For the Chinese 60th Anniversary of Communism the Tibetans protested in Boudhanath Stupa. I got there while they were singing a song and lighting candles.
Earlier in the day I went to the police office and tried to get an interview regarding their side of strikes. Each policeman I talked to said they didn't have the proper authority and would send me to another one. Finally I got the number to the "spokesperson" and gave him a call. He said in order to give an official interview I would have to go (somewhere) and get permission. This bureaucratic nonsense is a perfect example of the political system in Nepal that keeps you going in circles if you want to get something accomplished. My friend Nabraj had similar troubles when writing his thesis on Nepal/India water relations. Just to talk to someone about the current treaties he would go from one person only to be sent to the next. Strikes in Nepal occur so often because people know they won't be able to get compensation or their voice heard by going in through the Nepalese Bureaucracy -- it simply doesn't function correctly. I ended up not getting an interview and wasted the whole day.
As Richard Regan of the UN said, "if there was another means to voice their opinions, strikes would be reduced immensely..." (this is off the top of my head, not a direct quote).
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