Election Day

For the first time, Nepal is having elections today. It has taken 10 years of civil war, violence, confusion, and corruption to get to this point. Most people don't understand what they are voting for. Some think it is for a president, but it is not. The elections are only to decide which of the nearly 60 political parties will be chosen to carve the new government. There are 7 main parties, and it is certain that they will be represented. It is almost as certain that the monarchy will be abolished and Nepal be transformed into a federation.

Many people have died up to this point, and more will probably die after the election. Candidates were kidnapped and killed, voters were intimidated, despite the efforts of international election watchers. Riots broke out in Kathmandu, and in the far west and far east of Nepal.

Here in centrally located Bharatpur, things are peaceful. There are no cars, buses, or trucks on the roads. Only pedestrians and bicycles. Most of the shops are closed. Only a few local corner markets are open - families who can't afford to take a day off. The larger schools in town are the polling places. Crowds or people are hanging outside the school gates, waiting to vote, waiting to see what happens, and watching to see what goes on. The people in Bharatpur are very interested in the outcome, but don't seem to be as worked up about it as other areas in Nepal.

Everyone at the school has gone to their homes. Most live in other areas of Nepal, and can only vote in their registered area of residence. There is no absentee voting. The highways are closed. The borders have been closed since noon on the 8th. We think the airplanes are at the border, but they can't cross until the border opens - probably in a couple of days.

No one knows what the elections will really bring - whether anything will change. Some parties promise food and shelter for everyone, but have done nothing in the past to give their words credibility. Everyone hopes this will end the decade-long slide backwards in time and bring Nepal into the present. Prosperity would be nice, but no one expects Nepal to stop being a third-world country.