National 2 (Spotlight Weekly)

Unsung Heroes

No one is there to hail the sacrifice made by security forces to protect the life of common people, business houses and politicians

By A CORRESPONDENT

There is virtually no rest days or rest hours for them. From early in the morning till the evening and well throughout the night, the personnel of security forces have to remain alert to protect the life and property of common people putting their life in the line of fire.

In response, what they receive is condemnations, hatred and blames for their sacrifice. From diffusing bombs to securing country’s vital infrastructures like powerhouse and telecommunication towers, security forces are in high alert. Whether they are on-duty or off-duty, they live under a constant threat of life.

Security Post : Braving the attack

In the last ten years of Maoist insurgency, security forces have already lost more than 2000 of their colleagues including Chief of the Armed Police Force, a brigadier and a number of other high ranking officers.

Despite such high sacrifice, the security personnel who number around 200,000 - which include the Royal Nepalese Army, the Armed Police Force and the Nepal Police – continue to carry out their duties come hail or sunshine.

Hostile terrain, limited equipment and small numbers, the security forces have to overcome various constraints. Moreover, they have also to provide security to all former prime ministers and key politicians including the CPN-UML general secretary Madhav Kumar Nepal. Nepal Police is guarding all the former home ministers.

Even as the countrymen are hesitant to praise the role of the Royal Nepalese Army, the Armed Police Force and the Nepal Police, the foreigners have praised their efforts. “What a pity that a foreign envoy working in Nepal has understood challenges faced by the security forces and back them for their actions when all others inside the country are ignoring them,” said a security analyst. “The media reports and comments of political leaders show as if the security personnel are fighting the war as per their own wish alone.”

With the growing criticism from leading media, which project security forces including the RNA as a hostile force, the RNA has initiated interaction programs between army generals and media personnel as damage control exercise. However, the initiative has brought no changes in the ways of reporting in the newspapers.

Recently, the RNA sponsored a foreign trip to some of the journalists working in leading newspapers. Five reporters of newspapers like Kantipur, The Himalayan Times (foreign investment), Space Time and Jana Astha were taken on the tour to show how Nepalese Army working in the peace keeping mission in Congo was functioning. Security forces had detained the journalist of the Jana Aastha weekly for a week a year ago on charges of Maoist connection.

Although Kantipur – which has launched heated campaign against The Himalayan Times, a joint venture between Indian and Nepali investors– and The Himalayan Times have many differences in many issues, criticizing and demoralizing the security forces seem to be their common agenda.

“We don’t want any favorable news but what we want is fair and human treatment. We are compelled to pull the trigger of our gun and it is not our wish to kill our own brothers and sisters in a proxy war,” said a retired army general. “We are protecting the property of media, so called intellectuals and politicians by pouring our bloods. There must be some realization about this.”

After the involvement of the Royal Nepalese Army in the war, 60,000 army have remained alert day and night. “We have to live in high alert situation to face any kind of eventuality. Our boys whether on duty or off duty must take care of their own life as well as that of their families who live in the far away places. We want some healing and sympathetic touch.”

While the security personnel are yearning for healing touch, some leaders are accusing the Royal Nepalese Army for atrocities. “In the name of unified command, the army is using all kinds of forces. They are violating human rights,” said Krishna Prasad Sitaula, a central committee member of Nepali Congress. “Army must punish those who killed our party workers in Dhanusha,” said CPN-UML leader K.P. Sharma Oli. Sitaula and Oli are rival politicians of Jhapa district - but this is the one point in which they have a common voice.