For the last two months the streets of Kathmandu and several other cities have been full of protesters and riots. Now the King has begun hosting meetings with the leaders of these protests in an effort of quelling the violence. Despite the peaceful gesture things have not calmed down. This week the country was shut down for another three days by a strike called by the Maoists. During the strike the government announced that they had given orders to their soldiers and the police to kill anyone who looked suspicious. I am not sure what the criteria is for looking suspicious but I cannot imagine what this will do to the already volatile situation.
The streets are very tense. People continue trying to go about their lives but it is hard not to pay attention to the tension that permeates the crowds on the streets. Now the already bad traffic problem has to compete with tanks plying up and down the roadways throughout the city. There are soldiers on every corner and armored personnel carriers on patrol.
Despite all this show of force there were still many incidents between the Maoists and the security forces. The streets are lined with burned out buses, bombed taxis, and burning tires left behind by the agitators who continued dealing with people they saw as enemies.
Many analysts agree that the next few weeks, as we begin the monsoon season, will be critical in terms of the ongoing insurgency. The Maoists are trying to force the government into peace talks and they will use whatever means they have to in order to get their attention. Bomb incidents have increased, over 1000 school children were abducted last week, and several villages were attacked in an effort to show the government that they want to be taken seriously.
Please pray for these next few weeks as we wait and see what will happen.
The Himalayan Times
KATHMANDU, MAY 18, 2004, Jestha 5, 2061
Insurgency: Shoot-to-kill to quell bandh violence
Rekha Shrestha
Kathmandu, May 17:
Security throughout the country has been beefed up to counter the Maoist
call for three-day Nepal bandh beginning tomorrow. Security forces have
received "shoot-to-kill" orders if they sight anyone suspicious. Armoured
Personnel Carriers (APCs), Ferret Cars and Mine Protected Vehicles will be
on duty with special security arrangement in the Valley. Security agencies
held meeting at the Valley Command Division today to chalk plans for better
coordination deal with the crisis, as the five-agitating political parties
too will continue their "anti-regression" programme. "No one can guarantee
that anyone carrying party's flag and participating in rallies and
demonstrations belongs to political parties. He/she can be a terrorist, as
the three-day bandh is on Maoist call," said senior defence official on
condition of anonymity.
He confirmed, "Anyone trying to jeopardise the Valley security will be
treated as a Maoist and if anything goes wrong under five-parties' umbrella
the concerned parties will be held responsible." In today's meeting, senior
police officials complained of not receiving "clear orders" from the
concerned body and "lack of coordination" between agencies. Perhaps that's
the reason why the Home Ministry has given firm orders to the police force
for sing "ultimate power" according to the Local Administration Act -
opening fire to contain unruly elements - during the bandh. A senior police
official argued, "Should the responsible political parties continue their
protest when the Maoists have called the bandh?"
Stating that the "anti-regression" programme will be limited to
sit-in-protest, major party leaders insisted that their programme would be
peaceful and disciplined. Added a senior leader of CPN-UML, "No rally will
be organised during Maoist bandh." A Home Ministry official said the
riot-police normally disperses crowd by means of water, tear gas shells and
lathi charge but during the bandh they have been ordered to use "ultimate
power". According to the Valley Division of the police, 212 policemen,
including six deputy superintendents of police, 22 inspectors, four
sub-inspectors, seven assistant sub-inspectors, 20 head constables and 108
constables were injured in the last 47 days of five-party agitation.
"Forty-five of the injured still can't perform their duty, while two of
them have lost their eyesight," said the officials. Over 11,000 people were
detained, though released later. Eighteen of the detained were civil
servants. As many 113 vehicles - 105 in Kathmandu, five in Bhaktapur and
three in Lalitpur - were damaged. Unlike last time when the Chief Secretary
used traffic police vehicles during bandh, Valley Division is firm not to
provide traffic vehicles to high-ranking government officials to implement
government's circular for making sure that more vehicles ply on the street.
Airport intruder shot dead
Kathmandu: Royal Nepalese Army (RNA) soldier in sentry duty shot dead an
unidentified person trying to enter the security perimeter on the northern
side of Tribhuvan International Airport early Monday morning. According to
RNA Headquarters, a person with dark complexion believed to be in his
mid-twenties, after crossing the wire obstacles, was approaching the sentry
box before he was warned twice and shot dead on the spot at around 1:00 am.
"The soldier shot the person dead suspecting him to be a terrorist, when
the intruder started running after throwing his bag," said an army
official. The police are investigating the incident.
Last week there was a conference of Christians serving in Nepal in a small mountain village a few days walk from Lukla. Several Christian leaders from all over Nepal converged on the small town for the conference to discuss sending teams to live in the village. Following the conference the attendees boarded buses to travel back to Kathmandu. The last bus was not completely full so soldiers in plain clothes boarded the bus to travel to a blockade that the Maoists placed in the road and help get it cleared. Apparently there were downed trees blocking the road to Kathmandu.
