Autumn in Nepal

The time is fastly approaching for my yearly trip to the Valley. The days are getting shorter here in Denmark, the rain stingier, the trees golden, good reasons to do like birds... fly South!
Alas the booking of flights for me and my friend Steen is difficult, and MUCH MORE EXPENSIVE than in the years past! It seems that one of the good things (the ONLY GOOD THING!) of the Maobadi Troubles is creation of vast Nepali Diaspora. And Nepalis, industrious and hard working and polite and reliable and trustworthy have MADE IT, both in the US, Australia and of course here in Europe!!! So of course they have bread to fly home for Dasain... Look at the composition of travellers to KTM in the airline departure lounges: nowadays 60-80% are Nepalis & Tibetans! so it came as no0 surprise that my - and Nepalis' too! - favorite airline THAI is fully booked out from Bangkok...

Justice and Embarrasment: Common Nepali reposes "Prachanda's" SUV

I love it: thief gets what he deserves!
I have, since my late, sage-like, grandmother opened my eyes at the stupid age of 14, been of the unshakable belief that socialism, in all it´s flavours:

• bolševik,
• nazi,
• soft social-democracy,

all of them is THEFT.
Basta!
So it warms my stone-cold heart and slakes my thirsty stuborn sense of justice to see the Head Thief gets his comeuppance:

from Telegraph Nepal: The Telegraph Weekly: VOL 24, NO:8, April:11-17, 2007: "

MISFORTUNE CHASES PRACHANDA

Misfortune is chasing the Communist Party Nepal-Maoist chief Prachanda perhaps. In a surprising event today Prachanda’s vehicle which he had been using for himself for quite a long time, has been forcibly captured by the one who claims himself to be the real owner of the vehicle. The owner of the vehicle claims that his vehicle was looted by the Maoists some months back along with some diamond jewelries and money as well. The owner of the said vehicle consoled himself when responsible organs of the state and those of the UN assured him that his vehicle will be handed over to him after the Maoist join the government. However, that was not forthcoming.
Fortunately, the same vehicle was spotted by the supposed owner today in Bagbazar area in Kathmandu. The owner of the vehicle recognized his property but found the government registration number changed. A minor scuffle occurred between the real and the fake claimants of the vehicle. The real owner somehow or the other took hold of his property as reported by Kantipur Television this evening.

Maoists in Singha Durbar.

Must take break from monitoring the Iran stand-off to shortly comment on the developments in Nepal.
Mark this day, whichever way the things turn, it's truly historic:

Chaitra 18th 2063B.S. / 2007-04-01C.E.

Preliminary portfolios (only 21 out 26 portfolios are known!) look like this:

Nepali Congress (5)

Girija Prasad Koirala Prime Minister and Defense Minister
Ram Chandra Poudel Minister for Peace and Reconstruction
Dr Ram Sharan Mahat Minister for Finance
Krishna Prasad Sitauala Minister for Home Affairs
Mahantha Thakur Minister for Science and Technology

CPN-UML (6)

Sahana Pradhan Minister for Foreign Affairs
Pradip Nepal Minister for Education and Sports
Chhabilal BK Minister for Agriculture and Cooperatives
Ram Chandra Yadav Minister for General Administration
Prithvi Subba Minister for Tourism and Civil Aviation, Ram Chandra Yadav
Mohan Singh Rathaur State Minister for Education and Sports

CPN-M (5)

Krishna Bahadur Mahara Minister for Information and Communication
Dev Gurung Minister for Local Development
Hisila Yami Minister for Physical Planning and Works
Matrika Yadav Minister for Soil Conservation
Khadka Badhadur BK Minister for Women, Children and Social Welfare

NC-D (3)

Narendra Bikram Nemwang Minister for Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs
Ramesh Lekhak State Minister for Labour and Transport Management
Gyanendra Bahadur Karki State Minister for Water Resources

NSP-A (1)

Rajendra Mahato Minister for Commerce, Industry and Supply

ULF (1)

Jagat Bahadur Bogati Minister for Land Reforms and Management

Maoists got less than they bargained for, thanks Shiva!
The analogy I used earlier with Czechoslovakia in February 1948 is not valid here, I wonder if Girija read my posts and my warnings not to give, what the Russians call "siloviki" ministries ("power ministries) to the Maobadis: it was the control of Defence and Home ministries in my old country which gave Klement Gottwald the "tools" to harass, intimidate and ultimately JAIL the politicians of majority democratic parties! And then we "waited" for next free elections 43 years!!!
On the other hand Sitaula [Home] is wing-shot and "owes" Maoists a lot, and his effectiveness in these troubled, turbulent times is questionable.
People desperately want PEACE DIVIDEND, and one which is diametraly at odds with Prachanda's vision: they want LAW and ORDER, freedom fom maobadi extorters & enforcers and assorted thugs which push Nepal toward abyss. It's not YET failed state like Somalia or, closer to home, Pakistan, but the year-long inter-regnum brougth my beloved Nepal closer to that terrible chaos!

Forward to the Past, Comrades!

Proposal of curriculum of Maoist Education for 9-10 year old nepali children:

As if we need more evidence of the inhuman, more: STUPID intentions of MaoBadBoyz! With competences like "How to make and use guns, General introduction to explosives, grenades and booby-traps..." and the like, the children will be "REALLY" well-equiped to live and prosper in the global economy!

