23-11-2023 (KATHMANDU) In a show of force, police in Nepal resorted to using rattan sticks, tear gas, and water cannons on Thursday (Nov 23) to disperse thousands of protesters who were demanding the reinstatement of the monarchy, which was abolished 15 years ago.
The demonstrators, known as the “Citizens’ Campaign,” argue that successive governments since the monarchy’s abolition, as part of a deal to end a Maoist insurgency, have failed to fulfill their commitments to develop one of the world’s poorest nations.
Witnesses reported that the protesters attempted to dismantle a police barricade on the outskirts of Kathmandu and march towards the city center. In response, riot police intervened and pushed back the crowd using necessary force.
Jitendra Basnet, the top official in the city administration of Kathmandu, where public protests are prohibited in the downtown area, stated, “Police were merely trying to control a large anarchic crowd of protesters.” Basnet also mentioned that some police officers were injured by stones thrown by the demonstrators.
Durga Prasai, the coordinator of the Citizens’ Campaign, confirmed that approximately 10 protesters were injured during the clash, with two of them in critical condition. Prasai expressed their determination to continue advocating for the restoration of the monarchy and called for a general strike in Kathmandu, home to around four million people, on Friday.
In 2008, a specially elected assembly abolished the 239-year-old monarchy as part of a peace accord that marked the end of a Maoist insurgency responsible for the deaths of 17,000 people between 1996 and 2006. The agreement also established a federal republic in Nepal.
However, political instability has plagued the country since the monarchy’s demise, resulting in over 10 changes of government. This instability has hindered economic development and compelled millions of young Nepalese to seek employment primarily in Malaysia, South Korea, and the Middle East.
Currently, Nepal’s prime minister is former Maoist rebel chief Pushpa Kamal Dahal, known by his nom de guerre Prachanda (“Fierce”), who leads a coalition government with the centrist Nepali Congress party.
Gyanendra, the last king of Nepal, now lives as a private citizen with his family in Kathmandu.
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