HELLO NEPAL

The Kathmandu Post 27 February 2015 POLITICAL DEADLOCK  It was not surprising to the read the news report ‘Talks in peril as no side gives in’(February 18, Page 1) at a time when the opposition is flexing its political muscle through mass demonstrations which could be detrimental for both the sides. This could further fuel political mistrust and push the country further towards political uncertainty. So far, parties have not even publicly apologised for their failure to draft a new constitution within the January 22 deadline. Unless they rise above their petty political interests, parties cannot forge consensus on major issues of the constitution. And why can’t major political parties be sincere and responsible towards the nation instead of allowing external forces to suggest them on what they should be doing? It is the prime responsibility of the ruling parties to create a conducive environment and bring the opposition on board. However, having said tha...

The Kathmandu Post 6 th February 2015 WRONG APPROACH It was very interesting to go through the article (“The next frontier” 4 February, Page 6) by Santosh Gautam & Purna Bahadur Thapa. If we talk about the development programme in Nepal, we take this as the donor driven development agenda. This may be right to a certain extent. However, while contemplating my many years of involvement in bilateral projects, I never felt that they were donor-driven projects. Vision, objectives and outputs of the development programme used to be set in a participatory manner targeting benefits for the maximum number of groups. Project documents were designed to guide the project team to implement projects in a pro-beneficiary manner. But, unless the targeted groups are involved in all spheres, from analyzing their problems, identifying solutions to overcoming those problems and implementing activities themselves, the successful implementation of such development programmes ...

The Kathmandu Post 30 th January 2015 LOSING TRUST It has been normal routine for the common people to be anxious to know as to whether the ruling and opposition parties are now prepared to sit down and continue deliberations on contentious issues (“Ruling bloc invite Maoist, Madhesi parties for talks” 28 Jan, Page 1).   It was really sad and disheartening to see the CA II also fail to fulfil its mandated task. Who should be blamed for this? Was it the ruling parties who tried to push forward their agenda in the name of numerical strength in the CA or was it the opposition that do not want to budge an inch from its petty political interests? It is the prime responsibility of the ruling parties to bring the opposition into the board and make an effort to forge consensus. However, for this, both sides need to be politically sincere towards the nation and its people and rise above their petty political interest. Nonetheless, it is encouraging to know th...

The Himalayan Times 19 January 2015 No to bandh It was a huge relief when the political parties once announced that they would not go for any kind of bandh i n Nepal in the future. They kept their words for some time. Now, they have come back on the streets forcing the common people to abide by their forceful bandh. It is their right to air their dissatisfaction over the disputed issues of the new constitution with the ruling parties. However, calling bandh and using threats and violence to enforce them is totally against the democratic principles.   Why don’t they seek other alternatives to show and express their concerns and dissatisfaction? Why don’t they use their common sense and act accordingly rather than forcing the people to stay at home? Any kind of destructive protests and bandh will directly affect the economic activities of the country making it more vulnerable. Why don’t the so-called political leaders realise this and be sensible towards the...

The Kathmandu Post 18 January 2015 DO IT ALREADY Leaders of all the parties should ditch their petty political interests and resolve contentious issues by keeping the nation and its people in focus (“Tuladhar-led Janajati front plans further stir” January 9, Page 1). Otherwise, chances of political chaos remain very high. If senior leaders continue to engage in egoistic politics, the chances of forging consensus look dismal. If they fail to draft the constitution by January 22, one can only imagine what will happen next. So it can easily be ascertained as to why the people’s participation in both Nefin and Tuladhar-led protest in Baluwatar and Baneswor were low. The common people do not want to be involved in such unwanted activities where the people are forced to engage in ethnic violence. Rai Biren Bangdel

The Kathmandu Post 4 th January 2015 BE BOLD T he efficiency of Subash Nembang was questioned in the erstwhile Constitution Assembly (CA) because of his weak leadership and poor performance as a facilitator (“CA Chairman seeks power to bring out prelim draft”, January 2, Page 1). He let the major political parties undermine CA’s role by deliberating outside it in the name of seeking consensus. The same scenario seems to be repeating itself as major political parties drifted on their own when they were supposed to be heavily involved in deliberation inside the CA. Eleven months have lapsed in the name of forging consensus. As the constitution writing deadline draws close parties have started blaming each other widening the political gap and creating mistrust among themselves. Nembang should have heavily engaged the lawmakers in a series of deliberation on the disputed issues by exercising his constitutional rights. He should have strictly followed the CA calendar ...

The Himalayan Times 2 January 2015 Weak role Time has come for CA Chairman Subash Nembang to exhibit his political wit as he has given the parties three options. His role was questioned in the erstwhile CA because of his weak leadership and poor facilitating role. The same scenario seems to be repeating letting the major political parties move in their own when they were supposed to be heavily involved in deliberation inside the CA. Nembang should have heavily engaged the lawmakers in series of deliberation on the disputed issues inside the CA by exercising his constitutional rights and strictly sticking to the CA calendar rather than depending on the senior leaders to play ambiguous roles. The political parties do not seem to budge because of their petty political interests.   Rai Biren Bangdel Maharajgunj

The Himalayan Times 29 December 2015 Come together It has been high time that the major parties engaged in the serious deliberation to forge consensus on major constitutional issues. Otherwise the country will be in a precarious situation. In the past couple of days, the senior leaders of some parties have traded barbs against each other spoiling attempts at reaching consensus. This is the time to build trust not animosity. We have suffered a lot due to destructive politics. If the parties do not realize the mistakes they have committed time and again their relevance in politics will cease to exist. The general people have now become more socially and politically sensitive than ever. If the 19 party alliances continue thinking of taking to the streets, it could be politically counterproductive as the people have high expectation of getting a new constitution by January 22. The democratic process of deciding the issue through voting cannot be ruled out if ...