Or maybe the Jungali Fréres know a thing or two we mere mortals don´t have a clue about: maybe these competences will be in high demand in the uncertain future! And danish boys & girls will be poorly prepared with the nanny-state emphasis on "conflict resolution" from the age of 3!

Course	Year 4 (9 yrs old)	Year 5 (10 yrs old)
Philosophy (60 credit hours)	• Introduction to philosophy • The two classes: the exploited and the exploiters • Concept of two classes (a) consciousness and dialectical materialism (b) physical and mental labour (c) the known and the unknown	• Introduction to philosophy: identifying the classes of capitalists and workers, and feudal landlords and peasants • Concept of two classes. Physical and mental labour. Material/consciousness. Known/unknown. • Materialistic and idealistic philosophies • Introduction to materialistic philosophy: historical and dialectical materialism
Politics (40 hrs)	• Biography of Prachanda • Beginning of the People’s War • General introduction to human social development: the primitive stage, slave society, feudal society, capitalist society. • The constitution of village level People's Government, its rights and duties	• The life of Mao Tse-Tung • Biography of 4 ‘people’s war’ warriors • The Spartacus Revolt • the organization, rules and regulation, rights and duties of district people's councils
History (30 hrs)	• The history of the Communist movement in Nepal (foundation of Nepal Communist Party, its founders and beginning of the People’s War.) • Biography of Dil Bahadur Ramtel • The Dang attack	• History of Nepal Communist Party (Maoist) (From General Assembly of Unity to beginning of People’s War) • Biography of Mitramani Acharya • The Achham action
Economics (30 hrs)	• Definition of labour and wages • Introduction to types and importance of cooperatives • What is production and consumption? • Exchange and barter of goods	• Introduction to value, distribution, capital • What are the means of labour? • What are the weapons of labour? • Private and social ownership • Introduction to cooperatives • Types of cooperatives and production
Culture (20 hrs)	• The song ‘I will keep my country in my “eyes”’ • Poetry about Maoist martyrs • Children’s stories • General introduction to traditional festivals and people's festivals	• The song ‘Dear Jaljala’ • Biography and poetry by national and local poets • Short stories, science stories and children's stories • Types of culture: feudalism, imperialism, capitalism, Communism and socialism
Military science (20 hrs)	• Exercise and marching • What is roll call? • Information, counting soldiers, reporting about their conditions • Introduction to being a sentry • Introduction to homemade guns • Communication in the battlefield • Introduction to explosives and exchange of information • Introduction to war	• Important tips for sentries • Rules for route finding • Exercises and marching • How to make and use guns • General introduction to explosives, grenades and booby-traps • Student's role in military information and communication • How to guide soldiers. Roll call. • Types of war — justified and unjustified

En stemme fra Harbin (Voice from Harbin)

This a cri-de-couer from a chinese refugee in Denmark. He´s angry and sad that Århus town will be "partnered" with Harbin. He states the obvious, and in accordance with my life-long observation of the communist religion: it´s organized thievery! And he goes further - he presents evidence that the hospitals in the city harvest (unvoluntary, of course!) organs from Falun Gong prisoners. And this is the city we should be PARTNERS with!

Strong words!

En stemme fra Harbin

Af Yang Guang, Vesterbrogade 130 B, 2., København V

Århus borgmester, Nicolai Wammen, mener ikke, der foregår tortur og organhøst i Århus venskabsby Harbin. Han tager fejl, siger Yang Guang.

MIT NAVN er Yang Guang, og jeg er født og opvokset i Harbin i Kina. Nu lever jeg i eksil i Danmark et land, der har taget godt imod mig.

De seneste dage har der været flere artikler i aviserne om min hjemby i Kina og dens venskabsforhold med Århus. Specielt har jeg mærket mig udenrigsministerens og borgmesteren i Århus udtalelser om, at tortur og organhøst ikke foregår i Harbin. De tager fejl.

Jeg har tidligere skrevet til udenrigsministeren og borgmesteren i Århus om Harbin, en by, der styres af Kinas Kommunistiske Parti. Det var med tungt hjerte, jeg læste deres udtalelser i aviserne om Harbin, min fødeby. For mig at se tager danske politikere nu endnu et skridt nærmere det kinesiske kommunistpartis embedsmænd og deres manglende vilje til at skille ret fra vrang og sandhed fra løgn.

Hvordan kan indbyggerne i et frit og demokratisk land ønske at være venner med en klike af banditter og røvere, for hvem korruption og snyd er lige så naturligt som at spise og sove? Venner, der stjæler, myrder, begår indbrud i privates hjem og mænger sig med prostituerede på folkets regning?

Venner med gangstere

Jeg har vanskeligt ved at tro, at borgerne i Århus og Danmark virkelig ønsker at kalde sig venner af de tyranniske gangstere, kommunistpartiet i Kina nu engang er.

Angående organhøst har selv det kommunistiske Kinas sundhedsminister offentligt indrømmet, at organer høstes fra levende fanger. En nær ven af mig har en fremtrædende administrativ stilling i Harbin by. Under Kulturrevolutionen blev vi begge anholdt som anti-revolutionære og tilbragte over 10 år i fængsel. I dag er han leder af en af sundhedsvæsenets afdelinger i Harbin.

