Note no.385	26.05.2007
NEPAL: Law & Order Should be Restored first before CA Elections are thought of- Update No. 127: By Dr. S.Chandrasekharan. The latest incident of YCL cadres stoning the UN vehicle carrying the American Ambassador at Damak in eastern Nepal on 25th May is an indication as to how fragile the law and order situation is in Nepal and how the YCL cadres of the Maoists have become a law into themselves and how helpless the ruling government has become in controlling them. It is not only the YCL cadres but the cadres of all the sister organisations of the Maoists are behaving as if they are already in power in Nepal. One can understand the dilemma faced by the Prime Minister G.P.Koirala and his Home Minister K.P.Sitaula. All the parties including some of the members of Nepali Congress are pressing Prime Minister G.P.Koirala to declare a definite date for conducting the Constitutional Assembly Elections. At the same time none of them is helping the government to maintain law and order which continues to deteriorate and unless this is arrested there is no way the elections can be held under a free and fair atmosphere. The Maoists are mainly to blame and it was expected that once they entered the government they would mellow down and sort out their differences internally within the eight party government. Instead they are resorting to intimidatory tactics to achieve their objectives and are also seen using their sister organisations particularly the YCL ( Communist Youth League) to create disturbances and continue to keep the country in an unsettled condition. The Home Minister, K.P.Situala who has been too soft on the activities of the Maoist cadres, finally gathered courage and on 22nd May called upon the Maoist leadership to control the unruly activities of the YCL. He said that their activities are creating a serious law and order problem in the State. There are three outfits that need to be controlled and controlled in a firm manner and unless this is done, no election can be held in the near future. The main culprit is the YCL followed closely by the two breakaway factions of the Maoists, JTMM of Jwala Singh and Raj Krishna Goit. ( JTMM- J and JTMM-G). All the three are a menace to the society. Consider the following incidents: On the night of 7th May, YCL activists attacked a police post in Rasuwa and chased away the security forces from the post to rescue their cadre Kumar Tamang who had been arrested earlier. On 9th May, 40 activists of different sister organsiations of the Maoists and 10 Policemen were injured in a clash that occurred when the Maoists torched the District Land Revenue Office and also pelted stones at the off ice of Nepal Electricity Authority in Dang. On 15th May, ANWA( All Nepal Womens Association affiliated to the Maoists) vandalised the DAO ( District Agriculture Office) of Kanchanpur. They damaged the vehicle parked in the office, broke the window panes, damaged the computers, telephones and other office equipment. Seven Women were injured when the Police tried to stop them from entering. Twenty eight Persons were injured as YCL, Madhesi Mukthi Morcha and Tharuwan Mukthi Morcha activists stormed the Land Reforms Office at Kanchanpur. 3 PCs and 5 of APF were also injured. On 16th May, the student wing of the Maoists ( ANNISU-R) vandalised the statues of the Kings across the country at six places as a part of their programme to root out feudalism in the country. All private and government schools remained closed from 18th on the call of the Maoist affiliated teachers and students union. About 7 million students are affected by the closure. The government formed a three-member committee to talk to the unions but the latter refused to attend unless the dialogue team is chaired by none other than the Education Minister! A valley bandh is being organised by the Maoist affiliated unions to protest against the Police intervention on 25th on the strikers. On the 19th, the YCL cadres at Bardiya tarred the face of one Narayan Bikram Rana and took him round the village at Dhodan for an hour and a half. The crime of Rana? He was a landlord owning 29 bighas of land and exploiting the people! Another ex civil Policeman was beaten up and left behind with his hands and legs tied up! And Chairman Prachanda in his press conference bemoans that only negative things of the YCL are being publicised! The public has a right to know how the YCL is authorised to take law into its own hands! Not to be outdone, the two breakaway factions of JTMM are continuing their old habits and have become an embarrassment to Terains. Some of their actions deserve to be condemned and the Terains should disown them.  Consider the following incidents involving the two factions of the JTMM during the week- On 25th May at Sarlahi three JTMM (J) activists detonated a bomb injuring three with one in a critical condition on the east-west highway. JTMM (J) activists padlocked the office of the underground water resource office in Lahan for its failure to pay taxes and issuing a tender without the permission of their so-called Terai government. JTMM (G) kidnapped and later released on 25th May one Ravi Krishna Gautam in Sarlahi district on condition that he solves a dispute over land between individuals unrelated to the movement. JTMM (G) grabbed 12 bighas of land belonging to former Chief Justice Bishwa Nath Upadhyay. Activists of Madhesi Tiger Force beat up two civilians that included a woman on charges of spying for the government! Press Conference of Prachanda at Kaski on 19th May: Maoist Chief Prachanda gave a detailed press conference on his partys stand on various issues confronting the country. Some of the points made by him were- On the management of the PA Camps: He warned that his party would go for a nation wide strike if the government did not take a firm decision. ( Under the threat of a national strike, Koiralas government was bamboozled to concede monthly payments to the Maoist cadres in the camps at the rate of Rupees three thousand each month with retrospective effect from March without verifying the eligibility of the cadres to remain in the camps. The Maoists have not allowed the UN to go ahead with the second stage of arms management that involved the verification of individual cadres.) On Koiralas statement of the King having twenty percent powers (support?)- he said that if a republic is declared by the Parliament and the people are given the responsibility to implement it, they will have the Palace vacated within two hours! ( He has not said how it will be done but it is presumed that the Maoists would lead the cadres in the name of the masses and storm the palace!) On the Terai problem, he said that they understand the problem and that they could solve the problems by holding talks and if the situation still persists, they will retaliate. ( Upendra Yadav of the MJF has rightly called the statement as irresponishle. Nothing more need be said about the mind set of the Maoists.) On the return of seized properties he declared that most of the properties have been returned and the District Committees of his party have been directed to return the remaining properties. ( This again is not accurate statement and flies against what his assistants, Mohan Vaidya, Mahara and others have been saying that the seized properties will not be returned) Madhav Nepal of UML on the Current Situation: Madhav Nepal, the leader of the UML, not so well known for any definitive and consistent view has suggested a five point formula to solve the current crisis facing the nation. The eight party group should take a common stance on monarchy whether through the interim parliament, referendum or on the first day of the convening of Constituent Assembly. ( The problem is that he wants a consensus on his terms and even here he has not been consistent) Find a way out to return seized property. ( There is no way other than forcing the Maoist leadership to return the property. Has he ever condemned the Maoists when his own senior leaders property has not been returned?) Bring to an end the parallel non governmental military structure by integrating the Maoists combatants in the States security wings or in society. ( Here again he knows the problem but does want to say it himself. The Maoist leadership should first allow the UN mission to verify the Maoist combatants whether they come under the criteria to remain in the camps. It is said that roughly half of the cadres have no right to be there in the camps.) Declare the date of Constitutional Assembly Elections. ( Here again the elections cannot be held unless a conducive atmosphere is created. Will the Maoists allow unless Koirala decides to cave in.?) Address the issues of Madhesis, Janajathis, Women and Dalits by accepting the principle of self determination in assembly elections. (He is right- Without genuinely understand ing their problems, going for CA elections will not bring in peace.) G.P. Koirala is frantically meeting the leaders of various parties to get a consensus on various issues. He is also trying to revive the stalled interim parliament. He met Deuba and discussed separately on the question of a merger of the two groups of the Nepali Congress. The talks were so successful that Deuba on his return said that chances of a merger are very remote. It is an irony that while the Maoists are going about with a singular determination to get rid of monarchy and completely restructure Nepal, the major democratic parties like the two NC groups are yet to unite to combat the growing strength of the Maoists!
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