Behind the Nepal-China border floods lie bad politics

As the waters of the Bhotekoshi and Trishuli rivers recede, leaving behind mud, debris and damaged infrastructure, a familiar pattern is visible in Nepal. When disaster strikes, the country’s usual political divisions, cronyism and institutional mistrust give way, for a while, to real unity.

Across party lines, political leaders worked around the clock alongside security forces. Digital channels opened for the Prime Minister’s Disaster Relief Fund, a “one-door policy” was enforced to prevent duplication of relief efforts and telecoms operators made calls and internet free across affected areas. Diaspora communities and local volunteers stepped up alongside the state.

But a familiar governance pattern is at risk of taking hold again: treating this disaster as an unpredictable, unpreventable act of nature.

A natural event – glacier collapse, cloudburst, avalanche or wildfire – is a physical trigger. A disaster is something else. It is shaped by the human choices made around that trigger.