Global Voices » Bhumika Ghimire

Nepal: Will The New Prime Minister Be Any Different?

Bhumika Ghimire — Thu, 01 Sep 2011 09:39:09 +0000

Nepal has been on a rollercoaster ride since the 2008 Constituent Assembly elections. Public verdict on political leadership was fractured - the Maoists emerged as the largest party, but far from a secure majority. Establishment parties such as Nepali Congress, Nepal Communist Party (United Marxist and Leninist) (UML) were severely restricted and regional parties managed to secure only some seats; this weakened traditional power bases and created forced alliances.

As a result the country has had three Prime Ministers in last four years and the promised new Constitution is nowhere near completion.

Lack of stable leadership and constant struggle amongst the parties have affected Nepal's young democracy and the country has a new leader, yet again. Senior Maoist leader Dr. Baburam Bhattarai was sworn in as Nepal's 34th Prime Minister last week. United We Blog for Democratic Nepal commented on Dr. Bhattarai's election and noted that unlike past leaders, he has support from across the political spectrum:

People across the political divide have supported BRB for the for prime minister mainly because of his impressive performance as finance minister in Prachanda cabinet and because of his liberal, intellectual image that has made him darling of media and middle class.

The news of his election aroused largely positive feelings at Twitter too. Anil Ghimire at Aakar Post has compiled reactions from Nepali twitter users.

Prime Minister Dr. Baburam Bhattarai. Image by Krish Dulal. (CC BY -SA 3.0)

During his tenure as Finance Minister, Dr. Bhattarai solidified his position among the cash-strapped Nepali public when he decided to forgo expensive foreign cars for cost-effective “made in Nepal” vehicles.

Journalist Benjamin Graham noted in his blog:

Never has a simple SUV attracted as much attention as did the four-door Mustang Max that drove through the streets of Kathmandu, Nepal on Monday. Riding in the vehicle was Nepal’s newly elected Prime Minister, Dr. Baburam Bhattarai, who chose to drive the Nepali-made car to his swearing-in ceremony and his new office at Singha Durbar, Nepal’s parliamentary building. Bhattarai’s choice of transportation breaks a long standing tradition among Nepali Prime Ministers, who usually opt for expensive, foreign-made luxury autos.

The discreet SUV, which lacks air-conditioning and power windows, much less bullet-proof glass, brought crowds of interested citizens to the streets and caused a firestorm of chatter on social networking sites.

But not everyone is impressed. Former Assistant Secretary-General of the United Nations and noted Nepali intellectual Kul Chandra Gautam says that Bhattarai's overly ideological stance does not inspire confidence in his government:

But Bhattarai also carries a baggage as a dour and dogmatic ideologue. While recently he has tried to brand himself as a progressive moderate who stands for peace, democracy and constitution, he has not hesitated to make strategic alliances with leaders of the most hard-line faction of the UCPN-Maoist. Whether he can liberate himself from the clutches of the hardliners, and rise above his own Leninist opportunism, will determine his success and, to some extent, the future direction of the country.

Crimes committed during the Maoist insurgency may come back to haunt the new Prime Minister. NepalNews.com reports that a group of noted human rights activists and intellectuals has released a statement denouncing the Maoist proposal to grant mass amnesty for crimes committed during the insurgency:

We condemn the Maoist party's proposal to withdraw and cancel all court cases regarding crimes committed during the conflict, and to provide general amnesty to those who have been found guilty by the courts. This proposal of the Maoist party goes against all national responsibilities under the Comprehensive Peace Agreement, the Interim Constitution and international humanitarian law,” a statement signed by 13 members of the group said.

No doubt the new Prime Minister faces steep challenges. But he has shown skills by mixing in populist moves to strengthen his position. If he can keep his coalition partners and party hardliners happy, and create a workable environment within the government, he might just break the cycle of disappointments.

Nepal: Social Media As A Civic Activism Tool

Bhumika Ghimire — Wed, 18 May 2011 19:01:09 +0000

Following events in the Middle East and in India, where young people harnessed the power of social media to achieve civic goals, Nepali youngsters concerned about the country's political chaos are eagerly embracing this technology.

