Quest for guarantee

Amid the national debate on whether to declare the country a republic through the interim parliament, Nepali Congress president and Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala has ruled out this possibility, at least till the CA polls. Addressing the concluding session of the national workshop of the NC district presidents in the capital on Monday, Koirala said, “A republic will not materialise just because somebody speaks for it, or I speak for it.” He called the republic a “gradual process”, and saw the beginning of the practice of foreign ambassadors to Nepal presenting their credentials to the PM as a step in the reduction process of the royal powers. Alleging that there has been much manoeuvring in the name of republic, he asked the Congressites to think how the “international community” would look at the NC if it now jumped on the republican bandwagon. The “opacity and misuse” of funds received from foreign organisations for the four-day workshop were also criticised.

The workshop passed a dozen resolutions, including the call for a special general convention of the party to shape the Congress stand on the monarchy. The party’s 11th general convention, breaking with its original allegiance to constitutional monarchy, had chosen to remain secular on the issue of monarchy by purging its statute of any mention of monarchy. An overwhelming majority of the district presidents had spoken in favour of a republican order. Even now, the Congress, like any other party, has every right to support “ceremonial” or “constitutional” monarchy or stand for a republican order. Even within the NC, strong pressure is visible for a clear party position on the issue without much delay, as testified by the district presidents’ workshop. There are royalists, republicans and even fence-sitters in the Congress. However, Koirala said the party would make its stance clear when the need arose.

The NC president seems to be taking a policy of wait and watch towards the monarchy, letting things take their course, without the NC doing anything about it. His “international community” bit may give the impression that things are not ripe yet for a republican order as far as their green signal is concerned. Political analysts may make various interpretations of the Congress’s present policy, but a sizable number of them also link it to the fear of the Leftist dominance in politics thereafter. Whatever the contribution of the various factors, it is incumbent on Koirala to speed things up, including fixing a date, in preparation for the CA polls. For this, he has to win the confidence of the seven other parties in the alliance. Because once Koirala failed to keep his date with the polls, it may also be necessary to provide doubting alliance partners with a guarantee that there will not be another postponement of the polls. In the meantime, he has to convince the agitating MPs of the need to let the House proceedings resume to finish urgent businesses. This includes the second amendment to the Constitution as agreed upon, incorporating the genuine ones of the demands of the various agitating groups in the country.

Source: The Himalayan Times, May 9, 2007

Federalism New Exercise In Nepalese Polity

Dr. Panna Kaji Amatya

Federalism is a prominent system of government emerging in the world today. It accounts for more than one half of the world?s territory and population. It is increasingly and favourably being discussed and debated more and more in many a country, much more so in culturally, racially, linguistically, religiously and crisis-prone diverse and plural countries like Nepal. A state once federated is rarely found to break up. On the contrary, there are many examples of unitary states either disappearing or splitting.

National aspirations

As a unitary Nepal fails to meet the broad national aspirations, centrifugal forces are growing as a consequence of that failure. So, a nation-wide demand is being made to end the exploitive unitary system and set up a federal system in Nepal. As a result of the new awakening of the various ethnic, racial, religious, indigenous, excluded, marginalised and language communities scattered across the country, the people, during the Second Movement launched for the re-restoration of democracy in 2006, revolted against the excessive centralisation of power and their exclusion from sharing of power for an intolerably long time.That the unitary system, if imposed and continued as in the past, will sure enough augur ill for the nation has been widely talked about. However, sadly enough, the political parties and their leaders have no clear-cut agenda in this regard. They have merely included a non-committal provision in the Interim Constitution, which says: ?The Constituent Assembly will decide on the nature of the federal system.?

The failure of the rulers to clearly plant the seeds of federation in the Interim Constitution of Nepal roused the excluded and marginalised people to exasperation, frustration and fury. They felt that they had been badly done by. It was only in the wake of the paralysing movement by them, particularly in the Terai, that the coalition government of the seven political parties and the CPN-Maoists were forced to amend the Interim Constitution towards their ?commitment? to establish a federal polity in Nepal through the constitution to be made by the Constituent Assembly. Now, the question naturally arises: ?What does federalism mean? Defining federalism is a very difficult task, for this difficulty is heightened by the wide functional differences witnessed in the various federally structured polities in the world and by big gaps between theory and practice of federalism. Thus, federalism has become different things to different persons. Simply put, federalism is a system of government in which power is divided by a written and relatively rigid constitution between a central, national or federal government and regional, provincial or state governments. Under it, national and state governments are, more or less, equally powerful.

Federalism, understood so, refers to a political system characterised by two levels of government, with each deriving its power and functions from a supreme authority which is not controlled by either level and which, in turn, controls both the levels. That authority is the constitution of the union. The generally recognised principle of federalism is that there is the explicit division of powers between the national and regional governments. Whatever concerns the nation as a whole or whatever is primarily of common interest is under the control of the national government, and all other matters which are not concerned with the centre are in the domain of the respective regional governments, each level of government being coordinate and independent. If looked at federation as preached and practised in the United States, the best example of a federal government, the powers to be exercised by the national government and regional governments are specified. The residuary powers are left to the latter, which contrasts with countries like Canada and India where the residue is left to the national governments.

Equally important in this regard is the question ?Why is a federation formed?? For the formation of a federation, K. C. Wheare affirms, there are some prerequisites such as the desire of the regional units to be under a union and the desire to retain or establish independent regional governments. If one follows him further, other factors that lead to the federation are a sense of military insecurity and the consequent need for common defence; a desire to be independent of foreign powers; anticipation of economic advantage; geographical proximity; and similarity of political institutions. Traditionally, such a federal state is formed by an association of independent states federating themselves for some common purposes. Such practice was in existence in ancient Greece. The United States is the first modern country to constitutionally introduce federalism. It is the best model for other countries adopting this system or willing to adopt it. The US federalism is the most successful experiment in the community of nations. Most of the federal polities took inspiration from this model though they had to adjust and modify this system in accordance with their own national requirements. However, it has become a dynamic process rather than a static concept. US federalism has undergone remarkable changes in its nature and characteristics, the most important among them being the progressively increasing power of the national government.

In the case of the USA and Switzerland, the confederation preceded the federation. Today it cannot be properly understood on the basis of such traditional approach to federation, despite the relevance of its views and contention, and contribution to the development of the process of federation. On the other hand, the Nepalese federation to be instituted will be a different process similar to that of Spain and Belgium. In the USA and Switzerland, the constituent states become the federating units, but in Nepal, the state itself, till now all-powerful, independent, sovereign, centralised and unitary, will create its federating units and make a federal state there. The federation may be an effective means for the preservation and promotion of the interests of the geographically, socially, economically and politically disadvantaged, excluded and marginalised people. It also gives them opportunities to get themselves organised to assert their rights and contribute to the development of the nation and its politics. Therefore, arguments that the federation is expensive and complicated should by no means discourage the people from shying away from forming it. Its advantages are more worth than its disadvantages.

There is no reason to ignore and criticise it simply because it may be incongruous with the tradition. Judging by what unitary Nepal has been doing till recently, one may conclude that the unitary system is not a better system for Nepal or for good governance. In reality, federation means more governance throughout the country through constituent units and less government from the centre.Therefore, the people should by all means and to the extent possible keep debates going on regarding the theory and practice of federalism, particularly with regard to the nature of the federal structure in Nepal. The most important factor, which should never be ignored, is the adoption of the co-operative model of federation in contrast to the classical ?dualistic? model under which the powers of the national and regional governments are constitutionally distributed on the basis of localism vs. centrism notion. The co-operative model implies the existence of two levels of governments, both of which are equal partners, not equal rivals, with one government not being subordinate to the other.

Visionary leaders

However, merely talking about federalism continuously and harping on the same string is not enough. The initiation of a federal polity entails the presence of leaders who have the vision and mission to translate it into reality. Federalism to be successful requires national leaders, not mere leaders of the political parties or just sectional leaders recognised by only their cronies as we see it today. It is not wide off the mark if one says that under the unitary system there have always been governments by cronyism since the creation of modern Nepal. One may reasonably hope that federalism, once introduced, will give birth to the emergence of true national leaders with a vision of a better Nepal. This is the crying need of Nepal.

