Thursday, May 04, 2006

The April Revolution Asks For A New Political Party


An Open Letter To Gagan Thapa

We braved batons and bullets. We were not scared of the king, and he and the likes of him have been in place for over two centuries. We were not scared of the army, although an emergency was threatened. We were not scared of the police, although it was let loose upon us in large numbers. They envisioned a movement, we gave a revolution.

The revolution is very much on.

But I get a very clear impression the spirit of the seven party alliance is not revolutionary. They have not taken any steps to try and bring the culprits of the previous regime to justice. That would entail getting back the Rs. 50 arab lost over the past few years to gross mismanagement and corruption. That would entail finding out who were the ones to give out orders for the gross repressions of the peaceful protestors: lives and limbs were lost. That would entail documenting human rights violations.

The king's autocracy was hell, but then that is what we expected it to be. The 1990s were hell too, only we did not expect them to be hell.

A constituent assembly is the bare minimum. But a revolution asks for more than the bare minimum. Where do the seven plus one parties stand on the republic question? Where do they stand on political reform? Where do they stand on federalism? Where do they stand on internal democracy in the parties? Where do they stand, period?

The April Revolution is one for world history. But not yet. Much work remains to be done. We still have to watch out for regression. We still have to watch out for mediocrity. We still have to watch out for unimaginative political leadership. We still have to watch out for politicians who constantly lag behind the people. We have to watch out for those who try to suggest the 1990s were Nepal's golden age, when they were anything but. We have to watch out for those who are looking for excuses and ways to impose a ceremonial monarchy upon a people clamoring for a republic. We have to watch out for those looking for escape clauses to put into the next constitution that will prevent social justice after all. We have to maintain a constant vigil, because the revolution is very much on.

Revolution? We did it. Republic? We want it. A new political party is the price we are going to have to pay.

Proposed Republican Constitution 2006
Janata Dal Constitution

The new political party has to be a fundamental departure. It will make a clear stand for a federal republic. It will introduce the concept of total, transparent democracy. It will practice internal democracy. It will keep all its book keeping transparent and online. It will contest in all seats for the constituent assembly. And it will distribute tickets for those seats in a democratic way. Only party members in a particular constituency will get to decide through internal voting as to who gets the ticket. It will not be the party president doing the distributing from Kathmandu.

We will be competing for the votes of the voters below the poverty line. We intend to go head to head with the Maoists. Fuck Mao. We are going to be the darling of the masses. Yes, we will do land reform.

The challenge is to capture the spirit of the April Revolution. No party has done it.

I believe the April Revolution has given Nepal an opportunity to shoot for a cutting edge democracy such that the April Revolution can stand in the same league as the October Revolution in Russia, the French Revolution, the American Revolution, and the Indian Struggle For Independence. But whether or not we will qualify will depend on if or not we can give an original twist to the concept of democracy in our next constitution. I think we should shoot for a democracy where parties do not get to raise funds, instead they get state funds in direct proportion to the number of votes they earn, and they keep all their book keeping online.

Let Gagan Thapa be the founding president. Then let him have the prerogative to nominate four other Officers in the party for the central leadership. Let there be a district committee in each of the 75 districts. Then let's have a central committee member for each million people in the country. That is 27 members. Plus five Officers. We will combine a few districts to get close to the million mark. And then we will get one of the district presidents to come up. But all this is to be an interim arrangement until we formally hold our convention before the constituent assembly elections.

All our deliberations and expenses are to be posted online. At the district level, at the central level.

Those opposed to the idea of a new political party are no different from those in the Nepali Congress who are opposed to abolishing the monarchy. A reformed Congress is like a reformed monarchy: it is still there. It will be decades before the Congress reforms itself to our standards. On the other hand, we can come into power and pass laws to make all parties come around to our gospel of a total, transparent democracy.

Let's give a serious thought to the idea.

How big was the Congress in 1988? How big was it in 1992? I think we will have a shot at emerging the largest party in the country, because we will be the only one in spirit with the April Revolution.

