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Delhi trip to restore initiative?

Thapa: I have a good offer for you Koirala Baboo! Koirala: I'm tired Thapa Jee! This CIAA....!

Kathmandu: His Majesty's new Delhi visit is widely awaited as a watershed in the current deadlock in Nepali politics per se, the event is likely to further clear the hazy Nepali picture on the choices available to give impetus to the current deadlock now that the Maoists have made clear that they will not talk with the Prime Minister Deuba and his current coalition partner- the UML.

The choices before the country are now being increasingly narrowed. The Maoists refusal for talks make evident that Deuba must push for elections regardless of the insurgency. This would mean that organized politics would either have to back the Royal effort to put the constitutional process back on track or would have to side with the Maoists and junk the constitution outright. The latter choice would be that some step to ignore the constitution becomes inevitable. If the insurgency can demand it for its favor, such a step could also be taken against it.

Obviously the preferred measure would be a constitution one, where cooperation is sought from all constitutional parties. That this may not be easily forthcoming has been demonstrated over the past two years of the use of Article 127.

This then gives meaning also to the "under-the-table" talks between S.B.Thapa and Girija Koirala who appear aware of the need to create a constitutional option to the Deuba Government.

Clearly, the focus will be on what the incumbent Prime Minister does in the context of the fact that he must soon announce election prior to the expiry of his mandate in government. This makes it evident that the UML posture will be keenly watched. If the UML blows hot against the Maoist demanding that they come to the tale, it blows cold simultaneously by telling government to announce unilateral cease fire. This strange situation created by major coalition partner in government not towing the government line makes possible the expectation that the UML and Jan Morcha worker is designed to force these left "co-travelers" to jump ship.

The conclusion now is that a strong measure by state is overly due regardless of the intensely partisan approaches of the constitutional parties to woo which the King's use of the Article 127 has deprived the monarchy of the necessary initiative. Perhaps the Delhi visit will enthuse this initiative once more, it is felt.

Comment and Analysis:
Down but superiority complex intact

Kathmandu: President of the Nepali Congress, Girija Prasad Koirala has finally honored the supremacy of the judiciary. In doing so he has once again exhibited his commitments towards a democratic order wherein the judiciary constitutes a strong pillar of the system.

Nevertheless, the manner he bowed down to the supremacy of the judiciary and the way he carried with him his party workers and some notorious leaders and the fashion in which he allowed his men to deride at the Supreme Court and that too indeed the very premises of the court does hint that President Koirala did bow down to the court but with half-heart.

That the court authorities were not that happy with what they call a sort of "show-of-strength" that was arranged by Koirala and his colleagues became clear from the fact that the spokesperson of the SC politely hinted that whatever mayhem happened well inside the Court premises were just unwarranted and unbecoming of a political party that has for decades and decades fought for the institutionalization of a system that the party itself deemed best in the world.

In saying so the SC spokesperson, Mr. Timilsina did amply hint that Koirala deliberate or otherwise made yet another blunder which apparently tantamount to yet another contempt of court.

The fact is that to clear one blunder, a second blunder was committed. How the court reacts to this pandemonium created by the congress activists Monday afternoon inside the court premises will have to be watched.

Koirala honored the court's order should be taken as a very positive sign. However, the way he went inside the court to furnish his innocence and the manner his workers behaved inside the court does also hint that President Koirala would wish to hint the court that since he were a "high-level" political personality and thus the court too should exhibit its respect for the former while providing the verdict. He also prefers to indicate the court that any ruling by the court against him would not be tolerated. "This is a test case both for the court and I", is what Koirala says to media men.

How the court understands Koirala messages will have to be seriously observed.

Not very surprising therefore that Koirala still considers the King his arch enemy for a variety of reasons. The reasons are best known to him only.

In Koirala's consideration, most of the constitutional institutions still act under the influence of the monarch and that he was against that process. In criticizing the court and the King, NC President Koirala maintains that what he has been doing was his rights guaranteed by the constitution, which according to him has been twisted by the constitutional monarch after October 4, 2002.

"I am exercising my rights of the freedom of speech" and nothing more than that is what Koirala concludes. However, in the process, President Koirala forgets that while exercising his rights, he is abusing the rights of others, including those of constitutional bodies and legal authorities.

Be that as it may, Koirala appears adamant in his considerations. That Koirala is fighting alone in several fronts becomes clear from his adamancy what he has been exhibiting even after being dragged by the Supreme Court.

For Koirala, the UML, former street agitation partner, is a cheat. Deuba, understandably, is his declared rival whom he would like to see back in the footpath. The constitutional bodies have become defunct as Koirala sees it. The King is his number one detractor whom he declares that it is the King who has brought him to the footpath. His supposition is that he should have been at the Singh Durbar secretariat, which the King denied him.

All put together, what comes to the fore is that Koirala will continue to fight for long until he is installed as the nation's prime minister. How he materializes his dream, at least for the moment, as it seems, will have to be gauged.

Koirala's annoyance with the King is a puzzling phenomenon indeed. His repeated political attacks on the King, analysts presume, could be a design of this political personality to hint the monarch that if the latter is pleased enough then he can settle his scores secretly. If this is so then what is the harm him in granting an audience as the King has done so in the recent past. The King, to recall, has met with Surya Bahadur Thapa. If it is Koirala next then what is the harm?

Election or no election?

Kathmandu: Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba apparently has concluded that the Maoists would not come to the talks and that he should proceed with the idea of holding of the elections on time fearing that the King might again dub him as "most incompetent" prime minister the nation ever had in the recent history.

This means that Deuba will not wait for long the rebels to come to the talks.