Source: The Rising Nepal, May 7, 2007

A Step Forward

IT is a welcome sign that the government talks team has initiated dialogue with the various agitating groups. The first meeting has been with the Nepal Federation of Indigenous Nationalities (NFIN). This shows that the government has kept its door open for negotiations. It may be worthwhile remembering that the various groups putting forth their demands had resorted to protests through bandhs and demonstrations. Seeing that the government is sincere about discussing and resolving their demands, the talks have begun. It is not that the first meeting itself will lead to the settlement of the demands but that it has begun is an indication that in the next few rounds of talks, appropriate solutions will emerge. The meeting with the NFIN held the other day discussed the modalities of the future talks. Dwelling on the talks, Minister for Peace and Reconstruction Ram Chandra Poudel said that the focus of the talks centred on the processes for the next round of dialogue. It is noteworthy that the NFIN has agreed to continue the dialogue. Minister Poudel also said that the government was ready to negotiate with all the agitating groups, including the Madhesi People's Rights Forum. He also urged all the concerned to make efforts to sort out problems for the cause of the nation, people and democracy.

This is certainly a bright lining in that talks with one of the agitating groups has begun in earnest. The government talks team also has meetings with other agitating groups lined up in the days ahead. This is very crucial in creating a conducive atmosphere in the country for the constituent assembly polls to be held in a free manner. The past months have seen disturbances in some parts of the country, which has made the life of the people difficult. Now the situation may change for the better with the agitating groups willing to sit for talks with the government. With positive indications coming from them, it can be hoped the next few weeks will be able to see some positive changes, with the contentious issues raised by the various groups being discussed and amicable solutions emerging. In this connection, the government well knows that the various demands put forth by the groups need to be resolved so that it will lead the country forward towards the goal of all-inclusive democracy and lasting peace.

Source: The Rising Nepal, May 7, 2007

US Proposal And Its Initial Repercussions

Kazi Gautam

THE US proposal of resettlement for the Bhutanese refugees has been highly anticipated as it is expected to bring about a durable solution to the refugee impasse. Although it cannot give a permanent solution to the issue, however, it is expected to improve the refugees' lives up to some extent. Nevertheless, the formal announcement of the US scheme has invited serious predicaments that need to be addressed at the earliest. It has particularly created a faction among the refugees, thus, creating enmity between each other.ConsequencesIt was a near miss for Hari Prasad Adhikari-Bangaley, secretary of Beldangi II camp when he managed to evade the attack of an unidentified armed assailant on April 10. It's been almost a year since he started to live in Damak due to numerous attacks that were intended to kill him since he started advocating the US resettlement plan.

In another similar incident, Parsu Ram Dahal of Timai refugee camp was abducted and released by an unidentified group. A few months back, three of the refugee teachers of Beldangi 1 camp were severely beaten up.Following the official proclamation of the proposal of the US to begin from July 1, the refugee population has been divided into three groups: one which has welcomed the US plan, another group against it and the last group of those who are still ambivalent about accepting or rejecting the resettlement scheme. There have been clashes and scuffles between the first two groups that have eventually invited inestimable seen and unseen squabbles. There is an eerie silence in the camps that has tormented the refugees' lives. The refugees must be always alert and be on their guard for fear of getting attacked any time.

Though everyone is aware of the criminal activities that have been terrorising the refugees, no steps have been taken so far to guarantee a secure life for them. Neither the UNHCR nor the Nepalese government has been able to check the internal security system in the camps. Given the dispute between the first two groups, the refugees have been found attacking members of the rival group, thus, afflicting those innocents that don't belong to any of these camps. On the other hand, there exists a cold relationship between the refugees and the locals. The former are mistreated and tortured by the latter off and on. They are chastised and intimidated even for small things. The scuffle between the refugees and the local forestry officials on February 22 this year took the life of Gopal Khadka, a refugee from Sanischarey refugee camp. Because the refugees cannot survive with the meagre commodities supplied to them, it becomes necessary for them to go out of the camp to earn money. This results in quarrels between the locals and the refugees, which eventually benefits none.

The US seems committed to resettling the Bhutanese refugees in its land in the next few years. It has already begun the process by working towards the establishment of an overseas processing entity in Jhapa and Kathmandu. It has also begun to counsel the refugees tacitly. Some other countries as well have shown immense interests towards sharing the burden.However, the prime importance to be carried out without further ado is to provide a secure life to the refugees. There must not be any sort of threat, and there should not be any danger to the refugees. The Camp Management Committee (CMC) and the committee that looks after the internal security system in the camp and the secretaries of the camps have not succeeded in providing security to the refugees as they have been threatened very often by unidentified people.

The police check posts responsible for providing security in the refugee camps do not exist now. Anyone can walk into the camps very easily. If immediate steps are not taken to check the security in the refugee camps, several serious incidents could arise, thus, pushing the situation out of control.Hence, there are certain things that must be addressed before the US begins the process. First, the confusion among the refugees as regards the resettlement scheme must be cleared. There is a large portion of the refugee population that is unaware of the proposal. Also, a peaceful and conducive environment must be created in the refugee camps so that the refugees feel free to decide about choosing the option at hand.The second important thing that deserves special attention is making public the state of those refugees who have been recently resettled in some western countries. Till date nothing is known to the refugees regarding their present condition.

Third, every refugee needs more information. With a paucity of information as regards the terms and conditions to be faced by the refugees, and also the western culture and lifestyle, the American proposal still looks like an enigma, and the refugees are ambivalent about accepting it. So before the establishment of an overseas processing entity, the necessary information should be made public.RepatriationThe next point that deserves mention is that majority of the refugees have been waiting to get repatriated. Failing to address their interests would be a hindrance towards the peaceful beginning of the resettlement programme.The last urgent step to be taken by the concerned authorities is to check the internal security system in the refugee camps. The fact is also that the insidious effect of the present camp activities would surely turn out to be a serious impediment to the resettlement process. A failure to find an amicable approach could prove a serious blow to the US.

Source: The Rising Nepal, May 7, 2007

Global Partnership For Development

Lok Nath Bhusal

Nepal's future course of development critically hinges on the materialisation of the commitments made in the Millennium Development Goals by the development partners. Drawn from the Millennium Declaration of September 2000, the MDGs are a groundbreaking international development agenda for the 21st century. With the aim of bringing peace, security and development to all people, the MDGs, having eight goals and 48 indicators, outline major development priorities to be achieved by 2015 by the UN member states. Indeed, on the part of developing economies like Nepal, achievement of the first seven goals - eradicating extreme poverty and hunger, achieving universal primary education, promoting gender equality and empowering women, reducing child mortality, improving maternal health, combatting HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases, and ensuring environmental sustainability - largely depends on the accomplishment of the eighth goal, i.e., Developing a Global Partnership for Development.

Institutional reformsThis is because in most of the developing economies, there is a wide gap between revenue and expenditure. Nepal's MDGs Progress Report 2005 states that external assistance totalling US$ 7.6 billion is necessary to meet the first seven goals. Obviously, increased focus on debt relief and development cooperation through more effective aid are crucial to financing development. Having said that, the present article outlines major achievements and shortcomings in the area of institutional reforms in Nepal essential to attract foreign aid. As a precondition for increased foreign assistance, Nepal's commitment to an open economy, good governance and poverty reduction are some of the major achievements. This is apparent from the objectives and strategies of the three successive plans following the 1990 political change. These plans have clearly allowed market-based economic growth, set poverty reduction as the single goal and unveiled a systematic arrangement to institute good governance.

Reduction, restructuring and rationalisation of import duties, elimination of most of the quantitative restrictions and import licensing requirements, interest rates deregulation, and introduction of full convertibility for current account transactions have been the major reforms in the trade and financial fronts. Consequently, the unweighted average rate of protection has declined from 111 per cent in 1989 to 22 per cent in 1993, and to 14 per cent in 2002, clearly indicating a liberal economy.Furthermore, in terms of trade to GDP ratio, for 1984/85 it was 31.9 per cent whereas it was 50 per cent in 2003/04, suggesting Nepal to be the most open and trade dependant economy in South Asia. Likewise, a number of innovative approaches have been initiated to making the civil service responsive, efficient, accountable and inclusive to ensure good governance. Elimination of 7,334 vacant positions and putting a cap on recruiting class III and class IV non-gazetted staff have been carried out to right-sizing the bureaucracy.

Likewise, institutional reforms in the central personnel agency, the Public Service Commission, CIAA and the National Vigilance Centre are underway to make the bureaucracy more efficient, accountable and corruption-free. Indeed, with the enactment of the Local Self-Governance Act 1999, Nepal has taken major strides towards decentralisation and, thus, poverty reduction. As a result, the local bodies have improved their performance owing to their better preparedness with the periodic plans, technical capacity, operating systems and operational processes.In order to upgrade the judicial capacity and resources for enhancing justice delivery, the judiciary has prepared a strategic plan to link the judiciary with the national planning process. The plan envisions a system of justice that is independent, competent, speedy, inexpensive, accessible, ethical and worthy of public trust. All these reforms are intended towards improving governance and, thus, making it more pro-poor. Eventually, these reform initiatives meet the basic conditions for global partnership for development.

