Antinomies Of Civil Society

C. D. Bhatta

Since the last couple of years, the word 'civil society' has been used frequently in different perspectives of state affairs. Nothing is complete without an explicit reference to the civil society. However, the discussion on civil society in Nepal is such that there are many who use the term lavishly in different aspects but hardly describe its content. The actual nature of civil society is not sufficiently acknowledged and, if it is, is done so only in a half-hearted way. Much of the discussion on civil society seems to be driven either by a radical disenchantment with the present, an insidious nostalgia of the past or uncritical glorification about its role during the people's movements.

Debate

The current debate on civil society mostly emanates from the people's movement of 2006 wherein civil society organisations played an important role in regime change. If the regime change was driven by a collective consciousness of the civil society that rose against the King for democracy and the Maoists for peace, the same organisations have a responsibility of leading the ongoing changes to their logical end. But this does not seem to be the case with the Nepali civil society.

The fundamental problem lies with the fact that there is (1) politicisation of the civil society and elite shift of the civil sphere into the political sphere and vice versa, (2) elite domination in the civil society, hierarchy between members and leaders within civil society activists and missing link between the civil society and citizenry, (3) patron-client relationship between the civil society, political society and donors, and (4) split among the self-declared civil society leaders on ideological grounds.

These factors are contributing towards incivility, and civic euphoria is slowly evaporating. And these are among reasons why the civil society in Nepal has failed to institutionalise democracy and peace in the country once the aim of regime change is accomplished. This is what happened during the 1990s as well. This is the paradox with civic movements. Civic movements are waged to meet certain objectives, mostly political, and transform quickly into an 'amorphous' mass wrestling in the streets to meet vested interests in the name of civil society. This is what Nepal is experiencing after the April uprising of 2006.

The protests in the streets, strikes and chakka jams, lock outs in the government and private business houses, rallies, dharnas to put undue pressure on the transitional government have become the norm of the day. What is really disturbing is the blank support these groups are getting from official civil societies. Paradoxically, these activities are only pushing the Nepali state towards anarchy and further instability. Perhaps, this could be the reason, among others, why the official civil society has been blamed for having represented more radical agendas than democratic values. It is because this civil society has never paid any attention to making the society civil. The official civil society, in contrast, engages in spearheading activities that might help to champion its own goal.

This is another reason why the civil society has been blamed for being anti-state rather than pro-state. Interestingly, when we look at the development of post-modern civil society organisations in Nepal, one can conclude how organised and well-off sections of the society have created their own empire of civil societies. And the civil society as a concept has been used and abused on different occasions, beyond movements, by using the amorphous mass, which is often equated with the civil society. The vertical classification of the civil society into two categories - official and unofficial civil society makes a clear distinction as to how creamy layers are forming in this field as well.

The official civil society is mostly Kathmandu-based and comprises post-modern and well-off sections of the society, a profusion of NGOs, pro-democracy groups, civil society activists (official) and other interest groups. The public sphere created, thus, is largely captured by the self-declared conglomerate of the urban elite and retired bureaucrats who prefer to be known as civil society leaders - with the provision of hierarchy - and carry populist agendas. The unofficial civil society on the periphery, for its part, includes duty-bound rural civil society organisations. They extend throughout the nation but do not have the capacity to bargain with the state.

The hijacking of the public sphere by the official civil society and marginalisation of the unofficial civil society raises some fundamental questions. It begs clarification as to what constitutes the civil society in Nepal and whom does it represent and what are its parameters? The civil society in Nepal is unharmonious for the development of a democratic political culture in the country. The actual relationship between the civil society and existing public sphere (that is, what constitutes to be a civil society - who are able to participate and who are denied access to this public sphere) is determined by a patron-client relationship.

Inclusive culture

Likewise the unabated protests wearing the civil society tag at the national level are posing a great threat for an orderly society in Nepal. What is needed for its significant prevalence is to ensure a more inclusive culture based on civility to build networks and coalitions among poor groups to strengthen the voices of the unrepresented mass, represent crucial issues and change the people's perception about the civil society and mobilise for a greater cause.

