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King Gyanendra's extreme measures to arrest the political and economic rot in his small poor country was sure to invite massive punitive reaction from votaries of democracy and human rights. And it did not fail to happen. And that his decision not to take any of his so called friends into confidence did aggravate the matter further. Their chagrin was so great that they did not hesitate to suspend their military aid to Nepal meant to fight terrorism and insurgency. Conversely speaking they paid scant attention to the fact that their precipitate action to spite and punish King Gyanendra might prove to be a boon to the Maoist insurgents which could directly prove to be contrary to their avowed faith and determination to uproot terrorism from the face of the earth. And, in no way, could it be said to uphold their dedication to humanitarian principles. The sooner they realized their folly, the better for the millions of poor Nepalis suffering from the devastating insurgency. And it will also help them to extricate themselves from the embarrassing situation and spare their image from being soiled further. It is not at all, difficult for them to pressurize a small and poor Nepal. But the question is how would it project them who like to call themselves as the champions of the poor and destitutes of the world.
Nepal's traditional friends, India and the U. K. have taken the lead to suspend all military aid to fight terrorism as long Nepal does not restore the elected representative government. India's interest in installing the pliant Nepali politicians in office in Nepal may not be very difficult to understand. Her overriding obsession in strengthening her clout in Nepal too could be easily understood. But, what may look strange and enigmatical to many is that despite so many benefactions Nepal has received from India, the clouds of mistrusts and misgivings between the two keep on hanging on the horizon. Why don't they both make sincere endeavors to dispel these stubborn clouds? More than five decades long experiences have shown that such endeavors always end up only in rhetorics. India's soaring ambitions, her domineering behavior and her colonial mindset seem to be big obstacles in generating the important atmosphere of sincerity and understanding. And now she has even succeeded to convince the number one power that Nepal is the real rogue and must be punished. And nothing could be more shocking to see the super power play second fiddle to India. It is, indeed, the bane of being a poor and small country that since it cannot offer enough substantial economic concessions or prospects, it has to suffer sheer injustice on various pretexts. And unless, we Nepalese, can keep our chin up and the bootstraps on, we are in danger of not only swallowing our world famous pride but also curtailing our sovereign birthright of independent existence. In the total absence of honest and patriotic political leadership, it is either the King or the army which has to shoulder the responsibility of defending its sovereignty and maintaining law and order. Since we are a monarchy, it had become most imperative for King Gyanendra to step in. And King Gyanendra did rise to the occasion and acted as demanded by the exigencies of the prevailing circumstances. He must know that as the proverb goes "well begun is only half done and all is well that ends well". And the end seems quite far off. And there are quite many pitfalls, which must be avoided. We had suggested that the enthusiasm and euphoria generated on Feb 1 must not be permitted to wane. But subsequent developments have not been conducive to raising or even sustaining the euphoria. Public opinion is too fickle. It does not take long to take a reverse turn. Public's ambition, too, are always illogical and demanding. They want too much done in too little time. Other important factors that can in no way be overlooked the lessons learnt in the four and a half decades since late King Mahendra too had embarked upon similar exercise that have greatly changed the political attitudes and aspirations of Nepalis people at home and the emergence of the unipolar world that has revolutionized the nature of international politics naturally instilling a little extra arrogance in the mindset of the lone super power abroad. As such King Gyanendra has a Herculean task ahead. And it is a time when he must take good Nepalis of all hues under his umbrella. Despite the overwhelming support of the poor masses of his own country King Gyanendra has to face stiff opposition from the diehard corrupt politicians who are rankling at the loss of their privileges for filling their filthy pockets with easy money. What is most dismaying is that these corrupt politicians enjoy international backing. It does look very strange and contrary to all moral principles. But it is true. It is international politics. But King Gyanendra must not buckle under. He has a very pious task of defending his country. Consequently he should not ignore any section of the society and garner all shades of opinion from all the patriotic forces which makes it imperative on him to make himself more easily accessible which is sure to contribute towards strengthening both his hands and resolve. Since the one and only objective of all patriotic Nepalis is to end the civil war and restoration of normal democratic process as soon as possible and since they are standing by their King must firmly withstand all undue pressures and explore all the national avenues to bring his bold gamble to a successful finale.
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