POLITICS

P opular struggles in Nepal and Bolivia

 Nepal witnessed an extraordinary popular movement in April 2006. The movement was aimed at restoring democracy.

 The movement of April 2006 was aimed at regaining popular control over the government from the king.

All the major political parties in the parliament formed a Seven Party Alliance (SPA) and called for a four-day strike in Kathmandu, the country’s capital.

This protest soon turned into an indefinite strike in which MAOIST insurgents and various other organisations joined hands.

On 24 April 2006, the last day of the ultimatum, the king was forced to concede all the three demands.

 The SPA chose Girija Prasad Koirala as the new Prime Minister of the interim government. The restored parliament met and passed laws taking away most of the powers of the king

. The SPA and the Maoists came to an understanding about how the new Constituent Assembly was going to be elected. This struggle came to be known as Nepal’s second movement for democracy.

Bolivia’s Water War

Bolivia is a poor country in Latin America. The World Bank pressurised the government to give up its control of municipal water supply.

 The government sold these rights for the city of Cochabamba to a multi-national company (MNC). The company immediately increased the price of water by four times.

. This led to a spontaneous popular protest. In January 2000, a new alliance of labour, human rights and community leaders organised a successful four-day general strike in the city.

The government agreed to negotiate and the strike was called off. Yet nothing happened. The police resorted to brutal repression when the agitation was started again in February. Another strike followed in April and the government imposed martial law. But the power of the people forced the officials of the MNC to flee the city and made the government  concede to all the demands of the protesters.

The contract with the MNC was cancelled and water supply was restored to the municipality at old rates. This came to be known as Bolivia’s water war

DIFFERENCES

The movement in Nepal was to establish democracy, while the struggle in Bolivia involved claims on an elected, democratic government.

The popular struggle in Bolivia was about one specific policy, while the struggle in Nepal was about the foundations of the country’s politics.

 Both these struggles were successful but their impact was at different levels.

SIMILARITIES

 Despite these differences, both the stories share some elements which are relevant to the study of the past and future of democracies.

 Both these are instances of political conflict that led to popular struggles.

 In both cases the struggle involved mass mobilisation.

Public demonstration of mass support clinched the dispute. Finally, both instances involved critical role of political organisations.

Pressure groups and movements

Pressure groups are organisations that attempt to influence government policies.

  Pressure groups do not aim to directly control or share political power.

 These organisations are formed when people with common occupation, interest, aspirations or opinions come together in order to achieve a common objective.

Like an interest group, a movement also attempts to influence politics rather than directly take part in electoral competition.

 But unlike the interest groups, movements have a loose organisation.

Their decision making is more informal and flexible. They depend much more on spontaneous mass participation than an interest group.

Eg;Narmada Bachao Andolan, Movement for Right to Information, Anti-liquor Movement, Women’s Movement, Environmental Movement etc

Sectional interest groups and public interest groups Usually interest groups seek to promote the interests of a particular section or group of society. Trade unions, business associations and professional (lawyers, doctors, teachers, etc.) bodies are some examples of this type

. They are sectional because they represent a section of society: workers, employees, businesspersons, industrialists, followers of a religion, caste group, etc

. Their principal concern is the betterment and well-being of their members, not society in general. Sometimes these organisations are not about representing the interest of one section of society. They represent some common or general interest that needs Eg; FEDECOR

promotional groups or public interest groups. They promote collective rather than selective good.

 They aim to help groups other than their own members. For example, a group fighting against bonded labour fights not for itself but for those who are suffering under such bondage.

 In some instances the members of a public interest group may undertake activity that benefits them as well as others too.

 For example, BAMCEF (Backward and Minority Communities Employees Federation) i