Nepal: Carnage Anniversary Gives Way To Creepy Anticipation

Maila Baje

The Narayanhity Carnage anniversary went largely unmarked this year. And for good reason, at least from the perspective of the Eight Party Alliance (EPA)-led power elite. Unlike previous years, there was no longer any logic to eulogizing King Birendra as the antithesis of the current monarch. When the EPA's overt objective still is to do away with the throne, accusing King Gyanendra of usurping it is obviously a waste of time.

Last June, despite its capitulation, the palace was still a palpable player. The fact that the House of Representatives owed its resurrection to King Gyanendra's proclamation was pretty apparent. Since the interim constitution doesn't recognize the king, and the debris from royal statues lays strewn across the landscape, the monarchy is on its way out, right?

Not so fast. In varying degrees of conviction, the communist factions that dominate the interim legislature believe constituent assembly elections can't be held as long as the monarchy exists. In terms of shifting the goalposts, our comrades are very supple. For an embattled palace, the good news is that the only way it can head is up. Despite the sustained calumny, the crown continues to draw the support of roughly half of the people, according to most opinion polls. As any pollster knows, the large "undecided" column is the place to watch.

With the military having emerged as the most trustworthy national institution in the latest poll, the threat of a coup seems to have risen. Maoist chairman Prachanda has discounted the possibility of an army-backed palace takeover. Yet even he recognizes that warnings of impending authoritarianism are being sounded by Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala, not some royal rep on a palace-appointed cabinet.

Prachanda's deputy, Dr. Baburam Bhattarai, has conceded that the Maoists respected Koirala only for his international legitimacy. On the defensive vis-a-vis the constituent assembly elections over the past few weeks, Koirala has now turned the tables on the Maoists.
If the elections are to be held on schedule, a modicum of law and order is what is really needed - not an arbitrary declaration of a republic. This can't be news to Prachanda. Long before the premier, the Maoist chief had publicly acknowledged that a mere legislative declaration of a republic wouldn't force the monarch onto the next flight out of the country.

It was significant that Koirala chose June 2, the Nepali-calendar anniversary of the palace massacre, to renew his threat to institute drastic measures to restore law and order. If Koirala succeeds in mobilizing the army against forces of instability, that would no doubt be a belated personal triumph.

But he hardly seems to be in a mood to rejoice. It's Dr. Bhattarai's "international" dimension our premier is really zeroing on. At the South Asian summit in Delhi in April, Koirala declared he had staked his six decades of politics on mainstreaming the Maoists. The Young Communist League (YCL)'s antics have forced the premier to reconsider the wisdom of that accomplishment on various external planes.

Former premier Sher Bahadur Deuba has returned from China, ostensibly having assured our northern neighbors of the Nepali Congress' recognition of geopolitics since its last stint in power. The longer Prachanda persists with playing China and India off against each other in his search for the best patronage, the greater the chances of an ultimate fiasco.

China may have opted out of the Diplomatic Corps' statement demanding the security and safety of foreign envoys, in the aftermath of the YCL's attack on US Ambassador James F. Moriarty's vehicle. But it would be wrong to construe that Beijing's pragmatism comes with unlimited patience. More so, when a US Assistant Secretary of State arrives in Kathmandu for the express purpose of encouraging the government to set the date for the elections.

On the southern front, an EPA delegation is sounding out the official mood of India. Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has affirmed his intention to take the Bharatiya Janata Party into confidence while proceeding with his Nepal policy. Newspapers close to the New Delhi establishment are becoming more candid in asserting the urgency of giving the monarchy a "toehold".

Gandhi family confidants, moreover, remind us that it was then-Prince Gyanendra who kept open those vital channels of communication during King Birendra's 1988-90 standoff with Rajiv Gandhi. When Rajiv lost power, Prince Gyanendra still maintained contact. King Gyanendra's message to Sonia Gandhi after her Congress Party won the 2004 elections, we are told, didn't come out of the blue.