Har tjent på organ-høst

Efter at anklagerne om organhøst på Falun Gong-udøvere i Kina blev rapporteret i medierne, kontaktede jeg ham for at forhøre mig om, hvordan forholdene er i Harbin. Han fortalte mig over telefon, at sundhedsvæsenet i Harbin den sidste tid havde tjent rigtig mange penge på organhøst fra Falun Gong-udøvere. Han fortalte, at ved mindst et ledende medicinsk institut er professoraterne, stipendierne og bonuserne betalt af den ulovlige indtægt fra organhøst på levende Falun Gong-udøvere.

Da der allerede eksisterer et bjerg af beviser for tortur og organhøst, kan jeg ikke forstå, hvad mere udenrigsministeren og borgmesteren forlanger. Men hvis de virkelig behøver mere, har jeg et forslag:

Hvis de virkelig har et godt venskab med Harbin i Kina, kunne de så overtale kommuniststyret i Kina til at lade mig besøge min søster og min niece i Harbin, som jeg ikke har set i tyve år? Hvis de kan garantere, at jeg ikke bliver arresteret eller myrdet, så vil jeg komme tilbage med beviser, inden ti dage er gået. Men hvis det kommunistiske Kina ikke ønsker besøg af mig, eller jeg ikke kommer tilbage til Danmark, vil de så revurdere venskabsforholdet til Harbin? Kan jeg ofre mig for jeres samvittighed?

Uskyldige liv

Kinas Kommunistparti har taget livet af mere end 100 millioner uskyldige mennesker, siden det overtog magten i Kina i 1949. Det har aldrig stoppet med at dræbe ikke kun Falun Gong-udøvere, men også utallige kinesiske akademikere, tidligere officerer fra Kuomintang-regeringen og almindelige, gode mennesker er blevet dræbt.

Dette er almenviden. Hvorfor ignoreres beviserne, der stabler sig op som gigantiske bjerge, og hvorfor insisterer man på at have et så tæt forhold til Kinas Kommunistparti? Er årsagerne af en sådan natur, at man ikke kan tale offentligt om det?

Vil kræve retsopgør

Måske var det på tide, at der blev arrangeret et møde, hvor også kinesere blev hørt. Vel at mærke de kinesere, der arbejder for et frit Kina, ikke et totalitært Kina. Uanset hvad er det vigtigt at huske, at når kommunistdiktaturet i Kina falder, vil det kinesiske folk kræve et stort retsopgør ligesom det, vi så efter Nazitysklands fald. De, som har støttet kommunistpartiets ondskab og forbrydelser, vil lede længe efter undskyldninger.

Maoists continue to kidnap children!

Can leopard change his spots? Do Tibetans walk with thermoses? Is Pope catholic?

The hypocrit murderers bid their time to TOTALLY enslave nepalis. The terror continues, and the agreements signed with SPA (Seven-Party-Aliance) are just fig leaf for the tired, dying PM Koirala...

And this is the country Denmark paid billions (kroner, not rupees!) in the past 30-35 years. It went to such benign, human uses as financing education of these maoists - brahmin - leaders. Another crime to our NYBORG Tribunal for traitors from Anker J. to Svein A. to charge with. Not to forget the head idiot, Poul N. I hope I can live to that day and that I witness the crime in court.

What was built and achieved for this money? Besides the good lives of so called DANIDA experts? The only thing Nepal got from these billions are...

the MaoBadBoyz!

Father of missing Maoist recruit demands whereabouts of his ward

Kantipur Report

KATHMANDU, March 1 - Parents of a missing 13-year-old whom the Maoists had drafted in the People's Liberation Army (PLA) have urged the concerned authorities and media to make an effort to publicize her whereabouts.

Father of the missing, Yubaraj Rai of Phedi VDC, Diktel has claimed that the Maoists had disappeared his daughter, Aashakala Rai, a student of Saraswati Higher Secondary School in Diktel to have her recruited in the PLA and urged the media and the concerned authorities to take initiatives for her safe return.

Rai, who is a 7th grader, has been missing since February 26.

After it emerged that their daughter had been taken by the Maoists to be recruited in the PLA, the father had gone to the Maoist party office in the district headquarters in hope of meeting his daughter there, only to be denied from meeting her.

Maoist party secretary Uttar Rai, meanwhile, maintained that the girl had joined the PLA by her own volition.

The Maoists, however, have not revealed details of her whereabouts to anyone.

Where are the guns?

Military expert raises eyebrows at Maoist weapon stats

Kantipur Report

KATHMANDU, Feb 24 - Military expert Dr Indrajit Rai on Saturday said that it was not as easy to believe the stats of the Maoist weapons that have been registered at the UN.

The United Nations Mission to Nepal (UNMIN) yesterday had made public that the UN had registered 30,852 PLA combatants and 3,428 weapons from the cantonments across the country.

Rai said that the number of weapons registered at the UN is far less than the number of Maoist combatants registered and the situation arose because "one man, one weapon" principle was not adopted while registering the PLA fighters.

Stating that the negotiators too failed at some critical points, expert Rai said that he had a slight inkling of this situation when it was decided that registration of those fighters also would be done who did not have weapons.

