Nepalīs democratic future hinges on Constituent Assembly Poll
Surya B. Prasai
April 06, 2008
On April 10, 2008 Nepali people are making a historic tryst with their destiny by voting in the Constituent Assembly Poll. Nepal has never had a CA Poll before though there was talk about it after 2007 B.S. (1951A.D.) when the country got its first taste of democratic freedom under late King Tribhuvan, four years past India and Pakistanīs own independence. The essential test of Nepali democracy to be determined by this election is the notion of political choice, in other words: can we cross the democratic hurdle? Can we prove that Nepali leadership consisting of various political parties, not only the Seven Party Alliance, are capable of democratic governance without resorting to periodic andolans like JA-1 and JA-2 or violence which is anathema to the rule of law? Are Nepalis confident enough to determine whom they will be governed by based on a democratic choice, for, by and of the peopleīs choosing? And, finally, will Nepali people be able to elect honest representatives that can be entrusted to run future governments impartially?
The CA Poll 2008 is Nepali history in the making, a mixture of Nepali culture, traditions, institutions, myths, beliefs, and loyalties being played out by Nepali political parties in wooing the Nepali voters to their own concept of Nepali democracy. The Carter Center, UNMIN, EU, our observer friends from Thailand, Japan, South Korea, Australia, our two immediate neighbors, India and China, and other countries of the world are eagerly observing this historic moment, to lend us their valuable insight, share with us their experiences and help shape Nepali democracy. There is unanimous feeling among all that Nepali people need a much needed democratic īmoralī boost. The CA Poll 2008 is also a new Asian trendsetter, with nearly 22 Asian countries observing the act of how Nepalis will evolve the future democratic set-up, step—by-step.
Therefore, on April 10, all Nepalis do want to make sure their vote, deposited in that one ballot box, and the multiplicity of those ballot boxes counted by Nepalīs Election Commission in the presence of thousands of national and international observers, will be able to reign in the peopleīs final ideal political choice -- a proper, democratically elected , sovereign, representative Constituent Assembly consisting of 601 members. The winners in the end could be anybody, the most popular of the big parties, or even the smaller parties forming a broader coalition. As Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Dr. Bhojraj Pokharel, immensely respected by all Nepali political partiesī as much as foreign observers, stated recently in Kathmandu, the post-conflict CA election, by definition, will also imply compromises for the sake of peace. The CA Poll 2008 will leave Nepalīs post-transitional conflict scenario behind, and help Nepal take off with its international democratic partners to forge ahead on national reconstruction, rehabilitation and aim at steadfast economic growth. There will be full Nepali citizenry participation in all national efforts as much as future Constitution making. Real development highways will be built as much as a Constitutional Highway.
After two botched attempts, many Nepal analysts had doubted whether the CA Poll would ever take place. However, Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koiralaīs commitment to national reconciliation, Nepali democracy, sovereignty, independence, and helping the Seven Party Alliance and other political parties forget the past civil conflict differences and build a new Nepali future must be considered a remarkable political accomplishment in the BPist line of national reconciliation, which late B.P. Koirala, in turn, had founded on the post-Nehruvian socialist era based on Indiaīs lessons learnt in gaining true independence.
This time around, the CA Poll is happening because political commitment is stronger from the international community. They want to see Nepal climb a more permanent, stable democratic hierarchy, given its geo-strategic importance, its abundant natural resources, its rich secular Hindu-Buddhist tradition, its abundant tourism prospect, and its free, democratic and independent thinking people who believe in living in peace amongst two giant neighbors, yet contribute to the global community in fostering international peace, understanding and harmony. Thus, the US, India, China, the EU, the UK, Germany, France, Japan the NORDIC bench, and all our traditional globalist friends have hoped that this election will be an historic opportunity for the people of Nepal to choose able representatives who will decide the constitutional framework for Nepal's future government. The Nepali peopleīs choice, in turn, will determine and mark that important turning point in this transition to what everyone hopes will be the new peaceful, prosperous and democratic Nepal, a political DJs mix of the past hits with future chartbusters.
