One would think that in the midst of nationwide protests conducted under the auspice of upholding “Civilian Supremacy” the Nepal Army would show more tact than to flagrantly disregard civilian authority by refusing a request from the police.
It would seem that the army anticipates little threat from a movement centered around what may have become just another Maoist slogan. Of course, if there is one thing the (Royal) Nepal Army has been particularly bad at in the past, it’s anticipating political consequences of it’s actions.
I hope this action at least generates outrage on the part of more than just a few civil rights organizations.
KATHMANDU, DEC 14 – The International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) on Monday said that the Nepal Army’s refusal to hand over Maj. Niranjan Basnet to police “obstructed the course of justice”.
Maj. Basnet was expelled from the UN Peacekeeping Mission in Chad for his alleged role in the killing of 15-year-old Maina Sunuwar on Feb. 17, 2004. Maj. Basnet arrived in Kathmandu on Saturday afternoon, but the Army personnel took him under control right from the airport.
On Saturday, the prime minister had directed the Defence Ministry to hand over the accused to police. The Army has not handed over Basnet despite a formal request from police. “The Army’s actions will reflect how seriously it treats UN human rights concerns that led to Maj. Basnet’s withdrawal,” said ICJ Asia Pacific Director Roger Normand in a statement on Monday.
The international community has been closely observing this emblematic case. “Maina’s case can set a precedent for bringing all such serious crimes into the criminal justice system,” said ICJ Legal Adviser in Nepal Govinda Sharma Bandi.
Maoists forcefully shut down all transport and business in Nepal today, in retaliation for an incident in Kailiki, a district in the far western Terai. On Friday, police had used deadly force in the removal of Maoist aligned landless squatters from forest land. At least four were killed.
Small bands of Maoists carrying sticks roamed the streets to enforce the shutdown, in some cases even threatening bicycle riders. Only press, ambulances, diplomatic and tourist only vehicles were spared.
A Maoist who was shutting down shops in Thamel, Kathmandu stated, “We are doing the strike, bandh, because the government has killed innocent homeless people in the kilali district 2 days before. … A committee has to be formed by the government and it has to be investigated, and who is found guilty, he has to get punishment in that incident.”
Thousands of Maoists held a torch procession tonight in preparation for a nationwide Banda (closure) tomorrow. The action was called in retaliation of an incident in Kailali district on Friday. Police had used deadly force in removing thousands of Maoist aligned landless squatters from forest land
Two articles, one by Dinesh Wagle from Kantipur and one by Arundhati Roy. It’s amazing that to me that the Indian government thinks this is going to work.
Instead of eradicating poverty, the current Indian establishment has, it seems, decided to eradicate the poor from society.
By Dinesh Wagle, November 1, 2009
Things are happening so late in India. This I say from the Nepali perspective. The dominating Indian political discourses in the past several days have been increasingly sounding like the ones we used to have at the beginning of the current decade. The government here has decided to combat the spreading Maoist insurgency putting the prospects of talks on the backburner, and the deliberations have been all about that. These debates, mainly taking place in the most influential, city-centric and English language media, are heavily tilted towards the hawkish government stand. “These terrorists,” shouted one network editor the other evening, “must be neutralized. How can a government talk with killers?” Keep reading →
Members of the UCPN(Maoist) and their supporters, including Central Committee member Hisila Yami danced and chanted slogans in front of the Kathmandu Metropolitan City Office today, continuing a nation wide protest campaign started on Sunday. Nepal Army members drilled on their training grounds just a few meters away.
The stated objectives of the program are civilian supremacy, a Maoist led government, integration of the Maoist Army into the Nepal Army, and a logical conclusion the the peace process. A blockade of the Kathmandu valley and it’s international airport are planned in 9 days if a resolution is not found before then.
Hisila Yami dances along with supporters outside the Kathmandu Metropolitan City Office. Keep reading →
Some well connected Maoist supporters are indicating the Maoists are really going to make a go of it this time. I can tell you this torch rally was convincing in that they can still get their supporters out on the street. Most people here will tell you that the other parties are not capable of the organization necessary to carry out a rally of this type. I’ll do my best to keep the photos coming.
Leaders of the UCPN(Maoist) and their supporters numbering upwards of 25,000 marched through central Kathmandu in the initiation of a planed 10 day round or protests aimed at the establishment of “civil supremacy” and or the dissolution of the current government. They are slated to culminate in the blockade of the nations only international airport, and the declaration of autonomous regions across the country.
The Maoists have presented the ruling parties in government with three options for a possible resolution of the crisis; allow a debate in parliament on the role of the President, table a joint resolution describing the president’s previous move to sack the army chief as unconstitutional, or force the president to issue a public apology.
