Monthly Archives: June 2006

Maoists and Main Stream Politics of Nepal

Posted on June 16, 2006 by | 53 Comments

Instead of joining the mainstream the Maoists intend to define the mainstream.

By Neil Horning (Updates on Peace Process- inside)

Maoist cadre playing with children

A Maoist guerilla plays with children in a village in Myagdi. Pic by Neil Horning

About a year ago, while trekking in Nepal I took a photo of the distant Annapurna mountains framing a precariously perched, tin-roofed shack, scrawled on the side in bright blue English read, “Political power flows out of the barrel of a gun. -Mao Tse Tung.”

A year later, the graphite is reality.

The recent “April Uprising” has been lauded by the international community as a triumph for democracy and “people power.” The 19 day strike and protest program defied all conventional expectations and forced the increasingly dictatorial king Gyanendra to give up nearly all of his power. Most likely, the rest of it will be striped away as a result of Constituent Assembly elections in the weeks and months to come. Continue reading →

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Koirala for Ceremonial Monarchy: People Will Decide

Posted on June 15, 2006 by | 48 Comments

By Dinesh Wagle
Wagle Street Journal

Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala advocates for Ceremonial Monarchy
Sketch by Dewen via the Kathmandu Post (Inside: Ameet Dhakal of the Post: The hometown syndrome)

“Some leaders are suggesting us to eat poison and jump from steep hill. We don’t want to see army giving guard of honor to the king by disrespecting martyrs.”

Krishna Pahadi, human rights activist

A few days ago, while returning home late night from office, one of my colleagues said: “King Gyanendra must be worshipping an idol of Girija Prasad Koirala these days.”

“Why?” someone in the vehicle asked.

“Koirala is the one who miraculously saved king Gyanendra’s job and, mark my words, he will soon start advocating the role of king in future Nepal.” Continue reading →

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United Nations Role in Nepal Peace Process

Posted on June 13, 2006 by | 23 Comments

By Dinesh Wagle
Wagle Street Journal

“One doesn’t reach an agreement talking publicly or via media but in private and listening to each other.”

“First we will provide advice on how do you write a ceasefire agreement.”

Matthew Kahane the United Nations Resident Representative and Humanitarian Coordinator in Nepal

At a time when the country is uneasily moving towards the peace process by trying to hold second phase of talks, Matthew Kahane, the United Nations Resident Representative and Humanitarian Coordinator in Nepal, has said that the current ceasefire agreement (code of conduct) between the Nepal government and the Maoist party is too general and needs to include many specific provisions. “It doesn’t talk about the number of armies on both sides, who are commanding the armies, where are the soldiers kept, is their uniform identifiable or not, who are actually in the armies etc. These issues haven’t been mentioned.” Continue reading →

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Posted in Peace Process 2

Palpasa Cafe and Nepali Book Reading Habit

Posted on June 11, 2006 by | 58 Comments

Images and ‘soundbites’ from the book signing program that we saw rarely in Nepali book world. Star of the moment was Narayan Wagle, awardwinning writer of debut novel Palpasa Cafe.

By Dinesh Wagle

As he reached the stall of Educational Book House in the Book Fair at Bhrikutimandap immediately after landing at Kathmandu airport from a week long trip to Finland and Russia, journalist/writer Narayan Wagle was surrounded by a group of fans. Everyone in the crowd had a copy of Wagle’s award winning debut novel Palpasa Café and they wanted the writer to sign the book. They also wanted to share their views of the book with the fiction writer.

The success of Palpasa Cafe the noble by Narayan Wagle signals a change in Nepali book reading habit

Many of the readers present in the Palpasa Café signing ceremony were young and girls. For many of them, Palpasa Café was the first Nepali book (other than those included in school and university course) that they had read. “Oh…there are so many English books that I have read,” Mona Sherpa, who received Narayan Wagle’s autograph in her copy of Palpasa Café, said. “It’s impossible to name all of them now. But this is the first Nepali book I have read and I like it very much.” Continue reading →

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Forgotten Fighters of April Revolution

Posted on June 11, 2006 by | 14 Comments

Meeting half a dozen Janaandolan (People’s Movement) victims who are trying to cope with post-treatment life, our blogger probes beneath their dreams, desires, anxieties and sorrows and concludes that they have become forgotten heroes.

By Deepak Adhikari

When one enters into the building of people movement victims’ residence managed by Janaandolan Martyrs and Victims Welfare Forum in Gongabu, one doesn’t fail to notice the helpless and hapless victims of erstwhile Royal regime and now the SPA government. A former boarding school has been transformed into a shelter for the victims in Gongabu where during the April Uprising massive baton charging and firing resulted in huge numbers of injured ones.