For many Nepalis, voting in the current CA Poll also signifies helping Nepal cross an important political hurdle with an able voting choice, whether Nepal should maintain its traditional Monarchy or go for a federalist structure. Both sides have strong advocates, undoubtedly, but the main fact worth considering is, Nepal cannot backtrack on its democratic promise, which the country did, four times in the past five decades. Neither can Nepalis afford to hold CA Polls every time. Thus it becomes important that the Nepali people preserve their democratic virtues and cultural traditions through this public vote but also display their inner democratic bent of mind in walking the talk on Nepali democracy.
Logistically speaking, Nepalīs CA Poll is a unique opportunity for nearly 17.5 million to vote in a fair, equitable, basis. There will be 20,888 polling centers in 9,821 places, nearly 1,200 international observers, 90,000 national observers and 234,000 polling staff deployed to carry out the election. In the First Past The Post category a total 3947 candidates were registered, of which 367 were women; of a total 6000 candidates registered under Proportionate Representation category, 3068 were women. The Nepal Election Commissionīs thorough preparations are proven in that only 299 candidates in the closed list of various parties have been disqualified for minor reasons such as failure to produce citizenship certificate, being underage (below 25 years of age), duplication of candidates' names, and votersī complaints against them. The only other disappointment has been, one-third women candidates anticipated to run from among the various political parties did not materialize, despite Nepalīs commitment to the Beijing Platform of Action in 1995. I would anticipate in future that Nepal produce more dynamic women such as Dr. Arzu Rana Deuba to stand up for elections.
What are some of the challenges ahead for Nepali democracy after the CA Poll? On the political plane, fashioning new rules of democratic representation will in itself appear insufficient to shape Nepalīs future political destiny if parties continue concentrating only on coalition making and breaking. It will also take some time for all to adjust their moral vexation on the word DEMOCRACY, given that so much corruption had taken place among past administrations in the name of propelling democratic virtues. Some also argue that Nepal cannot become more democratic than Singapore, but it has to move forward on a similar economic plane. The Nepali broadsheets which earlier churned out hundreds of miles worth of news coverage doubting the CA Poll process itself, are now writing encouragingly on what kind of representation Nepalis should have and who should represent them in the Constitutional Assembly.
On the socio-economic plane, Nepali people should remember that in judging themselves as successful democrats in the making, their anticipation of fair and equal access to the governance system must not be taken for granted at the international level. Democracy is a game of fair competition; to nurture democracy requires hard work. Nepalis must also learn to expand their democratic horizons. According to Prime Minister Koiralaīs senior foreign policy advisor, Aditya Baral, "Getting more genuine development assistance for Nepal has been PM Girija Prasad Koiralaīs focus as well in every meeting he has had with foreign leaders, foreign parliamentarians and diplomatic representatives; in other words, how to make Nepal shine out as a democratic example in the international community. The CA Poll April 10 results will certainly vindicate this, that Nepalīs democratic credentials are accepted worldwide. Nepal has also occupied an important berth in inter-SAARC diplomacy now and enjoys excellent relations with the world's great and small powers. Nepal has no enemies in this world, probably the only country with such a peaceful, independent diplomatic history in Asia." Baral went on to mention, "Our foreign policy is heading in the right direction . we are very much in control of our political future. Both our neighbors respect us immensely and we respect them. We are committed to our national destiny in giving the Nepali people an even more prosperous, rich and democratic berth. This has been the PM's instruction every time we meet, "Do something for the country and work hard in serving the Nepali people, promote Nepali values and culture(abroad) and, in turn, accept the global freedom agenda as your own. But the bottom line is successfully conducting the CA Poll first." The truth is, only by stressing democratic participation in state affairs can Nepalis shape their future economic destiny."
On the evolving sociological plane, given the fatalism and mysticism inherent to the Nepali Buddhist-Hindu tradition of thinking, much importance needs to be attached in the post-CA Poll phase so that the elected CA representatives will cast secular views and apply much more discretion in engaging one another, so there is no feeling of individual, religious, or geographical supremacy or bias. In effect, astrologers should not be helping Nepali leaders run the government by sacrificing lambs in various temples so their political enemies become lame, mute or disappear from the horizon! Democracy has to be inclusive of political competition. Nepali politicians should rather demonstrate personal probity, modesty, honesty and integrity combined with individual partiesī transparency. It will be on this basis that the international community will judge Nepalīs evolving democracy, and how we conduct our state affairs. As Anand Panyarachum, Thailandīs well known statesman once stated, it is only a rare exception and in only a few - very few authoritarian states where authoritarian officials might raise to the top, in democracies the most virtuous people rise to command their people. Germanyīs post World War II rise in Europe is a good example of how a hard working people can annex democracy to their daily living and Quality of Life. Russiaīs democratic and economic ascendancy with the Gorbachev era of Perestroika is another good example for Nepali politicians to study on the world stage.
