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VOL. 27, NO. 26, March 07, 2008 (Falgun 24 2064 B.S.)
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Opening Pandora's Box
With the election for the Constituent Assembly (CA) coming closer, the country is heading towards opening the Pandora's box
By KESHAB POUDEL
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Signing of 8-point pact with UDMF: Cart before the horse? |
- Prime minister Girija Prasad Koirala signed an eight point deal with the leaders of the United Madhesi Democratic Front, a tripartite front of three parties from terai, on Thursday February 28 in Baluwatar, a salient point of which is a federal democratic republic comprising autonomous province for Madhes.
- Minister for Peace and Reconstruction Ram Chandra Poudel singed five point pact with Federal Republican National Front (FRNF) in presence of prime minister Koirala in prime minister's residence on March 1 guaranteeing autonomous provinces on the basis of ethnicity and languages.
The government has already signed a number of similar agreements with Dalit, women and Nepal Federation of Indigenous Nationalities in the past assuring that their demands for inclusive Nepal will be the agenda for coming Constituent Assembly. The government even amended the interim constitution three times in the past to meet the Maoist demands.
When prime minister signed the agreements to pave the way for CA polls, some factions and groups opposed the agreement. Madhes Janadhikar Forum led by Bhagyanath Prasad Gupta, Madhesi Loktantrik Morcha and Loktantrik Madhesi Morcha – which were part of FRNF, boycotted the agreement saying the agreement betrayed their demands for proportional representative system.
Along with them, Terai's major armed rebellion groups Jantantrik Terai Mukti Morcha (Goit and Jwala), and 18 other splinter groups opposed the agreements and have issued a threat to do whatever possible to foil the CA polls.
As a country of multi-ethnic, linguistic, and religious communities, Nepal is a country full of internal contradictions, managing which is a much difficult task even in normal times.
Nepal's internal contradictions were managed not by brutal force but by social harmony among the people in the past. However, the recent upsurge of various kinds of violence have cracked the social harmony, and there is no viable means to unite the society together.
From demands of federal autonomy on the basis of ethnicity, languages to federal state on the basis of geographical identity, one can see more divisive trends. In this situation, drafting the widely acceptable constitution through the CA is certain to be an upheaval task.
"I want to ensure representation of all the communities in the constituent assembly so that they can ventilate their opinions while making a new constitution," said prime minister Girija Prasad Koirala addressing the function after signing the agreement with FRNF. "The nation will become stronger if all have their representation in the constitution making body."
However, prime minister's statement has not satisfied all. "We will continue our armed struggle till our demand for separate state in Terai is fulfilled," thundered Jwala Singh leader of Jantantrik Terai Mukti Morcha. "We will not allow holding of the election."
Although the count down has already begun for the election for CA and a few weeks are left for the use of ballot papers not to decide but to endorse changes introduced by Seven Parties ruling alliances, the mood has already shown that the coming days are going to be much harder than the present ones.
"Despite serious obstacles, there is a hope that the election will be held on its declared date of April 10. But elections are not going to bring readymade solution for all requirements of the people in the forms of government. In fact, there is no debate in the country till now about the coming agendas before the assembly and its performance. This is not going to be an election for a leader or his party. Whoever leads in the election, he will have to lead to open Pandora's Box as the parties have already accepted some of the demands," said the political analyst.
According to Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, a source of extensive foreseen troubles or problems, Pandora is the first woman created by Hephaestus endowed by the gods with all the graces and treacherously presented to Epimethesus along with a box, originally a jar in which Prometheus had confined all the evils that could trouble humanity.
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Minister Sitaula: Peace maker? |
Making constitution through CA is not an agenda of Nepalese politicians as they knew it will create the problems, which will take decades to manage. In earlier days, whenever the debate for CA came, some credible politicians as well as constitutional experts had warned the people about its negative consequences.