Source: The Rising Nepal, May 25, 2007

Threat continues

The landmines planted during the insurgency days still pose a big threat to the general public, especially to the ruralfolks. Of the 1,370 lives lost so far to these dangerous explosives, the majority has been innocent children. No wonder the anti-landmine lobbies have now called on the government to take concrete measures to minimise the risks associated with the landmines. The Ban Landmines Campaign Nepal (NCBL), an NGO working for landmines risk reduction, for instance, has urged the government to implement the commitment expressed in the November 22, 2006, Peace Accord, whereby both the SPA and the Maoists had agreed to assist each other to mark the landmine areas and then defusing and removing them immediately.

According to the NCBL, it has identified around 337 sites with landmines and improvised explosive devices in the country so far. Further, it says over 400 landmines could be found in one location alone. No doubt it takes quite some time to clear the landmines altogether. But it is surprising that neither the Nepal Army nor the People’s Liberation Army have yet been fully mobilised for such an important task. During the signing of the Peace Accord, the SPA and the Maoists had assured the people that they would collect all relevant information within 30 days and defuse the explosives within two months. Since this is a matter of people’s safety and security, the Interim Government must not delay taking the required measures any more. The assistance of others, such as the UN, should also be secured to this purpose.

Source: The Himalayan Times, May 25, 2007

Wiser course

The Melamchi drinking water project has hit a roadblock at the eleventh hour, when a foreign private company, Severn Trent Water International (ST), was on the verge of taking over the management of the distribution of drinking water in the Valley under a loan conditionality the Asian Development Bank (ADB) attached to its commitment of US$120 million, which accounts for less than one-third of the total project cost. The Nepali media splashed ST’s controversial records in several other countries, including Britain. Hisila Yami, the Maoist minister in charge of drinking water, has taken a firm stand against awarding the contract to such a company, all the more so because the pre-interim government had agreed to take it on without meeting the financial regulations on bidding for a contract. Amid the controversy, ST announced this week that it had withdrawn from the deal. However, ADB seems to insist that the ST conditionality should be honoured or it cannot keep its commitment. As much is reported to have been said by ADB officials in their meeting with Maoist chairman Prachanda on Wednesday.

Given the ST pullout and the adverse circumstances that have developed in the country for it, the issue should not be one of sticking to it, but of finding a way out to keep the Melamchi project alive. ADB was formed to assist in the development of poor countries and its partnership with Nepal is a long one. Sticking with ST sounds neither wise nor advisable in the emergent situation, as it would find a hostile environment in which to work and win public support after so much exposure of the negative kind. And it would impact adversely too on ADB in the eye of the Nepali public, as questions will be asked about its extraordinary interest in this company. Ideally, the concern of a development bank like ADB should be that the money it lends is spent in the project specified and that its principal and interest are paid in time. Extraneous conditionalities raise doubts about the motives of multilateral agencies, as ADB, the World Bank, and the IMF are not unaware of.Certainly, questions of Nepal going back on its earlier commitment may also be raised. But when it comes to perceived national interests, much should not be made of Nepal’s credibility among the donors. Now the only wiser course would be to look at the management of water distribution in the Valley from a new angle.

The question of why a foreign company, and not Nepalis themselves, should be favoured is yet to be convincingly answered. If the contract is to be awarded only to a foreign company or to Nepali ones alone, or to the best bidder in global competition, the matter should be settled first. But everything ought to be decided in a transparent manner in the interests of the poor Nepalis and that would entail steps aimed at cutting cost, plugging huge leakage of water, desisting from charging the consumers unfairly for water use, fighting corruption in water management, and exacting accountability. Everything is not lost yet. There still is time to make up.