On Saturday May 7, 2011, hundreds gathered at a public square in Kathmandu demanding that the constitution be drafted by the May 28 deadline. This event was unique to Nepali activism and political scene because social networking site Facebook played vital role in organizing and encouraging the participants.

Human chain by Nepali protesters. Image courtesy Nepal Diary.

Pradeep Kumar Singh at NepaliBlogger said that this new approach towards activism and organizing is certainly a path-breaking event for Nepal.

I am not sure how many of you among nine thousands that responded to attend this (Come on Youth, Stand Up!) event on Facebook actually went for this event, but still this was definitely a huge one! Nepali Youths organized a peace rally in Kathmandu, today to pressurize the leaders to give full commitment to the constitution writing process and to aware every youth (sic) to raise voice against every misdeed of the leaders.

NepalUnites organized the protest rally. Unlike traditional brick and mortar groups which function offline through traditional communication medium and have still not integrated social media into their operation, NepalUnites is very active at Facebook,Twitter and YouTube. This has helped them reach youth audience, in Nepal and also among non-resident Nepali communities.

Lex Limbu, a full time student who blogs mostly about culture and music, is organizing a similar event in London along with Pradeep Kumar Singh. Under the banner of Nepal Unites London, they are organizing a protest meet on May 27 in front of the Nepali Embassy in London.

If you at home wish to take part in this then please don't think twice and just come and attend the event. While you're at it, why not come with some home-made posters and banners with simple slogans and message's urging the government to ‘Act Up' or ‘No Work, No Pay'.

We love to complain about the situation in Nepal, blame our politicians and the political frame so I hope all those people who actively blame can take a break from blaming from home but join us - to be a bigger force, to unite and send the message back home. At the end, we shall hand over a letter to the embassy.

Image courtesy Nepal Diary.

While these events are getting positive coverage in the Nepali and international mainstream media, some are not amused. At Mysansar, a popular Nepali blog, Deepak Aryal compared the youngsters who organized and participated in the rally as “fraudsters”:

आफूमात्र ठीक र राम्रो देख्‍दै सभ्यता, इमान्दारिता वा नैतिकता र सदाचारको ढोंग रचेर हामीहरूले अरूलाई गाली गर्न सक्छौं र गरिरहेका छौं, तर हामीले आफ्नो उत्तरदायित्व कति निभाएका छौं? हामी कति इमान्दार र कति ठीक छौं? त्यो कसले जाँच्ने हो? त्यसको वारेमा कसले फेसबुकमा आन्दोलन गरिदिने हो? माथिल्लो क्लासका मान्छेलाई फेसबुकमा अरूलाई गाली गर्न र सुझाव दिन फुर्सद छैन अनि तल्लो वर्गलाई त्यसमाथिको पहुँच छैन।

We believe that only we are correct and good, and we create illusion of honesty and ethics to bad mouth others; but how many of our responsibilities have we actually fulfilled? How honest and correct are we? Who is going to judge that? Who is going to fight for that at Facebook? The upper class is busy bad mouthing others and doling out advices at Facebook, but the lower class has cannot access it.

Aryal views the Facebook revolt phenomena as part of class wars going on in Nepali society. C K Lal, a prominent columnist, echoed similar sentiments through his column at My Republica. His assertion that the protesting youth somehow mirrored Kathmandu's feared gang members has raised many eyebrows.

It was a motley crowd of about hundred to two hundred youngsters. Most of them were in trendy slacks and t-shirts. One demonstrator had made up his hairs to resemble the famed mane of late-lamented Satya Sai Baba (May his soul rest in peace) and apparently did not believe in shouting slogans. Cheerleaders of the rally appeared to be mostly UML-types: The kind who are protected and patronized by Chakre Milan and Dinesh Adhikari Chari, the Marxist-Leninist strongmen of Kathmandu valley.

Judging the vastly different reaction to the Facebook organized rally, it is clear that a tussle inspired by cold war era views on class war, is underway in Nepal. The dislike that Facebook is receiving from a section of Nepali society is not just antagonism towards technology, it represents deeper dissatisfaction towards the perceived class rift.