Shortly after the buses departed the small village they were stopped by a group of Maoists. The Maoists brandished fully automatic rifles and began ordering people off the bus so that they could check to determine if any were soldiers. When they came to the last bus the undercover soldiers told everyone to stay on the bus and refuse to get off. The reason they did this was because they had large rifles themselves and if everyone got off the bus the Maoists would be able to tell who they were.
The standoff did not last long. Some of the occupants exited the bus despite the orders of the soldiers while most stayed on the bus not knowing what to do. The Maoists surrounded the bus and opened fire on it killing several people.
One of those killed on the bus went to our church. He had a wife and two kids who will not see him again. He had gone to the conference to discuss moving his family to the village to help spread the good news and for that he lost his life.
As I finish my time here in Nepal I still cannot come to grips with the devestation that this country has endured. The hardships of poverty coupled with the horrific war that rages in their back yard. Despite the persecution they still endure and many thrive but I must confess that I do not know how.
The Himalayan Times
KATHMANDU, MAY 15, 2004, Jestha 2, 2061
Insurgency: Mainapokhari strains to recuperate after attack
Dev Das Shrestha
Charikot, May 14:
A completely damaged bus and splotches of dried blood inside … clothes
caked with human blood, bags, watches and shoes scattered everywhere. Torn
bus seats and flies hovering over blood-stains testify to a war zone,
created five days ago when Maoists attacked a passenger bus at Mainapokhari
area on Sunday, killing eight security personnel and seven civilians.
When human rights activists and media personnel reached there for details
of the massacre, they were flabbergasted. Even the locals were wary of
their presence. Locals said the security personnel found two bombs inside
the bus the next day, and defused them. Though the bus had been towed 50
metres away from the carnage site, scores of spent cartridge cases were
scattered.
Apart from attacking the bus, the Maoists also burned a civilian's
motorcycle. The man was en route from Jiri to Mainapokhari. Even after five
days, no one had dared touch the burned bike. Locals fought shy of talking
about the incident, largley because of the fear that has engulfed the area.
After much prodding a few said that the security personnel who reached the
site the next day manhandled the locals. They said that the attackers
seemed to belong to the Terai areas and were strangers. They assault party
numbered around 100, with males and females.
The Maoists chose this area for the attack after great deliberation. There
is a jungle on one side. They also made a bunker in the middle beside a
canal. The security forces inside the bus could do nothing when bullets and
grenades came flying at them from the jungle all of a sudden. Five days
have passed and people are still unable to go anywhere due to Maoists'
threat. On Sunday, after the attack the Maoists threatened they would kill
anyone who dared talk, or walk out of the area. Since then, transportation
from headquarters to Jiri has completely halted.
This morning I rode my bicycle to work along the same road that I ride nearly everyday. I followed the same route and rode past the same stores and temples that I always do, but today is anything but routine. The ride started with a huge mob of protesters marching down the street in front of my house. The agitators were screaming their slogans and waving their flags as they marched down the street. A huge group of riot police was following them from a distance trying to keep people from getting hurt by the mob.
Once around the first protest I began dodging a maze of bricks and burning logs in the road. The bricks had been thrown at the police and the logs thrown in the road to prevent the police from being able to bring reinforcements by vehicle to rescue their fellow officers.
Beyond the bricks lay a huge plume of black smoke billowing up into the morning air. The smoke is from a row of burning tires that have been placed across the road to prevent and vehicular travel. Around the smoke were large groups of protesters that appeared as a sillouette as I approached. Aside from the protesters and the police the streets were virtually empty with only a fraction of the usual pedestrian traffic that frequents this road. The vehicles that did try to drive on the road were later found on the side of the road in ashes as the mob attacked them and lit the vehicles on fire.
Today was the second day of a two day strike called by the five political parties. They are protesting against the active monarchy of the king and they want to overthrow the throne. These such strikes and protests have been going on for over a month and a half now and there are no signs that they will let up anytime soon.
Things have changed from the Nepal that I first met over a year ago. This country continues to become more unstable and living here is just getting harder. Our personnel department has recommended that families of small children consider leaving the country and will not allow future candidates to enter the country if they have small children. We have been wrestling with what to do for the last several months and there are no easy decisions. We finally have decided that now is not a good time for us to be raising our children in Nepal and we are in the process of getting out of Nepal and flying back to the Unted States.
The decision to leave Nepal came with a huge amount of guilt over what to do. How do you leave behind those who cannot leave Nepal? Our Nepali friends do not have a country to escape to when things get bad. Why are we so special that we can leave when it gets too dangerous? These are not easy questions and we do not have any answers to them. Our decision to leave was one that we will not soon come to grips with but it seemed like our only decision at times.
