Gaur: The Madhesi Gongabu

PM, Defense, Finance: Congress, DPM, Home: UML, DPM: Maoist
Magar Event
Mainstreaming Maoist Tendencies In The Madhesh
Lawoti: Ethnic Or Administrative Federalism
Mainstreaming The Maoists: Various Scenarios
Madhesi, Janajati, Business Community
Three Parties: Congress, Communist, Sadbhavana
ANONYM: Association Of Nepali Organizations In New York Metro

Prachanda has been relentlessly hostile to the MPRF. He has never talked of them as homegrown. He keeps repeating that the royalists in Nepal and the Hindu supremacists from India steer the MPRF ship.

MPRF mass meetings were disrupted by the Maoists in Bhairahawa and Nepalgunj.

Nepalgunj II: This Is A Repeat

In Gaur the MPRF had planned a mass meeting. The Maoists organized a mass meeting at the exact same venue later with the express goal to disrupt the MPRF mass meeting. To the MPRF people it was like, so they did this to us in Bhairahawa and Nepalgunj. And now they want to do this to us in Gaur. We are not that strong in Bhairahawa and Nepalgunj, but we are strong in the eastern Terai. This is our stronghold. We can't let this happen.

From the news reports I am guessing that was the mindset.

It is so obvious the police were not in any position to intervene. They did not even try. They just kept away. Let them kill each other, they thought. The Home Ministry could have seen the clash coming. They could have vollied a few rounds of tear gas once the violence started. They did not even look into that option. If the Madhesis are going to kill each other, the Pahadi police is going to stay away.

The MPRF is a non violent outfit. That is where they differ from the two JTMM factions, and the Madhesi Tigers. But all of them have had similar political concerns. After the 12 point agreement to the April Revolution, the Maoists kept offering the seven parties their gun. Similarly the JTMM factions seem to offer the gun to the MPRF, not in any formal way, but side by side.

Some reports claim the JTMM-Jwala has claimed responsibility for the gunshots. Did Jwala see what the Home Ministry did not, that after Bhairahawa and Nepalgunj, Gaur was going to be a flashpoint, and so they anticipated?

Another report has the UN claiming most of the dead were from head injuries from bamboo sticks.

There are many conflicting reports. So it is important that the incident be investigated. The facts need to come out.

This is a tragedy. This should never have happened. This must not be allowed to repeat.

Prachanda has continued with his tirades against the MPRF. The Gaur incident has just given him added fuel to continue with his prior demonizations of the MPRF. This is irresponsible.

There is a physical security aspect to this incident. And there is a political aspect to it.

The physical security aspect is that this should never have happened. This must not be allowed to repeat.

The political aspect is that the Maoists should not have organized their counter mass meeting with the express goal of disrupting the MPRF mass meeting. That was wrong in Gaur, just like that was wrong for them to have disrupted the MPRF mass meetings in Bhairahawa and Nepalgunj.

The bigger wrong is the disrespect the Bahuns in power have shown to the Madhesi Movement. Why have they not addressed the three demands of the now Madhesi Janajati Dalit Movement? (Joint Movement)

1. Home Minister resign.
2. Form probe commission.
3. Hold proportional elections to the constituent assembly.
   

A new government is about to be formed. Likely the UML will get Home. The sky will not fall if Sitaula resigns, except that he and his party mean disrespect.

Holding proportional elections might be the only technical option left by now if the country is still to have elections in June. There is too little time left. So why not go for it? Going for it will also be advantageous to the eight parties. The MPRF and NEFIN will less likely to become political parties and compete.

Girija's utter inflexibility has brought about a political paralysis in the country from which violent incidents like Gaur happen.

And if the eight parties will not meet these three demands, the MPRF, NEFIN, and the Dalit Mahasangh alliance has two options. (MPRF: A Few Scenarios, MJF And NEFIN Must Become Political Parties)

1. Organize a week long Nepal Band to disrupt the constituent assembly elections.
   
2. Become a political party and contest the constituent assembly elections.
   

Banning the MPRF is not an option. The Madhesi Movement has a political solution, a political outlet. If we can think of a political solution to the violent, decade long Maoist insurgency, we should be able to think of a political solution to the nonviolent Madhesi Movement.

