Nepal: Political Laboratory

Nepal, more than anything else, more than a place where I grew up, more than lingering therapy for some past unpleasant to downright devastating experiences as a Madhesi, has been a political laboratory for me. I have imagined new things possible. And I have been disappointed.

It would have been nice to have one third of the constituencies reserved for women. Noone else in the world is doing it. A new constitution should be a cutting edge constitution. But that was not to be. I would also have liked a multi-party democracy of state funded parties, each party getting money in direct proportion to how many votes they collect, and being barred from other sources of funding. But not even the Maoists have gone for this.

I have not been a journalist reporting on events. I have been a digital activist trying to shape events. The distance has been a boon. I would have been less effective in person on the ground. From 10,000 miles away in New York City I have devoured on information sources to suggest actions and strategies to the progressive forces. The progressives of 2005 are the unapologetic regressives of 2015, and so 2015 still feels like 2005 to me, as the cause closest to my heart, equality for Madhesis, is as unfinished as ever as of now.

But the good news is India is waking up. As late as early this year, I was lamenting the word Madhesi does not exist in Patna, Lucknow or Delhi. But now the word also exists as fas as Kerala. The Madhesis for the first time have showed up on the Indian map. Never before have an Indian Prime Minister, an Indian Home Minister, an Indian Foreign Minister taken interest in Madhesis. Heck, I never got the impression they were ever aware we even existed. But that has changed, and that is tectonic. There are as many Madhesis as Jews on the planet today. Jesus was born a Jew, Buddha a Madhesi.

There have been take away lessons for me. I might have failed to shape political events exactly to my liking in Nepal, but I have managed to formulate a political roadmap for India. That India is the largest democracy, and democracy is not India doing America’s bidding, although it is high time America considered India to be the new Britain, its number one ally in the world. Democracy is native to India: the earliest republics were during the early years of Buddhism. America’s original mission of a total spread of democracy gets kneecapped by its original sin: race. The militarism gets in the way. It is too rich and unrelatable by the vast swaths in the Global South. There are not enough semi-educated Muslims in America. India has none of those disadvantages. India is better positioned to carry the torch than is America, although it remains shy. There is a peaceful way to spread democracy. Actually, peaceful is the only legitimate way, it is the most effective way. And there India can take the lead. And there my Nepal experience has not disappointed. If democracy will enter China, it will more likely do so through Nepal than Taiwan. Tibet is China’s soft belly. Tibet is too far from the China proper, and it is too close to Nepal and India. The Tibetan plateau will forever remain vulnerable, until it opens up.

The Law Of Political Entropy (I formulated it) says, a country tends democracy granted there is sufficient flow of information. Democracy is the natural order of things, and it comes from inside the human heart, inside every human heart. But its expression requires a free flow of information, often stenched by autocratic regimes. So powers like America and India that live and die by democracy, or should live and die by democracy, should focus first and foremost on beaming down the Internet to all corners of the globe. Elon Musk is already doing it. The US government should simply become an angel investor and perhaps buy 10% of his satellite internet company for 10 billion dollars. The growth that investment might see will also help pay down some of the humongous American debt. The Chinese might appreciate.

Democracy has to come as a consciousness and a roadmap, and an organizational structure and a leadership flow. Perhaps you start in the diaspora. Once you are ready, and you have an interim constitution at the ready, and an interim Head Of State in waiting, then you seek to shut the country down completely. At least 25% of the people will need to show up in the streets. The interim government holds elections to a constituent assembly within a year of taking over. The only rule for the interim and the subsequent cosntitution is it may not clash with the Universal Declaration Of Human Rights.

This roadmap is the best for the cause of a total spread of democracy, and Nepal has been the political laboratory where I saw it tested on the ground. In this roadmap, the smartphone is the AK-47.

This also means opening wide the doors of immigration in the rich countries. Not only do you need that to prop up your own ageing populations, remittances have been way more effective than foreign aid, and diasporas pick up lessons in democracy and organizing that State Department programs can’t teach, it is beyond their scope. The scale is humongous. Immigration can not, should not be stopped, it should be encourged and managed well. Do not fight it, tame it. Globalization is not just a free flow of information and goods, people also want to move around. That movement brings forth progress. People always seem to want to move from less desirable to more desirable conditions. They know what is more desirable. They move, they soak up, they learn, and then they propagate. They beam it all back to places where they came from. And light spreads. It’s not just democracy, it’s also prosperity. Democracy very appeal is that it makes prosperity possible.

HRW Report
Nepal's Decade Long Political Transition

Nepal Needs A Constitution

Nepal Needs A Constitution
by Paramendra Bhagat

Major Discontent With The Proposed Draft Constitution

The ever gathering momentum of street protests in Nepal that have seen one dead per day on average, now in its fourth week, shows no signs of abetting, even as the people in power in Kathmandu insist on seeking a security solution to what is essentially a political problem. It is a tussle between the Khas (Bahuns and Chhetris) who are proposing a seven state federalism, cleverly gerrymandered so as to keep them as the largest group in six of them while only being one third of the population, and the Madhesis and Janajatis (indigenous people) who feel shortchanged as federalism and inclusion clauses are being diluted beyond recognition.

Street Protests, Four Weeks In A Row, In Half The Country

Nepal’s journey for a democratic constitution started in 1951 not long after the British left India, and went through 30 years of absolute monarchy, a brief exercise of multi party democracy, and a decade long civil war, as well a spectacular April 2006 revolution that set the country on its current course, and just when it felt like the process might conclude, and the country might finally get its constitution, the streets across the southern plains, home primarily to the Madhesi and the Tharu, have erupted, effectively engineering a near total shutdown of the national economy, now in its fourth week. A multitude of hill districts that are ethnic Janajati (indigenous people) strongholds might soon be joining in, starting with the Limbus in the eastern hills, and the Magars in the mid hills. The Sherpas, probably the most famous Nepali ethnic group on the planet, have also been warming up: they want a state in their name, as do about 10 other groups. The proposed progressive boundaries and names for federal states and affirmative action clauses to bring about ethnic, gender, and caste inclusion are causing much heartburn among the ruling elite.

The April 2006 revolution gave the country its interim constitution, which is in effect today, but the idea was to give the country a permanent constitution through a duly elected constituent assembly. The first assembly was expected to get the job done within two years, but failed to get it done even in four, the thorny issue being federalism. Agreeing on state boundaries proved to be a tough task, as it is today. But the understanding had been that all other issues were settled. In their post-earthquake mad dash to take the constituent assembly on a fast track to finishing work on the constitution, when the ruling Bahuns finally put forward their proposed draft, it became clear very soon that most of the key achievements of the past decade had been gutted, and that has been the cause of the recent dissatisfaction, overflowing out onto the streets. There is also lingering bitterness that the state apparatus, especially the Nepal Army, helped the anti-federalists win the last election. There are allegations of major electoral fraud.

34 Dead, Hundreds Injured, And Counting

The protests have seen some unexpected violent turns recently, leaving 34 dead, hundreds injured, and counting, from east to west, but most notably in Kailali, Birgunj and Jaleshwar.

An angry crowd of protesting Tharus demanding a state in their name in a federal Nepal, estimated 20,000 strong, thronging from neighboring villages, carrying homemade weapons like sticks and spears, not necessarily meaning harm, but as a matter of protests, converged on the central town in the disputed district of Kailali in far west Nepal on August 24. A small handful of infiltrators, feared to be former Maoist combatants, leftovers from the decade long civil war Nepal was engulfed in prior to 2006, managed to mow down nine security personnel, including the commanding officer. That act of violence suddenly caught the attention of the people in power in Kathmandu; the Indian Prime Minister called his counterpart in Nepal suggesting “a constitution can not be written by 5-10 people sitting in a room;” and the global media chimed in. A few days later the Indian Home Minister traveled to a border town and warned against any attempts at Jaffnaization inside Nepal, Jaffna being the Tamil part of Sri Lanka which saw major military action and widespread human rights abuses a few years ago. He said India will protect “the 10 million Indians living in Nepal.” That was a reference to Madhesis with close cultural ties to India. He meant like US citizens of Indian origin can be called “Indian.” 40% of Madhesis so far have been denied citizenship papers in a country where you can’t do much without that piece of paper. Cross-border marriages are very common, but the proposed draft of the constitution says Indian daughters that might come to Nepal by way of marriage will get a class of citizenship that will bar them from holding the top offices in the country, effectively a second class citizenship.

