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#375 23 - 29 November 2007 16 pages Rs 30 Weekly Internet Poll # 375 BANNER HEADLINES: Prayer flags flutter at Boudha on Thursday, the Q. What should be the first priority of the day elections were supposed to be winter session of parliament? held. Political deadlock has Total votes: 4,800 jeopardised the peace agreement signed a year ago this week. Weekly Internet Poll # 376. To vote go to: www.nepalitimes.com Q. How optimistic are you that elections will be held within 2064? KIRAN PANDAY Peace postponed ANALYSIS by KUNDA DIXIT By next week, the first meeting of announcing a two-month agreement that would give the the constituent assembly would agitation just as the election Maoists at least 30 percent hen ex-US president have decided to abolish the commission was finalising the representation in the constituent Jimmy Carter arrived in monarchy. logistics of the polls and assembly. WKathmandu on It’s not hard to see who presenting two proposals in The house vote, instead of Wednesday he could be forgiven benefited the most from the parliament that took 25 days to paving the way for elections, has for thinking that Nepal is exactly postponement of the polls. By deliberate when time was running delayed it further, endangering where he left it during his last constantly coming up with new out, were all a lead-up to this. seven-party unity. The winter visit in June. conditions for elections, the To be sure, the NC has also session of parliament was In fact, things have regressed. Maoists gave the monarchy been stubborn and is pulled by postponed so the three leaders The euphoria of the peace accord breathing space. its own radical rightwing. But at signed a year ago this week has This week, Pushpa Kamal least the NC and UML want polls, evaporated. Six months ago, the Dahal categorically stated that and on Wednesday committed EDITORIAL country was at least looking elections were no longer in the themselves to holding it before Conceptual continuity p2 forward to elections and closure. Maoist agenda. Indeed, in April. But how are they going to Now, even polls look uncertain. hindsight it seems that was the get the Maoists to go along? could come up with a power- We’d all have voted on plan all along. Resigning from the The Maoist conditions of sharing formula. As things Thursday if things had gone right. government in September, parliament abolishing the stand, it doesn’t look likely that monarchy before polls and as well they can resolve the stalemate by as a fully-proportional election, next week. and a brand new set of sub- If Jimmy Carter comes back demands are not the issue. The in April 2008, it's likely Nepal real sticking point is a will be exactly where he left it gerrymandered power-sharing this week. 2 EDITORIAL 23 - 29 NOVEMBER 2007 #375 Published by Himalmedia Pvt Ltd, Editor: Kunda Dixit Design: Kiran Maharjan Director Sales and Marketing: Sunaina Shah marketing(at)himalmedia.com Circulation Manager: Samir Maharjan sales(at)himalmedia.com Subscription: subscription(at)himalmedia.com,5542525/535 Hatiban, Godavari Road, Lalitpur editors(at)nepalitimes.com GPO Box 7251, Kathmandu 5543333-6, Fax: 5521013 Hangover of war www.nepalitimes.com Printed at Jagadamba Press, Hatiban: 5547018 Let’s help the Maoists join the mainstream ournalists, political commitment is not expressed in election. The NC is not that keen CONCEPTUAL CONTINUITY workers, businessmen are any of the internal party on elections, but the real obstacle The ‘New Basis for New Unity Concept Paper’ that Pushpa Kamal J still being targeted by the documents, and it is urgent for is the Maoist party. It’s an irony Dahal presented before a gathering at the Malla Hotel on Sunday Maoists. They continue to be them to convince everyone about that the party that made the this week is another vivid example of his party’s muddle- threatened, abducted, their beliefs in pluralism and constituent assembly election its headedness. It also exposes ongoing tension between hardliners disappeared and killed. Tourists non-violent politics. The party main agenda is itself trying to and ultra-hardliners in his party. and ordinary citizens are being still hasn’t got over the hangover sabotage it. The reason for this is The five-page single spaced document, unfortunately, doesn’t extorted. of war. not hard to find. help save seven-party unity but will invite continued disarray and more uncertainty about elections. Which is probably the intention. Last month, 14 pilgrims aged To be sure, the party that in Maoist leader CP Gajurel told Dahal states categorically that the Maoist party no longer sees the six to 64 were severely beaten