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#291 24 - 30 March 2006 16 pages Rs 30 Nearer and nearer ou don’t have to go far to see the face of war these Y days. Just drive to Thankot, down to Malekhu and along the picturesque highway that in peacetime used to take Editorial p2 Kathmandu’s Violence is a deadend weekenders to resorts in Kurintar and Manakamana. At Fisling, where white water rafters still launch their boats (right), there are charred hulks of tankers destroyed by Maoists to enforce their blockade. Further up the road on Wednesday, army commandos in full battle gear were massed around armoured personnel carriers. Full story p13 KIRAN PANDAY Weekly Internet Poll # 291 Q... If an election for a constituent assembly were to be held now what system would you vote for? Total votes:6,971 Weekly Internet Poll # 292. To vote go to: www.nepalitimes.com Q... Which of the following alliances do you find most probable in the current scenario? SUBSCRIBERS Press Freedom for Did your paper arrive on time this morning? If not, call our Peace and Democracy Complaints Hotline 9851054729 and talk to Santosh Aryal. 2 EDITORIAL 24 - 30 MARCH 2006 #291 Published by Himalmedia Pvt Ltd, Chief Editor: Kunda Dixit Desk Editor: Marty Logan Design: Kiran Maharjan Web: Bhushan Shilpakar Vicepresident Corporate Affairs: Sneh Sayami Advertising: Sambhu Guragain [email protected] Subscription: [email protected] Hatiban, Godavari Road, Lalitpur [email protected], GPO Box 7251, Kathmandu Tel: 5543333-6, Fax: 5521013 www.nepalitimes.com Printed at Jagadamba Press, Hatiban: 5547018 Could get worse But it’s not too late to prevent new bloodshed VIOLENCE IS A DEADEND anakala couldn’t finish her attempts to convince them throughout the tarai from Bardiya her story. Her voice that a boy they were beating was By renewing their pact with the Maoists last week, the parties have to Ilam. Vigilante leaders in once more shown that they can bring the rebels out of the jungles if M cracked, her body began not a rebel, but just a 14-year- Rupandehi and Nawalparasi they had more support. By standing their ground on the dispute over shaking and she fainted right old neighbour from the village. admitted that they received a joint statement that threatened to scuttle the talks, they sent a clear before our eyes. The memories The war that came to this official government support, message that there is a price for the legitimacy the rebels gain from of three nights earlier, when elderly Palpa farmer’s door is including a one-month-long the alliance. security forces clashed with the now engulfing Nepal. After a training program at RNA barracks, The next logical step is to convince the Maoists to declare Maoists in her small village, short period of relief during the government identification cards another ceasefire which would not just reinforce the parties’ peace were too much for her. Maoists’ unilateral ceasefire, brokering role but also prevent the royal regime from using the and rifles. conflict as an excuse for further militarisation and absolutism. More nearly every district in the The poorly trained and ill- importantly, a ceasefire call is critical for the success of the planned GUEST COLUMN country is currently affected by disciplined vigilante groups act pro-democracy rally on 7 April. Anna Neistat and attacks and clashes between the abusively toward the local Then the parties and the Maoists have to get down to real brass Sam Zarifi Maoists and the army. Nepali population they are ostensibly tacks and tackle the issue of violence. There is no more rationale for civilians, particularly the vast protecting, beating and at times the kind of bloodshed we have seen this week. The Maoists must Mankala will never forget a majority living in rural areas, are killing those suspected—however think twice about their planned big strike in the capital because it will helicopter landing in the field now closer to the conflict than play right into the regime’s hands and wreck the pact with the flimsily—of Maoist sympathies, parties. Learning from the permanent ceasefire declared by ETA this next to her house, Maoists ever before, caught between two extorting ‘donations’ and week, the comrades must realise that armed struggle is a dead end. seeking shelter in the village, the forces with histories of grave and violently intimidating villagers. By pledging to the parties that they are committed to renouncing whine of bullets and her family’s systematic human rights abuses. In turn, the Maoists aggressively violence they get their safe landing and take the wind out of the desperate efforts to hide under a The Maoists put civilians at punish members of vigilante king’s sails. bed, screaming soldiers accusing great risk by using houses, groups, abducting and killing Critics of