The Nepali Maoist commies are coming to learn from the Nom Benh commies

Untimely pilgrimage to Phnom Penh

Monday, October 24, 2011
KUL CHANDRA GAUTAM
Republica (Katmandu, Nepal)

A group of senior Nepali Communist leaders from UCPN (Maoist) and NC-UML are going to Phnom Penh next week, to learn about Cambodia’s peace process. Going on donor-funded junkets to virtually all post-conflict countries to learn from their peace process has been a thriving cottage industry in Nepal over the past decade. From South Africa to Northern Ireland, El Salvador to East Timor, Mozambique to Sri Lanka, Peru to the Philippines, there is hardly any post-conflict country that Nepali political, military and civil society leaders have not visited. Nor have they been deprived of opportunities to attend meetings on issues of peace-making in Geneva and Oslo, New York and New Delhi, and myriad other places.

Cambodia, Nepal Seek Mutual Aid in UN Bids

Kong Sothanarith, VOA Khmer
Phnom Penh Monday, 06 December 2010

“We wanted to share experiences with other countries in the world in terms of ending war, national reconciliation and peace-building.”

Cambodia and Nepal are each seeking support from one another in their respective bids with the UN General Assembly, top officials said Monday.

Cambodia has had a request with the General Assembly for non-permanent membership since 2005, with the international body expected to decide on it in the 67th General Assembly in New York in 2012.

Nepal, meanwhile, is seeking its own position for the presidency of the General Assembly, in competition with Qatar, in the 2011 session.

Nepali Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal, who was among regional leaders in Phnom Penh last week, told reporters Friday that both Cambodia and Nepal has requested help from each other.

Cambodia has slowly begun participating in the UN system, sending “blue helmet” peacekeepers, mostly deminers, to Sudan, Chad, the Central African Republic and Lebanon over the past few years. Cambodia has been a full member of the UN since 1955.

“We wanted to share experiences with other countries in the world in terms of ending war, national reconciliation and peace-building,” Koy Kuong, a spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said.

What derails democracy? [-The Nepal experience]

Thursday, September 09, 2010
PRANAV BHATTARAI
Republica
Opinion

What makes democracy functional? And what causes its downfall? Why has the world’s supposedly best system failed in many countries? Different studies worldwide have tried to explore the answers to these questions. Countries emerging out of ‘system transition’ have fallen to autocracy or some sort of despotism.

There are ample but painful lessons from other failed states. Freedom House, a US-based International Non-Governmental Organization, in its 2009 report noted declines of electoral democracies to 116, the lowest number since 1995. As Nepal is also in the most difficult transition in history, we must take caution that Nepal doesn’t rollback to any form of undemocratic regime because of our inability to institutionalize strong democratic institutions during transition to federalism.

Nepal is now emerging out from the ashes of the past conflict, and has miles to go before it projects itself as a stable, transparent and prosperous federal democracy in the world arena. Of the many challenges, pervasive corruption, bad governance, deteriorating rule of law and weak state institutions are impediments to Nepal’s successful transition to federal republic. A series of failed prime ministerial elections, deteriorating rule of law, fragile security, two-digit inflation, slumped economy, growing unemployment, rampant corruption, widening poverty, moribund development, rising trade deficit, unregulated market, politicized bureaucracy, poor service delivery, derelict public institutions and fractious politics are enough to choke up Nepal’s democratization process.

Democracy has not been able to deliver development and good governance as expected. Nepal is facing a Herculean challenge to promote good governance and control corruption to restore decreasing people’s trust in democratic system because of our bigoted political parties. We can fight this challenge only when democratic institutions are strengthened and made vibrant in prosecuting corruption in all forms. Everyone is equal under the law in democracy. But, this noble principle, however, does not apply in Nepal when corruption or organized crime suspects are political party cadres, businessmen, high-profile bureaucrats or prominent politicians.