In Nepalīs case, currently we have three major parties that will determine the vote sway, the Nepali Congress, the Communist Party of Nepal (UML) and the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist). Benjamin Franklin once noted, "Democracy is two wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunch. Liberty is a well-armed lamb contesting the vote!" Nepali people too are eagerly waiting to find out whether they will have voted for the wolves or the lamb once CEC Pokharelīs en-results declaration becomes final. All have an equal chance to shine as the winners noting Thomas Jeffersonīs prudent and wise words that a "A democracy is nothing more than mob rule, where fifty-one percent of the people may take away the rights of the other forty-nine!" It is after all the recurrent globalist Jeffersonian argument that holds sway over the Nepali CA Poll like every other world election conducted in the past; trying to determine what the other half want.
Nepalīs past democratic history also recounts the perils of aiming too high in evolving ambitious democratic plans while forgetting the pervasive poverty which has been there for centuries. The fact is, everyone should be clear that the institutions of democracy, free markets, a free press, a strong civil society, cannot be built overnight, and they cannot be built at the end of a barrel of a gun, but rather through the ballot, according to Barack Obama. Similarly, ex-U.S. President Jimmy Carter, who is in our midst today, leading the Carter Center Team has also spoken high words of wisdom for countries like Nepal caught in the bubbling cycle of democratic progression and regression, that we must always realize the freedoms Franklin Delano Roosevelt once spoke of especially freedom from want and freedom from fear that, they do not just come from deposing a leadership or handing out ballot papers; they are only realized once the personal and material security of the people are met and all must work towards this end, namely forging national reconciliation. In the end, Nepal belongs to all Nepalis just as all Nepalis have the right to live truly democratic lives in one singular Democratic Nepal.
(Surya B. Prasai writes regularly for this medium, is Regional Contributor to the American Chronicle National Media Network, Los Angeles, from Maryland, and a Google Global Discussant and Resource Expert on international affairs, global climate change, HIV/AIDS impact mitigation, protecting women and childrenīs health, and curbing international illegal labor migration).
The CA Poll 2008 is Nepali history in the making, a mixture of Nepali culture, traditions, institutions, myths, beliefs, and loyalties being played out by Nepali political parties in wooing the Nepali voters to their own concept of Nepali democracy. The Carter Center, UNMIN, EU, our observer friends from Thailand, Japan, South Korea, Australia, our two immediate neighbors, India and China, and other countries of the world are eagerly observing this historic moment, to lend us their valuable insight, share with us their experiences and help shape Nepali democracy. There is unanimous feeling among all that Nepali people need a much needed democratic īmoralī boost. The CA Poll 2008 is also a new Asian trendsetter, with nearly 22 Asian countries observing the act of how Nepalis will evolve the future democratic set-up, step—by-step.
Therefore, on April 10, all Nepalis do want to make sure their vote, deposited in that one ballot box, and the multiplicity of those ballot boxes counted by Nepalīs Election Commission in the presence of thousands of national and international observers, will be able to reign in the peopleīs final ideal political choice -- a proper, democratically elected , sovereign, representative Constituent Assembly consisting of 601 members. The winners in the end could be anybody, the most popular of the big parties, or even the smaller parties forming a broader coalition. As Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Dr. Bhojraj Pokharel, immensely respected by all Nepali political partiesī as much as foreign observers, stated recently in Kathmandu, the post-conflict CA election, by definition, will also imply compromises for the sake of peace. The CA Poll 2008 will leave Nepalīs post-transitional conflict scenario behind, and help Nepal take off with its international democratic partners to forge ahead on national reconstruction, rehabilitation and aim at steadfast economic growth. There will be full Nepali citizenry participation in all national efforts as much as future Constitution making. Real development highways will be built as much as a Constitutional Highway.