Nepal: Frustrated Undercurrents

Bhumika Ghimire — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 22:11:58 +0000

Last week, Nepal's Finance Secretary Rameshwor Khanal was apparently forced to resign. Known for his straight forward working style and exemplary work ethnic, the news of his departure came as a surprise to many.

Chandan Sapkota, who works for Kathmandu based economic think tank says that Khanal's decision to leave the office was not voluntary:

Rameshore Khanal, an honest civil servant working as finance secretary of Nepal, resigned due to undue pressure from Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Bharat Mohan Adhikary and his cronies (including businessmen who were about to be charged for tax evasion). God knows how much Adhikary and the political parties are being paid by the crooked businessmen to oust Khanal from the finance ministry. This is corruption and dirty lobbying at its height. The morale of civil servants will further go down. The optimal solution right now is to take moral responsibility by Adhikary, resign immediately, and recall Khanal without any preconditions.

Nepali Flags on display and for sale in Basantpur Durbar Square. Image by Sharad Aryal, copyright Demotix (24/03/11).

Khanal now has a Facebook fan page whose only demand is resignation of Finance Minister Bharat Mohan Adhikary. Commentators have posted congratulatory messages praising Khanal for his stand up behaviour and are questioning Finance Minister Adhikari's style of working and his associations.

Screenshot of Rameshwor Khanals' Facebook Fan Page.

One of the persistent questions on Minister Adhikari's associations stems from his proximity with prominent industrialist Binod Chaudhary.

At Mysansar, the speculation is that Binod Chaudhary, along with number of major industrialists share the blame for Rameshwor Khanal's resignation.

“नक्कली भ्याट बिल बनाएर राष्ट्रको राजस्व छल्नेहरुसँग १ अर्ब ३५ करोड रुपैयाँ कर असुल्ने तयारी गरिरहँदा चौधरी ग्रुप सहितका व्यापारिक घरानाको दवाबमा अर्थसचिव बदल्ने खेल भएपछि अर्थसचिव रामेश्वर खनालले राजिनामा गरेका छन्। “

“Khanal was working on taking action against tax dodgers who scammed the government out of 1 billion and 35 million by creating fake VAT bills. Behind the scenes Chaudhury Group along with number of prominent business groups worked on removing Khanal from his position, which forced him to resign.”

Allegation of corruption, alleged role of the Finance Minister and accusations of influence peddling are now galvanizing public anger against the government. There are calls being made for grass roots level campaign to keep civil servants safe from political meddling. At Twitter and on the blogosphere, some young people have already started organizing.

Blogger Ushaft is now leading the call for more youth lead direct action in cleaning up Nepal's work place environment. He is one of the more active members of Nepali “tweeps” who meet on weekends to discuss Nepal's current situation and how a citizen lead civil vigilance movement could benefit the country.

At his blog, he has posted a detailed plan of action for Nepali bloggers and organizers to actually make an impact on the country's politics, on behalf of the frustrated mass. It is interesting to note here that he refers to recent events in the Middle East and says that citizen action can lead to fundamental transformation.

“Well, here’s an opportunity to try to change things a bit.

We might be unsuccessful, but we might gain some momentum, create a critical mass of people for some similar incident in the future, or achieve some other nice goals on the way. We should not forget that people coming together on the internet social networks have achieved wonderful things in the recent times (read Middle East, Wikileaks etc). Let’s aim in bringing the Secretary back to his office and creating an environment where he can work independently and in his full capacity. Let’s hope that we’ll succeed in teaching the politicians a lesson and that they do not dare to do similar things in the future.”

Krishna H Pushkar at Nepal Officers Blog writes:

We want Mr. Rameshwar Khanal back as finance secretary, though we know that probably he is not coming to rejoin the resigned post.

Adding an interesting spin on the scandal, Binod Chaudhury today published an op-ed at Kantipur Nepali Daily. He completely disassociates himself with the Finance Secretary resignation and also the allegations of tax dodging.

As the public anger gather momentum and the pressure on the government grows, it is clear that Nepali politics has entered a new era where the people are not satisfied just reading about the government's affairs. They are also fed up with the politicization of scandals. With the new technology, people are now organizing and making their voices heard in an clear, peaceful way without any political interference.