ALARMING INDICATORS

The Transparency International’s Corruption Perception Index-2009 ranks Nepal in the 143rd position. The country is the second-most corrupt in South Asia. Similarly, Global Integrity Report-2009 has rated Nepal’s integrity as “weak”. The World Bank’s Worldwide Governance Indictors for 2008 ranked Nepal as a country with a serious governance crisis. In yet another striking revelation, the Oxford University’s research for United Nations Development Program shows around 65 percent Nepali people live on less than $2 a day. Likewise, the Failed State Index of the International Peace Fund puts Nepal in the 26th position. It argues that political instability, bad governance, weak economy, fragile security and deteriorating rule of law are potential indicators of Nepal’s failed state status. These independent projections foresee a frightening situation for this young but besieged republic.

Nepal is indeed a fragile, though literally not a “failed state” yet. Fragile state encounters different challenges to address corruption than in normal development contexts. Weak state capacity hinders development and good governance, which is a pre-requisite to institutionalization of the democratic system. The experiences from countries such as Thailand, Pakistan, Bosnia, Nicaragua, Mozambique and beyond shows that neglecting corruption and bad governance from the outset undermines democracy and people’s trust toward it. As democracy thrives in strong institutions and policy settings, Nepal needs to grow strong and robust institutions for sustaining democracy.

However, a high probability of Nepal becoming a failed state cannot be ruled out if deteriorating rule of law, corruption and bad governance continue. Systemic failure to effectively control corruption and provide good governance to 28 million people may cause the downfall of our democratic system ultimately. The successful examples of democratic leadership worldwide have evidenced that long-term economic growth breeds stronger democratic institutions and make them less vulnerable to setbacks and conflict. Therefore, the focus of political leadership in new Nepal should be to create political stability and good governance for at least a decade to come to materialize the long-sought economic transformation.

A STRONG FLIPSIDE

The middle-class population has been a major strength behind all revolutions around the world. The middle-class people that helped oust autocrats from power once have now resorted back to undemocratic practices or means to shake the foundations of young democracies because of their failure to meet their expectations of a better life, employment opportunities, social security, good governance and effective rule of law.

Political parties in countries such as Nepal see democracy just as a ‘legitimate recourse’ to grab power. This narrow interpretation of democracy in countries from Thailand to Pakistan to the Philippines to Cambodia to Russia to Venezuela not only distorted the true meaning of the word but also alienated the general populace who became disgusted with these so-called democrats who seemed no more interested to the common cause for good governance, security, development, effective services and strong rule of law. Growing disenchantment of the middle-class people with newly-established democracies is due to incapacity of the early leaders of the young democracies to recognize that free societies require strong institutions for democratic consolidation.

The experiences from countries such as Thailand, Pakistan, Bosnia, Nicaragua, Mozambique and beyond shows that neglecting corruption and bad governance from the outset undermines democracy and people’s trust toward it.

In many countries where democracy has been recently rolled back, the middle class that once promoted political freedom has resorted to extralegal, undemocratic tactics—supposedly to save democracy itself. Many called for a military intervention or a kind of benevolent despotism to restore the rule of law and fight corruption. When former King, Gyanendra Shah, took executive powers on himself, the urban middle-class population welcomed the move expecting that he would put things on track. The hopes soon turned into frustration against him that caused his unopposed dethronement.

Disappointed with the elected autocrats and frustrated with the graft of young democracies, many middle-class activists in developing countries are now even longing for the old days of authoritarian rule. Coups in Mauritania and Niger in Africa were welcomed by the urban middle class, while data from the Asian Barometer surveys shows that many respondents have become disappointed with their democratic systems.

The middle-class people who ran amok in streets in hundreds of thousands during Janaandolan II are now frustrated with the political parties, which have miserably failed to fix things, further the peace process and give momentum to the deadlocked constitution-writing task. When trust in governance is questioned and public confidence in such institutions is hollow, public anger flourishes at the cost of democratic system itself. Political parties are losing their credibility, and gradual decay of their popular trust is detrimental to our democratic transition as well. The Asian Development Bank’s latest report has quantified Nepal’s middle-class population to be around 23 percent or 6.1 million. As this group is easily hit hard by any kind of instability, the flipside of this growing middle-class population is that it may fight against democracy for its failure to ensure them a better future.

