Interim Monarchy, Interim Army, Interim ParliamentInterim Army: You Can Walk And Chew Gum At The Same Time
Interim Constitution Draft
Interim Constitution, Revolutionary Parliament
Interim Bureaucracy
The monarchy will be abolished, the army will be restructured, the judiciary will go interim. There will be an interim parliament. But what about the bureaucracy? Why will the bureaucracy not be restructured? The DaMaJaMa have been severely marginalized in the bureaucracy.
In some ways the bureaucracy penetrates the public's life like few other organs of the state. If that not be fundamentally reformed, then what chances of a new Nepal?
Federalism also asks for the same. The bureaucracy has to be reorganized to make space for the federal structure.
Are The Maoists A Nuisance?
My rule of thumb on the Maoists is to look at their political agenda on its merits. It is true they took the lead on the constituent assembly idea. They took the lead on the democratic republic idea. They took the lead on federalism. I have yet to see the UML's or the two Congress parties' proposed maps for federalism.
Instead of asking the Maoists to surrender, the seven parties have to put forth their vision of what a new Nepal Army should look like. The status quo is wrong.
Bindeshwar Prasad Yadav: Human Rights For Half Of Nepal
Shobhakar Budhathoki: Imperatives Of Effective DDR
My Work In The Ideas Department Is Complete
Gurung Not Katawal For Army Chief
Bindeshwar Prasad Yadav: Is Madhes A Colony?
Who Will Tie The Bell Round The Cat's Neck
Language Policy
Alliance, GFIPN: Audio, Video
The Next Revolution Will Be At The Ballot Box
Political Synthesis Nepali Style
Mainstream Jay Krishna Goit Also
Dr. Ram Prakash Yadav: Facts And Figures On Madhesi Marginalization
Brikhesh Chandra Lal: Inclusive Democracy
Arms Management: Break It Down Into Smaller Pieces
The Seven Parties Have Been Working
The Maoists on their part have to appreciate the fact that it has taken the seven parties some time to bring the army firmly under civilian control. That work is not yet complete. It was necessary for the seven parties to engage in some posturing. They had to show that their first stand was to ask the Maoists to disarm. Only when that was not an option did they move to get the Maoist soldiers confined to barracks.
Civil Society Mistake
The civil society demand that the parliament should be dissolved immediately is flat wrong. The civil society is no substitute to the political parties. And they overestimate their popularity among the masses. They are plain jealous the center of gravity has shifted from them to the parliament. That is naive.
Instead the civil society should get into the nitty gritty of arms management. There are a lot of details involved. Need to look into them.
There is going to be an interim parliament. What should be the composition of that parliament? The civil society should help mediate between the Congress and the Maoists on this question. There is a wide gap.
In The News
Extensive homework essential for party unity: Deuba NepalNews Deuba has said that there is a need for "extensive homework" to sort out the existing statutory and ideological differences between NC and NC (D) ........ Prakash Man Singh said that increasing national and international pressure for party unification could be meant to tame the rising strength of communist forces across the country. .... there is clear ideological difference between the two parties because NC President Koirala stands for ceremonial monarchy and NC-D stands for democratic republic through constituent assembly polls and added that such differences should be removed before party unity........ Pradip Giri, Bhismaraj Aangdambe and Surendra Pandey of Nepal Tarun Dal, fraternal organization of the party, expressed skepticism about the intention of the leadership and their future after party unification.
Passing the political impasse - By Shiva Gautam Maoists .. probably are not convinced that Nepal Army will not violently crush them once they surrender their arms and ammunitions. Such an act by Maoist could also implicitly imply that Maoists are an illegitimate force and SPA is the only legitimate force.......... The Maoists are trying to project themselves as an equal partner. ......
Maoists cannot be legitimate political force before arms management: PM Koirala NepalNews Koirala said that the coalition with the Maoists in the government was impossible unless they disarmed.
Maoist detain CDO, govt. officials, journalists for three hours detained Chief District Officer (CDO) of Bara district, a dozen journalists and half a dozen security officials for three hours
UML Central Committee meeting decides to go for federal governance adopt the federal governance system and proportional electoral system. ..... made the decision to give equal rights to people of all regions, caste, language and culture and to include Dalit and Muslim communities in the mainstream by making provision of progressive reservations. .....
Arms management, forming interim constitution priorities of talks: Sitaula the Interim Constitution Drafting Committee (ICDC) will submit the interim constitution to the talks team within ten days. ..... the Maoists will submit a draft to the government soon regarding the management of their armies and weapons. .... there will be some major developments in the country before the second week of September. ..... Lawmakers of the committee drew the government’s attention over the violation of the Ceasefire Code of Conduct, donation drive and atrocities committed by the Maoists.
CMPD asks govt. and Maoists to accelerate peace process Devendra Raj Pandey told reporters that the parties' priority should not be debating at the Parliament; rather they should intensifying their programmes in villages and remote areas to teach people on formation, structure, processes and functions of the constituent assembly.
No Escape From Southasia - By Kanak Mani Dixit The asymmetry of Southasia with a humungous India at its centre is what makes our subcontinental regionalism different from that of a European Union or an ASEAN, and is the reason SAARC has found it difficult to be something more than a post box of foreign ministries...... much unarticulated disconsolation—if 'India' had been left alone, there would have been little reason to invent 'Southasia'. ...... I.K. Gujral's idea was to do away with South Block's need for reciprocity in regional foreign affairs ..... argue with reason rather than Lilliputian emotion ..... a sneeze in New Delhi becomes a hurricane in Dhaka..... a large country with a small-country state of mind ..... the communal blinkers that prevent New Delhi from conceding that the primary cause of militancy within India's borders is not cross-border infiltration but in-country stasis..... If only the capital had moved to the banks of some river other than the Jamuna, and India's foreign policy were influenced by Mumbai's mercantilism, Chennai's lack of Partition baggage or Calcutta's erudition, India might have more readily focused on the needs of regional harmony........ Barbed wire, concrete, pillboxes, watchtowers, floodlights and service roads today mark the Pakistan and Bangladesh frontiers, when it was soft borders that was one of the greatest cultural achievements of historical India. The open Nepal-India border exists to set a reminder and example for us all, but New Delhi would rather follow the imported rigidities of the Westphalian nation-state...... How can you aspire for a Security Council seat when you are so insecure within your own region? ..... An opportunity to strike a final blow for people-friendly regionalism arises at the end of the year, when India takes up the chairmanship of SAARC.The rest of us may say so, but it means so much more when New Delhi begins to speak the language of soft borders, easy visa regimes and cross-border commerce.
Maoists run parallel govt., take up the role of 'culture police'
Taskforce suggests restructuring of foreign policy mainstreaming of economic diplomacy in our overall foreign policy goal rather than treating it as an appendix of it .... restructure of the foreign ministry, decreasing the size of military force, involving more experts in the foreign ministry, transparency while nominating envoys ...