Victims-Gongabu.jpg
Ugly Aftermath: Victims of Janaandolan 2 discuss on their protest programs at Gongabu Shelter in July 25. All pics by Shaligram Tiwari Continue reading →

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World Cup Football: May The Best Win (Angola Included)

Posted on June 9, 2006 by | 11 Comments

Watching FIFA World Cup: A Nepali Experience (Personalized)
By Dinesh Wagle

I call that the World Cup Fever. The temperature was well above 104 degrees in fahrenheit and I was in terribly bad condition. I couldn’t sleep for that night and my friends in the hostel of Dorjee High School, Boudha, were in the middle of something very important: the final match between [West] Germany and Argentina. That was in 1990 and the two countries representing two continents were fighting for the FIFA World Cup in the form of a ball: Football. That was my first world cup (in TV). I came from my room, friends brought me, to the TV room of the hostel with a pillow and lied on the carpet and fixed my eyes on the box. The game was fantastic, I felt like the real fever was decreasing as the Cup fever was increasing within me. Continue reading →

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Analyzing Current Scenario in Nepal

Posted on June 9, 2006 by | 11 Comments

By Chattra Bahadur

The role of intellectual class, which had played prominent role in providing impetus to the pro-democracy movement, has not been commendable after reinstatement of the Parliament. Rather than urging and allowing the government (and the reinstated Parliament) focus on the immediate task of initiating the stalled peace-process, they are pushing forward agendas which, at the best, may have weak link with the peace-process itself.

Some of the experts, while analyzing the present situation of widespread confusion with frequent noxious bouts of lawlessness in the capital city, asserted such instances being ‘normal’ during transitional phases. They are also quick to cite such instances during transition period in many countries all over the world. On the other hand, various leaders of different political hue, ministers in the government and other distinguished members of the civic society are often heard playing the blame-game or forewarning of some imaginary conspiracy by the disgraced members of the previous regime (without producing any evidence to support their hypotheses) and dire consequences of such actions. They would advise/request all to come forward to safeguard the ‘achievements’ of the Jana-Andolan 2062/63. At the same time, the Maoist leadership has maintained both high decibel and visibility. The Nepalese media, of course, is hyper-active in helping all the Nepalese realize their ‘right to know’ by reporting all these events. Continue reading →

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Nepal India Joint Statement. Achievement? Wait and See…

Posted on June 9, 2006 by | 5 Comments

Joint Press Statement, Official Visit of Rt. Hon’ble Girija Prasad Koirala, Prime Minister of Nepal, to India from 6-9 June 2006 issued on 9 June, 2006. Is this good for Nepal? Lets wait and see.

The Rt. Hon’ble Girija Prasad Koirala, Prime Minister of Nepal, paid an official visit to India from 6-9 June 2006 at the invitation of His Excellency Dr. Manmohan Singh, Prime Minister of India. The Prime Minister of Nepal was accompanied by Hon’ble Mr. Gopal Man Shrestha, Minister for Physical Planning & Works, Hon’ble Mr. Mahantha Thakur, Minister for Agriculture and Cooperatives, Hon’ble Dr. Ram Saran Mahat, Minister for Finance, Hon’ble Mr. Rajendra Prasad Pande, Minister for Local Development, Hon’ble Ms. Urmila Aryal, Minister of State for Women, Children and Social Welfare and Adviser to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs, Dr. Suresh Chandra Chalise. The delegation also included senior officials of the Government of Nepal, a business delegation and a delegation of media representatives.

2. During his visit, the Prime Minister of Nepal visited Rajghat and paid homage to the memory of Mahatma Gandhi. The Prime Minister called on His Excellency the President of India, Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam and on His Excellency the Vice President of India, Shri Bhairon Singh Shekhawat, who hosted a dinner in his honour. The Prime Minister of Nepal had a meeting with the Prime Minister of India, which was followed by delegation-level talks, led by the two Prime Ministers, on issues of mutual interest and concern. The Prime Minister of India hosted a dinner in honour of the Prime Minister of Nepal. Minister of Defence Shri Pranab Mukherjee, Minister of Home Shri Shivraj Patil, and the leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Shri L.K. Advani called on the Prime Minister of Nepal. The Prime Minister of Nepal had a meeting with the Chairperson of United Progressive Alliance (UPA) and the President of Indian National Congress, Smt. Sonia Gandhi as well as former Prime Minister Shri Chandra Shekhar. Continue reading →

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Posted in Story of the Day 2

Prachanda, Nepal's Rebel Leader, Talks Brilliance

Posted on June 8, 2006 by | 101 Comments

Prachanda interview in eKantipur (if this link doesn’t work, please visit the ekantipur page).

