Political parties and peace-building in Nepal

March 19, 2006
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Instead of meaningless street protests that are not going to yield any substantial gain, political parties should change their role from challenger to the royalist government to facilitator encouraging all stakeholders to join the peace process

By Dr Shailendra Sigdel

Bitter Reality

Nepalis should feel ashamed of the fact that we are struggling to survive when two of our neighbours, India and China, are becoming the fastest growing economies in the world. Another neighbour, Bangladesh, is on track to achieve its Millennium Development Goals. And Pakistan has recorded an average of 6% GDP growth for the last couple of years.

Who is responsible for this sorry state of affairs in Nepal? We can partly put the blame on the present royalist regime, and also on the Maoist insurgency of the last ten years. However, the major culprits are the political parties who ran the country between 1990 and 2005. We should not forget the fact that our neighbors achieved significant development in those 15 years when political parties under the multi-party system were governing Nepal. Instead of achieving economic prosperity the political parties created an environment that fed the Maoist insurgency through corruption, bad governance and in-fighting among themselves. This also eventually created the scenario for the palace to meddle in the politics.

In the past, political parties (NC, UML and RPP) never attempted to work in harmony for the sake of the country while they were in power. While coming back from an international conference in the UK in 2001 I remember I had to walk from the airport to my house in Dhapasi because UML had called a three-day strike against the then Nepali Congress Prime Minister G P Koirala for the infamous Lauda scandal asking for his resignation. This was just one example of protests, boycotting of parliament, political party in-fighting, and countless bandhs and strikes that are still fresh in the minds of the silent majority of Nepalis.

When Nepal achieved democracy in 1990, political parties were not seriously concerned about the socio-economic transformation of the country. Their sole aim was to achieve power for power’s sake at any cost. In 15 years of parliamentary history, no government was able to complete its full term. There were 11 governments in a 13-year period. What does this indicate? This suggests nothing more than a hunger for power and the rewards of office.

The undemocratic character of the so-called democratic parties is known to those who are familiar with Nepali politics. Nepotism and favoritism have frustrated many sincere and hardworking party workers. Corruption has become a culture for political leaders with the exception of a few clean and committed ones. To date, parties have been slow in attracting talented minds in the political process both at the central and local levels. Political parties have become so polluted that there is virtually no possibility of co-opting talent from the wider society. This is a great loss to the nation and it appears that the political parties have not realised this.

Baseless Claim for Popular Support

The undemocratic character of the so-called democratic parties is known to those who are familiar with Nepali politics. Nepotism and favoritism have frustrated many sincere and hardworking party workers
The silent majority constitute the largest segment of the population. They are confused and baffled by the ongoing political drama in the country. Currently, it would be naive to assume that political parties still assume popular support in Nepal. They have considerably lost their credibility since 2001. I think this fact is also well known to political parties. In the absence of other alternatives in the past, people have by compulsion voted for the political parties. In reality people are sick of the current political parties and their non-performance. They are looking for some change in terms of approach and visionary leadership to take the country forward. Since there is little prospect of the emergence of visionary leaders from the current political parties, change may have to come through civil society or some radical parties. So dear leaders, please be prepared to face this bitter reality.

Restoring Parliament for What?

Even if the parliament is reinstated it is safe to assume that very little will happen in terms of change. Given the recent history, it is likely that all the sycophants who are close to party leaders will get into power. Once again they will start the process of plundering the already scarce resources of the country. The reinstatement of parliament is not going to solve the current problems. This has been aptly demonstrated in the past when democratically elected governments failed to start a meaningful dialogue with the Maoists. Therefore, political parties have to find new alternatives for promoting peace in the country.

Ways Forward for the Political Parties

Create a Conducive Environment for Dialogue

The time has now come for political parties to win the trust of the people. This can be done by creating a conducive environment for peace. They are now in a unique position to do this. Since the political parties have already started a dialogue with the Maoists this should be expanded. Added to this it should be noted that the King has also expressed his desire to start a dialogue with the political parties. Instead of asking the King to reinstate parliament, the political parties should act as a mediator between the King and the Maoist to facilitate a peace process. This would help them to restore their lost credibility. Trying to gain power again at this juncture would be detrimental for the political parties. The political parties and Maoists should agree on brokering peace in the country and not focus on doing away with monarchy. The decision regarding the political system for the country should rest with the people and should be managed by a neutral, highly respected and non-controversial personality.

Development should not be shut down in a conflict situation. Some mechanisms must be found by political parties to ensure that development at the national level continues even when the efforts to resolve the political crisis are underway.
Establish an Interim Government

Instead of meaningless street protests that are not going to yield any substantial gain, political parties should change their role from challenger to the royalist government to facilitators encouraging all stakeholder to join the peace process. They could take a lead role in the formation of a powerful interim government represented by all stakeholders including King, Maoists and political parties. All stakeholders would need to select clean, committed and visionary representatives to help form a new government of national unity focused on development. The time has come to show courage and to bypass the docile and aged leadership and recommend some neutral, committed and credible personalities to lead the interim government. By taking this route there could a chance to establish a peaceful settlement of all current political issues.

Carry Out Internal Reforms

Overhauling political party internal management and focusing on transparency and accountability is critical if credibility is to be restored. Political parties must develop their long term plans to focus on aspects of nation building. These should include effective and relevant policy making, implementation and evaluation, the ability to conduct sound foreign relations and its allied policies, the ability to attract the cream of the society into politics, and a strategic element for long term human resource development within the political parties. These basic ingredients for organisational success are currently missing in all major political parties in Nepal. And as of now, no one has given serious thought to this.

Senior leaders must ready to give power to a new and younger generation. They should learn lesson from the likes of the dignified Nelson Mandela who gave up power in his prime for the long-term benefit of his country. The craving for power among the elder political leaders is very difficult to understand. Great leaders are remembered for the sacrifice they have made for the country, not by how many times they became a minister or prime minister. Dignity is a foreign word for our political leaders.

Implement Social Development Programmes

We are all aware that main sufferers of the present stalemate are the poor. It is mainly the poor who are dying in the conflict. It is the poor who are displaced. And it is the poor who need the benefits of development programmes. Time has come therefore to forge an understanding among all democratic forces that the welfare of the poor must not be sacrificed whilst debating the political system of the country. The time has now come to have a common understanding for the implementation of programmes that will benefit the poor. Development should not be shut down in a conflict situation. Some mechanisms must be found by political parties to ensure that development at the national level continues even when the efforts to resolve the political crisis are underway.

(Currently based in Thailand, Dr Sigdel is governance and capacity building specialist. Please send your comments to [email protected] or [email protected])

(Editor’s Note: Nepalis, wherever they live, as well as friends of Nepal around the globe are requested to contribute their views/opinions/recollections etc. on issues concerning present day Nepal to the Guest Column of Nepalnews. Length of the article should not be more than 1,000 words and may be edited for the purpose of clarity and space. Relevant photos as well as photo of the author may also be sent along with the article. Please send your write-ups to [email protected])