In two decades of fragile democracy in Nepal, many institutions created since 1990s have been destroyed. We have destabilized social harmony, ruined bureaucracy, police, judiciary, local bodies and many other key institutions. It would take decades, if not years, for a committed leadership to rebuild these institutions. People pinned high hopes for good governance, corruption control, economic development, better life, strong rule of law, social security after the fall of monarchy but we have been witnessing the turmoil and political infighting only for partisan causes. The history of other young democracies has shown that democratic success in early years can be very fragile due to failure to sustain difficult democratization process.

Things as they unfold now don’t augur well for Nepal. People’s hopes for better governance have been ditched by none other than the political parties who promised prosperity for new Nepal. Nepal is now facing extraordinary political circumstances which need deft handling. The transition Nepal is making from a ‘feudal past to a federal future’ is being marred by a dangerous collusion of conflicting political ideologies, parties’ super-egos and geo-political interests. This is likely to shake the very foundations of our democratization process and may put the spanners in our smooth transition to a federal republic. When an autocracy fails, a despot is solely responsible for the downfall while when a democracy fails, all its actors—political parties, media, civil society, bureaucracy, private sector, citizenry, among others—are equally blamed for the failure. Can we afford to take the blame?

pbhattarai2001@gmail.com

Nepalese "peacefully" got rid of ex-king Gyanendra

Final farewell ... the deposed King and former Queen Komal leave their palace in Kathmandu. (Photo: AP)

Ex-Nepali King Leaves Palace, Begins Life As A 'Commoner'

June 12, 2008
Komfie Manalo
AHN News Writer

Kathmandu, Nepal (AHN) - Nepal's former king Gyanendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev, and the last monarch of the Shah dynasty, which reigned for almost 240 years, is now a commoner and will be living "amongst his people," after vacating the royal palace Wednesday night.

A statement issued Nepal's Peace and Construction Minister Ram Chandra Poudel said,"The former king has become an ordinary citizen now. He will get the same status and benefits from the government the other citizen are getting."

Early in the day, Gyanendra met the members of the press for the last time at Narayanhiti palace. The former king was stripped of his power as ruler of the Himalayan nation after the Constituent Assembly declared the nation the newest democracy on May 28 and abolished the monarchy.

The government gave Gyanendra 15 days to leave the former royal palace and offered him the Najarjun palace as his new residence. The Narayanhiti palace will be turned into a museum by the new government.

The former king's new home consists of 10 buildings including the ex-royals' residence, three guest houses, one office secretariat and one staff quarters.

Gyanendra left the palace together with his wife, former queen Komal.

Politiktoons No. 18: "Adieu, the Monarchy of Nepal"

Cartoon by Sacrava (on the web at http://politiktoons.blogspot.com
and also at http://sacrava.blogspot.com)

Nepal: Monarchy abolished while Maoists are committed to Capitalism

Nepalese celebrate at a victory rally on the streets in Katmandu, Nepal, Wednesday, May, 28, 2008. Nepal's lawmakers abolished the monarchy and declared the country a republic Wednesday, ending 239 years of royal rule in the Himalayan nation and the world's last Hindu kingdom. In the first meeting of the newly elected assembly, led by former communist rebels, 560 lawmakers voted for the resolution with just four against. The king was given 15 days to leave his palace in central Katmandu. (AP Photo/Binod Joshi)

Nepal assembly abolishes monarchy

By BINAJ GURUBACHARYA

KATMANDU, Nepal (AP) — The main palace in Nepal's capital lowered the flag of the country's royal family Thursday, a day after lawmakers, led by former communist insurgents, abolished the monarchy that had reigned over the Himalayan land for 239 years.

Palace staff took down the small red standard with a flag-waving lion and replaced it with Nepal's national flag, a red banner of two triangles adorned with a sun and moon.

