Wednesday, September 20, 2006

R. Manandhar, People's Forum For Peace, Kathmandu

It seems that CPN(Maoist)’s version of the competitive multi-party democracy is a socialist republic established in accordance with Prachanda-Path, the latest doctrine on a very militant Marxism-Leninism-Maoism that has been enriched by the experience of proletarian revolutions in other parts of the world in recent times. The CPN(Maoist) has also strongly refuted the claim by the SPA that SPA is the main-stream politics of the state. On the contrary it has opined that the SPA opted to join the main-stream politics of the state which is the Maoist revolution.

The CPN(UML) also seems to be interested in going into Democratic Republicanism and in exercising multi-party People’s Democracy called “Bahudaliya Janabad” as coined by late Madan Bhandari.

I have no idea whether NC and other parties understand competitive multi-party democracy in the similar stance as above. If not, if different political parties understand competitive multi-party democracy differently, the road to peace would have serious hurdles ahead.

Besides the confusion as stated above, the performance of Honorable members of the House of Representatives during 12 years of their office was never very rosy. We, the People are not easy and tension-free to require trusting Honorable members again and again and again this time to write constitution for us that decides our destiny. We, the people have been betrayed too many a times by Honorable members and when elected again to write constitution, they may betray us again by writing an undemocratic constitution. To hand over a blank cheque to the Honorable members to write a constitution that would be binding to all of us would be very risky. The outcome of all-party conference of dozens and dozens of political parties before election for constituent assembly would be hard to be predicted too.

We, the people desire for very quick as well as genuine and sustainable peace. If the road to constituent assembly can not make very quick progress and if a constitution written by a constituent assembly of Honorable members does not guarantee a democratic constitution, genuine and sustainable peace, freedom and human rights also, instead of attempts towards constituent assembly any further, a draft constitution jointly drafted by the SPA and the CPN(Maoist) aided by constitutional experts designated by the UN High Commission for Human Rights, and ratified by us, the people through a referendum would be the quickest, easiest, simplest, safest and least risky road ahead.

It would be extremely important to have a very very rigid draft constitution with mechanisms that guarantee complete Human Rights as understood and defined by the UN, full Liberty and eradication of corruption if status quo of cheating, dishonesty and corruption by persons in the executive, legislature and judiciary of the past beggary regime has to be honestly rooted out. There must not be any room for maneuvering the constitution by cheats. The draft should also make provision for proportional representation of dalits, sexes and all mother tongues in all of the policy making bodies of the state as well as in any institution that is fully or partly supported by the state.

If CPN (Maoist) does not want monarchism in any size or power and if the majority within the SPA also wants to go with republicanism, they (Maoist and SPA) are free to draft a fully republican constitution. If we, the people still want some role for the monarchy, we would surely defeat the republican draft constitution in the referendum.

The SPA and the CPN(Maoist) could finalize a draft constitution before the end of Chaitra, 2063 and make it public by the end of Chaitra, 2063 and referendum to ratify the draft by us, the people, could be scheduled for Bhadra, 2064. After ratification of the draft constitution by us, the people of the state, armies presently under the CPN(Maoist) and the Nepal government could be reconstituted and incorporated into one single armed forces of the state in accordance with the provisions of the new constitution.

An alternate course would be a simultaneous de-commissioning and complete dissolution of the Nepal Army and the PLA by the UN, full transformation of the state into an UN administered territory, drafting a new constitution IYy the UN, referendum under UN administration for the ratification of the draft constitution by us, the people of the territory, hand over of the administration by the UN to the elected bodies, elected by us under the new constitution and formation of the armed forces of the state from the scratch. This alternate course would be time-consuming and also beyond the control of the Nepalese. Besides, it would be too difficult to assume the willingness and capability of the UN to take such a big responsibility.

The five-point agreement of Srawan 24, 2063 to save the peace-talk from collapse is welcome and it should also be a lesson for us to understand that the destination Peace is more a dream and less reality till now.

Only astrologers would be able to forecast whether the empty bottle of interim constitution will be filled with whisky from Washington or sacred water (sewage) from Aryaghat-Bagmati or home-made raksi from Rolpa or would be broken into pieces before getting any chance of getting filled.

The effectiveness of the Ian Martin-UN office to be established shortly in Kathmandu to deliver Human Rights, Peace, Liberty and Happiness to the Nepalese people would be hard to be predicted too.

