mikeldunham

Profile: Nanda Bahadur Pun, former commander of Maoists’ rebel army named Nepal’s new Vice President

 

October 31, 2015

 

Nanda Bahadur Pun, (better known during the 10-year civil war as  “Comrade Pasang”), was elected today as Nepal’s new Vice President.

 

He is 50 years old and a member of the Central Committee of the Maoists’ party UCPN.

 

Until today, Pun has never held public office, despite his party being in power twice in the last seven years. He has a secondary education.

 

Pun was born on 23 October 1965 in Bhanbhane, Rangsi VDC-9 of Rolpa. He is the son of Ramsur and Manasara Pun, the fourth among seven children. 

 

In 1981, while still a teenager, Pun became involved with radical student politics. He joined the All Nepal National Free Students Union (ANNFSU) “Sixth”. The ANNFSU, founded in 1965, is a politically based student organization, associated with the pro-China trend of the Nepalese communist movement.

 

In 1979 ANNFSU split into two groups: the ANNFSU (Fifth), which was tied to the Communist Party of Nepal (Marxist-Leninist), and the ANNFSU (Sixth), which was connected to the Communist Party of Nepal (Fourth Convention). Pun joined the latter.

 

During the 1980s, Pun became a district committee member of the Communist Party of Nepal (Unity Center). In 1990, he became the first district president of the newly formed Young Communist League (YCL). This was an armed front of the Unity Center formed to aggressively counter activities of the then ruling Nepali Congress party, which was filing cases against Pun’s party.

 

When the party divided in 1994, Pun sided with the wing that would become the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist). The YCL – at that time known as Ladak u Dal (Fighting Force) was then converted into a militia.

 

The Ladak u Dal took part in the launching of the “People's War” with the night attack of a police post in Holeri on 13 February 1996. Pun was there, acting as an assistant commander under Barsha Man Pun, aka “Ananta”. 

 

Click here for my 2011 interview with "Comrade Ananta"

  

Nanda Bahadur Pun’s rise through the Maoist military ranks was steady and rapid.

 

In 2001, when Ladak u Dal became the “People’s Liberation Army” (PLA), Pun was made commander of the first battalion. He takes credit for having been involved with most of the PLA’s major attacks in Western Nepal against security forces – a decade-long conflict that resulted in the deaths of more than 16,000 Nepalis.

 

Pun was named chief commander of PLA in 2008, two years after the Comprehensive Peace Accord (CPA) was signed.

 

As part of the peace agreement, the ex-guerrillas were sequestered in cantonments scattered across Nepal – at least in theory – until the soldiers’ re-integration into society could be established.

 

Maoist leadership demanded that their high-ranking commandos be given officer status in the Nepal Army (NA).

 

The NA rejected this out-of-hand because their officers training and education met the highest international standards, while the guerillas had received virtually no professional training during their 10 years of underground fighting. The Maoists pressed back, insisting that Pun be given the rank of general in the NA, to no avail. The NA’s insistence on maintaining internationally-accepted army standards prevailed.

 

In the end, Pun took voluntary “retirement” and turned his attention to the political arena.

 

In November 2013, national Constituent Assembly elections were held in Nepal. Pun ran for a slot as a UCPN-Maoist party candidate in the Kathmandu-4 sector. Pun lost to the young and very popular Nepali Congress party leader Gagan Thapa.

 

Interestingly, shortly before the election, Pun posted a 23-minute self-promotional video on youtube entitled Who is Nanda Kishor Pun ‘Pasang’?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Click here for Pun's youtube video 

 

 

 

 

 

Pun has sought to be taken seriously as a political force ever since. He doesn’t shy away from self-promotion. In 2014 alone he posted 10 videos of himself on youtube. 

 

In Nepal, the Vice-Presidency is vested with little real responsibility other than functioning as Head of State in the absence of the President. Likewise, the President’s role is primarily ceremonial, most often being described as the “protector of the Constitution.”

 

It is the Prime Minister who wields the real power in Nepal’s government.

 

Health-wise, it should be noted that Vice-President Pun has suffered failure of both of his kidneys. Up until now, he has declined going abroad for treatment, preferring to get medical help within the boundaries of Nepal.

 

The election results showed that Pun had beat out his Nepali Congress opponent, Amiya Kumar Yadav 325 to 212, a solid margin of 113 votes. Lawmakers from Madhesi parties protesting against the new constitution abstained from voting.

 

Unlike former Vice-President Prachanda Jha, Pun is outspokenly anti-Indian.

 

 

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World Organisation Against Torture condemns Maoists’ human rights violations in Nepal

 

 

March 8, 2013

 

URGENT APPEAL – HOW YOU CAN HELP

 

 

The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a joint programme of the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) and the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), requests your urgent intervention on the following situation in Nepal.

 

The World Organisation Against Torture (Organisation Mondiale Contre la Torture, OMCT) is the world’s largest coalition of non-governmental organisations fighting against arbitrary detention, torture, summary and extrajudicial executions, forced disappearances and other forms of violence. The global network consists of almost 300 local, national and regional organisations, which share the goal of eradicating torture and fostering respect of human rights for all.

 

Brief description of the situation:

 

The Observatory has been informed by reliable sources about the physical assault against Mr. Yadav Prasad Bastola, Executive Director of Human Rights Alliance[1], Central Office, Kathmandu, by four alleged Maoists cadres who beat him with iron rods more than 40 times, accusing him of attempting to jail and prosecute Maoists cadres for human rights violations committed during the conflict period (1996 - 2006) by writing articles and organising programmes on human rights violations and impunity in different parts of Nepal, as well as about threats against several members of Accountability Watch Committee (AWC), namely Ms. Mandira Sharma, Chairperson of Advocacy Forum-Nepal, Mr. Subodh Pyakhurel, Chairperson of the Informal Sector Service Centre (INSEC), Mr. Kanak Mani Dixit, a journalist and editor of Himal magazine and other publications, Mr. Sushil Pyakhurel, Chair of AWC, Mr. Charan Prasai, Coordinator of the Joint Forum for Human Rights, and Mr. Kapil Shrestha, both members of AWC.

 

According to the information received, on February 28, 2013, Mr. Yadav Prasad Bastola was returning home from Birendranagar municipality, Surkhet district, where he had organised a workshop on “Impunity and Post-conflict Justice” on behalf of Human Rights Alliance the day before, when he was seriously assaulted by four unidentified persons at around 7.30 pm in the jungle of Srinagar in Vidhyapur Village Development Committee (VDC)-05, 30 minutes away from his home.

 

Reportedly, two of the men, who had covered their faces with masks and had been following him for some time already, stopped Mr. Yadav Prasad Bastola and asked him if he was a human rights defender. The latter confirmed, and asked them if they needed his support. One of them then said: “Aren't you the person who is trying to jail the Maoists?” The men caught his hands and neck, and were joined by two other unidentified persons. The attackers said: “You write against Maoists and travel different parts of Nepal organising programmes against Maoists. You write accusing us of being involved in human rights violations during the conflict period. You are trying to jail us”. The men hit Mr. Yadav Prasad Bastola four times on his back with iron rods. One also tried to hit him on the head, but Mr. Bastola managed to protect himself with his hands, leaving his left wrist injured. As the men continued beating him with iron rods, he fell on the ground. He tried to protect his head with his hands, bending on his knees and elbows, but the men continued beating him and kicking him with their boots. While beating him they said, “You write against Maoists party to support the Nepali Congress and CPN-UML Parties. We will kill you here”. Luckily, as two motorcycles suddenly came towards the group, the assaulters ran away towards the jungle, and Mr. Yadav Prasad Bastola managed to run towards a nearby village, where villagers called the police. Some villagers and policemen took him to a local hospital in a stretcher, where he received first aid. At around 10 pm the same day, a police van took him to Deuti Nursing Home, Surkhet district, for further treatment. On March 1, 2013, he was discharged from the hospital.

 

On February 27, 2013, a local newspaper, the Pahichan Daily, had published an article written by Mr. Bastola on impunity in an extra-judicial killing of a man from his VDC named Surya Prasad Poudel by Maoists cadres during the conflict period in Nepal. The article had focused on the need to provide compensation to the victim's family members and to investigate thoroughly the conflict era crimes.

 

On March 1, 2013, Mr. Yadav Prasad Bastola filed a First Information Report (FIR) at the District Police Office of Surkhet. According to the police, an investigation is currently in progress. Moreover, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) of Nepal subsequently condemned the serious assault on Mr. Bastola.

 

Furthermore, the Observatory is also concerned by threats that were issued recently through the media against several members of AWC, a forum of leading human rights defenders fighting against impunity in Nepal, by the Maoist mouthpiece magazine Lal Rakshak (Red Defender), the blog Krishnasenonline, and various other local Maoist-affiliated papers and FM radio stations.

 

In the article published in the edition for January-February of Lal Rakshak, Ms. Mandira Sharma, Mr. Subodh Pyakhurel, and Mr. Kanak Mani Dixit were accused of “going against the Maoists, Maoist political agenda and change”. Other defenders named were Mr. Sushil Pyakhurel, Mr. Charan Prasai, and Mr. Kapil Shrestha. They were accused of being traitors, enemies of the people, peace spoilers, and dollar mongerers, among other insults, and the article encouraged that “people's action should be taken against them”[2].

 

This appeal was repeated in a number of local Maoist newspapers, including in Gandaki Awaj published from Pokhara on January 21, 2013 under the headline (translated): "Real face of Kanak, Subodh and Mandira". A newspaper Taja Khabar published from Rupandehi on January 22, 2013 repeated the same story with the headline (translated): "Dollar-mongers search murderers". A similar article was published in an online news portal Onlinekhabar. Furthermore, the appeal for “people’s action” was also broadcasted repeatedly on Maoist FM radio stations around the country. On Krishnasenonline, the main Maoist news portal, Unified Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) - UCPN Spokesperson Agni Sapkota commented that “some NGOs supposedly working for human rights are acting against national interest”. He added that these NGOs “prefer dollars to nation and nationalism” and that “for green dollars, some people have called imperialist Britain to have Colonel Kumar Lama arrested”, naming Ms. Sharma and Advocacy Forum as being responsible for Mr. Lama’s arrest.

