Under Siege
A few seconds after finishing the previous post the riot starts. It starts with chanting a little way off in the distance. Within moments the metal shutters for all the shops are slammed down and locked, and the normally crowded streets are suddenly empty. The speed with which all this happens shows just how often this has been done before.
Glover and myself are still in the Internet cafe. It's on the second floor above a small supermarket. This too has closed its metal shutters and we are locked in. As we watch out the window (positioning ourselves so that we can see, but not be seen), a crowd of protestors rounds the corner, chanting and waving banners.
It's obvious this is no ordinary riot. For one thing it's passing through Thamel, a well-established tourist area, normally immune to the political unrest that plagues the rest of the city. From the owner of the Internet cafe we learn that the riot is in response to the brutal killing of 12 Nepalese workers by Muslim extremists in Iraq. The rioters carry signs with anti-Muslim slogans and chant "Muslims out" in Nepalese.
We camp out in the little supermarket, waiting for the rioters to pass. The shop owner, not one to miss an opportunity, sells pastries to us at special "riot day" discounts. There is the noise of serious destruction going on outside, but we are now downstairs and can see none of it. Eventually, after a half hour or more, the noise dies down and the shop owner decides it's safe to let us out (besides, he's run out of pastries to sell us).
We head out into the empty streets, which are now eerily quiet. Our hotel is only a few blocks away and we decide to head back there and gather more information on the situation. About half way back to the hotel we find a small crowd of people gathered around the wreckage of a store. It's a Muslim-owned, leather goods store (cows are sacred to most Nepalese). This is where the noise had been coming from. The mob has ripped open the doors of this shop and with rocks and sticks smashed every window and torn out every fixture and fitting. The shop is totally destroyed.
It's scary how quickly these friendly, easy going Nepalese have become a mass mob, bent on revenge and destruction. As well as Muslims, the riots are aimed at the government (who the Nepalese believe did too little to try and free the hostages). The indiscriminate targeting of Muslims however, and the unchecked aggression and anger is both frightening and disappointing. To the Nepalese, the militant Muslim extremists who brutally murdered their countrymen are no different to the Muslims who have lived peacefully in their community for generations. They are all targets for revenge.
The riots last for the better part of the day, and from the safety of our well-barricaded hotel we watch the protestors march past, chanting and whistling. Other tourists are locked in with us and throughout the day more trickle in. Some have been caught in the middle of the riots, and instead of making tracks like any sensible person would, they've hung around to take photos. This is the sort of foolishness that gets people killed and gives Nepalese riots a bad name (or a worse name anyway). Despite this however, everyone seems to make it back safely and in most cases both the police and the crowds go out of their way to ensure that tourists make it out unharmed. It seems the Nepalese hospitality still grants us a certain immunity, even amongst this chaos.
It's afternoon when the government decides enough is enough. A citywide curfew is called, no one is allowed on the streets. The army is called in and sets up barricades and patrols on nearly every street corner. Thamel attracts less military presence than the other towns. Being full of tourists, rather than Nepalese, it is less of a trouble spot.
So it is that we find ourselves under house arrest. The curfew lasts the rest of the day, and is still going now, three days later. Initially the lock down was stringently enforced. We heard rumors that in the trouble spots of Kathmandu you could be shot for being out. I'm not sure this is true, but there are definitely serious looking police keeping the streets empty. After the first day however, things became a bit more relaxed and in Thamel at least, tourists are allowed to make short trips through the town.
We have come to know all the other guests in our hotel, and generally the days are spent playing cards, reading books or anything else we can think of to entertain ourselves. Everyone is stuck, the airport is non-operational and transport from Kathmandu is too risky for most people to attempt. Our rafting trip has been postponed until Sunday at least, when hopefully things will have settled down.
At meal times we sneak out down back streets and quiet alleys to find out-of-the-way restaurants willing to serve us a meal. We have to take whatever is going and it's at one of the dodgier of these that I manage to pick up yet another case of food poisoning. As a result I've spent the better part of my curfew time on the dunny. At least this time I've got my own, sit down, flushing toilet, which is indoors and warm. Still I can't say I've overly enjoyed my time, and to be honest if I never shit again it will be too soon.
Today is Friday, and typically the local Muslims gather at the city Mosque to pray. This will be a major test of stability for the city. Depending on the extent of the unrest today we will have more of an idea of when the curfew will be lifted. The mosque is a long way from us, so there is no danger. In fact we have felt surprisingly safe throughout the entire trouble. Now we just have to wait and see what will be.