Dr. Brian Cobb: Speech At Gongabu
Gongabu Massacre
Militarists, Maoists, Monotones, Dorambaites, Naxalites

In The News

Martin urges parties to act to end violence NepalNews
Prachanda asks govt to outlaw MJF; PLA men come out of camp He termed the Forum as a criminal gang. ..... also demanded immediate arrest of MJF leaders. .... Protesting the incident, the Maoist-affiliated Young Communist League organised rallies in Jhapa
Prachanda points at Indian Hindu extremists' hand in Gaur bloodshed conspiracy hatched by royalist reactionaries; Indian Hindu extremists and expansionists; and anti-peace regressive elements
MJF terms Prachanda's demand to ban it as 'undemocratic remark' Sita Nandan Raya ..... Raya also accused Maoists of using weapons at Gaur attack first. He said that after the Maoists used weapons, the people retaliated. ...... "We are a peaceful party. We do not have weapons," Raya said. He also rejected that MJF has any link with Janatantrik Terai Mukti Morcha – Jwala Singh.
Gaur bloodshed shocks UN rights commissioner, appeals for probe "Our teams confirmed, first hand, the killing of 25 individuals, most of whom died of severe head wounds apparently caused by beatings from bamboo sticks," she states. .... Arbour has said that only a small number of law enforcement personnel were deployed to the scene of the incidents.
NHRC, OHCHR-Nepal launch probe into Gaur incident OHCHR-Nepal chief Lena Sundh arrived in Gaur by a helicopter in the afternoon and inspected the incident site.
Leaders, HR activists reach Gaur Home minister Krishna Prasad Sitaula, UML general secretary Madhav Kumar Nepal, Maoist spokesperson Krishna Bahadur Mahara ..... Daman Nath Dhungana, Padma Ratna Tuladhar, Subodh Pyakurel
Gaur toll climbs to 28, curfew continues At least 28 persons including five women .... Twelve bodies were found at the major clash site at the Rice Mills ground in Gaur while fifteen more bodies were discovered in Hajmaniya and Mudhbaliya VDCs - four kilometers away from Gaur city in Rautahat district. Another dead body was found at Sisruwa area of Gaur municipality. ...... In the afternoon, the MJF and Morcha had taken out separate rallies in Gaur city. After their rally entered the ground, the MJF activists vandalised the podium erected by Morcha ....... Later when Morcha activists entered the ground, they also vandalised the MJF's podium. Both podiums were some 100 meters apart. ..... after the Morcha activists started vandalising the MJF podium, fierce clash occurred and there was indiscriminate firing. Over 40 persons have been injured in the incident. Most of the dead and injured belong to Morcha ....... Jwala Singh faction of Janatantrik Terai Mukti Morcha (JTMM) has owned up responsibility for the shootout. ...... The MJF had planned to hold the meeting in the area a week ago while the Maoists later decided to hold their meeting in the same area. ...... MJF's vice president Kishore Kumar Bishwas has been quoted as saying that the incident occurred after the Maoist activists tried to disrupt their pre-planned programme.

