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Four Nepalese Protesters Have Been Fatally Shot in Clashes With Police

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Protesters stand near burning tyres as they gather to block highway connecting Nepal and India, during general strike called by Madhesi protesters demonstrating against new constitution in Birgunj
Protesters stand near burning tires as they gather to block the highway connecting Nepal and India, during a general strike called by Madhesi protesters demonstrating against the new constitution in Birgunj, Nepal, on Nov. 5, 2015Navesh Chitrakar—Reuters
By Nash Jenkins

At least four protesters in southern Nepal were fatally shot and ten others injured over the weekend in clashes with police during demonstrations against the country’s new constitution, the BBC reported.

The demonstrators who were killed belonged to Nepal’s Madhesi community, which has strong ethnic ties to India. They claim that the new constitution does not give them adequate representation.

Madhesi protesters have been blockading the Nepal-Indian border since the constitution passed in September, with, Nepal’s government says, the open support of New Delhi. India denies such claims.

The blockades have paralyzed Nepal, which conducts more than three-fourths of its trade with India. Food prices have increased and stocks of essential commodities, such as medicines for public hospitals, have been almost exhausted. The blockades have also severely hampered recovery in a country struggling to cope with rebuilding after earthquakes earlier this year killed more than 6,000 people.

Authorities said that more than two dozen police personnel were injured and a number of local ambulances attacked in the weekend’s unrest.

