Nepal: From Frying Pan to the Fire
Media Communications Center
February 02, 2007
Controlling the terai riots is now the primary duty before us. To correct this, the government must hold dialogues with all sides and all forces without arrogance or prejudice.
By Preeti Koirala
The readers of my previous articles in this column may recall my consistent argument that the institution of monarchy is extremely important for Nepal and doing away with it will have catastrophic repercussions for the nation and the people. If two recent examples of Iran and Afghanistan are any guide, then Nepalese will have to live under the nightmare of anarchy and violent extremism for decades if the common binding factor of the monarchy is abolished and the country embarks on an indefinite voyage in a rough sea with our short-sighted political leaders as captains of the ship. Unfortunately, I have been proven right by the on-going violence in the terai which have started even before the country has become a Republic.
Nepal has 52 different ethnic groups, 60 castes, 3 major religions and is a heap of hundreds of various types of linguistic and cultural backgrounds with which the people here identify themselves. If there is anything that is common among us, it is the country called “ Nepal”. This country didn’t exist before Prithvi Narayan Shah the Great through his genius, tact and courage unified 22 different principalities belonging to Newars, Gurungs, Sen, Limbus, Chhetris, etc. and brought them together as a single entity to which he beautifully called “a garden of different flowers”. The strength of all of us remaining united was such an indomitable force that even the British imperialists could not annex Nepal into their Empire. This is a pride for all of us and we should never hesitate to appreciate our glorious independent history.
But a sudden erratic decision of the cabinet scrapped a public holiday being celebrated in this country on Prithvi Jayanti and a motley crowd of hooligans from the Maoist block tried to vandalise his statue which has remained an immortal reminder that “we should all remain one.” The following weeks have been the most dirty, horrid and disastrous days for the country’s 300 years as an independent and unified nation. The whole of the terai is now burning with the slogan of “federal structure” or “autonomy” which we all know is just a step away from declaring total independence. That the terai has been neglected by the ruling elite of Nepal comprising mostly of the people from the hills could be true but the same can be said about the Chepangs, Lepchas, Sherpas, Dalits, Rais and Magars. Those that grumble about the Nepal Army not recruiting Madhesi soldiers should first ask why the British and the Indian Armies don’t recruit the Nepali madhesis in their Gorkha brigades and every year choose youngsters only from a few selected communities? Those that claim that they are about to change the 300 years of feudal oppression by introducing a “new Nepal” must now answer to the people what kind of a new Nepal is this where there is daily curfew in almost 7 districts, the capital city has been starved of almost all essential commodities, and where the entire southern belt which is the most prosperous agricultural and industrial area of Nepal is demanding that the interim constitution be scrapped?
The greatest mistake has been the tradition of accepting the demands put forth by every sort of a party, group, splinter faction, or an organized militia gang. When the 7 parties could accept the demands put out by the Maoists who had unleashed a decade of terror and murder and allowed them to nominate their cadres in the interim parliament, naturally their own splinter group championing the cause of the terai used the same tactics of terror, intimidation, extortion and brick-batting for its bigoted political objectives. It took 10 years for Prachanda and Baburam Bhattarai to reach where they are today but for Jwala Singh and Upendra Yadav it has merely been 3 weeks and they are already seen as dangerous. This practice of legitimizing violence and murder as a means to gain political power was started by the 7 parties with facilitation by our southern neighbor and now there seems to be no end in sight. Similar type of insurrections could break out in the mid-hills where the people of the Magar-Gurung-Rai-Limbu community are in majority. It could happen in Kathmandu valley where the “Newa Republican Front”- a sister organization of the CPN (Maoist) just recently held its general convention and called for all Newars to be united against the Bramins and Chhetris. The federation of Janajati community likewise has only on Sunday expressed its solidarity with the ongoing movement of Madhesi community.
This will eventually take us exactly where we were before the time of Prithvi Narayan Shah the Great. We will once again be reduced to 22 different principalities.