Ban "criminal outfit" MPRF: Prachanda Kantipur Online, Nepal MPRF had been publicizing its mass meet at the said venue for the last two weeks while Maoists had also been campaigning to organize their mass meet at the same ground for the last couple of days. Both sides prepared their stages at a distance of about 100 meters from each other on the ground. The clash took a nasty turn after MPRF cadres wrecked a stage constructed by the Maoists for the program while the latter's rally was arriving at the venue. Shortly after the incident, both sides reportedly exchanged fire. ..... 12 of the deceased have already been identified as Maoist cadres. Maoists need lessons in democratic procedure: Nina Gill the team had shown particular interest regarding the issue of bringing down the escalating violence in the Terai. ... Koirala said that if a third country is interested to resettle Bhutanese refugees and the latter's show positive interest in that, there is no objection from Nepal
Rautahat still gripped by terror; Maoists say MPRF must be outlawed
Time For Some Soul-Searching the pro-Maoist students were defending Sunday’s beating of a hotelier by Maoist cadres ..... When the business community announced an indefinite strike (which was withdrawn on the third day) in protest of the “kidnapping and torture” of the above-mentioned hotelier by the Maoists “for refusing to cough up 10 million rupees in donation”, the pro-Maoist trade union took out protest rallies in the capital- in protest of the business community’s protests! The Maoist-affiliated hotel and restaurant workers’ union ordered workers to leave hotels in advance “as the hotel industry, too, was contemplating halting services for some time in support of the business community’s strike.” ...... if you question these unique reasons, then you are either “conspiring” against the Constituent Assembly elections by “blowing out of proportion something very trivial and unimportant,” or you are “against a democratic republic.” Or even you are a “royalist.”
Substantial numbers of minors registered at Maoist cantonments: Martin
Sitaula, Nepal, Mahara in Gaur for on-field inspection, death toll hits 28
Maoist combatants leave camps in protest of Gaur killings division commander Parwana demanded an immediate investigation of the Rautahat incident ....... The combatants, still in their uniforms, rallied around Arunkhola Bazaar on the Mahendra Highway, chanting slogans like "Hang the culprits", "Down with foreign interference", "Announce the republic" and "Hang the king". ...... Maoist combatants put a complete halt to vehicular movement on the Mahendra Highway, claiming that their fellow cadres had died in Rautahat due to the government's failure to provide adequate security.
Nothing will stop peace process: PM
Rice expresses concern over Nepal peace process, calls situation 'tenuous'
CPN-M, MPRF must end violence immediately: Sundh
UNMIN to get $88.8m
माओवादी-फोरम झडप, २७ को मृत्यु
मृत्यु भएका अधिकांश र्सवसाधारण ः मोर्चा मधेसी राष्ट्रिय मुक्ति मोर्चाका महासचिव प्रभु साहले रौतहट घटनामा मृत्यु भएकामा अधिकांश र्सवसाधारण रहेको दाबी गरेका छन् । .... योङ कम्युनिस्ट लिग -वाईसीएल) का ५ र मोर्चाका ७ कार्यकर्ता छन् .... आफ्नो मञ्च भत्काएपछि मोर्चाका कार्यकर्ता फोरमको मञ्चतिर जान खोज्दा एक्कासि गोली लागेर पा“च जनाको घटनास्थलमै मृत्यु भएको साहले बताए । ..... माओवादी नेता डा. बाबुराम भट्टर्राईले बताए । 'यो अर्को दोरम्बा हो । शान्ति भा“डेर माओवादी पुनः जंगल जाऊन् भन्ने प्रतिगामीहरूको षड्यन्त्र हो ।' ..... घटनाको राजनीतिक भण्डाफोर गरेर जाने डा. भट्टर्राईले बताए । एकै स्थानमा फोरमस“ग कार्यक्रम गर्नु मोर्चाको प्राविधिक कमजोरी भएको उनले बताए । 'प्राविधिक रूपमा साथीहरूको कमजोरी हो ।
बस्नेतले जग्गा मिचेको ठहर लोकगायक कुमार बस्नेतले झन्डै एक रोपनी र्सार्वजनिक जग्गा मिचेको पुष्टि भएको छ । नापी शाखाको अनुसार बस्नेतले बालुवाटार चोकको ११ आना १ दाम सरकारी जग्गा आफ्नो नाममा गराएको ठहर गरेको हो । उक्त जग्गा प्रतिआना २० लाखभन्दा बढी मूल्य पर्छ । .... ०२६ सालमा तत्कालीन मन्त्रिपरिषद्ले बस्नेतलाई बालुवाटारस्थित राष्ट्र बैंकको दक्षिणतर्फकिटानीसाथ २ रोपनी ११ आना २ पैसा जग्गा नन्दीकिशोरी गुठीको मोहीका रूपमा दिएको थियो । .... बस्नेतले ०३६ सालमा नक्सा बनाउ“दा सट्टाभर्ना पाएकामा बढाएर दूषित दर्ता गराएका हुन् ।
आक्रमण गर्ने योजनै रहेछ’ उक्त भीडमा ज्वाला सिंहका कार्यकर्तासमेत बन्दुक लिएर गोली हानेका रहेछन .... गोली नचलेको भए यतिका संख्यामा मृत्यु हु“दैनथ्यो
थारू नेता पुनः माओवादी प्रवेश ' प्रचण्डले तर्राईबाट माओवादीले बम र बारुद भित्र्याएको र यही“ छापामारहरूले तालिम लिएको बताउ“दै भने- 'तर्राई र थारूहरूको मागलाई पार्टर्ीी कसरी बिर्सन्छ -' माओवादीले थारू र मधेसलाई छुट्टाछुट्टै रूपमा हेरेको रोशनको आरोप थियो । 'थारू प्रदेशलाई मधेसमा गाभिनुहु“दैन' भनेर उनले व्रि्रोह गरेका थिए ।
जातीय भेदभाव उन्मूलन

