Tag: popular struggles and movements

The protest against water privatization in Bolivia was led by an organization called FEDECOR. This organization comprised local professionals, including engineers and environmentalists. They were supported by a federation of farmers who relied  on irrigation, the confederation of factory workers’ unions, middle class students from the University of Cochabamba and the city’s growing population of homeless street children. The movement was supported by the Socialist Party. In 2006, this party came to power in Bolivia.

The Civil Rights Movement in the U.S.A. targeted the equal treatment and granting of human rights to the African American who were being harshly treated and tortured and were considered inferior and slaves to the White Americans. It largely targeted abolition of legal racial discrimination against African- Americans followed by several movements and protests.

According to Gandhiji Politics and ethics should not be completely divorced from one another. Ethics must be a guiding lamp of the politics if a nation has to prosper. Ethical values like truth, honesty and sincerity puts nation before self interest and because politics is a determining factor of a nation's governance it must be embedded in politics.

The Anti Hindi agitation is a series of violent demand events took place in the state of Tamil Nadu during both pre and post Independence era. The first agitation took place against imposition of Hindi in Madras State (now Tamil Nadu) when teaching of Hindi in schools was made compulsory. thereon demand continues to make India an official language of India alongside Hindi when the Official Language Act passed to make Hindi a sole official language. then to supress the agitation, violence and protests English and Hindi were made official languages of India indefinitely.

In Nepal Democracy was restored in the year 1990 by the King Birendra. In 2005 this democratic rule was dismissed by King Gyanendra. Later due to public protest, democratic government established in Nepal in 2006.

Sri Lanka has unitary form of government where the national government has all powers. . Tamil leaders want Sri Lanka to become a federal system. 

Mahatma Gandhi was a strong advocate of Gram Swaraj or Village self-rule. Gandhiji always remarked that India as a nation is formed of the village as units. According to this concept villages as a unit should be self-sufficient economically and financially and for this purpose, some autonomy should be given to the villages for their development which ultimately signifies the development of the nation as a whole.

Nepal won democracy in 1990. Although the King was formally remained the head of the country and the real power was enjoyed by the elected representative. King Birendra accepted this transition from absolute monarchy to constitutional monarchy.  He was killed in 2001. The next King Gyanendra was not prepared to accept democratic rule so he took advantage of the unpopularity of democratic government. In February 2005 he dismissed the Prime Minister and dissolved the elected Parliament. In 2006 people all over the country came together to pass the control from the king to the constitutional government. The movement of April 2006 in Nepal came to be known as Nepal's second movement for democracy.

Bolivia's government was pressurized by the World Bank to give up its control of municipal water supply. The government sold these rights for the city Cochabamba to a multinational company. The company immediately increased the price of water four times. Due to the high prices of water, Bolivia faced a popular protest. This protest was known as Bolivia's water war. This protest in Bolivia was led by the organization called FEDECOR. This organization comprised local professionals including engineers and environmentalist. They were supported by a federation of farmers, the confederation of factory workers, middle-class students from the University of Cochabamba and the city's growing population of homeless street children.