 

Those threats indeed come in the context of the arrest of Mr. Kumar Lama, a Nepali army colonel who was charged with torture by the authorities of the United Kingdom on January 4, 2013 under universal jurisdiction law, as well as of five Maoist cadres in Dailekh district, Nepal, who were charged with the torture and murder of Dekendra Raj Thapa, a journalist, in 2004[3]. Members of AWC were instrumental in getting the UK authorities to arrest Mr. Lama as well as in filing the Dailekh case.

 

Actions requested:

 

Please write to the authorities in Nepal, urging them to:

 

i. Guarantee in all circumstances the physical and psychological integrity of Mr. Yadav Prasad Bastola, Ms. Mandira Sharma, Mr. Subodh Pyakhurel, Mr. Kanak Mani Dixit, Mr. Sushil Pyakhurel, Mr. Charan Prasai and Mr. Kapil Shrestha as well as of their relatives and all human rights defenders in Nepal;

 

ii. Carry out a thorough, impartial and transparent investigation into the above mentioned facts in order to identify all those responsible, bring them before a competent and impartial tribunal and apply to them the sanctions provided by the law;

 

iii. Put an end to any act of harassment against Mr. Yadav Prasad Bastola, Ms. Mandira Sharma, Mr. Subodh Pyakhurel, Mr. Kanak Mani Dixit, Mr. Sushil Pyakhurel, Mr. Charan Prasai and Mr. Kapil Shrestha, and all human rights defenders in Nepal, and ensure in all circumstances that they are able to carry out their legitimate activities without any hindrance and fear of reprisals;

 

iv. Conform with the provisions of the UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations on December 9, 1998, especially its Article 1, which states that “everyone has the right, individually and in association with others, to promote and to strive for the protection and realisation of human rights and fundamental freedoms at the national and international levels”, and Article 12.2, which provides that “the State shall take all necessary measures to ensure the protection by the competent authorities of everyone, individually and in association with others, against any violence, threats, retaliation, de facto or de jure adverse discrimination, pressure or any other arbitrary action as a consequence of his or her legitimate exercise of the rights referred to in the present Declaration”;

 

v. Ensure in all circumstances respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms in accordance with international human rights standards and international instruments ratified by Nepal.

 

Addresses:

 

·      Prime Minister, Dr. Baburam Bhattarai, Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Nepal, Singha Darbar, Kathmandu, Nepal. Fax: + 977-1-4211286, Email: [email protected]

·      Inspector General of Police, Mr. Kuber Singh Rana, Police Head Quarters, Naxal, Kathmandu, Nepal, PO. Box No.: 407. Fax: + 977 1 4 415 593, Email: [email protected] / [email protected]

·      Attorney General, Mr. Mukti Nath Pradhan, Office of Attorney General Ramshahpath, Kathmandu, Nepal. Fax: + 977 1 4262582 / 4218051, Email: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]

·      Chairman of the National Human Rights Commission, Mr. Kedar Nath Uppadhya, Pulchowck, Lalitpur, Nepal. Fax: + 977 1 5547973. Email: [email protected]; [email protected] 

·      H.E. Mr. Shanker Das Bairagi, Ambassador, Permanent Mission of the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal to the United Nations Office in Geneva, 81 rue de la Servette, 1201 Geneva, Switzerland, Fax: + 41 22 733 27 22, E-mail: [email protected]

·      H.E. Mr Ram Mani Pokharek, Ambassador, Embassy of Nepal in Brussels, Avenue Brugmann 210, 1050 Brussels, Belgium. Fax : + 32 2 344 13 61. E-mail: [email protected]

 

Please also write to the diplomatic mission or embassy of Nepal in your respective country.

 

***

Geneva-Paris, March 6, 2013

 

Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this appeal in your reply.

 

The Observatory, a OMCT and FIDH venture, is dedicated to the protection of Human Rights Defenders and aims to offer them concrete support in their time of need.

 

To contact the Observatory, call the emergency line:

·          E-mail: [email protected]

·          Tel and fax OMCT + 41 (0) 22 809 49 39 / + 41 22 809 49 29

·          Tel and fax FIDH + 33 (0) 1 43 55 25 18 / +33 1 43 55 18 80

 

[1] The National Alliance for Human Rights and Social Justice - Nepal (Human Rights Alliance) is a Coalition of Nepali non-governmental human rights organisations dedicated to a cause of freedom, human rights, social justice, and peace in Nepal that was established in 1996.

[2] “People’s action” is a term that was used during the 10-year-long Maoist “people’s war” which ended in 2006. It denotes punishment to be meted out through direct action, i.e. through violent attacks.

[3] For more information on the case, see OMCT Urgent Appeal NPL 140113 issued on January 14, 2013:

Properties

Date: March 6, 2013

Activity: Human Rights Defenders

Type: Urgent Interventions

Country: Nepal

OMCT International Secretariat

PO Box 21, 8, rue du Vieux-Billard, CH-1211 Geneva 8, Switzerland

Phone: + 41 22 809 4939

Fax: + 41 22 809 4929

E-mail: [email protected]

 

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Maoist YCL thugs beat up at least a dozen journalists and political opponents

 

January 31, 2013

 

At least 13 people, including six journalists, were injured in Banepa of Kavre district yesterday after a clash flared up between activists of the Young Communist League (YCL) and opposition parties. The YCL is the youth wing of the Maoists and have often been cited for violence in the past.

 

The clash ensued after YCL hoodlums, many armed with lathis and stones and bussed in from neighboring villages and districts by the Maoists, attacked journalists and activists of non-Maoist parties who had converged on Banepa to protest alleged misuse of state coffers by Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai. Bhattarai was slated to a attend a Maoist district conference, which was to be held later that day.

 

According to Himalayan:

 

YCL men first hit Prakash Sundas, news coordinator of Radio Namobuddha, on his face before tearing his clothes into pieces and then fell upon Krishnachandra Banjara, a reporter for Abhiyan daily, [who was beaten] with rods because Banjara was wearing a black jacket. Bhola Thapa of Nepal Television, Ramkrishna Chapagain of Nepal Samacharpatra daily and Motilal Timalsina, executive editor of Chesta Weekly, were also injured in the clash. Grace FM’s Krishna Neupane, who was injured after YCL cadres beat him up, has been sent to Kathmandu for treatment.

 

YCL cadres forced Rajdhani daily reporter Keshavraj Poudel, Mountain TV correspondent Kapil Koirala and Kantipur daily reporter Manoj Basnet to delete photos from their cameras and threatened them with death ‘if they dispatched news against them’.

 

YCL activists also detained and beat up Basudev Sapkota of Anaikot. Seriously injured Sapkota has received bruises all over his body and is undergoing treatment in Banepa.

 

Nepali Congress Mahasamiti member Kunsang Lama of Khanalthok lost three teeth, while 63-year-old Homnath Adhikari of Rabiopi was wounded. NC Anaikot VDC unit president Ganesh KC, who received a major injury on his head with a stone, has been sent to the Capital for treatment. Other injured include CPN-UML district committee member Indra Bahadur Tamang of Sarsyukharka, UML area committee member Lila Bahadur Ghimire of Nala and Rupak Mahat of Panauti.

 

 

According to Republica, the approximately 700 YCL cadres were strategically dispersed along the road leading to the Maoist program venue. The peaceful demonstration, organized by opposition parties, which had planned to greet the prime minister’s motorcade with black flags, was foiled by the YCL attack. The violence occurred before the PM actually arrived.

 

It was also reported that YCL cadres issued death threats. According to Kantipur, “YCL threatened to 'finish off' Kantipur district correspondent Manoj Basnet. ‘Kantipur is on a mission to eliminate the UCPN (Maoist). We will not spare them and finish them off,’ YCL cadres vented their ire. “

 

After the incident, the Federation of Nepali Journalists (FNJ) condemned the attack on journalists and threats and promised to boycott all UCPN-Maoist events until the YCL assailants are detained by the police.

 

Similarly, the CPN-UML and NC parties have condemned the YCL attack on a peaceful demonstration and on the injured journalists.

 

 

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U.S. Removes Nepal’s Maoists from its “Terrorist” List. Bad Idea?

 

September 16, 2012

Kul Chandra Gautam is one of Nepal’s most distinguished international civil servants. He served as Assistant Secretary General of the UN and Deputy Executive Director of UNICEF. He was Special Advisor to the Prime Minister of Nepal on International Affairs and the Peace Process. He is a seasoned diplomat and civic leader and serves on the Boards of a number of international and national foundations and charitable organizations. Six months ago, he was also listed by Lalrakshak, the magazine backed by the UCPN (Maoist) Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal “Prachanda”, as an “enemy of the people” – a label many analysts equated to a loosely veiled death threat. CLICK HERE for my interview with Mr. Gautam, February 28, 2012

 

Three days ago, following the US lifting of the terrorist tag on Nepal’s Maoists, Mr. Gautam published his response in Republica:

 

“The Teflon Politicians” by Kul Ghandra Gaurtam           

 

The Maoists are ecstatic that the American government has just lifted the ‘terrorist’ tag from them. They never acknowledged or expressed any regret that they had ever used terror tactics. They claim that it was either a “misunderstanding” and their pro-people activism was misconstrued as terrorism, or a “conspiracy” by the world leader of capitalist-imperialist powers to defame a progressive nationalist movement fighting for social justice. In any case, the standard Maoist defence is that if they ever committed any violent excesses, it was their “compulsion”, not their “choice”. Now, the Maoists argue that the Americans have finally corrected their mistake.

 

The Americans––including the new US Ambassador to Nepal––would surely understand the Teflon phenomena. An American company, DuPont uses the brand name ‘Teflon’ for a ‘non-stick’ chemical in cooking pots and pans, much favored by America’s housewives and chefs. In politics, the term Teflon is used to describe a person who is impervious to even valid criticism and on whom no kind of blame seems to stick. Ronald Reagan was called the ‘Teflon president’ as he easily seemed to get away with all kinds of gaffes and mis-statements. He was a lovable actor and people forgave him for mixing up certain facts and figures.

 

Russian President Vladimir Putin seems to enjoy similar Teflon characteristics as many ordinary Russians overlook his authoritarian tendencies in their quest for progress with order and stability. Meanwhile, Nepal’s Maoists, and especially their leader Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’, seem to have acquired an amazing Teflon characteristic as well.