The death of former army chief Satchit Shamsher Rana, the man the Indian media reviled as the chief architect of King Gyanendra's takeover, may or may not have helped clear the air between the two dynasties. The fate of the Bhutanese refugees' Long March was nevertheless emblematic of the extent of New Delhi's reciprocity to friendly royals.

The Nepali Congress, mindful of its own history, is sticking its finger in the wind. Leaders of both factions are blowing hot and cold on unity prospects primarily to keep the communists guessing.
Unity will eventually come and the catalyst will likely be the Nepal Army. Those wary of a military intervention should look not at Pakistan, but Bangladesh - perhaps even Thailand - for parallels.

An army-backed Nepali Congress-led broader democratic front under the monarchy sounds too far-fetched? After the 1951 democratic upsurge, few Nepalis had envisaged the Shahs and Ranas ending up as a single power center.

Source: Newsblaze, June 4, 2007

Nepal: New Beginning Or Dead End?

Hari Bansha Dulal

After a year of political marathon, the Eight Party Alliance's (EPA) government has reached a dead end. With the CA elections in limbo, the EPA government is rapidly losing its legitimacy to govern and the notion of "New Nepal" is losing its appeal. The inability on the part of the EPA government to announce fresh poll dates has raised a question of legitimacy on part of EPA to govern.

The unmatched enthusiasm pumped among the citizens by the people's revolution-II is being deflated at an unprecedented rate. Due to the mishandling of the opportunity by EPA, the Nepali people have started concluding that nothing has changed except the names at the top. Things have changed both for the rank and files of the Seven Party Alliance (SPA) that were on the run during King Gyanendra's regime and the Maoists that took cover of the nature-forests - to keep their lives and dreams afloat. The biggest beneficiary, however, has been CPN (Maoist) who got a safe landing and leapfrogging opportunity from the darkness of jungles to the corridor of the Singha Durbar.

Needless to say, EPA has tremendously benefited from the people's trust and willingness to rally behind them, but what have people gained? It is high time to balance the book. With the increase in violence, insecurity, and the government's inability to conduct CA elections, the Nepali people who have become consumers of false dreams sold by politicians have started asking themselves: Was people's evolution-II for us or for the politicians whose political careers have been choked by King Gyanendra?

While the hand-picked parliamentarians are drawing fat checks for raising hands to consent on the decisions made by the top leaders of their respective parties, the transition period meant to secure peace and ensure the long-term prosperity of the Nepali people, the populace is laden with violence, chaos, and insecurity. This further complicates the minimum conditions required for conducting CA elections. The question that arises now is how long the interim parliament and the EPA government should be in place before it is deemed that they have lost the consent of the governed? What can they do to buy the required legitimacy to govern, if anything?

Be it before the start of the Maoist insurgency, during the insurgency, or after the safe landing of the Maoists, things are same for the rich and famous and their kids. They had everything to lead a comfortable life and buy their safety. The Maoists did not inflict a scratch on the rich and famous because of their symbiotic relationship that was largely based on the money that they could extract from the privileged class.

As usual, things are normal for the privileged class now. While the sons and daughters of the rich and famous frivolously spend money to sweat themselves out in discos in the capital, the children of poor in the far-flung villages are sweating out of nervousness of not being able to keep their dreams afloat.

Thus, the biggest losers of the ongoing violence, insecurity, and the inability on the part of the government to navigate the nation towards political stability have been the poor and downtrodden populace. The sons and daughters of rich politicians and businessmen can buy one-way ticket to Western countries but what about the children of poor that are forced to waste their precious human life due to the inability of politicians to provide required opportunity to lead a meaningful life?

One of the many reasons why the plight of the indigents is not taken seriously is because most of the politicians have no clue about what it means to be a poor. While some were well off to begin with and are not in a position to understand how debilitating poverty is, others have amassed enough wealth (which would have been impossible if pursued through legal means) and have forgotten those old days whereby they had a hard time meeting basic necessities. Like the majority of politicians, the new entrants in Nepali politics (the Maoists) who successfully sold the dreams of prosperity to the largely illiterate and economically deprived populace, are not doing enough to fulfill peoples' aspirations.