A number of shortcomings in the realm of governance and economic and trade reforms still persist in creating a conducive environment to attract more foreign aid. First, the sluggish progress in the piloted performance-based management system, owing to inadequate fulltime staff, poor management, funding and facilities in the changed management units in the public institutions, has been a major setback to the reform process. Also, transfers, promotions and the distribution of other career development opportunities within the civil service have yet to be institutionalised. Second, the conflict has forced many VDC secretaries to abandon their posts, curtailing development activities and taking a toll of the decentralisation process. Again, although theoretically politicians and bureaucrats seem to agree on greater decentralisation, in practice, the centre has always been reluctant to do away with its powers to carry out any meaningful decentralisation. Third, the lowly paid public servants and deteriorating ethics and integrity are major challenges to fighting rampant corruption. Essentially, judicial reforms and FDI inflow have a positive relationship.

Additionally, on the economic front, too, deregulation of state monopolies, privatisation and financial sector reforms have been disastrously slow. Again, our efforts at realising the notion that aid should promote trade have not materialised to the desired extent. Obviously, these shortcomings contain our potential for attracting more foreign resources.Economic diplomacyTo conclude, in an era of economic diplomacy, increased foreign assistance is extremely crucial for undertaking development activities in Nepal. Despite some achievements made in the economic and governance reforms for meeting the preconditions for such assistance, further deep-rooted reforms are required to benefit from foreign aid. Indeed, as part of a global development strategy, Nepal will be in a position to attract more aid and stride towards accelerated socio-economic development in the future. Broadly, such aid money should be spent on reconstruction, rehabilitation and infrastructure development, peace and meeting people's basic human rights, gender and social inclusion and better service delivery. Indeed, Nepal must work hard for better alignment of assistance strategies, receiving increased budget support and harmonisation of assistance and procedures, and ultimately focus on better results.

Source: The Rising Nepal, May 7, 2007

Poor man’s pal

The pay of the 93 attorneys appointed by the court — from the Supreme Court to the district level — to fight on behalf of the litigants too poor to hire lawyers on their own is shamefully low, even for a part-time job. For half a century, the practice has existed of hiring legal practitioners, called appointed attorneys in the court circles, on contract for up to two years. There are two categories of them — the pleaders who are required to possess no more than a Proficiency Certificate in Law get only Rs. 2, 000 per month and the advocates who have to possess a Bachelor’s degree in Law, only Rs. 2, 500. This, too, after their salary increase of Rs. 500 in January.

These attorneys are recognised as civil servants and get much less than even the basic salary of a peon, that stands at Rs. 3, 700 per month. And they are supposed to be defending the rights of the poor people in all three tiers of the judiciary while private practitioners charging individually for the cases make an incredibly high income, not to talk of those whose monthly pickings run to lakhs of rupees.This raises several questions. One is that though the government may say it has looked after the interests of the poor litigants, in practice it amounts to doing so only for the sake of form. On such a salary, who would be willing to take a job other than fresh, often hard-pressed, graduates with just a licence in hand to plead? When they are just completing their ‘internship’ their contract lapses, bringing in a new crop of young people barely out of college. It is also questionable that these attorneys can do full justice to the cases they take up, with experienced, high-charging lawyers arrayed on the other side of the dock. It is also time a study was made of the success rate of the ‘poor cases’ undertaken under the government’s free legal service. But, whether the government may decide to appoint experienced or raw people as attorneys, though the latter would clearly be preferable, the salaries must at least be respectable.

Even more galling is the fact that the Cabinet fixes or changes these salaries. Though the concept behind the system may not be a full-time one, the nature of the job undoubtedly is. For instance, an attorney at the Supreme Court is reported to have dealt with 160 cases in a year. The plight of the appointed attorneys also raises a moral question for the government: How can it expect others in society to honour the minimum wage principle while it itself metes out such an injustice, of all people to those supposed to defend the citizens’ rights. However, a silver lining for these hapless attorneys is a report prepared and recently submitted by a committee headed by apex court judge Anup Raj Sharma. The report recommends treating pleaders as section officers and advocates as under-secretaries. Besides, as the job is contractual, the attorneys are deprived of all the perks and facilities given to regular employees. Because of this it would not be unfair at all if these attorneys received a salary only slightly more than the basic pay of their confirmed counterparts.

Source: The Himalayan Times, May 7, 2007

State restructuring: A case for policy choice

Bishwambher Pyakuryal

Nepal is not the only country that faces challenges of restructuring the state. Over the last decade, more than 150,000 large enterprises in 27 transition countries have encountered such revolutionary changes in their political and economic environments. Restructuring is both the quantitative and qualitative change in socio-political, cultural and economic structures. It is a challenging task since restructuring is also linked to globalisation, characterised as the internationalisation of socio-economic phenomenon.The ideal case for restructuring should involve distinct sequencing. The initial question is the forces and constraints for change — the Why? Secondly, it is the paradigm shift required — the What. Thirdly, it is the implementation process — the How, and finally, it is the problems awaiting solution — What is next? Nepal’s restructuring should revolve around these sequences.

The global experience has shown that the escalation of risk is higher if peace is temporarily restored through conflict prevention without simultaneously focusing on economic reforms. Even accelerated growth is meaningful only when it is sustained. The possibility of sustaining growth arises when political reform is backed by socio-economic adjustments. This is necessary since it takes time to transform fragile institutions with illegitimate power structures into peacetime institutions that intend to promote socio-economic interactions among all the actors of development. The vulnerability of externally orchestrated state restructuring should be assessed, especially with regard to the varying capacities of state systems to cope with regional and global forces.

Studies have shown that the fact that the majority of the people do not bother to vote was the reflection of their inability to influence decisions. In Nepal, a field-based study reveals that the government was too far to understand people’s everyday life. People’s hardships were not realised even after the ceasefire. The local communities and vulnerable groups were not included in the decision-making institutions. This is the reason why the majority of the affected communities believe that it is not possible to influence the government and the parties without exerting unconstitutional methods. The post-conflict Nepal should guarantee uninterrupted power of the people to exercise their authority without fear. This is based on the core concept of power that power can change and expand. Power and power relationship can change indicating that if power does not change, empowerment is not possible. Establishing such system may avoid the possibility of today’s majority remaining as tomorrow’s majority.

Accommodating social, economic and political indicators into a composite index of empowerment develops Nepal’s human empowerment index. Out of the three, the political empowerment index is 0.406, which is the highest compared to the other two. As political empowerment has not rescued the people from wider income inequality, there is a risk to interpret higher voter turnout and candidacies per seat in local election as the only indicator of overall development. The restructuring under the proposed federal structure should, therefore, consider recognising local preferences, needs and constraints by accommodating socio-economic and political factors. The analysis of such inter-linkages and execution of interdisciplinary policies is important to restructure conventional assumptions. The policy under federalism should seek to find out what is that justifiable extent of inequality that the individuals would accept.

Most Janajatis and Dalits fall below national average and well below the Brahmins, Chhetris and Newars. Although some Janajatis such as Gurungs, Magars, Rais , Sherpas and Thankali are better off in terms of education and income, but less empowered in joining the civil service. An assessment of inequality and formulation of policies should be the priority. The big challenge is the institutional reforms that will have measurable effects on improving the status of the target populations. Promoting civil self-governance is the fundamental form of democracy. The objective of civil self-governance is to enhance local decision-making and extend range of services to strengthen the future of local democracy. New electoral arrangements are needed for making it easier to vote locally and restructure the ways in which local elected bodies operate. The community should be aware about who is making decisions.Democracy should not be aligned with a single indicator. For the economists, if maintaining macro-economic stability was possible through democracy, the question is why democracy could not then reduce poverty and inequality? Federalism should, therefore, be designed to achieve a greater degree of integration based on a combination of self-rule and shared-rule to justify the continuation of agreed principles of democracy.

Source: The Himalayan Times, May 7, 2007

YCL challenge

Whether or not the Maoist leadership accepts it, the Young Communist League (YCL) can make or break the party, CPN (Maoist). Soon after its inception by comrade Prachanda on February 1 this year, the Maoist leadership has been hell bent to impose YCL in every aspect of people's life. The leadership is not willing to hear anything against the highhandedness and illegal acts their youths are being involved in. Comrade Prachanda even roared from various podiums that the media was trying to pose YCL as terrorists. It is understandable that the Maoist leadership does not wish to irate the YCL because it is comprised of not only militiamen and supporters but also the guerrillas who have been deliberately kept out of the cantonments. The only thing they have failed to understand is, if so many of the young people remain unemployed, and without any source of income, they are destined to become corrupt and disillusioned by the ideology.