the pact are partly right: violence and non-violence her of hiding the Maoists and schools and public spaces to them and their alleged don’t mix. The Maoist blockade that launch attacks or to seek shelter crippled the country has been swapped for supporters. The cycle of attacks a crippling four-day national shutdown 5-9 while fleeing counterattacks by and reprisals by Maoists and April called by the seven party alliance. the security forces. Many vigilantes risks spiraling further And we are supposed to be thankful. civilians die or sustain serious out of control. A national shutdown is not a non- injuries when the army uses One of the most alarming violent protest. It depends on the threat of aerial bombardment to pursue aspects of Nepal’s civil war is the violence to keep cars off the roads and retreating Maoists because the heavy toll the conflict takes on shops shut. Abductions, extortion, army’s practice of dropping blockades and closure of community- children. According to UNICEF managed schools are also forms of mortars by hand from the side of Nepal has the world’s second violence. helicopters does not allow proper highest rate of children killed or If the political parties are still targeting and yields a high rate of injured due to explosive devices. wondering why the people aren’t coming unexploded ordnance. In addition, the Maoists continue out openly in the streets in support of their Meanwhile, in many rural their large-scale and often forcible pro-democracy agitation they just need to areas where the security forces are recruitment of children for re-evaluate the decisions that prove the unable to counter the Maoists’ people’s worst fears that they haven’t military purposes in violation of changed their spots. intrusion into villages, the international standards. Why is it that the king’s enemies insist government has turned to Boys and girls we interviewed on punishing the people to get back at creating and arming vigilante said they had been abducted from him? How is it going to help build public groups to serve as their proxies, schools for indoctrination support when you deprive the poorest drawing on local thugs as well as programs and then forced to stay, segments of society from their livelihoods the pool of aggrieved villagers taken from homes under the for prolonged periods? eager to avenge themselves It is this country’s tragedy that people Maoists’ ‘one family, one fighting to liberate the people have always against Maoists. member’ recruitment campaign, punished the very people they’re supposed We found that over the last or simply kidnapped. The to liberate. year the government has created children told us they were taught and sponsored vigilante groups to use hand grenades and socket RAMESWOR BOHARA LLL ETTERS CHU NYIMA who’s in power at all. (Editorial, ‘As if there Nepal may slip into a republic state, now on wheels for some time. These innovations I am deeply saddened to read the news is no tomorrow’, #288) While finding a that the Nepali regard for monarchy is at will not only reduce pollution and save the of the demise of Chu Nyima Rimpoche in political solution to the present Maoist its lowest ebb excepting for a handful of environment but will keep our money in the Charles Gay’s tribute (‘Chu Nyima is crisis is important, the much more cronies. country and provide jobs. What has to be gone and we’re still here’, #290). I important task of assuring that the country I Pradhan, email done now is to set a time table to push out visited the Rimpoche’s monastery in doesn’t become an economic basket case the polluting vehicles owned and run by 1997 during the establishment phase of seems to worry not very many particularly. MINI-EV mafia for the general public and for INGOs Manasalu Conservation Area Project. The present royalist government harps In contrast to the gloom and doom to give up their gas guzzling SUVs and Being the team leader and a Buddhist by consistently on corruption in previous environment that we have been given by switch to Mini-Evs in the cities. Maybe birth and practice, I visited the governments. That’s well and good but what the media and the greedy, self-centered, Hulas and KEVA could also turn the 7,500 monastery and received blessings from exactly is its solution? The king must power brokers Kunda Dixit’s story about Maruti taxis in Kathmandu to hybrid the Rimpoche. Along with few local understand that spending ever more of a the MiniEV (‘Clean & Green & Electric, vehicles by fitting a similar system as the women, four of us from the project wounded country’s resources on setting up Mini-EV in the rear axle. reached the monastery after walking for special courts is not worth its while unless Rajendra Khadga, Lajimpat 10 hours.

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