They seem to not realize that their propagandist politics alone will not be of any help when it comes to building an egalitarian nation. They have no well-tested developmental model, no proven strategy to spur economic growth, no clue about how to properly redistribute wealth other than redistributing land, and no desire to secure peace which is a prerequisite to prosperity.

For development to take place there should be peace in the nation. Prachanda's dismissal of existence of other forces such as MPRF and NIFIN and his social workers turned militias are the main obstacles towards securing peace in the nation. Thus, Prachanda's claim that he would turn this largely hungry nation into a prosperous and well-functioning democracy like Switzerland is simply ludicrous. Who in the world would like to invest in a nation where shutdowns of industries by cadres of political parties happen on a mere whim, with intimidation and extortion rampant?

It did not take very long for the gain of mass movement of 1990 to dissipate. Fifteen years and we are back to square one. Hard-earned democracy did not last long because the rent-seeking coalition between business and politics served to fuel corruption and violence in the body politic of Nepal. Easy money earned through illegal means was used to sustain a new class of political elites who remained immune from the forces of law enforcement because of their political status and connection.

Like in the past, the politicians do not appear to be driven by a sense of mission to transform the society in a particular direction this time around too. If not corrected, the lack of developmental vision and the ability to secure peace amongst the current leadership, who do not seem to have learnt lessons from the past, will be compounded by their weak commitment to realize the importance of such a vision. Popular disillusionment is sure to occur like in the past which the Maoists cashed pretty smartly in their favor, mainly due to the failure of the state to deliver expected democratization of local social relations and political authority, continuing poverty and a widening gap between the haves and have-nots.

The only question that kept on lingering in people's mind after the fall of King Gyanendra's regime was, "What would our leaders do differently than they did after the fall of Panchayat regime in 1990 that would strengthen democracy and make Nepal prosperous?" And, our leaders are not doing anything differently even though the political and social landscape is not the same as it was during the early 1990s.

The time is running out for the EPA government. All the constituents of EPA should realize their mistakes and pledge a non confrontational style of politics. For any meaningful change to materialize, the centrist forces should correct their laid-back attitude, understand the need for a changed political landscape, and realize the urgency to work towards fulfilling people's aspirations. As far as the political left is concerned, it should pledge non rhetorical style of politics and stop abusing parliament as an arena for rhetorical exchanges.

It should be rather used as a vehicle for political consensus building. Furthermore, it should find ways to keep its unruly cadres within its grip. It somehow got to teach its cadres rational and civilized ways of protesting. Indulging in immoral acts of burning and destroying public property that we built through the tax payers' money is mockery of our own achievement.

If political leaders fail to understand the gravity of the situation and continued with their old habits, coming generations too will have to fight for democracy again. Failure to deliver development benefits and meet people's aspirations shall invite February 1st over and again in some form or another.

Insurgencies will easily flourish as impoverished societies are hot beds for such movements. The Maoist insurgency by no means is an end to rebellion. The desire to rebel shall stay put until the Eight Party Alliance (EPA) and the subsequent governments in the future are able to ensure peace, prosperity, and pursuit of happiness.

Source: The Kathmandu Post, June 1, 2007

Maoist Terai wing for Madhesis' rights

KATHMANDU, June 3: The Madhesi National Liberation Front Nepal has made public various decisions passed in the context of the rights and interests of the Madhesis and the contemporary political developments.The extended meeting recently of the Front's Central Office, chaired by Matrika Prasad Yadav, convenor of the Front's second national convention organising committee, decided to consolidate the organisation and extensively expand it, distribute and renew membership, constitute a five-member action committee under the leadership of Mahendra Paswan and carry out a month-long peaceful programme for securing the rights and interests of the Madhesh and the Madheshi peoples in a phase-wise manner.