Prachanda and Baburam have conceded many a time in their interviews that their party had been overwhelmed by the new members at a point of time, when goons, gangsters, hooligans and mobsters all entered into the party. The criminals and opportunists did so to take benefit of the party's strength to terrorize and extort the general public. Now the same thing has happened to YCL and they are acting innocent. In the name of expanding the party network, the YCL leaders have welcomed local gangsters with open arms. So, knowingly or unknowingly, the YCL has attempted to provide security umbrellas to all sorts of criminals and local goons. The direct interference in people's lives, the illegitimate attempt to discipline the public, forceful takeover of others' property, encroachment in revenue collection mechanism et al have made the Maoists unpopular. At the same time, the seven-party leaders and foreign forces have been apprehensive that they (Maoists) are creating a parallel government and attempting a forceful takeover.

Not that the YCL members are involved only in wrongdoings. They have been involved in many positive aspects like cleaning localities, cleaning rivers, planting trees, managing traffic etc. And they are also into somewhat debatable works like widening of the roads, demolishing houses, mediating in social feuds etc. If the Maoist leadership really wishes to make YCL popular among the people, it has to segregate the criminal elements from the League. The criminal elements will leave the party if they are devoid of the opportunity to extort money. In order to do so, the YCL should be employed only in pure social works, which will heighten the image of the party among the public and the criminal elements will also slip off from the League. Moreover, the income and expenditure of the League should be transparent so as to win the heart and mind of the people.

Source: The Kathmandu Post, May 6, 2007

Maoists all set for action replay

Dina Nath Mishra

It would have surprised me if Maoists of Nepal had not behaved as they behaved in the first week of May 2007. A small group of Nepalese policemen was surrounded by hundreds of Maoist gorillas at night in Suiya village in mid-western market district of Bankey and the ill armed policemen were taken captive. They smashed doors and windows and torched furniture. They were lead by a local Maoist leader Nand Kishore Pandey. It revived memories of days before peace pact of November 2006. This attack left Nepal in tatters and raised doubts over the success of India and UN aided peace process.

It may be recalled that the peace treaty was signed by seven political parties and the Maoists in November 2006. Maoist violence has continued in Nepal for about a decade. Only on April 1, 2007 Maoists joined the Government in Nepal and within a month on May 1, 2007 Maoist president Prachand thundered that they would burst in the Cabinet, in the Parliament, on the streets and also into the cantonment. They demanded that Nepal be declared Republic immediately else they would start urban-centre agitation and bring about the rule of the labours to demolish the monarchy. The May 1 rally and attack by the Maoist gorillas happened on the same day. They did it to make the threat look real, but Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala's establishment did not take it seriously.

The Koirala Government's response to the Maoists demands look reasonable. It said that it is only the Constituent Assembly, can declare Nepal a Republic, his Government is not empowered to do so. Let elections be held and let the elected Constituent Assembly declare as they decide and deem fit but the Marxists have adopted the policy of brow beat and dictate. They have their own agenda. Those who have even little knowledge of Marxist history can hardly believe in Maoists intentions of entering into the peace treaty. Marxists of any variety CPI, CPM, Naxalites, Maoists in India or anywhere in the world believe in violence. In West Bengal, they killed large number of Congress leaders. In Kerala they killed hundreds of Sangh Parivar workers and the killings still continue. The Nandigram massacre too continues. They adopt joint front strategy and then start marginalisation of their allies by any means including violence. Umpteen numbers of examples may be cited from the history. In fact anywhere in the world, this strategy has been worked out. Now the same is being practiced in Nepal.

The UN in Nepal has been established at the request of the Government and the Maoists for the peace process and disarming Maoist gorillas. The first phase of disarming them is over. Still, Maoists possess high quality armaments, as these have not been fully deposited in the cantonment under UN observer. The Maoists complain of ill maintained cantonments and put pre-conditions to hoodwink Nepal and the UN. They want early elections as they believe that with the help of gorillas they would out number the political parties. The UN in its report has said that a little delay in holding elections would not be a disaster. Meanwhile, problems of deprived people may be addressed, that is the problems of Madhesis. In terms of population Madhesis account for about 50 per cent. Their contribution to the revenues of Nepal is much more than proportionate. Most of them are not Nepali citizens. Their representation in Army, police and Government establishments is negligible. They are the most neglected in Nepal.

Recently Madhesis revolted against their poor conditions. Most of the political leadership, which is responsible for their plight, is now lending their ears. Their independent leaders have risen to the occasion and they look more united. Meanwhile, the UN has said in its report that their grievances and demands may be addressed before elections. This reason alone may take a lot of time but unless it is done, including settling the question of citizenship, no worthwhile representation of these people is going to be there. As far as the monarch is concerned, he has been stripped of his powers. In no way is he a threat to the present establishment. Declaring Nepal a Republic at this stage appears to be the Maoists alibi for an agitation. Unless the Maoists are fully disarmed and the elections are free and fair, the UN is bound to fail in its objectives. But Maoists are not in a mood to listen to the reason.
The US annual report on nations has declared the Napali Maoists as a terrorist organization. Their terrorist activities are still fresh in the minds of the people. General public has gone cynical. The Maoists are a terrorist group and they can't lead democratically. The UN has a Herculean task. The threatened Maoist agitation may further deteriorate the already complicated political scenario.

Source: The Dail Pioneer, May 6, 2007

Former Maoists declare war on Indian gang

Kathmandu: A group of former Maoists have declared war on an Indian gang preying on businessmen in the border towns of Nepal, warning that they would attack gang members lodged in a key prison if it did not stop criminal activities.
The Janatantrik Terai Mukti Morcha (JTMM), a band of former Maoist guerrillas that was recently banned as a terrorist organisation by the US government, has decided to take on the gang of Indian warlord Chhotelal Sahani, that has been unleashing terror in Nepal's frontier town Birgunj and its neighbouring areas.
Though Sahani was captured by the Indian police and is now behind bars in Bihar's Motihari district, people calling themselves his henchmen have continued to extort businessmen, resorting to broad daylight attacks on those who refused to pay up.
Last week, a Birgunj businessman of Indian origin, Vijay Shankar Hada, was shot by miscreants. He is currently under treatment in Kathmandu's Maharajgunj Teaching Hospital.

A month ago, Hada is said to have received threatening phone calls from a man calling himself Sanju Baba, allegedly the right hand of Sahani.
Most of the extortion calls are made from mobile phones with Indian numbers.
Though the beleaguered businessmen have been urging both the Nepal and Indian governments to crack down on the marauding gangs, the security situation continues to be lax in the border towns.
A private radio station, Himalayan Broadcasting Corporation, Sunday said more than 20 businessmen had wound up their activities in Birgunj and shifted either to India or capital Kathmandu.

With the government failing to combat the menace, the JTMM, who are demanding an autonomous state for people of Indian origin in Nepal's southern terai plains, has now taken it upon itself to play Robin Hood.
Pahal Sinha, a JTMM leader in Birgunj, has issued a warning asking the Sahani gang to stop its activities in the town, the radio station said.
Else, it has warned that it will take revenge on the gang members awaiting trial or imprisoned in Birgunj jail, the report said.
The plummeting law and order situation in the plains last month caused Nepal's Election Commission to say it would not be possible to hold the elections for a constituent assembly on June 20, as promised by Nepal's eight-party government.
Though Nepal's 10-year Maoist insurgency formally ended last month with the Maoist guerrillas joining the government, criminal gangs, bands of former Maoists and other armed groups have kept the plains simmering.

Source: Indo-Asian News Service

YCL friends or foes of Nepali people??

KATHMANDU, May 7 - The Young Communist League (YCL), a newly created Maoist body, on Sunday seized "illegally imported" mobile phones and electronic goods worth more than Rs 30 million in Kathmandu.
The goods include: 1,415 mobile phone sets, 25 LCD monitors and 30 photocopy machines, 288 units of memory cards, 387 units of chargers and 265 units of earphones.
At least seven people, including three drivers, Navin Shrestha, Dilip Balami and Shekhar Bhattarai and others on board - Mahesh Karki, Mohan Karki, Shiva Raj Kandel and Navin
Shrestha - were also taken in. They have been handed over to Metropolitan Police Crime Division, Hanumandhoka for further investigation.

