Important Step For Peace

THE peace process the government initiated has steadily gained momentum as newer developments for the restoration of peace and stability in the country have taken place after the declaration of the cease-fire between the government and the Maoists. The government had always kept its doors open for dialogue and negotiation for the peaceful resolution of the Maoist problem. The entire Nepalese people as well as the international community were very much concerned about the deteriorating condition in Nepal and greatly desired for peace to be restored for the overall interest of the people and the nation. Right after it came to power, the present government accorded topmost priority to the resolution of the problem leading to the restoration of peace in the country. The cease-fire was the result of the seriousness and commitment of the government and the strong desire of the people for peace and prosperity in the country. Such efforts for talks had also been held in the past but they failed to bring about a solution to the problem. The failure of previous peace talks, as analysts say, was due mainly to the lack of proper preparation and genuine commitment. Now both the government and the Maoists are committed to peace and are moving ahead to transform the soon to be held talks into permanent peace. The concrete step taken in the direction is the code of conduct for peace which was released the other day. The code of conduct is, in fact, the first and foremost step, after the declaration of the cease-fire, towards peace and solution of the problem. Political parties, members of civil society and intellectuals had demanded for the code of conduct before both sides sat across the negotiating table in order to see the peace process be a success. The code of conduct was released at a joint press conference, the other day, and comes into immediate effect. It contains 22 very important points to be strictly observed by both the government and the Maoists. Minister for Works and Physical Planning Narayan Singh Pun, who is also the government coordinator for peace talks, and Maoist leader Krishna Bahadur Mahara have expressed their commitment to completely abide by it and work for restoring peace in the country. The code of conduct clearly states that both sides would make their sincere and serious efforts to establish permanent peace through dialogue, stop all kinds of violent and offensive activities, gradually release all detainees from custody, stop extortion and fully guarantee civil, political and fundamental human rights of the people as enshrined in the Constitution of the Kingdom of Nepal. If any problem arises in connection with the implementation of code of conduct, both sides have agreed to resolve such problems through mutual consultations and discussions. The code of conduct was absolutely necessary to facilitate an early start of the peace talks between the government and the Maoists. As said by Minister Pun, the first round of talks would begin as soon as necessary preparations are made-probably next week. This was also echoed by Maoist leader Mahara, who said the forthcoming talks would herald genuine democracy in Nepal. This is really an important breakthrough towards permanently ending the violence and restoring peace and stability in the country. At this crucial juncture, all political forces and civil society must rise above their partisan interest and support and cooperate with the government in the larger interest of the nation. The fate of all citizens is tied with the future of the nation. The nation has already suffered much due in the past and violence cannot be the order of the day. Prime Minister Lokendra Bahadur Chand has also repeatedly called upon all political forces to actively participate in the peace process to resolve the nation's burning problem and rescue the nation and the people from the clutches of violence. For this, the Prime Minister has also held several rounds of meetings and discussions with different political parties, leaders, intellectuals and members of the civil society. All sectors have taken the Prime Minister's move very positively and described it as an important step towards peace, prosperity and stability. Despite this repeated appeal of Prime Minister, some political parties are demonstrating irresponsible behaviour, which is by no means compatible for peace and national interest. It is, thus, high time that all parties and people, irrespective of their political ideologies and beliefs, work collectively and cooperate with each other in the task of peace building in the country, wherein lies the greater interest of the nation and the people.