The Front has also taken the decision to organise peaceful protest programme from June 7 to July 9 with the objective of exerting pressure for proclamation of the date of Constituent Assembly election by declaring republic from the Legislature-Parliament itself, of immediately proclaiming the Madhesh autonomous provincial republic, of taking action against the criminals involved in the Gaur massacre and of making public the status of the people said to have been disappeared.Chairman of the CPN-Maoist Prachanda, in-charge of the East Command of the party Badal, deputy commander and joint in-charge of the Mithila Bhojpuri Bureau Baldev were also present in the meeting, the Front stated in a press release issued Sunday.

Source: The Gorkhapatra, June 5, 2007

The rise of a party

MALLIKA ARYAL

In 1997, a group of madhesi intellectuals and students banded together to discuss their concerns and issues. There was no formal membership in this Biratnagar-based group and participants included leftists and members of other mainstream parties. The common denominator was their disenchantment with the big parties and the sense that their debates were largely ignored. The Madhesi Janadhikar Forum soon emerged as the most-respected, representative platform for madhesi issues. In the same year, the Maoists celebrated their first anniversary underground by intensifying their struggle in the mid-west, Nepal had three unstable coalition governments, and the human rights situation deteriorated as scores were detained by the state.

Ten years later, the Maoists have entered into the peace process, and the MJF has turned relatively violent. Both, however, are now registered as parties with the Election Commission and much of the fight for influence in the madhes is between these two fronts.
Insiders tell us that the Maoist leadership was sympathetic to the Forum at the start, and even instrumental in organising it. Around 1999 Upendra Yadav, then a regular member of UML, started becoming closer to the Maoists.

In February 2004, Upendra Yadav, Maoist leaders Matrika Yadav and Mohan Baidya were arrested in Delhi. Upendra Yadav was let go after a couple of months, while Matrika Yadav and Mohan Baidya were handed over to Nepali authorities and were released in 2006. Those close to Upendra Yadav say that during the time of his arrest he was already trying to distance himself from the Maoists because of discrimination he felt in the ranks within the Maoist hierarchy and because he did not agree with the Maoist plan to divide madhes into ‘Madhes Autonomous Region’ and ‘Tharuwan Autonomous Region’. Vijay Kant Karna, chairperson of Jaghrit Nepal says, “No one was happy in the tarai with the Maoists because they called it Madhes Government but high ranks in their party were given to pahadis.”

After the 1 February 2005 royal takeover Upendra Yadav and Jaya Prakash Gupta, former general secretary of the MJF and present Nepali Congress MP started travelling back and forth between India and Nepal to prepare for a movement in Nepal. After last year’s April Uprising Upendra Yadav returned to Nepal and in the eight months after Jana Andolan II, the MJF had successfully held meetings in almost all the districts of Nepal.

Since then, the forum and Yadav have been accused of both flip-flopping and forming alliances with Hindu fundamentalist groups in India, such as the Rastiya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). In December Yadav attended a meeting of rightwing Hindu groups in Gorakhpur and spoke out publicly about making Nepal a Hindu nation again. A month later he was leading the movement for a secular federal republic.

“He can be highly influenced by others,” says Nepali Congress MP Amresh Kumar Singh, adding, “If you try to play with all the powers, you forget the cause you were fighting for.” Like most madhesi leaders who do not actively profess membership in the MJF, Singh too is said to have had a falling out with Yadav.

Jaya Prakash Gupta, who is close to Yadav, says the accusations of alliances with the palace and Indian fundamentalist groups are misguided. “If mainstream political parties meet with big Indian leaders, no one calls that an ‘unholy alliance’,” Gupta told us from Biratnagar. Gupta said that since Gaur, Yadav has not been allowed to move freely or explain “his side of the story”.

That Gupta and other moderate madhesi leaders took a careful line on Gaur while speaking to us is an indication of the pan-madhesi appeal that the forum still has. On the one hand, they argued, Gaur was ‘retaliation’ for months of harassment and disruption of MJF meetings by the Maoists Tarai Mukti Morcha. On the other, most admit it was a tactical mistake.

“If the MFJ had been willing to sit for talks right after the Madhes Uprising, they could have bargained their way into more madhesi representation and investigations of Lahan and Nepalganj, and pressured the prime minister to implement the promises made during his second address,” says Chandra Kishore, editor of Terai News Magazine in Birganj. “Now, after Gaur, everyone fears the forum as a criminal organisation.”