Danger in Nepal

By Paul Moorcraft, September 13, 2006

 It's not just aging hippies who should feel concerned that the former Shangri-la of Nepal could become a Communist republic.

Besides poverty, Nepal has been cursed by poor political leadership. King Gyanendra was no exception: He came within an ace of being deposed by force in the mass protests of April this year. Within two months, King Gyanendra, 59, had fallen from absolute monarch and deity to a mere taxpaying mortal with a few minor ceremonial roles. And his arch enemies, the Maoists, are now within the citadel of power in Katmandu.

In 1996, a Maoist rebellion broke out in the countryside; since then it has claimed perhaps 13,000 lives. In June 2001, King Gyanendra ascended the throne and vowed to end the Maoist rebellion. In February 2005, he assumed total power. All that stood between the king and the Maoist rebels was the 90,000-strong Royal Nepalese Army (RNA).

Previously, India, Britain and the U.S. had supplied weapons and training to the RNA. Officially, all weapons supplies and offensive military support from the West and India ended in February 2005.

The Maoists stepped up their campaign against an army that had lost its main allies. The rebel force numbered up to 15,000 troops, with perhaps 50,000 part-time militia, and controlled 70 percent to 80 percent of the countryside.

Nepal's democratic political parties continued to squabble among themselves, while the Maoists opted for a three-phase struggle: against the police, then the RNA and finally the Indian army, which, they assumed, would try to stop them taking Katmandu.

Until April 2005, the old tenets of Maoist insurgency applied still in the countryside, but infiltration into the Katmandu valley proved alluring, almost a replay of Saigon in the last stages of the Vietnam War.

The Maoists recognized that undermining the RNA was the key to victory. The generals had been fiercely loyal to the king. But in November 2005, with Indian help, the seven constitutional parties, or SPA, did a deal with the Maoists. They agreed to end the "autocratic monarchy."

 The parties started mobilizing street protests, most dramatically in the capital; Maoists infiltrated the disorder. April 2006 witnessed three weeks of violent nationwide protest, with police overreaction. Seventeen protesters died and thousands were injured.

 A replay of the fall of the shah in Iran seemed possible, though Washington denied that it was ready to spirit away the king in a helicopter.

The democratic parties did manage to respond to the king's forced climb-down (encouraged by a visit of a high-level delegation from Beijing). The old parliament was resurrected, and former Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala, an ailing octogenarian, tottered back to head the government.

The revolutionary clamor on the streets abated. That was perhaps the February 1917 event; now a different internal transformation may be taking place: the Maoists' October Revolution by stealth.

The democratic parties began to work with the Maoist whose leader Prachanda helicoptered into Katmandu after 25 years of exile. The disciplined strategy of the Maoists enabled them to run rings around the failed democratic politicians.

Western intelligence analysts shared a consensus that there would be no military coup unless the army is severely provoked. The top brass appears to be relatively complacent about the implications of current international investigations of the army's human-rights abuses. The army's 10th Brigade, for example, despite its training by U.S. forces, has allegedly committed some of the worst excesses. High-level arrests could prompt an army backlash.

A South African-style 'truth and reconciliation' process may help to heal the psychological wounds of the civil war, but the atrocities on both sides will make reconciliation much harder.

Currently, there is an uneasy official cease-fire, though Maoists continue to dominate the countryside, pursuing the old maxim: bullet and ballot.

The government and the Maoists did succeed in sending a joint letter to the U.N. on the last day of the deadline, Aug. 9. The main request was for United Nations help in confining Maoist fighters and their weapons in cantonments and for international monitoring while the army remains in barracks.

Many opponents of the Maoists feel that as long as the insurgents keep their arms (even if some fighters are in cantonment) there cannot be free elections. Maoists have used ceasefires and dialogue before — in 2001 and 2003 — and took up arms again.

India has reassured the Nepalese army of its support. It is concerned that a rebel victory could fire up the rising tide of Maoist-style insurgencies in a wide arc across the subcontinent.

Nepalese Maoists distrust the United States, but great-power involvement will give heart to the beleaguered Nepalese army and to the probable silent majority who do no want a communist takeover.

 If elections take place, some Maoists could join the new parliament but the diehards may return to the battlefield. With renewed international support, the revived Nepalese army could fight and win against what can then be justly termed "terrorists."

The United States in particular should seriously prepare to help the Nepalese army defeat any rump Maoists who want to fight on. The rebels' model has been Peru's Shining Path — that was defeated.

