Nepal sees rare protest against Chinese infrastructure project

NEW DELHI: Nepal is witnessing a rare protest against a Chinese infrastructure project, even as Beijing is making desperate efforts to play mediator between the two factions of the ruling Nepal Communist Party and safeguard the communist unity.
The China-sponsored Damak Clean Industrial Park at the Damak Municipality in Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli's constituency is facing stiff opposition from locals of the area, ET has learnt.
Locals are demanding adequate compensation for the land acquired for the project and transparency on the Chinese investment, according to people who study Nepal-China ties. Last Tuesday, one such protest was organised by the Federal Limbuwan Forum, one of the constituents of the Federal Democratic National Forum. It attracted some 5,000 protesters from indigenous people and other marginalised sections of society.

A section of Nepalese intellectuals and academics has backed the protests. They said Kathmandu should be cautious about involving Chinese companies in infrastructure development projects as part of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), given Nepal's strategic location between China and India.

Uddhab Pyakurel, a political analyst based in Nepal, told the Himalayan Times that China was pursuing an unsustainable development model ignoring the concerns of locals and ecological aspects of infrastructure projects.

He said Nepal should be cautious about involving Chinese companies in its infrastructure development projects and suggested that the government needed to focus on utilising local human resources in foreign-funded projects.

Chief executive of the Kathmandu-based Asian Institute of Diplomacy and International Affairs Sunil KC told the Himalayan Times that building an industrial park in Damak was a good idea, but the Chinese side’s intention must be clear and the Nepali government should also be clear what it would gain from the project.

“As Nepal is strategically placed between India and China, the Nepali government should also have a geo-strategic consideration before launching any project with foreign investment,” he added.

Protests on Nepalese streets against China are rare. A few months back, protests were held against China’s alleged territorial encroachment into Nepal.

The Himalayan state has witnessed an increase in China-funded projects under the BRI since 2016. According to a report by research lab AidData, Chinese “financial diplomacy” in infrastructure projects in Nepal, including road and hydropower, was just under $1 billion between the years 2000 and 2017. Nepal’s tourism sector has also seen an increase of Chinese tourists. In 2019, 1,70,000 Chinese tourists visited Nepal.

Meanwhile, reports are emerging that the Nepali Congress may align with Oli if the Nepal Communist Party split, and form the government. According to insiders in the Nepali Congress, after the bickering in the Nepal Communist Party, there was a sudden increase in the frequency of meetings between Oli and Congress leader Sher Bahadur Deuba.