Seeking Common Ground

The Maoists made the rounds in Delhi. Then Girija and Bamdev did. Now Surya Bahadur Thapa is on his way.

The Maoists did interact in Delhi. What was the interaction like?

The three camps are so busy working on their internal cohesion, that actually prevents dialogue among the groups.

The seven parties have already come around to the idea of a constituent assembly. So there has emerged some common ground between the seven parties and the Maoists.

The king has repeatedly said he will not revive the 1999 parliament. But if the Maoists and the parties were to agree to hold elections to a new parliament, the king is on record saying he will go for it.

Is that an option?

The Maoists and the seven parties agree to come together to hold elections for a new parliament. After the elections, executive powers get wrested away from the king. The parties form an all-party government, hold peace talks with the Maoists, and go for a Constituent Assembly. Is this too convoluted?

I mean, I am looking at it this way. The seven parties have a four point program: (1) revive parliament, (2) form an all-party government, (3) peace talks with the Maoists, and (4) constituent assembly.

It was a big leap of faith for Girija and his party to come around to number 4, but they did come around to it. But they stuck to number 1. That was the give and take.

Now what is the harm in monkeying around with number 1 so as to get numbers 2,3 and 4?

But for that, there has to emerge a mature understanding between the parties and the Maoists.

The line that says no talks with the Maoists unless they cease violence is the line that says the Maoists are to be defeated militarily. On the other hand, if you seek a political solution to the crisis, you seek dialogue with the Maoists.

All parties including the Maoists, without disarming, could participate in elections to a new parliament. The understanding would be to form an all-party government to lead to a constituent assembly.

If the goal is a constituent assembly, does it matter that the route has to be altered a little?

The process of give and take has to happen. Like the seven parties finally came around to the Maoist idea of a constituent assembly, maybe they should also give some thought to the king's idea of elections to a new parliament instead of reviving the old one.

The current logjam has to be broken. Political dialogue can do what street demonstrations can not. Especially the parties have to show some flexibility to achieve the long term goals.

June 17

• Chinese arms 'supplied to Nepal' BBC News, UK China has supplied Nepal with five armoured personnel carriers
• Tough questions for Nepal's Maoists BBC News, UK ..... their wooing of mainstream parties has largely gone unheeded ...... the worrying spectre of leaders who are not in control...... the deeds of a diehard Maoist faction uninterested in any compromise ..... The rebels' military position is hard to gauge...... They have sustained heavy casualties in their recent attacks, barely denting army defences.... There is some speculation that Chitwan was an attempt to show they are still active.... Nepal's elected but weakened politicians can only stare from the sidelines.
• Nepal parties stage a poor show in Kathmandu United We Blog, Nepal ..... seven pro-democratic Nepali parties organized a rally from Sundhara that was attended by less then 25 hundred people, almost all of them hardcore cadres of the agitating political organizations ...... parties still seem to give benefit of doubt to the king ..... Party cadres were busy talking about themselves and some petty things like district politcal equation ..... We journalists also take out rallies demanding democracy in Nepal and our rallies are far better than what you guys are organizing ..... slogans were a bit strong. Murti Chor… Desh Chod could be an example..... NP Saud from NC and Rameshwor Phuyal from CPN UML spoke about the necessity of democracy in the country.
• King sacked govt prior to poll schedule announcement Hindustan Times, India preparations were in final stage to announce Parliamentary polls .... "The King has no intention to hold elections and he is also not in favour of holding talks or negotiations with political parties" .... "The way the King formed the controversial Royal anti-graft body and revived zonal administrative units, which were dissolved after the restoration of democracy in 1990, clearly shows that he is not ready to give up power or compromise with parliamentary forces," Nidhi said.
• [Opinion] Nepal's Maoists have made life hell for thousands; peace ... OhmyNews International, South Korea Kamala Sarup ... The Maoist war has entered a stage of genocide... Nepal will surely become another Cambodia, Afghanistan, Bosnia or Rwanda. ..... The Maoists, who began their "People's War" in 1996, are attempting to preserve their killing culture from "contamination." If history is any guide, then they will refuse to come to the negotiating table. They simply buy time to reorganize their ragtag, hit-and-run fighters for the next wave of violence and destruction of public infrastructure..... Thousands are now coming to Kathmandu from the southern plains, called the Terai, and the hills for security. Horror stories of Maoists capturing people and literally hacking them to pieces with knives are commonplace...... Maoists are one of the most dangerous groups on Earth.....
  