Comparing Nepal's Growth Rate With India and China

Bhumika Ghimire — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 21:41:49 +0000

Chandan Sapkota, a researcher at a Kathmandu based think tank compares Nepal's growth rate with neighbors India and China. He discuses Nepal's growing trade deficit and also its over reliance on India for imports.

Nepal: Photo blog of Americans in Kathmandu

Bhumika Ghimire — Tue, 15 Mar 2011 20:10:08 +0000

Ralph and Irene, photo blog of two Americans living in Kathmandu, profiles Nepal's holiest shrine-Pashupatinath Temple. The pictures present a different side of Kathmandu, far from the usual tourist attractions and the ubiquitous mountains.

Equal Representation And Nepali Beauty Pageants

Bhumika Ghimire — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 05:27:44 +0000

Blogger Nepali comments on the mushrooming culture of caste and ethnicity based beauty pageants in Nepal and what this trend means for equal rights and representation.

Nepal's stalled revolution

Bhumika Ghimire — Wed, 23 Feb 2011 21:13:52 +0000

Thom Brooks, Reader in Political and Legal Philosophy at Newcastle University, comments on Nepal's interesting embrace of communism while the rest of the world increasingly views the ideology as failed.

Nepal: Parliament Finally Elects A Prime Minister

Bhumika Ghimire — Wed, 09 Feb 2011 09:33:15 +0000

After months of infighting, bickering and a record setting 17 attempts, Nepal finally has elected a Prime Minister. Jhala Nath Khanal, leader of the Communist Party of Nepal (United Marxist and Leninist), was sworn in on Sunday, at a ceremony in capital Kathmandu. Although not known for his charisma or leadership ability, Mr. Khanal has certainly raised hopes for many who viewed chaos and confusion of past seven months as a serious impediment to Nepal's fragile peace process.

Prime Minister Jhala Nath Khanal taking oath of office. Image by Wikimedia user Krish Dulal, used under CC license.

Surya B.Prasai at American Chronicle is one among the hopefuls. He is confident that:

” …the peace process will now come to a definite conclusion in the next few months, Nepal´s democratic credentials further consolidated, and aid from the donor community channeled properly to the underprivileged communities in Nepal where it matters most. Recently the UN´s Resident Coordinator in Nepal, Richard Piper had lamented that development had been relegated to the position of a second class citizen in Nepali political dialogue. “

Despite the optimism and a chance for fresh start, there are significant roadblocks on Mr. Kahanl's path. He cannot ignore Nepal's power crisis which has severely crippled the country's economy and industries. China Dialogue has Deepak Adhikari's in-depth analysis of the energy drought.

“With winter in full swing, the spectre of planned power cuts, euphemistically called “load shedding”, is haunting Nepal's electricity consumers. The country’s citizens dread this time of year, which not only brings the Himalayan chill but also the inevitable power shortages, beginning in October to November and continuing until the monsoon arrives in June or July. By February the cuts are expected to intensify to 16 hours a day.”

Capital Kathmandu is already suffering through 14 hours of daily power cuts. Jhala Nath Khanal's government will have to find a solution to the energy crisis before the frustration on the streets boils over.

As a communist leader, Khanal refused to take oath of office in name of God and some are calling him a hypocrite for this. Blogger Umesh Shrestha at MySansar asks:

“तर शपथ ग्रहण गर्दा त्यही ईश्वरको नाममा शपथ लिन चाहिँ तपाईँ किन अघि सर्नुभएन। यदि तपाईँ ईश्वरलाई नमान्ने कम्युनिस्ट हुनुहुन्छ भने बालुवाटार प्रवेश गर्नुअघि चाहिँ किन ईश्वरको चित्र भएको कपडा घाँटीमा भिरेर पूजाआजा गर्नुहुन्छ ? किन यो दोहोरो मापदण्ड ?”

But you did not take oath of office in name of God. If you are a communist and don't believe in God, why did you organize a religious ceremony before entering the official Prime Minister's residence? Why the double standard?

Will the Gods be irked too? That is for future to reveal but Khanal's term could be yet another missed opportunity if he cannot manage fixing the energy crisis and get the peace process moving.