Alternatively, a victory for the Communists, 15 years after the collapse of the Berlin Wall, would be a propaganda blow for Washington , already reeling from setbacks in the war on terror.

 Paul Moorcraft is director of the Center for Foreign Policy Analysis in London.

Text courtesy: The Washington Times editorial dated September 13. 2006. Sent by Sandesh Adhikari-ed.

CAAN is biased- Pilots

-- Sunjuli Singh , Nepal

To discourage the pilots of Nepal from going abroad, CAAN proposed a new regulation where pilots and aircraft maintenance engineers have to inform their current employer six months in advance before resigning their jobs. Whereas, pilots who have not been paid their salary for two consecutive months can leave the airlines with a month notice. “The regulation will be finalized and implemented soon,” informed Ratish Chandra Lal Suman, Chief of CAAN’s Aviation Safety Department.

The decision has been taken to discourage pilots to move abroad for better job opportunities, which in long term will affect the aviation sector of the country. The trend of pilots moving out of Nepal started from 2002 following the grounding of Necon air. Different airlines specially from India approach new pilots with attractive salary over NRs500, 000 per month which is around ten times more than what is offered here by the national airline to their senior pilots and 3-4 times more compared to private airline’s pilots. In the last 15 years, 52 pilots from NAC alone have left their jobs for better opportunities.

There are around 200-225 fixed wing and around 25 helicopter pilots in the country. Around 20 pilots went abroad recently quitting their job here so if this pace continues, the aviation sector will soon face a crisis resulting to the increase in regular flights.

It is forecasted that by 2008 India will need around 7000 pilots whereas China needs more than 400 from abroad each year. The aviation sector especially in India and China are booming and are facing shortage of pilots hence they approach Nepali pilots with better benefits. “There is a vast difference in the benefits we get there so naturally people will opt to go there, so provided good incentive and facilities here no one will leave,” said a pilot.

Captain K. B. Limbu, President of Nepal Airline Pilots Association (NAPA) remarked, “I am sure that this regulation will not be implemented at all. Pilots should not be put into limitations like this as it disturbs their mental condition. They have to be mentally free from any kind of stress and politics; I think the decision made will bring counter production as pilots who want to leave will leave. No one can stop them unless they are given attractive advantages here.”

The pilots also informed that they were not aware of the decision being made. “We were not even informed about it until it came Out in the newspapers hence I am sure no one will follow it,” added Roshan Koirala, Pilot of Cosmic Air.

To save pilots from going abroad, the operators here should give them attractive remuneration. “We might face a national crisis as the Pilots we have are also moving out and the ones who want to study have to face stringent rules in western countries which makes the study more expensive and tough,” informed Captain Limbu.

Pemba Sherpa, President of Helicopter Pilot Association shared that the incentives and facilities they are getting is more

discouraging than the fixed wing pilots thus if they are approached with attractive gains they might as well prefer going abroad.

“This matter could have been solved by the pilots and the operators by negotiating; I don’t know why CAAN should get involved in it. CAAN is a facilitating body and should work towards safety enhancement,” accused Captain Limbu.

Around 9 pilots of Cosmic Air were grounded temporarily by CAAN regarding the disturbed mental state of the pilots after the Airline failed to clear their salaries and benefits. The action was taken after the pilots submitted letter to CAAN stating that they were too stressed to fly after not being paid for four months and their provident fund for 26 months. “We remained silent for 1-2 months but when they did not pay us, we had to take some action,” said one of the temporarily grounded pilots. He said that they were told that they were free to quit their jobs but only after paying their training investment. “We are liable to pay their investment hence we will pay them but they have to pay us too,” he stressed.

He also added that the new regulation taken out by CAAN proves that they are trying to forcefully stop the pilots from leaving a company. “I think that the decision taken by CAAN is biased as they have only thought from the operators point of view,” he added.

Captain Limbu on this account pointed out, “Who will be responsible for the airline if the airline is becoming bankrupt and the rule as such is to be followed? Who will be liable to pay the pilots 6 months salary and other benefits? Will CAAN be liable?”

Text courtesy: The NTTR August21 - 27, 2006-ed.

