certainly have a lot to do to win back the people’s full trust and confidence. This will be the fourth go at PM for Koirala although the time has never been better for a renewed ceasefire and peace negotiations with the Maoists. It is my hope that they will let the Maoists stand for elections (provided they lay down their arms) like everyone else. They’ll most likely win a few seats and then see if they can put some of their rhetoric into actual governance...

some successes in 2005

the children's smiles above expresses a lot of my own joy regarding modest development successes in 2005. i've been away from the blog--both technical glitches and just being extremely busy--for some time now, but if i am able to find the time, i will attempt to post some of my musings in the upcoming year. that is, for anyone who cares to know and if the situation here remains stable...

peace in the new year!

guess who's not coming to dinner...

A nice bit of unexpected and unseasonal rain has knocked down the ever-present dust of Kathmandu, and everyone will breathe a little easier for a day or two. Yesterday, the international donor community issued an official statement calling on both the Maoists and security forces to uphold human rights; that it is their duty to ensure that civilians have access to essential humanitarian supplies and that medical emergencies are given free passage at all times. Children are especially threatened—supplies of vaccines, vitamin A capsules, de-worming tablets and essential drugs have been held up, and must reach rural areas over the coming months to prevent wholly unavoidable deaths, the international donor community commented. Within the past weeks there have been reports of women dying in childbirth because of restrictions on movement, and many other incidents of humanitarian and development activities being restricted, stopped or threatened by parties of the conflict…

The British Foreign Office has suspended 1 million in aid for police and security forces; Condi and the US are still pushing for the Indian government to take the lead in restoring multi-party democracy to Nepal (something the Nepalis really do not like!) and the US Ambassador to Nepal has been having meetings this week with several recently released party leaders—including the deposed prime minister—about which King Gyanendra appointed Vice Chairman of the Council of Ministers complained, and I quote: “why am I never invited to these dinner parties.”

Reports from the districts are trickling in. Disgruntled villagers in hard hit areas have been forming their own vigilante groups—armed with sticks and stones—and have been seeking their own revenge on Maoist groups that have terrorized their villages. The palace is apparently and tacitly supporting and encouraging these groups. Caught in the middle are villagers that are forced to attend Maoist “meetings” only to be threatened, and in some cases beaten up, by these vigilante groups and security forces… And at the same time, King Gyanendra still refuses to bring the Maoists to the negotiating table.

A culture of frustration and violence permeates the country—a sad development given the historically peaceful nature of Nepal. In Kathmandu, we live in a bubble, rarely affected to the extent of people in the districts with the exception of fluctuation in prices, shortages of some commodities and difficulties in transportation, but these sort of difficulties pale in comparison to threats on one’s live and survival. What nature of atonement awaits Nepal?

In this general milieu, it is difficult to think about and prepare new development projects or even continue with the implementation of ongoing ones. Aasaman, I believe, is doing its best with current projects in the field, which is testament to the hard work and neutrality of our social mobilizers and child rights protectors in the field—they make themselves known to Maoists and security forces alike and focus on the beneficiaries. Still, our discussions on starting up projects in new districts/areas are tricky at this point given both the situation in the country and the wait-and-see approach of many donor agencies…

Yet, I continue to do what I can. I have scheduled a 3-day organizational assessment at the end of April (to be held in the south of the country, even) that will bring together 16 staff members, at least 12 beneficiaries and will include my own interviews with our donors and staff. The output of this assessment will hopefully help us produce a document that will steer the organization’s internal development in the coming years.

The Common Meal

Some of the familiar methods of awareness-raising and advocacy among civil society organizations working for the upliftment of dalits and eradicating social discrimination in Nepal is to perform street dramas, participate in mass rallies and hold something called common meals where men and women of all castes can sit down with one another, converse freely and enjoy a meal together. The common meal is aimed at breaking down notions of untouchability and jutho (impurity) still prevalent among many Hindus in Nepal. These norms are particularly conservative with regards to food—in the countryside it is common that dalits are refused entry to teahouses (or are made to bring their own cup) and restaurants.