"There could have been 10-12,000 weapons and I had thought half of those would be registered. Even that figure did not come," said Rai.

---

The missing 10,000 GOOD weapons, not the wrecks in the white containers, are hidden, most probably within walking dinstance of the Valley. The UN, as in Rwanda, Darfur, Congo, Lebanon - pick your favorite failed state - facilitates genocide, rape, theft and bullying. All citizens of these enitities have to fear when UN takes over... Ask the Rwandans, Darfurians... poor Nepal!

Monarchy in Existential Crisis

Rabin Chitrakar laments the decay and chaos of post-monarchy Nepal:
Everyone is playing their own trumpets and expects others to listen to none other but them.

We all have preferences. Some of us want change NOW. Others want it the RIGHT WAY. Yet others wish neither happened.

Whatever the choices, the bloodshed in the past decade has forced our leaders to work for peace. And a peace process is in place. Unfortunately, there are some roadblocks to a sustainable peace.
I am not a die-hard supporter of any party, or the king, for that matter. But I believe in a just society, in an inclusive society. Equality, at least in theory, is such an enchanting idea, but no society is equal. We create hierarchies of all sorts intentionally or unintentionally. Equality, whether it is emanating from a king's wishes or from the Maoists' decree, cannot replace fairness and justice, which is so scarce these days in Nepal. Everyone is playing their own trumpets and expects others to listen to none other but them.

After the Maoist insurgency that killed around 15,000 people, the country was in a great chaos. The parties were unable to solve the problem. The five years term of the Parliament was over. The then Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba could not conduct general election on time. He recommended the king for dissolution of the house and prolongation of the general election for the second time by six months by applying article 127 of the constitution. His government was dissolved by the king on the charge of incompetence. The King made three consecutive governments under Lokendra Bahadur Chand, Surya Bahadur Thapa and again Sher Bahadur Deuba. Some parties, including United Marxist and Leninist (UML) took the appointment of Deuba as the Prime Minister again as a correction of the king’s earlier steps and hence joined the government.

However, Nepali Congress (NC) continued to demand the restoration of the House. Deuba's government again could not hold general election at the given time. On Feb. 1st, 2005, the king dismissed the existing coalition government of Deuba again on the same charge and formed a new cabinet under his own chairmanship asking for three years of time. Political parties did not support his action. All the parties joined hands with NC's unconditional demand. The king held municipal elections as the preparation for the general election. But most of the parties did not take part in the polls. So the king also could not bring relative peace, the unconditional demand of Nepalis. He could not resist the pressure of the parties. He restored the dissolved lower House in April 2006.

The parties took the proclamation as their victory over the king who was the chief of the national army. The lower house was restored from the provision of the constitution. But surprisingly, and immediately, the whole constitution was paralyzed. It has been abolished with the interim constitution declared on January 16, 2007. The proclamation has victimized the proclaimer himself. All the powers of the king have been snatched. He is in a state of abduction. Increasingly, it looks like the constitutional assembly is going to abolish the very institution of monarchy in Nepal.

The parties were successful in forcing the king to restore the house mainly because of the support of the Maoist party.

So what do we have now? We now have a Nepal divided into anti-royalists, liberal royalists and neutrals. The only difference is the former have the freedom to do what they please and the latter have been denied any voice. The peace process is so fragile that the Maoists continue their decree, and they continue to kidnap and abduct and extort people whenever they please. In remote districts people continue to pay taxes to both the Maoists and the government.

America may have declared its war on terror. But in Nepal the Maoists, in alliance with other political parties, have declared their war on Monarchy. All of a sudden, after April 2006, anything monarchical has become anathema in our national discourse. The object of hatred used to be Maoists. Now it is monarchy and monarchical elements. We have merely shifted the gears. We have not learned much from past experiences.

Another existential crisis
In the name of democracy, the parties have recruited and appointed MPs, without elections of any short. On the other hand, royalist parties and their representatives have been boycotted. There is no freedom for pro-monarchical constituencies. In December 2006, a mob disrupted a national convention of one of the pro-palace parties in Pokhara. It did not end there. A group of Maoists attacked the party members who were on their way to the Prime Minister's residence to submit a memorandum against that disruption. The Maoists’ intention has been to abolish monarchy no matter what. Can we, then, expect a free and fair constitutional election under such circumstance?

Talking about fairness, this whole problem started because of a general lack of it. The Maoists' began to demand more inclusiveness, paradoxically, with the start of democracy in 1990. The Maoist insurgency started, to my mind, because of huge corruption, injustice, misuse of power and power riddle in our governments. Before the start of the insurgency, the rebels had submitted a 42-point demand. Subsequent governments ignored their demands, and helped fuel the war. We lost peace.

There is no doubt that peace is terribly needed now. But, as a free-minded person, I see that the peace process does not look genuine. A few years ago, only the king and democratic alliance used to be taken as the two major political forces. Now every Nepali may have realized that it is merely because of the existential crisis of the Maoists that we now have a peace process. Had they been taken as one of the important political forces early on, possibly Nepal, the birthplace of the Buddha, would not have to suffer such a shameful and bloody war. Because of their destructively witty and bold decision, the Maoists have now compelled every one to take them as one of the important political forces.

