Ominous Trend
Despite Maoists joining the mainstream, the politics of violence continues to grip the country
By SANJAYA DHAKAL
Beginning from Nepalgunj riots late last year to the Siraha killings and various clashes in Hetauda, Bhairahawa and Birgunj, the trouble was brewing quite rapidly. The Gaur carnage was only a culmination of worsening rivalry between the Maoists and the regional organization called Madhesi Janadhikar Forum (MJF).
The incident of Gaur on March 21 shook the whole nation and caused the international community to become really nervous.
In the single biggest incident of fatal violence since the restoration of peace, 28 persons including five women were killed in most barbaric manner in Gaur city of Rautahat .
Subsequent reports by human rights activists and women activists quoting eyewitness accounts have brought to the fore heart-twisting narratives of the brutal murder.
The incident had occurred at a time when the country was heading towards the Constituent Assembly (CA) and when formation of interim government – a basic precondition to hold the polls – was being negotiated.
Even as Maoists have described the incident as ‘new Doramba,’ they could not give plausible replies to charges made by independent right activists that their arrogance of power was also a reason for the carnage. Senior Maoist leader Dr. Baburam Bhattarai said that the incident was a calculated conspiracy against his party. “This is another Doramba. It is the conspiracy of regressive forces to push the Maoists back to jungle,” he said (Kantipur, March 22).
By Doramba, the Maoists were referring to the killings of 19 Maoist cadres by then Royal Nepalese Army in Dormaba of Ramechhap in August 17, 2003 when the Maoists were then in talks with the King-installed government led by Surya Bahadur Thapa. On August 27, the Maoists broke off the talks and resumed violent insurgency.
What Happened In Gaur?
On March 21, the Gaur incident occurred when activists of Madhesi Mukti Morcha affiliated with the Maoists and Madhesi Janadhikar Forum (MJF) clashed with each other. Both the Maoists and the MJF had scheduled their mass meeting at the same venue – Rice Mills Ground for that day.
The incident occurred after 1 pm at the Rice Mills ground. The MJF and Morcha had taken out separate rallies in Gaur city. After their rally entered the ground, the MJF activists vandalized the podium erected by Morcha, according to media reports. Later when Morcha activists entered the ground, they also vandalized the MJF’s podium. Both podiums were some 100 meters apart. Reports say that after the Morcha activists started vandalizing the MJF podium, fierce clash occurred and bullets were also fired in what seems like a targeted and planned attack. Over 40 persons have been injured in the incident. Most of the dead and injured belong to Morcha.
The leaders of MJF claim that people retaliated against Maoist excesses. “The Maoists are to blame for the whole incident. They attacked MJF program first after which the people retaliated,” said Kishore Kumar Bishwas, vice president of MJF.
Twelve bodies were found at the major clash site at the Rice Mills ground in Gaur while fifteen more bodies were discovered in Hajmaniya and Mudhbaliya VDCs - five kilometers away from Gaur city in Rautahat district.
One of the primary reasons for the incident was the choice of same venue by two rival parties. The MJF had planned to hold the meeting in the area a week ago while the Maoists later decided to hold their meeting in the same area. Maoist lawmaker Prabhu Shah and MJF chairman Upendra Yadav were to address their respective mass meetings.
Furious Uproar
Following the bloodshed, the Maoists have become furious. Their PLA combatants walked out en masse from all the cantonment sites to protest the killing.
Prachanda has demanded that MJF be banned and its leaders arrested. He accused MJF action aimed at sabotaging peace process and Constituent Assembly polls. He said the MJF was a front of reactionaries. “Contra was created to derail peace process in Nicaragua . This (MJF) is also a similar design by imperialists,” he said (Kantipur daily).
In a separate statement, Prachanda accused that armed Indian Hindu extremists who had come from across the border were involved in the Gaur bloodshed. Prachanda has also accused that the attack was a result of conspiracy hatched by royalist reactionaries; Indian Hindu extremists and expansionists; and anti-peace regressive elements. “There is no doubt that behind this Rautahat massacre is conspiracy and master plan by Indian Hindu extremists, foreign and royalist regressive forces who don’t want peace, democracy and progress and who want to derail eight party understanding, and Constituent Assembly elections,” Prachanda has stated.