Source: The Himalayan Times, May 25, 2007

Electoral Alliance and the Shifting Political Paradigm in Nepal

Siddhartha Thapa

It seems as though the political bickering is coming to an end, after the realization of the importance to preserve the eight party coalition government. However, the damage has already been done. The blame game after the postponement of elections and continuous Maoist intimidation (including the attack of a police post in Banke and the burning of state owned NEA in Bardiya), has most certainly strained the relationship amongst coalition partners. The Congress and the Maoists are poles apart; but, they cannot afford to remain rigid. Koirala has gambled his last card by inducting the Maoists into the government and, the Maoists know there are no other viable, legitimate alternatives to the present set up. The success and failure for both Koirala and Prachanda largely depends on their commitment to adhere to the Comprehensive Peace Agreement signed in November 2006.

Nonetheless, a coldness has already sunk into the eight party alliance. It might be realistic at this stage to conclude that the unity is superficial and perhaps just a façade. While it is imperative to keep the eight party alliance intact within the government (to conduct the polls in the near future), it is conceivable that the differences amongst the electoral alliances will eventually lead to a division amongst the coalition partners of the present government.
Observing the political sequences over the last month, there are four incidents that are likely to give shape to Nepali politics over the next few months. These incidents include: the call for a left unity during Lenin Day, the axing of Constitutional Monarchy in the party stature by RJP (and then RPP), and the Madeshi alliance initiated by NSP. These three incidents will compel the Janjatis to open a fourth front. The crucial dividing factor is that theoretically, the end result of the constituent assembly elections may not be "politically" acceptable to all.

The call for unity among leftist forces in the country should not come as a surprise. This was predictable from day one, and it was only a matter of time before this left unity call was initiated and materialized. Much of the leftist alliance hinges on how the UML demonstrates its flexibility to unite with the Maoists and other fringe leftist parties. In retrospect, the leftist unity poses some tough questions to the UML and the Maoists.
Even though the UML is seen as one of the most vociferous proponents of republicanism in the country after February 1st, technically speaking, it had never removed republicanism from its party statute. In fact, the UML had strategically accepted constitutional monarchy as a base to consolidate the cause for republicanism in the future. It may be possible that the social construct of the party leadership and its rank and file, will ultimately obstruct the desired goal of leftist unity.

Although the left might unite over the issue of republicanism, it will be intriguing to observe whether or not Madhav Nepal will commit a political hara-kiri by forging a long term alliance with the Maoists. An alliance with the Maoists most definitely will mark the downfall of the UML and moderate leftist politics. Can the UML afford to deviate from moderate left? Equally important, will the Maoists ink a compromise transient from their ideology of radical communism?
The Axing of Constitutional Monarchy from the party statures of the RJP and RPP are also symbolic. Following the RJP's move, journalists and poltical pundits were quick to call for the early abdication of King Gyanendra. However, the Royalists failed to grasp the political situation when RJP President SB Thapa axed Constitutional Monarchy from the party's statute. With the axing of constitutional monarchy from the party statute, both RJP and RPP are in a position to align with the Congress for elections.

Theoretically speaking, the strategic move initiated by Thapa, makes his party an ideological equal to the Congress. The survival of democratic parties will be determined by their inclination to forge political alliances, which oppose and challenge the left wing parties during elections. It is important that this democratic force, unanimously devises electoral alliances and stratagems which keep the Maoists as their focal point.
The survival of democratic discourse depends on the unity of democratic forces initiated by Koirala. Gopal Kranti, a Maoist leader in Dhankuta, voiced his party's opinion when he declared the ethnic movement in Nepal was "dollar funded". The notion of self-determination, based on ethnicity, as espoused by the Maoists, has become their biggest political nightmare. It must be noted that the Janjatis and Madeshis supported the idea of 'self determination' with the idea of promoting and preserving their religion, culture and an increased participation in the State.

However, communism as propagated by Karl Marx and Hegel, advances the philosophy of an 'end of history', which basically envisions a classless society, that directly contravenes with what the ethnic minorities actually want. The biggest threat to the ethnic minorities is not from centrist democratic forces. It is the communists that are aiming to destroy and cleanse the existing socio-cultural fabric of the country.The Madeshi and the Janjatis are both initiating dialogue to form an electoral alliance, as they fear such repercussions. However, they seem to be equally disappointed with the centrist forces.Nonetheless, the presence of Pradip Giri in Delhi as a facilitator and Upendra Yadav's revelation that his forum was ideologically closer to the centrist forces, must have comforted some of the nervous democrats in Kathmandu. The Janjati front is yet to emerge as an electoral option but it might be prudent to note, that with time, even their allegiance will be closer to the centrist forces.