Nepal: A Traveler's Critique

Bhumika Ghimire — Tue, 25 Jan 2011 04:08:42 +0000

Andrew Hyde, an American traveler blogs about a different kind of Nepal, far from the notion of Shangri-La most people fantasize about. He describes the country's grinding poverty, alarmingly high pollution in the capital Kathmandu and the sad reality of child labor. Certainly not something the Government included in its official promotions for Visit Nepal 2011 campaign.

Nepal: Miss America To The Rescue

Bhumika Ghimire — Tue, 11 Jan 2011 21:46:20 +0000

Laura Agustín at The Naked Anthropologist , writes about the efforts of Miss Michigan Katie LaRoche, a participant in the Miss America pageant, to rescue victims of sex trafficking in Nepal. LaRoche has launched her own organization One World.One Future to raise awareness against trafficking and slavery.

Debating Animal Cruelty During Nepal's Dashain Festival

Bhumika Ghimire — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 18:56:01 +0000

Hindu goddess Durga. Photo by Christina Kundu, Wikimedia Commons.

Dashain, Nepal's most widely celebrated festival, will conclude this year on October 22, Friday. The fifteen day long celebration honors the goddess Durga; who is symbol of power, prosperity, motherly love and also destruction of the evil.

Nepalese around the world celebrate Dashain with gusto as it brings communities and families together. But, lately this beloved holiday has been criticized for a number of reasons but mainly animal cruelty.

As goddess Durga is worshiped as symbol of power and also destroyer of evil, during Dashain animal sacrifice is practiced in temples across Nepal. The sacrifice symbolizes destruction of evil, and devotees hope that it pleases the goddess.

Last year, various groups organized rallies and public meetings urging people to stop sacrificing animals in name of religion. Global Voices covered this in a post titled Towards a More Humane Dashain Festival .

Unfortunately, the practice still continues and this year's Dashain festival too saw numerous animal sacrifices across the country.

Laura Goldman at Change.org suggests that devotees should “Sacrifice Pumpkins, Not Buffalo, During Nepal's Dashain Festival”:

“…Animal Welfare Network Nepal (AWNN) has a better idea for a kinder, gentler puja. Why not slaughter a pumpkin instead of a buffalo? A coconut instead of a goat? It would still get the point across, but be much more humane (and less gruesome).

The network began its Stop Animal Sacrifice campaign earlier this year during the Gadhimai festival in Bara, when 200,000 animals were sacrificed within the span of 24 hours.”

Some are also pointing to the scriptures and calling on devotees that animal sacrifice is not in accordance to the Hindu principles.

AnimalRights Nepal says that the goddess who is symbol of motherly love cannot be appeased by animal sacrifice, as she would be witnessing her own creatures being killed.

“According to Hindu religious texts regarding animal rights, nothing is mentioned of animal sacrifice to appease Gods and Goddesses, who would never approve their own creatures being slaughtered in their name. Human beings are killing those innocent creatures for their own selfish motive. It is against Hindu religion and way of life, in reality. The respect that must exist for fellow living creatures must be maintained.”

Interestingly, the debate over animal sacrifice during Dashain is a major issue only within Nepal. Nepalese celebrating Dashain overseas are mostly silent on this, mostly because practicing animal sacrifice outside Nepal-especially in Europe and North America is not part of Dashain celebrations.

In spite of controversy over animal sacrifice and growing international media attention over it, Dashain still hold a very special place in hearts and minds of Nepalese all around the world.

Dashain Tika. Image by Flickr user Doll Damned. CC BY-NC-ND

In Afghanistan, British Gurkha troops celebrated Dashain the traditional way, with customary tika (made from vermilion powder, yougurt and rice grains) and blessing from the elders.

“The Gurkhas set-up a small temple in each of their Patrol Bases for weekly worship and blessings. In August the Battalion Pundit (Hindu Chaplain) visited the Gurkhas in Nahr-e Saraj, holding temple services and blessing each soldier with a tikka (red dot on the
forehead).

During the Dashain festival, offerings of fruit are placed in the temples and services held each morning for the soldiers. Many Gurkhas are seen with red tikkas during Dashain – blessings for safety and prosperity as they approach the end of their operational tour and
return home to their families.”