"After the revolution in 1951, the agenda of Constituent Assembly came into being under a tripartite understanding reached in New Delhi. Slowly and gradually, all the political parties including the King reached to an understanding to have a consensus constitution than to open the Pandora's Box of constitution making. After five decades of political experiments, another agreement was signed in November 2006 by prominent parties of this country to hold the elections for CA again in New Delhi," said the analyst. "Now this second understanding made in New Delhi has forced people to undergo tests and trials of a Pandora's Box, which knowledgeable people see as nothing but another phase of internal strife and conflicts."
After facing the series of pressures and agitation in the interim period, the politicians realized the difficult task to bring out a constitution through a CA but they don't have another option now.
South Asian Experience
Although politicians, partisan academicians, journalists and common people are hoping that CA will draft the constitution in shortest period of time to make new Nepal, the experiences of other countries including those in South Asia show otherwise.
In South Asia, all countries have their own bitter experiences of writing the constitution through the CA. It took more than two years for India to make a constitution through CA. India was successful to have a constitution through this process. But the same was not true for Pakistan and Bangladesh.
Soon after the Pakistan's independence, a CA was formed but it took almost a decade to prepare a draft, which was ultimately scrapped by military dictator Ayub Khan.
Wishful Thinking
The CA has become a predominant agenda and concern of Nepal at present. "There is a wishful thinking spread through subtle ways to create mass hysteria in favor or against any desired goals," said the analyst.
Anybody - who has been watching the role of the prominent parties to force the state authority one after another to concede basic changes in the forms of government for future - understands the complexity in future.
Although the interim constitution was made to pave way for the Constituent Assembly, political leaders have already amended the constitution three times in the past adding their own agenda illegitimately.
"All the illegitimate actions are being taken to legitimize them through the elected body in the form of CA. If they submit themselves at the disposal of the patriarchs of political parties, the country may get the constitution through its single sitting deliberation. In some critical junctures, such things had happened in the past like passing Mahakali Integrated River Treaty," said the analyst. "Even after Janandolan II, all key decisions were made in prime minister's residence in Baluwatar near midnight and people were brought to celebrate the deal. But after every deal there came out a new force in the street and entered into the prime minister's residence in the same manner to come out with series of mid-night achievements."
Not Binding
Series of such incidents have shown that successive forces don't abide by the previous arrangements. How the house of elected person can be forced to accept the decisions of self appointed persons?
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A rally by ethnic group: Differing opinions |
One cannot forget that after a serious show of force, the King restored the parliament not under any provision of the constitution but by using his traditional prerogative. The present interim parliament is, in fact, a creation of the monarch, which has subsequently decided to abolish monarchy. The parliament has promulgated an interim constitution and laws without involvement of the people in decision making.
"If the parliament of the interim period could throw away the constitution of 1990 and all major commitments of prevailing parliament, one cannot expect the elected house as CA would ditto the acts of its illegitimate predecessor. Elected persons are psychologically energetic by the response in the people of their constituency and they may belong to same political party but they needn't subjugate themselves under the acts of an alliance of heterogeneous political views," said the analyst.
Others, too, agree that the CA does not need to follow the guidance given by interim parliament. "The CA has its own functions and it is not obligatory for CA to endorse al the agreements signed by the government," said senior advocate Daman Nath Dhungana.
Political analyst argues, "Whatever turmoil the people have gone through in recent past, would look like nothing compared to the coming next phase of turmoil. If that assembly is dramatically manipulated by any unseen hand, that will have its own negative results. If they are left free to take their course and decide the fate of the country, the god alone may know the end result of that. Nepal is going to face that ordeal. The rest of the world may afford to be an idle spectator but Nepal's two immediate neighbors can hardly afford even that."
"Nepal's transition at this phase can be easier if the neighbors reach into an understanding not to interfere in Nepal's internal affairs. But, if any of these two exhibit their arrogance, Nepal's problem would involve others," added the analyst.
The next phase in Nepali politics would be a real show of Pandora's Box. One cannot be sure of his/ her position in the new political situation and the fate of the country will hang in the test.