James Nachtwey’s Dispatches From Nepal - Part 2

Nepal earthquake. Gumda Village, in Ghorka district. 5 people died and 14 are still missing in landslides. Inhabitants salvaging building materials from their destroyed houses. Funeral of Rejina Gurung, 3 who was just discovered buried in the rubble. Her mother, Bishnu Gurung, weeping in mourning. Rejina's father, Chabilal Gurung is a guest worker in Malaysia. by James Nachtwey
Bishnu Gurung sobs after her 3-year-old daughter, Rejina Gurung, was found buried in the rubble in the village of Gumda in Gorkha district, near the epicenter of last month's Nepal earthquake, on May 8, 2015. The baby’s father is a guest worker in Malaysia. James Nachtwey for TIME
Nepal earthquake. Gumda Village, in Ghorka district. 5 people died and 14 are still missing in landslides. Inhabitants salvaging building materials from their destroyed houses. Funeral of Rejina Gurung, 3 who was just discovered buried in the rubble. Her mother, Bishnu Gurung, weeping in mourning. Rejina's father, Chabilal Gurung is a guest worker in Malaysia. by James Nachtwey
Bishnu Gurung weeps at the funeral of her 3-year-old daughter who was discovered buried in rubble in Gumda, a village in Nepal’s Gorkha district, May 8, 2015. James Nachtwey for TIME
Nepal earthquake. Gumda Village, in Ghorka district. 5 people died and 14 are still missing in landslides. Inhabitants salvaging building materials from their destroyed houses. Funeral of Rejina Gurung, 3 who was just discovered buried in the rubble. Her mother, Bishnu Gurung, weeping in mourning. Rejina's father, Chabilal Gurung is a guest worker in Malaysia. by James Nachtwey
Inhabitants salvage building materials from their destroyed homes in Gumda Village, near the epicenter of the earthquake in Gorkha district, where five people died and 14 are still missing in landslides, May 8, 2015. James Nachtwey for TIME
Nepal earthquake. Gumda Village, in Ghorka district. 5 people died and 14 are still missing in landslides. Inhabitants salvaging building materials from their destroyed houses. Funeral of Rejina Gurung, 3 who was just discovered buried in the rubble. Her mother, Bishnu Gurung, weeping in mourning. Rejina's father, Chabilal Gurung is a guest worker in Malaysia. by James Nachtwey
A villager salvages building supplies in Gumda, in the Gorkha district of Nepal, May 8, 2015. James Nachtwey for TIME
Nepal earthquake. Young Buddhist monks from Hinang Gompa (monastery) in the village of Lhi in Gorkha district in the Annapurna Range of the Himalayas were transported by Indian Army helicopter to Pokhara because the monastery was damaged in the earthquake. A boy was injured in the mountain village of Dhunchet and with his father was evacuated by Indian Army helicopter. Mountain villages outside Pokhara that were destroyed. Food drops by Indian Army helicopters. by James Nachtwey
A boy who was injured in the mountain village of Dhunchet sits with his father after being evacuated by an Indian army helicopter, May 3, 2015. James Nachtwey for TIME
Nepal earthquake. Young Buddhist monks from Hinang Gompa (monastery) in the village of Lhi in Gorkha district in the Annapurna Range of the Himalayas were transported by Indian Army helicopter to Pokhara because the monastery was damaged in the earthquake. A boy was injured in the mountain village of Dhunchet and with his father was evacuated by Indian Army helicopter. Mountain villages outside Pokhara that were destroyed. Food drops by Indian Army helicopters. by James Nachtwey
An injured boy and his father are evacuated by the Indian army from a remote Himalayan village, May 3, 2015. James Nachtwey for TIME
Nepal earthquake. Young Buddhist monks from Hinang Gompa (monastery) in the village of Lhi in Gorkha district in the Annapurna Range of the Himalayas were transported by Indian Army helicopter to Pokhara because the monastery was damaged in the earthquake. A boy was injured in the mountain village of Dhunchet and with his father was evacuated by Indian Army helicopter. Mountain villages outside Pokhara that were destroyed. Food drops by Indian Army helicopters. by James Nachtwey
View from the window of a helicopter during relief operations to remote mountain villages in Nepal, May 2, 2015. James Nachtwey for TIME
Nepal earthquake. Young Buddhist monks from Hinang Gompa (monastery) in the village of Lhi in Gorkha district in the Annapurna Range of the Himalayas were transported by Indian Army helicopter to Pokhara because the monastery was damaged in the earthquake. A boy was injured in the mountain village of Dhunchet and with his father was evacuated by Indian Army helicopter. Mountain villages outside Pokhara that were destroyed. Food drops by Indian Army helicopters. by James Nachtwey
The Indian army evacuates monks from the Hinang Gompa monastery in Lhi, a village in the Gorkha district, in the Annapurna Range of the Himalayas, May 2, 2015. James Nachtwey for TIME
Nepal earthquake. Young Buddhist monks from Hinang Gompa (monastery) in the village of Lhi in Gorkha district in the Annapurna Range of the Himalayas were transported by Indian Army helicopter to Pokhara because the monastery was damaged in the earthquake. A boy was injured in the mountain village of Dhunchet and with his father was evacuated by Indian Army helicopter. Mountain villages outside Pokhara that were destroyed. Food drops by Indian Army helicopters. by James Nachtwey
Young Buddhist monks gaze out of a helicopter as they are evacuated by the Indian army from a monastery in the Himalayas, May 2, 2015. James Nachtwey for TIME
Nepal earthquake. Barpak, the epicenter of the earthquake. Inhabitants salvaging building materials and possessions from their destroyed houses. by James Nachtwey
In Barpak, the epicenter of the earthquake, inhabitants sift through the wreckage looking for possessions from their destroyed houses, May 6, 2015. James Nachtwey for TIME
Nepal earthquake. Barpak, the epicenter of the earthquake. Funeral of Pur Bahadur Gurung, 26, who had just been dug out of the rubble. Saainli Gurung, his mother weeping. Scenes of villagers salvaging building materials and personal possessions. Dhan Raj Ghale, 30, dressed in mourning garb after the death of his wite, salvaging buildings materials and possessions from his house. by James Nachtwey
Villagers look through rubble in Barpak, Nepal, May 5, 2015. James Nachtwey for TIME
Nepal earthquake. Barpak, the epicenter of the earthquake. Funeral of Pur Bahadur Gurung, 26, who had just been dug out of the rubble. Saainli Gurung, his mother weeping. Scenes of villagers salvaging building materials and personal possessions. Dhan Raj Ghale, 30, dressed in mourning garb after the death of his wite, salvaging buildings materials and possessions from his house. by James Nachtwey
A villager stands among the ruins of the destroyed houses in Barpak, Nepal, May 6, 2015. James Nachtwey for TIME
Nepal earthquake. Barpak, the epicenter of the earthquake. Funeral of Pur Bahadur Gurung, 26, who had just been dug out of the rubble. Saainli Gurung, his mother weeping. Scenes of villagers salvaging building materials and personal possessions. Dhan Raj Ghale, 30, dressed in mourning garb after the death of his wite, salvaging buildings materials and possessions from his house. by James Nachtwey
Saainli Gurung weeps during the funeral of her son, Pur Bahadur Gurung, 26, who was found in the rubble in Barpak, Nepal, May 5, 2015. James Nachtwey for TIME
Nepal earthquake. Barpak, the epicenter of the earthquake. Funeral of Pur Bahadur Gurung, 26, who had just been dug out of the rubble. Saainli Gurung, his mother weeping. Scenes of villagers salvaging building materials and personal possessions. Dhan Raj Ghale, 30, dressed in mourning garb after the death of his wite, salvaging buildings materials and possessions from his house. by James Nachtwey
Dhan Raj Ghale, 30, dressed in mourning garb after the death of his mother, looks for possessions from his house in Barpak, Nepal, May 5, 2015. James Nachtwey for TIME
Nepal earthquake. Barpak, the epicenter of the earthquake. Funeral of Pur Bahadur Gurung, 26, who had just been dug out of the rubble. Saainli Gurung, his mother weeping. Scenes of villagers salvaging building materials and personal possessions. Dhan Raj Ghale, 30, dressed in mourning garb after the death of his wite, salvaging buildings materials and possessions from his house. by James Nachtwey
At the epicenter of the quake in Barpak, Nepal, where homes once stood, stones and wooden frames were all that remained. May 6, 2015. James Nachtwey for TIME
Nepal earthquake. Barpak, the epicenter of the earthquake. Funeral of Pur Bahadur Gurung, 26, who had just been dug out of the rubble. Saainli Gurung, his mother weeping. Scenes of villagers salvaging building materials and personal possessions. Dhan Raj Ghale, 30, dressed in mourning garb after the death of his wite, salvaging buildings materials and possessions from his house. by James Nachtwey
A man lifts debris from a flattened structure in Barpak, Nepal, May 6, 2015. James Nachtwey for TIME
Nepal earthquake. Barpak, the epicenter of the earthquake. Inhabitants salvaging building materials and possessions from their destroyed houses. by James Nachtwey
A woman stands among the wreckage in Barpak, Nepal, May 6, 2015. James Nachtwey for TIME
Nepal earthquake. Gumda Village, in Ghorka district. 5 people died and 14 are still missing in landslides. Inhabitants salvaging building materials from their destroyed houses. Funeral of Rejina Gurung, 3 who was just discovered buried in the rubble. Her mother, Bishnu Gurung, weeping in mourning. Rejina's father, Chabilal Gurung is a guest worker in Malaysia. by James Nachtwey
A woman walks in the remote village of Gumda in Ghorka district, Nepal, May 8, 2015. James Nachtwey for TIME

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