In culturally mixed families too, Dashain is celebrated with excitement. An American engaged to a Nepalese, writes in her blog AmericaNepali about the experience of observing the festival.

As with any religious observation, Dashain also comes with its own set of moral and ethical challenges, but we cannot ignore the immense joy and richness these observations bring to us while we deal with the challenges.

Nepal's Leadership Vacuum: No End in Sight

Bhumika Ghimire — Mon, 04 Oct 2010 19:04:31 +0000

The Coat of arms of Nepal. Image Courtesy Wikipedia

Last Friday (October 1, 2010) the ninth bid in Nepal's parliament to elect a Prime Minister failed. This prolongs the country's political crisis which began with the resignation of Prime Minster Madhav Kumar Nepal on the 30th of June.

The sole candidate during the ninth cycle, Ram Chandra Poudel of the Nepali Congress Party, managed to get only 105 votes, far from securing a majority in 601 member parliament. He has vowed not to withdraw his candidacy. The tenth cycle of elections will be held later this month.

This state of leadership vacuum and lack of direction in government is negatively affecting Nepal's already weak economy and also impeding constitution writing process. Even at the lowest level governance is broken, Martin Searle at Policy Innovations notes that:

“Nepal has had six constitutions over the last six decades. Its latest attempt to reconstitute itself follows a civil war that lasted from 1996 to 2006 between the Maoists and the state. During this time, the Maoists took over effective control of vast swaths of the country, expelling the state and administering government themselves. Despite the end of hostilities and entry of the Maoists into mainstream politics in the 2008 election (in which they gained an overwhelming majority), the ineffectiveness of the state is still manifested in many areas.

The UN's chosen proxy for state reach—the presence of Village Development Committee (VDC) secretaries—shows that as of December 2009 only 42 percent of VDCs have a full-time VDC secretary present in the duty station, and 39 percent of VDC secretaries are either partially present or providing services from district headquarters. “

From the outside it seems like Nepal's chaos is getting out of hand. But not every one is alarmed by the slow disintegration of governance in the country. Eurasia Review, commenting on the latest report from the International Crisis Group, says that Nepal is “in the midst of a complex rite of passage”:

“Nepal’s transition from war to peace appears chaotic. But the country is not in chaos; its transition may be messy and confusing but it is not anarchic. There is an order within the political change and the resilience of Nepal’s political processes acts against fundamental transformations.

“The shift from war to peace was rapid and remains incomplete”, says Jacob Rinck, Crisis Group’s South Asia Analyst. “But the peace process is much stronger than it often seems”.”

Rajan Koirala at Prout Journal, however, disagrees that Nepal's transition is on track. He notes that the country's ambitious “Visit Nepal 2011″ program which aims to boost Nepal's image as an ultimate travel destination around the world, is seriously falling behind because of the leadership vacuum at the highest level of the government.

Nepal - Island Peak - Impressive glacier icefall below peak, Image by Flickr user mckaysavage used under CC Attribution 2.0 Generic License

Frustration among the public is understandable, but in all honesty, a Prime Minister is not going to be the magical fix Nepal has been hoping for. Anup Kaphle at Pulitzer Center for Crisis Reporting notes the reality,

“But even if Nepal succeeds in electing a new prime minister tomorrow, he will confront the challenge of rallying a country in a serious political deadlock. Add to that the integration and rehabilitation of some 19,600 former Maoist combatants who are now living inside cantonments throughout the country, among the most daunting tasks Nepal has faced since the war ended in 2006.”

After three months of confusion and lack of direction, you cannot blame the people who are hoping for a fix-it-all leader, they are just being honest.

Nepal: Leadership Vacuum Continues

Bhumika Ghimire — Fri, 13 Aug 2010 19:15:45 +0000

More than a month after the resignation of Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal, the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal is still without a leader. Four rounds of elections have failed to produce a clear winner, another round is scheduled for August 18th.

Madhav Kumar Nepal. Image by Flickr user izahorski, used under CC license BY-NC-ND

Animesh Roul at MacArthur Foundation's Asia Security Initiative blog says that the fifth round of elections is not expected to work out a breakthrough.