What is most amusing is that Maoist Chairman Prachanda calls the Jantantrik Terai Mukti Morcha (JTMM) and the Madheshi Janaadhikar Forum (MJF) in the Terai “a horde of dacoits and thugs” that have no political reasoning whatsoever and that the government should not hold dialogues with its leaders. He should look at himself in the mirror and differentiate Upendra Yadav’s actions with those orchestrated by the Maoist cadres against the innocent people of Nepal. If there is no difference between the warlords in Afghanistan, some of whom were former dacoits ruling a portion of the national highway and the MJF, there is also little difference between the violent actions of the CPN (Maoists) and the MJF itself. And while the government cannot decide whether to use force to suppress the insurgency or sit for a dialogue; the people of the terai especially those that went from the hills have been victims of one of the worst types of harassment, loot, and brutality.
To make matters worse, the recent government decision of ‘generously’ distributing citizenship certificates to about 3 million people has invited unwarranted stress, root of another source of conflict and even a danger of making the Nepalese people a minority race in their own rightful country. It must be emphasized here that India, the largest democracy on earth, has been in no hurry to grant Indian citizenship to over 10 million Nepalese living in Assam, Darjeeling, Shillong, Kalimpong, Kurseong and other parts of India from the last hundred years or more. Bhutan kicked out 1 hundred thousand Bhutanese of Nepalese origin in 1991 precisely on the ground that they were not included in the census of 1985. On the reverse, newspaper reports have made amply clear that thousands of Indians especially Biharis have been trying to bribe Home Ministry officials and get a Nepali citizenship certificate made. This process evokes memories of Sikkim where an independent, sovereign, peaceful Himalayan state was aggressively merged with the Indian union in 1975. The chances of a similar fate of Nepal are bright if our political leadership keeps on making the stupid decisions that they have been so honestly doing in their last 9 months of absolute rule. Further meddling around with silly concepts such as “federal structure” at this juncture will only put ghee to the fire and embolden those that regard Nepal a weak state susceptible to any type of a demand from any known or unknown group. The proportional representation system with 3 million Indian voters will make the Constituent Assembly lopsided in favor of whatsoever their masters desire out of the new Constitution.
Therefore, this is not the time to compete among ourselves but a time to work together just like when we fought against the British. When the spark of separatism starts we must not forget the dual games that donor countries and major powers play in such circumstances. Both Aceh and East Timor decided to part ways with Indonesia and yet the Indonesian Armed forces were not allowed to save its nation from disintegrating. Instead, protecting one’s territorial integrity was named as an “abuse of human rights”. This is an era of “self-determination” but this theory only applies to smaller and vulnerable countries not the powerful ones who have the ability to bulldoze over international criticism and UN resolutions by killing thousands of innocent civilians. The government must take all these points into serious consideration and stop pointing fingers at others otherwise this will turn into the most costly political experiment that we have done in history.
Although I live in the United States, I would humbly propose that the government should now immediately impose a state of emergency and mobilize the Nepal Army in the affected areas of the terai. This is not a law and order problem to be left to the police force alone. It is a heinous crime against the state and no democratic country can sit and watch while voices of separatism based on ethnicity has been raised. It is also the fundamental responsibility of the Nepal Army to save its nation from tumbling apart. This is exactly what every soldier has taken oath before joining the army. The Indian Army has been massively deployed throughout the Northeast, the Sri Lankan Army has been fighting against the LTTE for over 2 decades precisely to save their country from disintegrating. If California would raise voice to part its ways from the rest of America, would Washington allow such a thing?
The second aspect urgently required is to bring together all forces of the country against this terai revolt and start afresh the political process. The international community including the UN voiced concerns on the Bangladesh elections on the ground that Sheikh Hasina Wajed’s party was boycotting the polls and therefore the country would not have any opposition if the elections were held. In Nepal also, we have no opposition and the 8 party alliance is behaving as if there is no other force to reckon with. The terai situation has proved just in time how shallow such thinking was. The Constituent Assembly elections have now become secondary. Controlling the terai riots is now the primary duty before us. To correct this, the government must hold dialogues with all sides and all forces without arrogance or prejudice. And with the backing of a broad national consensus, resolve this ghastly attack on the territorial integrity of our beloved motherland.