Sarita Giri of the Nepal Sadbhawana Party-Anandi Devi, says the MJF is not in the least militant. “They are not armed, Gaur was retaliation against the Maoists because they had disrupted their activities in Bhairahawa and Nepalganj,” she argues.

Meantime, there is said to be a few faultlines showing in the forum, one between the more left-wing members and Yadav, and the other between Yadav’s supporters who believe this was the right time to register a party and Gupta’s group, which argues that fundamental issues need to be settled before deciding to contest elections. There are signs of a split in the ranks—an insider tells us that of the 25 members in the working committee, only 13 members’ names were on the list given to the Election Commission during registration. Gupta pooh-poohs this and says that though his proposal lost out, he will support the MJF as a party.

Yadav gets the most publicity, but there are other prominent figures in the forum, such as veteran leftist leader Sitananda Raya, and MJF secretary general Ram Kumar Sharma. There are two vice chairmen Bhagyanath Gupta, a professor at Birganj’s Thakur Ram Bahumukhi Campus, and Kishore Biswas Tharu, a former member of Nepal Sadbhawana Party.

“As a political party our agenda is pretty clear—we want democratic system of governance, autonomous federal structure, proportional elections, and we want Nepal to be a republic” says Jitendra Sonal, MJF’s secretariat member.

Analysts say that given the lack of commitment seen on the part of the government to resolving madhesi issues, the MJF as a political party could take off stronger than those who call the forum irresponsible might imagine.

Source: Madhesi United, Blog, June 5, 2007

Joint Effort Needed

SPEAKER Subash Nemwang has emphasised the need for joint efforts from all political forces and others to hold the election to a constituent assembly. Speaking at the inaugural session of 41st annual general convention of the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry in Kathmandu the other day, Speaker Nemwang said that constituent assembly election is a must to restructure the state, ensure inclusive democracy and complete the political and peace process. The remarks of the Speaker are absolutely correct as the constituent assembly election alone would institutionalise the achievements of the Jana Andolan II and create a new Nepal. The government and the eight political parties are committed to hold the election by November 2007. It had earlier been agreed to hold the election by mid-June. This deadline could not be met due to various reasons. Thus, the eight political parties recently decided to hold the election by November this year and the government was mandated to fix the convenient date for the election after making due consultation with different stakeholders. There are some important works, which need to be done before announcing the dates for the election. Firstly, the interim constitution has to be amended.

Secondly, some laws concerning the constituent assembly election need to be formulated. The delineation of the electoral constituencies is yet another job to be done before the date for the election is to be announced. Thus, the government is now seriously working to complete other processes for announcing the dates for the election. The constituent assembly election is the priority of the nation and all sectors including the civil society have been demanding early constituent assembly election so that the achievements of the Jana Andolan II would be duly safeguarded. Since the eight political parties have unanimously agreed to hold the election by November 2007, they should work collectively with one voice to hold the election in time and in a free and fair manner. But the constituents of the eight parties and partners of the government are trying to blame one another for the delay in holding the election. This blame game would not help conduct the election in time. It would only create division among the alliance partners. It is high time that the eight parties must consolidate their unity, which alone would help complete the ongoing political process. Thus, the political parties and leaders, as observed by Speaker Nemwang, need to rise above the partisan interest and work together for the common cause of the nation. '

Source: The Rising Nepal, June 5, 2007

Achievements Of Last SAARC Summit

Sharad K. Shrestha

THE 14th SAARC Summit was held in New Delhi, India on April 3 ? 4, 2007. The Heads of State and Governments of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka took part in the Fourteenth SAARC Summit. The Heads of State or Government welcomed the entry of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan into SAARC. They reiterated their commitment to the principles and objectives noted in the SAARC Charter. It was agreed to build a partnership for prosperity and work towards shared economic cooperation, regional prosperity, a better life for the South Asian people and equitable distribution of benefits and opportunities of integration among the peoples and the nations.