BIMSTEC concluded with 14 plan of action

-Rajeev Dongol, Kathmandu

The ministerial level meeting of Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) was held in Nepal from August 28-30, 2006, which was attended by the ministers and ambassadors from its member countries. The meeting was aimed at sorting out common consensus for developing tourism in the BIMSTEC member countries It was attended by Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir- Minister of State for Civil Aviation and Tourism of Bangladesh Lyonpo Yeshey Zimba- Minister of Trade and Industry of Bhutan Ambika Soni Minister of Tourism and Culture of India, Big. Gen. Aye Myint Kyu Vice Minister of Hotels and Tourism of Myanmar, Pradeep Kumar Gyanwali Minister of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation of Nepal, Sumith Nakandala Ambassador of Srilanka Sakthip Krairiksh Ambassador and permanent Secretary of Ministry of Tourism and Sports of Thailand. Nepal, Bhutan, India, Sri lanka, Myanmar, Bangladesh and Thailand are the BIMSTEC member countries.

Speaking on the press conference held on August 29, 2006, Tourism Minister of Nepal, Pradeep Gyanwali informed that the meeting was helpful in reaching common understanding between the countries to develop tourism in the region through collective efforts. “The meeting was focused in sorting out various tourism potentials as well as to reach common understanding between the member countries to promote tourism in the BIMSTEC region through joint efforts. Initially, every member countries have agreed to deposit US$ 10,000 each to create a BIMSTEC Tourism Fund that shall be used in various activities for tourism promotion,” Minister Gyanwali informed.

The member countries have signed Kathmandu declaration with 14 plan of action for tourism development and promotion in the BIMSTEC Region. The plan of action includes establishment of Information Center and BIMSTEC tourism Fund, Tour packages, Organizing FAM Trips, Travel Facilitation, Student Exchanges, Parity in Entrance Fee at Archeological Sites, Extending of Accessibility by Air, Land and Water, Joint Investment Promotion, Human Resource Development, Crisis Management, Gain support from Development Partners, BIMSTEC Tourism Working Group.

BIMSTEC Tourism Information Center will be set up in India for producing and updating publicity and collateral materials including brochures and CDs based on the product information furnished by each member country. The information center will also compile a compendium of hotel facilities and recognized tour operators available in member countries. All member countries will designate their focal points and their contact information will be shared with the information center and sent to all member countries by September 2006. All member countries will accordingly furnish the required information to the Information Center by December 2006.

The BIMSTEC Tourism fund will be established simultaneously and placed at the disposal of the Information Center for undertaking the tasks assigned to it from time to time based on the action plan. Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand have already agreed in principle to contribute US$ 10,000 to this fund, while Myanmar will obtain the clearance of their government for contributing to this fund by January 2007. All member countries will obtain required clearances and send their contribution to the Information Center at the earliest. The fund will be operationalized only after all member countries make their contribution.

Similarly joint tour packages (for two or more countries) based on Buddhist Circuit, eco-tourism, adventure-tourism and MICE tourism products will be finalized by private stakeholders of the member countries and promoted among member countries.

The tourism focal point of each member country will facilitate preparation of such tour packages. Packages to be devised will have attractive discounted airfares, accommodation and tours within the country. Similarly, the meeting has also decidec to organize familiarization trips (two for each member country) for journalists and tour operators and will be organized by each member country at different times. Each country will communicate the dates for such FAM trips to all member countries to invite the identified tour operators, among others. It was also decided that BIMSTEC Working Group (BWG) would request Expert Group Meeting on BIMSTEC Business Travel Card to consider inclusion of simplifying travel visa and immigration procedures to facilitate and promote inter and intra regional tourism and member countries would facilitate student exchanges to each other countries in pursuit of cultural and artistic excellence. It was also recommended that the citizens of BIMSTEC member countries should enjoy parity with regard to entrance fee for visiting archeological sites in each other countries. Likewise, the countries also showed dedication to facilitate more accessibility by air, land and water in their respective countries.

Nepal has been given two major roles to play in BIMSTEC by the current meeting: a) To compile information on investment opportunities and incentives presently available b) To assist Crisis Management. Nepal will compile information on investment opportunities and incentives presently available in the BIMSTEC member countries and circulate the information for the benefit of other member countries. Member countries will furnish information in this respect to the focal point of Nepal. Nepal will work out the operational modalities of the regional network on crisis management by December 2006. Sri Lanka and Thailand will furnish information and share their experiences on crisis management to the focal point in Nepal by September 2006.

The meeting has also made decisions to improve human resources in the member countries. The member countries will furnish information regarding tourism related training facilities presently available in their respective countries to the Information Center by September 2006.