Source:nepalnews.
By Preeti Koirala
The readers of my previous articles in this column may recall my consistent argument that the institution of monarchy is extremely important for Nepal and doing away with it will have catastrophic repercussions for the nation and the people. If two recent examples of Iran and Afghanistan are any guide, then Nepalese will have to live under the nightmare of anarchy and violent extremism for decades if the common binding factor of the monarchy is abolished and the country embarks on an indefinite voyage in a rough sea with our short-sighted political leaders as captains of the ship. Unfortunately, I have been proven right by the on-going violence in the terai which have started even before the country has become a Republic.
Nepal has 52 different ethnic groups, 60 castes, 3 major religions and is a heap of hundreds of various types of linguistic and cultural backgrounds with which the people here identify themselves. If there is anything that is common among us, it is the country called “ Nepal”. This country didn’t exist before Prithvi Narayan Shah the Great through his genius, tact and courage unified 22 different principalities belonging to Newars, Gurungs, Sen, Limbus, Chhetris, etc. and brought them together as a single entity to which he beautifully called “a garden of different flowers”. The strength of all of us remaining united was such an indomitable force that even the British imperialists could not annex Nepal into their Empire. This is a pride for all of us and we should never hesitate to appreciate our glorious independent history.
But a sudden erratic decision of the cabinet scrapped a public holiday being celebrated in this country on Prithvi Jayanti and a motley crowd of hooligans from the Maoist block tried to vandalise his statue which has remained an immortal reminder that “we should all remain one.” The following weeks have been the most dirty, horrid and disastrous days for the country’s 300 years as an independent and unified nation. The whole of the terai is now burning with the slogan of “federal structure” or “autonomy” which we all know is just a step away from declaring total independence. That the terai has been neglected by the ruling elite of Nepal comprising mostly of the people from the hills could be true but the same can be said about the Chepangs, Lepchas, Sherpas, Dalits, Rais and Magars. Those that grumble about the Nepal Army not recruiting Madhesi soldiers should first ask why the British and the Indian Armies don’t recruit the Nepali madhesis in their Gorkha brigades and every year choose youngsters only from a few selected communities? Those that claim that they are about to change the 300 years of feudal oppression by introducing a “new Nepal” must now answer to the people what kind of a new Nepal is this where there is daily curfew in almost 7 districts, the capital city has been starved of almost all essential commodities, and where the entire southern belt which is the most prosperous agricultural and industrial area of Nepal is demanding that the interim constitution be scrapped?
The greatest mistake has been the tradition of accepting the demands put forth by every sort of a party, group, splinter faction, or an organized militia gang. When the 7 parties could accept the demands put out by the Maoists who had unleashed a decade of terror and murder and allowed them to nominate their cadres in the interim parliament, naturally their own splinter group championing the cause of the terai used the same tactics of terror, intimidation, extortion and brick-batting for its bigoted political objectives. It took 10 years for Prachanda and Baburam Bhattarai to reach where they are today but for Jwala Singh and Upendra Yadav it has merely been 3 weeks and they are already seen as dangerous. This practice of legitimizing violence and murder as a means to gain political power was started by the 7 parties with facilitation by our southern neighbor and now there seems to be no end in sight. Similar type of insurrections could break out in the mid-hills where the people of the Magar-Gurung-Rai-Limbu community are in majority. It could happen in Kathmandu valley where the “Newa Republican Front”- a sister organization of the CPN (Maoist) just recently held its general convention and called for all Newars to be united against the Bramins and Chhetris. The federation of Janajati community likewise has only on Sunday expressed its solidarity with the ongoing movement of Madhesi community.
This will eventually take us exactly where we were before the time of Prithvi Narayan Shah the Great. We will once again be reduced to 22 different principalities.