Objectives

To meet the objectives enshrined in the Charter, first better connectivity within South Asia is vital and then with the remaining nations of the world. It was agreed to improve intra?regional connectivity, mainly physical, economic and people to people connectivity. Agreement was also there for the vision of a South Asian community having smooth flow of goods, services, peoples, technologies, knowledge, capital, culture and ideas in the region. It was recognized that the remarkable rise in economy of SAARC nations has created new opportunities to face poverty with great effort. There is a wide range of homegrown best practices and innovative solutions for transforming the lives of peoples in South Asia. It was decided to earmark one rural community as SAARC village in each Member State to showcase these innovative models of development in order to further replicate these across the region.Recognition was made on the implementation of the Social Charter with due attention. The National Coordination Committees (NCCS) were directed to formulate concrete programs and projects to complement national implementation efforts. The Heads of State or Government underscored that civil society organizations have an important role to play in driving forward the implementation of the Social Charter and directed the NCCS to mobilize these organizations for the achievement of this end. They praised the Independent South Asian Commission on Poverty Alleviation (ISACPA) for its elaboration of the SAARC Development Goals (SDGS). These goals reflect the regional determination for making quick progress towards achieving the Millenium Development Goals (MDGS). They also agreed that the national plans for poverty alleviation should appropriately mirror the regional concept in the form of the SDGS and the Plan of action on Poverty Alleviation. The two ? tier Mechanism on Poverty Alleviation was entrusted to monitor the progress and fine tune the approaches towards pro? poor growth process. The plus points of an Integrated Multi modal transport system was recognized in the region.

SAARC must move from declaratory to implementation phase for collaborative concrete and effective projects. The SAARC Development Fund (SDF) is an important pillar for bringing concrete benefits to the people of the region. Focus is made on the consistency of decision making and working of the fund with the charter. Priority is required for the early identification and implementation of regional and sub?regional projects under this fund. Early implementation of the recommendations of the second SAARC Energy Ministers' Meeting is required to enhance regional cooperation. Concerted efforts should be made to implement various initiatives under the SAARC Plan of Action on Environment due to the continued degradation of environment. Deep concern should be made over global climate change and the consequent rise in sea level and its impact on the lives and livelihoods in the region. It was agreed to commission a team of regional experts to identify collective actions in this matter. Agreement was made to take measures to facilitate rationalization of telecom tariff on a reciprocal basis. It was also agreed that national and regional telecom infrastructure should be upgraded to boost people to people connectivity in the region.Focus was made on the need for ensuring effective market access through smooth implementation of trade liberalization program. The SAFTA bodies were directed to review the progress on a regular basis. SAFTA should be implemented in letter and spirit. Its successful implementation will prove as catalyst to other areas of regional economic cooperation. To realize its full potential, SAFTA should integrate trade in services. A finalization of an agreement in the services sector should be made at the earliest. The agreement on Investment Promotion and Protection is also required to be finalized.

A comprehensive agreement on harmonizing customs procedures should be finalized. The SAARC Standards Coordination Board would function as a precursor to the SAARC Regional Standards Body. The framework of cooperation on financial issues in the region was finalized. People ? to ? people contact is a key constituent in regional connectivity. Annual SAARC festivals for cultural exchanges should be institutionalized. Scholarship Scheme in ICT and related areas need to be instituted. The South Asian University would be established in India through the signing of intergovernmental agreement. Intergovernmental Steering Committee would be set up at the earliest to complete its tasks related to the Charter, by Laws, rules and regulations curriculum development, business plans and other issues. On educational matters, cooperation and dialogue would be strengthened. Regional projects should focus on women and children related issues. Women's empowerment should be a major objective of regional cooperation. Countries of South Asia must work together to deal with the challenges of poverty, disease, natural disasters and to monsoon for the region's prosperity. The SAARC Food Bank will supplement national efforts to provide food security to the people of nations of South Asia. South Asian Agriculture must benefit from collaborative efforts within and among SAARC nations in developing an effective agriculture research, extension and farmers' linkages and exchanges of farm technology.