Jwala, Kathmandu district chief of YCL, told The Kathmandu Post that the goods were brought into the country via Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA) and were captured at Shahid Gate. "We later handed over the goods to the Revenue Investigation Department (RID)," he said.
Laxman Kumar Pokharel, deputy director general of RID also confirmed that the YCL cadres had handed over the handsets, LCD monitors, photocopy machines, memory cards, chargers and earphones to RID stating that the group had captured three vehicles full of mobile phone sets and other electronic goods at Shahid Gate. "We are currently investigating the matter," he said.
Sources informed that the goods were brought into the country in the name New Hariyali Traders, Siddhi Binayak Traders and New Cyber International. "These companies had produced invoices for only two handsets, a charger and an adapt0r worth Rs 31,708, while releasing the goods," the source informed.

YCL threat displaces locals

Nine people including political leaders, activists and business entrepreneurs from Kusumba bazaar at Sanoshree VDC in Bardiya district have been displaced from the area due to threats by cadres of Maoist youth wing, the Young Communist League (YCL).
Former Member of Parliament Khag Raj Sharma and former chairman of Sanoshree VDC Tanka Oli are among those displaced. They are staying in the district headquarters, Gulariya. YCL cadres threatened them in revenge for the local business community and others had protested against Maoist-called frequent banda (general strikes), according to local businessman Dhana Nath Yogi.
Oli said he came to the district headquarters for security "after YCL cadres threatened to kill us". "The Maoists blamed us for campaigning against their agitation," Oli said.

However, Maoist area in-charge "Akash", refuted the charges. "This is a propaganda meant to disparage this organization (YCL)," he claimed.
Meanwhile, cadres of Thrauwan National Liberation Front (TNLF) burnt an effigy of Chief District Officer (CDO) Shiva Prasad Nepal. Chunnu Devi, Treasurer of the Front, said they would stage sit-in protests at the offices of land revenue, district administration and Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA), if the authority did not immediately release all YCL members detained by police on Saturday.
Also, Jhak Bahadur Malla, regional YCL chief, said they would launch nationwide agitation from Monday onward, if the government did not release them immediately without condition.
However, CDO Nepal informed that the administration was planning to sue them for arson charges.
Curfew lifted

The local administration lifted curfew order in Sanoshree VDC of the district effective from 5 am on Sunday. Following clashes between Armed Police Force personnel and YCL cadres, the local administration had been imposing curfew in the area for security reasons since Monday.
Parties concerned
In Kathmandu, issuing separate statements on Sunday, various political parties have denounced the violent activities including arson, vandalism, beating and other excesses carried out by YCL members at Sanoshree in the name of freed kamaiyas (bonded laborers) and landless squatters. "Continuation of such activities by the wings of the ruling party (CPN-Maoist) is itself unreasonable behavior," said a statement issued by the Nepali Congress (NC).
Likewise, issuing a separate statement, NC-Democratic denounced Maoists for issuing threats against nine local political activists including five members of NC-D. Also, National Human Rights Foundation (HURFON) denounced vandalism by the YCL.

Source: The Kathmandu Post, May 6, 2007

Hope And Optimism

Ian Martin, head of the UN Mission in Nepal, has expressed his optimism over the peace process in the country. Speaking with reporters at the UN Headquarters in New York Saturday, chief of the UN Mission in Nepal who has been involved in supporting the peace building process in the country, shared his unrelenting hope and maintained that the people of Nepal had taken their future in their hands, with strong determination not to allow Nepal slip into conflict. Referring to the deferral of the polls to the constituent assembly, he affirmed that the timetable for the election had been delayed because regulations governing the process had not been readied. The postponement of the constituent assembly polls, according to Ian Martin, would allow more time for the political stakeholders in the country to prepare a better and constructive environment for the polls. As has been consistently articulated by the chief of the UN mission, Nepal's peace process is fairly on track because following the success of the people's movement in April last year, the country has navigated along the way for building peace and democracy in the country.

The comprehensive peace accord has been signed, and essentially very meaningful has been the formation of the interim parliament and the government in which the Maoists have appropriated a lion's share. The Interim Parliament has seen completely new faces of a progressive political genre with women, Dalits and janjatis occupying a relatively fair share of seats in the total composition of the national legislature. The Maoists should be credited for conceding more seats to the subordinated sections of the society, which should be emulated by others especially when allowing more room for the marginalised in legislating the destiny of the nation. The Election Commission has worked enthusiastically to ensure that the polls to the constituent assembly are held in a fair and free manner. This indicates that Nepal's peace building process, as said by Ian Martin, has moved ahead in a smooth and constructive manner. Though political differences surface time and again, these are managed and handled in a deft manner. Thanks to the Nepalese political leadership, the country has been able to demonstrate a very appreciable model of peace building. The political leadership should work in this spirit to hold the polls to the constituent assembly and accomplish the unfinished task of peace building and democratisation.

Source: The Rising Nepal, May 7, 2007

Luring Chinese Tourists

Raju Adhikari

TRAVEL and tourism is one of the fastest growing industries in China. China is the single largest consumer market in the world and has the sixth largest share of the global gross national income. Because of its unprecedented economic growth, China has become a source of potential tourists not only for the Third World but also for the developed European and North American countries.

Revenue

Chinese expenditure on travel is currently growing at 27 per cent per year. According to a recent report issued by one U.S. tourism firm, China is the world's fastest growing tourism market in the world, with total revenue from China's tourism industry reaching more than $67.3 billion. As China's economy grows and stringent travel restrictions are relaxed, urban middle and upper class Chinese are increasingly looking beyond their borders for travel.

A growing number of Mainland Chinese are travelling overseas as their living standards keep improving and purchasing power rise. China is expected to see more than 100 million outbound travellers in 2010, making China one of the largest contributors of travellers in the world. The World Tourism Organisation has predicted that China will be the world's largest tourist market by 2020. After its accession to the World Trade Organisation (WTO), China is obliged to abide by many trade regulations of the world trade body. The travel industry is one of those Fast developing public service and advertising sectors have contributed a lot in the rapid development of tourism in China. Going overseas is no more a dream for many city dwellers in China. Big cities like Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou contribute more than half of all Chinese outbound travellers. In 2005, more than 20,000 travellers from Beijing alone visited different countries during the golden week holiday in October. There were 31 million Chinese travellers in 2005, compared to just 8 million in 1998.

Nepal's tourism industry accounts for 8 per cent of Nepal's gross domestic product and is the third-largest revenue generator after agriculture and industry. Nepal's tourism is dependent mostly on Indian, Europeans and U.S. tourists, who together contributed 160 million dollars to the nation's economy last year. In recent years, Nepal has started attracting Chinese tourists as well. According to the Nepal Tourism Board, a gigantic leap in the number of Chinese tourists was registered in the month of February this year (2007) as compared to last year (281 per cent). These Mainland tourists represent an enormous source of revenue for countries that can attract them over the coming decade. Even if Nepal can grasp only a portion of the outbound Chinese tourists, it will be very crucial for raising the national economy. Since Nepal became the first South Asian nation to gain Approved Destination Status from the Chinese government, it has drawn significant numbers of Chinese tourists. But due to lack of direct flights from major cities and the high ticket cost, the number of Chinese travellers was limited in the past. Now there are directs flights from two major cities - Shanghai and Guangzhou.

The increase in visitor numbers from China is a result of direct air connectivity in the recent months with the addition of new airlines between Nepal and China. But to attract more and cut travel cost through free market competition, more airlines need to operate direct flights between Nepal and China.With the vastly improved situation in the country, the rising confidence of international travel trade and consumers has paved the way for more travellers to visit Nepal. The Nepalese embassy in China has exempted visa fees for Chinese tourists. Nepal tourism authorities are training more Chinese guides, and improving accommodation to suit the needs of the Chinese tourists, which are positive signs towards attracting more Chinese tourists in the future.

But there are certain things to consider. Chinese tourists are quite different compared to conventional US and European tourists. For the Chinese, the concept of the outside world is still vague. They expect a similar environment and food in the countries they visit. Most of the Chinese tourists like to travel in groups. Good televised programmes can do wonders in preparing them to visit Nepal. Though Nepal borders China, many Chinese even do not know where Nepal lies. Chinese are most responsive to televised advertising especially on the national broadcasting and television channel. Inviting Chinese television channels to Nepal to film the different attractions and preparing promotional advertisement would greatly boost tourism.?As Nepal is a cheaper and close destination, the possibilities of visiting Nepal for a couple of days are high. Chinese are attracted by beautiful scenery and exotic lifestyles. Nepal possesses both of these. Besides, Chinese love shopping during travel. Research suggests that as much as 20% of their total travel expenses go to shopping.

