another strike, strattled

Well wouldn't it be just our luck to encounter the indefinite strike of the Ghorka people as we are trying to leave Sikkim. The Ghorkas are a group Nepali migrants that have been living in the Darjeeling hill area for around 30 years. While Darjeeling is technically within the state of West Bengal, residents think of it as an independent entity. And rightfully so, the culture is incredibly different there. These people were protesting in their demand to declare the area its own state, independent from West Bengal. Which is, obviously, not going to happen any time soon.

This whole strike was a problem for us because the activists had shut down the one and only highway that connects the state of Sikkim to the rest of India. So there was no way out until the Ghorkas said go. Besides the fact that this way an annoyance for me and that I spent five days caught up in this strike business, it was fascinating to see how the residents reacted. They really didn't seem to mind. Shutting down this highway is essentially cuts off their lifeline, forcing them to ration food, petrol, water, etc. And yet everyone is so used to this kind of political activity that the 'wait it out' method is really all they can do.

After being trapped, so to speak, in Sikkim for a few days, we had to assess our options. One was taking a helicopter out of the capital city for about $60. But the waiting list was two weeks long. We could also wait amongst the throngs of people at the government bus station to get on one of the 12 buses that were being permitted to leave town. Or we could walk to the border and beg/bargain with the border police to let us through. People were even talking about making the 120km trek to Siliguri, where they would be out of the strike's perameters, on foot. And being a tourist didn't really grant us any preferential treatment.

Luckily, the Ghorka movement granted a 12-hour period of 'relaxation' for the highways in order for vehicles to come and go from Sikkim. But 12-hours only! We woke up at the crack of dawn to ensure that we would be in one of those vehicles and by the time we arrived at Siliguri, people were literally shoving us out of the car to secure their own places for the ride back.

After all was said and done it was pretty cool to drive through these strike areas and see everything shut down. Such solidarity! I have to admit that I really respect their ability to stage such ruckus. In the U.S., we so rarely stick together and protest against the things that we so frequently get angry about. I think the difference is one of belief. Too often, our opinions exist independently of our beliefs and therefore our efforts to reform have no gumption. We have a lot to learn from you Ghorkas!