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| 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.
