This transitional parliament must hit the ground running
By CK Lal
On Thursday, the raw energy of slogan-shouting demonstrations attracted three-year-old Arambha of Kuleswor. He insisted to be taken to the andolan. And off he went to the curfew carnival on the shoulders of his proud cousin. When he came back, he was all excitement. “I saw fire, I saw an uprising,” shouted the little boy. Nepal’s future leaders better beware of Arambha in 15 year’s time. Those who see the flames of uprising firsthand never forget its intensity.
When King Birendra bowed down to People’s Movement and announced restoration of the multi-party system on the night of 9 April 1990, firecrackers went off in every neighbourhood. Spontaneously people lit candles and earthen lamps to greet a democratic dawn in the dead of the night. Conch shells boomed and temple bells rang when King Gyanendra admitted on Monday night that his autocratic adventures had come unstuck and an unconditional acceptance of the roadmap prepared by the seven-party alliance was his last chance to save the institution of monarchy.
The palace secretariat, the Raj Parishad and the Royal Nepali Army will now have to be kept under intense public scrutiny. Since the Narayanhiti Massacre, these institutions haven’t exactly covered themselves with glory.
Restoration of democracy was certainly the rallying cry of People’s Movement II, but the motive force of the uprising was the hope of the resolution of the Maoist insurgency. Peace-building has to be the primary agenda of the transitional parliament reconvening on Friday afternoon in Singha Darbar.
Resolving longstanding conflicts in countries torn asunder by armed insurgency and ruthless counter-insurgency is challenging even in normal times, and these are not normal times for Nepal. Four years of royal rule have all but destroyed the national economy. The diplomatic debacle suffered by palace propagandists has sullied the image of the country in the community of nations. Rapid militarisation has sapped the morale of the police force. Rampant politicisation has crippled civil administration and society stands deeply divided, dangerously polarised.
The shady reputation of some of the lawmakers sitting in the reconvened parliament makes their task doubly difficult: they will be considered guilty until proven innocent as they pave the way to elections for a constituent assembly. During the transition, MPs have to ensure that an all-party government does all it can to deliver development and peace through good governance.
Parliament must hit the ground running, and mainstreaming the Maoists tops the national agenda. It will not be possible to write a new constitution without bringing the insurgents on board. No less important is the task of democratising parliamentary parties. If main parties continue with their waywardness, Maoists will sweep the constituent assembly polls even if the arms of the security forces and rebels are taken care of under the terms of a reliable international guarantee.
Formation of a high-level commission for truth and reconciliation is another important task. The excesses of some of the officers of security forces upon peaceful protesters made their own former officers hang their heads in shame. The constitution has no provision for forced exile or capital punishment, but some form of prosecution is necessary to deter responsible officers of the state from descending into lawlessness in future.
The secretariat may have to be reduced and the Raj Parishad dissolved forthwith. But the RNA will have an even more important role to play in a functioning democracy and it needs to be thoroughly overhauled and reformed for a different kind of function: security and service of the people rather than the royal family.
These are staggering responsibilities for a frail octogenarian thrust upon by destiny to correct the course of a careening country. But Girija Prasad Koirala must succeed if he is to redeem himself and find a place in the history that the children of Arambha’s generation will write and read. In the agora of time, Koirala is all set to enter what may prove to be his last show: a barefoot walk on the embers of an autocratic monarchy. Four generations of Nepalis are watching. He must not fail this time.
(Courtesy: Nepali Times)
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