While the efficacy and impact of such events is questionable and not well documented, I have personally witnessed groups of dalit women marching through the streets of their villages to the Hindu temple demanding entry brought to tears once they step foot inside and are allowed to worship, and have observed groups of dalits and higher castes partaking of meals together in remote regions while sitting on the ground cross-legged and taking their food from simple, disposable plates fashioned out of leaves. Questions of impact and efficacy aside, these simple measures—and demanding of rights—seemed to have had a profound bearing on the lower caste participants themselves.

Out of curiosity, tonight I attended a common meal event in Kathmandu hosted by a large Nepalese NGO working in dalit rights and advocacy held at the Birendra International Convention Center (the only venue of its kind in Nepal) and attended by newly appointed ministers in His Majesty’s government—not the most common of venues nor guest lists. The event included a long list of speakers touting what should be done to uplift the condition of dalits in Nepal and declarations to do so at all costs. Upon the completion of speeches and kudos as the crowd moved outside for the meal portion of the event, myself and a small group of foreigners who work with Nepali NGOs were approached by a group of dalit students who opposed the night’s proceedings (conspicuously absent from the night’s events were some of the bigger INGOs themselves even the INGO whose funds sponsored the event!). The dalit student group passed out leaflets outlining their opposition to the event: a waste of funds that could be used in dalit communities themselves; the absence of any dalit speakers who could attest to the real and abysmal conditions of dalit communities; no real agenda/concrete action plan put forward as to how the civil society organizations would uplift the condition of dalit communities and uphold laws against “untouchability;” an attempt by the NGO/civil society community to “pat themselves on the back” by holding such an event.

In general, I sympathized with the dalit students because of my own background in more radical approaches to human rights and couldn’t have agreed with them more, discerning that the event mainly served as a means of highlighting what one NGO was doing to uplift the condition of dalits (with little details of their successes or failures) heavy on rhetoric of how more efforts should be put into dalit rights-based approaches with no concrete action plan put forward. Inviting recently appointed ministers in light of current curtailed human rights and abuses in some sense smacked of hypocrisy and served as a slap in the face of activists and dalit and other marginalized communities themselves. At the same time, however, awareness-raising and advocacy activities, I believe, must reach all levels of society from the bottom to the top for real change to occur and must seek to implement an integrated approach that uniformly impacts all castes and strata of society. While dalit and other marginalized communities are willing and eager to take measures to uplift their own condition, awareness raising efforts must also include components which reach out to all castes, particularly in an effort to demonstrate how caste discrimination has a harmful affect on the overall development of Nepal. Certainly, equality and adherence to basic human rights needs no justification; however, a collaborative, inter-caste approach is the best means towards abolishing the scourge of untouchability and caste-based discrimination. Open dialogue amongst all castes and social change activists from both lower and upper caste communities will go a long way towards promoting and facilitating equitable, sustainable and positive changes in the human condition. It could also be argued that the dalit student group themselves failed to forward their own plans and solutions; instead opting to focus on the shortcomings of the event. Could it not be maintained, then, that the student group is equally complicit in not addressing the real needs of dalit communities? Is there not a means by which all forces can join hands in the fight to eradicate social discrimination?

Without knowing the particulars of how much money when into organizing and holding the common meal program, it would be hard for me to criticize the event as a waste of funding. If the event amounted to only a small fraction of funding, then it could be argued that it was held as a means of sharing lessons learned and best practices and the floor could have been opened for a question and answer session. As the afternoon transpired, however, it became painfully apparent that none of that was on the agenda, and the event served very little purpose. As far as the meal itself, people mingled a bit on the soggy grounds outside the convention center as they ate their meal, but not much else happened… Perhaps a few people were moved by the speeches and vowed to either take up or continue the fight for dalit rights and ending all caste-based discrimination, but in the end, dalits themselves remain mostly far off in remote villages and in congested zones of poverty and inequality.

