Videos: May Day in Nepal

This was sent to us by Alistair Reith.

Over 500,000 of our comrades are on the streets of Kathmandu demanding the fall of the government and a People’s Constitution. An indefinite general strike has been declared. Women are leading protest chants, poor peasants and workers and storming through the streets with clenched fist salutes and red flags. This is what a revolution looks like!

Al Jazeera report on the preparations:

YCL prepare the grounds, and the masses take to the streets. Also some interesting footage of demonstrators making way for an ambulance. The only cars allowed on the streets are emergency vehicles, tourist buses and media vehicles. Anybody else who drives during a bandh will be lucky to get out of the car before the demonstrators torch it :-)

YCL comrades rally:

Nepalnews footage of the main mass rally with Prachanda and other leaders:

Brief shaky handheld footage of a street packed with red flags and Maoists:

Maoist supporters march through the streets:

I like this video, the camera focuses on this little concrete block in the middle of the massive rally, and you can see one demonstrator after another hopping up on top of it, looking around at the size of the protest and hopping down again with a big smile on his face. Everyone’s waving at the camera and looking really happy… the masses are realizing how powerful they truly are, and it’s making them smile :-)

The Maoists are referring to this as the climatic struggle, the final battle, the final push. Things are gonna get pretty intense over the next few weeks.