The BIMSTEC countries will seek support from developing parties. The Asian Development Bank (ADB) will examine the proposal of technical assistance to draw up the detailed plan of action on the development of tourism

related infrastructures, human resource development for tourism, poverty alleviation program and marketing of tourism products in the member countries.

The meeting has also reached an agreement to set up BIMSTEC Tourism Working Group consisting of representatives of National Tourism Organizations (NTO’s) and program priorities expenditure of BIMSTEC Tourism Fund, preparation of concrete proposals to be sent to BIMSTEC Working Group in Bangkok and ADB and to follow up the’ progress on the plan of action. The information regarding utilization of Tourism Fund will be placed before this working group.

“The meeting has been successful in reinforcing the plan of action proposed in 2005, to develop newer plans and programs, to attest the implementation and follow up of the past activities and to expedite newer ones,” said the minister.

BIMSTEC was established in 1997 to dovetail the socio economic opportunities and to trigger fast development of the countries around the Bay of Bengal. BIMSTEC had four countries Bangladesh , India, Sri lanka and Thailand as its members initially while Nepal, Bhutan and Myanmar had joined the forum later.

Text courtesy: The NTTR September 2006 issue-ed.

State of Democracy and Role of Media

Nandini Sahai, Country Manager AMIC, India

Many people think that in order to be powerful, a journalist has to reach a huge audience. No, in order to be powerful, a journalist has to reach an audience that can make a difference. It can be just one person.

A -free press denotes how democratic a society is. A healthy democracy and a free press cannot sustain without each other. Genuine democracy demands a system of constant interaction with all the people, accessibility at all levels, a public ethos which allows conflicting ideas to co-exist and provides for full participation in reaching consensus in socio-cultural, economic and political goals. As the great philosopher/writer Voltaire says, ‘I may disagree with what you have to say, but I shall defend, to the death, your right to say it’. This is the essence of a liberal democracy.

The capacity of our common media sys tem to service and support the democratic processes for the benefit of the people as a whole has strong validity, especially today, with newspapers, magazines, the broad casting media and the internet being vital players. Quantitatively and qualitatively, the information being circulated has greatly increased, what with the growth of the regional press, national dailies, internet and satellite and cable networks. There is an overload of information with round the clock news channels bombarding you with useless tidbits of information which more-often-than-not contradicts each other.

In ‘The Myth and Reality of Democracy and the Media’, John Merrill, a distinguished American academic poses several interesting questions, relevant to our theme:

“It is widely assumed that the media plays an important role in creating and sustaining a democracy, by informing people about their society; so that they can be informed voters, making rational choices. Is it not possible that a free media will present candidates in ‘sound—bite’ fashion producing a series of ‘hollow’ men and women, devoid of intellectual and spiritual substance?”

He goes on to say that we should not assume that a free media can democratize a country or solve social problems. It is quite likely that a free media will lead to social instability, disharmony and disorder.

In modern India we can say that there are at least three media traditions—a diverse, pluralistic and relatively independent press and many privately run satellite channels; the manipulated-misused, state-controlled radio and Doordarshan; and many autonomous, small media outfits of various subaltern groups and their organizations. Put together their traditions are so diverse, their histories, functions and roles in society and politics so divergent and the rules of the game pertaining to them so radically different that any attempt to speak in a generalized way of media and its role in a democracy seems far- fetched.

Any study of democracy in contemporary India is also a study of how the media report and interpret political events and issues, influence the political process and shape public opinion. As the Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh said recently, “I have always believed in the importance of a free press. It is the ultimate check against the tyranny of authority. More importantly, it is a mirror that enables people in authority to get a continuous reality check.” He goes on to add, I think tongue in cheek, that “while politicians do not necessarily relish criticism and since we cannot do without the report age, we look forward to the continued interaction between government and media that characterizes a healthy democratic society”.

Media can shape power and participation in society in both negative and positive ways. By obscuring the motives and interest behind political decisions it becomes negative and by promoting the involvement of people in those same decisions it plays a positive role. As David Merrit says in his book” Public Journalism and Public Life”, “what journalists should bring to the arena of public life is knowledge of the rules

— how the public has decided democracy should work — the ability and willingness to provide relevant information and a place for that information to be discussed and turned into democratic consent. They must exhibit no partisan interest in the specific outcome other than that it is arrived at under the democratic process.” Tall order this!