“There is no sight of either a consensus PM or PM elected by the simple majority unless the major parties forge a consensus, which is very unlikely at this moment. As rightly pointed by Madhav Kumar Nepal, there is a bleak chance in the fifth round also as the differences between competing parties are still persisting. Unfortunately, each party is trying to become winner. Now, it seems the caretaker government will continue for some more time. At this moment only two political parties can bring some kind of respite to this political deadlock in Nepal: The Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist Leninist (CPN-UML) and the United Democratic Madhesi Front, an alliance of four Madhes based parties. Although Madhesi are willing to vote for Prachanda, they cannot do that because some external forces are influencing their decision against that. And the UML is adamant on its demand of forming a National Consensus Government. And most importantly, Maoists are also not serious about the government formation. It seems delay and political instability benefits them.”

The current environment of convoluted political deal making and ideology inspired selfishness among major political parties was further complicated when neighboring India sent its special enjoy Shyam Saran to Kathmandu.

Sharan, a former Indian Ambassador to Nepal, was widely criticized during his tenure for allegedly meddling in country's affairs and crossing the diplomatic line. Now that New Delhi has sent him to Kathmandu as “Mr. Fixit”, the Maoists and the right wing nationalists have found strong ammunition to block any proposal from the Nepali Congress and Communist Party (United Marxist and Leninist) - who are seen as favoring Sharan's visit.

Bloggers are also questioning whether India can send an envoy to discuss Nepal internal sensitive matter, without being invited. At Nepali language blog MySansar, Deepak says,

“शरण यसरी आउन मिल्छ कि मिल्दैन। धेरैले शरणलाई माओवादी र तत्कालिन सात दलबीचको भारतको राजधानी दिल्लीमा १२ बुँदे सहमति हुँदा सहजीकरण गरेका व्यक्ति भनी प्रचार गरेका छन्। त्रिभुवन विमानस्थलमा बुधबार अपराह्न उत्रिएलगत्तै भारतीय प्रधानमन्त्री मनमोहन सि‌हको विशेष दूत भएर आएको शरणले गर्वसाथ बताएका थिए। तर कुनै पनि देशको आन्तरिक मामिलामा त्यो देशले नबोलाईकन विदेशबाट विशेष दूत आउन मिल्ने हो कि होइन? भन्नेमा चर्चा हुन आवश्यक छ। यदी कसैले बोलाएको हो भने; कसले बोलाएको हो? उसले प्रष्ट पार्नुपर्यो। यदी होइन भने हाम्रा नेताहरुले हामी आँफै मिल्न सक्छौं तपाइको आवश्यकता छैन भनिदिए कति राम्रो हुन्थ्यो होला।”

“Can Sharan come to Nepal as an envoy? Many have credited Sharan for facilitating peace agreement between then Seven Party coalition government and the Maoists. After arriving in Kathmandu on Wednesday he proudly stated that he is Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's special envoy. But can a foreign government send an envoy to its neighbor to discuss internal matters, without being asked first? There needs to be a debate over this question. If someone invited Sharan, then who is it? That has to be explained. If not then our leaders should say that they can work on the matters themselves and Sharan's help is not needed.”

Gyanendra, ex King of Nepal. Image by Flickr user izahorski, used under CC license BY-NC-ND

Royalists are also making hay of the situation and demanding that Monarchy should be reinstated to combat against Indian meddling and influence. Anil Bhakta Kharel at Hamro Blog says that it is time to reinstate the monarchy which at least tried to resist foreign influence:

“नेपालको सन्दर्भमा २४० वर्षदेखि शाहवंशले नेपालरुपी घर विग्रन–भत्कन दिएको थिएन। जस्तोसुकै अप्ठ्यारा परिस्थितिमा पनि आफ्नो स्वाभिमान बचाईराखेको थियो। राष्ट्रद्रोहीले भारतमा गएर नाकाबन्दी लगाउन लगाए पनि नेपाली जनतालाई जहाजमा तेल र खाद्यान्न पदार्थ ओसारेर खुवाएकै थिए। जनतासामु झुक्ने तर विदेशीको पाउ कहिल्यै नमोल्ने राजसंस्था जनतासामु झुक्यो। तर नेपाली जनताले त्यस्तो राजसंस्थालाई अझै चिन्न सकेका छैनन।”

“In Nepal's context, for 240 years the Shah dynasty did not allow Nepal to disintegrate. Even in difficult situations, the dynasty preserved national dignity. Even when anti-national elements made India close the borders, they brought food and oil for the people through the ships. The dynasty that never bowed down to foreign influence bowed down to the people. But the Nepalese people still have not recognized the true value of the institution.”