Now the king has been removed from the list. As once Maoists were minimized, now the monarchy is minimized. Because of personalistic egos of political leaders and the king, our institutions are suffering. We may blame monarchy for backwardness, and monarchy as an institution may be a thing of the past for many countries, but there are still scores of advanced countries with monarchies. Take for example, England or Japan. I think Nepal's monarchy has been blamed unfairly. In fact, except for the Panchyat era, the country's monarchy has been abused by others. The Shah kings have been subjugated over the centuries by courtiers and bhardars. After the unification of the country by Prithvinarayan Shah, the true rulers of the kingdoms were the Thapa and the Pandey mukhtiyars. The rise of the army officer Bir Narsingh Kunwar (Junga Bahadur Rana, a maternal grandson of the famous Bhimsen Thapa) as a premier in 1846, and the 104-year Rana dictatorship left little room for the Shah kings to directly exercise their powers. The Pachayat era is an exception. Now monarchy of Nepal has again become an easy prey because it has become vulnerable.

King Gyanendra should not be turned into a scapegoat more than he deserves. Monarchy and a monarch are not always synonymous. True, an institution is different from an individual. To the fair discerning eyes it seemed that king Gyanandra tried to shift the quarrelsome democracy to a peaceful democracy. Constitutionally, he was merely acting like a president, as they do in other countries during times of crisis. In some states of India, there is presidential rule most of the time. Since the Lower House of Nepal appealed the king to apply article 127 of the constitution, the article of last resort and of conscience, and since the governments were unable to settle the Maoist crisis (instead, they were fighting one another) he tried to resolve the crisis in his own accord, though unsuccessfully. For hundreds of times (if not more) he told the national and international community that he is committed to democracy and constitutional monarchy and he asked only for three years' time. But we know what happened thereafter: The parties played revenge politics and did not listen to him. They boycotted elections (although the Terai region saw 70 percent participation in the municipal polls), and went to the streets. After the movement of April 2006, they went further and suspended monarchy itself.

Monarchy’s future
We all know we are not talking here about a monarchy that committed genocide or mass murders or anything like. The Rayamajhi Commission is not about such things, but does record atrocities against pro-democracy protestors and the killing of a score of demonstrators. Killing of even a single person is certainly unacceptable and it would have been far better had the king stepped down earlier. And, at the same time, we should not forget the much horrible atrocities committed by Maoists and government forces in the past decade. Moreover, even in last month's Terai protest, 31 people were killed by the government side. It may be tempting to find a master evil face in the king to explain the unexplainable in Nepal. But there are several such faces in Nepal and not just one.

We must not forget, particularly during these times of transition, that the institution of monarchy alone does not deserve all the blame for the Nepali ills. The political parties are also responsible to some extent for the mess as they created a background for the king's recent actions. The parties politicized every organization, including the academia. As an example, the executive heads of all the universities were forced to leave their offices following the new political developments in April 2006. All the posts still remain vacant. The government is not in a position to fill out the posts as they have a conflict in the division of the posts. Even for a promotion of staff of any office one should have political links. Cronyism is deeply entrenched in our bureaucracy. Influential party workers and governmental staff members are transferred to 'good offices' that are more lucrative, i.e. where corruption is possible. Corruption has become open.

What I see in the present efforts of the parties for abolishing the monarchy is that they are trying to hide their faults by blaming the king for all their misdeeds. The peace process has totally disregarded monarchy. What is the wisdom, for example, behind the criticisms against Girija Prasad Koirala for his saying that in a democracy everyone, including the King, must be given a space? We say we are for a non-violent change and for an inclusive democracy but we don’t even tolerate an institution that is the very foundation of our nationhood. We have become a society of bigots.

Many people in this country still believe in monarchy, at least a monarchy without state powers. But who is listening to their voices? This institution, for many, is symbolic of national unity. The Hindus of pre-dominantly Hindu country as well as millions of Hindus in neighboring India identify with Nepal’s monarchy.

Now the interim constitution has been declared, and it is a positive step for democracy. But democracy is based on popular aspirations, not on parliamentary declarations by unelected representatives. Do the majority Hindus of Nepal truly want a secular Nepal? Isn’t Hinduism itself a secular religion? Is that declaration based on popular consensus? The root cause of discord and backwardness are not monarchy or Hinduism. Nepal's immediate foes are corruption, injustice, inequality and lawlessness. If these are in order, there will be peace and development, no matter what type of system it is.

A change of system does not ensure a new Nepal. We need a new culture of individual responsibility where justice and fairness are the norms of daily life. And where rule of law reigns supreme. If a farmer goes to market to sell potatoes, for instance, he should be confident that he can sell them and return home safely. Unfortunately, this is not the case even after ten months of peace deal. Today even the police don’t bother to investigate cases of murder and torture. I have myself witnessed such cases in the hands of the police.

What puzzles me is that there is total public shunning of all things monarchical, despite the fact that there are millions of supporters of monarchy as well as other marginalized groups in the country. How long will this “spiral of silence” continue? At what cost? These people don’t get any floor to express their views. Every institution, even the news media, are overtly partisan and highly politicized. They have nothing positive to talk about monarchy. They are not fair and balanced. There is very little reporting on the significance of monarchy in our history.