25 Maoists Killed By MPRF In Rautahat INSN 10 workers were killed on the spot and 15 died at the Birgunj Hospital. In addition, more than 55 injured are at the Birganj hospital ..... Upendra Yadav, chief of MPRF, and Maoist parliament member Prabhu Shah were chief guests of their separate mass meetings. .... blamed the police administration for not addressing the attacks by MPRF. According to him, some gunners came from the Indian side .... The Eight Party meeting Wednesday afternoon in Kathmandu has shown deep concern about this incident. The meeting has decided to investigate this incident.

No More Corpse Politics, Maoists Stay Calm United We Blog It has become an undeniable fact that Maoists are using all sorts of measures to intimidate all branches of society. ...... Maoists have demanded that the MPRF be outlawed. It’s true that Maoists are the ones who can help government control the menace called MPRF but that should happen without declaring the outfit outlawed.

Madhesi Brothers, Stop Killing Each Other

-By Bijay Raut

(The following poem was inspired by the recent killings in Gaur. The author prays for the souls of those who lost their precious lives in this incident as well as in the past ones.)

Madhesi brothers, how are you?
Few months ago I heard you were rioted by Pahadis in Nepalgunj,
A month later bullets went through your hearts from government police all over,
Now you are killing each other in the name of Maoists and MJF clash,
All I have to say you for now,
Madhesi brothers, stop killing each other.
Was three dozens not enough from police bullets?
That you are adding a couple dozens through your own murder,
MJF kill Maoists, and Maoists kill MJF activists,
At the end of the day, you are the Madhesis who die in blunder,
Can you hear me from here brothers?
Madhesi brothers, stop killing each other.

In the old days of Ranas and Royals,
You were the ones who were suppressed despite being loyal,
Now that Nepal aspire to breathe some fresh air,
Yet your lives are still far from being dear,
You died in the old days,
You die now,
You were killed by others in old days,
Now you kill each other,
Madhesi brothers, stop killing each other.

I hear some mourning outside my door,
Is that you Madhesi brothers?
Your widows wailing in tears for the dear husbands,
Your mothers searching for the teenage sons,
Where would your sisters put the thread of Rakhi now?
Where would your old age fathers search for social security now?
You are dead and gone,
But can you take away the crying heart and tearful mourn?
May you lay in peace while we cry in tears,
Madhesi brothers, stop killing each other.

Your rights and dignity have been violated through centuries,
Now is the time to rise up and wake up for your human values,
But what can I say about your petty ignorance?
How can I preach the virtue of unity?
How can I talk about peace and humanity?
When you speak the language of your Maoist comrades,
With guns in your hands and grenades in your pockets,
Madhesi brothers, stop killing each other.

Do I have to remind that you belong to the land of glory?
The land of peaceful Buddha and justful Janak,
Yet you speak the language of guns and bullets,
Your inner fighting will only help your old oppressors,
If you knew this, you wouldn't be killing each other,
Dear Madhesi brothers, please stop killing each other.

(Based in California, USA, Bijay Raut is a Poet and Philosopher. He is also the President of the California Chapter of the Association of Nepali Teraian in America (ANTA). He can be reached at bijayraut@hotmail.com)