 

Many Nepalis now recognize the deceptive nature of the Maoists when they speak about ‘people’s’ democracy, ‘pro-people’ Constitution, progressive transformation (agragaami paribartan), and even ‘peace, inclusion and social justice’ as their guiding principles. These days, the ordinary Nepali seems immensely cynical about these terms. But curiously, many Western friends of Nepal seem to continue to give the Maoists very generous benefits of doubt, even in the face of blatant and overwhelming evidence. Consider some of these examples.

 

EXTORTION AND DECEPTION

 

When the UN Mission to Nepal (UNMIN) started verifying Maoist combatants, the party flooded the cantonments with nearly 32,000 cadres, many of whom were freshly minted “combatants”. Reportedly, quite a few of their hardcore combatants were kept outside the cantonments as members of their ‘civilian’ Young Communist League, some of them on ‘double duty’—registered in cantonments but serving in various party functions outside. UNMIN did disqualify some 10,000 fake combatants and identified 4,000 as child-soldiers and late recruits.

 

But the Maoists never acknowledged that they had done anything wrong, much less apologizing for their willful lying. On the contrary, in a recorded videotape at Shaktikhor camp, Maoist leader Prachanda gloated with pride about how they had fooled the UN into accepting 19,000 as certified combatants whereas their actual number, he acknowledged, was only 7,000-8,000 only. UNMIN’s response to this disgraceful deception was not an outrage but a plea that we should understand the Maoists’ statement in a “certain context.”

 

Although UNMIN confirmed that nearly 3,000 combatants in cantonments were child-soldiers, and the Maoist leadership tried to negotiate big cash grants from donors in their name, the party has never officially acknowledged that they ever recruited anyone under the age of 18 in violation of international conventions. For two years, the party leadership delayed the release and rehabilitation of these youngsters, giving them false assurances that in the end, the party will either ensure that they are integrated into the Nepal Army or given very generous allowances. However, these poor kids were ultimately dumped by the party with poor packages.

 

Then after four years of dilly-dallying, the Maoist party showed ‘extraordinary flexibility for the sake of peace and constitution’, which was much heralded by many Nepalis and the international community. During physical verification of the combatants to ascertain their interest in integration, rehabilitation or voluntary retirement with a handsome package, it turned out that many thousands of combatants were either “phantoms” or had deserted the cantonments long ago. But the party and its commanders were collecting their allowances regularly with fake signatures. The compulsory levy collected from the meager allowances of these poor combatants had mostly gone to a mysterious ‘party headquarters’ and was never accounted for. Credible reports indicate that the party leadership has thus extorted from the government treasury, billions of rupees.

 

Today, the UCPN (Maoist) is Nepal’s richest but least transparent political party in terms of its financial dealings. After an uproar from within its own ranks, the party has constituted investigative committees to look into personal property and finances of its leaders and commanders. The “agragaami” fanfare with which these committees were created, packed with the party leaders’ henchmen, will predictably absolve the party’s top leadership but hold some middle-level leaders guilty as sacrificial lambs. And once again, many will cheer the glorious party’s courage and ability to introspect and correct internal faults, compared to the opaque nature of other corrupt traditional parliamentary parties.

 

TEFLON LOGIC

 

How is it that in this day and age, a Marxist-Leninist-Stalinist-Maoist party that has not given up violence as a legitimate method of political change and ‘state capture’ by any means—through bullets or ballots—as its ultimate objectives can still project its image as a Teflon-coated ‘progressive and pro-people’ force?

 

Besides its following among many simple and poor folks or genuine victims of oppression who are looking for a savior and for whom the Maoist rhetoric can be very appealing, there seem to be two main reasons behind this. One, many of Nepal’s ethnic, regional and political activists, some civil society leaders, journalists and commentators are convinced that despite some of their excesses, the Maoists are or can be genuine agents for progressive change. Some tend to believe that even if the Maoists are insincere, they can be ‘used’ to neutralize traditional conservative forces to bring about progressive social change. Interestingly, this logic corresponds to the Maoists’ own design and calculation in the old Stalinist tactic of using independent intellectuals as “useful idiots”.

 

Two, after the end of the Cold War, Western countries are no longer worried about the ‘Communist menace’, which has now been generally replaced by Islamophobia. So, progressive-sounding dissident movements tend to enjoy a certain romantic appeal. And in their external relations, Nepal’s Maoists have been relatively successful in projecting their image of being widely misunderstood like the Scandinavian social-democrats.

 

BLIND FAITH

 

It is interesting to watch how certain groups of Nepali intelligentsia and analysts tend to have a deep impact on the thinking of international progressives. The combination of Western-educated intellectuals—who present all of Nepal’s problems as a simple case of the traditional Bahun-Chhetri Hill elites wanting to perpetuate their privileged position by opposing all progressive change that would empower marginalized groups––and Nepali intelligentsia tends to unintentionally support the Teflon Maoists, offering faith-based solutions like ethnic federalism rather than genuinely progressive affirmative actions.

 

Now that the more vocally extremist Mohan Baidya group has split from the UCPN (Maoist), it has become convenient for many such potential analysts to say that the mainstream Maoists are truly progressive social-democrats. Never mind that the UCPN (Maoist) too has officially kept ‘all options open’ as a revolutionary party that believes in the dictatorship of the proletariat.

 

None of this is to say the Maoists should never be given any benefit of doubt. Credit must be given where due. True democrats must be open to all peaceful dissenting views, but always with the wise caution of the old Gipper—‘trust but verify’.

 

[email protected]           

 

 

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NEPAL: Maoist Youths Set 3 Public School Buses on Fire

 

July 25, 2012

In theory, the YCL was eliminated from the Maoist system. But it would appear that thug activity, at least within the more radical faction of the Maoists, is alive and kicking.

 

Yesterday, three buses of a Delhi Public school branch in eastern Nepal were set afire by activists of the student's union affiliated to the breakaway hard-line faction of the Maoists, protesting against schools running under foreign investment.

The buses carrying 150 students of class XI and XII were en route to Dharan yesterday, when the radical Maoist student activists stopped it near Charkose Jungle area at Seuti Khola river and set them on fire.

The students were unharmed, at least physically. Their right to an education is another story.

 

The Maoist student union -- All Nepal National Free Students Union - Revolutionary (ANNFSU-R) is affiliated to the CPN-Maoist party led by hardliner Mohan Vaidya “Kiran”, who recently broke ranks with the Prachanda-led Maoists to form a more radical outfit. Delhi Public School Dharan is affiliated to India's Delhi Public School.

ANNFSU-R had also enforced a two-day shutdown in Dharan and Sunsari districts over the last two days to protest against schools operating under foreign investments, promoting foreign culture and charging high fees.

“It's a heinous crime to attack school buses despite the fact that schools are declared peace zone," Dil Kumar Ban, Chairman of Private and Boarding School Organisation Nepal (PABSON) said in a statement.

 

 

 

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After the fall of Nepal’s government: Human rights crisis?

 

June 6, 2012

 

Below is the written statement submitted by the Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC) to the Asian Human Rights Commission on June 5, 2012  

 

NEPAL: Human Rights Council urged to ensure ongoing monitoring and action concerning Nepal's increasingly precarious human rights situation

 

HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL: Twentieth session, Agenda Item 4, General Debate

 

The Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC) and Advocacy Forum (AF) would like to draw the attention of the Human Rights Council to serious political developments in Nepal that risk engendering an acute human rights crisis in the country, which until recently hosted an Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) country office. The mandate of this office was established in April 2005, and its presence significantly and positively impacted the protection of human rights, especially during the conflict period. Prior to the office being set up, Nepal had the most serious problem of forced disappearances, with the country being the source of the highest number of new cases of enforced disappearance that were being submitted to the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances. International monitoring, notably of places of detention, that the UN presence provided, led to an end to long-term disappearances. The OHCHR’s presence during and since Nepal’s 2006 popular uprisings, which toppled the country’s monarchy and brought to an end the decade-long conflict, has been significant in ensuring international monitoring and prevention of rights violations, providing civil society with greater space, and its departure should not signal the end of the involvement of the international community in Nepal.

Interesting review and analysis of Nepal’s governmental corruption

 

March 23, 2012

 

This week the Asian Human Rights Commission published a lengthy article on Nepali corruption written by Om Prakash Sen Thakuri. Below is a slightly condensed version.

 

The annual report of Transparency International (TI) on the perception of corruption index has listed Nepal 154^th out of the 183 countries around the world it has assessed. Nepal was ranked 121^st in 2008, and is the lowest placed South Asian country after Afghanistan. Nepal scored only 2.2 out of 10 where below 3.0 is considered a high percentage of corruption. Earlier this month, the Prime Minister admitted that corruption is rampant in Nepal. The Auditor General's Annual Report for 2011 brought to light the extent to which money laundering takes place in the government sector. According to the report, from the total amount of Rs 29,91,4,000,000 collected from the tax some 1,26,95,00,000 (Approximately US$ 15, 868,750) was not deposited in the state coffer during the last fiscal year 2010/11.

Maoists Threaten Prominent Nepalis and Former U.N. Officials

 

February 17, 2011

 

Inter Press Service News Agency (IPS) released a troubling report concerning two former U.N. officials based in Kathmandu and another well known advocate, who are now facing implicit death threats from Nepal’s ruling Maoist political party and have appealed to the United Nations for help and protection. The report was filed on February 15 by Thalif Deen.

Kul Chandra Gautam, a former U.N. assistant secretary-general and a longstanding deputy executive director of the U.N. children's agency UNICEF, and Kanak Mani Dixit, a former press officer at the U.N.'s Department of Public Information (DPI) in New York and currently a senior Nepali journalist, have been declared "people's enemies".

A third individual under threat is Subodh Raj Pyakurel, executive director of Informal Services Sector (INSEC), the largest non- governmental human rights organisation in Nepal.

All three have been blacklisted in a cover story in the monthly magazine Lalrakshak published by the ruling Unified Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist (UCPN-Maoist).

Disillusioned Maoist ex-fighters in Nepal: Their checks seized by their military superiors

February 16, 2012

As reported by BBC’s Sanjaya Dhakal from Kathmandu:

More than 7,000 former Maoist fighters in Nepal, who have begun demobilizing five years after they ended their armed revolt, have received money to help them return to civilian life. But what was supposed to be a harmonious transition has ended up mired in rancor.

The mood among the seven camps of former Maoist fighters has in recent days been somber and stressful.

Many of the former guerrillas who received cash under the voluntary retirement package are angry at the turn of events.

