FEATURES NEWS THE RISING NEPAL (DAILY)

By Ajay P. Nath

ACCORDING to one of the directives it received from His Majesty the King, the present government is seriously working to restore, re-establish and maintain law and order throughout the country. It has been able to convince the Maoists that they can never ever establish their proletariat dictatorial communist regime in today's world and that too in a country like Nepal. The Maoists have rightly analysed the national as well as international situation and have readily accepted the cease-fire called by the government.

Welcome

The Nepalese as well as international community have welcomed the cease-fire and everyone's hoping that peace will finally be established in Nepal. The government has gone out of its way to give maximum concessions to the rebels in order to encourage and work for peace as the overwhelming desire of the people. The government, the Maoist rebels and all the political parties including the people across the board need to make this process of peace a success in order to consolidate democratic institutions and constitutional monarchy, the two principal pillars of Nepalese national stability, integrity and continuity. If the peace process fails Nepal could become a failed state and a centre for terrorism in the region, and nobody wants that.

The Maoists seem to have seriously and shrewdly understood the national as well as the international ground realities that violent methods will get no recognition in the twenty first century. After all, it has been taken for granted that it is impossible to get to power through sheer violent activities. No party or group has been able to win the hearts of the people through violent activities. Methods of coercion, compulsion and extortion through the barrel of a gun instead of a ballot box, does not impress the people.

Today, communism is a word which is not popular in most countries of the world. The wave of international euphoria for democratic institutions to be established and rule through competitive political equality and raise and maintain the living standards of the people through an open market economic system is so great and all encompassing, that it is not possible to change this sympathy of the people in the foreseeable future.

The Maoists have clearly and rightly appreciated national, international, political, military and logistical as well as organisational challenges which was increasing fast. It could probably have reached a breaking point within a period of six months to one year. Their correct evaluation about the existing conditions, both within the country and outside, correctly made them strike a deal with the government. The people in general are pleased with this decision of the government and the Maoists. The beefed up state security, the stands taken by the American and the British governments and other world bodies backing constitutional monarchy and democracy and the frustration of the entire Nepalese people regarding the senseless violence, all have contributed in bringing forth the present process for permanent peace in the country. Meanwhile, the decency and magnanimity of the government must not be taken as weaknesses and should be reciprocated in the same manner. The state reserves the right to hit hard and it should do so, if its goodwill is not favourably reciprocated.
The American global policy towards terrorism is crystal clear, particularly after post September 11, 2001. The American administration and people do not want to see the extremists taking over Nepal and prevailing in South Asia. It will be a direct threat to the American stand on democratic institutions, fundamental human rights and free market economic system. The Americans probably feel that weakening democracy will hurt US interests in Nepal and elsewhere. Washington condemns all forms of terrorist and destructive activities. As a good friend of Nepal, it does not want to see this country and other countries in South Asia being a potential haven for international terrorism.

Meanwhile, whether the cease-fire holds or not, the US government has pledged to continue support for the government here. Britain and European Community and also both Nepal's neighbours have the same stance as far as the issue of terrorism is concerned.

If one looks at the history of the Khmer Rouge, an extreme communist group in Cambodia which forcefully came to power several decades back, then one can see how millions of people died and suffered under that brutal regime. The Khmer Rouge had convinced the Cambodians that they would stand for the people, that they were different from the other communist rebels; but the world knows how they entered the state structure, destroyed it and established the extreme form of authoritarian regime hated by the world community. How all oppositions were crushed and people massacred with the slightest suspicion, is history now. To crush that hated regime, the whole world got united and finally overthrew it. Not only this, the world community is demanding for criminal justice and digging even the graves of Khmer Rouge leadership for international justice even today. Today the international community is serious about the right, justice and freedom of the people in all parts of the world. The bottom line of a senior US government official's recent statement indicates America's inherent mistrust for Maoist. It shows continuous American support for Nepal. It also warns Nepalese government that all is not over yet. It also convinced the US Congress that the insurgency is not over and there is a need to support the government of Nepal. Internally as well as externally the present government is in a position of strength and influence. It should be wise enough to make maximum use of it for the larger interest of the people.

The Nepalese leadership need to realise that the international community has clearly understood that the Maoist have come to the negotiating table as part of their overall strategy of gaining as much recognition, concessions and advantages as possible from the government as well as from the international community with a view to further consolidating their achievements gained so far and further strengthening their capabilities so as to enter the final phase of the "strategic offensive". The government as well as the political parties must always be willing to solve the problem through peaceful negotiations, while understanding that the Maoists could also be using the talks as a means of getting into the political structure for power sharing exercise. No state should lower down its defence preparedness and it should move ahead with strengthening the information gathering capability and building up state intelligence apparatus as well as constantly upgrading the war fighting capabilities of the security forces to face any event of a long drawn out and enhanced level of insurgency and terrorism. It need not be directed towards any particular group. It is a mandatory duty of the state to be alert regarding such dangers.

In any low intensity or high intensity insurgency or terrorism, a government must always identify the local programmes and projects and prioritise such projects in consultation with the local people before implementing them. Launching sincere and effective campaigns in all the affected areas with the emphasis on effective reconstruction and rehabilitation works will engage and employ the mass thus winning them over. A strong and effective strategic communication to inform and educate the people about the measures taken by the government is a simple must. The government needs to ensure that illegal movement of warlike materials do not take place across the border and within the country. The government should attempt to consult and obtain support from the INGOs/NGOs and other international communities and traditional friends to make them understand that this is a negotiation between a legitimate state government and a rebel group. The political parties need to understand this.

Need

In the scheme of things in Nepal, the vital need for a democratic set up and constitutional monarchy cannot be compromised. If not, this country could disintegrate or become a centre for terrorism. None in the process should betray the people as peace is a common demand which is their inherent right. The political parties must come to an understanding with the government and give peace a chance.

[The opinion expressed in the article are completely that of the author]

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