Up to this point, I have not spent much time commenting on the political situation in Nepal.  My first hesitation is that I am hardly a reliable source of information about the political situation – I have only been here 2 months and most of that time we have spent under the kind and watchful eye of VSO or our dedicated language teachers at CLP.  What could I possibly know?

And, what I do observe and hear through both Nepalis and foreigners is so mixed and fraught with opinion that it is often difficult to know what to believe, let alone make some sense of it for myself.

But, with those hesitations clearly stated at the outset (I am certainly not an expert and everything I say is filtered through not only my lens but often the lens of a dozen other people too, thus losing it’s initial meaning) I will toss out some careful observations to shed some light on what is happening politically here.

First, the newly elected government, a coalition of many different parties, is under huge pressure to re-write a new constitution quickly.  To this end, it is natural that many different groups are keen to ensure that their needs and wants are reflected in this important document.  With a staggeringly large number of ethnic groups, languages, religions, and terrains, this is a exceptionally difficult task – difficult for each group to ensure their voice is heard in the clamour and difficult for the government to bring all these voices into one collective vision for the country.

Second, Nepal is in a unique position as the intersection between the giants of China and India and have always been acutely aware of just how relationships with these nations will impact them.  They want to reflect their unique culture (to the point of having their own time zone that is 15 minutes behind India…makes watching TV confusing as all shows begin at 15 and 45 minutes past the hour) while maintaining good political relationships. And having never been colonized as a nation, they are, with good reason, very protective of their culture.

Third, the culture around advocacy, lobbying, and petitioning the government has grown to be very centered around disruption of daily life – after hundreds of years of not being listened to, I can see how frustration and anger would build to a breaking point – but it significantly impacts many aspects of life in Nepal, from transportation, to access to power and water, to targeted attacks on the perceived oppressor.  The outlet that is available to many of those citizens who are angry is one of confrontation, which sadly has not led to much noticeable change over the years…and yet with few other options it is hard to chastise people who simply want to be heard.

And like every political system out there, there are the added complexities – scandals, nepotism, inaccurate representation by marginalized groups, personal agendas, power struggles, urban centres receiving more attention, publicity stunts, lots of hot air from those in power, and a shuffling of priorities every time those in power are shuffled around.

Amazing how anything gets done anywhere really 🙂

Nepal is not unlike many other nations striving to identify itself and trying to do the best they can with what they have.  I do not envy the difficult job of politicians in Nepal nor am I without great sympathy for the many people who have been oppressed here for a number of years.