We can expect little from political parties, whose history is a history of internal feuds. Their fruitless feuds helped the Maoist cause and their nationalistic slogans became louder and louder, as evidenced in the protest of Mahakali hydroelectricity and irrigation treaty with India.

A truly nationalist party, however, works for national unity and integrity, culture and democracy and against corruption, injustice, inequality and lawlessness for a rapid development of the nation, which would provide people the things of immediate need like electricity, water, communication and food for a reasonable price and make people feel secured. That would help bring peace. Peace is possible through inclusive democracy, not from separation or difference. And this is the will of the international community as well. But instead of securing peace and making it sustainable in this way the parties are again creating existential crisis.

There is no talk of national unity and integrity anymore. Peace cannot be secured even if monarchy is wiped out. The crisis in the Terai is an example. Becoming a republic does not ensure peace and development. Look at India, for instance. It is often wreaked by terrorist attacks. But I think there is relative peace under monarchy in many countries, not out of the terror of the kings but because the institution provides a sense of unity to the country. We should learn something from history. After king Norodom Sihanouk left the throne in 1972, the communist dictator Pol Pot killed between 1 to 3 million people within eight years of his rule. True, we are not another Sikkim. But our leaders, including the Maoist head Prachanda, dance to the tune of New Delhi.

A radical democracy may reject monarchy all together. But I believe most Nepalis are moderates. And they want a total renewal of their political system, but not at the cost of traditional assets. True, democracy must be able to retain the good aspects of the traditions. And Nepal’s monarchy certainly has some positive features. It epitomizes several millennia of our past stretching to the times of Balmiki and Vedbyas. Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala may be right to say that some room should be given also to the monarchy. The existential problem of Maoists is being settled. What about monarchy’s existence? King Gyanendra restored the house only to be wiped out?

Previously kings exercised unlimited powers, and considered such powers as divinely given. In the constitutional monarchy, political parties began to act as if they were almighty. In a true democracy, no body is almighty. No matter what, justice should play vital role in this matter.

Therefore, it may be good to rethink on the agenda of doing away with monarchy altogether. And most important, if the king has to show his popularity at all, it should be done through free and fair referendum, not through the first meeting of the pre-planned constituent assembly.

Dejà-vue-all-over-again: Prague 1948/Kathmandu 2007

Prachanda steps up tempo against monarchy

Maoist chairman Prachanda has intensified his call for the declaration of republic in the country right away.

Addressing a mass gathering in the western Terai town of Butwal on Saturday, Prachanda said the republic should be declared both by the parliament as well as from the streets. He said declaration of republic by parliament alone may not suffice and that it should be supported by street agitation.

"The monarchy will not be able to save itself even if foreign forces support it," he said at the mass meeting.

Stating that the Maoists had been the original party who demanded federal republic, Prachanda said the interim government including them must be formed immediately if the election for the Constituent Assembly is to take place on stipulated time. He claimed central leaders of his party would not keep personal properties for next 20 years to concentrate in the development of the country.

At the same meeting, senior Maoist leader Dr. Baburam Bhattarai accused that reactionaries were trying to use some army generals to introduce army rule in the country.

Maoist leaders have been addressing a series of mass meetings in Terai towns since past one week. They have already addressed similar public gatherings in Biratnagar, Janakpur and Birgunj.
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They are everywhere, they even "collect donations" in the Parliament! Their "trade unoins" harrass hoteliers, demand punishment for the King, hijack school-kids, hide weapons.
Never mind 48-52% (accord.to diff. polls) still respect and venerate the King, we, the bolševiks, know better! As Prachanda´s role-model, the greatest mass-murderer of all time, Josef Visarionovič DŽUGAŠVILI a.k.a. STALIN said: "Sometimes you have to chase people into paradise with a stick!"
Just wait... This is the End of the Beginning.
Year -1.

Nepali Maoist Arrested Has Links With Laskar -E-Toiba, Says Indian Army

Nepali Maoist Arrested Has Links With Laskar -E-Toiba, Says Indian Army

Update 2007-02-26

Well, maybe we are victims of Indian Army manipulation:


Indian Army claim on Maoist-Lashkar nexus fictitious: Indian media

By Special Correspondent

KATHMANDU, Feb 23 - The Indian media quoting investigators on Friday ruled out the Indian Army's claim that a Nepali national, Pasang Lama, who was arrested in Kashmir 10 days ago, was a Maoist and that he had a nexus with the terrorist group Lashkar-e-Toiba.

The Indian police had detained Lama on Feb 13 from Baramulla, Kashmir and had claimed that Lama was a member of the CPN-M and that he was trading weapons with the terrorist group Lashkar.

The Indian media today stated that Lama was neither a Maoist nor was he in Kashmir for the alleged arms deal.

"The claim (by the Indian Army) is not true. There was no deal at all. We have asked local police to reassess the case filed against him (Lama)," reported Hindustan Times, one of the top English dailies in India, in its Friday's edition quoting a security personnel involved in the investigation.

The Maoists have already dismissed the Indian Army claim.

Spokesperson of the Indian Army, Lt Col VK Mathur had said on Feb 13 that Lama was arrested by the Indian police along with Md Yunus, a member of the banned terrorist group Lashkar. Mathur had also mentioned that Lama, when nabbed, was making an arms deal equivalent of IRs five hundred thousand.