Interestingly, his coalition partners in government, the UML and the RPP, reject his views on elections.

Madhav Nepal, a very powerful political personality in the present scheme of political things, is on record to have reiterated that until and unless the peace talks with the Maoists did not yield positive results, elections, as presumed by Deuba, can't be held. In saying so Madhav clearly hints that he favored talks with the Maoists in any case. In the process, he is appeasing the rebels by pressing his own party partnered government to declare unilateral ceasefire hoping that if the government exhibited this polite gesture, the other camp might follow the suit.

His presumption is that neither the government nor the Maoists can afford to ignore his suggestions for fear of the wrath of the majority of the population who want peace at any cost at least for the festival seasons.

Neither the government is not listening to his pleas nor the Maoists have so far hinted that they will announce a ceasefire much ahead of the beginning of the festivals.

Similarly, yet another political stalwart, RPP leader, Pashupati S. Rana amply hinted prime minister Deuba Monday afternoon that he rejected the idea of going to the hustings prior to the restoration of peace in the country. His presumption is that if the Maoists were not taken into confidence prior to the polls, elections can't be held in a peaceful atmosphere.

This means that Deuba is a lone crusader who favored elections. Except him, his own partners in government reject outrightly his ideas to go in for elections if the Maoists did not come to the peace talks.

Going deep inside these political overtures, what becomes clear is that the partners in government differ sharply on matters of holding of the elections. The fact is that Madhav Nepal and Mr. Rana have no time to understand Deuba's internal agonies that of being dubbed once more as incompetent one which is what he is even prior to King's declaration.

The Maoists in the recent days have hinted clearly that they were in no mood to talk to Deuba government. The Maoists conclude apparently that Deuba set is a mere dummy which can neither decide nor can play a significant role in managing the landing of the whole issue to a safe place.

Nevertheless, Nepali analysts are quick to ask questions to the rebels that if they could sit for talks with Premier Chand, Thapa and Narayan Singh Pun in the not too distant past, then why they can't sit together with much a similar government? Admittedly, Deuba's installment as country's chief of the executive by the King has been made possible through the use of the same controversial article 127 which made Chand and Thapa the nation's prime ministers. The Maoists have yet to furnish plausible answers in this regard.

To cut it short, Narayan Singh Pun, a minister in Chand's cabinet who was one of the key member to have initiated talks with the Maoists, has once again indicated that if he is allowed or instructed to initiate the talks with the Maoists by responsible quarters, he can do so well within a week or so. If his assertions are to be believed then what could be safely said is that Mr. Pun is in close contact with comrades in the other camp and that all that he needed was a "go-ahead" signal from quarters who wield powers.

Should Mr. Pun be given a try?

US favors unity among democratic forces

Kathmandu: The United States of America once again reiterated the need for a sort of consensus among the legitimate political parties and the monarch to work together in order to enhance its capabilities to face the Maoists challenges.

The US Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for South Asian Affairs, Donald Camp, who was here last week for a short period abundantly made it clear at an interaction with the Nepali media men that "all the democratic forces" should unite and work to restore peace in the country.

In saying so, Donald Camp hinted that the US was not happy with the political parties who were not even in talking terms with each other. A message was also there for the King in his message that the King too should work together with the "democratic forces".

He however, indirectly favored the King by saying that "he was working with the political parties" implying that the King was not against the US line of thinking.

Analysts opine that the monarch should have briefed the US dignitary when the two met each other at the Palace. The King seems to have told the US high official that he has been trying hard to bring in all the political parties now in the streets at one place; however, the problem lay in the other camp resulting in his failure. The US official apparently hinted at the press meet that he was convinced from what he was told by the Nepali monarch.

The American dignitary, nevertheless, spoke in clear terms that his country had been listening to the instances of HR abuses by the state forces and that the US will not shut its eyes as and when such violations take place.

In the same vein, he also scathingly criticized the HR abuses committed by the rebels. "Abuses made by the Maoists can't be dismissed also", said Donald Camp.

"We support the people, the political parties and the King", is what the US authority divulged.

This clearly means that the US would wish the democratic system to continue as per the wishes of the Nepali people but under a constitutional monarchy.

Political parties in the streets presumably will find a sort of message from the US for them to ponder over.

Summing up his remarks, Donald Camp maintained that his visit to Nepal was just an "attempt" to assess the overall situation prevailing in this country.

Absence of elected officials concerns US

Kathmandu: The US Administrator, Mr. Andrew Natsios has said that "rule of law must be observed or else it would strengthen the hands of the Maoists.

Mr. Natsios, who was here last week made these observations at a press meet held at the official residence of the US Ambassador in Kamaladi.

The USAID Administrator, however, opined that "conflict take place for some reasons" and the reasons creating the conflict must be addressed by the establishment.

"Preservation of Nepal's system of constitutional monarchy and multi-party democracy is the key to defeating the Maoists challenge", said Mr. Natsios.

In the same vein, the USAID high official lamented over the absence of "elected officials" in Nepal and suggested the key political parties and the King to restore Nepal's democratic institutions and develop a unified strategy for resolving the political crisis and the insurgency.

In saying so, the USAID official indirectly suggested Nepal to go in for elections.

At the press meet, Mr. Natsios wished that the various constituents in government took a common line on key issues confronting the nation.

According to Natsios, both the state security forces and the Maoists have at times abused Human Right stipulations.

"The Maoists terrorize the countryside through brutal killings of government officials and civilians, recruitment of child soldiers and torture and in their efforts to combat terrorism, some members of the security forces have also committed serious abuses, including unlawful arrests, killing of innocents, rape and torture", is how the USAID summed up his comments at the meet.

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