The security forces retaliated to the Kailali incident by imposing a curfew during which roving mobs representing the ethnic group of the ruling elite voicing a counterclaim to the same district were allowed to burn scores of houses belonging to Tharus. Many Tharu men were harassed and apprehended by security forces, the lead suspects were tortured in custody. Some Tharu women were raped and killed by vigilantes. The army was also illegally deployed in some of the eastern districts. According to the interim constitution, it is the president who commands the army and effects its mobilization, but the president, a Madhesi, was bypassed during the decision making process. Tensions came to a head in Birgunj where five men were shot in the head by the Armed Police, five protesters who happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time, their brains scattered on the streets, leading to gory pictures shared on social media. According to the law, the police are to shoot beneath the knee in the most extreme of scenarios.

Only A Political Solution

The Nepal Army itself has time and again reminded the political leadership at the highest levels that the protests do not have a security solution, only a political solution, and the ground situation is becoming more liquid by the day. The International Crisis Group has come out criticizing the government saying it has been seeking a security solution to a political problem. So far those protestations have fallen on deaf ears.

What the protesters want is already in the interim constitution and the agreements reached during the first constituent assembly, and the current, second constituent assembly. There are no new demands. But the Bahuns that rule the country seem to think they are neo monarchs who are above the law. The rules don’t apply to them. They insist on playing soccer with their hands. In the final proposed draft of the constitution, most of the achievements have been eviscerated. That leaves room for little else but yet another revolution, which is what we are seeing happen right now. The agreement reached between the Madhesis and the then Nepali Congress Prime Minister Girija Koirala in February 2008 after the revolution that saw 56 martyrs is not being honored by his successor and cousin, current Prime Minister Sushil Koirala. Protesters in the central Madhesh town of Birgunj toppled a statue of Girija Koirala on August 31 along the lines of Saddam Hussein and Lenin statues getting toppled, as if to express anger at the betrayal.

It is telling that Sushil Koirala, a Bahun, has risked losing his party’s registration with the Election Commission by not holding a convention, required by law to be held every five years, rather than hold one and lose the party presidency to a non Bahun. Such is the Bahun grip of power and the Bahun fear and desperation of losing it. When his cousin Girija Koirala was Prime Minister for the first time in the early 1990s when the country shifted from having a partyless system to one where political parties were now allowed after the Cold War ended and made space for a small democracy movement in Nepal and the then king, Birendra, agreed to become a constitutional monarch, and Girija lost the confidence of his parliamentary party, instead of making way like Margaret Thatcher made way for John Major, instead of making way for the very likely Mahendra Narayan Nidhi of his party, a Madhesi, he chose to dissolve the parliament and send his party into the political wilderness for years to come.

It is telling of the dysfunction at the highest levels that the four billion dollars pledged by donors have remained untouched after three months even as people, mostly Tamangs, Newars and Gurungs, all marginalized groups, stay in dire need of food and shelter in the affected areas after the devastating earthquake earlier in the year. Donors have threatened to walk away, or choose to instead work through non governmental agencies.

Final Lap And Global Implications

It is possible that the Madhesis and Janajatis in the three large parties run by Bahun bosses might rebel and come together and in the process end up meeting the demands of the street protests. It has taken massive street agitation and a large scale shutdown to get them to show some signs of life, such is the grip of party presidents on their parliamentarians, even though this is a constituent assembly where party whips don’t apply. Street protests, perhaps, will create sufficient pressure that the constituent assembly will do what it was supposed to do in the first place. Over 50 amendments were filed over the weekend.

What happens in Nepal does not stay in Nepal: there are larger implications. If Nepal can be seen successfully bringing armed Maoists, the number one ultra left group on the planet since the Cold War ended, into the mainstream, if democracy can be brought through street agitation, as has happened in Nepal, and if vibrant federalism can sit right next to Tibet, the churn in Nepal is hardly a localized affair. Of the three, federalism seems to be the trickiest.

In The News (46)

To be young and Madhesi in Kathmandu

in second grade .... Two girls in her class asked her “what” she was. “Bahun or Chhetri?” Prasad answered that her father was a Madhesi. “So you're a Madishe? Does your father sell vegetables?” they asked. Prasad remembers being infuriated when she repeatedly had to explain that her father was a doctor. ....... "Later on in my teenage years, the stereotypes associated with being a Madhesi were used as a bullying tactic against me and many of my Madhesi friends. Once, my friend was going to Janakpur for her vacation, so a few classmates of ours asked her to bring fruits from there," says Prasad. “‘It's obviously where you get the fruit to sell in the market,’ they said to her.” ...... a process of dominance and discrimination toward Madhes has been in place for the last two and half centuries, started by the Shah kings and continued by the Ranas and the ruling hill elites of Nepal. ....... a particular definition of what it means to be “Nepali” has persisted in society: that of a fair-skinned, daura suruwal–gunyo cholo clad, fluent Nepali-speaking person. Madhesis, who have a different lifestyle, language, and culture, are frequently assumed to be migrants and not “true” Nepalis because of the cultural similarities and cross-border connections they share with neighboring India. ............. though fifty percent of Nepal’s population lives in the Madhes, the most common assumption that Madhesis encounter is that they are Indian. ..... often have to prove their nationality and identity, both socially and legally. ......... Kathmandu is now a large metropolis where people of all castes, cultures, colors, and religions live. Yet Madhesis, and those who differ from the conventional idea of how a Nepali should look, speak, behave, and live, say they continue to bear the brunt of what often feels like

deliberate ignorance

. ......... people verbally and physically abusing Madhesis working as manual laborers and vendors. ......... in a tempo along with my friend, who was darker skinned. The conductor shouted at us to sit properly, calling us Madishe ........ the worst he has seen is toward working class Madhesis in Kathmandu. ...... he started working in the NGO sector in Kathmandu. He says he regularly faced racism. ...... Never once did they think that I was a Nepali first, who was born and brought up in Kathmandu even though my roots are in the Terai."

नेपाल की सड़कों पर गोरिल्ला युद्ध जैसे हालात

संस्कृति व क्षेत्रीयता के आधार पर प्रदेश बंटवारे की मांग को लेकर नेपाल में संघर्ष और तेज हो गया है। हिंसक आंदोलन में

अब तक 45 लापता हैं।

..... हालात बेकाबू होते देख रौतहट, गुलहरियां सहित सेती अंचल के दस स्थानों को सेना के हवाले कर दिया गया है। पखवारे भर से चल रहे आंदोलन से नेपाल में जन जीवन असामान्य हो गया है। भारत के रास्ते नेपाल जाने वाले पर्यटक भी सीमावर्ती क्षेत्रों में जहां-तहां फंसे हैं। बड़ी संख्या में पर्यटक नेपाल में भी अटके हैं।

बाजारों में सन्नाटा है। अधिकांश स्थानों पर पुलिस और आंदोलनकारियों के बीच गोरिल्ला युद्ध जैसे हालात हो गए हैं।

...... पखवारे भर से चल रहे मधेशी, थारू व जनजाति समुदाय के आंदोलन के कैलाली में हिंसक रूप लेने के बाद

उसका विस्तार पहाड़ी क्षेत्रों की तरफ भी हो गया।

मंगलवार को सेना तैनात होने के बाद भी लोगों का आक्रोश दब नहीं पाया। मधेश प्रभावित जिले झापा, मोरंग, सुनसरी, सप्तसरी, किरहा, धनुषा, चितवन, नवलपरासी, रूपन्देही, दांग, कपिलवस्तु में दुकानें बंद रहीं, लोगों ने मार्च निकाल प्रदर्शन किया। अस्पताल को छोड़कर सभी सरकारी कार्यालय बंद रहे। .........

नेपाल में चल रहा आंदोलन खूनी होने के बाद सीमाई जिले बहराइच और बलरामपुर की सीमा पर चौकसी बढ़ा दी गई, वहीं लखीमपुर की सीमा को सील कर दिया गया है।

अहिंसात्मक मधेश आन्दोलन मे सहयोग करेगा भारत : बिधान सभा अध्यक्ष पाण्डेय

संयुक्त लोकतान्त्रिक मधेशी मोर्चा कपिलवस्तु द्वारा भारत के उत्तर प्रदेश राज्य बिधान सभा अध्यक्ष माता प्रसाद पाण्डेय को मधेश के शान्तिपूर्ण आन्दोलन मे सहयोग हेतु ज्ञापन पत्र दिया गया । भारत के बढनी स्थित डाक बंगले मे आयोजित प्रेस कांफ्रेंसमे पूर्व राज्यमंत्री ईश्वरदयाल मिश्र के नेतृत्व मे मधेशी मोर्चा ने भारत उत्तर प्रदेश के सत्तासीन दल समाजवादी पार्टीके वरिष्ठ नेता एवं बिधानसभा अध्यक्ष माता प्रसाद पाण्डेय को नेपाल सरकार पर मधेशीयोंका मांग संबिधान मे समावेश करने के लिए अतिरिक्त दबाव बनानेका ज्ञापन पत्र दिया गया है । ज्ञापनपत्र मे मधेशी मोर्चा द्वारा किये जा रहे शान्तिपूर्ण आन्दोलन मे सेना परिचालनको रोक्ने एवं भारत के साथ रोटी बेटी की रिश्ते को बरकरार रखने के लिए कूटनीतिक मर्यादा अनुरुप दबाव देने के लिए अनुरोध किया गया है । .....