Maoist youths protest: Their party has betrayed them

February 8, 2012

This week, cadres of the Maoist-affiliated Young Communist League (YCL), based in Dhangadhi (far western Nepal), protested against their own mother party.

On Monday, they demanded that they be recognized as equivalent to the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) fighters and be provided the same financial packages as promised by the party in 2007 — a demand neither heard before nor registered anywhere institutionally.

Nepal’s Tolerance of Governmental Corruption: Sapkota vs Dixit

 

The Case of a Cabinet Member accused of murder, the Prime Minister, and counter aggression leveled at journalist Kanak Mani Dixit

June 13, 2011

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Nothing has brought into focus Nepal’s permissive attitude toward corrupt officials more blatantly than Prime Minister Jhala Nath Khanal’s recent appointment of senior Maoist leader Agni Sapkota as Minister for Information and Communications. Sapkota is accused by a long list of human rights organizations as being a leading party to the murder of Arjun Bahadur Lama in 2005. 

On May 24, in a letter jointly written by the International Commission of Jurists, Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, the groups urged Prime Minister Khanal to reconsider Sapkota’s appointment since criminal investigations were pending against him. They also strong objected to Home Minister Krishna Bahadur Mahara’s maneuvering to withdraw human rights cases, including the case against Sapkota. The new home minister is also a senior member of the Maoist party.

The letter said in part: "The appointment of Sapkota, a member of the politburo of the Unified Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist), while he is under police investigation sends a strong signal of government indifference to such serious allegations and reinforces the culture of impunity in Nepal."

Mikel Dunham’s Exclusive Interview with General Rookmangud Katawal (Rtd)

 

April 27, 2011

“I would be the last person to launch and run a political party. I have no desire, no interest and no intention.”

Few leaders in Nepal have drawn more interest and controversy than the recently retired Chief of Army Staff General Rookmangud Katawal. He received military training in Nepal, India, Pakistan, the United States and the United Kingdom. In 1988 he became the Chief Military Personnel Officer of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon. A graduate of the Indian National Defense Academy and the Indian Military Academy, he holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Nepal's Tribhuwan University and a Masters Degree in National Defense from Pakistan's Quaid-i-Azam University. General Katawal is also the Distinguished International Honor Graduate of the US Special Forces Course, and earned the coveted Gideon in the U.S. Ranger Course. He is also a graduate of the Army Command and Staff College, Camberley UK, the Senior Command Course, India and the National Defence University, Islamabad, Pakistan. In 2006, he was appointed as Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) of the Nepalese Army. But the pivotal moment in his career came when he fiercely resisted group integration of Maoist rebels into the National Army after Prachanda became prime minister. Prachanda sacked him but, shortly afterwards, the President of Nepal overrode the decision and ordered General Katawal to resume his tenure as COAS. This resulted in Prime Minister Prachanda's resignation and a general collapse of the government.

 

DUNHAM: The last time we met was in 2009. The burning issue then was the integration of the army. Two years later it is still the pivotal issue. It’s a quagmire. In your opinion, how close are the political parties to agreeing on the terms of integration? 

Nepal’s Political Situation: Anatomy of the Maoists’ contentious YCL

 

March 7, 2011

This week, the Carter Center published a detailed report on the numerous youth wings associated with political movements in Nepal, and the resultant clashes therein. Although eleven youth organizations are mentioned, the bulk of the 31-page report concentrates on the activities of the Maoist Young Communist League, better known as the YCL.

Youth in Nepal have historically played a critical role in the country's democratic development. However, in recent years political party youth wings have become increasingly associated with aggressive activity, notably since the Unified Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) (UCPN(M)) Young Communist League (YCL) was re-activated in 2006. In the run up to the 2008 Constituent Assembly election, the YCL was implicated in extortion, intimidation and violent activities. Since the election, Nepal has seen the formation of a “Youth Force” by the Communist Party of Nepal - Unified Marxist-Leninist (CPN-UML) as a counter-YCL group. Additionally, there have been repeated allegations of YCL, CPN-UML Youth Force, and other party or identity group youth wing involvement in actions, which negatively affect the political, economic, and security environment in districts throughout the country. Nepali politics at the local level has never been entirely peaceful and there is certainly historical precedent of youth being mobilized as “muscle,” but the rising trend since 2006 has raised the attention of district administration officials, political party members, civil society, community members, international observers, and both domestic and international media.

The report is based on recent findings of Carter Center observers throughout the country, who have observed the post-election peace and constitutional drafting process since June 2009. The Center collected information on youth wings in 30 districts through interviews with political party youth wing members, district administration officials, political parties, civil society, and citizens. The Center‟s report looks into who joins political party youth wings, what they receive, and what their aspirations are after joining. It also addresses what kinds of activities political party youth wings engage in and to what degree these activities are in compliance with the peace process agreements signed by their mother parties. 

Portrait of Nepal’s Political Progress in 2010: Barren promises, Erosion of Credibility

 

January 11, 2011

 

Institute for Defense Studies & Analyses (IDSA) is a non-partisan, autonomous group located in Delhi. It is funded by the Indian Ministry of Defense and rated as one of the top 50 think tanks in the world, according to The Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program.

Yesterday, IDSA released its annual report on Nepal’s political situation in 2010.

 

Nepal 2010: Uncertainties Galore

 Nihar Nayak

January 10, 2011

 

The year 2010 was another disappointing year for the people of Nepal. The peace process was deadlocked, with extreme polarization within and among the political parties on various issues. Despite the extension of the Constituent Assembly (CA) for a year, the parties could not complete even the rudimentary task of drafting a new constitution. The blame for this unsettled state of affairs was conveniently heaped on the so-called external forces. The only silver lining in the dark clouds was the high-level task force headed by UCPN-Maoist leader Prachanda, which resolved around 100 out of 220 contentious issues, and the formation of the Army Integration Special Committee (AISC) secretariat.

Continued concern over violence against Nepali journalists

 

December 3, 2010

The Committee to Protect Journalists is an independent, nonprofit organization founded in 1981 to promote press freedom worldwide by defending the rights of journalists to report the news without fear of reprisal. CPJ has a full-time staff of 23 at its New York headquarters, including area specialists for each major world region. CPJ has a Washington, D.C. representative, and consultants stationed around the world. A 35-member board of prominent journalists directs CPJ's activities. The organization does not accept government funding.

Two days ago, CPJ issued a report indicating its concern over a violent attack and continuing threats against Nepalese journalist Shreedeep Rayamajhi in connection with his online reporting.

Nepal’s Maoists black-flag eye clinic and other Indian health aid

 

October 7, 2010

The Maoists continue to do the bidding of Beijing. Yesterday, they stepped up their anti-Indian campaign by attempting to foil Rakesh Sood  -- Indian Ambassador to Nepal -- from visiting the Mt. Everest region, where he was scheduled to inaugurate various Indian-assisted projects previously green-lighted under bilateral cooperation.

A group of 30-35 Maoists associated with a regional group called the Sherpa Rastriya Mukti Morcha-Nepal tried to block the road when Sood touched down at the Solukhumbu Airport. They waved black flags at the ambassador, a particularly menacing and insulting warning sometimes used in Nepali demonstrations. The group was led by former Maoist minister for culture Gopal Kirati, who had earlier spearheaded the attack on Indian priests at the Pashupatinath temple in Kathmandu – a protest that seriously backfired on Maoist Supremo Prachanda, who was prime minister at the time.

There can be little doubt that the protest was mounted on behalf of China. Northern Nepal remains an extremely sensitive spot for Beijing, ever since China annexed Tibet in the 1950s.

The Fierce Urgency of Whenever: Nepal’s Non-Government and the Non-Writing of the Constitution

 

August 14, 2010

“Politics is the art of postponing decisions until they are no longer relevant.” 

Henri Queuille, 20th century French politician 

Today, there are plenty of Nepalis who would agree, even though, by nature, Nepalis are not a cynical people. Quite the opposite: Nepalis are remarkably resilient to the more discouraging vagaries of politics. One of their favorite sayings is, “Miracles happen.” Even during the Maoist insurgency, which erupted in 1996 and proliferated for 10 years in the hinterlands – even after 13,000-plus Nepalis perished from the Maoist/governmental forces struggle and multiple thousands were displaced – the people of Nepal held on. 

Likewise, in the Kathmandu Valley, when the king assumed absolute power and dissolved the cabinet and parliament, a large contingent kept their fingers crossed and, at least at the beginning, gave the king the benefit of the doubt. Historically, Nepalis have hoped for the best.

How did Nepal go from “Anything is possible” to widespread pessimism? Remembering the Rapid and Dramatic Changes 

Nepali Terrorism -- U.S. State Department Annual Report

 

 

August 9, 2010

 

US DEPARTMENT OF STATE

OFFICE OF THE COORDINATOR FOR COUNTERTERRORISM

Country Reports on Terrorism 2009

August 5, 2010    Nepal

While Nepal experienced no significant acts of international terrorism, several incidents of politically-motivated violence occurred in the country. Maoist -affiliated Young Communist League (YCL) criminal activity continued, including intimidation and extortion. In response to the YCL violence, other political parties condoned the use of violence by their youth wings. Unrest in the southern Terai plains remained high with the proliferation of numerous armed groups and an inadequate police presence. More than 100 armed groups are estimated to be operating in the Terai, some in pursuit of independence or autonomy, most composed of opportunistic criminal elements. Competing factions clashed with each other, with the Maoists, with hill-origin Nepalese, and with police, instigating numerous strikes, demonstrations, and Indo-Nepal border road closures. A Special Security Plan (SSP) was put in place in July to curb violence and end the culture of impunity. Despite this program, police still do not have an active presence in many parts of the Terai.

Nepal experienced several acts of religiously-motivated violence, most prominently the bombing of a Catholic Church in May. The attack was conducted by the Nepalese Defense Army (NDA), a Hindu extremist group that was responsible for shooting a Catholic priest and bombing a mosque in 2008. The leader of this group has since been arrested and their activities appear to have ceased.

There were no indications that Nepal was a safe haven for international terrorists. Given Nepal’s continued instability, however, there is a possibility that members of extremist groups could transit Nepal, especially into India. The large ungoverned space along the Nepal/Indian border exacerbates this vulnerability, as do security shortfalls at Tribhuvan Airport, Nepal’s international airport. In June, Lashkar-e Tayyiba (LT) member Muhammad Omar Madni traveled through Nepal enroute to New Delhi.

