A popular tweet on the morning of February 19 read: “Felicitation to all Nepalis on the occasion of the Nepali peoples’ great festival, Nepal Banda. May god give everyone the strength to walk!” Indeed, this satirical tweet succinctly captured how the Nepalis have come to view bandas: a joyless festival foisted on them willy-nilly, marked by hours of unnecessary, troublesome walking. The bandas called by political parties, purportedly on behalf of the people, are fast losing support among the very people that they claim to represent.
Worldwide, the strikes called by occupation specific organizations—a strike by transport union, for example, or by medical professionals—to protest specific issues have been found effective, because they are often sustained until they get responses from the government or other concerned authorities. But in Nepal, the trend is for political parties to call for general strikes affecting all business at once, where the cooperation of the businesses is taken for granted because it is forcibly enforced.
The result is that, even if the parties raise valid issues, the general public is unsupportive because bandas only make their livelihood more difficult. In the face of such noncooperation from the people, even though most major political parties have the clout to enforce a one day banda, none has the clout to enforce a sustained protest movement to actually bring about a solution. In this scenario, the one-day banda only ends up interrupting daily lives, and with so many protest movements being announced by different parties every day, people often do not know what issue a particular movement espouses. Amidst such apathy, it is no wonder that the issues raised by the bandas are rarely resolved.
Bandas have lost their efficacy to the point that a normal person does not even know what a banda is for.
Due to the cooperation of the public being forced, strikes often meet with resistance, usually from drivers of taxis or official vehicles. Vandalism of such vehicles and injuries inflicted on many individuals by the protesters means that bandas have ceased to become a peaceful form of protest. In this scenario, the only purpose of a banda seems to be to demonstrate a party’s clout, proof of which is given by their ability to enforce a banda. In recent times, Nepal bandas have done nothing other than batter an already fragile economy. Besides, there are many businesses which are more than about earning money, like medical and transportation services. But bandas have spared none of these services, leading to serious consequences for many.
The Nepali people had been at peace for a long time, as the protest culture had abated a little bit in recent months. But now, the nationwide banda on Feb 19 could herald a new spate of bandas, what with the foreseeable political instability. In a democracy, there should be other forms of protest. Whether or not to call a strike should be left to individuals, and not enforced. Those calling for a banda should realize that bandas have lost their efficacy to the point that a normal person does not even know what a banda is for. If political parties really champion people’s cause, they should take their grievances to appropriate forums, and not to the streets.
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