खासकर मधेशीयों के अधिकतर रिश्तेदार भारत से होने के बजह से संविधान मे मधेशी नागरिकों की नागरिकता प्रवाधान मे जटिलता बनाई गई है । खसवादी मनसाय से प्रदेशों के सिमांकन मे प्रमुख ३ दलों कांग्रेस, एमाले तथा माओबादी द्वारा सभी प्रदेशों मे पहाडी ही शासन करे तथा केन्द्रिय सत्ता पहाडी का ही हो , जैसा षडयन्त्र किया जा रहा है ।

..... इस मस्यौदाको हिन्दी अनुवादकर सभी पार्टीयों के प्रमुखोंको देने के साथ ही बिधान सभा मे ले जाऊंगा और बाद मे

विदेश मंत्रालय एवं प्रधानमंत्री तक पहुँचाउँगा ।

..... कार्यक्रम में भारतीय बिधायक कमाल यूसुफ, विजय पासवान युवा नेता निशार बागी सभासद् रन्जीत श्रीवास्तव, समाजबादी लोहिया वाहिनी के जिला अध्यक्ष आषिश अग्रहरी एवं प्रमुख जिला अधिकारी अखिलेश तिवारी तथा मधेशी मोर्चा के युवा नेता रजत प्रताप शाह, अभय प्रताप शाह, राजु सिंह, गंगेश नाथ तिवारी, दिनेश चन्द्र गुप्ता, दिपक शुक्ला ,रामकुमार गुप्ता, राजकुमार चौधरीे लगायत के मधेशी बुद्धिजिवी नागरिकों एवं दर्जनो पत्रकारों की उपस्थिती थी । मधेशी मोर्चा द्वारा लगातार सत्राहवें दिन बन्द जारी रखने से नेपालका जनजीवन अत्यन्त ही कष्टपूर्ण होता गया है । दैनिक उपभोग्य वस्तुऐं मंहगी होती जा रही है तो वहीं भन्सार लगायत सभी सरकारी कार्यालयों के कार्य प्रभावित हुए है ।

'मैले आफैं लगेर पैसा बुझाएको छु... न्यायाधीश पनि लाइनमै छन्’

पाटनमा न्यायाधीश लाइनमै छन्। केस मिलाउन बसुरुउद्दिन (अन्सारी, नेशनल मेडिकल कलेजका सञ्चालक) ले पनि पैसा दिन्छन्। दुई घण्टाभित्र क्यास चाहियो भने नि उनले दिन्छन्। ..... त्यो बेला इन्डियन (विधार्थी) को सिट एक करोडमा गएको हो। नेपालीले ८० (लाख) तिरे। ..... यसपालि मेडिसिन ६८ (लाख) मा गयो। रेडियोलोजी चाँहि ८४ (लाख) मा गयो। नेपाली नै ८४ लाखमा गए।..... स्वास्थ्य मन्त्रालयमा सचिव डा. प्रविण मिश्रका नाममा तीन (लाख) पुर्‍याएकै हो। काउन्सिलमा डाक्टर दामोदर गजुरेललाई भाग लगाउनै पर्यो। गजुरेलका नाममा पार्टीमा धेरै पैसा गएको छ। चन्द्र भन्ने रहेछ, त्यो लिन आउँथ्यो। भोलिपल्ट बिहानै पैसा लाजिम्पाट पुग्दो रहेछ। ..... पोहोर किष्टको १३५ सिट बनाउँदा डेढ करोड खुवाइएको थियो। त्यसबेला काउन्सिल अध्यक्ष डा. गजुरेलले हातमा २ करोड पारे। ......

पोहोर निरीक्षणमा गएका टोली सदस्य विमलकुमार सिन्हालाई नोबेल सञ्चालक सुनिल शर्माले ‘तैंले सिट घटाइस् भने तँ रहँदैनस् र तेरो परिवार पनि रहँदैन, ल सिट घटाएर देखा’ भनेका थिए। त्यसो भनेपछि के घट्थ्यो सिट?

...... निरीक्षणमा आउने टोलीलाई अलिअलि खाममा हाल्नै पर्यो। काउन्सिलमा पदाधिकारीको गोजीमा नराखी केही काम हुँदैन। ..... अदालतमा केस मिलाउने काम कालुमार्फत हुन्छ। ..... केस भाग लगाउने काम सार्वोच्च अदालतमा मुख्य न्यायाधीश (प्रधानन्यायाधीश) बाट हुन्छ। कतिपय अवस्थामा केस मिलाउन गोपाललाई मात्र पैसा दिएर हुँदैन, रजिष्ट्रारमार्फत नै केस मिलाउनुपर्ने हुन्छ। अहिलेका रजिष्ट्रार पनि लाइनमै छन्। भनेका ठाउँमा मुद्दा हाल्न (पार्न) सक्छन्। रजिष्ट्रार नै पेलपाल गरेर अघि बढेपछि बिचरा कसको के लाग्थ्यो र? ....... काउन्सिलमा शशि शर्मा (पूर्व अध्यक्ष) ले भाग पनि लाउँथे। उनी त्यहाँ हुँदाखेरि यसलाई यति दिने, यसलाई यति दिने भन्थे। उनले आफ्ना नाममा १० लाख माग्थे। काउन्सिलमा अनिल झा, मनोहर, प्रधान, अन्सारी (एई) र अरुले पनि लिन्थे। ...... मेडिकल काउन्सिलमा रजिस्ट्रारको भ्यालु छ। भोटिङ राइट नभए पनि भ्यालु छ। अहिले सबै बिगारेको रजिस्ट्रारले नै हो। अख्तियारमा निवेदन हाल्ने उनै हुन्। ...... अहिले निलमणीलाई भैरहवा (युनिभर्सल) र पोखरा (गण्डकी) डुबाउनु नै छ । पहिला त रिलेसन राम्रो थियो, पछि पैसा धेरै माग्यो। माओवादी भनेर उसले मलाई सुरुमा ८० लाख (रुपैयाँ) माग्यो। ...... कपी पनि भनेकै मान्छेकोमा पर्छ । मनाउने नै एक्जाम सेन्टरलाई हो । पैसा त त्यसलाई पो चाहिन्छ । .... (सर्वोच्च) अदालतमा कल्याण आएपछि अहिलेसम्म गइएको छैन। हाम्रो मुद्दा सरेको सर्‍यै छ। सबै वकिलले मिलाइहाल्छ। गोपालले मिलाइ हाल्छन्। चोलेन्द्र त झन् माइडियर मान्छे हुन्। काम एक जनासँग गर्दा हुन्। अदालतले भन्दिएपछि सरकारले केही गर्नै सक्दैन। त्यो फाइनल हुन्छ। अरुले पनि त्यो मान्न परिहाल्यो।

हाम्रो एउटा केस मिलाउने बेला प्रधानन्यायाधीश दारीवाला थिए। त्यतिखेर हामीले २ करोड दिएको हो। दारी आफैंले लिएका हुन्।

........ पोखराको हो। मान्छे ठिक छ। पैसाको मामलामा त चर्कै हो । प्रवेश परीक्षाको केसमा हामी कलेजवालाले पुनरावेदन अदालत पाटनमा ८० लाख रुपैयाँ खर्च गरेका थियौँ। तपाईँले पनि केस मिलाउने हो भने जयनारायणमार्फत जानुपर्छ। उसले काम भएपछि मात्र पैसा लिन्छ। ..... अहिले काउन्सिलमा सबै कुरा बिगार्ने मान्छे रजिस्ट्रार नै हुन्। अख्तियारमार्फत लागेर सबै कुरा बिगार्ने उनै हुन्। देवदह मामलामा काउन्सिलका आफ्नै साथीहरुलाई मुद्दा हाल्ने काममा अख्तियारमार्फत लागे। सदस्यहरुलाई मुद्दा हालेर अहिले रजिष्ट्रार काउन्सिलको पावरमा छन्। यिनले कसैलाई बाँकी राख्नेवाला छैनन् । अहिले यिनी हाम्रो कलेजविरुद्ध खनिएका छन्। उनको निकटता नटराजसँग छ । हामीले तिनीसँग सम्बन्ध नबनाएको पनि हैन। पहिला हामीसँग राम्रै सम्बन्ध थियो। तर बीचमा आएर धेरै पैसा मागे । उनले हाम्रो कलेजसँग ८० लाख (रुपैया) मागेका थिए । ८० माग्दा हामीले दिएनौँ, त्यसपछि उनी हामीविरुद्ध लागे। ....... अहिले किष्ट मेडिकल कलेज बेच्न पर्‍यो भनिराछन्। ५२ करोड हालेको हो रे। आठ करोड त मेरो र बालमान सिंह कार्कीको ब्याज नै छ। ल ६० (करोड) मा भन्देउ त भाइ भन्दै थियो मलाई। ...... हामीले भारतबाट फ्याकल्टीलाई दुई/दुई महिनामा क्लास लिन बोलाउने गरेका छौँ। हाम्रो हरेक विभागमा एक जना प्रोफेसर अरु सबै लेक्चरर राख्ने गरेका छौँ। सबै फ्याकल्टी पुर्‍याउनुपर्छ भन्ने छैन।

