To: NAC

To: Nepalese Americas Council, Executive Committee. Jeetendra Joshi, Puru Subedi, Tara Niraula, Ratan Jha, Annapurna Deo, Radha Basnyat, Baikuntha Thapa, Parashar Malla, Anil Pradhan, Mukesh Singh, Prakash Malla, Girija Gautam, Veda Joshi, Prahlad Pant, Deepak Shimkhada, Raja Bhattacharya, Suman Silwal, Gaury Adhikary, Ramesh N Amatya, Tulsi R Maharjan, Rohini Sharma.

Cc: Gagan Thapa, Pramod Aryal, Sanjaya Parajuli, Anand Bist, Mridula Koirala, Anil Shahi.

Subject: Extending moral support to the once in a lifetime democracy movement in Nepal.

Hello All.

When Gagan Thapa (The Man, The Myth, The Legend: Gagan Thapa, A Day In The Life Of Gagan Thapa) was passing through town here in New York City, I asked him at his public appearance as to what the Nepalis in the US can do for the about to be launched movement for democracy in Nepal, moral, logistical, anything. He said logistical support was not needed. But moral support was needed rather acutely. There are many Nepali organizations all over America, but if there could be one umbrella organization that on behalf of all organizations could put forth immediate press statements of condemnation when, say, Kantipur FM comes under physical assault by the state, that would be a big help, he said.

This is like 1947 in India, 1776 in the United States. This is not about partisan politics, this is not about choosing sides between the Congress, the UML, the RPP, the Jana Morcha or the Sadbhavana.

I learned from Pramod Aryal a little earlier of the Nepalese Americas Council as such an umbrella organization. I urge the Council to take Gagan's request to heart and be at the ready.

There are many details from the impending movement we do not know. The triangular conflict makes it complicated to decipher as to what is going on politically at any one point in time. But there are things we can agree to take clear stands against. Despite the lack of clarity, we can and must choose to be on the side of democracy, human rights and rule of law. Any deviations by the state will have to be forcefully condemned. Physical assaults on peaceful demonstrators will have to be condemned. Attacks on the media will have to be condemned.

I would be more than happy to draft statements to forward to the Council as occasions might arise. Or the Council might pick one or a few of its own. Either way is fine. The important thing is that a rapid response mechanism is established and put to use.

Draft a statement, circulate it over email among the Council members, attach names of all member organizations to the statement, and then release it.

I feel like this is the least we can do. The Council needs to throw its total weight behind the movement. Moral support has to be extended, in a total way, in a sophisticated way. We might have to do more than issue press statements down the line. We might have to pick up the phone and jam the Capitol Hill switchboard in the worst case scenario. We have to maintain that threat if only to put pressure on the regime now so they think twice, thrice before they create worst case scenarios of possible heinous crackdowns on peaceful demonstrators.

We are here, we are not there. But they need us. We might be in the oldest democracy, but we are not totally free until they are free back there. We will likely not get this opportunity ever again over our lifetimes. There is this decisive tone to the impending movement.

On to victory.

Paramendra Bhagat
New York City
(Timi Sadak Ma Utreko Dekheko Chhu)