Lama was immediately sent to judicial detention.

In the investigation report, Lama has been described as a businessman dealing in Pashmina raw materials. The report also added that Lama exports the raw material to businessmen in Kashmir.

Lama was reported to have told the investigators that he was asked to accept an AK-47 rifle instead of his outstanding cash, which Lama rejected.

When he was arrested, the Indian Army however was not in a position to verify his involvement with the Nepali Maoists and the Maoists in Nepal had ruled out the claim laid by the Indian Army. Nonetheless, the Indian Army is still maintaining its claim that Lama is a Maoist and has links with Lashkar.

Mathur said, "Criminals never admit their crimes. We did not find any weapon on him but he has confessed that he came to make an arms deal."

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Or the story is true, what would Nepali have to sell in Kashmir? Pasmina means Kashmere - that's were the word originated! So this is preposterous, just an excuse?

Shifting the goalposts

In The Pioneer > Columnists Sandhya JAIN writes:

The stoning of King Gyanendra's cavalcade on the auspicious occasion of Shivaratri, supposedly by egalitarian Hindu devotees objecting to the custom of royal precedence, suggests growing Maoist fears that the forthcoming election to the Constituent Assembly may not give them a winning mandate. Reports from Nepal indicate that the institution of monarchy continues to exert a mesmeric influence over ordinary people in the Himalayan kingdom, and the prospect of its abolition may be eroding the Maoist grip over popular imagination.

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During a visit to New Delhi last week, Nepali Congress leader Sujata Koirala complained that the Maoists have gone "out of control" and are an obstacle to her country's transition to a full-fledged democracy. She claimed the Maoists have resiled from all promises, have not surrendered all arms or returned lands seized previously. Indeed, she said, the Maoist cadre is still threatening the people, the police and even foreign diplomats. Even former Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba has charged the Maoists of breaking their promise to return seized public property; he fears this could affect the Constituent Assembly election (The Rising Nepal, February 8, 2007).

Although Ms Koirala was too polite to express dissatisfaction with the UN's handling of the arms issue, in the light of India's sad experience with the UN mission on the Indo-Pak border, I can only surmise that a devious international game is afoot to give an unrepresentative bunch of thugs the control of this strategically vital nation. Not surprisingly, Ms Koirala, who is known for her political candour, has asked India to perceive the Nepal situation as a "fire in the neighbourhood", and take appropriate action before it engulfs us in turn. Given the grim situation in States battling Naxalite violence, not to mention ISI presence in both countries, the warning is apt. It remains to be seen if it has been well received; it is not clear which UPA leaders she succeeded in meeting during her stay.

Ms Koirala revealed that Nepal's greatest problem is law and order and that Home Minister KP Sitaula is widely perceived as being 'too friendly' with the Maoists, and hence unable to act decisively against them. She took public opinion by surprise when she defied her father, Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala, and openly demanded Mr Sitaula's resignation on the issue of the Terai violence. It appears that many political parties in Kathmandu are waking up to the reality of the 'coup' that has gifted the Maoists a major share of the interim Parliament, without any proven ability to truly represent the people. With arms surrender inadequate, and suspicions about UN collusion with the Christian leadership of the Maoists rampant (even if unstated), the constituents of the Seven-Party Alliance have found a heaven-sent escape route in the Terai flare-up.

The trouble in Terai broke out unexpectedly on January 19 this year, when the escort of Maoist leader Ram Karki shot at and killed Madhesi Janaadhikar Forum activist Ramesh Kumar Mahato in Lahan district. The situation deteriorated when the Maoists seized the dead body and forced the family of the deceased to immediately cremate the body. The resultant public anger boiled for three weeks, taking at least 38 lives and leaving several injured in police action, before a truce was called.

This brought international spotlight on the Terai's gross under-representation and forced Prachanda to agree to a draft Bill to amend the interim Constitution. Once approved by the interim Parliament, Articles 134 and 154 of the interim Constitution will be amended to provide a federal state structure and new constituencies in the Terai, as also additional seats for proportional representation according to the percentage of population growth. It is thus envisaged that 20 constituencies will be added in Terai and four in the hill regions. An additional 20 seats will be increased for proportional representation.

According to The Kathmandu Post, this means that the 20 southern districts, which comprise 48.4 per cent of the population, will receive 49 per cent seats in the Constituent Assembly. The remaining 51 per cent seats will be divided among the 55 hilly and Himalayan districts, which constitute 51.6 per cent of the population. This appears to be an equitable distribution, and it is to be hoped that the aged and sick Prime Minister will be able to execute the delimitation exercise properly.

Political empowerment of the aggrieved and anti-Maoist Madhesis, however, is unlikely to go down well with Prachanda, who is again busy shifting the goalposts, violating the spirit and substance of the November 21, 2006, accord. Indeed, less than a month after declaring peace, Maoist goons had resorted to large-scale violence and intimidation in Kathmandu on December 18, 2006, to force the Government to cancel the appointment of Ambassadors to 14 countries, including India. Now they are trying to muscle their way into the interim Cabinet without surrendering arms.