Related articles

• India's Modi to Nepal: Exercise restraint after deadly protests
• Nepal's top court orders suspension of surrogacy services
• Nepal protester shot dead in fresh clashes as India pleads for calm
• India's Modi to Nepal: Exercise restraint after deadly protests

5-10 people cannot impose a Constitution: PM Modi tells Nepal

5-10 people cannot impose a Constitution: PM Modi tells Nepal

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has told his Nepali counterpart Sushil Koirala that 'five to ten people' cannot 'sit in a room' and 'impose a Constitution' and called for greater inclusion in the process. ....... reiterated his earlier position that there must be the widest possible consultation as Nepal finalises its Constitution. ..... There is a realisation in the government that this has been a top driven process, which has not taken into account the views of diverse social and political groups on the ground. .......... "Five to ten people cannot sit in a room and write the constitution. All parties and forces should sit together. There must be greater dialogue." ...... "Five to ten people cannot sit in a room and write the constitution. All parties and forces should sit together. There must be greater dialogue." ..... Modi has reiterated that the 'political leadership of Nepal should resolve all outstanding issues through dialogue between all political parties and through the process of widest possible consultation, including with the public' and arrive at a solution which accommodated the 'aspirations of all citizens of a richly diverse society within a united, peaceful, stable and prosperous Nepal'.

Related articles

• 5-10 people cannot impose a Constitution: Modi tells Nepal
• NaMo speaks to Nepal PM Sushil Koirala
• India, Nepal to ink deal tomorrow to construct petroleum pipeline
• India's Modi to Nepal: Exercise restraint after deadly protests
• India's Modi to Nepal: Exercise restraint after deadly protests
• Nepal Dalit leader says Modi's stress on consensus has meant dilution in draft constitution
• India Gives Neighboring Nepal Rs. 30 Million to Combat Iodine Deficiency Disorders
• Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas of Repub : Visit of Petroleum Minister Shri Dharmendra Pradhan to Nepal
• Narendra Modi visits the Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi
• Modi's Bihar bonanza will be a hard act for Nitish-Lalu to follow

प्रत्यक्ष निर्वाचित वडा अध्यक्ष छैन मस्यौदा मा

English: Tarai Grey Langur (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

प्रत्यक्ष निर्वाचित वडा अध्यक्ष छैन मस्यौदा मा भन्ने थाहा पाउने अन्तिम व्यक्ति म होला।

यो त अचम्मै भएन र भन्या?

वडा अध्यक्ष, मेयर, प्रदेश प्रमुख, प्रधान मंत्री ---- यी सब प्रत्यक्ष निर्वाचित गर्नु पर्छ।

अहिले को प्रस्तावमा प्रत्येक वडा बाट ५ जना छान्ने अनि गाउँ भरि बाट त्यसरी आएका ४६ जनाले प्रत्येक वडा को वडा अध्यक्ष छान्ने भनेको छ। भने पछि गाउँ स्तरमा एक दलीय व्यवस्था लागु गर्न खोजेको? मदन भंडारी कम्निस्ट मान्छे सुद्धा ले उहिले एक दलीय व्यवस्था छोडेको ---- कंस सिटौला लाई चाहिं एक दलीय व्यवस्था चाहिएको?

जिल्ला सभापति चाहिं त्यस जिल्ला को सबै वडा अध्यक्ष र मेयर, उप मेयर ले चुन्ने हो?

प्रत्येक वड़ा समान जनसंख्या को हुनुपर्ने भन्ने छ कि छैन? होइन भने जिल्ला सभा मा जहिले पनि शहर र महानगर लाई गाउँ ले थिचोमिचो गर्ने भो।

राजधानीमा मधेसी मोर्चाको प्रदर्शन
चार शीर्ष नेताले एकै मञ्चबाट भने - ‘साउन २० भित्र नयाँ संविधान’

‘मुलुक राजनीतिक सहमतिको दिशामा अघि बढिसक्यो,’ प्रधानमन्त्री सुशील कोइरालाले भने, ‘दुनियाँको कुनै शक्तिले पनि अब संविधान आउनबाट रोक्न सक्दैन।’ .... केपी शर्मा ओली ... अझै संविधान जारी हुन नदिने प्रपञ्च भइरहेको बताउँदै उनले भने, ‘संविधान जारी हुन नदिन अहिले पनि तुलसीको मोठमा पूजा भइरहेको छ, बरपीपल चौतारी पनि प्रयोग भइरहेका छन्।’ राष्ट्रिय एकता खल्बलिन नदिने उनले बताए। गिरिजाप्रसाद कोइरालालाई महान् नेताको संज्ञा दिँदै ओलीले उनको भूमिकाले नेपाली समाजलाई सकारात्मक दिशातर्फ उन्मुख गरेको उल्लेख गरे। ...... पुष्पकमल दाहालले पनि सबैको चित्त नबुझे पनि संविधान जारी भएरै छाड्ने दृढता व्यक्त गरे। ‘सहमतिमा हस्ताक्षर गरेका हामी कसैलाई पनि संविधानको मस्यौदा चित्त बुझदो छैन र हुँदैन पनि,’ उनले भने, ‘त्यसैले यो कुनै दल विशेषको नभएर जनताको संविधान हो।’ उनले आवश्यक परिमार्जन गरेर भए पनि सबैको भावना समेट्ने बताउँदै साउन २० भित्र जुनसुकै अवस्थामा संविधान जारी हुने बताए।

पश्चिमी संस्कारको प्रभावमा महिला अधिकारकर्मी : विद्या भण्डारी
'मदनले मेरो थर फेरिदिएको मलाई थाहा थिएन'

विद्या भण्डारीले वैवाहिक स्वतन्त्रता र नागरिकताको अधिकार फरक फरक विषय भए पनि पश्चिमी संस्कृतिको प्रभावमा बढी अधिकारको माग भइरहेको बताएकी छिन् । अनेरास्ववियु केन्द्रीय महिला विभागले राजधानीमा आयोजना गरेको ‘मस्यौदामा महिला हकसम्बन्धी थप्नुपर्ने विषयबारे छलफल’ मा बोल्दै भण्डारीले

नेपालमा जन्मेका नेपाली आमा र बाबुका सन्तानले वंशजको आधारमा नागरिकताको प्रमाणपत्र पाउनुपर्ने

धारणा राखिन् । मस्यौदा हेर्दा ‘जसले जे खोज्यो त्यही पाइने’ प्रकारको बनेको भन्दै सकारात्मक पक्ष हेर्न उनको आग्रह थियो । ..... ‘हामीले माने पनि नमाने पनि पूर्वीय संस्कार र संस्कृतिमा महिला पुरुषप्रति नै सम्पूर्ण रुपमा समर्पित हुन्छिन्, यो विभेदकारी व्यवस्था भए पनि समाज यसैगरी चलिआएको छ,’ भण्डारीले भनिन्, ‘म पाण्डे भए पनि मदन भण्डारीसँग बिहे भएपछि उहाँले नै फारममा भण्डारी भरिदिनुभएछ । पछि थाहा भयो । मैले पनि सोध्ने कुरा आएन । मेरो थरमात्रै होइन, गोत्र नै बदलियो ।’ ...... नागरिकतामा व्यक्तिगत हकसँगै राष्ट्रिय सार्वभौमिकताको विषय पनि जोडिएकाले संवेदनशील हुन भण्डारीले सबै पक्षलाई आग्रह गरिन् । महिलाको दृष्टिले हेर्दा नेपालमा अझै पूर्ण लोकतन्त्र आइनसकेको उनले आरोप लगाइन् । ‘नेपालमा पितृसत्तात्मक निरंकुशता छ, आर्थिक सामाजिक सांस्कृतिक मूल्य मान्यतामा त्यो झल्किन्छ,’ उनले भनिन्, ‘महिला हकका लागि हामीले संविधानसभाका समितिमा आवाज राखे पनि त्यसको सुनुवाई हुन अझै निरन्तर आन्दोलन गर्नुपर्ने देखिएको छ ।’ ...... कुनै पनि सन्तानको जन्म आमा वा बाबु एक्लैबाट नहुने, दुवैको ‘अपरिहार्य उपस्थिति’ ले हुने भन्दै भण्डारीले आमा वा बाबुको नामबाट नागरिकता लिने प्रसंगको आलोचना गरिन् । ‘हिजोआज एकल महिलाको कोणबाट पनि अधिकारका आवाज उठ्न थालेका छन्, तर हाम्रो समाज त्यहाँसम्म पुगिसकेको छैन,’ उनले भनिन्, ‘हामीले अन्तरिम संविधानमा वंशजको नागरिकताका लागि आमा वा बाबुमध्ये एक भए हुने नै भनेका हौं, एमालेलाई नागरिकताबारे अनुदार भएको भनी लागिरहेको आरोप उचित छैन ।’ ....... सय वर्षपछिको समाज कल्पना गरेर आज संविधान लेख्न नसकिने भन्दै भण्डारीले त्यो समयका लागि अर्को पुस्ताले अधिकार माग्ने तर्क गरिन् । ‘महिलाका लागि धेरै संवैधानिक व्यवस्था भएका छन्, तर महिला आन्दोलनकारीहरु यसो र उसो भन्दै कराइरहेका छन्,’ उनले भनिन्, ‘मलाई त्योचाहिँ मन परेको छैन ।’