Source: Nepali Perspective, May 24, 2007

Nepal: Maoists start singing blues

Maila Baje

The price of power is catching up with the Maoists. Ex-rebel supremo Prachanda and his No. 2 Dr. Baburam Bhattarai are now on antidepressants, one published report tells us.
Neither has denied the report and the specifics of their maladies and treatment plans don't really matter here. The circumstances leading up to what many considered inevitable do.For most of us, that gory pile of 13,000 bodies would have been more than enough to precipitate a lifetime of hallucination. (The premise, as always, is that the Maoists started the violence and are responsible for everything.)

For a cluster of top comrades long deluded by a discredited ideology, the ends always justified the means. (One death is a tragedy, anything beyond is a statistic, Uncle Joe told us, didn't he.)
If some people weren't prepared to kill and die for their beliefs, well, they didn't deserve to live in the first place. Battlefield brutality and turgid theorizing offered a solid synthesis for a purpose-driven life.
As long as it was lived subterraneously. The first lights of peace must have proved real distracting to our supremo. The novelty was bound to wear off sooner or later. Sooner in Prachanda's case, once it emerged that his bite was nowhere as sharp as his bark. His royalist phobia had to be symptomatic of a larger condition.

As for Dr. Bhattarai, you could forgive his abrupt U-turns in the past because they occurred over a period of time. With all the detours, twists, jerks and more twists the chief ex-rebel ideologue's prose took within the first few months of the April Uprising, the aura of erudition had to evaporate.
In fairness, we don't know whether Prachanda or Dr. Bhattarai have personally killed anything bigger than mosquitoes. Still the number 13,000 must have been etched deeply inside both somewhere. With the blanket of fear lifting so swiftly in the spring of 2006, the Maoists knew they couldn't count on the docility of ordinary Nepalis.
It must be hard for the honchos to keep track of the non-government quarters gunning for their heads. How many people could really forget that hapless teacher Gyawali as he lay dying tied to that tree? Could relatives and friends of Maoist victims organizer Chilwal be lurking out there somewhere. And the widows and children of the police, soldiers and bureaucrats the "people's war" claimed. Gaur must seem like a picnic.

And this is just the beginning. How deep does the sense of betrayal really run in the movement? When you have the prime beneficiary of Prachanda's pro-Indian line, Mohan Baidya, criticizing the supremo's groveling to the south, things must be real bad.
Krishna Bahadur Mahara was already in parliament in 1991. With enough scheming with the UML and others, Dr. Bhattarai could have plotted a takeover of the state faster with far fewer lives lost and more communication towers standing. The parliamentary route might even have conferred on the Maoists the legitimacy ex-communist Boris Yeltsin enjoyed. The end result of that spree of death and destruction? A seat on the table with seven former foes.

As spokesman for the government, Communications Minister Mahara has to present a unified version of events and ideas to the nation and world. How many qualifiers and caveats can he throw out without undermining his party? Sure the ends justify the means. But that sordid royal-plot CD? Even Goebbels worked within certain rules.
Then there's Dr. Bhattarai's defense of his wife, Physical Planning Minister Hisila Yami, in her attempt to keep the capital's taps dry until she finds someone who looks good enough to run it. Even the Young Communist Leaguers need a decent bath from time to time, don't they?
The larger question becomes unavoidable. When the Maoists fail to vindicate the Great Helmsman, what becomes of the Nepalis' reputation for loyalty in times of war as well as peace?
All things considered, this whole depression shtick may still be another Maoist ruse. It could help Prachanda and Dr. Bhattarai take the insanity defense at any future war-crimes trial, couldn't it?

Source: Newsblaze, May 22, 2007