Forum (Spotlight Weekly)

Royalist Vs. Maoist Democratic anarchy Vs. Orderly Monarchy

By Kuber Sharma, President, Green Nepal Party

All royalist Nepalis and policy planners in the Palace must be happy to see that most Nepalis now tend to believe that only Palace can cope with the Maoists. Bigger political parties and their leaders have failed to run Democracy. The Ambassadors of Nepal’s friendly countries (USA, UK, India, China, Pakistan) are trying to bring together Palace and the five political parties represented in the last parliament. Cracks have already surfaced among the five. The bigger parties are visibly power hungry and the smaller parties pose as Puritans. The Ambassadors have totally ignored other smaller parties who could not win a seat in the dissolved parliament. Are they aware that to create unrest no party need to be in the parliament? The glaring example is CPN (Maoists). They were in the first parliament and abandoned the road to parliament in the second election to take up arms.

The parties in agitation are only trying to cash outdated cheques, and the Ambassadors are only trying to extend legitimacy to the bounced cheques. The only positive outcome of the Ambassadors mediation is that the agitating parties have stopped committing Lese Majesty for the time being. They have also changed their hostile street demonstration to friendly matches followed by gala nights in police custody. Their misdeeds have brought the country to the brink. They have become unpopular. Their victory in previous elections only reflects their hold over money, muscle and corrupt governmental machinery. They have been badly shaken once the rival (Maoist) party decided to strike. I would like to suggest to the King and to the five friends of Nepal not to install defamed parties in government. Instead they need to be dumped in the ditch to be turned into compost. Their government will only generate hatred in Maoist camps. Nor that government will get support from parties not represented in the parliament. Society is longing for a change and that has to be channelized in our favor. Create NDA (National democracy alliance) to accommodate people from all walks of life. Given opportunity NDA can mobilize more and better people than the rotten parties. Current trend in politics is of coalitions. We can draw examples from Europe to this part of the world. As far as Nepali people are concerned, they want to see clean not dirty faces in the cabinet. We need not accept meekly the repetition of history of new democracies as inevitable process. Since elections cannot be held in near future, there is no sense in extending recognition to last elections results. After all, the track record of elected parties are disastrous. They must be punished for their mischief. They must not be rewarded.

Let us not live in utopia like the Maoists. The failed system cannot win people’s faith — whether that be the communist parties or the failed democratic parties. Every country has its political culture. Our political culture has been evolved over 250 years through unification. Not only geographical unification but more difficult was the unification of different ethnic groups, language, religion and culture and the defeated Rajas. Nepalese people want monarchy, not for the love of King but for national unity and justice (Good governance in modern political vocabulary). Let us not show our split personality. Corrupt democracy is no democracy. Corrupt judiciary is no ‘rule of law’. Party propaganda is no ‘free press’. Starving mass is no ‘human rights’. Looting the state and feeding the party workers is only non-violent way of compying the Maoist style. Let us accept the fact that there is no democracy and freedom in Nepal at the moment. That has been robbed by the corrupt political parties and the Maoists. HMG’s intelligence and police organization has miserably failed to provide sense of security to its citizens. Recent reports show Army has started doing commendable job. Violence can be checked only by violence. For that reason friends of Nepal are giving generous aids of arms and ammunitions.

We Nepalese look up to the King whenever political leaders fail or breach the trust. Now again we want the King to come forward and control the situation, punish the culprits and pick honest and dedicated men to help him in the administration.

The country is in a very grave situation. And it is no time for political wrangling, It is not the time to enter into constitutional disputes. And it is not the time to fight for parliamentary rights. When the very existence of democracy is at stake, the only way open for all Nepalis, without any distinction whatsoever, is to work for safeguarding the infant democracy won after a hard struggle. And for that the bloody insurgency has to end. If the Maoists become adamant to lay down the arms and come to the negotiating table, the only course open to the King is to crush the insurgency taking all kinds of help from friends, if necessary. At the same time, he must take all necessary steps to conduct the general elections at the earliest opportune time. And this needs a strong, effective and non-partisan government. And it is only King Gyanendra who can rescue the country from the dangers of long drawn out bloody struggle. And Nepal’s friends have to realize the gravity of the situation and extend all cooperation to King Gyanendra to bring normalcy and peace back so that the derailed democratic process is restored without undue delay. For this I dare make the following suggestions to King Gyanendra to implement immediately:

(a) Issue stern warnings to the Maoists to lay down the arms and start the dialogues within one week.

(b) Appoint a government headed by irreproachable person. The other members of the cabinet must be picked on personal merits rather than party affiliation. The Dalits and Janajatis must be represented in the new government.

(c) Development works in remote areas must not be suspended. Appropriate security arrangements must be made to give continuity to development projects.

(d) The Village Development Committees and District Development Committees must be reactivated. Women and dalits must be appointed as chairperson/vice chairperson. They must be under 40 to groom new leadership.

(e) Appoint Development Commissioners in all the seventy five districts with appropriate authority to monitor and implement development works. Also appoint investigation commissioners to investigate corruption-related cases in districts.

(f) Since tourism is one of the mainstay of our economy, massive improvements and beautifications of capital Kathmandu must be carried out. Kathmandu must be made most attractive place in the region for tourists.

(g) Introduce voluntary land reforms. Buy the land from the absented landlords and sell that on deferred payment basis at concessional rates. Also encourage modern large scale farming.

(h) Since no development is possible without proper education and trainings, budgetary allocations on education must be augmented significantly and the government must make serious follow ups in the field of education.

(i) Generate enough employment by imparting trainings in automobile engineering, electric and electronics and retail vendoring etc.

(j) Establish institutes to do in depth research on sustainable development of remote areas. Population transfer to remote areas also must be taken up most seriously. This should help in planning modern villages.

These are only a few suggestions that deserve priority. King Gyanendra must not be pressurized, in any way, to give in to the corrupt politicians who are mainly responsible for pushing the country into this unenviable situation. King Gyanendra must also announce a date for general elections and let all the politicians try their luck in that free and fair elections. In this critical stage in our country, the King has become the last hope of the Nepali people. And he cannot fail them. Green Nepal Party has established its credentials to lead the country to a brighter path than the Shining Path, Prachanda Path or the Confused Path of the five parties. Doing things in old ways will not produce new results. As the new best-seller author Shiva Khera says, “Winners do not do different things. They do things differently.”