What is most amusing is that Maoist Chairman Prachanda calls the Jantantrik Terai Mukti Morcha (JTMM) and the Madheshi Janaadhikar Forum (MJF) in the Terai “a horde of dacoits and thugs” that have no political reasoning whatsoever and that the government should not hold dialogues with its leaders. He should look at himself in the mirror and differentiate Upendra Yadav’s actions with those orchestrated by the Maoist cadres against the innocent people of Nepal. If there is no difference between the warlords in Afghanistan, some of whom were former dacoits ruling a portion of the national highway and the MJF, there is also little difference between the violent actions of the CPN (Maoists) and the MJF itself. And while the government cannot decide whether to use force to suppress the insurgency or sit for a dialogue; the people of the terai especially those that went from the hills have been victims of one of the worst types of harassment, loot, and brutality.
To make matters worse, the recent government decision of ‘generously’ distributing citizenship certificates to about 3 million people has invited unwarranted stress, root of another source of conflict and even a danger of making the Nepalese people a minority race in their own rightful country. It must be emphasized here that India, the largest democracy on earth, has been in no hurry to grant Indian citizenship to over 10 million Nepalese living in Assam, Darjeeling, Shillong, Kalimpong, Kurseong and other parts of India from the last hundred years or more. Bhutan kicked out 1 hundred thousand Bhutanese of Nepalese origin in 1991 precisely on the ground that they were not included in the census of 1985. On the reverse, newspaper reports have made amply clear that thousands of Indians especially Biharis have been trying to bribe Home Ministry officials and get a Nepali citizenship certificate made. This process evokes memories of Sikkim where an independent, sovereign, peaceful Himalayan state was aggressively merged with the Indian union in 1975. The chances of a similar fate of Nepal are bright if our political leadership keeps on making the stupid decisions that they have been so honestly doing in their last 9 months of absolute rule. Further meddling around with silly concepts such as “federal structure” at this juncture will only put ghee to the fire and embolden those that regard Nepal a weak state susceptible to any type of a demand from any known or unknown group. The proportional representation system with 3 million Indian voters will make the Constituent Assembly lopsided in favor of whatsoever their masters desire out of the new Constitution.
Therefore, this is not the time to compete among ourselves but a time to work together just like when we fought against the British. When the spark of separatism starts we must not forget the dual games that donor countries and major powers play in such circumstances. Both Aceh and East Timor decided to part ways with Indonesia and yet the Indonesian Armed forces were not allowed to save its nation from disintegrating. Instead, protecting one’s territorial integrity was named as an “abuse of human rights”. This is an era of “self-determination” but this theory only applies to smaller and vulnerable countries not the powerful ones who have the ability to bulldoze over international criticism and UN resolutions by killing thousands of innocent civilians. The government must take all these points into serious consideration and stop pointing fingers at others otherwise this will turn into the most costly political experiment that we have done in history.
Although I live in the United States, I would humbly propose that the government should now immediately impose a state of emergency and mobilize the Nepal Army in the affected areas of the terai. This is not a law and order problem to be left to the police force alone. It is a heinous crime against the state and no democratic country can sit and watch while voices of separatism based on ethnicity has been raised. It is also the fundamental responsibility of the Nepal Army to save its nation from tumbling apart. This is exactly what every soldier has taken oath before joining the army. The Indian Army has been massively deployed throughout the Northeast, the Sri Lankan Army has been fighting against the LTTE for over 2 decades precisely to save their country from disintegrating. If California would raise voice to part its ways from the rest of America, would Washington allow such a thing?
The second aspect urgently required is to bring together all forces of the country against this terai revolt and start afresh the political process. The international community including the UN voiced concerns on the Bangladesh elections on the ground that Sheikh Hasina Wajed’s party was boycotting the polls and therefore the country would not have any opposition if the elections were held. In Nepal also, we have no opposition and the 8 party alliance is behaving as if there is no other force to reckon with. The terai situation has proved just in time how shallow such thinking was. The Constituent Assembly elections have now become secondary. Controlling the terai riots is now the primary duty before us. To correct this, the government must hold dialogues with all sides and all forces without arrogance or prejudice. And with the backing of a broad national consensus, resolve this ghastly attack on the territorial integrity of our beloved motherland.
Source:nepalnews.
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