Time for Modi to nudge Nepal on writing an inclusive constitution

A second agitation had broken out in the Tarai, led by the Madhesis, people who shared close kinship, ethnic and linguistic ties with those across the border in Bihar and UP and had been excluded from the Nepali power structure. The Tarai forces demanded immediate federalism and inclusion in political structures and security forces. ..... The government assured the Madhesis that the elected CA would determine the boundaries of the State and committed to creating an ‘autonomous Madhes province’. The Madhesis called off their protests. The CA elections were held, and the peace process reached an ‘irreversible point’. ....... While the draft stipulates that the country would have eight provinces, it leaves the key issue of federal demarcation to a future commission. This has sparked outrage not only amongst the Madhesis but also hill ethnic groups across party lines. Both groups view the current draft as a way to postpone, dilute and subvert federalism and maintain the political hegemony of the hill upper-caste groups. ........ Responding to a petition, the Supreme Court ordered that the CA had to determine the boundaries and names of provinces as stipulated by the interim constitution. But the big parties slammed the judiciary for overreach and went ahead with the draft. This has now triggered dissent even within parties like the Nepali Congress, with veterans like Pradeep Giri and members of PM Sushil Koirala’s own family like MP Shekhar Koirala arguing against defiance of the judiciary. ...... The draft also has citizenship provisions that institutionalise gender inequality and attacks the special India-Nepal relationship. A person can be a citizen by descent if only both his father and mother are Nepali citizens. Given the extent of cross-border marriages between India and Nepal — the ‘roti-beti’ relationship as Union external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj put it — this will directly impact children of those from the bordering regions. There are also restrictive clauses on citizenship by naturalisation. The provision that only those who are citizens by descent can hold high public office will once again impact many in the Tarai with Indian roots. All these provisions are born out of xenophobic nationalism and fear of Indian ‘demographic aggression’. ...... The absence of reliable and strong interlocutors on the Tarai side does not help. ...... Distilled to the basics, India’s core interests in Nepal are peace, stability and a friendly Kathmandu. While the current constitutional proposal may go through, it will deliver neither peace nor stability. ...... Nepal’s current fundamental political problem is that its State structure does not reflect its enormous social diversity — the draft constitution does little to address this issue of political exclusion and even aggravates it. ........ The Tarai will remain fertile ground for unrest — the perceived failure of moderate Madhesi forces is already strengthening a separatist strand in the region. The xenophobia that has driven citizenship clauses will erode the people-to-people relationship on the ground. ...... There is now domestic pressure to revise the draft. The issue of federal demarcation is not intractable and there are many voices — from the NC to Maoists to the dissenting Madhesi and Janjati MPs — who are pushing for a constitution with state boundaries. Tarai parties are willing to accept two provinces in the plains, with some districts merged with the hills as proposed by the establishment.

Missing the point

The preamble mentions the 2006 Jana Aandolan and the Maoist armed struggle but not the Madhes Movement. It was because of the Madhes Uprising of 2007 that the major political parties were compelled to incorporate federalism into the Interim Constitution. ........ Secularism is also missing from the preamble of the draft constitution. This principle guarantees citizens that the state is neutral in terms of religion. ...... the Interim Constitution mentions federalism in the definition of the state, but the draft constitution has omitted this word from the definition of the state ...... Articles 23 and 47 highlight the needs of the Khas Arya group, but under these very articles, the Khas have been mentioned ahead of the Madhesi and Muslim groups. Further, the drafters have not defined any other community apart from the Khas in Article 88. Does this mean that

the drafters who are all from the Khas Arya group

more concerned about their own community than the other marginalised communities? Further, if all the groups are included in the list of those who need affirmative action, then there would be no need for open competition. ....... Article 90 of the draft constitution states that all the provinces will elect five members to the Upper House of Parliament. The government will nominate five members. As there seems to be a tentative agreement among the politicians to have two provinces in the Madhes, this means there will only be 10 representatives from the region in the Upper House as opposed to 30 representatives from the hills. Since the Madhes has a higher population than the hills, this will affect the ability of Madhesis to make laws that are vital for their empowerment. So each province should have the right to elect at least one representative to the Upper House and the rest should be elected on the basis of the province’s population. The basis of the election to the Upper House is first-past-the-post (FPTP), not proportional. The electoral college includes the head of the local bodies, which is complicated. Similarly, the mixed system will reduce the inclusion of excluded groups including Dalits in the House of Representatives until a priority list and some special provisions of inclusiveness are adopted. Only one or two parties will control the local bodies since elections will be held according to the FPTP system as stated in Article 221(4)........ Article 282 says that only citizens by descent will be entitled to hold the post of president, vice-president, speaker, chair of the Rastriya Sabha, chief minister, speaker of the Provincial Assembly and chief of the security agencies. When a non-resident Nepali holds political positions in the UK, US or other overseas countries, Nepalis swell with pride. But the draft statute seems intent on not allowing naturalised citizens from enjoying their full rights. What kind of nationalism is this? Such harsh provisions did not even exist in the Panchayat constitution. It is against equality and human rights to categorise citizens into first class, second class and third class. Article 282 could also have adverse effects on cultural and marital relations between Nepalis and Indians. It could discourage Indians from establishing marital relations with Nepalis for fear of their relatives being categorised as second or third class citizens. Article 19 stipulates that non-resident Nepali citizenship can be granted to people of Nepali origin living in foreign countries other than Saarc countries. These people will not be entitled to enjoy their economic, social and cultural rights. But what does the term ‘Nepali origin’ mean? Will Madhesis fit into the definition of people of Nepali origin? ........ Article 280 (13) states that the delineation of the constituencies will be carried out in every 20 years in contradiction with Article 154 of the Interim Constitution. Article 63 (3) of the Interim Constitution states that the constituencies will be delineated every 10 years which is more practical and logical. ......... The draft constitution has not mentioned what authority will prepare the voters’ lists. ....... On the one hand, the major parties want to delay settling the federalism issue and do not want to commit themselves as to when they want to hold provincial elections. But on the other hand, they are in a hurry to hold local elections. ........ without settling the issue of federalism in the constitution, an election to the Upper House cannot be held. And without holding the election, Parliament cannot be constituted and laws cannot be enacted. In such a situation, how can the government function? Without settling the provincial boundaries, no one can move ahead. If the new constitution is promulgated without federalism, it will be a defunct document.

Related articles

• India, China pledge nearly $1.5 billion in Nepal quake aid
• Nepal earthquake: Billions pledged by nations, but still short of goal
• Nepal secures millions in quake aid
• India: Gathering Momentum - Analysis
• Sushma leaves for Nepal to attend donors' conclave
• -India, China pledge nearly $1.5 billion in Nepal quake aid

Terrorism, Climate Change And Genuine World Government.

Terror, climate change biggest problems for world: PM Narendra Modi

Noting that yoga helps humans to live in sync with nature, Modi said that it was not a physical exercise but a synchronisation of body, mind, soul and intellect. ..... "Yoga also helps humans to live with nature. Yoga is not a physical programme. How much the body bends or legs bend, this is not the objective of yoga.

And a genuine world government is the only solution to both.

In The News (11)

Mounting anger over Nepali government's disaster management
Leaders of ruling and opposition parties bat for effective service delivery to quake affected
Nepalese Village, Devastated by Quake, Is Left to Cope as International Attention Shifts

There was an unearthly quiet on Friday in Langtang, where the remains of as many as 300 people are believed to be buried under 20 feet of rock and ice that sheared off a mountain during the earthquake that hit Nepal two weeks ago.......Gone were most of the international search teams that had been working their way through the debris — the drones, the American Special Forces, the Israeli military. Instead, there was early-morning silence ....... “Families think that maybe some people are hiding somewhere in the jungle; they are telling me this type of thing, but I don’t think there is any possibility to find any life here” .....

