Latest News on Nepal’s Unrests
Lately, Nepal has been in the international news rather often. I’m reading about new political developments between King, major parties and Maoists almost daily, either on various blogs/forums, in online Nepali newspapers, or on BBC (Latest report: Nepal Police fire at protesters) … But the most resourceful are always fellow travelers or friends living/working in Nepal. They have the most up-to-date info, and in my experience also the best info on what’s really happening on the ground.For those of you not familiar with the current situation in Nepal, you can find out more about it here: Nepal Security Assessment; scroll down to ‘Background’ to read how it all started. It is a summary written by a friend of mine, Jamie McGuinness, who has been living in Nepal for good part of the past 15 years. Another excellent source, regarding the current unrest, is the blog Is Nepal Safe? It offers almost daily alerts, strike & curfew updates, and even has latest photos from Yahoo. Moreover, it provides links to online local periodicals. OTOH, in its FAQ section, it advises visitors to put the recent events into perspective and not to worry needlessly but be careful when, where & how to travel …
But for most of my travel advice, I visit the Lonely Planet’s Thorn Tree Travel forums. I can ask many questions here and get timely answers, even if sometimes a little biased;) I usually browse through the ‘Asia - Indian Subcontinent‘ & ‘On Your Bike‘ branches. The first branch has a long-running thread about the security in Nepal titled ‘Nepal: is it safe to go?‘ It is over-filled with useful links to news reports and recent travelers experiences. Another great thread provides basic information about Nepal: Nepal Safe? - Background Info & Opinions and where to find it (Mostly in the first few messages).
I have visited Nepal in fall ‘02 and summer ‘03. Although the conflict between the King’s army and the Maoists was going on at the time, I felt quite safe and never experienced any troubles. I only saw signs of the Maoists’ activities: red flags in villages near Taplejung and remnants of a bombed police station in Ghunsa (Eastern Nepal), or Maoist notices & slogans written on houses in villages near Mera Peak (Makalu-Barun area). Occasionally, I heard from trekkers about ‘donations’ where local Maoists would ask foreigners for money to support their struggle. They explained it as another form of tax. Even gave out receipts, supposedly for insurance claims back home.
But today’s situation is more unsettling. During the last decade, there has been widespread corruption. Major democratic parties were either unable or did not care to improve situation of the common people. And Maoist rebels kept their bloody insurgency going with constant skirmishes with police & military, with well over 12,000 dead on both sides. In 2005, the King Gyanendra seized unlimited powers after the disillusionment with elected officials to deal effectively with the Maoist ‘issue’ and since then the peace in Nepal has been even more fragile. With recent anti-monarchy demostrations, the whole situation is just spiraling into a greater conflict. IMHO, the events of the next few weeks or months will decide the country’s future: Either a continuation of the King’s rule, a possible Maoist state, or Nepal will finally start becoming a functioning democracy. I really have a feeling that we will find out soon…
UPDATE (01/29/06): Another excellent source covering the events in Nepal: United We Blog! for a Democratic Nepal…
