Democracy For Nepal: No Short Cuts: Madhesis Will Have To March

Thursday, May 04, 2006

No Short Cuts: Madhesis Will Have To March

May 1 Immigrants Rally: Great American Boycott With Jesse Jackson 3
May 1 Immigrants Rally: Great American Boycott With Jesse Jackson 2
May 1 Immigrants Rally: Great American Boycott With Jesse Jackson
Anti War Rally With Jesse Jackson 4
Anti War Rally With Jesse Jackson 3
Anti War Rally With Jesse Jackson 2
Anti War Rally With Jesse Jackson

After February 1, 2005, political parties kept hoping they might not have to wage a movement. The king will come around to it, they thought. Maybe he did not mean it. Maybe he will step back. They kept asking him to take back the 2/1 decision. It did not work.

So they got together and issued a statement. This is where we five or six parties stand. This is what we want, they said. They figured if the biggest parties spoke in one voice, the king will listen. It did not work.

Then they forged an alliance with the Maoists. They figured if they can help bring the Maoists into the mainstream, the king will be happy. So they declared a roadmap to peace. It did not work.

Then they held mass rallies across the country. It is not true the people are not with us, they said. Let the king see for himself, they said. The biggest rally in the capital was organized to coincide with the king's arrival back from Africa. See, Your Majesty, we do have the people with us, they seemed to suggest. It did not work.

The Maoists tried declaring a ceasefire, and then taking it back. The first was designed to send a message to the king that the Maoists wanted peace. The second was designed to send a message the Maoists are capable of war. Neither worked.

Then they held a few more rallies. They expected a red carpet treament from the king for their January 20 grand finale rally in Kathmandu. Instead most of them got arrested. They helplessly waited in their homes for the police to come.

They figured if they boycott the municipal polls, that will finally send a message to the king. Girija even offered dialogue if the polls were to be cancelled. Tulsi Giri showed some minimal response.

Then they went quiet for two months. The quiet did not work.

Finally they waged a movement, a revolution, and it finally worked. 2/1 is now history.

There are lessons for this for the Madhesi, the most marginalized group in Nepal. The word Nepali so far has never been inclusive of the Madhesi. That will have to finally change.

The right to peaceful assembly has been earned, but the revolution is far from concluded.

The Pahadis will try hard to stack the cards against the Madhesis during the run up to the constituent assembly elections. They will say democracy is not about one person, one vote. They will say the 205 constituencies of the 1990 constitution will do just fine. That right there is the first battle. (Constituent Assembly: 300 Seats Of Roughly Equal Population) We can not settle for anything less than one person, one vote. That means all constituencies will have to be more or less similar in population size. 300 is a good number, so some of the Himali constituencies do not end up too big geographically. Minus one Speaker, 299 will be an odd number, and ensure smooth voting. And there will have to be reservations for the DaMaJaMa among those 300 seats.

The Pratinidhi Sabha will have reserved seats for the four groups, Dalit, Madhesi, Janajati and Mahila, 10%, 20%, 15%, and 25% with some overlaps. Half of the seats for women will cut across that of these four groups as well. For example, of the 10% seats for Dalits, 25% of them will have to be women. And the 10% for Dalits will be half in the Terai, but that is not to cut into the Madhesi reserved seats. 10, 20, 15 and 25 are half the supposed shares of the populations of these groups, to be revised each census. The reservation for a group is discontinued once its share in the Pratinidhi Sabha hits 80% of its share in the national population and is to kick back in again should the share fall below 40%. When identifying the seats for the Dalit, Madhesi and the Janajati, the Election Commission will seek constituencies where the groups have their largest share of populations. No three contiguous seats may be reserved seats......... Other than the specified groups, the Muslims will get two seats. The Newars will get one seat in the Kathmandu valley......... The reservations are to exist only at the federal level, and only for the Pratinidhi Sabha. (Proposed Republican Constitution 2006)

We have to be on a watchout for trouble signs during the run up.

Once we secure one person, one vote, we will have to coalesce around the issue of federalism. What we want is a federal republic. Any political party that does not come around to the slogan of a federal republic is to be boycotted en masse.

If Girija Koirala will not accept a federal republic, he will face a frontal attack during the constituent assembly elections, politically speaking. If Madhav Nepal will not accept a federal republic, he will face a frontal attack. If Sher Deuba will not accept a federal republic, he will face a frontal attack. There can be no compromise on this basic issue any more than there could have been any compromise on democracy during the April Revolution.

