Chobhar Gorge

The pictures from the other day, by the way, are of Chobhar Gorge, which we visited a couple of months ago.

Strands of prayer flags strung across Chobhar Gorge

Chobhar Gorge is in the southern part of the Kathmandu Valley.  It is where the holy Bagmati River flows out of the valley.

The Bagmati River as it flows through Chobhar Gorge, prayer flags fluttering above

Legend says–and geology agrees–that the entire Kathmandu Valley used to be a giant lake.
Legend also says that Chohar Gorge marks the place where a holy saint rent the rocks at the edge of the lake with a giant sword to drain the waters.
(Geology waffles a bit on the latter.)

Hmm, wonder where they got the idea that the rock was sliced with a sword?

For a very long time, it was a difficult area to cross.
Then, in 1903, a bridge was constructed in Scotland, shipped partway around the world,
then carried piece by painstaking piece over rugged paths into Nepal.  And reassembled to span the gorge.

A view of Bagmati Bridge spanning Chobhar Gorge

The inscription on a pillar of Bagmati Bridge, reading "Chundra Bridge" June 1903; another inscription on the other side says Aberdeen, Scotland

Another view of the bridge, from the opposite direction

Of course, there’s now a larger, more modern bridge for cars, too.  But, from either one, Chobhar Gorge is breathtaking.

Nepali of the Day:

nadi:  river

paani:  water

saphaa:  clean

phohar:  dirty

sarakchyan:  conservation

upuhteka:  valley

mandir:  temple

purano:  old

naya:  new

phul:  bridge

tol:  lake

Not So Indefinite Bandh

After six days, the bandh is finally over.

So I’m inspired to add some more of my random Kathmandu pictures.

Because it feels like, over the past few days…

It feels like Nepal came to a crossing

And the two sides looked at each other, uncertain

And then finally decided to go across, together

Even though it was a narrow passing

Above a very dangerous abyss

Nepali of the Day:

malaai pir laagyo:  I’m worried

malaai pir lageko chaina:  I’m not worried

aja:  today

ahile:  now

yesma:  this

siddiyo:  is over, finished, done

tarkari:  vegetables

paaincha:  is available

bhiD:  crowd

pasalmaa:  in the store

sabhai:  all

Aja bandh siddiyo!

Ahile Kathmandumaa tarkari paaincha!

Sabhai pasalmaa bhiD chha.

Indefinite Bandh Day 5

My latest round-up of articles about the bandh in Nepal; see below for my own pictures of the day.

Maoist General Strike Enters Day 5; Normal Life Badly Hit; Clashes in Birgunj
“Marketplaces, educational institutions and industries have also remained closed for almost a week now. Daily wage workers are badly hit due to the strike as they have not been able to work for many days.”

Capital Tense as Maoists, Locals Clash in Several Places
“Tension escalated in several places of the capital after the local youth leaders of the ruling parties took to demonstrations against the Maoists on Thursday”

DISTRICT ROUND-UP: Clashes in Several Places; Curfew in Humla, Birgunj, Dhankuta

“As the general strike called by the UCPN (Maoists) continues to cripple the normal life across the nation, voices against the banda seems to have gone louder with the increasing reports of confrontations between the locals and the Maoists…”

Clashes in Nepal as Frustration Grows at Shutdown
“Two doctors are working 24 hours and a few nurses are working double shifts,” Philip Shyam Ranjit, a doctor at B&B Hospital’s emergency department, told AFP. “A lot of people have no access to medical attention.”

Waiting at the Top of the World
“Tempers are flaring. It would not take much for people’s discontent with the strike to tip into civil unrest.  Even before the strike, the country had entered an advanced state of entropy…”

Maoists Officially Decide to Fight Back Retaliation
“The UCPN (Maoist) on Thursday decided to retaliate against those who attempt to assault its cadres, concluding that premeditated attacks are being launched with the government backing against the Maoist during the course of banda.”

YCL Claims ‘Vigilante’ Groups Instigating Clashes During Maoist Protests
“YCL [Young Communist League] Nepal will counter any move by vigilantes to defy the peaceful demonstration by the protestors,” the statement said.

Time is Running Out for Attempts to Settle the Country’s Confrontation
“NEPAL’S Maoists can put on an impressive display. For the past week they have endured torrential rain and outbreaks of diarrhoea to bring the capital, Kathmandu, and the rest of the country, to a halt…”

Maoists Returning Homes on Daily Basis
“Those men and women on the way back said they decided to return home as they faced food and shelter problems in the capital and they started suffering from different diseases. “

Vacate Schools, Colleges: Student Unions
“The examinations of twelfth grade have been disrupted due to the general strike. Schools and colleges have been converted into Maoist camps. This has violated students´ right to education. We condemn such acts,” said a joint statement issued by the student unions.

Kalimati Veg Market Runs Out of Stock
“He admitted that consumers are paying exorbitant prices for even decaying vegetables due to the absence of proper mechanism to regulate market during strikes.”