For in reality media has moved away from positive expectations of civil society. It has blurred the line between news and entertainment, and coined a new word “infotainment”. Instead of being a vehicle for advancing freedom and democracy, it has become a money making machine, where everything, including the editorial page, is up for sale. It is not interested in providing a public sphere for dialogue and interaction among the citizens; instead it is busy transforming the citizens into spectators by offering them entertainment. Global competition and profit motives have further made them forget their social responsibility, to put it very crudely, as one very senior journalist did — “media today enjoys all the prerogatives of a harlot- power without responsibility”. Now money rules over morals!

Newspapers too operate with a sense of constricted editorial freedom, where editors are beholden to their employers and often to politicians. They dissuade younger journalists from persuading awkward stories, preferring to print safe plants and handouts from politicians. Freedom as we know it is confined to the editorial pages and as Sunil Khilnani says, “this has become the unique preserve of a select menagerie of wind bagging superannuated bureaucrats and pious academicians”!

One does realize how cynical and indifferent the media has become towards politicians, when one reads this little piece written by the editor of English weekly. If power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely, how in India 2005 does a decent, sober honest individual enter public life, acquire power through people’s mandate and hope to exercise it with any sort of integrity? For those who wish to live in a fair, just and free society must increasingly wonder if the choice they are confronted with is between tweedledum and tweedledee. In other words, no choice at all. If the differences between Manmohan Singh, Sonia Gandhi, A. B. Vajpayee, Laloo Prasad Yadav, Jayalalitha and Prakash Singh Badal is minuscule, if all politicians are self-serving scoundrels chasing wealth, power and easy women, should the concerned citizen opt out of civil society in disgust? It is a tough call and I admit the temptation to opt out seems irresistible. The dilemma is exacerbated by those claims to govern in our name since they continuously advertise a fierce and unswerving commitment to value-based and Gandhian politics. The phrase “ends and means” has become a joke because ends in our country always justify means.

The tainted ministers’ dispute is merely one example of the so-called “compulsions” hampering those sitting on the gaddi even as comparisons like “my tainted minister is better than yours” are paraded. Indeed we are asked to sympathize with governments and prime ministers who hold their nose, look the other way and confess,’ it is a matter of survival”, while their aides secretly brief the media on how reluctant their man was to sign a certain piece of paper.

Thus, if corruption is written into the exercise of power, is there a way out of this dead end Street? Only if as a nation and as a democracy we lower our expectations. One reason why our politicians disappoint and disillusion us is because we swallow their precious humbug hook, line and sinker. The

notion of a Mr. Clean is a fraud. He may begin as one but sooner rather than later he will become a Mr. Dirty. The solitary choice we have is of degree. It is the less corrupt versus the hugely corrupt. That is our new electoral paradigm.

This is not all; he ends with “If the Mahat ma was alive today his colleagues and acolytes would warn him that power and ideal ism are mutually exclusive and would advise him to take lessons in practical politics.”

To put it mildly, one is taken aback by this “the sooner you accept all politicians are corrupt the better it is” attitude of the Editor. In my opinion, journalists should not be cynics — else, you are in the wrong profession. Democracy implies participative governance, and it is the media that informs people about various problems of society, which makes those wielding power on their behalf, answerable to them. The actions of the government and the state must come under critical scrutiny of the media which in turn should organize public debates and discussions on it. This is the normal function of a healthy media in a healthy democracy

But where are we today? A quick analysis of the print media will tell us that it is still the most pluralistic, and the most independent among the developing world. In terms of the number of newspapers published as also total newspaper circulation, India is among the top four countries. The reasons for this have been mainly economic liberalization, besides improved technology expanding literacy better purchasing power, aggressive advertising and marketing and most important of all, an exciting and volatile political scenario.

But this is where the media has forgotten the basic tenets of democracy — for the people, of the people, by the people. It is a system of government in which the supreme authority lies with the people and not the politicians. But media has an obsession with personalities- be it L.K.Advani or Sonia Gandhi. So if pages upon pages are going to be filled with their daily itinerary, there is little or no space or inclination to write on the common man’s struggle for social justice and his rights. It is clear that in the contemporary context the media cannot take on a mission towards the goal of social transformation on a large scale. It is doubtful whether it can even become a leading agent in the process of establishing people-based governance.