All dalit-focused projects should be designed and implemented bearing in mind that interventions are short-term whereas the development process is continuous. All efforts, therefore, should incorporate a strategy that both enables participants to maintain and continue a project as long as it is needed and to manage a development process that will lead to other community-initiated development efforts. All dalit upliftment efforts should be constant with this principle. All efforts must include an integrated basis of awareness raising and training to increase local understanding of dalit and lower caste rights and the harmful anti-development effects of caste discrimination and to reduce instances of discriminatory behavior; thereby, enabling greater access to the public sphere, educational and economic opportunities for dalit and other marginalized communities by working directly with community-based associations and allied groups from all walks of life. These are inherently sustainable actions and worthy of funding and support. Someday, hopefully sooner rather than later, the common meal will become just that—common.

shivaratri revisited

Shivaratri revisited: devotion, extortion, hash and homemade fireworks all in one

The world’s sadhus are in town—stoking up their hash pipes and their willy sticks at the ready along with other yogic props that come with being a devotee of Shiva—for the upcoming Shivaratri or night of Shiva. They’re a gnarly bunch with their trisuli (think Poseidon’s pitchfork), alms bucket and matted dreadlocks—sometimes curled on top of their heads in a beehive and sometimes hanging freely down their backs. They’re certainly a happy—ah, meditative that is—lot perched as they are on the side of the hill overlooking the Pashupati temple, pilgrims bathing in the holy river and burning cremation ghats. One would have to be in a pretty mellow state with so much death and celebration and devotion happening simultaneously… Of course, Kathmandu has its decent share of all year fair weather sadhus wandering about town eager to slap a tika on your forehead, and will do so without asking, or to have their picture taken for a price. They’re easy to spot with the freshly laundered saffron robes, but there’s nothing quite like the real show on Shiva’s night.

Last year, Shivaratri occurred just after I had arrived in country and I waded through the temple complex on the actual night. This year I made the trip a few days earlier with friends of mine visiting from out of town to avoid the overwhelming crowds that pack into the area on the night of Shiva. There were sadhus sprawled out pretty much everywhere: some napping under shady trees, some stoking their campfires on the hillside overlooking the cremation ghats and others holding court in front of the hundreds of many shiva temples that dot the top of the ridge. There was even one sadhu suckling a baby monkey—obviously taking Shiva’s incarnation of Pashupati (protector of the beasts) to heart. The monkey would retrieve his alms, give a good once going over and then drop it into a small tin bucket. It’s quite the spectacle for Nepali visitors as much for foreigners although Nepalis are doubly interested to see the sadhus and, as a bonus, how foreigners deal with the sadhus.

Shivaratri is also the one day of the year that children all over Nepal are allowed to extort as much money as possible from passersby on the street. Groups of children string a rope across roads and won’t allow pedestrians, bicycles, motorcycles and in some instances vehicles to pass without extracting some money in return. It’s all quite good-natured in the morning even though groups of ten kids at each blockage can quickly add up after a while… One needs a lot of small coins and bills handy to get anywhere. This year, I bought a small bag of sweets—opting instead to rot children’s teeth some might argue—to pass out in lieu of cash. This went well in the morning, but by afternoon it tends to be the older kids demanding money, and it can take quite a bit of negotiation to pass through. Of course, many Nepali adults are doing the same thing, but it’s a lot more interesting for them to watch me deal with it.

Shivaratri is supposed to be the night of bonfires as well, so there is plenty of smoke wafting through our neighborhood this evening. In some parts of Nepal, people make their own fireworks by lighting stalks of sugarcane, slapping them down hard on the ground and then watching the sparks fly—a kind of organic sparkler.

Happy Shivaratri!

Terai Kids

Some of the kids from our neighborhood in Bardibas.

arresting development in nepal

It has been just over one year since I first arrived in Nepal to take up the task of working as a management advisor for a small, indigenous Nepali NGO. Before embarking on my trip, I was encouraged—thorough talks with Nepali experts, and recent studies—that the Maoist insurgency that had racked the country for eight years was in its dying days and was confined to some of the more remote areas of the far western reaches of the Kingdom. The realities on the ground, however, were something quite different—almost immediately I learned that Maoist (and often agitating political parties, as well) called strikes, demonstrations and blockades effected life throughout the country, albeit, on a limited scale in the Kathmandu Valley, and were an almost daily occurrence.