Markets to Open from 6-10 pm
“Maoists on Thursday decided not to disrupt vehicles carrying vegetables. The party also decided to let the markets open from 6 pm to 10 pm. “

Tourists Caught up in Nepal Maoist Strike
“Hotel and restaurant owners say that Maoist supporters have threatened them, telling them to remain shut.”

Maoists Thrash 4 Journalists in Nepal
“Nepal’s Maoists have thrashed and beaten up four journalists while enforcing their strike in the national capital despite their commitment to respect press freedom.”

Trouble in Paradise

It’s a beautiful day.  Not too hot, not too cold… pleasant breeze.

This morning

Who wouldn’t want to enjoy it, maybe go outside, get some work done?

The morning's normal rural-urban life in Kathmandu

Well, these people, I suppose:

Part of a wave of Maoists that started heading up the street mid-morning

Many of the Maoists carried sharpened sticks

There were a lot of them

For us, the bandh has been very quiet.  We’ve stayed at home, reading the news or watching the television, doing housework.  But this morning we kept looking out windows to find the source of the shouting, then dashing up to the roof to take pictures of the people marching down the street.  Several hundred must have passed, in at least three different waves.  They disappeared to the north, toward Budhanilkantha.

A section of one of the crowds

Soon after, the media outlets lit up with the news from Budhanilkantha, with video on the TV and articles online.

Capital Tense as Maoists, Locals Clash in Several Places
“Tension escalated in several places of the capital after the local youth leaders of the ruling parties took to demonstrations against the Maoists on Thursday”

General Strike Turns Violent; Clashes in Various Places
“Situation is tense in Budhanilkantha, too. There were clashes between locals and Maoist cadres this morning. At least three persons including a minor were injured in the incident. Police fired six rounds of tear gas shells to take the situation in control. “

Meanwhile I was watching the sky.  The breeze had kicked up; it whipped my clothes around me and made it harder to hold the camera.  I watched the lowering clouds descending from the barrier of hills at the edge of Shivapuri National Park.  They rolled over Budhanilkantha first.

It started to get darker

Clouds engulfed the hills just north of Budhanilkantha, then rolled south

I think the gods are crying

Nepali of the Day:

baadal lagyo:  it’s cloudy

paani paryo:  it’s raining

malaii dukha lagyo:  I’m sad

Indefinite Bandh Continued

Latest cull of the news stories on the bandh, as we’ve finished day 4 and are gloomily looking forward to day 5.

Maoist Strike Imperils Nepal Peace
“Protesters shouted antigovernment slogans and called for the ouster of Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal.”

Ministers Attend Office Before Dawn
“They had to go to the offices before the dawn as per the directive of the prime minister after Maoists declared to bar the ministers from entering the government´s principal secretariat.”

Situation Turning Grave as Maoist Strike Enters Day Four
“Farmers dumped their vegetables on the streets in Kalaiya of Bara district while in Kavre farmers poured the milk on the road after the agitators prevented them from carrying the milk to the market.”

Scarcity of Daily Commodities Looming Large
“Many shopkeepers say they will soon completely run out of stocks of daily consumables like rice, pulse, beaten rice, oil and other essentials if strike continues.”

Armed Guards Escort Supplies into Strike-Hit Nepal
“I haven’t been working for three days.  My children depend on me. We are eating one meal a day now. If this strike continues, even that will not be possible.”

Maoist Strike Causes Food Shortage In Nepal
“Farmers in Chitwan are protesting the strike and say vegetables worth millions are rotting in the fields because they can’t be transported.”

Nepal Strike Empties Kathmandu’s Streets
“The [Maoist] supporters who attempted to leave Kathmandu after last weekend’s demonstrations were shocked to find that the free bus ride was only a one-way ticket. Stranded in the capital, many chose to make multi-day treks home with no food or funds instead of remaining in the city.”

Nepal’s Maoist Leader Warns That Protests Could Turn Violent
“The leader of Nepal’s Maoists… says the street action, so far, has been peaceful and the party does not want to resort to violence or rioting.  But if the governing coalition does not agree to the Maoists’ demands then, he said, the demonstrations might take a turn for the worse, deteriorating each day from Wednesday.”

Sporadic Violence Marks Fourth Day of Maoist Strike in Nepal
“Unidentified persons fired two shots during a confrontation between supporters of UCPN (Maoist) and Youth Force, the youth wing of ruling CPN (UML), at Bhaktapur near the capital. No one was injured.  Fifteen policemen sustained injuries while controlling a clash between Youth Force and UCPN (M) cadres…”

Maoist Cadres Clash with Police in Butwal; Over Dozen Injured
“The clash started after the police tried to evacuate the Maoist cadres from the Butwal Municipality building which they had ‘captured’ and placed their party flags. Police baton-charged on the protesting crowd and used several rounds of teargas shells.”

Children in Demos Worries UN Bodies
“There are alarming and confirmed reports of large numbers of children present in demonstrations and in some cases actively participating in the enforcement of the bandh,” UNICEF and OHCHR said in a joint press statement.”