While urging continued efforts to combat terrorism, the Heads of State or Government also called for urgent conclusion of a comprehensive convention on International Terrorism. It was agreed to work on the modalities to implement the provisions of the existing SAARC conventions to combat terrorism, narcotics and psychotropic substances, trafficking in women and children and other trans ? national crimes. India took initiative to prepare a draft of SAARC convention on mutual assistance in criminal matters and Sri Lanka offered to hold a meeting of legal advisors to examine the idea of a draft convention, before the second meeting of SAARC Interior/Home Ministers scheduled to be held in October 2007 in India. Regular follow up and implementation of the decisions taken should be ensured. Tackling CorruptionIt was agreed to exchange information on national experience in combating corruption as an issue of serious concern. All members of WTO should show commitment for a successful conclusion of the Doha Round. The region would benefit from the participation of China, EU, Japan, ROK and the USA as observers to SAARC and help its economic integration with the international community. Iran was also welcomed to be associated as observer to SAARC. All the member nations should work jointly for the successful implementation of the declarations made in this summit. Let us hope for the success of the 15th SAARC Summit Meeting to be held in Maldives.

Source: The Rising Nepal, June 5, 2007

New Basis For Unity : Rescheduled Time For CA Polls

Yuba Nath Lamsal

THE cloud hovering in Nepal's political landscape has now been clear with the consensual decision among the constituents of seven-party alliance and the Maoists regarding the election to a constituent assembly. There should be no doubt from any quarters about the intention of the government in holding the constituent assembly election in a free and fair manner.

Agreement

The government, of course, failed to hold the elections in mid-June this year as it was politically agreed right from the signing of the comprehensive national peace agreement between the government and the Maoists that formally ended the decade long-Maoist armed insurgency. The basis of all political agreements and understandings between the seven-party alliance and the Maoists was the constituent assembly election. Thus, it was also mentioned in the interim constitution to hold the constituent assembly election by mid-June. Failure to hold the election by mid-June is not only a violation of the interim constitution but also a breach of the political understanding and basis of unity among the eight parties.

Delay in holding the constituent assembly has been attributed to various factors. However, it was the slow pace of the government in taking decision is the prime cause for the delay as all the political decisions were not taken on scheduled time that were necessary for the timely election. Be it the promulgation of the interim constitution, formation of the interim parliament, management of arms or formation of Maoist included interim government, all processes were delayed. Given the delay in taking political decisions in time as per the agreement reached early that set specific schedule for every decision, it appeared as though the major constituents of the seven-party alliance were not prepared and willing to hold elections. The reason is obvious as these parties were not confident of their position in the constituent assembly election.

The external factor has always played a crucial role in Nepal's political and other decisions. The international community has always been supportive for democratic movement and social and economic development. Be it the political changes in 1951, 1990 or 2006, the international support and influence was important. The 2006 April Uprising, which forced the king to bow down in 19 days, would not have been successful in such a short time without the strong support from the internationals community and friends. For this, Nepalese people are thankful to the international community and friends of Nepal.

However, the role played by some foreign powers especially after the success of the Jana Andolan II has been unfortunate for Nepal and Nepalese people. Some foreign powers do not appear content with the emerging political equation in Nepal and growing influence of the leftist forces in general and the Maoists in particular. The foreign powers want a rightist alliance to contain the leftist forces in Nepal. It has been agreed that the first meeting of the constituent assembly would decide the fate of the monarchy. Given the current mood of the people nationwide, it seems that the constituent assembly would declare the nation a republic. The rightist and feudal elements that have thrived in Nepal for over 238 years under the protection and patronage of the monarchy will have to wash off their hand from political, administrative and military power if monarchy was abolished. This force is now seeking interference from the external forces so that the rightist forces can retain their existence in Nepal. At the same time, these elements are trying to create chaos and uncertainty in order to thwart the process of constituent assembly election on the one hand and seeking foreign interference on the other with the hope that delay in constituent assembly polls would given them time to regroup and sabotage the entire process. The external forces are acting at the behest of the feudal and rightist elements to sabotage the new political and peace process in Nepal which is a main reason in the delay regarding the constituent assembly elections.