My first assignment was with a small NGO working for the upliftment of dalit (the so-called untouchables) women in the southern Gangetic plain of Nepal, referred to as the Terai. My home then, Mahottari district, posts some of the lowest social and economic indicators in the country. Among dalit women, literacy rates are in the single digits or very low teens; dalit and other marginalized communities live separately in simple villages of the most basic adobe huts typically with no water or sanitation facilities. Dalit and other lower castes are denied almost total access to the public sphere—restaurants, tea houses, Hindu temples—and are forced to perform (and are often punished if they do not) the most menial of tasks: removing dead animal carcasses from towns; cleaning human excreta. In these areas, although the Maoist insurgents enjoyed some support due to their rhetoric of equality and development for all, strikes and blockades brought life to a virtual standstill. The wholesale abduction of schoolteachers for “re-education” was common, and Maoists and security forces alike reeked havoc on villages—raping, looting and generally threatening families caught in the crossfire to the point of numbness and indifference. Maoists killed villagers accused of complicity with the government; security forces killed villagers accused of sympathy towards the Maoists. Village Development Committee (locally elected bodies) offices were boarded up and secretaries resigned en masse.

During my first year, all attempts at renewing a cease-fire and instigating peace talks failed. Moreover, efforts to bring in the UN as a mediator in the conflict were rejected and debunked despite the dearth of indigenous solutions to the gridlock. The Royal Palace reinstated the disposed Prime Minister with the agenda of bringing about a cease-fire or calling elections if the Maoists refused to join the process. Mass demonstrations, rallies, blockades, strikes and mass killings and abductions, however, continued unabated. The horrific murder of 12 Nepali hostages in Iraq brought more grief and sorrow to this remote Kingdom, with, of course, more demonstrations and rallies that followed. The collective psyche of this Himalayan Kingdom remains battered and fractured.

When the King assumed control of the government on February 1, placed political party leaders under house arrest, enacted a state of emergency and promised to restore peace to the country, you could almost forgive the majority of downtrodden Nepalis for their initial euphoria—many Nepalese were willing to pay almost any price for peace.

Now two weeks into the state of emergency, life in the Kathmandu Valley continues mostly unaffected. More security forces patrol the streets of the capital these days, but the King has taken some minor measures to placate the masses: the price of cooking gas has come down and a beautification campaign in Kathmandu has commenced. For those of us engaged in human rights and development work in Nepal, however, these are trying and troubling times. Most political party leaders remain under house arrest, censorship of the domestic press is absolute and decrees banning public gatherings remain intact. Outside of the Valley, however, life has ground to a halt. A Maoist imposed indefinite blockade and strike has stymied public transportation and movement and despite the “reopening” of some VDC offices, most people remain close to home due to fear for their own life and safety. In some areas, security forces are as much maligned as Maoists insurgents. Caught in the crossfire for almost a decade, many do not know whom to trust.

Most western missions—and India—in Nepal have issued statements appealing for the reinstitution of multi-party democracy, the release of party leaders and human rights activists and the reinstatement of the most basic human rights. Indeed, as I write, many ambassadors are in their home country for consultations about how to proceed. For its own part, the US has issued a 100-day ultimatum for the restoration of multi-party democracy or risk losing all military and other forms of aid. International NGOs, too, seem shell-shocked as they contemplate their next move. Only reputable organizations like Amnesty and Human Rights International have issued statements—without a carrot or stick to dangle in front of the palace—demanding the immediate release of human rights activists and the restoration of basic human rights. The Association of International NGOs (AIN) in Nepal remains sharply divided between those that support a rights-based approach—how can we not speak out—and those favoring a more neutral stance.

As one of the poorest countries in the world, the recent coup staged by the King does not have any real tangible effect on the majority of Nepalis. Indeed, it is common knowledge that the government, in whatever form, only controls the Kathmandu Valley with Maoist de-facto administrations holding sway over wide swathes of the remote countryside. That much has not changed. For development aid and organizations, however, the task has become that much more difficult. It’s a sad irony that much of the development aid in Nepal takes a rights-based as opposed to needs-based approach to development focusing on sustainability through the good governance measures of accountability, transparency and empowerment. The palace takeover will only damage and set back many of the efforts, achievements and impact that have been made over the past decade(s).