As the Maoist and royalists are using the current political crisis to further their agenda and gain mileage, Nepal's economy and law and order situation continues to slide down. Nepal's biggest holiday Dashin is just round the corner. Hopefully, the people will have something to celebrate by then.

Nepal: Financial Fraud

Bhumika Ghimire — Fri, 28 May 2010 14:26:25 +0000

Muse Nepal discusses about Nepal's largest financial fraud, where Unity Life International is accused of swindling billions of Nepali rupees through illegal ponzi-scheme.

Nepal: Maoist Lead Strike Paralyzes The Country

Bhumika Ghimire — Fri, 07 May 2010 14:21:59 +0000

On the 1st of May, International Labor Day, Maoists in Nepal launched a nation wide indefinite protest demanding the current government be dissolved and the constitution writing process be re-launched in the earnest.

Strike in Nepal. Picture from Flickr by user Nepaliaashish, posted under Creative Commons License.

As a guest blogger for LarryJhonsonOnline, Nepali blogger and journalist Deepak Adhikari says that the ongoing Maoist lead protest and several preceding protests are a direct result of growing frustration among the people over the current situation of the country. He questions the commitment of the current government to completing the constitution in time, and wonders whether the Maoists are concerned about the regular citizens suffering due to their nation wide protest.

The protest has been largely peaceful so far, but for people the closure of businesses, banks, schools and public transportation has brought hardship - as this video posted at United We Blog for Democratic Nepal shows.

Shreedeep Rayamajhi at GroundReport says that as the protest is entering its fifth day, people are increasingly getting anxious over scarcity of daily necessities.

“The strike certainly seemed to be going in a peaceful way but with the prolonging issues of scarcity and lack of resources it can be ascertained that Maoist supporters are losing their interest. Likewise, numerous cases of Maoist supporter falling ill have been reported where hundreds of the protesters have fled the strike program and returned home looking at the bad management”

Anger among the people over the protest is growing. Blogger Murchunga at YouTube questions the effectiveness and purpose of the Maoist lead protest.

“Protesting leaders become ministers in new government tomorrow…will make fortunes for themselves. The cycle will repeat again when incumbents come to streets tomorrow. While people go home and continue living the same life.”

At Nepali language blog MySansar, Umesh Shrestha has pictures and videos of protest events organized by the Maoists around capital Kathmandu. The pictures show a disturbing practice by the Maoists-using children in the events. Although many child rights organizations have called on the Maoists not to involve children in their political events. However, the call has so far been ignored.

Children are caught in the middle, not only are they being used as props during Maoist political events, they are also unable to attend school because of the protest. More than 8,000 schools across Nepal are closed.

Tourism, the pillar of the Nepalese economy, has also suffered because of the protests. Tourists are now being evacuated from Kathmandu. At PaintDifferent - a blog for twelve artists, blogger Megan writes about her friends who are stuck in Nepal because of the protests.

“Nepal started evacuating tourists using buses escorted by armed police officers yesterday. Sadly, Rob and Paul weren't on a bus and are still stuck where they are. The airport is still open, all be it 140 miles and about 5 hours by car from where they are, but EVERYTHING else is shut down. Needless to say, they’re ready to come safely home and start importing their pictures before things get worse.”

The effect of Maoist lead protest on the already suffering Nepalese economy is on the mind of Chandan Sapkota - a junior fellow for Trade, Equity & Development Program at Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. At Twitter, he commented “the Maoists are ruining the economy. Their protest look like a combo of Thai-kyrgyz protest strategy.”

As the debate over the purpose of the Maoist lead protest and its effect on Nepal's uncertain political scene drags on, the public is feeling the protest's pinch and is desperately hoping for a peaceful solution to the current crises.