“Seal the border. Form joint investigation team of eight parties. Declare all those killed as martyrs,” Maoist spokesperson Krishna Bahadur Mahara said in the interim parliament.
The Maoists also sponsored a resolution in the interim parliament - which was unanimously passed - condemning the Gaur bloodshed and demanding that the government punish the perpetrators. The resolution demands that a separate political committee formed to probe the incident. The Maoists had rejected the earlier committee headed by an Appellate court judge formed by the government.
The resolution also directs the government to confiscate weapons distributed in the past to anti-Maoist groups. The Maoists have accused that such weapons were used to effect the Gaur bloodshed. The resolution also asks the government to become serious about groups that were hurting the sovereignty and integrity of the country.
Consequently, local administrations in some Terai districts have decided to prohibit Madhesi Janadhikar Forum (MJF) from holding any program fearing Gaur-like clashes. Police have arrested Binod Raut, Bablu Raut, Ramjanam Das, Baidnath Raut, Lal Bahadur Paswan and Dharmendra Mahato from Gaur municipality on suspicions of their involvement in the heinous incident.
As Madhav Kumar Nepal , general secretary of the UML who also represents Rautahat district said after he visited Gaur, “This is a blot on human history,” the Gaur incident is going to have a long-term implications on the security as well as peace process. Already there are signs that the culture of violence is being picked up by fringe elements even though Maoists have joined the mainstream. If that culture and trend is not stemmed right away, the country will be heading towards a disaster.
Gory Details Of Gaur
Human rights activists have revealed shocking and gory details of how people were murdered in cold blood in course of Gaur attack. The group of rights activists who made on-field inspection last week informed that over one dozen persons were murdered in cold blood in a grisly manner. The rights activists have informed that murderers raped five women and cut off their breasts before killing them. Over one dozen persons were chased five to eight kilometers before they were killed. In total, 28 persons have died in the incident. The rights activists have also suspected that organized criminal gang must have been involved in the attack. “Looking at the grisly manner of killing, one cannot imagine that any political organization can engage in such act,” said Padma Ratna Tuladhar, a member of the group. Furthermore, following the field investigations by the women rights activists in Gaur, they have reached conclusion that the carnage was effected by criminals who even used rape as a weapon. The nine activists of Shanti Mallika including Sharada Pokharel, Shobha Gautam, Kalyani Shah, among others, had conducted field investigations for three days in the Gaur area. The activists said the tragic incident occurred due to communal and revenge feeling spread by the Madhesi Janadhikar Forum (MJF) and arrogance by the Maoists. The activists informed that three women who were trying to cross the Bagmati river in Pataiya of Hajmaniya village were attacked by criminals who raped and killed them. “They were chased, raped and killed in most barbaric manner. Their bloods were spilled in the local village temple also,” said Sharada Pokharel. “The incident showed that women were subjected to worse treatment just because they were women. The dignity of women was violated,” said Pokharel. The activists also said that most of those who were killed were killed in an inhuman and barbaric manner – by thrashing with bamboo sticks, extreme torture and rape. Of the 28 who died in the incident, 12 were killed five kilometers away from Gaur in the field of Hajmaniya village where they were stoned and beaten with sticks.
Chronology of Clashes
January 18: Maoists open fire in a public rally organized by MJF in Lahan killing MJF worker Ramesh Mahato.
February 21: In Bhairawa, 15 injured after Maoists-MJF clash
February 22: Maoists clashed with JTMM in Gaur
March 5: MJF workers detain 18 Maoists including its MP in Nawalparasi
March 9: Maoists-MJF clash in Nepalgunj
March 10: JTMM (Jwala Singh)-Maoists clash in Inaruwa.
March 16: Maoists-MJF clashes in Birgunj and Kalaiya
March 21: Carnage in Gaur