Glover and myself are still in the Internet cafe. It's on the second floor above a small supermarket. This too has closed its metal shutters and we are locked in. As we watch out the window (positioning ourselves so that we can see, but not be seen), a crowd of protestors rounds the corner, chanting and waving banners.
It's obvious this is no ordinary riot. For one thing it's passing through Thamel, a well-established tourist area, normally immune to the political unrest that plagues the rest of the city. From the owner of the Internet cafe we learn that the riot is in response to the brutal killing of 12 Nepalese workers by Muslim extremists in Iraq. The rioters carry signs with anti-Muslim slogans and chant "Muslims out" in Nepalese.
We camp out in the little supermarket, waiting for the rioters to pass. The shop owner, not one to miss an opportunity, sells pastries to us at special "riot day" discounts. There is the noise of serious destruction going on outside, but we are now downstairs and can see none of it. Eventually, after a half hour or more, the noise dies down and the shop owner decides it's safe to let us out (besides, he's run out of pastries to sell us).
We head out into the empty streets, which are now eerily quiet. Our hotel is only a few blocks away and we decide to head back there and gather more information on the situation. About half way back to the hotel we find a small crowd of people gathered around the wreckage of a store. It's a Muslim-owned, leather goods store (cows are sacred to most Nepalese). This is where the noise had been coming from. The mob has ripped open the doors of this shop and with rocks and sticks smashed every window and torn out every fixture and fitting. The shop is totally destroyed.
It's scary how quickly these friendly, easy going Nepalese have become a mass mob, bent on revenge and destruction. As well as Muslims, the riots are aimed at the government (who the Nepalese believe did too little to try and free the hostages). The indiscriminate targeting of Muslims however, and the unchecked aggression and anger is both frightening and disappointing. To the Nepalese, the militant Muslim extremists who brutally murdered their countrymen are no different to the Muslims who have lived peacefully in their community for generations. They are all targets for revenge.
The riots last for the better part of the day, and from the safety of our well-barricaded hotel we watch the protestors march past, chanting and whistling. Other tourists are locked in with us and throughout the day more trickle in. Some have been caught in the middle of the riots, and instead of making tracks like any sensible person would, they've hung around to take photos. This is the sort of foolishness that gets people killed and gives Nepalese riots a bad name (or a worse name anyway). Despite this however, everyone seems to make it back safely and in most cases both the police and the crowds go out of their way to ensure that tourists make it out unharmed. It seems the Nepalese hospitality still grants us a certain immunity, even amongst this chaos.
It's afternoon when the government decides enough is enough. A citywide curfew is called, no one is allowed on the streets. The army is called in and sets up barricades and patrols on nearly every street corner. Thamel attracts less military presence than the other towns. Being full of tourists, rather than Nepalese, it is less of a trouble spot.
So it is that we find ourselves under house arrest. The curfew lasts the rest of the day, and is still going now, three days later. Initially the lock down was stringently enforced. We heard rumors that in the trouble spots of Kathmandu you could be shot for being out. I'm not sure this is true, but there are definitely serious looking police keeping the streets empty. After the first day however, things became a bit more relaxed and in Thamel at least, tourists are allowed to make short trips through the town.
We have come to know all the other guests in our hotel, and generally the days are spent playing cards, reading books or anything else we can think of to entertain ourselves. Everyone is stuck, the airport is non-operational and transport from Kathmandu is too risky for most people to attempt. Our rafting trip has been postponed until Sunday at least, when hopefully things will have settled down.
At meal times we sneak out down back streets and quiet alleys to find out-of-the-way restaurants willing to serve us a meal. We have to take whatever is going and it's at one of the dodgier of these that I manage to pick up yet another case of food poisoning. As a result I've spent the better part of my curfew time on the dunny. At least this time I've got my own, sit down, flushing toilet, which is indoors and warm. Still I can't say I've overly enjoyed my time, and to be honest if I never shit again it will be too soon.
Today is Friday, and typically the local Muslims gather at the city Mosque to pray. This will be a major test of stability for the city. Depending on the extent of the unrest today we will have more of an idea of when the curfew will be lifted. The mosque is a long way from us, so there is no danger. In fact we have felt surprisingly safe throughout the entire trouble. Now we just have to wait and see what will be.
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