Language

Chinese expect their hotels to be equipped with entertainment centres, hair salons, bowling alleys, karaoke bars and the like. Even a thermos bottle inside the hotel room to serve themselves green tea adds to their satisfaction. A Chinese restaurant is an indispensable place inside the hotel, and Chinese speaking TV channels are also necessary. Language is a major barrier for most Chinese. So Chinese speaking guides and other materials must be provided to win their trust.As a growing powerhouse, both economically and politically, China is reshaping the global travel market. If Nepal can attract more Chinese outbound travellers, it will certainly contribute to the economic prosperity of the nation.

Source: The Rising Nepal, May 3, 2007

Delayed Election To Constituent Assembly

Madhavji Shrestha

NOW that the proposed election to the constituent assembly has been delayed, a political quandary has set in. Indeed, it has dampened the enthusiasm for putting the democratisation process on track. Knowledgeable people have even cast doubts as to whether the eight-party coalition government will be able to agree on a date for the election. Pessimists think that the history of the early 1950s, when the much-promised election to such a constituent assembly was derailed, will revisit Nepal. In such a scenario, Nepal's democratic journey would face an insurmountable roadblock.

Blame game

Soon after realising that the elections can't be held in June, the political parties, especially the eight coalitional partners, began blaming one another for not preparing well for the democratic exercise. An understanding reached in New Delhi in November 2005 on the issue had indeed provided enormous impetus to the political parties to overthrow the authoritarian royal rule last April. At present, the same political parties don't share the same views nor do they act in unison to realise the long cherished CA polls.

There was no surprise when the eight political parties held the sinister activities by the regressive forces responsible for the delay of the election. Some political parties did not lag behind in blaming foreign interference working visibly and invisibly against the election as scheduled. However, shrewd political observers have blamed the eight political partners for the omission of timely political actions and the commission of excesses, both not contributory to creating an atmosphere convenient for holding the election. They further blame the political parties for hoodwinking the people with their non-obliging acts and activities. The political parties knew well about the prevailing situation in the country and held frequent interactions among themselves. Despite having such intimate knowledge and information about the political situation, why the political parties decided on holding the polls on June 20 is anyone's guess. Immediately afterwards, this instigated the Election Commission to tell the people about the practical difficulty of holding the election. This looks like an orchestrated phoney drama to be enacted before the common people. As political co-travellers for 18 months, the political leaders of the eight parties must shoulder the responsibility for not fulfilling their promise.

However, a series of political events in the recent times appear to have led to the polarisation between the leftist political forces and the centrist-cum-rightist political groups. This, in turn, will have a visible effect on the political developments taking place in the near future, indicating competitive politics, which, if it develops into a principled stance, can contribute to the democratisation process and also toward a mature multi-party system. However, the political parties need to remain cautious and cagey to see that the polarisation stays within the limit of the modern party system. Divisive forces and unwanted elements need to be checked to foster modern democracy. Meanwhile, the stalled election process should give the political parties sufficient time and opportunity to educate the masses of Nepal about the enduring importance of the election to the constituent assembly. More than three-fourths of Nepal's population is ignorant of the historically significant functions of the constituent assembly. To translate this into reality, the political parties must gear up their mechanisms and spread their tentacles nation-wide to mingle with the grassroots people, especially in the rural areas. Well-trained cadres and material resources are badly needed to move ahead in this direction.

The delay would also enable the government and the Election Commission to prepare the requisites to hold the election in an atmosphere of peace and security. This, in turn, would attract and enable the maximum number of people to participate in the election, which will help the political parties gain greater confidence and influence in moving ahead in enacting a democratic constitution. Election to the constituent assembly should not be held in haste and under an unruly situation. Loss of a few months will not be that damaging.Postponement as far as it is done with justified reasons has indeed sent a good message to the democratic countries and the international and regional organisations like the UN and the EU, because they would have sufficient time to help and observe the election process in Nepal. Naturally they think the time would bring in a favourable condition to heal the wounds and to reduce the rancour stalking in Nepal. The above presents a positive side of the political picture. However, the other side of the picture reflects the grimmer situation in the country. Regrettably, judged by the performance of the coalition government in the past one year, there is little good to hope for. The dismal failure to maintain the much-desired law and order for peace and security has had its negative effects. To make things worse, the government never exhibited any eagerness or took any initiative to give a ray of hope for the socio-economic uplift of the poverty-grilled people.

Discontent reigns supreme in Nepal. This has reduced the popularity of the political parties and their leaders. Just a year ago, after the resounding success of the people's movement last April, their popularity with the people was at its zenith. Now it is coming down to its nadir. Their inability to guide the society towards accommodative democracy has become greatly visible. Their only indulgence in political wrangling and the rent-seeking attitudes are costing them dearly. With the visible decline of their popularity has come the question of the legitimacy of the political leaders staying at the helm. This has become a far greater dilemmatic concern for those in power and also those in frontal politics. They will, for sure, lose their moral influence and political authority to remain in power in view of their failure to deliver what the masses have expected. As a consequence, frustrations will only rise if some far-reaching improvements cannot be made to win them to their side.

Democratic destiny

If the delay in announcing the date for the CA election becomes unduly long, then it will defeat the purpose and deviate from the democratic destiny. A conducive environment must be created to elect people-oriented representatives to frame a democratic constitution that can nurture the desires and meet the demands of the people, who have long cherished to send genuinely people-serving representatives to replace the ventriloquists who are hardly able to realise what they have promised. The people need only those who can transform words into deeds. Let political ingenuity and visionary statesmanship come their way to rescue the political leaders from the thorny political impasse.

Source: The Rising Nepal, May 3, 2007

Ensuring A Free Press

AS journalists and media persons celebrated World Press Freedom Day Wednesday, experts pointed out the challenges still being faced by the Nepalese media sector and sought measures to fully ensure and institutionalise press freedom and the freedom of expression. After the political change last year, the Nepalese press has definitely heaved a sigh of relief. During the king's authoritarian regime, the press came under direct attack because Nepalese journalists and media persons were on the forefront struggling for democracy and freedom. After the success of the Jana Andolan, the press has been free, in principle. There is no pressure and attack from the state. However, the press is not fully secure and free as newer kinds of threats are merging. The attack, threat and intimidation against the press and the media persons continue to exist. But this is not from the state but from the non-state sector. During the agitation in the Terai, Nepalese journalists came under heavy attack and threats were issued by the organisers of the agitation. As a result, some journalists had to flee from their original places or to quit their job. This is a testimony that the press is still not fully secure and safe.

Media persons are the messengers. When the messengers are not safe and secure, the job of carrying the messages to the target group cannot be accomplished. Thus, the process of informing and educating the people is obstructed. Freedom of press is a hallmark of a democratic and open society. A democratic system of governance cannot be vibrant in the absence of a free press, while meaningful and effective press freedom cannot exist without democracy and open society. Thus, democracy and free press are, in a way, synonymous. In a democracy, people's right to information must be safeguarded and realised. A free, vibrant and functioning media alone can ensure the right to information of the people. The right to information has been taken as one of the fundamental rights of the people. People have the right to know about government affairs. Only informed citizens can make the right decision in every sphere of the society. Thus, people must be informed about the acts and decision of the government. This is the spirit and essence of democracy. Although there is no threat from the government against the press, the government is yet to make legal and other frameworks for press freedom and guarantee access to information. Despite demands from the journalists, the law regarding right to information has not been enacted. It is the need of the hour, which alone will guarantee people's easy access to information.

Source: The Rising Nepal, May 4, 2007

Firm Conviction

Minister for Peace and Reconstruction Ram Chandra Poudel, talking to media persons at a reception organised by the Nepal Press Union on Wednesday, said with firm conviction that the eight party unity would not and should not break. However, in recent times there have been hints from the eight party leaders as to a lull in the relationship among the eight party members. Despite the events going their own way, Minister Poudel stressed that there was a need to build an "atmosphere of trust" so that the envisaged change in the country could be brought about by the eight political parties. This is also an indication that the Nepali Congress believes that unity among the eight parties is crucial to charting the path ahead, though statements are coming forth from some quarters that the unity may break down. But, considering the situation that the country is in, the need to maintain unity and trust among the parties is crucial.

In fact, it was because of the unity among the concerned parties that the country has come this far. A united stand would only give passage to the country from the pressing challenges. It is true that the constituent assembly poll date has not been announced so far. This is of concern to all as the goal at present is holding the CA polls as soon as possible. For this, mutual trust among the eight parties must be strengthened. The recent weeks have not proved fruitful in this direction. The top leadership of the eight parties knows that their silence on the matter is prolonging the declaration of the poll date. They must urgently meet and sort out the issues that have been hampering the fixing of the date for the polls. In the meantime, the government, too, must focus on the demands made by the various agitating groups so that the maintenance of law and order can be done. Grievances will be there, the concerned parties know it well, but the need is to address them in the best possible manner. At the same time, it is essential that the legislature-parliament proceedings, too, must go smoothly so that the statute amendment and the much needed election laws can be passed to facilitate the CA poll to be held efficiently and effectively.