After two botched attempts, many Nepal analysts had doubted whether the CA Poll would ever take place. However, Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koiralaīs commitment to national reconciliation, Nepali democracy, sovereignty, independence, and helping the Seven Party Alliance and other political parties forget the past civil conflict differences and build a new Nepali future must be considered a remarkable political accomplishment in the BPist line of national reconciliation, which late B.P. Koirala, in turn, had founded on the post-Nehruvian socialist era based on Indiaīs lessons learnt in gaining true independence.
This time around, the CA Poll is happening because political commitment is stronger from the international community. They want to see Nepal climb a more permanent, stable democratic hierarchy, given its geo-strategic importance, its abundant natural resources, its rich secular Hindu-Buddhist tradition, its abundant tourism prospect, and its free, democratic and independent thinking people who believe in living in peace amongst two giant neighbors, yet contribute to the global community in fostering international peace, understanding and harmony. Thus, the US, India, China, the EU, the UK, Germany, France, Japan the NORDIC bench, and all our traditional globalist friends have hoped that this election will be an historic opportunity for the people of Nepal to choose able representatives who will decide the constitutional framework for Nepal's future government. The Nepali peopleīs choice, in turn, will determine and mark that important turning point in this transition to what everyone hopes will be the new peaceful, prosperous and democratic Nepal, a political DJs mix of the past hits with future chartbusters.
For many Nepalis, voting in the current CA Poll also signifies helping Nepal cross an important political hurdle with an able voting choice, whether Nepal should maintain its traditional Monarchy or go for a federalist structure. Both sides have strong advocates, undoubtedly, but the main fact worth considering is, Nepal cannot backtrack on its democratic promise, which the country did, four times in the past five decades. Neither can Nepalis afford to hold CA Polls every time. Thus it becomes important that the Nepali people preserve their democratic virtues and cultural traditions through this public vote but also display their inner democratic bent of mind in walking the talk on Nepali democracy.
Logistically speaking, Nepalīs CA Poll is a unique opportunity for nearly 17.5 million to vote in a fair, equitable, basis. There will be 20,888 polling centers in 9,821 places, nearly 1,200 international observers, 90,000 national observers and 234,000 polling staff deployed to carry out the election. In the First Past The Post category a total 3947 candidates were registered, of which 367 were women; of a total 6000 candidates registered under Proportionate Representation category, 3068 were women. The Nepal Election Commissionīs thorough preparations are proven in that only 299 candidates in the closed list of various parties have been disqualified for minor reasons such as failure to produce citizenship certificate, being underage (below 25 years of age), duplication of candidates' names, and votersī complaints against them. The only other disappointment has been, one-third women candidates anticipated to run from among the various political parties did not materialize, despite Nepalīs commitment to the Beijing Platform of Action in 1995. I would anticipate in future that Nepal produce more dynamic women such as Dr. Arzu Rana Deuba to stand up for elections.
What are some of the challenges ahead for Nepali democracy after the CA Poll? On the political plane, fashioning new rules of democratic representation will in itself appear insufficient to shape Nepalīs future political destiny if parties continue concentrating only on coalition making and breaking. It will also take some time for all to adjust their moral vexation on the word DEMOCRACY, given that so much corruption had taken place among past administrations in the name of propelling democratic virtues. Some also argue that Nepal cannot become more democratic than Singapore, but it has to move forward on a similar economic plane. The Nepali broadsheets which earlier churned out hundreds of miles worth of news coverage doubting the CA Poll process itself, are now writing encouragingly on what kind of representation Nepalis should have and who should represent them in the Constitutional Assembly.