Youth Spend Banda Days Creatively
“The debate was organized by Nepali Youth Debaters Club (NYDC), a club of young debaters… The club aims to organize similar events every time there is a banda. When everyone is spending time at home getting bored, these youthd hope to have fun and do something innovative.”

Ban Notes Lack of Progress in Peace Process
“Since the last report of the Secretary-General to the Council in January 2010, no substantive progress has been made on the main outstanding tasks of the peace process,” the statement said.

Professional Groups Want Ongoing Strike to be Withdrawn; Will Organize Peace Rally on May 7
“The programme which is scheduled to start at 9 am is being organized with the view to resolve all problems through dialogue while giving central priority to the peace process and constitution drafting…”

Nepal Police Evacuate Hundreds of Tourists Stranded by Strike
“Police escorted hundreds of tourists to border towns and the international airport as a nationwide general strike entered its fourth day Wednesday.”

Nepal News Photo Gallery, Day 4
Images of the day’s protests on nepalnews.com

Nepali of the Day:

raastriya:  country

shahar:  city

prahari:  police

ketaketi:  children

tarkari:  vegetables

bhaat:  rice

liiaunu:  to carry, take to

linu:  to take

dinu:  to give

ke bhayo?:  what’s happening?

diin:   day

chaar:  four

paanch:  five

Indefinite Bandh

There have been very few posts in a very long time because I have been very busy.  However…

Now that I’m basically under involuntary house arrest, afflicted with a Maoist-imposed vacation, I have finally gotten caught up on everything and have time to post again.

Too, I’m frustrated at the difficulty of finding online articles about the bandh.  I’m checking nepalnews.com, googlenews, and random articles suggested by friends, and compiling them for myself in a scrapbook so I can always remember:  “Ah, those were the days…”

In the meantime, I’ll aggregate some of my favorite articles here:

Maoist Strike Shuts Down Nepal; Gov’t Urges Talks
“Maoist opposition supporters armed with bamboo sticks enforced a general strike that closed transportation, schools and markets across Nepal on Sunday to demand the prime minister’s resignation.”

Maoist Strike Closes Down Businesses, Govt Offices
“With shops, businesses, factories, educational institutions in the capital and major towns across the country closed due to Unified CPN (Maoist) called general strike, the protestors are not even allowing government and private offices to run discreetly in various parts of the country on Monday.”

Travellers Warned of Disruption as Maoist-led Strike Shuts Down Nepal
“The international airport remains open although most people had to walk there carrying their luggage. The government has provided foreign tourists with free shuttle buses from the airport to their hotels.”

Tourists Hit by Maoist Shutdown in Nepal
“Buses carrying stranded tourists were allowed through Maoist roadblocks to the airport, witnesses said, adding that protesters checked that all passengers were foreigners.”

Hoteliers Urge to Ensure Free Movement to Tourists During Bandh
“Tourists who have come to Pokhara are not only stranded, but also unable to move around and eat.”

Maoist General Strike Strangling Business Community
“In fact, the business community has also lamented that the Maoists have repeatedly overlooked their plea to stay away from the activities that can ultimately lead the economy to collapse.”

Food Shortages Hit Nepal as Maoist Strike Enters Third Day
“Businesses were unable to bring fresh supplies to the capital Kathmandu and other cities across the Himalayan nation.”

Strike Deal, Call Off Strike: Civil Society

“Civil society leaders on Tuesday urged the government and agitating UCPN (Maoist) to instantly forge consensus and take back indefinite general strike to save the country from possible catastrophe.”

Maoists Form Human Chain Around the Capital
“Maoist cadres, mostly clad in red, brought from various districts and those in the capital lined up holding each other’s hand on both sides of the street along the 27-kilometre ring road… Thousands of Kathmandu locals, otherwise irritated with the Maoist bandh, stood beside the ring road and watched the human-chain made by the Maoists.”

Maoist Strike Brings Traffic to Halt
“Dang [district in western Nepal] — UCPN (Maoist) cadres have been using many vehicles to ferry people from villages to the district headquarters for their protests even as they have strictly brought public transportation to a complete halt during the general strike since Sunday.”

Maoists Attack Nepali Congress Leader’s House
“The Maoist cadres attacked the house of a senior Nepali Congress leader as the former rebels laid siege to the capital today in a political standoff with the government.”

Turn Likely, for Better or Worse
“The arrest of Maoist cadres with homemade weapons on the eve of the strike had raised fears of things taking a nasty turn. However, except for stray incidents, the protest has not erupted in any clash between the demonstrators and the police.”

Bandh Pictures
Various photo galleries on nepalnews.com with images from the May Day rally in the center of Kathmandu and the bandh since then.

Nepali of the Day:

thulo samasya:  big problem

sarkari:  government

maubodi:  Maoists

baaTo:  road

gaaDi:  car

manche[haru]:  people

videshee:  foreigner

paryatak:  tourist

pasal:  store

chha:  is

chhaina:  is not

bandh:  general strike

banda garnu:  to close