My own work currently focuses on the eradication of child labor in Nepal with my organization implementing programs in the hard hit and impoverished southern part of the country. In this area, Maoists are known to “recruit” children into their corps while, at the same time, the local government refuses to enforce and earmark the necessary resources for education for all measures—with many of the poorest areas lacking even the most basic infrastructure. A dalit rights EU project that I helped design, for example, which called for dalit group formation and public forums demanding their rights, could now be threatened and disbanded as a danger to public security under the auspices of the current state of emergency. Remote villagers that demand education facilities and teachers for their children could be jailed under the current draconian measures to squelch public gatherings.

While Maoist atrocities over the past eight years are deplorable and to be condemned, His Majesty’s—and here we also include the Royal Nepalese Army—total control over the country will only continue to jeopardize the people who have been victims of the conflict all along—the majority of Nepalese that crowd a congested zone of poverty and underdevelopment. Transcending the current milieu of violence and conflict—through the immediate resumption of multi-party democracy (with all of its flaws) and the realization of a cease-fire and peace talks (with the assistance of the UN if necessary)—is the only viable means of bringing about a lasting peace and stability to Nepal.

Saraswati Weekend

This is the weekend that I thought of many of you, dear readers, writers, poets, artists and the general learned bunch that you are. Yesterday was Shripanchami or the Goddess Saraswati festival—the venerable goddess of learning and the arts & letters: she rides a swan and plays the sitar. And we have the good fortune of living in the area of the Blue Saraswati temple—on Stupa alley just off of Blue Saraswati street, in fact—so our neighborhood was buzzing with lots of activity: a fresh coat of paint for the temple; the clanging of bells inside the compound; balloon and pushcart ice cream vendors set up under the big peepal tree; the smell and smoke of incense wafting down the narrow lanes. The temple walls were covered with chalk drawings, graffiti and characters of the Nepali script—Shripanchami is a particularly auspicious day to take your son or daughter to the temple to etch their first Nepali alphabet character on the temple wall, many with the help of their parents. Shripanchmi is also supposed to warrant the arrival of spring, and if the last couple of days are any indication then it will be a very nice one.

In good saraswati fashion, I went to Didi (older sister) Bahini (younger sister) day at the organization of the same name. There were the usual speeches and accolades for supporters of the organization and a street drama by the youth group (the drama is one of the most used advocacy tools among NGOs in Nepal)—a usual production of an overachieving daughter being urged by her parents to give up dreams of higher education and anything other than finding a good husband. The father, of course, favors the lackluster son and when the daughter appeals to the sensibilities of her mother, she is normally told by her mother that there’s nothing she can do. Only when tragedy befalls the son do the epiphanies of everyone come to the forefront. The street dramas are particularly fun to watch for the reactions of other spectators, who normally hang on every word. Nepal is a country that traditionally acted out day(s) long versions of the Ramayana or Maharabarta or other religious epics.

At night I took advantage of a VSO invitation to the British Ambassador’s residence (no, I don’t normally get invitations to such events, but this was for a merger between VSO and another British professional sending organization) for a reception. I’ve been once before, and the gluttonous array of drinks and finger foods is hard to pass up. One needs not miss a beat from one gin and tonic to another… He’s a nice enough bloke—the British Ambassador with whom I share the same first five letters of a surname—but he remained tight-lipped about the political situation, opting instead to profess his wife’s commitment to the dalits of Nepal. Apparently the pool used to be available to vsoers on the weekends until some unfortunate skinny-dipping incidents….

The indefinite maoist bandh has begun, but there are, as of yet, no indications of that in Kathmandu. Outside of the Valley, however, traffic and life has come to a halt. Some traffic is coming into the Valley via armed security forces escort and apparently there are security forces every 2 kilometers or so outside of KTM. The US Ambassador laid out his 100-day ultimatum on Friday afternoon: restore some semblance of multi-party democracy or risk losing all earmarked aid. I imagine this is mostly lip service for now, since the last thing anyone wants is for the Maoists to be able to swing the political parties over to their side and start an all-out civil war. The Indian and British governments have been making similar rumblings and the INGO community is still mulling over its next steps. Both Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch Intl have weighed in with public press releases, the former calling for the release of the head of Nepal’s most activate human rights organization with the unfortunate acronym HURPES. He’s considered Nepal’s foremost human rights activist. Slowly, the palace has been releasing some backbenchers and lower level party wonks and there are hints that the former prime minister will be released in the coming days, but so much is rumor and the newspapers are still nothing more than kindling.