Source: The Rising Nepal, May 4, 2007

Time To Set Things Right

Prem N. Kakkar

THERE is more delay with each passing day. This is in connection with the holding of the constituent assembly (CA) elections. There is a commitment from all to the CA polls. However, the delay is sending the wrong message to the people. In fact, with the varied statements of many a political leader, the people seem to be confused about the polls.

Practical problems

It is true that the polls will be held at a later date, as the date fixed earlier is not practical. But there are some who have been saying that the polls will not be held, which is totally baseless. The CA polls will be held, but the date is yet to be agreed upon by the eight political parties. This is important, but in recent days, there is growing concern over whether the unity among the eight parties will last any longer.

Earlier, there used to be regular meetings of the top leaders of the concerned parties, but now they have become fewer. This may lead to the assumption of some coldness in the relationship. However, all the top leaders talk of maintaining unity and trust among the parties. All the parties have given their word to keep the unity intact, but action speaks otherwise. It is rather unfortunate that the leaders talk their way and do not listen to the people in general. The people, after all their sacrifices, expect the leaders to act responsibly and sincerely.Meanwhile, rhetoric is making inroads instead of real action to convert the gains made since the April uprising into tangible results. The foremost is the holding of the elections that will the biggest event in the history of the country. The demand for the CA elections has been there since the past half a century. The opportunity is here, and it has to be tapped. This so at a time when the sovereignty and supremacy of the people have been established. Of course, there are complexities that need to be addressed so that the path ahead can be clear.

As every change since the past one year has been decided by the eight political parties, they cannot shy away from their responsibilities now and come up with conflicting agendas. The agenda had long been fixed, and it has to be adhered to by all the eight parties. There may be differences in opinion among them, but they have to be resolved.Herein, the importance of talks is important. In the past, many historic decisions were made on the basis of mutual understanding and trust. There is no doubt that the same thing can continue now. The contentious issues have to be discussed so that a way out can be decided upon. Instead of trying to evade each other, all must sit down and work.There may be lapses on the part of one party or the other. They must be pointed out so that they can be rectified. This is necessary because all the parties are responsible to the people, and petty party interests must not be allowed to disturb the smooth peace process that is underway.

In this respect, blaming one leader or the other cannot solve the problem. What is needed is a straight and frank discussion among the concerned. When all sit together, the problems can be discussed, and the appropriate panacea sought. This is where mutual trust and understanding can play a big role. One thing to be kept in mind is that the all the participants of the eight political parties have their own ideologies, and they stick to it.Despite all this, it was quite encouraging to see them join hands in overthrowing the regressive regime. When so much was done on the basis of eight-party unity, it is not understandable why all of a sudden there is uncertainty. In this, all the leaders of the eight parties must think and warm their relations. This is necessary because the mission with which they forged unity is yet to be accomplished, namely, the constituent assembly elections.

Hurdles

It is, therefore, clear that the unity must be maintained at all cost till the CA polls. This is obvious as there are elements that want to create hurdles on the way to the polls. It makes it all the more imperative for the eight parties to tread the path unitedly to thwart any malevolent activities of those who do not want to see all inclusive and lasting peace established in the country.

Source: The Rising Nepal, May 4, 2007

Antinomies Of Democracy

C. D. Bhatta

The successful April uprising of 2006 has brought some sort of relief to the public and hope for a new kind of politics based on justice, equality and honesty. There is, however, a great deal of fear lurking due mainly to the existing nature of political practices, structure of the political parties, extant state of internal democracy within the political parties, their interpretation and application of democracy, and composition of the civil society per se. These are some of the most important factors, among others, which need to be revisited to understand the broader dynamics of democracy and the peace process in the country.

Coming together
Let me begin with the current talkathon on the unification of the professional political forces of different ideologies that is, communists, democrats and (far) rightists. The logic behind the unification, being floated by the respective political parties, is based on the mere rhetoric of sustainable democracy with republicanism in place. And the political parties are proposing their own prescriptions. However, going by the run-down history of political events in the past twelve months, it looks as if the 'conditions' that could provide political stability in the country are still missing.

This is because the current political actors, as in the past, have failed to accommodate all the societal forces in the institutional life of the state. The Nepali state is dictated by the Hobbesian nature of element(s). For example, three factors that have immensely dominated Nepali state affairs after Jana Andolan II are the eight political parties, civil society and mushrooming number of 'interest groups'. These elements, in one way or the other, are engaged in preserving their political, social, economic and, to some extent, even personal interests (power seekers) at the historic political juncture. What has been certainly missing from the current political scene is the 'citizen' - people who cannot or are not in a position to organise on their own. They are mentioned nowhere. The embedded elitism in every sector of governance and mere ranting of loktantrik ganatantra (not exhibited in practice) by the political parties and the civil society indicate that regime change came about through an 'elite settlement' among the political parties.

The civil society, although it played a crucial role in the regime change, has failed to instil democratic values. The convergence between the 'old class' and 'new class' of political leaders is motivated by vested interests as against the cause for democracy. The unstable and mushrooming networks of opposition, the lack of connections between the civil society and citizenry at large and absence of a nationalist agenda from the political discourse are resulting in the resignation of the mass population from elite politics. And this certainly does not herald a prosperous future for the country. The expansion of the political society and the elite shift of the civil society members to the political society have corroded the very notion of civil society. In fact state and citizens have been colonised by the political and (un)civil society. The shift of civil society organisations and colonisation of the public sphere by the political society, especially after Jana Andolan II (like in the earlier Andolan) is not considered a normal pattern in democratic politics. It is rather a somewhat abnormal condition and implies a thin quality of the state of democracy and civil society.

This shift of the civil society from the civic sphere to the political sphere, mere expansion of the political society and the rise of various interest groups are helping to maintain a "revolutionary situation" in the country. The reason behind this phenomenon is that the professional political class has grossly ignored the genuine interest of the citizens, and they are simply treating the Nepali state as their personal enterprise. It appears that the ownership of the state is shifting towards the 'eight political parties' and the Kathmandu-centred civil society members. Perhaps, this could be the reason, among others, why the citizens are forming their own groups and exerting pressure on the state under different themes - a case of citizens against the state. Our political leaders have yet to understand this broader public uprising. In contrast, they have virtually closed the channels of communication with the groups that are outside the purview of the parties and parliaments. The hijacking of the public sphere by the political society, urban middle class elite, official civil society and marginalisation of peripheral civil society organisations also beg some fundamental questions on state ownership, the popular sovereignty for that matter. The fundamental problem, in this regard, primarily stems from politicisation and elite shift of the civil sphere into the political sphere and vice versa; elite domination in the civil society and missing link between members and leaders in the civil society organisations and civil society and citizens; and patron-client relationship between civil society, political society and their masters (donors and foreign powers). These factors, indeed, are contributing towards incivility, and the civic euphoria of 2006 is slowly evaporating.

Turbulence

To sum up, the challenges that lie ahead for the Nepali state are multiple and immense. Nepal is now on the throes of a major turbulence. Changes are already taking place. The wide-ranging upsurge of the marginalised and oppressed strata of society has forced us to think beyond formal politics and tap the deeper dimensions of the reality. The political parties and leaders can create chaos, but no longer can they fool the society.

Source: The Rising Nepal, May 4, 2007

Muslims want quota system in Nepal

Muslim minority in Nepal want guarantees and quotas for their minority. Other minorities agree, but want a secular Nepalese state.

Muslims claim that despite the end of the theocratic monarchy Nepal remains a Hindu state. They want guarantees and quotas for their minority. Members of other minorities agree. For them it is essential that Nepal become a secular state. Nepal’s Muslims want the government to set aside quotas for Muslims in parliament and the civil service. The demands were made by the National Forum of Nepalese Muslims at a conference that was held last Sunday and Monday in Kathmandu.

The meeting brought together about a thousand delegates in representation of the country’s 954,000 Muslims (4.2 per cent of the total). At the end, participants released a statement in which they demanded reserved seats in the Constituent Assembly that is called to draft a new constitution beginning on June 20. They also want Muslim quotas in the civil service, a permanent Hajj committee and Muslim religious holidays recognised as statutory holidays.

Hajji Munir Alam, a member of the Muslim Forum, said that whilst parliament has declared Nepal a secular state (after 238 years as a Hindu theocratic state), the “government has done nothing to give Muslims an adequate place in the country’s political system and public life.” He complained for instance that “the only national holidays are Hindu.” Another delegate, Jameer Ansari, said that almost all Muslims live in the Madhesi-inhabited area. Since the Madhesi, who are of Indian origin, “have been guaranteed seats,” so should Muslims in order “to have a voice and represent their interests.” Other minorities have expressed similar concerns. Bhante Jaydeo, a Buddhist monk, said that “religious minorities should be adequately represented in each department.”