Federalism is one issue that has got to unify all Madhesis regardless of what political party they might be in. The clay is wet. The effort we will put in now for months is worth years and decades after the constitution takes concrete shape. For the first time ever, Madhesis are about to attain total equality. This chance can not be missed.

Madhesis have to get organized. There are Madhesis in all seven political parties, and among the Maoists, although few in the leadership positions of the large parties. There are many Madhesi rights organizations that have sprouted. There are many caste based organizations. All have to come under one umbrella. A Madhesi version of the seven party alliance has to be formed. A Madhesi Caucus has to be formed for the Madhesi leaders in all seven political parties.

Ultimately it boils down to Madhesis marching in all towns and all villages. March for one person one vote in the constituent assembly elections, for a federal republic, for language rights, for equality, for dignity. We have earned the right to march through the April Revolution, now we got to march.

Dismantle The Two Armies
To: The Kathmandu Media
Chitralekha Yadav: Speaker
The Revolution Is Very Much On
Madhesi Rights: Total Equality
18 Days Of April Revolution: Victory
King Of India
My Most Controversial Blog Post To Date: On Madhesi Issue
Checkmate
Solidarity Rally DC
April 20: March Onto The Palace, End The Monarchy
30 Minutes With Amrit Bohra
Krishna Prasad Bhattarai, Irrelevant
Aire Gaire Natthu Khaire Pahadis
क्रान्ितलाई नबुझ्नु, बुझ पचाउनु
Gongabu Massacre
Hamro Nepal, Latest
UN Rally
First ANTA NYC Event, Times Square Marriott
Nepali Congress Or Praja Parishad
Malaria, Polio, Monarchy
ये तो क्रान्ित है

In The News

May 1

Leaders call for interim constitution to go for constituent assembly NepalNews
Maoists lay down conditions for peace talks: Report
Cabinet likely to be announced today; all seven parties to participate

NEPAL: Interview with senior Maoist leader, Ram Bahadur Bhandari Reuters AlertNet, UK
Maoists Terrorists Want To Establish A Communist Republic American Chronicle
Why Mao? Tragedy on hold in Nepal. Why it matters beyond Kathmandu NewsBlaze, CA
CPI wants India to release Maoist leadersHindu
Yechuri calls on Bijukchhe Gorkhapatra
Nepal’s Future Still Uncertain Navhind Times
Indian national injured in Nepal's pro-democracy protests dies Kantipur Online, Nepal
Another injured agitator dies Nepalnews.com
Seven Hurt Protesters Struggling For Life Himalayan Times
Rebels' new challenge: Assessing loyalty in Nepal Newsday, NY
Alex Keyssar: Maoists and the Press Yahoo! News

DIG Shrestha in door-to-door campaign Kantipur Publications
Departure ban on 'blacklisted' royalists
RNA pledges compensation to Belbari victims’ families
RPP directs its parliamentarians to support constituent assembly
HoR unanimously approves constituent assembly; PM calls on Maoists to join peace talks
राप्रपा संविधानसभामा
संविधानसभा सर्वसम्मत
डीआईजी श्रेष्ठ बढुवाका लागि नेताका घरदैलोमा
सहिद परिवारलाई निःशुल्क यातायात
प्रधानमन्त्रीको स्वागतमा मुख्यसचिव अनुपस्थित
सेनाद्वारा मृतक परिवारलाई पचास हजार

May 4

Maoists agree to sit for peace talks NepalNews
PM Koirala shifts to official quarters in Baluwatar
Local administration lifts curfew in Dang after 5 years
Dr. Hemang Dixit shot at
The government and house should work as per people’s aspiration: Leaders
Journalists in Nepal continue to face challenges: IFJ
A Modus Operandi of Constituent Assembly

Maoists welcome govt announcement, ready for talks Kantipur Publications
Medical college principal shot at in Kathmandu
CA elections after forming interim govt including Maoists: PM Koirala
Important role for ‘victimized’ bureaucrats
Foreign employment up by 44 pc

ँगणतन्त्र पनि स्वीकार्य’
सरकारी विद्यालयमा अंग्रेजी माध्यम
कांग्रेसमा पनि असन्तुष्टि
सैनिक गणका छिमेकी अझै भयभीत
दिगो युद्धविराम
क्रान्तिको दोस्रो चरणका बाहक

Nepal's Maoists agree to talks with new government Reuters
Nepal Kings agents start threatening Indian communist leaders India Daily, NJ

Visitors

Page views yesterday378

4 May