Nepal is not a regional financial center and there were no indications that the country was used as an international money laundering center. There were no prosecutions or arrests for money laundering in 2009. However, YCL illicit financial activities, including smuggling, extortion, and protection demands, increased in 2009.

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Nepal: What Maoists are saying to Maoists

May 14, 2010

 

 C. P. Gajurel “Gaurav”, Secretary of UCPN-Maoist, published an article this week in the new issue of Nepal’s Maoist English language journal Red Star. Gajurel addresses an issue much debated within the party: Is the international situation favorable for the Maoists to take over Nepal?

Born in 1948, Mr. Gajurel made headlines during the 10-year insurrection when, in 2003, Indian authorities apprehended him in Chennai. Although wanted for homicide, armed robbery and complicity in terrorism, India charged Gajurel with possession of false papers and “conspiracy against India”. After the CPN(M) and the government of Nepal signed a Comprehensive Peace Agreement, India dropped charges against him. He was released on November 28 2006 and returned to Nepal on December 1. Since then, Gajurel has acted, periodically, as a spokesman for his party.

Although there are no startling revelations in the Red Star article, it does serve to fine-tune one’s understanding of the inter-party effort to define itself at this point in time. There are three blaringly off-target remarks, however: 

1. Mr. Gajurel asserts that, “that during the middle of the 20th century more than half of the globe and the people inhabited in it were liberated from capitalism and were enjoying socialism.” I doubt that the millions of Chinese who starved to death during Mao Zedong’s Great Leap Forward and the additional millions who were imprisoned and repressed during the Cultural Revolution would agree.

2. Mr. Gajurel claims that, currently, Beijing knows “that only the Maoist party in power can curb the ‘free Tibet movement’ in Nepal”. I see no evidence to substantiate this. It seems far more likely that any government – from UML, to Nepali Congress, to monarchists – would and will vociferously support Bejing’s One China Policy. 

3. Mr. Gajurel's assessment of the economic situations in Europe and the United States: He states that Western economies are so vulnerable that "such crisis will definitely be overcome by revolution." I would suggest that this is wishful thinking.

 

RED STAR

“International situation: Favourable or Unfavourable?

by C. P. Gajurel ‘Gaurav’ – Secretary of UCPN-Maoist

Communist Movement is an internationalist movement. Goal of all communists, provided they are truly communists, is communism. We should not be confused about vulgar distortions of communism whether it is ‘National communism’ or ‘Euro communism’. Internationalist nature of communists is characterized by the principle ‘either we all reach or none of us’. This is the basis of proletarian internationalism.

International situation is not same as proletarian internationalism.

Apart from the domestic situation, which is decisive, Communist movement is definitely influenced by international situation of the given time. Development of communist movement of a single country definitely depends upon the favourable or unfavourable international situation. Success or failure of revolution of individual country also largely depends on favourable or unfavourable international situation. In many cases, the question of ‘unfavourable international situation’ is being (mis)used by rightists or revisionists to justify their degeneration from a communist or revolutionary to a revisionist or a bourgeois politician. None of the revisionists of the world declare themselves as revisionists; rather they try to show that they are revolutionaries and are still communists. Capitalist class is an exploiter and oppressor class. So it is quite natural that the politicians openly representing the class interest of this class will not be able to garner support from the broad masses.

So in order to garner support of the broad masses, the revisionists, who represent the class interest of the bourgeoisie, disguise themselves as “communists”. They always distort the revolutionary line and situation in service of the bourgeoisie. They are the people who sabotage the revolution from within. Words like “Communism”, “revolution” are the masks of revisionists under which they cover their ugly bourgeois face. Revisionists of this era always prolong or delay or stop the revolution in the pretext of “unfavourable” international situation. They have regular and long time idea which states that no revolution can take place when there is “unfavourable international situation” and for them “unfavourable international situation” is permanent.

Thus the conclusion of this statement is that revolution cannot take place at this era. Therefore, while making assessment of the international situation, we should not be the victim of permanently “no favourable situation therefore no revolution”.

We should be realistic in making assessment of the international situation. We should adopt Maoist approach while making assessment of the international situation. Definitely there are some serious unfavourable factors which we cannot ignore. Side by side there are some favourable factors which we have to take into account. Let us try to make a brief summation of bright side as well as the dark side of the present international situation in making revolution.

Absence of international organization

We have no strong international organization or strong international centre of communist parties at this moment. The Third International which was initiated and led by Lenin himself was disbanded during the time of 2nd world war at the behest of capitalist and imperialist countries in order to pave the way for ‘Anti-fascist united front’ against fascist imperialist Germany.

It seems that the intention of Stalin, who was the main leader of the Third International after the demise of Lenin, was not to dissolve the Communist International permanently. Stalin formed COMINFORM (Communist Information Centre) under his leadership after the end of the 2nd WW. But it was far from being developed to an international centre like COMINTERN. Gradually, the Cominform became passive and virtually it became defunct.

Now, we have international embryonic centre of communist parties and organisations, the Revolutionary Internationalist Movement (RIM). But its strength is limited.

Absence of socialist block

It is true that there was no international centre like Comintern during the time the Chinese revolution that became victorious in the year 1949. But there was socialist Russia and international socialist block which pro-vided very significant support to the Chinese revolution. We have no such international socialist block to day. This is darkest part of the present international situation. It seems that had there been international socialist base, the New Democratic Revolution would have been succeeded long before and the Nepalese society would have been grappling for socialism by now.

Dearth of international working class movement

It is also true that there was neither Communist International nor Socialist block during the time of Socialist revolution in Russia in 1919. But there was very strong working class movement in Europe and socialist revolution in Germany was very close to success. The strength of the working class movement was a very strong support to the Russian revolution. But we have no such strong working class movement in any continent at present.

Hostility among imperialist countries not in climax

There is one common international factor in Russian and Chinese revolution that the Russian revolution succeeded during the time of 1st WW and the Chinese revolution succeeded during the 2nd WW. It does not mean that WW is essential part of the success of every revolution. It is worth to be considered that during the time of WW, the imperialist powers were cutting each others’ throat. One imperialist country was enemy for another imperialist country. The hostility among the imperialist countries was so ferocious that one’s existence depended on elimination of the other. They had little time to fight against communist forces during the time of WW. There is no doubt that contradiction among various imperialist forces exists today, but it has not reached to the level of hostility of eliminating each other.

Situation—provided or can be created?

When we talk about the favourable international situation, there are some aspects to be considered. Firstly, the international situation is favourable in the given time and the revolutionaries can have the opportunity to utilize the favourable situation as outside support of the revolution. If this situation exists it is well and good. All the revolutionary parties will wish such a situation to prevail. Such situation is always welcomed. But our wish does not determine everything including the favourable international situation.

Secondly, the duty of the revolutionaries is to create such a situation which helps the revolution to grow and to succeed. Revolutionaries do not wait for a good fortune to arrive. Such a situation may or may not be completely favourable. If we cannot create completely favourable situation, we should try to create relatively favourable situation. If we cannot even achieve relatively favourable situation, we should try to create such a situation which is not harmful to the revolution. What often happens is that at the era of imperialism and proletarian revolution it is difficult for the communist revolutionaries to get a readymade favourable international situation.

Third, favourable or unfavourable situation is not a static phenomenon. It goes on changing depending on the changed situation. In many cases the revolution itself causes the international situation to be changed and the situation goes the other way round. The revolution is itself a force which brings change in the international situation and unfavourable situation turns to be relatively favourable or at least not harmful to the revolution. It is evident from the event of Nepalese revolution. When we initiated the historic People’s War (in February 13, 1996), the international situation was not at all favourable for the revolution. Eleven long years of PW has caused change in the national as well as the international situation. It is obvious that the international situation is less unfavourable for the revolution today than it was during the initiation of the PW. We will mention about some of the emerging relatively favourable factors at the international level.

Emergence of anti-imperialist forces

Mao while making assessment of the international situation arrived at a conclusion that Asia, Africa and Latin America are the ‘storm centers’ of the world revolution. Still it holds good to some extent. There was revolutionary wave in the Latin American countries during the time of Cuban revolution and consequently during the 60s and 70s. After the bloody coup in Chile in 1972, communist movement in Latin America had to face a big setback. Nevertheless, anti-imperialist struggle continued in most of the Latin American countries at different level. Since last six or seven years, there is a kind of anti- US imperialist wave in most of the countries in Latin America. Parties upholding the principle of ‘Bolivarian socialism’ are winning the presidential and parliamentary elections. Some of the governments like that in Venezuela have infuriated the U S administration by nationalizing the big oil companies owned by the US big capitalists. The other ‘socialist governments’ also follow the same line. The Hugo Chavez government further infuriated the US government when it (Chavez government) signed a large arm deal quite recently with Russia. The recent developments in Latin America should be considered as favourable factor at the international level. These developments in Latin America should be considered very significant especially in a situation when there is no socialist block to support the revolution.

Severe economic crisis

Severe crisis that engulfed the imperialist world has shaken the imperialist system itself. It is one of the severest economic crises shaking the imperialist system that has recurred after 70 years. The crisis has not been overcome. The economists assume that the counter shock of this economic quake is more dangerous which is yet to come. The imperialist system has been so weakened that it is struggling for its survival. The revolutionary movements in Europe and US appeared to be in hibernation since long years. The ruling class is afraid of revolutionary upsurge in its citadel. It seems that the imperialist system will not be able to withstand another crisis, which it is assumed may recur within some years, because there is no substantial recovery. Such crisis will definitely be overcome by revolution.

Attraction to Socialism

History of communist movement has proven that socialism or communist movement cannot be destroyed by outside intervention of the imperialist power; rather it is destroyed from within. Capitalist roaders within communist parties are real destroyers of communist movement and socialism that has been achieved through hard revolution. We know that during the middle of the 20th century more than half of the globe and the people inhabited in it were liberated from capitalism and were enjoying socialism.

The world was divided into two competing blocks—imperialism and socialism and there was balance of power. Socialism was rising power where as imperialism was declining power. Socialism was heading towards global victory and Marx’s dream of communism looked like to be fulfilled. But destruction of socialism started right from within. Restoration of capitalism started from the first socialist country of the world, Russia in 1956 under the leadership of Khruschev, then leader of the Communist Party of Soviet Union (CPSU). It spread like wild fire.