up the past didn’t even want to hear a meeting at JNU in New Delhi election as a priority. We had known that all along, but this is the and attacked by knives in about peaceful struggle or earlier this year: “We have a first time that he has given it in writing. parliamentary politics has seen a battle-hardened army and The reason elections are not a priority, let’s be blunt here, is GUEST COLUMN dramatic transformation. They automatic weapons. We will win that the Maoists fear they are going to be routed. Not because the Prakash Jwala used to repeat Lenin’s famous the elections. If we can’t win, we other six parties are brilliantly popular, but because the comrades dictum that parliament was a won’t go for elections. And if have seriously undermined themselves by not giving up the tactics of violence and threats. The YCL kangaroo court that publicly place for “bourgeoise feudal class elections are announced without pronounced five people guilty of murders and bombings and the Kalikot. Their crime? Deigning to to chatter”. The Maoists our agreement and participation abduction of hospital staff this week were just the latest examples. worship at a temple. themselves once called we won’t let the polls happen.” Dahal’s paper also proves that the Maoists are adding new We understand the Maoists parliament a “mutton shop What could be plainer than that? conditions and escalating their demands so as to make elections are still trying to make the selling dog meat”. The 2005 Chunbang plenum impossible. For example, they want to review all past agreements, transformation from jungle to But this month we saw them of the Maoists concluded that the including the 12-point memorandum of November 2005. Why open parliamentary politics. They have make use of parliament as a place party couldn’t capture state that can of worms now unless you want to torpedo the peace process? The paper also wants the Ministry of Peace scrapped expressed this commitment in to debate whether to vote out the power through force of arms and replaced with a Peace Commission. Ram Chandra Poudel has the peace agreement and many monarchy. They finally saw a use alone, and decided to go for an been a disaster, but how is adding another layer of bureaucracy other accords since then. But this for a legislature. But we still have agreement with the seven parties. going to help the process along? to see whether this was the result This is what made the 12-point The upshot is that even if the winter of a genuine belief that agreement of November 2005 session of parliament next week agrees parliament is an institution possible. By the time of the on declaring Nepal a republic and on full- representing the people or Kamidanda Conference last year, proportional elections we will be closer to elections. whether they just want to use it the Maoists had deduced that It is time for all seven parties to for tactical political advantage. they could win in an election. By realise that if they don’t announce an There is no doubt the Maoists at the Balaju extended central election date by next week’s session of are republicans. But the committee meeting this year the parliament they will have failed to honour declaration of a republic has been Maoists evaluated the ground the mandate of the People’s Movement. The pushed back because of their situation and decided that they NC and the UML will also have to ask actions. If the elections had been couldn’t win in an election. The themselves whether it is their mutual mistrust and policy infighting within their allowed to happen on 22 reality now is that the Maoists parties that is aiding the Maoist agenda. November as scheduled perhaps don’t want elections under any On Sunday, the Maoists began to today we’d already be living in a circumstances. pressure the government to agree democratic republic. In fact, the Maoists wouldn’t with parliament’s directives. You don’t usher in a republic mind turning the current Leaders lashed out at the “big just by singing revolutionary parliament into a constituent media” for being critical of songs or wearing t-shirts. The talk assembly. But we must make sure their party. It’s time for the is that the Maoists don’t really we bring the Maoists out into the comrades to engage want a republic, and their actions open and create conditions for in some self-analysis about why that may be have benefited the royalists, no them to take part in elections. We so. How come their cadres involved in the one else. What is the real story can’t let them run away from Birendra Sah and Prakash Thakuri murder and behind this, is it that the extreme mainstream politics.

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