Today as I brainstormed ideas for a early childhood marriage eradication program linked with out overall child labor abolishment projects (particularly as a means of getting more girls, especially dalit girls, to remain in school not to mention just upholding their rights) we spotted a story in the papers of a 65-year old man marrying a 9-year old girl in the southern part of the country. Yes, it’s illegal (and also very uncommon between the very old and very young), but it also indicates the kind of social norms and traditional customs that we are up against.

Other than the Guardian (and a few things from the BBC World Service) a good source of news not found in the papers here is available via the International Nepal Solidarity Network at: http://insn.org

vishnu's coup

only slightly censored

It’s been a rather dark week of gray skies and intermittent rain; however, when
the skies have cleared, we’ve been afforded spectacular views of the vast
Himalayan ranges—quite a treat this time of year. My office, however, is
something of a meat locker, as many if not most of Nepali offices tend to be,
so I have taken to keeping a hot water bottle on my lap to keep my hands
warm—that, and many, many cups of chai. It’s not as if we experience blizzards
here in the KTM valley, but due to the lack of heated buildings—there aren’t
any—it’s hard to shake the chill in one’s bones. As I cycle to work in the
mornings, I see group after group of women standing in some sunny spot, woolen
shawls wrapped around their bodies revealing only their eyes, warming
themselves—everyone, seemingly, outside of their brick and concrete dwellings.
The normally active street dogs curl up wherever the sun shines—a pile of
gravel, a heap of rubbish—normally in the vacant lot cum building supply
storage area opposite our house. Cows, not much bothered, still try to figure
out the potentiality of consuming pink plastic bags…

I ventured to the immigration office yesterday as the one-year anniversary of
our arrival in country quickly approaches. As my official visa appears to have
found a permanent home on the desk of some bureaucrat in the ministry of social
welfare, women and children, I am forced to get a temporary tourist visa until
the official one is approved (renewed), and this process requires that the
immigration officer personally have a look at my passport. It’s all a bit of a
drama, really: I need some sort of valid visa in my passport in order to get an
extension on my official visa, yet even though it is in the process of being
renewed, that does not count, and seeing as how the tourist and official visa
bureaucrats don’t communicate very well, I am compelled to say that my work has
finished and I only need a visa to do a bit of sightseeing… There, with a motley
crew of buffed out trekkers and new age seekers, I wait my turn in the queue.
Meanwhile, the immigration officer—whose approval I need—stands outside with a
group of friends or colleagues picking his nose (side note: the pick is
normally an auspicious sign—at the Indian Embassy, the consulate officer while
approving my visa with the all important red pen, picked his nose with the left
hand while flicking the bounty nonchalantly into the air. The pick is a good
sign) and holding hands with his colleagues. It’s all very chummy and
inefficient at the same time. A few hours later, he returns to his desk, flips
through the pages of my passport and seems satisfied enough for approval. I
managed to complete a couple hours of work at the office later in the
afternoon…

Having travelled and lived enough in Asia (and not meaning to pigeonhole too
much), this process is all too familiar and not frustrating at all. Signs of
anger or displeasure get one nowhere generally, not to mention being my style,
and so whether my patience has developed out of necessity or inner peace
doesn’t matter so much as does tolerance being the key. Of course every
country has its own idiosyncrasies and difficulties (witness the US’s own
immigration service now shelved under the homeland security), which anyone who
has travelled or lived abroad knows all too well. Would an official visa
(separate line at the airport for diplomats and officials! Although, sadly, not
often manned) from the government be this easy? And would I be able to come
away with this much material?