Later Russia degenerated to a social imperialist country. So the real socialism was destroyed. During ’90s, “anti-socialism” wave backed by US imperialism washed away the pro-Soviet Union block which they used to call “socialism”.

It seems that the anti-socialism wind has taken rest in western countries and socialism is being remembered. The reason is—the capitalist and imperialist countries provided some basic facilities to the masses to persuade them in order to prevent socialist revolution to take place in their country. When socialism has been destroyed capitalists have no compulsion to compete with socialism. So they are with-drawing step by step all the basic facilities they were providing in the name of “social security”. The poor do not get unemployment allowance, if they get at all, it is quite meager. The poor are unable to get treatment. So attraction to socialism is increasing, at least the trend of hate socialism seems to have stopped even in the western countries where “socialism” was destroyed by big mass actions. We should take it as a positive trend.

Inter imperialist contradictions still exist

At present there is no WW. But there are still wars going on as regional war and proxy war. These wars are producing new anti-imperialist forces and huge number of masses fighting against the aggressors. Inter imperialist rivalry for the loot of oppressed countries still exists and will continue to be so till there is imperialism. Lenin said “imperialism is war” which is always true. There is good opportunity for the communists to take advantage of these contradictions.

Growing strength of Maoist forces

After demise of Mao there was serious setback at the ICM. The initiation of PW in the ’80s in Peru and its subsequent development from strategic defence to strategic equilibrium created great enthusiasm among the communist revolutionaries at the global level. But unfortunately the Peruvian revolution suffered a big set back after the capture of its supreme leader Gonzalo and hosts of the senior leaders of the party during 1992-94.

Before this event could have caused big damage to the ICM, the PW initiated in Nepal under the leadership of the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) developed in leaps and bonds. Within a span of 10 years the Nepalese revolution reached to the level of strategic offence which created tremendous enthusiasm throughout the world. In the last few years the PW in India is developing at the fast pace.

The central government of India very often states that ‘the Naxal movement (which is often said about Maoists in India) is major threat to the Indian state’. According to the information, the Maoist party of India has established proposed base area in Dandakaranya, whose total area is almost equal to Nepal. The growing strength of the Indian Maoist is positive development for the revolution in Nepal.

China-India-US factor

Nepal shares about 1800 km border with southern neighbor India and about 1000 km that with the northern neighbor China. Nepal lies in between these two giant states. In the past there was hostile relation in between China and India associated with Indo- China war in 1962. But such a hostile situation does not exist now. Similarly, USA and China had also hostile relation in the past. Apparently we do not see such hostility in between these two powers of the world. Presently China has good economic ties and has good trade relation with USA and India. But USA by virtue of being most powerful imperialist country and sole super power does not like “socialist” China as a prosperous and powerful country. Though US is a sole super power till the date, but it is a declining state. It has not come out of the economic crisis that it faced during couple of years. It is becoming increasingly difficult for US to compete with China economically. So far the relation between China and India is concerned, it is not so healthy. Even the old border issue between the two states has not been resolved amicably, especially in Arunanchal Pradesh state. Chinas good relation with Pakistan is also a factor causing unfriendly relation between the two neighbors. In short, there is under current contention going between China and US; China and India.

Under the given circumstances, US likes to control China in different ways. Tibet and Dalai Lama is one of the factors that US and also India are using to control China. Apparently, there is good trade relation between India and China. But still India boards Dalai Lama’s “Government in Exile” in Dharmasala, a town in Himachal Pradesh state of India. Dalai Lama is still fighting for “free Tibet” with the support of USA, India and many imperialist countries. Taking advantage of bordering state with Tibet and unstable and economically poor country, which has dependency with India and US, they are trying to use Nepal as a base to conduct “free Tibet movement”. Using Buddhist religion as a cover they are concentrating their anti- China forces in Himalayan region and also in Kathmandu. There is growing risk that Nepal may be used as battle ground for the “free Tibet movement”.

Present Chinese leadership has more than enough knowledge about the situation stated above. They know that most of the political parties are loyal to the foreign powers and these parties in power will be instrumental in facilitating the anti-China movement from Nepal. They also have sufficient knowledge that only the Maoist party in power can curb the “free Tibet movement” from Nepal. This is very significant factor which can be used as a favourable factor for Nepalese revolution and New Nepal.

Conclusion

What we have explained above clearly shows that present day international situation in not clearly favourable for any revolution led by genuine communist party in the world today.

To get readymade favourable international situation is well and good and definitely we all will be happy to get it. But to find such a situation is very difficult. Our responsibility is not fulfilled only by making such analysis and statement that the international situation is not favourable so there cannot be a revolution in Nepal and any part of the world. Now we can see that this unfavourable international situation has become a pretext for the reformist and degenerated “communist” parties to justify their degeneration into reformism and revisionism. What MLM teaches us that if situation is not favourable we should not sit idle, we should be active in changing the situation to make it favourable. Another important point is that the force of revolution can change the situation from unfavourable to favourable.

In our case when we initiated the great PW in Nepal, the international situation for us was unfavourable. It is favourable many times as compared to the situation during 1996. The development of the PW has created the situation more favourable or less unfavourable. We can conclude that present international situation is not very much favourable for the revolution, but it is not so unfavourable as well. If the initiative of the Maoist party increases tremendously this situation will further become less unfavourable and favourable to some extent.

Therefore for the genuine communist revolutionaries present international situation is not such a big obstacle and revolutionary movement can grow and revolution can succeed. Let us hope the Nepalese revolution may be victorious in near future!

 

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Maoists Cease Strike under Nationwide Public Outcry

 

 May 8, 2010

We’re mad as hell and we’re not going to take it anymore

 

 

It is not the first time that Maoist leadership has miscalculated the pulse of the Nepali people. The most recent example is their scuttled “indefinite strike”, a six-day old travesty aimed at forcing Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal to quit.

 

Instead, it produced a spontaneous uproar by Nepalis representing all walks of life, who, deprived of vital supplies and freedom of movement, rejected the virtual siege that the Maoists had forced upon them. For those requiring medical treatment, difficulties were compounded by lack of transportation, absent heath care workers and dire shortages of essential drugs and medicines. Nearly 8 million school children were banned from attending classes. Everywhere, stocks of food were running low. All highways were empty.

Ujwal Thapa: Nepalis Photographing Kathmandu’s Paralaysis

 

May 6, 2010

Ujwal Thapa, an indefatigable Kathmandu blogger and businessman, recently created a Facebook Event in anticipation of the Maoists’ May Day demonstration and the nationwide strike that followed.

He called it “Understanding the Maoist Bandh. One thousand opinions and photos.”

Ujwal called for all concerned citizens to rub shoulders with the demonstrators and document their experiences and feelings concerning the mood on the street.

“Lets go in the streets and understand why they are so passionate in bringing Nepal into a halt!” Ujwal implored.

The response was overwhelming. Below are a few of the hundreds of posted opinions and photographs taken from May 1-3. (click on photos for enlargement)

General Strike Paralyzes Nepal

 

 May 3, 2010

 

Nationwide, daily life in Nepal has been amputated by the May 1 demonstration and the indefinite general strike enforced by the Maoists beginning May 2.

 

It came as a surprise to no one. Maoist agitation had been promised well in advance as a mean to impel the current government led by the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxists Leninists) – UML – and it’s Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal to step down so that the Maoists could form a new government with Prachanda at the helm.

 

 

On May 1, between 125,000 and 150,000 Maoists thronged the major intersections in the capital including Koteshwor, Chabahil, Gaushala, Maharajgunj, Gongabu, Kalanki, Balkhu, Satdobato, Padmodaya, Baneshowr, Ratnapark, Tripureshowr, among other places. Over 15,000 security forces were deployed to maintain law and order. No significant instances of violence were reported.

 

But the sea of protesters continued into Sunday in Kathmandu and other major urban centers. Maoists armed with bamboo sticks enforced a general strike (bandh) cutting off transport, closing shops, markets and industries and disrupting school examinations.

 

Nepal’s Political Time Bomb – PART III -- Maoists promise peaceful demonstration with the help of weapons

 

April 29, 2010

   

 

Doublespeak  

On Tuesday, Nepal police arrested Santosh Rai “Pratirodh”, a Maoist commander from Main Cantonment,  2^nd Division, of the People’s Liberation Army in Sindhuli District, for possessing a hand grenade. He was on his way to Kathmandu in advance of the mass demonstration being held in the capital on May 1 – a Maoist protest orchestrated to topple the current government.  

This came one day after the police seized a Maoist truck headed for the capital loaded down with lathis (wooden batons).  

In a statement published on Wednesday, the United Nations’ political mission in Nepal (UNMIN) condemned “this reckless risk of life” and called for an investigation:

Nepal's Political Time Bomb -- PART II -- Maoists Boast Indefinite Strike to Overthrow Government

 

April 27, 2010

On April 26, Maoist supremo Prachanda proclaimed an indefinite nationwide strike to force Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal’s resignation and to topple the current government. Prachanda has made it clear that the only acceptable replacement for the top spot is Prachanda himself. The strike is scheduled to commence May 2, one day after a huge mass May Day demonstration has been organized to grind Kathmandu to a halt.

Nepal’s Political Time Bomb – Part I -- Army Put on High Alert

 

April 25, 2010 

 

 

For the last two years, I’ve asked various Nepali politicians – from Maoist leaders to members of Nepali Congress: “What happens if the Constituent Assembly fails to promulgate the new constitution by May 28, 2010?” On more than one occasion the self-assured response was: “Miracles happen in Nepal.”

Maybe that’s the problem: Politicians relying on miracles – while jockeying for power – instead of dedicating themselves to serving the public through old-fashion hard work, sincere dialogue amongst themselves and forging a consensus based on the greater good.

Now it is a moot point.

Nepal Political Update: Incendiary Madhes, the Maoists & the Attempted Murder of Journalist Tika Bista

December12, 2009

 

KAILALI INCIDENT 

Disillusionment, lawlessness and violence continue to shackle Western Nepal, particularly in the Madhes, the southern swath of Nepali plains that constitutes 33% of the country’s population. In the past week, two events in particular illustrate the regions’ tinderbox-like conditions. And the Maoists have played a major role in the unrest.

Dunham’s interview with Nepal’s five-time Prime Minister Surya Bahadur Thapa

May 30, 2009






















The Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal celebrated its first Republic Day on Friday -- a country that, while still in its infancy, has already witnessed two prime ministers.