International news crews have, for the most part, headed home

. ....... Some aid workers said they were worried that donors’ attention had already strayed from Nepal. An initial request to donor nations by the United Nations for $423 million for the first three months of aid has yielded only $22.4 million so far

Leaders of ruling and opposition parties bat for effective service delivery to quake affected

The government is the most reliable institution for relief distribution in an integrated fashion, Oli said. ..... Saying that illusion was created by blaming the government, political parties and leaders as infamous and corrupt, Poudel said that they were ready to face such allegations through coordination and unity; and expressed readiness to for power sharing even in the government for the same.

Indian media in quake-hit Nepal: Grace, empathy thrown to the winds

But within days the mood changed. First, Nepali official corridors rumbled with discontent over New Delhi’s unilateral disaster response. But if such heartburn was so far out of public view, a section of the Indian media’s tendentious narrative soured New Delhi’s efforts in the eyes of many ordinary Nepalis. ...... Our media, especially some influential TV stations, chose to extol their hometown heroes. It ignored the tremendous display of dignity and resilience from millions of grief-stricken Nepalis. It ignored the role of Nepali rescue and relief teams, hijacking a disaster response that saw 33 other nations also contributing. ....... To be fair, sensationalism is the lifeblood of commoditised news. Modern day information consumption follows marketplace dynamics. Hence, in theory, retaining eyeballs is necessary for advertisement revenues that could fund genuine journalism. The worry is even when some of India’s influential mainstream media outlets try to do genuine reporting, the end result remains deeply lacking, both in content and form...... In a way, India’s response to the disaster and its media’s oversized, chest-thumping coverage of that effort seemed aimed at a wider strategic goal: To trump China. Comparisons with the Chinese effort were unsubtle and even jingoistic on some occasions. Ironically, in a country where public suspicion of Big Brother India is deep-seated, such egregious news coverage only worsens discontent...... Worldwide, the media is often accused of following templatised coverage of wars, epidemics, natural disasters, accidents and terrorist attacks. Sometimes that can come replete with cultural insensitivities and at the cost of journalistic empathy, propriety, grace and decorum. Just like a section of our media’s reporting of the earthquake in Nepal.

महाभूकम्पपीडितको राहत र पुनर्स्थापनामा साझा संकल्प, संसदमा २७ बुँदे संकल्प (पूर्णपाठसहित)

केन्द्रमा प्रधानमन्त्रीको नेतृत्वमा गठित सर्वदलीय संयन्त्रको मातहतमा जिल्ला, नगर र गाऊ स्तरमा पनि सर्वदलिय संयन्त्र गठन गर्ने ..... संसदले संकल्पका रुपमा पारित गर्ने प्रस्तावको महत्व निकै बढी हुन्छ, यसले निर्देश गर्ने कार्य सम्पन्न गर्नु राज्यका सम्पूर्ण अंगको दायित्य हुनेछ । ...... यो प्रस्तावले जसरी सबै राजनीतिक दल, सिंगो नेपाललाई एक ठाउँमा उभ्याएको छ, यसैगरी संविधान निर्माणका सन्दर्भमा पनि एक ठाउँमा उभ्याउनेछ भन्ने विश्वास गर्दछु । संविधान निर्माणका विषयमा सहमतिनजिक पुर्‍याउनका लागि अब हामीलाई फेरि अर्को भुकम्पको आवश्यकता पदैन होला । ......

‘अर्को डरलाग्लो राजनीतिक भुकम्प आउँदैछ । हामीलाई यो विपत्तीमा पुर्‍याउने यिनै दल हुन् भन्ने जनतामा परेको छ । त्यो असन्तुष्टि व्यक्त भयो भने अर्को भुकम्प आउँछ’

China’s relief operations to Nepal the biggest ever sent to a foreign soil

China sent 1088 personnel as of Thursday, May 7. The number is apparently a record in the history of the country since the New China was formed in 1949 ..... eight transport planes, three helicopters and 190 pieces of engineering machinery ..... a total of 546 tonnes of relief materials worth 60 million yuan, approximately USD 9.8 million. ..... 1,600 tents, 10,000 blankets and 327 electric generators while the Red Cross Society of China provided 2,000 tents ...... a 62-member Chinese search and rescue team, along with six dogs, arrived in Nepal’s capital Kathmandu the following day ...... the Chinese medical professionals treated 2,387 victims of the earthquake. ..... The Chinese Foreign Ministry has pledged it will continue to communicate with its Indian counterpart as it seeks to help Nepal.

सरकारलाई प्रचण्डका १० प्रश्न

भारतमा विपतको बेला केही घण्टामा संसदको बैठक बसेको थियो । तर, यहाँ १४ दिनपछि बैठक बस्दै छ । त्यो पनि प्रतिपक्षीको आग्रहमा । ढिलै भए पनि बोलाइएकोमा धन्यवाद दिन चाहन्छु । ...... ५ वटा पाल चाहिने ठाउँमा २० वटा पुगेको पनि देखियो तर कतै अहिलेसम्म पनि पाल पुगेको छैन ।

The price of politicking

At the last minute, however, a Nepali Congress (NC) leader from the area, an elected Constituent Assembly (CA) member, Mohan Basnet, held back the distribution. ..... In the presence of the SEBS team, the all-party mechanism in constituency number 1 had already decided to distribute the aid equally among the seven Village Development Committees (VDCs) in the area, but Basnet was furious that he had not been consulted. He started demanding that his constituency should get all the tarpaulins and the sacks of rice. When the SEBS team refused to do that, he resorted to threats, saying outright that he would block the distribution in the area and would go even further and make sure that the team never crossed the border into Sindhupalchok. ....... Almost half of the nation’s more than 7,800 deaths occurred in Sindhupalchok alone. And 95 percent of over 66,000 houses in the district have been completely or partially destroyed. Those who survived are clamouring for shelter and food and a little bit of decency from their leaders. But it took the politicians in Sindhupalchok’s constituency number 3 more than a week to form an all-party group that would be in charge of aid distribution. And even though they profess to work together and be fair in distribution, one can overhear biases in their discussions. ....... While the local leaders were waiting for the consignment from SEBS to arrive on Tuesday, they discussed how the relief material donated by another organisation the other day had been siphoned off to Sikharpur VDC alone. The man behind this move, a local NC cadre, Ganesh Dahal, tried to justify his act by saying that the package contained not more than a few tarpaulin sheets and a few kilos of worthless beaten rice. ...... What Dahal did, however, was what every politician wanted to do and would do if given the chance—take credit for looking after their party’s vote bank in these tough times. ...... Later, a CPN-UML local politician pulled aside the leader of the SEBS team, Rabindra Maharjan, who was assigned to deliver the goods, and asked him to tell the people that the consignment was possible only because of Sher Bahadur. ..... Politicking continues at the VDC level as well. When a group of local politicians from Dubachaur VDC, along with its VDC secretary, arrived on Wednesday to load a truck with tarps and sacks of rice donated by SEBS, a CPN-UML local leader could be heard telling another that they would distribute the aid only to a select few wards. “Why distribute the aid to wards 6 and 7?” said Dipendra Shrestha. “We will take all the relief material to ward numbers 2 and 3.” ........ Major Prem Hamal, who is in the district, recounted how a truck full of aid had to return to the army base the other day after the relief workers could not deal with the angry mob of locals. The only way to satisfy the victims, it seems, is by facilitating relief work through local politicians. ....... “This is as far as we can get,” said Maharjan, after watching the local-level all-party groups load the relief material.

“We keep reminding the politicians to let go of politics for a while, but it’s up to them to take heed or not. If they work together, people will thank them for it; if not, their heads will roll.”

......... Relief work will soon move on to the rebuilding phase, and unless the politicians work together, rehabilitation will be impossible. Tents and tarps are not permanent solutions.