February 1, 2005

All of the rumors and scuttlebutt have come to a head—this morning His Majesty
took to the airwaves to announce that he was assuming control of the
government, suspending multi-party democracy for the time being, placing party
leaders—the [former] prime minister included—under house arrest and declaring a
state of emergency. I will first say, dear readers, that things are blissfully
calm in the capital despite all phone lines, including mobile service, and
electricity being cut in addition to the closing of the international airport
eerily just minutes before the King made his announcement. Indeed, the
omnipotence of such a move is downright Orwellian, yet, despite the
overwhelming presence of security forces on the streets and the rumbling of
tanks and army vehicles on the main thoroughfares, things are quite calm and we
are in no immediate danger. In a stroke of genius and learning well from past
demonstrations mobilized through mobile and phone communications, His Majesty
has decided to take no risks in this instance. Declaring a state of emergency
means that civil liberties have been suspended and public gatherings can be
disbanded through the barrel of a gun… We await the morning to see what will
transpire.

Readers will recall that I mentioned rumors of such a move back in December, and
so today’s move seems mostly to have been expected. Although His Majesty is not
much liked in Nepal—in spite of being an incarnation of the god Vishnu—my
cursory chats with Nepalis indicates that his announcement is mostly welcome in
a country beaten down by a civil war with no real end in sight. The King has
given himself 3 years to solve this crisis, which seems like a long time, but
given the pace with which most matters move in this country, it may, indeed,
take that long to achieve a lasting peace. I doubt, however, that the King has
entered into the fray without an exit strategy, but then again, certain circle
estimations that he has absolutist monarch tendencies may be true…

Feb. 2

Things are still calm this morning, yet, despite the clampdown on domestic news
services, BBC World Service reports condemnations from the Indian and US
governments, the latter being almost laughable considering balloons floated out
of Washington lately about the development of a worldwide network of enemy
combatant containment facilities, or whatever they are being called—habeas
corpus lifetime denial centers. Yes, censorship and restrictions on public
gatherings is part of the current state of emergency in Nepal, but it is
telling that the writ of habeas corpus has been upheld.

Telephone service is still down and apparently no flights are entering the
country, but other than that there is no siege mentality in Kathmandu. Life
seems to be going on as normal although a lot of ex-pats, like myself, having
taken a day of leave from work until communications are restored.

What waits to be discerned is how the official maoist leadership will react to
this news. Of course, one of the maoist demands is abolishing the monarchy all
together; on the other hand, the Maoists have always demanded that negotiations
be held directly with the King—this presents them with a dilemma. In some
sense, the Maoists are probably smarting today that the palace has stolen some
of their thunder and swiftly commandeered the agenda in their own court. Still
the King himself doesn’t seem to be helping himself too much with appointment of
Ranas (the former ruling dynastic clan) to his royal council, and this no doubt
will be used as fodder against him. While the King made conciliatory gestures
to the Maoists in his speech welcoming them to the negotiating table, he also
mentioned in the same breath that he would not waver in crushing the Maoists
should they continue with their aggressive strategy.

The latest bit of news is that the Maoists have stated that His Majesty’s
assumption has absolutely closed the door on negotiations… and so we go round
and round again.

And what will happen with development aid that flows into this country (which is
higher this year than last by the way)? India has already commented that the
continuation of aid would be dependent upon Nepal’s restoration of some
semblance of multi-party democracy, but then again, India—facing its own
Naxalite separatist movement albeit not as serious—already receives waves of
illegal immigrants from Nepal—mostly from the hard hit areas—and would not want
to see this situation become worse than it is. I doubt that this move, at least
now, would affect the aid schemes of the UK, US and northern European
countries—the biggest contributors to Nepal’s foreign aid.

Feb. 3

Communications were restored briefly last evening for about 30 minutes
apparently, but this morning again they have been cut. Today was scheduled,
pre-government sacking, to be a Maoist transportation strike, but a lot of
Nepalis seem to be defying this order. I will venture out at some point to see
if public transportation is running—a key indicator during Maoist strikes.
Motorcycles and taxis with blacked out license plates (particularly the latter
which can jack up prices during strikes) sometimes defy these strikes anyway in
the capital, but trucks and buses are not normally that brave… Mostly calm; I
await a working phone line…

Feb. 4

Something new: first ever birthday celebrated under state of emergency…