This is interference in the internal affairs of Nepal, which is unfortunate and condemnable as it is against the normal diplomatic norms and values. More unfortunate is the attitude of some of our political parties that seek foreign interference to go to power and retain it. This attitude of the political parties is an insult to the sovereign people. All political parties, irrespective of their ideology and political leaning, must be united on national issues and guard collectively against any kind of attempts from anywhere to interfere in our national affairs. Nepalese people are capable enough to decide their own affairs so that political forces need to settle their differences and take decisions on political affairs on their own for the larger interest of the nation and the people. The tendency of seeking external influence and interference in Nepal's affairs for the partisan interest would ultimately put the national sovereignty at stake, which we have seen in several countries both at our next door and beyond.

Now the eight parties have agreed to hold the constituent assembly election by November this year and it must be held within the rescheduled time. The constituent assembly election is directly linked to the political and peace process that began after the success of the Jana Andolan II. The political and peace process would not be complete until the constituent assembly election is held that would restructure the state, ensure a genuine inclusive democracy and establish sustainable peace in the country.

Basis

The Maoist chairman Prachanda has repeatedly said that the basis of the unity between the seven-party alliance and the Maoists is the decision to hold the constituent assembly election by mid-June 2007. Since the constituent assembly election is not going to be held in mid-June, the basis of unity between the seven party alliance and the Maoist has been broken. Thus, the Maoist chairman has sought a new basis for unity. In the present context, the unity of the eight parties must be kept intact in order to safeguard the achievements of the Jana Andolan II and complete the political and peace process. Thus, eight parties need to make the rescheduled dates for the constituent assembly elections a new basis of unity and work in a collective and cooperative manner to complete the political process.

Source: The Rising Nepal, June 5, 2007

Unfair deal

The promise of 10 percent free energy to Nepal from the 750-megawatt West Seti hydroelectric project, awarded to Australia's Snowy Mountain Engineering Corp (SMEC) a decade ago, has turned out to be a hoax. Clauses in the agreement between the government and SMEC, which was kept a secret from the public, deprive the country of any free energy, and even give rise to a distinct possibility of no benefit to Nepal at all. The government put West Seti project on fast track stating the project would provide 75 megawatts of free energy to Nepal. That was the original arrangement with SMEC, and that was what the government as well as the project's developer had been saying in public. However, a renegotiated deal does not require SMEC to give Nepal any free power. Instead, SMEC is required to pay the country in cash, that too only in the event it has money after paying back its debt participants, and bearing its operational cost. This is sheer treason.

SMEC took a decade to bring the storage-type project to the construction stage since signing a project agreement in 1997 to develop and operate the project for thirty years. In other words, SMEC got hold of the project without having the ability to fund it. A decade down the line, SMEC has convinced four countries and two international banks in areas of investment, construction, insurance, and transmission. It has also made an arrangement to sell all power generated from the project to India through PTC India Ltd. If Nepal is getting no free energy, and if the cash benefit is also uncertain, why is the government hell-bent on re-awarding the project to SMEC, despite the length of time it has spent without laying even the foundation stone for the project. Signing an agreement that will put at risk any benefit Nepal might get from a project is totally unacceptable. Therefore, the agreement the government has with SMEC is totally unfair.

The government, therefore, should initiate an impartial investigation to figure out officials involved in signing and renewing such suicidal agreement with SMEC. When it comes to deals on big infrastructure projects, Nepali officials have always failed in the negotiating table. This has to be ended once and for all. The least that the country demands is that our negotiators uphold national interest. A mistake that will leave Nepal regretting for thirty years is the last thing we need now. There is no question of re-awarding the project to the developer if Nepal's rightful benefit from the project is not ensured. The best way to ensure that benefit is through an arrangement for free power, and not through the tricky course of cash benefit.

Source: The Kathmandu Post, June 5, 2007