Relevance of Monarchy in Nepal
In Deshantar (11 April), a regional Nepali daily, Lok Raj Baral wrote about the relevance of an active Monarchy in the present context in Nepal and said, “It is illogical and nonsense to say the nation won’t exist without a monarch just because we are geographically sandwiched between China and India.†Baral said that China is engaged in its own affairs and problems with India are relatively small. There won’t be any danger by these neighbours if a balanced foreign policy of not using one country against the other is adopted by Nepal. Baral refuted the ‘Sikkimization’ of Nepal and cited the reasons of government inefficiency, lack of long-term vision and dependency on India. He concluded that the general disinterest to have an active monarchy leaves only one option: a republican system. “Nepal cannot have a constitutional monarchy anymore, we have come to the point when there will either be an active monarchy or a republic.â€Â
In Nepal (4-11 April), Pradip Giri, leader of Nepali Congress [Democratic], questioned the necessity of public felicitations of King Gyanendra, “at a time when the country is going down a spiral of violence, brutality and authoritarianism.†While the King wants to restore and strengthen the state as his ancestors had by uniting Nepal, the Maoists want to form a new society. He opined that the king failed to recognize the realities of a modern world; the rebels have not learnt from the mistakes of the communist movements in Russia and China and unfortunately both have become too headstrong. He condemned the insurgents for their brutal terror activities against the common people and political parties and said “they (Maoists) lack vision and importantly lack confidence in the people.†He argued for a Constituent Assembly as the only way out of the national crisis and yet, “our country is not ready for another new Constitution under the active monarch’s terms.â€Â
In Saptahik Bimarsha (26 March-1 April), Rajeshwor Devkota said the politicians should not politicize the royal felicitations of King Gyanendra; the presence of big crowds in the felicitation functions proved people’s strong belief in the monarchy. He argued that it was the incapability of the Parliament that paved way for the royal move of 4 October and the enactment of Article 127 of the Constitution. Accepting that the situation has become more complicated since the royal move, he said matters would have been worse had the King not taken over. Devkota opined that the King is the real protector of the Constitution, and the political parties are neither capable of handling state power when they are in government nor able to cooperate with the King to form the alliance. He further said that ousting the present government could be a chance to end the political deadlock. Regarding the insurgency, Devkota said “if the rebels still come forward with their demand for Constituent Assembly, there is no point of holding talks.â€Â
Eroding History
Maoists bombed and completely destroyed the statue of King Prithbi Narayan Shah in Devighat of Nuwakot district on 8 April. Rajdhani (11 April), in its editorial, said that the destruction of this great Nepali unifier’s statue was a tragedy and unbearable for every Nepali citizen. It considered the attack as a direct assault on the nation’s integrity, unity and existence. The editorial said, “Prithbi is a symbolic national hero that all Nepalis identify with.†In conclusion, it called the Maoists to be concerned about the destruction of the statue and stressed that “even the Maoists are first of all Nepalis… Everything else is secondary.â€Â
Political Impasse in Nepal
The Himalayan Times (28 April), in its editorial, opined that the current political parties’ agitation against ‘regression’ resulted in the acceptance by all sections including the Royal Palace that an all-party government would be the solution to end the collision between Palace and the political parties. It would also boost the prospects for election. It further said “any government led by a person not approved by the agitating parties is not going to end the present impasse… So there will be no sense in appointing anybody prime minister without reaching an understanding with them.†The daily quoted the Supreme Court’s refusal to restore the House of Representatives and expressed doubts about the reinstatement of the dissolved Deuba Government at this moment. In fact, the editorial suggested either an all-party arrangement under Article 128 of the Constitution or the most uncomplicated choice of conducting the parliamentary elections to solve the ongoing political impasse. It recommended that “the only real way to correct the ‘regression,’ as it were, was to hold the elections and hand over power to the people's representatives.â€Â
Spotlight (16-22 April), in its editorial, condemned the brutal suppressive activities of the security forces against the agitators of five opposition political parties and accused the government for turning political movement to a violent path. It asked the Government to “initiate wise and appropriate measures before the general public’s hope and faith for restoration of normalcy and peace turn into frustration and they become malcontent.†It suggested that King Gyanendra took bold decisions if he wanted to preserve Constitutional monarchy and called to find honest, dedicated men with vision and imagination.
Press Freedom
During a procession by the Federation of Nepali Journalists (FNJ) on 16 April in Kathmandu, at least 75 journalists were injured and more than 200 were arrested by the security forces. The Government’s repressive attitude to the freedom of expression was widely condemned by the media and different sections of society. The Kathmandu Post (20 April) in its editorial strongly questioned the values of democracy in the country and said the “government has been making a mockery of democracy.†It suspected that the Government’s policy against the Press was an attempt to dissociate it from the ‘anti-regression’ movement. The editorial demanded the resignation of the whole cabinet including the Prime Minister and said, “the journalists will not keep quiet until the people’s power is fully restored.â€Â
Facebook
Blink
Del.icio.us
Digg
Furl
Google
Simpy
Spurl
Y! MyWeb
