Maoist Plenum : Unity To Continue

Vijaya Chalise

The fifth plenum of the Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist (CPN-Maoist) concluded after unanimously endorsing the political paper presented by the party chairman, Prachanda. The meeting has concluded that opting for federalism and the proportional electoral system would be prerequisites for creating a congenial atmosphere for the polls. The Maoist Party now seems to have formally set the proclamation of Nepal as a republican state and the proportional system of elections as the party's preconditions for participation in the Constituent Assembly (CA) polls.

Republican demand

Deputy commander of the CPN (Maoist) Barsha Man Puna said that the party would seek consensus from the other parties and the government for declaring Nepal a republic and adopting the proportional electoral system before going to the CA polls. The Maoist leadership faced enormous pressure during its six-day long expanded meeting of the party to either play an effective role to meet the expectations of the people in the interim government or withdraw immediately. However, they decided not to pull out of the government for now. The decision to keep the eight-party coalition intact has assured the people again that the peace process would not face any hitches and the CA elections would be held.The delegates had expressed strong dissatisfaction with the government's working style, and some of them had alleged that the eight-party government had failed to address genuine demands of the Madhesis, ethnic nationalities and the oppressed. For that reason they argue that the new bases for the coalition to continue would be the declaration of a republic and proportional electoral system, as Prachanda's paper states, the CA poll cannot be held as long as the monarchy exists. This may call for another revision in the interim constitution.

In the political agreement reached between the Seven Party Alliance and the CPN (Maoist) on November 8, the Maoists had taken a soft position as there were many internal and external forces barring them from joining the interim government. Therefore, the UML was the only party sticking to the proportional electoral system at that time. Some political parties, namely the Nepali Congress, however, differ on whether the electoral system can be changed. The CA elections are barely 103 days away. The Maoist's fifth expanded meeting, however, endorsed the political proposal including the proclamation of a republic and a fully proportional electoral system for the constituent election polls. The document presented by Party Chairman Prachanda has underlined the need to create a congenial environment for the constituent assembly elections. Observers, too, say that the new bases for eight-party unity might be based on a broader republican front for the CA election. Madhav Nepal, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Nepal (United Marxist- Leninist) has been emphasising an eight-party republican front to keep the eight-party unity intact. The Maoists favour a front among the political forces that want a republican set-up in the country. Likewise, Maoist leaders have proposed to the government taking a joint eight-party political campaign to the Terai as there is a possibility of some Madhesi groups disrupting the constituent assembly polls.However, Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala has reportedly told the Maoist leaders that there can be no preconditions for the polls. However, he has not yet made any reaction regarding the Maoist's preconditions. Likewise Minister for Peace and Reconstruction Ram Chandra Poudel has expressed his displeasure, saying how a party that was fighting for a constituent assembly, even when others were sticking to a monarchial parliamentary system, could be shying away from the CA polls, setting preconditions for the polls.

Thus, the bone of contention seems to be the question of whether the country should be declared a republic before the polls or to leave it to be decided in the first meeting of the Constituent Assembly after the polls. The Nepali Congress (NC) wants the fate of the monarchy to be decided by the first meeting of the constituent assembly; however, other major political parties, including the UML and Maoists, want a republican set-up to be declared before the November polls. The CPN (UML) has floated a mid-way solution as well - holding a referendum to decide the place of the monarchy in the future political scenario of Nepal. However, UML leaders say that their party is open to both options backed by the NC and NCP (Maoist). UML General Secretary Nepal has repeatedly said that the political parties should not hesitate to go for a referendum. Likewise, the NCP Maoist's argument that the Constituent Assembly (CA) election could not be held unless Nepal was declared a republic cannot be ignored. Not only the Maoists but civil society activists, too, believe that declaring Nepal a republic is essential if the constituent assembly election is to take place. Therefore, it would be wise to build consensus among the major political forces to guarantee and institutionalise the achievements made after the April movement. The objectives of the Jana Andolan would remain incomplete until the constituent assembly elections were held in the country. The government is lagging behind in showing its political commitment empowered by the Jana Andolan. It is true that once the leaders reach high places, they usually forget the ground reality that it was the people who catapulted them to power.Collective approachThe need of the hour is for all the political forces and the civil society to create a congenial environment for the constituent assembly polls, as the constituent assembly is the only means to settle the contentious voices raised from different corners. Obviously, the main hurdle in holding the polls seems to be the Terai issue, and a collective approach is the only way out. The 20-point agreement reached recently between the government and the Nepal Federation of Indigenous Nationalities (NEFIN) is a welcome sign. In the same vein, the Terai issues could be solved once and for all, helping to create a congenial environment for the election.

Source: The Rising Nepal, August 10, 2007