Yikes, These protests are starting tomorrow. It should prove interesting. I have some other issues to deal with, but I’ll try and get a camera out there.
KATHMANDU: Nepal’s former Maoist guerrillas Friday asked all international airlines to stop flights to and from Kathmandu on Nov 10, saying it
would be a token sacrifice for democracy.
Maoist lawmaker and former finance minister Dr Baburam Bhattarai, who is coordinating a series of fresh protests by his party against the coalition government of Nepal from Sunday, said appeals were being sent to airlines through the media and pamphlets not to run flights to and from Kathmandu’s lone international airport, the Tribhuvan International Airport, on Nov 10 when the protest is aiming to catch the attention of the world afresh.
Bhattarai said his party was willing to reach a negotiated settlement with the ruling parties and call off the protests but admitted that the possibility of reaching an understanding was remote. The Madhav Kumar Nepal government, that has been beset with Maoist opposition since its formation in May, is being asked to either allow a debate in parliament on the role of the President, Dr Ram Baran Yadav, who reinstated the chief of the army after the earlier Maoist government fired the general, or table a joint resolution rapping the president’s move as unconstitutional or have the beleaguered president issue a public apology. Keep reading →
Peace, justice and freedom must be major components of any future security in Nepal. However, Nepal’s transition is deepening in crisis due to the growing ranks of rebel forces, particularly in the Tarai-Madhes. While the State fails to deliver security to the ordinary people, particularly in countryside, the peace process of Nepal is endangered, justice is delayed, and freedom is restricted. The migration of hill-and-mountain dwellers out of the Tarai-Madhes has not stopped. The people who remain in such places have had much to fear. The cases of extra-judicial killings, forceful disappearances, torture, extortions, rapes and so forth continue. To understand this unfortunate state of affairs, it is necessary to delve into a brief history of the region.
Understanding the Tarai-Madhes
Nepal is divided into three areas topographically; Mountains, Hills, and Tarai-Madhes. The Tarai-Madhes, though the flattest and most accessible part of the country, remained isolated until the mid 20th century due to malaria-infestation. This area stretches from the Indo-Gangetic plains to the Himalayan foothills and connects the plains culture to the hill culture. Constrained between the Mechi River in the east and Mahakali River in the west, it makes up about 23 percent of the total land area of the country. With an average elevation of less than 100 meters (in sharp contrast to the highest Mountains in the world), the average length and breadth of the Tarai-Madhes are about 900 km and 70 km respectively. The Tarai-Madhes incorporates 20 out of 75 districts, including close to half the 26 million population of the country. The region was annexed into Nepal during the unification period, beginning in the mid 1770s, by Prithivi Naarayan Shah. However, much of the ancient Tarai-Madhes areas, ruled by various kings and principalities for centuries, are now in the Bihar and Uttar Pradesh states of India.
I originally posted this article on United We Blog, but the site was hacked and my post disappeared shortly thereafter. However, it was apparently also chosen for the Demotix widget and appeared in websites for the Himalayan times and the London Telegraph as well as the websites outlined here:
By Neil Horning
On the way to Chorkate, Gorkha, about a 3 hour bus ride from the district headquarters, a conspicuous facility covered with red flags is noticeable by the roadside. Nammuna Agricultural Center is run by the United Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) as an agricultural cooperative, intended to teach agricultural skills and collective farming to locals and serve as a model for similar facilities nation wide. Dr. Baburam Bhattarai’s childhood village overlooks the center.
The cooperative raises buffalo and pigs, farms fish and grows rice and vegetables. According to members, Sarmila Bagle and Hari Khanal, 20-30 Maoist cadres work in the center, with locals (paid 100-400 Rupees or about $1.50 to $6.00 a day) comprising an additional half of the workforce. Gender balance rests at 50%. Cooking is done on a rotational basis involving both men and women, and decisions are made through semi-regular meetings of the members.
Agricultural cooperatives are the first step in a Maoist development strategy known as collectivization, in where the manpower from individual plots is pooled to increase efficiency of production. In China, first land titles were distributed to peasants as part of a land reform process. Next, peasants with individual plots were encouraged to voluntarily join agricultural cooperatives which were later combined into massive communes. The initial stages of this plan met with measured success, while the later stages during the great leap forward have been blamed for massive famines and are the subject of much controversy. Keep reading →
Neil Horning, an American, has been researching conflict in Nepal since 2003, and lived in the country on and off since 2005. He has interviewed leaders and combatants from the central committee to ground level of the Maoist Movement in both the course of the conflict and the current transition period.