In his first television interview to a Nepali channel, Prachanda, the Supreme leader of Nepal Communist Party (Maoist) talks sense and raises so many convincing issues that viewers (as far as a few dozen people I talked to while watching the interview being aired now on Kantipur TV taken by Sohan Shrestha). Yes, I am impressed. I think he is raising right issues. I believe that they really want peace and that they should be included in the interim government immediately. “We are ready to join the interim government and solve the problem peacefully,” Prachanda said. “But the Seven Party Alliance is trying give the impression that they alone did the historical April revolution. That revolution was done jointly by SPA, Maoists and the civil society.”

Prachanda said that first Maoists should be incorporated in the interim government and the country should talk about developments and bringing in help packages from abroad. “We are not against bringing in aid packages from India, we know we need the aid,” he said. “But that should be done by the government with our participation. I told [Prime Minister] Girija [Prasad] Koirala that this government shouldn’t decide on long term aid packages without first including us in the government. After we are included in the government, we can go to India and ask for what we need.”

Prachanda further said, “First political settlement then development. For that the speed of talks need to be intensified.”

Prachanda seems to be genuinely interested in solving the problem by first ensuring the Maoist participation in the decision making process. He also talked about the necessity of the election of constituent assembly, the international meditation (“no problem with any credible international agency that India and China feel comfortable with”) and arms management. (“We will not come out of certain area of Nepal as the process of election starts.”)

The SPA should create no problem whatsoever if Maoists really want to join the government and go for political settlement (election of constituent assembly). If Maoists are too eager to join the government, let them join. Why create problem and endanger the peace process. Prachanda said that he didn’t come to the last week’s Kathmandu gathering of the Maoist party as his party wasn’t too sure about the SPA’s intention of settling the political problem first.

“It is a political blunder that SPA is delaying our inclusion in the government by declaring things from Parliament. This is nothing more than trying to take fake credit of the historical movement. These leaders and parties were in the government in the 90s as well. Why didn’t they do these kinds of decisions in the parliament then? Now they are trying to bypass the Maoists from the political process and this is very dangerous for the peaceful settlement. Maoists need to be the part of the political process. Everything should be done with our participation.”- Prachanda

(blog posted by Wagle)

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Prachanda, Nepal’s Rebel Leader, Talks Brilliance

Posted on June 8, 2006 by | 101 Comments

Prachanda interview in eKantipur (if this link doesn’t work, please visit the ekantipur page).

In his first television interview to a Nepali channel, Prachanda, the Supreme leader of Nepal Communist Party (Maoist) talks sense and raises so many convincing issues that viewers (as far as a few dozen people I talked to while watching the interview being aired now on Kantipur TV taken by Sohan Shrestha). Yes, I am impressed. I think he is raising right issues. I believe that they really want peace and that they should be included in the interim government immediately. “We are ready to join the interim government and solve the problem peacefully,” Prachanda said. “But the Seven Party Alliance is trying give the impression that they alone did the historical April revolution. That revolution was done jointly by SPA, Maoists and the civil society.”

Prachanda said that first Maoists should be incorporated in the interim government and the country should talk about developments and bringing in help packages from abroad. “We are not against bringing in aid packages from India, we know we need the aid,” he said. “But that should be done by the government with our participation. I told [Prime Minister] Girija [Prasad] Koirala that this government shouldn’t decide on long term aid packages without first including us in the government. After we are included in the government, we can go to India and ask for what we need.”

Prachanda further said, “First political settlement then development. For that the speed of talks need to be intensified.”

Prachanda seems to be genuinely interested in solving the problem by first ensuring the Maoist participation in the decision making process. He also talked about the necessity of the election of constituent assembly, the international meditation (“no problem with any credible international agency that India and China feel comfortable with”) and arms management. (“We will not come out of certain area of Nepal as the process of election starts.”)

The SPA should create no problem whatsoever if Maoists really want to join the government and go for political settlement (election of constituent assembly). If Maoists are too eager to join the government, let them join. Why create problem and endanger the peace process. Prachanda said that he didn’t come to the last week’s Kathmandu gathering of the Maoist party as his party wasn’t too sure about the SPA’s intention of settling the political problem first.

“It is a political blunder that SPA is delaying our inclusion in the government by declaring things from Parliament. This is nothing more than trying to take fake credit of the historical movement. These leaders and parties were in the government in the 90s as well. Why didn’t they do these kinds of decisions in the parliament then? Now they are trying to bypass the Maoists from the political process and this is very dangerous for the peaceful settlement. Maoists need to be the part of the political process. Everything should be done with our participation.”- Prachanda

(blog posted by Wagle)

→ 101 Comments

Posted in Story of the Day