Shawna, Kody, and Luke will fly out of Kathmandu first and I will try and be back in the United States within a few weeks of their departure. I have work to finish before I leave but I will be trying hard to get it finished so that I can again be with my family. Thanks for all your love and support through this hard time.
For the last several weeks a Nepali friend has been trying to find a time when our families could get together to share a meal. We decided on Saturday lunch and we were to meet outside his residence. Our kids could play together while we adults got to know each other better and enjoyed a meal of Dhal Bhat.
Being invited to a Nepali home is a big deal for westerners living in Nepal. Nepalis do not invite people over just to do it and an invitation is not something to be taken lightly. We were honored when my friend invited us to his home and we cancelled all our plans for Saturday so that we could spend the day with his family.
Early Saturday morning my phone rang and it was my friend. His wife had become terribly ill and was not able to get out of bed. I borrowed a motorcycle from headquarters and drove over to their house to see if I could help. She was terribly sick and my friend was contemplating taking her to the emergency room. With this in mind we rescheduled our lunch plans and I left my friend to take care of his sick wife.
A few hours later my friend called and told me that he was now at the Hospital. He wanted to know if I would come by and help with his kids while the doctors examined his wife. I rushed over the Patan Hospital on the motorcycle and after a short discussion with my friend I picked up his kids and we rode off so that they could be left alone. My friend was crying as we left. He said, "You see we have no one to help us. No family, no friends, and no help."
It was not long before my phone rang again and my friend told me that his wife was being rushed into surgery to have her ruptured appendix removed. Again, I drove to the Hospital and brought his kids back to him. I left with the promise that I would be back soon. I had no idea just how soon I would be back.
Shawna and I decided to use the borrowed motorcycle to go to the store and pick up a few things so that we could take them by the Hospital. Flowers, food, coloring books, and toys are in short supply at the Patan Hospital and keeping two young kids occupied while their mother is being operated on is quite a task.
Today marked the 31st day of continuos rioting in Kathmandu. The usual riot prone areas were full of riot police, police cars, and thousands of protesters. The closest hospital to the riots was so full of injured protesters that they are having to use the floors as hospital beds. Tear gas filled the hospital during one of the riots and all the patients had to be evacuated. Traveling in Kathmandu is no longer difficult. Now it is just crazy.
We kept trying to get to the store to pick up a few needed items so that we could return to the hospital but all of the streets we needed to take were blocked by the police and the protesters. We kept getting turned around and turned around until we were just driving in circles. Eventually, we came around a corner and a white sedan turned into our lane of traffic. I attempted to stop the motorcycle but the front wheel locked and the motorcycle fell onto its side and we wrecked. Shawna and I skidded across the pavement like two stones before we came to a stop in front of the vehicle that pulled out in front of us. A crowd gathered around us as we layed there. Eventually, we were carried over to the sidewalk so that we would not be hit by another car.
The careless driver asked me if I did not see his turn signal. I really don't see the importance of your turn signal once you are in my lane and I cannot stop fast enough to keep from hitting you. I answered. He seemed to agree with my reasoning and offered to drive us to the Hospital. We limped into his back seat and then we started driving back to the Hospital.
The driver attempted to drop us off at the hospital that was located in the middle of all the rioting. We refused to go to this hospital and he reluctantly drove us to Patan Hospital. Once inside the emergency room everyone stopped what they were doing to see why two foreigners were being carried in. The nurses and a doctor helped us onto a bed and began trying to determine how bad we were hurt. The majority of our problems came as a result of us skidding across the pavement. The right side of both of our bodies had terrible "road rash" and the fine gravel of the kathmandu roadways were stuck in our arms and knees.
An hour later we were released from the Emergency Room with orders to come back the next day to have our bandages replaced. The chance of infection is relatively high since so much gravel had to be removed from our arms and legs.
"Bai, You are very lucky." The old nurse said.
"Didi, I dont feel so lucky." I countered.
"Siddhiyo, Next time you may not be so lucky." She said.
"Didi, I hope there is no next time." and she left.
Shawna and I managed to meet my friend once again before we left. His wife was still in surgery. We apologized for not being able to stay and help with the kids. As we left my friend said, "I cannot believe what a terrible day this has been." I agreed and then we limped home.
Our day at Patan Hospital was one that I will not forget and I have the scars to remind me. The experience left me with an overwhelming desire to go back to the US. A western hospital is such a different experience. Clean beds, private rooms, and the ability to speak clearly with your doctor and nurse are things that I have taken for granted in the past but not again after today. As bad as we feel I must admit that old nurse was right....... we were really lucky. Maybe tomorrow I will feel a little more lucky.