18 Days Of April Revolution: Victory

On The Web

Kadima - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Kadima (Hebrew: קדימה, Qādīmāh, "forward") is a centrist [note] Israeli political party. After the elections on March 28, 2006, it is also the strongest party in Israel, having won 29 out of 120 seats in the Knesset. It was formed by Prime Minister Ariel Sharon after he formally left the right-wing Likud party on November 21, 2005, to produce a new party which would grant him the freedom to carry out his policy of unilateral disengagement - removing Israeli settlements from Palestinian territory and fixing the borders with a separation barrier. After coalition talks with the Gil party, the two decided to form a parliamentiary block, effectively bringing Kadima up to 36 mandates.
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Israel approves construction of fence around Jerusalem; Kadima ... Canada.com, Canada
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No Short Cuts: Madhesis Will Have To March


May 1 Immigrants Rally: Great American Boycott With Jesse Jackson 3
May 1 Immigrants Rally: Great American Boycott With Jesse Jackson 2
May 1 Immigrants Rally: Great American Boycott With Jesse Jackson
Anti War Rally With Jesse Jackson 4
Anti War Rally With Jesse Jackson 3
Anti War Rally With Jesse Jackson 2
Anti War Rally With Jesse Jackson

After February 1, 2005, political parties kept hoping they might not have to wage a movement. The king will come around to it, they thought. Maybe he did not mean it. Maybe he will step back. They kept asking him to take back the 2/1 decision. It did not work.

So they got together and issued a statement. This is where we five or six parties stand. This is what we want, they said. They figured if the biggest parties spoke in one voice, the king will listen. It did not work.

Then they forged an alliance with the Maoists. They figured if they can help bring the Maoists into the mainstream, the king will be happy. So they declared a roadmap to peace. It did not work.

Then they held mass rallies across the country. It is not true the people are not with us, they said. Let the king see for himself, they said. The biggest rally in the capital was organized to coincide with the king's arrival back from Africa. See, Your Majesty, we do have the people with us, they seemed to suggest. It did not work.

The Maoists tried declaring a ceasefire, and then taking it back. The first was designed to send a message to the king that the Maoists wanted peace. The second was designed to send a message the Maoists are capable of war. Neither worked.

Then they held a few more rallies. They expected a red carpet treament from the king for their January 20 grand finale rally in Kathmandu. Instead most of them got arrested. They helplessly waited in their homes for the police to come.

They figured if they boycott the municipal polls, that will finally send a message to the king. Girija even offered dialogue if the polls were to be cancelled. Tulsi Giri showed some minimal response.

Then they went quiet for two months. The quiet did not work.

Finally they waged a movement, a revolution, and it finally worked. 2/1 is now history.

There are lessons for this for the Madhesi, the most marginalized group in Nepal. The word Nepali so far has never been inclusive of the Madhesi. That will have to finally change.

The right to peaceful assembly has been earned, but the revolution is far from concluded.

The Pahadis will try hard to stack the cards against the Madhesis during the run up to the constituent assembly elections. They will say democracy is not about one person, one vote. They will say the 205 constituencies of the 1990 constitution will do just fine. That right there is the first battle. (Constituent Assembly: 300 Seats Of Roughly Equal Population) We can not settle for anything less than one person, one vote. That means all constituencies will have to be more or less similar in population size. 300 is a good number, so some of the Himali constituencies do not end up too big geographically. Minus one Speaker, 299 will be an odd number, and ensure smooth voting. And there will have to be reservations for the DaMaJaMa among those 300 seats.
The Pratinidhi Sabha will have reserved seats for the four groups, Dalit, Madhesi, Janajati and Mahila, 10%, 20%, 15%, and 25% with some overlaps. Half of the seats for women will cut across that of these four groups as well. For example, of the 10% seats for Dalits, 25% of them will have to be women. And the 10% for Dalits will be half in the Terai, but that is not to cut into the Madhesi reserved seats. 10, 20, 15 and 25 are half the supposed shares of the populations of these groups, to be revised each census. The reservation for a group is discontinued once its share in the Pratinidhi Sabha hits 80% of its share in the national population and is to kick back in again should the share fall below 40%. When identifying the seats for the Dalit, Madhesi and the Janajati, the Election Commission will seek constituencies where the groups have their largest share of populations. No three contiguous seats may be reserved seats......... Other than the specified groups, the Muslims will get two seats. The Newars will get one seat in the Kathmandu valley......... The reservations are to exist only at the federal level, and only for the Pratinidhi Sabha. (Proposed Republican Constitution 2006)
We have to be on a watchout for trouble signs during the run up.

