Dese Majoo Hartaal

Dese Majoo Hartaal (Devanagari: देसय्‌ मजू हरताल) in the Newar language means the "Strike that never happened in the country". This strike was kicked off in Nepal on the first of August, 2017. An Internet strike was a new concept in Nepal, and this was the first time in the history of Nepal that an Internet Strike took place. Nepal Mandal Pucha, a loose network of organized Newa youths, initiated this event.

The Internet Strike was called the Save Nepa Valley Movement, which was dedicated towards working on the betterment of the Nepal Valley, the original term used for Kathmandu Valley. The first evidence of the strike was made through a personal blog by a person named Rukshana Kapali, who took the initiation in the movement. The reason for calling the Internet Strike was to warn authorities to take the voice of natives and locals seriously while making development in the valley.

The Rationale

The Internet Strike protested the deeply centralized development system and the development and construction in the Nepal Valley. Protestors stated that it was harmful to start construction projects without studying all of the positive and negative possible impacts. Deteriorating conditions of existing urban and suburban premises were highlighted; the strike aimed to sway authorities to focus on the development of existing settlements, improving the standard of living for current inhabitants. Strikers wanted to focus on health facilitates employment opportunities, water availability, proper road and sewage pipelines, and traffic management. The movement also emphasized an introduction of a Land Use Act and protection of fertile land, while reducing the pollution rate in the valley. In addition, the movement raised awareness of the un-managed new towns and settlements created by special interests that caused sprawl in the valley region. It also aimed to preserve, protect, and promote the heritage of indigenous peoples in the Nepal Valley. The construction of outer ring roads and satellite towns, road expansions in the valley, and the Fast Track Project alignment was also opposed.

How it was done

On August 1, 2017, people started changing their profile pictures into a blackout image and officially released a picture of the Movement. The hashtag #SaveNepalValley was used on Twitter and Facebook, and from August 1st-2nd were successful in it becoming the top trend in Nepal. On August 1, it received 9,300 tweets, and on August 2, it received 3,700 tweets. As the profile picture changing went viral, this brought attention to the national media as well as governmental authorities.

Aftermath

Thousands of people showed up after the Dese Majoo Hartaal in Maitighar Mandala of Kathmandu. The case, which was filed in the Supreme Court of Nepal, was postponed 20 consecutive times.