Given their unreliable nature, the original seven parties of the interim Government would do well to seize the political initiative, rather than let Prachanda dictate the national agenda. The SPA should dissociate from the plan to abolish the monarchy, and emphasise a truly federal polity. It should support retention of Hindu supremacy in the Himalayan kingdom, with safeguards against fraudulent conversions currently being pushed among border and marginal communities; already a major portion of Nepal's Buddhist community has been converted to Christianity in the past few years. The SPA should also call upon the Nepal Army to ensure free and fair elections in June, as it is virtually certain that the UN will fail to control the murderous People's Liberation Army.

Maoist excesses go unchecked

Elderly person thrashed by PLA men

DANG, Feb 19 - A group of Maoists from People's Liberation Army (PLA) beat up 63-year-old Tom Lal Bhusal of Saudiyar VDC-2, Beruwa on Sunday.
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Maoists continue labor camp

PYUTHAN, Feb 19- Months have passed since Maoist Chairman Prachanda abolished all "peoples' courts" and "peoples' government" run by them. However, over a dozen people continue to be 'detained' at a labor camp.
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Above just a few headlines from Kathmandu Post. As ever, those of us who PREDICTED this kind of behavior, are proven RIGHT.
It really reminds me of situation in 1948, when communist leader in Czechoslovakia, Klement Gottwald pressed old, ailing, tired President, Dr. Eduard Beneš, into appointing him Prime Minister. The rest is history: we waited for another FREE ELECTIONS 41 years!!!

The genuflecting Indian

Well, it´s not only me who thinks about the MaoBadBoyz as murderers, Manvendra Singh even favorably compares Osama bin Loaded to Prachanda - the former killed FAAAR fewer people!

The genuflecting Indian is back at it, grovelling lest the foreigner be displeased. It was a trait observed by a number of 19th century British officials. And it is on display even in the 21st century — supposedly the century India will arrive on the world stage. It certainly can’t if its arrival is preceded by such sycophancy.

We first prostrated ourselves when the Nepali Maoist chief Prachanda visited New Delhi. And the same was repeated for Hu Jintao, the President of China.

Nepal was six years old as a democracy, with multi-party electoral choices, defections, skullduggery and everything else that happens when the vote determines the voice. In those six years the followers of Chairman Mao could not convince the people of Nepal to give them an electoral majority. So what did they do? They began their own long march to death, despair and destruction. This war on the state began in 1996, and has, hopefully, ended in 2006. The death toll is estimated to be about 13000. Prachanda, the same person now feted as a leadership speaker, led all of this devastation.

In his numerous appearances in Delhi, Prachanda’s consistently tried to come across as a saviour statesman. But his task was made easier by the grovelling Indian, who obediently accepted this metamorphosis, sans a squeal. Not a word about the consequences of this destructive decade, in Nepal and in India.

Nepal’s Maoists believe, as do their Indian clones, in the use of violence for furthering political goals. It is an integral part of the Maoist Holy Grail. Now put this operation in a different context. Amongst those in the immediate neighbourhood who believe in the use of violence for furthering political aims is Al-Qaeda. So then, would Osama bin Laden make it to the podiums that Prachanda did? Why not? After all, Osama’s terrorists have killed fewer people than Prachanda’s fanatics. The only difference being that while one claims to be on a mission from god, the other swears it is all for the people.

It is the People’s Republic, of course, that makes Indians grovel even more. True to their understanding of the host’s psychology, the Chinese toyed with us by reiterating their claim over Arunachal Pradesh in the hours before Hu Jintao was to land in India. Many were naturally agitated. But there were some, expectedly, who were ready to genuflect even in the face of this provocation. Some even went further and declared that the Chinese ambassador’s line was not the policy of the People’s Republic!

Through the history of the world, any utterance of the ambassador has been regarded as the policy of his government. The ambassador speaks for his government. If he doesn’t, then he is either recalled by his government, or asked to explain his case by the host country. It is a matter of great shame that in this case neither happened. Beijing didn’t think its ambassador in New Delhi said anything wrong so there was no reason to recall him. And New Delhi didn’t think Beijing’s ambassador said anything wrong enough to be called into the ministry and asked to explain.

To top it all, the Indian government went into overdrive to prevent Parliament from putting together a resolution stating that Arunachal Pradesh is an inalienable part of India. The plea taken was that President Hu was still in the country and nothing should be done to spoil his mood.

I remembered late Gen BC Joshi’s visit to China. It was the first by an Indian army chief. It was while he was still visiting that the hosts decided to test a nuclear device. His mood was of little concern to the Chinese hosts. But the Indian is willing to forsake national statements so as to pleasure the guest.

This trait is the big difference between the world’s last two civilisational states. Over many centuries, China was colonised by India. Intellectually, that is. In the 21st century, Chinese scholars would be the first to acknowledge this, and Indian scholars the first to express their ignorance. Because over time India and China went into decline as foreign rule cemented its grip on both. But while the Chinese have rid themselves of that colonial clasp, Indians are still in its clutches.

Economists in India are having a busy time as charts and graphs show upward trends. But all of it will mean nothing until a basic flaw in the mind is rectified. The opposite of grovelling is not growling, for there are other equally effective methods of keeping the spine straight. The day our leaders realise this, India would stand a better chance of making that great leap forward.