Once we secure one person, one vote, we will have to coalesce around the issue of federalism. What we want is a federal republic. Any political party that does not come around to the slogan of a federal republic is to be boycotted en masse.

If Girija Koirala will not accept a federal republic, he will face a frontal attack during the constituent assembly elections, politically speaking. If Madhav Nepal will not accept a federal republic, he will face a frontal attack. If Sher Deuba will not accept a federal republic, he will face a frontal attack. There can be no compromise on this basic issue any more than there could have been any compromise on democracy during the April Revolution.

Federalism is one issue that has got to unify all Madhesis regardless of what political party they might be in. The clay is wet. The effort we will put in now for months is worth years and decades after the constitution takes concrete shape. For the first time ever, Madhesis are about to attain total equality. This chance can not be missed.

Madhesis have to get organized. There are Madhesis in all seven political parties, and among the Maoists, although few in the leadership positions of the large parties. There are many Madhesi rights organizations that have sprouted. There are many caste based organizations. All have to come under one umbrella. A Madhesi version of the seven party alliance has to be formed. A Madhesi Caucus has to be formed for the Madhesi leaders in all seven political parties.

Ultimately it boils down to Madhesis marching in all towns and all villages. March for one person one vote in the constituent assembly elections, for a federal republic, for language rights, for equality, for dignity. We have earned the right to march through the April Revolution, now we got to march.

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To: The Kathmandu Media
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Madhesi Rights: Total Equality
18 Days Of April Revolution: Victory
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My Most Controversial Blog Post To Date: On Madhesi Issue
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ये तो क्रान्ित है

In The News

May 1

Leaders call for interim constitution to go for constituent assembly NepalNews
Maoists lay down conditions for peace talks: Report
Cabinet likely to be announced today; all seven parties to participate

NEPAL: Interview with senior Maoist leader, Ram Bahadur Bhandari
Reuters AlertNet, UK
Maoists Terrorists Want To Establish A Communist Republic American Chronicle
Why Mao? Tragedy on hold in Nepal. Why it matters beyond Kathmandu
NewsBlaze, CA
CPI wants India to release Maoist leadersHindu
Yechuri calls on Bijukchhe Gorkhapatra
Nepal’s Future Still Uncertain Navhind Times
Indian national injured in Nepal's pro-democracy protests dies
Kantipur Online, Nepal
Another injured agitator dies Nepalnews.com
Seven Hurt Protesters Struggling For Life Himalayan Times
Rebels' new challenge: Assessing loyalty in Nepal
Newsday, NY
Alex Keyssar: Maoists and the Press Yahoo! News

DIG Shrestha in door-to-door campaign Kantipur Publications
Departure ban on 'blacklisted' royalists
RNA pledges compensation to Belbari victims’ families
RPP directs its parliamentarians to support constituent assembly
HoR unanimously approves constituent assembly; PM calls on Maoists to join peace talks
राप्रपा संविधानसभामा
संविधानसभा सर्वसम्मत
डीआईजी श्रेष्ठ बढुवाका लागि नेताका घरदैलोमा
सहिद परिवारलाई निःशुल्क यातायात
प्रधानमन्त्रीको स्वागतमा मुख्यसचिव अनुपस्थित
सेनाद्वारा मृतक परिवारलाई पचास हजार

May 4

Maoists agree to sit for peace talks NepalNews
PM Koirala shifts to official quarters in Baluwatar
Local administration lifts curfew in Dang after 5 years
Dr. Hemang Dixit shot at
The government and house should work as per people’s aspiration: Leaders
Journalists in Nepal continue to face challenges: IFJ
A Modus Operandi of Constituent Assembly

Maoists welcome govt announcement, ready for talks Kantipur Publications
Medical college principal shot at in Kathmandu
CA elections after forming interim govt including Maoists: PM Koirala
Important role for ‘victimized’ bureaucrats
Foreign employment up by 44 pc
ँगणतन्त्र पनि स्वीकार्य’
सरकारी विद्यालयमा अंग्रेजी माध्यम
कांग्रेसमा पनि असन्तुष्टि
सैनिक गणका छिमेकी अझै भयभीत
दिगो युद्धविराम
क्रान्तिको दोस्रो चरणका बाहक

Nepal's Maoists agree to talks with new government Reuters
Nepal Kings agents start threatening Indian communist leaders India Daily, NJ

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