A strike....

Today another strike was called, this time by an ethnic minority group wanting the government’s ear. If there is one thing I have learnt from being here it is that if you want something all you have to do is strike. People were told to stay off the roads – blocking all transport is basically how strikes work here. For one reason or another it was thought unlikely that the strike would be observed in the valley and so we drove to work… which was fine, not many other cars about tho. As the day continued we heard (via those snazzy UN VHF radios) that the strike was being enforced and that in certain areas men with big long sticks were beating cars and drivers who failed to keep off the road (nothing like a bit of hospitalisation and abuse of private property during a strike). So faced with the choice of hanging around work till 6 or 7pm and then trying to get a lift home, a colleague and I decided to walk. We walked pretty fast and got home in 55min which wasn’t too bad… on the way we passed:

Policemen in battle dress hanging around (conclusion: policemen in battle dress are always miles away from any action)…

... piles of rotting rubbish (the rubbish collectors also still being on strike)…
... virtually no cars (although bikes and motorbikes seem to be able to get around)… The road in the photo below is usually 4 lanes of solid traffic.

...actually the cars there were, were interesting, most had large flags waving from the front to clearly identify to protestors they were an ambulance, UN organisation, or tourist bus… in fact several ‘tourist busses’ had huge hastily written banners stretched over the bonnet, just so there was no mistaking the fact… Oh yes and the World Bank people sped past with a flag and a police escort just to be on the safe side – although I’m not convinced what good the police do – they certainly don’t stop strikes…

one of the best things about walking home was seeing the mountains – I think I mentioned yesterday that the combination of rain and fewer cars on the road due to strikes and petrol shortages is great in that respect! For those of you who have walked up the hill from the Bagmati towards the Himalaya Hotel you will know that the mountains in this photo are VERY rarely seen!

I think its fair to say that I am not someone who thinks that foreign investment and free markets are the ONLY way poverty can be reduced, however just seeing how crippling to the economy a month of strikes in one part of the country or another can be makes me think how on earth can this country get anywhere if things continue like this. Even at a local level who would want to invest in a small business when 6 hrs every day there will be no power (sort of rules out anything requiring a good electricity supply), when strikes cause huge petrol shortages and shut down all the shops, so you might not be able to do business, when the government appears to give into the demands of anyone who strikes long enough, when there is minimal law and order so people can get away with trashing private property (in the name of a strike)… basically an economy cant function very well like this, and although it must be a million (perhaps billion in the case if Iraq) times better than many other countries in the world… I don’t think it’s an ideal situation for economic growth or for the happiness of the population who unlike me don’t have a nice little red EU passport which means I can get out of this place and breathe some fresh air in 4 weeks time…

Perhaps that sounds a little down and gives the impressing I’m desperate to leave… in fact my Grannie said to me she thinks I don’t like it here. But I do like it here, its random, the people are lovely, the food is yum and outside of Kathmandu it is so very very beautiful, when you see those Himalaya Mountains it’s more than magical. I guess its just not a holiday (like the bodge?), but that doesnt mean I dont like it... I think perhaps next time I blog I will make an effort to write about something good and happy going on in Nepal…