मच्छिन्द्रनाथको भोटो हरायो
भूकम्पको केन्द्र बारपाकमा खाद्यान्न पुगेनः आयोग

“सदरमुकाममा ट्रकका ट्रक राहत थुप्रिएको हामी सबैले देख्यौं, तर अहिलेसम्म बारपाकबासीले राहत पाएका छैनन् ।” ..... अहिले बारपाकमा ६२ नेपाली सेना, आठ नेपाल प्रहरी, २२ सशस्त्र प्रहरी र ४० जना भारतीय सेनाको टोली राहत तथा उद्धारमा खटिइरहेको र भूकम्पबाट बारपाकका करिब एक हजार ४०० घर ध्वस्त भएको आयोगले जनाएको छ ।

राष्ट्रिय सरकार बनाउन पूर्व प्रधानमन्त्रीहरुको जोड --- रेडक्रसले समानान्तर सरकार चलायो : विजुक्छे

पूर्व प्रधानमन्त्री एवं एमाले नेता माधवकुमार नेपालले राज्य संयन्त्र प्रभावकारी नदेखिएको आरोप लगाए । उनले महाविपत्तीको स्थिति सामना गर्न राष्ट्रिय सहमतिको सरकार निर्माण गर्नुपर्ने धारणा राखे । उनले सहमतिको सरकारले संबिधान जारी गर्नुपर्ने बताए । ...... प्रधानमन्त्री एवं एमाले वरिष्ठ नेता झलनाथ खनालले मुलुक महाविपत्तिमा परेको बेला राजनीतिक दलहरु स्वयमसेवक दलका रुपमा परिणत हुनुपर्ने बताए । ..... पूर्व प्रधानमन्त्री बाबुराम भट्टराई .. ‘नया कानुन बनाएर प्रधानमन्त्रीकै नेतृत्वमा देश, विदेशका विज्ञ राखेर सर्वाधिकारसम्पन्न त्यस्तो संरचना बनाउनुपर्छ’, उनले भने,‘त्यसोभए मात्र ५ वर्षभित्र यो क्षतिको पुर्ति गर्न सक्छौ र १० वर्षभित्र मुलुककै नवनिर्माण गर्न सक्छौ । ऋणपत्र जारी गरेर मुलुकभित्रैबाट ५/६ सय अर्ब उठाउन सक्छौ । बाह्य सहयोगसमेत जुटाएर एक हजार अर्बसम्मको पुर्ननिर्माण कोष स्थापना गर्न सक्छौ ।’ ..... पूर्वप्रधानमन्त्री तथा कांग्रेस नेता शेरबहादुर देउवा .. ‘मेरैबारेमा पनि शेरबहादुर हराए भनेर समाचार आएछ । जनताले हामीलाई नभनेर कसलाई भन्ने ? हामीलाई जनताले दबाव दिएको हो । यसले प्रजातन्त्र खत्तम होइन, झनै बलियो बनाउछ । ’ ..... तमलोपा संसदीय दलका नेता सर्वेन्द्रनाथ शुक्लाले विपत्तीको बेला सरकारमा समन्वयको कमी देखिएको आरोप लगाए । उनले भूकम्पबाट १४ जिल्ला प्रभावित भनिए पनि त्यसले ७५ जिल्ला प्रभावित बनाएको उनको भनाई थियो । ....... ‘कहिल्यै पहाड नदेखेका मधेसीहरुले टेलिभिजनमा यहाको विपत्ति देखेर, दुखको अनुभूति गरेर सहयोग जुटाउन लागि परेका छन्’, उनले भने,‘ अहिले पनि मधेसमा राहत जुटाउने कार्य जारी छ । जुन ऐक्यबद्धता र सहयोगी भावना स्वस्र्फुतरुपमा आएको छ, यसलाई बढावा दिनुपर्छ ।’ ..... ‘ कार्यबाहक प्रधानमन्त्रीले राष्ट्रलाई सम्बोधन गरेर खोज, उद्धार, क्षति र राहतबारे जानकारी गराउनुपथ्र्यो ।’ ..... ‘मधेसमा बाढी र पहाडमा पहिरोको घटना हामीले हरेक वर्ष भोगिरहेका छौ’ .... नेपाल मजदुर किसान पार्टीका अध्यक्ष नारायणमान विजुक्छेले रेडक्रसले राहत वितरणको नाममा समानान्तर सरकार चलाएको आरोप लगाएका छन् । ‘रेडक्रसले जिल्ला प्रशासन कार्यालयलाई टेरेको छैन्’, उनले भने,‘ सरकारमा रहेका पार्टीको समन्वयमा मनोमानी राहत बाडिरहेको छ । राहतमा के छ थाहासमेत दिइएको छैन ।’ .... नेताहरुले आफ्नो निर्वाचन क्षेत्र केन्द्रित भएर राहत बाँडेको भन्दै असन्तुष्टि जनाए । ....... दलीय दबावकै कारण जिल्ला प्रशासन कार्यालय, प्रमुख जिल्ला अधिकारीबाट निश्पक्ष रुपमा राहत वितरण नभएको दाबी गरे । उनले शासक, दलका नेता र आजको राजनीतिप्रति नै जनतामा वितृष्णा पैदा भएको भन्दै यसको जिम्मेवारी स्थानीय निकायको निर्वाचनका विरोधी दलले लिनुपर्ने बताए ।... उनले पुर्ननिर्माण र नवनिर्माणको निम्ति आगामी सातादेखि नै हजारौ हजार युवाहरुलाई सिकर्मी र डकर्मीको तालिम दिनुपर्ने सुझाव दिए ।..... ‘६० लाख युवा विदेशिएका छन्, त्यसैले साधन भए पनि दक्ष जनशक्तिको अभाव हुनसक्छ’, उनले भने ।

नेपालका ऐतिहासिक भूकम्पहरुः ‘वि.सं २०७२ देखि वि.सं १३१० सम्म फर्किएर हेर्दा’
विदेशी सहायताको तीतो यथार्थ

राष्ट्रसंघीय सुरक्षा मिसनमा पुगेका नेपाली सेनाबाट ‘हैजा’ फैलिएको दुस्प्रचार गरिएपछि असहज अवस्था सिर्जना भएको थियो । .... अझ छिमेकी अमेरिकाले हाइटीमा राम्रै ‘डेरा’ जमायो, ठूलो सहायता राशिसहित । बहुपक्षीय, द्विपक्षीय र व्यक्तिगत तवरमा संकलित विदेशी सहायता धारो लाग्यो । सँगै विदेशीहरूको क्रीडास्थल बन्न पुग्यो । तर त्यतिखेर जसरी ठूलो परिमाणमा विदेशी सहायता प्रवाहित भयो, त्यसले हाइटीको स्वरुप फेरिनेछ भन्ने अपेक्षा हाइटीवासीलाई जगायो । अझ शक्तिसम्पन्न मुलुक अमेरिकाले दीर्घकालीन, सबल र सक्षम मुलुकमा हाइटीलाई स्थापित गर्ने उद्घोष गरेपछि आशा जाग्नु स्वाभाविक थियो । ...... भूकम्प पीडित उद्धारका निम्ति त्यतिखेर १३ अर्ब अमेरिकी डलर हाइटी प्रवेश भएको तथ्यांकहरू सार्वजनिक भए । डलरसँगै अन्तर्राष्ट्रि्य गैरसरकारी संस्था छ्यापछ्याप्ती हुनपुगे । उनीहरूले स्थानीय स्तरमा ‘साझेदारी’ गर्ने नाममा दस हजार राष्ट्रिय गैरसरकारी संस्था जन्माए । विदेशी सहायतासँगै ठूलो संख्यामा ‘डलर तलब बुझ्ने’ विदेशी अनुहारको प्रवेश भयो । विदेशी सहायता र विदेशी अनुहारले हाइटीको ‘काँचुली’ फेर्छ भन्ने ठानियो । ........ दाताले सहायता रकम सरकारी कोष जम्मा गरेर होइन कि आफैंले प्रत्यक्ष खर्च गर्ने होड चलाए । तथ्यांकहरूले ‘एक प्रतिशत’ सहायता राशिमात्रै सरकारी कोषमा पुगेको देखाएको थियो । सहायता रकम अन्तर्राष्ट्रिय गैरसरकारी संस्थाबाट रकम खर्चने योजना बन्यो । दाताको डलरसँगै देखापरेका त्यस्ता खाले संस्थाहरू राशि कम हुँदै गएपछि एकाएक हराउन पुगे । अन्तत: रकम खर्चको ‘तथ्यांक’ हाइटीवासीको टाउकोमा थोपरियो । तर न भूकम्प पीडित पुन:स्थापना हुनसक्यो, न दीर्घकालीन योजना नै । ..... धरातलीय पृष्ठभूमि ठीक उल्टो हुनपुग्यो । दृश्यमा हाइटी उँभो होइन, उँधो लाग्न पुग्यो । त्यति ठूलो परिणाममा सहायता प्रवाहित भएको त्यो सानो मुलुकको रूप अझ ‘विरूप’ बन्दै थियो । त्यो सहायता हाइटीकै धरातलमा खर्चिएको भए, वास्तवमै काँचुली फेर्ने थियो । ...... १३ अर्ब ३४ करोड अमेरिकी डलर घोषित भएको जनाएको थियो । तर धनी मुलुकहरूबाट जति घोषित भयो, वास्तविक तहमा त्यो रकम पुरै प्रवाहित भएन । .... भूकम्प गएको तीन वर्षपछि यो पंक्तिकार हाइटी पुगेको थियो, सन् २०१३ को मेमा । तीन वर्षसम्म पनि भूकम्प पीडितका शिविरले राजधानी विरूप थियो । सामुद्रिक किनारमा अवस्थित राजधानी पोर्ट अ प्रिन्समा नीला पाल भरिएका थिए । महाभूकम्पबाट क्षतविक्षत राजधानी पोर्ट अ प्रिन्स पुनर्निर्माणमा कुनै सक्रियता प्रदर्शन भएको देखिँंदैन थियो । भूकम्पबाट ५ लाखभन्दा बढी मानिस घरबारविहीन भएका थिए । तिनलाई १ सय ९१ शिविरमा राखिएको थियो । ......... राजधानी हाइटीलाई सुकुम्वासी बस्तीमा परिणत गरेको थियो । एकीकृत बसोबासका नाममा धेरैलाई एकै ठाउँमा राखियो– कच्ची भवन र पालमुनि । एकै ठाउँमा ठूलो बस्ती भएपछि फोहोर बढ्यो र रोग सल्कने नै भए । विदेशी सहायताबाट राजधानीले समेत रूप फेर्न पाएन भने सहायता गाउँ–ठाउँमा पुग्ने कुनै सम्भावना थिएन । ...... त्यही अव्यवस्थित बस्तीमा हैजाको महामारी सल्किन पुग्यो । भूकम्पपछिको हैजाबाट ५ लाख २४ हजार व्यक्ति प्रभावित हुनपुगे । हैजाले मात्रै ७ हजार १८ जनाको ज्यान लियो । त्यो महामारीमा नेपाली सेना दोषी भएको व्यापक प्रचारबाजीसँगै नेपाली लज्जित हुनुपरेको थियो । त्यसले हाइटीवासीको मनमा ‘नेपाली सेना र हैजा पर्यायवाची’ हुन् भन्ने पारियो । त्यतिखेर मिसनमा गएको नेपाली सेनालाई संकटमा पारिएको थियो । हाइटीका राजनीतिक पार्टीहरूले हैजालाई ‘राजनीतीकरण’ गरे । .......

