Street vendors in Nepal take refuge in NEST

Umesh Upadhyaya, Deputy Secretary General, GEFONT Nepal

As a result of violence and conflict in Nepal, working people have been displaced from rural areas. Peasant families seeking work have moved to urban areas, but employment opportunities are declining even in the urban centres. An immediate option for the displaced families of workers in search of a livelihood is to work as street vendors, market vendors and hawkers in the capital city of Nepal and other urban centres. Nepal Street Vendors Union (NEST) is the only registered trade union of street workers and it is expanding its activities and coverage, this year affiliating to StreetNet. The protection of the right to trade and earn a living and the handling of disputes concerning the place of trading are the most important issues for street workers in Nepal. Institutional bargaining is with the municipalities and the Ministry of Local Development. The Ministry of Labour is also concerned with the policy issues affecting street and market traders and hawkers.

NEST’s daily experience is of corrupt police and local administration. Trade union activists are being harassed. Street vendors are being pressed to leave the union otherwise their commodities will be confiscated, and also face political repression. This year after the February 1 2005 seizure of power by the Royal Army under a Royal Proclamation, all organisational activities were restricted, and communications severely hampered and the media placed under the control of the monarchy. The king announced a new cabinet under his own chairmanship, violating the norms of multiparty democracy.

An initial phase of union organisation and influence-building ended as a result of the autocratic administration of the king. Municipal & government machinery has sought to harass union activists and to make it more difficult to organise in the labour market.

On March 8^th the joint movement to demand the restoration of full democracy was begun. Intellectuals and constitutionalists called for the withdrawal of the Royal Proclamation which dissolved the democratically elected government in order to start a process for return to constitutional and representative rule of law. In the process, 226 leaders and cadres were arrested countrywide.

During the declared state of emergency (February 1 – April 30) every activity was restricted and prior permission for meetings and activities from the authorities was made compulsory. A joint delegation of the three national trade union centres – GEFONT, NTUC and DECONT, met with the Ministry of Labour to discuss the surveillance and arrests of trade unionists and to call for those held in custody to be released. The ‘undeclared’ suspension of workers’ rights was condemned and it was demanded that the registration and renewal of trade unions be continued without hindrance. As a result of pressure and opposition built up by national trade union centres and the international community, the emergency regulations that prevented trade union and political meetings were lifted on the eve of the May Day celebration in Nepal. However, in practice, the suppression has continued.

Twelve “Pro-Palace” unions and one fake national centre have been registered by the state in violation of all constitutional and legal provisions. In order to impose these fake unions on the labour market, the government and its autocratic machinery is trying to suppress the genuine trade unions. Even registration and renewal of genuine unions is being delayed and denied by the authorities. Although no fake union is yet registered by the pro-palace groups, increasing pressure is being experienced by NEST and street vendors. Municipalities are showing their reluctance to sit down and talk with NEST at the bargaining table. NEST, as an affiliate of GEFONT is working with the joint movement of national trade union centres and the democratic movement of the nation to overcome the political problems confronting the country. (Source: E-mail communication from NEST, February 23^rd , March 8^th, 27^th March 2005).

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