On the socio-economic plane, Nepali people should remember that in judging themselves as successful democrats in the making, their anticipation of fair and equal access to the governance system must not be taken for granted at the international level. Democracy is a game of fair competition; to nurture democracy requires hard work. Nepalis must also learn to expand their democratic horizons. According to Prime Minister Koiralaīs senior foreign policy advisor, Aditya Baral, "Getting more genuine development assistance for Nepal has been PM Girija Prasad Koiralaīs focus as well in every meeting he has had with foreign leaders, foreign parliamentarians and diplomatic representatives; in other words, how to make Nepal shine out as a democratic example in the international community. The CA Poll April 10 results will certainly vindicate this, that Nepalīs democratic credentials are accepted worldwide. Nepal has also occupied an important berth in inter-SAARC diplomacy now and enjoys excellent relations with the world's great and small powers. Nepal has no enemies in this world, probably the only country with such a peaceful, independent diplomatic history in Asia." Baral went on to mention, "Our foreign policy is heading in the right direction . we are very much in control of our political future. Both our neighbors respect us immensely and we respect them. We are committed to our national destiny in giving the Nepali people an even more prosperous, rich and democratic berth. This has been the PM's instruction every time we meet, "Do something for the country and work hard in serving the Nepali people, promote Nepali values and culture(abroad) and, in turn, accept the global freedom agenda as your own. But the bottom line is successfully conducting the CA Poll first." The truth is, only by stressing democratic participation in state affairs can Nepalis shape their future economic destiny."
On the evolving sociological plane, given the fatalism and mysticism inherent to the Nepali Buddhist-Hindu tradition of thinking, much importance needs to be attached in the post-CA Poll phase so that the elected CA representatives will cast secular views and apply much more discretion in engaging one another, so there is no feeling of individual, religious, or geographical supremacy or bias. In effect, astrologers should not be helping Nepali leaders run the government by sacrificing lambs in various temples so their political enemies become lame, mute or disappear from the horizon! Democracy has to be inclusive of political competition. Nepali politicians should rather demonstrate personal probity, modesty, honesty and integrity combined with individual partiesī transparency. It will be on this basis that the international community will judge Nepalīs evolving democracy, and how we conduct our state affairs. As Anand Panyarachum, Thailandīs well known statesman once stated, it is only a rare exception and in only a few - very few authoritarian states where authoritarian officials might raise to the top, in democracies the most virtuous people rise to command their people. Germanyīs post World War II rise in Europe is a good example of how a hard working people can annex democracy to their daily living and Quality of Life. Russiaīs democratic and economic ascendancy with the Gorbachev era of Perestroika is another good example for Nepali politicians to study on the world stage.
In Nepalīs case, currently we have three major parties that will determine the vote sway, the Nepali Congress, the Communist Party of Nepal (UML) and the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist). Benjamin Franklin once noted, "Democracy is two wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunch. Liberty is a well-armed lamb contesting the vote!" Nepali people too are eagerly waiting to find out whether they will have voted for the wolves or the lamb once CEC Pokharelīs en-results declaration becomes final. All have an equal chance to shine as the winners noting Thomas Jeffersonīs prudent and wise words that a "A democracy is nothing more than mob rule, where fifty-one percent of the people may take away the rights of the other forty-nine!" It is after all the recurrent globalist Jeffersonian argument that holds sway over the Nepali CA Poll like every other world election conducted in the past; trying to determine what the other half want.
Nepalīs past democratic history also recounts the perils of aiming too high in evolving ambitious democratic plans while forgetting the pervasive poverty which has been there for centuries. The fact is, everyone should be clear that the institutions of democracy, free markets, a free press, a strong civil society, cannot be built overnight, and they cannot be built at the end of a barrel of a gun, but rather through the ballot, according to Barack Obama. Similarly, ex-U.S. President Jimmy Carter, who is in our midst today, leading the Carter Center Team has also spoken high words of wisdom for countries like Nepal caught in the bubbling cycle of democratic progression and regression, that we must always realize the freedoms Franklin Delano Roosevelt once spoke of especially freedom from want and freedom from fear that, they do not just come from deposing a leadership or handing out ballot papers; they are only realized once the personal and material security of the people are met and all must work towards this end, namely forging national reconciliation. In the end, Nepal belongs to all Nepalis just as all Nepalis have the right to live truly democratic lives in one singular Democratic Nepal.
(Surya B. Prasai writes regularly for this medium, is Regional Contributor to the American Chronicle National Media Network, Los Angeles, from Maryland, and a Google Global Discussant and Resource Expert on international affairs, global climate change, HIV/AIDS impact mitigation, protecting women and childrenīs health, and curbing international illegal labor migration).