But more than that, in a country where Hindus represent 83 per cent, religious minorities (Muslims, Buddhist and Christians) should join forces to demand their quotas. “Buddhists are more than 7 per cent of the population, Christians about 5 per cent, and all three groups [Muslims included] come to 17 per cent,” he said. “Their vote can be of great political importance.” Nirmal Thulung, a Christian from the Good Hope Church, agrees. “The voice of religious minorities would be stronger if we could stand together,” he said. If Muslims make demands on their own they can only split minority interests. “In any event,” he added, “the first goal is to favour the establishment of a secular state in the country. Only this can guarantee us the right to freely profess our faith.”

Source: Asia News, April 15, 2007

US Terrorism Report on Nepal

Through April 2006, Nepal's primary counterterrorism focus remained the Maoist insurgency but the focus shifted dramatically after Nepal's political parties, the Maoists, and civil society led a popular uprising against the King. King Gyanendra was compelled to restore parliament and cede his authoritarian powers to a government run by an alliance of the seven main political parties. The Maoists declared a unilateral cease-fire on April 27. The government followed suit on May 3, formally lifting its designation of the Maoists as a terrorist organization. Months of negotiations resulted in a comprehensive peace agreement on November 21 that formally ended the insurgency. The agreement also provided that the Maoists would be admitted into an interim government once Maoist combatants were in camps and relinquished their weapons under UN monitoring.

From January to November, Maoist rebels were responsible for the deaths of 165 security personnel and 46 civilians. During the same time period, the government killed 182 suspected Maoist militants. Nepal's National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) reported that murders by Maoists lessened after the cease-fire in April, but still totaled 28 from May until November. Security force killings of Maoist insurgents were also significantly lower after the cease-fire, totaling nine during the same period.
Despite the cease-fire, Maoist rebels continued to conduct abductions, extortion, and violence. In the Kathmandu Valley, Maoists took advantage of their dramatically increased presence and the government's reluctance to upset the peace process to expand their use of extortion and efforts to undermine trade unions and student groups affiliated with the political parties. They also continued forced recruitment of schoolchildren, with thousands targeted after the signing of the initial November 8 peace accord. On September 20, and again on December 19, the Maoists declared nationwide transportation strikes. Both events were accompanied by the stoning of vehicles, and each lasted only for the declared period, demonstrating Maoist command and control.

This year also saw the beginning of a disturbing new trend with the activation of the separatist Maoist-splinter terrorist group called the Janatantrik Terai Mukti Morcha (JTMM), which aimed to bring about the secession of the southern Terai plains from the rest of Nepal. This group was responsible for the assassination of a Nepali Member of Parliament in September.
"Imperialist" United States and "expansionist" India were the targets of considerable Maoist venom, especially in the period leading up to the April uprising. A trip by Maoist Supremo Prachanda to New Delhi on November 18, however, seemed to mark the culmination of a shift in the Maoist view of Nepal's large neighbor to the south. At the end of the year, the United States was the only country to maintain its designation of the Maoist insurgency as a terrorist organization. Several countries, including India, were waiting for the Maoist entry into government to authorize open contacts at all levels. The United States provided substantial antiterrorism assistance and training to Nepal's security forces, including courses on crisis management and critical incident management.

Source: The Telegraph Nepal, May 3, 2007

United States: India Changed Its Views On Nepal's Maoists

Kathmandu, Nepal (AHN) - The United States said that India changed its view of the Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist (CPN-Maoist) after Maoist Chairman Prachanda traveled to New Delhi in November last year.
The "Country Reports on Terrorism," released by the U.S. Department of State's Office of the Coordinator for Counterterrorism on April 30, said the U.S. was the only country that still classified the Maoist insurgency as a terrorist organization at the end of 2006.
"Imperialist" United States and "expansionist" India were the targets of a considerable amount of Maoist venom, especially in the period leading up to the April uprising.

Prachanda's trip to New Delhi on November 18, however, seemed to mark the culmination of a shift in the Maoist view of Nepal's large neighbor to the south, the report said under its "Nepal" section.
"Several countries, including India, were waiting for the Maoist entry into government to authorize open contacts at all levels," the report added.
The report said that despite the ceasefire "Maoist rebels" continued to conduct abductions, extortion and violence.
"In the Kathmandu Valley, Maoists took advantage of their dramatically increased presence and the government's reluctance to upset the peace process to expand their use of extortion and efforts to undermine trade unions and student groups affiliated with the political parties," the report said.

Source: AHN Media Corp, May 2, 2007

Time to be right

At a time when the trust deficit among the alliance partners seems to be spiralling after the deferral of the constituent assembly polls, Monday’s Maoist attack on a police post in Banke sends a wrong signal to the public. Reports indicate a dispute between a Maoist district member and a police constable over the latter’s attempt to conduct a security check on the former ultimately developed into this untoward incident. Thankfully, there was no casualty, and four of the policemen who had gone missing during the Maoist attack are reported to have come into contact. Accusations and counter-accusations have surfaced. But the attack cannot be justified by the nature of the dispute, and Maoist cadres should also understand that they have now become a part of the government and their responsibility has increased. This certainly stresses the need for them to adapt their ways to the new situation fully and soon.

The Maoists and the other constituents of the eight-party alliance should tackle such unfortunate incidents as this through consultation and talks. There are also sporadic reports of activists of the Maoist-aligned Young Communist League (YCL) resorting to high-handedness such as physical action over disputes with others. This week they also clashed with the Armed Police Force in Bardiya over a difference concerning the use of a building. There have also been reports of clashes between workers of other political parties and YCL cadres from time to time. Though informed comment on individual cases can only be made after an independent verification of the facts, the number of reports alleging the YCL’s wrongdoings should, by itself, be enough to draw the serious attention of top Maoist leaders, who should identify areas of YCL misconduct and take corrective action.But other parties should also self-introspect whether their cadres have been in the wrong or where. Rival parties have almost always taken the sides of their sister organisations or cadres even if they were wrong and tend only to blame the others for wrongdoing. As for the YCL, it has done good work too — its cadres have been involved in social work as represented, for example, in their “New Kathmandu Valley Campaign” launched to make it clean and organised, and under which they have, among other things, helped to widen the road along the Kalanki-Soaltee section, facilitated garbage disposal, planted trees at certain places along the Bagmati and Vishnumati.

But, if any YCL cadres, and for that matter anybody else, are engaged in criminal activities, the government should show the courage to bring them to book. The public will not support the wrongdoers. But the practice of indulging only in criticism without matching action won’t help. The growing distrust between the political parties over certain major political issues, particularly the one relating to monarchy v republic, is threatening to break the eight-party alliance. Then much worse things are likely to happen. Displaying statesmanship in such a critical hour is a must, as it will test the leadership of the major constituents of the alliance.

Source: The Himalayan Times, May 3, 2007

Monarchy an obstacle to development: Maoist

GALKOT (Baglung), May 2: Minister for Local Development, Dev Gurung has said the institution of monarchy which has been exploiting the people for 238 years is the main obstacle to development.Inaugurating the Malma-Pandavkhani motor road, located some 15 Kosh west from Baglung Bazar, Wednesday, Minister for Local Development Gurung said nationalisation of the property usurped by the king who is better known as the 'rich king of a poor country' would alone be enough to meet the budgetary needs of the country for five years.He said both expansionist and conspiratorial designs would continue to be staged in the country until the institution of monarchy continues to exist and that this would pose a grave damage to the nationality.On the occasion, Minister Gurung pledged to extend maximum possible assistance from his side for upgrading the Baglung-Burtibang Road and construction of the road linking Burtibang via Malma-Pandavkhani.

The 11-kilometres long road was build at a total cost of Rs 4.1 million. Part of the cost was met through local voluntary labour and the financial assistance provided by the Nepali Gurkha soldiers in Singapore, Hong Kong and the U.S.A.The road will benefit the local population of 11,000 and help in the transportation of non-timber forest products, lead ore, copper ore, fruits and vegetables from the area.Nearly 12 vehicles ply on the road daily at present.At the programme, Nepali Congress Legislator Tanka Prasad Sharma Kandel said that since development is possible only with the people's participation, efforts should be made to enlist the maximum participation of the people in the development works.The programme was presided over by President of the Road Construction Committee, Chham Bahadur Kaucha.

Source: The Rising Nepal, May 3, 2007