अझै हाइटीवासी ‘पाल–टेन्टयुक्त सुकुम्वासी बस्ती’बाट मुक्त भएका छैनन् । अधिक बाह्य सहायताको ‘गुलियो चास्नी’मा फँसेपछि परम्परागत शैलीका क्षमता प्रयोगको जाँगर पनि हरायो । दैनिक गुजाराका निम्ति संयुक्त राष्ट्र संघीयदेखि विदेशी हेलिकप्टर र ट्रक ‘कुर्ने’ बानी बसायो । जब कतै संयुक्त राष्ट्रसंघीय गाडी रोकिन्थ्यो, तब तिनलाई पाउरोटी र पानीको आशा जगाउँथ्यो ।

......... विदेशी सहायताबाट कहिल्यै मुलुकको रूप फेरिंँदैन, केवल ‘परनिर्भरता’ मात्र बढाउँछ भन्ने प्रत्यक्ष दृश्य देखियो । अर्थात् सहायताले सबभन्दा खतरा मानिसलाई ‘अल्छी’ बनाउँदो रहेछ । हाइटी प्रकृतिबाट ठगिएको मुलुक होइन, प्रकतिले उसलाई राम्रै वरदान दिएको छ । तिनैतिर नीला आकर्षक समुद्र छन् । यो मुलुकसँग प्रशस्त मात्रामा मलिला मैदान छन् । भूमध्य रेखामा पर्ने क्यारेवियन मुलुकमा बाह्रै महिना खेतीपाती गर्न सकिने मौसम प्रकृति उसका निम्ति वरदान हो । वास्तवमै प्राकृतिक रूपमा हाइटी सुन्दर देश हो । ..........एकै टापुको आधा भाग स्वर्ग र आधा नर्कमा रूपान्तरित हुनुको कारण र कारक खोजी भएको पाइँदैन । .... राजधानी पोर्ट अ प्रिन्सदेखि दोस्रो ठूलो सहर केप हाइसनसम्मको ६ घन्टे गाडी यात्राका बखत देखिएको दृश्यले हाइटीवासीलाई ‘साँच्चै अल्छी’ बनाएको अनुभूत गराउँछ । मलिला खेतमा कतै–कतै मात्र केराघारी भेटिन्छन् भने कतै–कतै आँपघारी देखिन्छन् । दुवैका निम्ति धेरै मिहेनत गर्न नपर्ने हुँदामात्रै यो केरा र आँपखेती भएको देखिन्छ । धेरैजसो भूभागहरू बाँझै छन्, बन्जर हुँदैछन् । प्रकृतिले जतिबेला पनि जस्तोसुकै खेती लगाउन मिल्ने अवसर अर्थहीन बनेको छ । तर न त्यहाँ तरकारी लगाइन्छ, न अन्य खेती नै, अर्थात् प्रकृतिले दिएको ‘फाइदा’समेत उठाउन असफल हुनपुगेको छ, हाइटी । .......

मलिला मैदान खाली हुनुको ‘दुर्भाग्य’ दृश्यको कारक हो– विदेशी सहायता ।

..... त्यहाँका धेरैजसो सम्पन्न वर्गमा दोहोरो नागरिकता लिने लहर चलेको थियो । अर्थात् मुलुकको सम्पत्ति नियन्त्रण गर्नेहरू अमेरिका र क्यानाडामा बस्थे । .... ‘धनीहरू मात्र होइन, आधाजसो मन्त्री र सांसदहरू अमेरिकाको मियामी बस्छन् । बिहान उडानबाट हाइटीमा पुग्छन्, फाइल सदर गर्छन् र बेलुका मियामी बासमा फर्कन्छन् । ...... त्यतिबेला जति पैसा खनियो, त्यो पीडितका हातमा कमै पुग्यो । धेरैजसो पैसा शक्तिशालीहरूकै हातमा पुग्यो, घुमिफिरी अमेरिका र क्यानाडा नै फर्कियो । ...... दाताहरूले हाइटीमा मञ्चन गरेको र यतिखेर नेपालमा मञ्चित गर्न चाहेको कतिपय दृश्यहरूमा समानता देखिन्छ । भूकम्पसँगैको मानवीय पृष्ठभूमिमा दाताहरू नेपाल ओर्लिएका छन्, तर उनीहरू हाइटीमा जसरी आफ्नै हात या आफ्ना एजेन्सीमार्फत खर्च गर्न अडान देखाउँदैछन् । ..... अन्तर्राष्ट्रिय वा राष्ट्रिय गैरसरकारी संस्थाबाट सहायता खर्चने नीति बन्यो भने यसले विदेशी अर्धदक्ष परामर्शदाता दक्ष बन्ने र काठमाडौंका घरानियाँ वर्गका छोराछोरीले जागिर पाउनेमा मात्र सीमित हुुन्छ । .... त्यहाँ १३ अर्ब अमेरिकी डलरको प्रतिबद्धता आएको थियो भने हामीकहाँ जम्माजम्मी ५ अर्ब रुपैयाँमात्र हो, अर्थात् ५ करोड अमेरिकी डलरमात्र । ..... अर्थमन्त्री डा. रामशरण महतले ट्विट गरिरहेका छन्, ‘भूकम्प पीडितका संकलित रकममा दुरुपयोग गर्नु अपराध हो, लक्षित समुदायमै रकम पुग्नुपर्छ । पीडितका निम्ति संकलित रकम स्वयंसेवक, प्रशासनिक र सञ्चालन खर्च हुनुहुन्न ।’ ...... अर्थमन्त्री महतको भनाइमा विदेशी सहायतामा दाताहरूबाटै खर्च गरियो भने परामर्शदाता, तिनका कर्मचारीलाई उपलब्ध गराइने पारिश्रमिक र प्रशासनिक खर्चमै सकिएर शून्य हुनेछ । ...... हाइटीमा पीडित पुन:स्थापनामा देखापरेको विकृति र विसंगतिका अनगिन्ती प्रतिवेदनहरू छन्, जसले दाताहरूको बद्नियत स्पष्ट पार्छ । त्यसकारण हाइटी प्रकरणमा विदेशी सहायताका तीतो यथार्थबाट नेपाल बच्नैपर्छ ।

Related articles

• Sonia writes to Nepal PM, expresses shock over loss of lives
• House unanimously passes reconstruction resolution
• No turf war with India on Nepal relief, clarifies China
• China's and India's charity in Nepal has a hidden political agenda
• Nepal needs one million tents for temporary rehabilitation
• Nepal Proves the Bureaucratic Mindset is Universal
• #GoHomeIndianMedia was an international relations disaster waiting to happen