In order for the public to renew their stake in media, it is essential that media ownership and control be regulated so as to prevent existing media monopolies from increasing their stake in the media industry. The government should increase its commitment to community radio and television at district and local levels. Citizens’ movements committed towards reforms in the media industry should be encouraged. There is a fine line between media and journalism. Media can be a business, but journalism is a social responsibility, especially in a neo literate democracy like India where people still need to be educated about their rights. A truly ‘public’ media is therefore essential for a live democracy.

Text courtesy: DIALOGUE N02, FES New Delhi Office-ed.

Representative Democracy and Constitutionalism

-John J. Patrick, Indiana University , Bloomington , USA

Republicanism or representative democracy, the first core concept in the list of six entails the minimal electoral standard. The second concept of this list, the rule of Law or constitutionalism, is the key to the entire set of concepts.

Constitutionalism means limited government and the rule of law to prevent the arbitrary use of power, to protect human rights, to regulate democratic procedures in elections and public policy making, and to achieve a community’s shared purposes. Constitutiotialism in a democracy, therefore, both limits and empowers government of by, and for the people. Through a constitution to which they have consented, the people grant power to the government to act effectively for the common good. The people also set constitutional limits on the power of their democratic government in order to prevent tyranny and to protect their rights. So, in an authentic constitutional democratic-republic, the people’s elected representatives in government are limited by the supreme law of the people’s constitution f the primary purposes of protecting equally the rights of everyone in the polity and thereby promoting the common good of the community.

Human Rights, Constitutionalism, and Democracy

Through a comparative and international education fix democratic citizenship, students should learn the close connection between constitutionalism and human rights in a democracy. Constitutional limitations on the government’s power are necessary to guarantee political rights necessary to the conduct of free, fair, open, and periodic competitive elections by the people of their representatives in government, in a democracy, there must be no possibility for rulers to punish, incarcerate, or destroy their political opponents. Finally, constitutionalism involves limitation on the power of the majority to prevent unjust treatment of individuals in the minority.

An ultimate test of constitutionally guaranteed freedom in any country of the world is the extent to which the least popular groups and individuals are able to exercise and enjoy their rights on equal terms with others in the polity, if there truly is equal protection of human rights, then there really is a fully free constitutional democracy. Otherwise, there may be tyranny of the majority or democratic despotism, but not equal liberty and justice under law (Zakaria 2002, 89- 118). Through comparative analysis and appraisal of regimes, , students can judge for themselves the extent to which different governments meet the criteria for becoming and being both democratic and free and avoiding majority tyranny, the malady of a democracy that does not have sufficient constitutional limits on the government's exercise of power.

Citizenship, Constitutionalism, and Democracy

The source of constitutional authority in a democracy is the people, who are the citizens of the polity. The citizens agree collectively to consent to the supreme law of a constitution. They consent to limit their collective exercise of power to guarantee the freedom of everyone in the polity. Thus, democracy is limited constitutionally to protect freedom against the threat of majority tyranny.

A primary and continual question in the origin and evolution of a democracy is: who, exactly, are the people? The constitutional answer to this question determines who will or will not be a citizen, a full and equal member of a democratic political and civic community, such as a country or nation-state. So citizenship in a democracy, just like guarantees of human rights, is rooted in constitutionalism.

The status of citizenship involves very important obligations and responsibilities, such as paying taxes, serving in the country’s armed forces when called upon, obeying laws enacted by one’s representatives in government, demonstrating commitment and loyalty to the democratic political community and state, constructively criticizing the conditions of political and civic life, and participating to improve the quality of political and civic life. Citizenship in a constitutional

Representative democracy provides those who share it with common cords of political loyalty and civic identity.

Citizenship is connected variously to a popularly ratified constitution in different democracies of our world. Democratic countries can be judged more or less free depending on how extensively and equally the rights and responsibilities of citizenship are distributed among the people of the polity. Thus, students involved in education for democratic citizenship need to study comparatively and internationally what citizenship is iii different countries, how it is acquired or lost in various political systems, what rights and responsibilities are entailed by it, how it is connected to the institutions of particular nation-states, especially their own, and how it is exercised similarly and differently throughout the world.

Civil Society, Constitutionalism and Democracy

Civic participation, a right and responsibility of democratic citizenship, is exercised through the voluntary associations of civil society, which is a country’s network of freely formed associations. Distinct from the formal governmental institutions of the state, private civil associations may act independently or cooperatively with state agencies to promote the common good. But they may also act as an independent social force to check or limit an abusive or undesired exercise of the state’s power. Civil society can be a countervailing force against the state to oppose despotism and protect the civil liberties and rights of individuals and groups.