Over the years, the turnover frequency of Nepal’s prime ministers has taken on a kind of flavor-of-the-month quality. Few were in power long enough to produce sustainable legacies, the (until quite recently) Maoist prime minister being no exception. Entrusted with the orchestration of the framing of a new constitution – the nascent republic’s most important task – Ex-Prime Minister Prachanda watched progress languish while being preoccupied with other matters.

Nepal: The Maoist Army Muscles Up

March 6, 2009

On March 3, the Maoist guerilla army destabilized the fragile peace process with its announced intention of recruiting 11, 713 new soldiers. 

Nanda Kishore Pun Pasang, the new chief of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) issued the statement. He intends to fill the vacancies created, three years ago, when the UNMIN disqualified and pruned down the guerilla troops (now sequestered in cantonments) from 31,000 to 19,000.

“We have called applications from Nepalese youth to fill vacant posts in our army,” Pun told reporters. “Thousands of willing PLA combatants responded positively to Tuesday’s call and lined up for jobs at the seven PLA divisions. …I urge the media not to construe it as extra recruitment. We are just filling up vacant positions.”













Pun’s move is seen as a checkmate by many analyists – a tit-for-tat play in answer to the Nepal Army’s recruitment program initiated last year, an act Maoist leadership insists was illegal. Army spokesman Brigadier General Ramindra Chhetri responded that the army was simply refilling posts left vacant due to resignations, casualties and retirements. Since then, the Supreme Court intervened by requesting that the Nepal Army cease additional recruitments until the Court resolves the dispute.





Curiously, Maoist leaders have remained tight-lipped about Pun’s announcement. Defense Minister Ram Bahadur Thapa “Badal” told a mass ralley in Tehrathum on March 4 that he knew nothing about the recruitment drive until he read Pun’s press release. Then, adressing a gathering in Gorkha, he refused to comment on the PLA recruitment drive, but blasted the Nepali Congress Party for advising “the Nepal Army to continue with the recruitment process though it was against the peace agreements made” in 2006.

Prime Minister Dahal was equally mum, preferring to focus on the Supreme Court’s role in the matter. Speaking at the 11th National Conference of the Nepal Bar Association, he predicted that the question of army recruitment would be resolved within a few days: “The case is under the Supreme Court’s consideration, so I should not say which side did wrong and which side did right.”

Even Nanda Kishore Pun Pasang seemed intent on distancing the Maoist party from the PLA recruitment. When asked by reporters if his move had been endorsed by the party, Pun said his decision had “nothing to do with the Maoist Party.”






























Be that as it may, there was swift fallout from other parties.





CPN-UML Vice-Chairman and member of the Army Integration Special Committee (AISC) Bhim Rawal tendered his resignation from the Committee. Talking to the Post, Rawal said, “Citing the changed political context in and outside the party and to pave the way to move forward I have resigned from the AISC.”









Ram Sharan Mahat, who represents Nepali Congress at AISC, lashed out at Pun’s recruitment drive: “How can this combatant commander talk about additional recruitment when the AISC is talking of the rehabilitation and integration of ex-combatants?”

In the meantime, the PLA recruitment drive is apparently well underway. According to Republica.com:

The fourth Divisional Headquarters in Hattikhor has received 50 applications in two days for 600 positions that fell vacant during verification of the combatants by the United Nations Mission in Nepal (UNMIN).

The Third Division in Jutpani of Chitwan, however, has decided to formally distribute application forms from Thursday, according to Abiral (one name), office secretary of the Third Divisional Headquarters. The Third Division headquarters has called application for 700 positions. It has 6,001 combatants as of now.

According to Yam Bahadur Adhikari, commander of the Fourth Divisional Headquarters, 12 applications were received Tuesday and 37 including three from women candidates were received on Wednesday.

Abiral said more than 500 people have enquired about the recruitment so far. “We are setting date to issue application forms to those willing to apply,” said Abiral. “We have kept the applications open for former army and police personnel.”

He said the people disqualified by UNMIN will be given special consideration and versatile youths will be highly encouraged to re-apply.







Both the divisions have formally called for applications by pasting notices at their main entrances and in the office premises. They have also pasted sample of application forms with spaces for name, caste, age, position, gender and citizenship number.

One question that no one seems to be asking: Where is the money coming from to hire and equip these new recruits?

All of this bodes ill for the peace process. Until the PLA is dissolved, either by being fully incorporated into the national army, which seems highly unlikely, or until it is presented with a satisfactory demobilization package, there will be no true stability in Nepal. To add fresh troops to the rebel army is fanning the flames with a vengeance.

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Nepal Political Update: The new Dark Age

 

January 13, 2009

   

For those Nepalis who went to the polling booths last April hoping that Maoist leadership would serve as a restorative to a succession of inept governments – a parade of political parties that, one after another, proved to be subsumed by personal or political agendas at the expense of the nation’s well being – those same optimistic voters may find themselves now surreptitiously consulting their calendars and wondering what is happening in the “new” Nepal. What happened to Prachanda’s magic wand? What happened to his momentum? The Maoist Prime Minister, whose cardinal duty is to help secure a lasting peace by orchestrating the creation of a new constitution, seems deadlocked with vying parties, dogged by a power crisis with no end in sight, intransigent in his dealings with the Nepal army, and sidetracked by secondary issues that may be of great ideological importance to his party but ill-timed if his main goal truly is to, first and foremost, get a new constitution up and running. The problems are titanic for any man who takes the helm of a poor and unstable nation. But in the first 100 days or so of his tenure, Prachanda’s steering of the Ship of State seems to be handicapped with a faulty compass. Has he taken his eye off the prize in order to keep peace within the adversarial leadership of his own party? Where’s the pragmatism that is essential in a leader if he is to garner support from the broadest constituency possible and prod the country forward? Has he gone myopic and inadvertently isolated himself from a large chunk of the people who took a deep breath and wished him well last April?

Currently, the Prime Minister’s most pressing problem is to quite literally rescue the country from darkness. No government can survive the 21st century without providing its people with an adequate source of electricity.

























THE POWER CRISIS

Toward the end of December, the new government declared a national power crisis. This is the dry season in Nepal, a country that depends on hydropower for most of its electricity. The water levels in the major rivers are low and mountain snows aren’t melting fast enough to make up for the deficit.

But the electrical shortage is not just a seasonal one. Bishnu Poudel, minister for water resources recently warned, “It will take at least five years to free the country form power shortages even if everything works out as planned.”

The State-run Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) generates a mere 300 megawatts of electricity against a demand of 800 megawatts; public demand for electricity is growing 10% annually. The picture becomes even gloomier when one takes into account that only 40% of the Nepali population has ever had access to electricity. The majority of the Nepal’s population still relies on wood -- an increasingly precious natural resource -- for their cooking and heating needs.




The power shortage has severely hobbled industry and business productivity and now, in mid-January, private television stations announced that they have been forced to cut broadcasting time by five hours a day.

The news gets worse: Beginning last week, the NEA increased the length of load shedding to 16 hours a day. Basically and quite literally, Nepal is living in the dark with a reportedly marked increase in crime in the urban areas. Frustration and anger and resentment will only continue to fester and grow – not the healthiest scenario for the world’s youngest republic, which is attempting to take its first steps toward a brighter future.

 

THE QUESTION OF THE ARMY




Another stumbling block for Prachanda is how to deal with the army. The peace process is already fragile enough without the additional gamble of forcing Maoist integration into the armed services, especially when there are numerous alternative solutions available. The question of the army does not have to be an “all or nothing” proposition.

Moreover, the question of the army must be resolved by political consensus. The Maoists prevailed in the April 2008 elections, but they did not get the kind of resounding mandate that would allow them to simply bulldoze their way into the army and reconfigure it to their liking. The sooner the Maoists quit behaving as if they have a monopoly on the army question, the sooner the country can get on with the peace process. The Maoists must work with the other parties on this issue. Without comprehensive, collective support the peace process cannot move forward.

What are the alternatives to integrating ex-rebels into the Nepal Army? One thing is certain: The Maoist combatants must be addressed with as much sensitivity and promptness as possible. There are dire social, economic and political implications if they are not handled with kid gloves. 32,250 Maoist cadres registered in 28 cantonments – all of who are basically idle and under-skilled, while the politicos determine their fate – must feel that they have the right to choose, that they are part of this process. Instead of forcing them into the army, they should be given the option of returning to the community with assistance to pursue further education and employment opportunities, with health benefits and financial support in place to shore up the odds of successful re-integration into civilian society.










In the meantime, the army must be allowed to thrive. It serves no one’s interest for the military status quo to be compromised. Yet this became a white-hot issue last week when the army announced its ongoing intention of recruiting 2,884 personnel to fill vacant positions and Prachanda rejected the proposal. Chief of Army Staff General Rookmangud Katawal responded by saying that the army was above politics, that its duty to the people of Nepal was to ensure territorial integrity, national unity and sovereignty.



A behind-the-scene meeting took place a few days later between the general and the Maoist’s defense minister, Ram Bahadur Thapa Badal. It was reported that heated words were exchanged, that both men were infuriated, although the general later dismissed it as a routine meeting.

Regardless, the army is unlikely to willingly accept integration into its ranks politically indoctrinated combatants – men and women who they once fought bitterly, for a decade. Nor is General Katawal likely to ever “bear the flag of any particular party”, as he was reported to have said last weekend.

Perhaps the present government should heed the philosophy of Nepal’s most famous native, the Buddha, and follow a “middle path” instead of clutching to and demanding that there is only one possible solution.


A TOTALLY UNNECESSARY DISTRACTION: PASHUPATINATH

The holiest Hindu temple in Nepal, Pashupatinath, was turned into a political free-for-all these last few weeks when Prachanda sacked three Indian priests -- including the head priest -- thus breaking a time-honored tradition dating back nearly three centuries. The peremptory decision to replace the Indians with Nepali priests touched a raw nerve among the devotees of Lord Pashupatinath and threw into question the Maoist-led government’s apparent desire to become the self-appointed arbiters of all things spiritual.

Apart from the main Pashupatinath temple, the complex encompasses 518 temples, monuments, cremations ghats along the sacred Bagmati River, and is listed by the United Nations as a World Heritage Site. Its regarded as one of the eight holiest Hindu shrines in the world. Tens of thousands of pilgrims, both Nepali and Indian, annually pay homage there.