The changing of the flag was "a decision by the government to show that Nepal is now a republic," said a palace official who spoke on condition of anonymity because of palace rules.

An overwhelming majority of the assembly declared Nepal a republic Wednesday, sparking celebrations across the country. Thousands marched, danced and sang in the streets of Katmandu, setting off firecrackers, waving hammer-and-sickle flags and denouncing King Gyanendra as a thief.

By Thursday, the celebrations had largely tapered off with Nepalis relaxing at the start of the three-day national holiday declared to mark the country's rebirth as a republic. There were some scattered gatherings across Katmandu, and a few hundred people gathered outside the pink concrete palace, chanting "Gyanendra is a thief, leave the country!"

There was no immediate reaction to the abolition of the throne from the dour 61-year-old former monarch, who remained silent in recent months as it became apparent that his days as king were numbered.

Gyanendra now has 15 days to quit the 1970s-era palace and move to his large private residence in the city — or face the possibility of being removed by force.

Gyanendra assumed the throne after his brother, the late King Birendra, and much of the royal family was slain at a palace gathering allegedly by the crown prince, who then killed himself.

The killings helped pierce the mystique surrounding a line of kings who had once been revered as reincarnations of the Hindu god Vishnu, and Gyanendra was dogged by rumors that he was somehow involved in the massacre.

His popularity only further plummeted after he seized power from a civilian government in 2005, saying he needed total authority to crush the Maoists.

Instead, he found himself beset by an intensifying insurgency and a faltering economy.

A year later, weeks of massive protests forced Gyanendra to restore democracy, after which the Maoists came out of the bush and began peace talks.

An interim government, meanwhile, slowly stripped away the trappings of a kingdom. Gyanendra lost command of the army, his portrait was replaced by Mount Everest on the currency and references to the king dropped from the national anthem.

Then came April's vote for the assembly in which the fiercely republican Maoists won the most seats, all but sealing the fate of the dynasty, which dates to 1769 when a regional ruler conquered Katmandu and united Nepal.

But now that the monarchy is finished no one is certain what comes next.

While the Maoists say they are committed capitalists and have no intention of nationalizing industries or setting up collective farms, they have promised to bring sweeping change to this largely impoverished country.

But they are struggling to form a government. Wednesday's opening assembly session was delayed for hours while they wrangled with other political parties over who should be president and what powers he should have. At the end of the day, they still had no deal.

It may also be difficult to fashion lasting peace in Nepal, where supporters of every major political party — the Maoists foremost among them — have been linked to killings since the start of the peace process.

Nepal agrees to abolish monarchy

Dec 24, 2007
The Press Association

Nepal's government has agreed to abolish the monarchy in a deal to persuade former insurgents to join the government.

The agreement signals an end to a political crisis that postponed crucial elections.

No date has been set for the ex-rebels - a communist faction usually referred to as the Maoists - to rejoin the government.

They quit in September, demanding the immediate abolition of the royal family and changes to the election system.

An agreement for them to rejoin was signed yesterday, however, by leaders of the seven main political parties - including the Maoists - said Arjun Narsingh of the Nepali Congress, the Himalayan country's largest party.

The 23-point pact said the leaders also agreed that once a Constituent Assembly is elected by mid-April, its first meeting would declare Nepal a republic, ending its centuries-old monarchy. The change had been widely expected for months.

The Constituent Assembly will rewrite Nepal's constitution and hammer out the details of a new political structure for the country.

The parties agreed that voters will directly elect 240 members of the assembly, while 335 other candidates will get seats under a proportional representation system, with parties receiving seats in proportion to the number of votes they win.

When the Maoists quit the government three months ago, other parties in the coalition government refused to abolish the monarchy immediately, saying the assembly should be allowed to decide on the issue - as had been agreed in a peace agreement signed with the then-rebels last year.

The Maoists began their armed insurgency in 1996. It left at least 13,000 people dead in 10 years of fighting between the communist guerrillas and government troops.