Apart from the state, but subject to the rule of law in a constitution, civil society is a public domain that private individuals create and operate to strengthen their communities and advance their personal and collective interests. Examples of nongovernmental organizations that constitute civil society are free labor unions, religious communities, human-rights advocacy groups, environmental protection organizations, support groups providing social welfare services to needy people, independent newspaper and magazine publishing houses, independent and private schools, and professional associations. An individual of a free country may belong to many civil society organizations at once and throughout a lifetime.

Civil society organizations in pursuit of the common good are a manifestation of community solidarity or communitarianism. As such, civil society provides protection from anomie and radical individualism And it is both a buffer and conduit between the state and the citizen, which protects human rights against state-based despotism and provides channels for organized expression of community needs or grievances. Finally, civil society organizations provide rich and varied opportunities for civic participation that enable citizens to learn democracy by doing it and to develop social capital (resources and competencies) that make a democracy functional and sustainable (Putnam 1993).

Students should be taught to distinguish democratic from non-democratic governments by using as a criterion the idea of civil society. The vitality of civil society is a gauge of the strength and prospects of democracy in any count of the world. By contrast, genuine civil society organizations cannot exist in a totalitarian regime which attempts to control the people through an unlimited one-party government. Thus, if students would comparatively know, analyze, and appraise democracy in their country or elsewhere, they must be able to comprehend the idea of civil society, to assess the activities of civil society organizations, and to connect their knowledge of civil society to other core concepts, such as constitutionalism, human rights, and citizenship.

Market Economy, Constitutionalism, and Democracy

A dynamic civil society interacts with a market economy, a form of capitalism which involves competition and freedom of exchange at the marketplace. The market is the free and open space where buyers and sellers choose to exchange goods and services. Market-based capitalism involves private ownership and use for profit of the means of production, distribution, and exchange of goods and services.

Both the market economy and the civil society are free and open systems through which information, ideas, and products are exchanged for personal gain and the public good.

Economic competition and exchange at the market, like other social interactions of a constitutional representative democracy, are regulated by the state through the rule of law, which provides the order and stability necessary to guarantee individual rights to life liberty, properly, equality of opportunity, and so forth. So, freedom of economic and social activity in an authentic democracy is the consequence of constitutionalism.

According to an eminent political scientist, Robert Dahl, “(D) emocracy has existed only in countries with predominately market-capitalist economies and never (or at most briefly) in countries with predominately non-market economies” (1998, 166-167). A freely functioning market checks concentrations of power in government that could be exercised against human rights. In tandem with a free and open civil society, capitalism and the market enable development and maintenance of plural sources of power to counteract the power of the state and safeguard the people’s freedoms of expression, assembly, association, and so forth.

A centrally directed command Economy, the antithesis of the market economy, substitutes the directives of government officials with virtually unlimited state power fur the free choices and competition of the marketplace. Through their total control of the production and demands of goods and services (wealth and the means to acquire wealth), the government officials in command of the economy have power to control totally the inhabitants in their realm. There are no effective limits on their power to abuse individuals at odds with the state or to deprive unpopular persons of their rights to liberty, to equality of opportunity, and to life.

Education for democratic citizenship should emphasize the necessary connection of capitalism and a market economy to civil society. Students should learn that there can be no advanced or fully free democracy without civil society, and there can be no civil society without a market economy. Further, they should understand that both a market economy and civil society depend upon constitutionalisrn. There cannot be an authentically free society and free economy without constitutionally based regulation for the common good. Finally, education for democratic citizenship should involve students in comparative and international studies of relationships between constitutional governments, civil societies, and market economies.

A perennial global issue in all constitutional democracies of our world pertains to how much and what kind of legal regulation there should be. Fundamental rights of individuals will be at risk if there is too much regulation or too little regulation by the constitutional government. Achieving the appropriate mixture of liberty and order, freedom and regulation, is a challenge faced by citizens of every democracy. Thus, comparative analyses of issues about the extent and kind of governmental economic and social regulations iii different democratic countries should be part of education for democratic citizenship. And comparative analysis of constitutional and institutional designs to protect freedom while maintaining public order should be in the core curriculum, which leads directly to the third proposition in my statement of a 21 st century civic mission for schools.

Text courtesy: Excerpts from the author's paper presented on June 6, 2003 on teaching Democracy Globally, Internationally, and Comparatively: The 21 st Century Civic Mission of Schools