June 16

• Nepal needs constitutional changes: ICG Kathmandu Post, Nepal
• Nepal king asks for funds at Doha summit Hindustan Times, India the fear of slashed foreign aid looming over Nepal .... the G-77 Summit .... attended by heads of state and senior officials from 132 countries .... "A state of debt is a state of positive misery, and the sufferer is as one haunted by an evil spirit," the 59-year-old monarch said appealing for international aid. "His heart can know neither rest nor peace till it is cast out." "Mountain societies provide a vast scope for the contribution of traditional medicines towards securing the Millennium Development Goals' health targets" ..... "We envision a landlocked Nepal as a transit economy between China and India and are willing to extend all possible assistance to facilitate and further this process" ..... "Poor governance, rampant corruption and non-delivery by various governments in the last decade and a half have been exploited by terrorists to fulfil their own agenda" ... Three of these governments were handpicked by the king himself.
• Nepal: Military assistance contributing to grave human rights ... ReliefWeb (press release), Switzerland India, the United States of America (USA) and the United Kingdom (UK), have provided substantial levels of arms, training and other military assistance to Nepal throughout this period. The assistance increased after November 2001, when the Royal Nepal Army (RNA) became directly involved in the conflict. In Amnesty International's view, such assistance has enabled an increase in grave violations of international humanitarian and human rights law...... training provided to the security forces of Nepal, including at places such as the Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst, UK; the Military Academy at Dehra Dun, India; and the Command and General Staff College at Leavenworth, Kansas, USA. In addition, the report addresses briefly the supply of arms by private companies and the role these three governments and others play in providing export licences for such sales....... part of a wider campaign by Amnesty International, Oxfam and other organizations (3) urging G8 countries to exercise the highest degree of responsibility in international arms transfers and, specifically, to develop and adopt an Arms Trade Treaty covering the international transfer of all conventional arms with standards based on relevant principles of international law, including international human rights and humanitarian law.
• Amnesty International - Foreign arms fuel Nepal violence Politics.co.uk "With the conflict poised to escalate, any further military assistance would be highly irresponsible....... * The export of 25,000 5.56mm infantry rifles (INSAS) to Nepal from India, despite evidence of their use in grave human rights violations such as the murder of 19 unarmed Maoist suspects by Nepalese security forces in August 2003 * The supply by India of Lancer helicopter gunships, produced under license from the French company Eurocopter, which have been used by the RNA to attack mass meetings called by the Maoists in villages often resulting in the killing of civilians * The transfer of 20,000 M16 automatic assault rifles to Nepalese security forces by the US along with over US$29 million in military funding since 2001 * Inconsistent application of the EU Code of Conduct for Arms Exports with the sale by Belgium of 5,000 Minimi Light Machine Guns to Nepal in 2002, despite an earlier German refusal to supply similar weapons on human rights grounds * Training provided to Nepalese security forces by the US, UK and India with unclear or non-existent vetting procedures to screen out those reasonably suspected of gross human rights violations * The supply of military communications equipment to Nepal from South Africa in 2003 * A failure by the UN to independently vet members of the RNA sent to take part in UN military missions despite reports that the Nepalese government rewards soldiers who "kill the most Maoists" with UN deployments Amnesty International is calling for the suspension of all arms supplies and military assistance to Nepal until the government takes clear steps to halt human rights violations and bring those responsible to justice. Specifically, the Nepalese government must implement April 2005 recommendations of the UN Commission on Human Rights. These include an end to arbitrary arrests and "disappearances", clarification of the fate of all "disappeared", the amendment of security legislation, the institution of prompt, independent and impartial investigations of all alleged violations of human rights and the prosecution of all those responsible.
  
• Agitating radio journalists begin talks with government in Nepal Press Trust of India, India
• Nepali king urges cutting off terrorist funding Xinhua
• FMs defy ban, air news Kathmandu Post
• South summit opens in Doha: Call to remove rich, poor gap The New Nation, Bangladesh
• Nepal king urges international community to curb terrorist funding Monsters and Critics.com, UK
• Sultan holds bilateral meetings with Nepal King, Benin President Borneo Bulletin, Brunei Darussalam
• Royal address given wide coverage Gorkhapatra
• G-77 Summit concludes with Doha Declaration Gorkhapatra
• FMs air news of King’s Doha visit Kantipur Online
• Democratic expression Kathmandu Post, Nepal
• ‘Agreement with king impossible’ Kathmandu Post, Nepal "The king is neither willing for a negotiated settlement on the Maoist problem nor is he ready to hold elections," Bimalendra Nidhi, leader of Nepali Congress (Democratic) said. "Until the king gives up the attempt to make us follow his roadmap, dialogue, collaboration and consensus are a far cry." ...... Nidhi revealed that the erstwhile Sher Bahadur Deuba government was dismissed because the king knew about its final homework to announce parliamentary election dates. "We were finalizing on whether to declare polls or recommend reinstatement of the House of Representatives," added Nidhi, a senior member in the Deuba cabinet.He also revealed that even the Election Commission was "used" to prevent the announcement of election dates..... Dr Ram Baran Yadav of Nepali Congress said the king was gambling with monarchy by openly politicking. "We, the parties, have not yet decided to abolish monarchy, but the king's moves may require us to think otherwise," Dr Yadav said.
• Constituent assembly only solution: PFN Kathmandu Post, Nepal "If the king wants peace, he must accept constituent assembly; he cannot establish peace by pushing the country to the 18th century."
• Nepal contravening comitments to UN: Bloomfield Kathmandu Post, Nepal suspension of civil liberties post-February 1, contravenes Nepal's commitments to the UN..... There is a school of thought in Nepal which espouses that "...democracy and human rights will find its place only after terrorism is contained", he said. "But we don't believe in this." ...... the post-February 1 situation "has no reference in the constitution". The constitution says the king has to be within the framework of the constitution..... a constitutional body like the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority has been challenged by the Royal Commission for Corruption Control (RCCC)....there would be serious problems ahead should the current call of polarization by the government and the Maoists materialize
• State failure & Maoist madness Kathmandu Post, Nepal The death figure of Jestha exposes two things at once: The hollowness of the royal regime's claim of improving security situation in the country and the gradual drift of the Maoist insurgency towards senseless crime...... In the first 100 days of the king's rule, 599 people died. Of the dead, 443 were killed by the state and 156 by the rebels...... "Mao: The untold story" by Jung Chang and Jon Halliday reveals a shocking truth about the revered communist icon. The authors make a compelling case that Mao killed 70 million Chinese and exported food to Stalin's Russia in a weapons-technology-for-food program while the Russians were dying of hunger. When reminded of the famine, Mao reportedly said, "Half of China may well have to die" for the cause of making his country a military superpower....... Dr Babu Ram Bhatarai once said that as many as 200,000 people may have to die by the time their revolution kisses success..... You have to involve in a lot of psychological violence against yourself to kill others. .... As of 1996, three times more Vietnam veterans died of suicide after the war compared to the number that died from enemy action during the war, and this number is increasing every year.