It came as little surprise, then, when protests erupted in both Nepal and neighboring India.

Nepali Congress, the opposition party in Nepal, was quick to condemn the “slap in the face” to ancient Hindu customs, particularly in light of the fact that the party attempting to re-write religious tradition boasts an atheistic ideology.

Former King Gyanendra, who has shied away from the spotlight since the abolishment of his monarchy, made a rare public statement: “I request and urge the Nepal government, devotees and all others to keep the Lord Pashupatinath Temple above politics. Faith, tradition and religious practices are matters closely linked with the right and responsibility of our life and nationalism.”

The Supreme Court chimed in by asking temple authorities not to honor Prime Minister Prachanda’s edict but, rather, stay the appointment of the new head priest.

Reaction from the Maoist youth organization (YCL) was swift and aggressive: Cadres assaulted temple priests, who were preparing to address a press conference to protest governmental interference. On January 5, the Pashupatinath Area Development Trust, an autonomous body that manages the shrine, banned all rallies and press conferences within the environs of Pashupatinath.

On the same day, Nepal’s major parties joined the chorus of condemnation, thus putting pressure on the Prime Minister to rethink his position. It seems to have worked. After a hasty meeting with President Ram Baran Yadav, Prachanda relented and promised on State-run television that, “We will honor the order of the Supreme Court.”






Finally, on January 7, Prachanda cancelled his appointment of the new Nepali chief priest altogether, thus vindicating those who denounced his attempt to interfere with strictly religious affairs. The episode has done nothing to improve Prachanda’s popularity among the rank and file. Nor has it improved his image abroad. Nepal has been known as a shining example of religious tolerance in Asia. For the ruling party to now attempt to ride rough shod over temple leaders is not only ill-advised but a distraction from the Constituent Assembly’s primary function: to create a new constitution in a timely fashion.

CONFUSION OVER LAND HOLDINGS AND MAOIST LEADERSHIP




Although Prachanda has assured journalists that private properties, which were seized by the Maoists during the ten-year struggle, would be returned to previous owners, Maoist Central Committee member Matrika Prasad Yadav contradicted that promise several weeks ago. Speaking in Biratnagar, he said, “We [the Maoists] prefer to take up arms than return those properties that have been already distributed to the needy population of this country. …I totally disagree with what Prime Minister Dahal has been uttering in public, whether it is Dahal or Girija, no one has the right to confiscate lands back from the poor – the new holders of the land. The leader of feudal elements – the monarchy has been already abolished, yet new monarchs have begun emerging in Nepali politics.”

So which is it? Are the lands to be returned or not? Who is in charge of the Maoist party? Are members of the Central Committee now referring to Prachanda as a “new monarch”?

According to Newsblaze (Jan. 4, 2009), Prachanda’s “own lieutenant, Chandra Prakash Gajurel, lambasted the Maoist-led government’s non performance, saying it had hardly done 10 things during its first 100 days in power.”

TOURISM TRAVESTY


Since the 2006 peace accord, tourism in Nepal has bounded back: The industry brought in $230.6 million dollars in 2007 and accounted for 4% of GDP. The government has designated 2011 as “Nepal Tourism Year”, hoping to receive one million visitors during the campaign.

Given the present worldwide economic crisis, it might be prudent to rethink such bounty in 2011. Most economists discount any sort of quick recovery from the international recession. Certainly in the U.S., even the most optimistic experts aren’t predicting improvement much before mid-2010; a full recovery could take years. In America and Europe, even affluent travelers are having second thoughts about charting far-flung vacations. Obviously, the Nepal tourist industry has no leverage against people who are tightening their purse strings. But what they can do is to protect and maintain Nepal’s newfound reputation for being a safe and reliable destination.

This was jeopardized last week in Pokhara, a tourist Mecca for foreigners, rightfully regard as one of the most beautiful spots on Earth. Pokhara closed down.

Or rather, Pokhara had no choice but to close down. All hotels and restaurants were forced to lock their doors for four days because Maoist trade unions went on strike demanding salary hikes. Hoteliers were forced to kick out their guests, leaving them stranded until they could make their way to other destinations. Other tourists, who were planning to visit Pokhara, cancelled their flights.

One wonders if the strikers in Pokhara have any idea of the extent to which bad press like this ripples throughout the foreign tourism industry. What Western travel agent is going to recommend Nepal if some of their clients had a horrible, exasperating experience there?

The Maoist unions need a reality check. Do they really want to strike their way to joblessness? Times are very hard in the West. Very hard. Do not underestimate how hard times really are in the West. Do not estrange the few visitors who are still willing or able to pay to visit your country. Especially in the next year or two, accepting salary freezes may be the new world order – not just a local one.

TIME FOR A REASSESSMENT

The bottom line is that Nepali citizens are beginning to ask what progress, in the eight months since the elections, has been made toward penning a new constitution. The answer is little to none and Maoist leadership would do well to look at themselves to see if this is not, at least in part, because of shortcomings within their own party. They blame Nepali Congress. They blame the Marxist-Leninists. They blame the Indians. They blame the United States. They blame the Madeshis. Which leaves no time, I suppose, for self-criticism.

In the meantime, most Nepalis just want their damn lights turned back on.

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Nepal Political Situation: Freedom of Speech or Freedom of Thugs?

December 22, 2008










Kathmandu: Last Sunday, approximately 50 Maoist-affiliated trade unionists and members of the YCL (the Maoist youth wing) stormed the headquarters of Himal Media, a major publishing company, broke windows, vandalized offices and physically attacked staff members.

Kunda Dixit, the Editor/Publisher of Nepali Times, Kiran Nepal, Editor of Himal Khabar Patrika, and the company’s CEO, Ashutosh Tiwari, were among those attacked. Dambar Krishna Shrestha, who tried to protect Mr. Dixit during the melee, was also roughed up. “They asked me who I was,” he told The Hindu, adding: “I said ‘I am a reporter’, then came their fists.”

A press statement issued by the media group states: “They forcibly entered the premises and started beating up staff. They threatened editorial and administrative staff, saying they had written anti-Maoist stories.”

Mikel Dunham’s exclusive interview with Nepal’s Deputy Prime Minister Bam Dev Gautam

 

September 18, 2008 – Kathmandu, Nepal

 

This morning I conducted a filmed interview with Deputy Prime Minister Bam Dev Gautam at the Ministerial Residence Compound in Pulchok. Gautam serves as Deputy Prime Minister, the number-two man in Nepal’s new government. He has also been appointed Home Minister, a position that oversees all matters of security in Nepal. Known as a long-time advocate of a multi-party democracy in Nepal, Gautam played an integral role in 2004 when he helped orchestrate meetings between the rebel Maoists and the Seven Party Alliance –a political merging that eventually led to the demise of the 260-year-old monarchy. This morning, Gautam and I spoke on a variety of issues including corruption, gang violence, rule of law in Madesh, sex trafficking, intra-party strife and the question of Tibetan deportation. As far as I am aware, it was during my interview that Gautam said for the first time, unequivocally, that Tibetans would not be in danger of being deported to China – not now nor in the future.

DUNHAM: I believe that improving the infrastructure in Nepal  -- and as soon as possible  -- should be a priority in the new government. But it is also my opinion that, before you can build infrastructure, the government must establish rule of law and nation-wide security. Do you agree with this?

HOME MINISTER GAUTAM: What you say is right, to some extent, but the development of infrastructure is not the only important work. Right now, the most important work is to achieve

NEPAL: Bomb Blasts, High Security, and the King’s Endgame

May 27, 2008

 
END OF THE KING

 
Tomorrow is the historic moment when the newly elected constituent assembly is scheduled to officially proclaim Nepal a republic, thereby ending nearly two and a half centuries of monarchal rule.





King Gyanendra quietly left the Narayanhiti Royal Palace after dark on May 22. It may have been his final exit. Accompanied by his wife Queen Komal, he drove to his summer Nagarjuna Palace (about eight kilometers north of Kathmandu) – a move that, according to Jana Aastha, a royal family tabloid, was to avoid an “undignified tussle with the rabble.” 


 

Nepal Political Update: Troubled Waters for Maoists, Monarchy & Nation

May 23, 2008

After the Maoists’ sensational victory, the dust has settled revealing an unenviable set of hurdles for the party to jump before a viable government in Nepal is possible. Although they won the largest number of seats in the April 10 elections, they have neither a majority nor the luxury of forming a government by themselves. Sleeves are rolled up but uncertainty continues while leaders within the party seem to disagree with each other on policies. And just when Prachanda seemed to be leading his party in a more statesmanlike direction, the Maoists’ Youth Communist League regressed to its old specialty, thuggism. The murder of one man in particular outraged much of the nation; Prachanda made a hatchet job of the affair by initially denying Maoist involvement, then admitting involvement but only after it became a public relations nightmare.


 

Nepal Update: Deploying the Troops

 

April 6, 2008
 

Kathmandu

 
It’s been raining here off and on all day. Although you can’t see them, you can hear an unfamiliar presence of helicopters thrumming above the Kathmandu Valley. While tourists bunch for shots in front of Newari palaces, aircraft carrying armed police personnel conduct aerial patrols for signs of pre-election discord within the city.

Should Nepal's Politicians be watching Kenya?

An Uneasy Look Back at 2007 in Nepal
FEBRUARY 12, 2008

2007 was a year of electoral postponements, growing violence in the Terai, continuing economic deterioration, lawlessness, lack of accountability and new shades of terrorism.

From Kathmandu--Interview with Kanak Mani Dixit

December 2, 2007

Kanak Mani Dixit is a Nepali journalist, activist, publisher and writer of fiction living in Kathmandu. He edits the English-language magazine Himal Southasian (www.himalmag.com) and the Nepali magazine Himal Khabarpatrika (www.himalkhabar.com), the first newsmagazine in Nepali. He also runs a publishing house and Nepal's preeminent printing press, as well as writing occasional children's novels.

Worsening Violence in Southern Nepal

Nepal Political Update: November 9, 2007

LACK OF LAW AND ORDER-Madesh

In the last several months, the political situation in Nepal, particularly in Terai, has deteriorated due to continuing incidents of killings, abductions, arson and intimidation by various violent Madeshi groups including the two factions of JTMM, Madeshi Mukti Tigers, Terai Cobra, and Terai Bagi.