What a shame of a monarchy whose brain is lucked up with the hope that may be bestowed by the magic of non-existence!  The saying – ‘you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make him drink’ seem true to the state of regressive mind. Psychologically, it is true once a person begins to worship an idol – be a pebble, a statue, an image, or a human persona – the worshipper becomes powerless, clueless, numb and dumb.  What could obviously bring good to the doomed monarchy with its own cause by worshiping Dakshinkali? The army marching the parade under compulsion (of what?) by saluting the rite with the old regressive national anthem could be a treat to the people who have brought historic change in their country. Frankly, people can fight back now rather than bow down to the treat that is regressive to their aspiration.     

All in all, such rituals and rites have no religious and philosophical significance in regard to six Vedic schools of thought – “Shamkhya, Naya, Vaisesika, Yoga, Vedanta, and Mimansa” and the Buddhism.  Principally, to these schools of thought such practice have no corresponding reality whatsoever other than myth or fallacy. The fallacy or the superstition can never be the solution. It is only the misleading attempt of those, who have had misled themselves for a long period in history.

This is twenty first century and for all Nepali people it is time to know that rituals and rights they practice such as animal sacrifice to please their gods and goddesses are based on erroneous belief. If this monarchy continues with it regardless of time and change then it has nothing other than political motives. This has to be clear to the political leaderships and ruling elites why the monarchy attempts to disobey the democratic rule and mandate that people have declared. It may not be true to the monarchy that the nation has become a secular state and his role as Hindu king has been suspended.   

Perhaps it is very important for the nation and the people of Nepal to declare Nepal Republic to do away with these fallacies and politics of religion. The monarchy had played political game with the religion over the people for last two and half hundred years. It has deliberately put the people in the mythological darkness. But at this point neither the monarchy nor its legacy of myth can continue further. The political leaderships have to get their act together to reach to the legitimate decision making process for declaring Nepal Republic. For this purpose the unity of the eight political parties is the need of time. They cannot break away from this unity until the establishment of a new democratic Nepal is complete with the Republic set-ups and the federal governance structures.

It is time for all of us to understand honestly the attitude of the monarchy to the changes that people of Nepal have aspired and the nation is moving towards. It is clear that the monarchy is not complying with the declaration of the secular state and the new national anthem.  Obviously, it has not accepted the Interim constitution, the Interim Parliament and the Interim cabinet. It is also not clear that it has agreed with the elections of the constituent assembly that will determine its fate.  If the political leaderships fail to take strong legislative measures prior to the CA elections the monarchy may not accept the result.

The SPA government could not achieve as much as it had promised to the people though the reinstated Parliament succeeded with some historic legislatures as per the mandate of the people’s movement II. If the Interim government is also moving with the same pace – delaying motion to bring bills in the Interim Parliament that have been agreed upon by the eight political leaderships; procrastinating the formations of necessary electoral rules and regulations for the CA elections; failing to manage law enforcements to provide public safety and security; and finally derailing from the primary objectives of the Interim Government (fair the CA elections, declaration of the Republic and drafting of the new constitution), that will be hopeless. Also, if the result of the CA election fails to abolish the monarchy the road to peace will fall apart for a long period of time in history.

The Nepali Delegates of Peace Committee who arrived New York on a mission to UN have clearly argued in an interaction at Asia Society that the CA elections must not be delayed (it must be held before November 2007). If delayed longer than that the regressive force might conspire against it.

Interim government, therefore, must get its act together to take necessary measures that can prevent such danger. For example, the bills upon which eight parties have agreed to amend the Interim constitution – “bill that can give the Parliament right to declare Republic with the two third of votes if the monarchy conspires against CA elections, bill that can impeach and remove the Prime Minister, and other amendment bills” cabinet must not put in pending from the motion in the Parliament. These are absolutely necessary bills that the Parliament must legislate for the amendment of the Interim constitution. We cannot even spare a day for these bills.

We must have the legitimate constitutional procedures amended in the Interim constitution for the defense mechanism in case the CA elections are in danger by the monarchy and its regressive force. Since it is not documented that the monarchy will accept the result of the CA elections that such condition must be clearly amended in the Interim Constitution.

The most important of all, the democratic promise of eight political parties for all inclusiveness must come true through the electoral procedures – the constitutional and diplomatic appointments must go through the Parliamentary hearing procedures and there should be no hanky-panky politics of nepotism and favoritism. In this interim government period eight political parities have right to nominate their candidates for the Parliamentary hearing. But none of them should have supremacy over appointments. If eight parties fail to comply with this democratic practice surely they will lose the public trust and as a result the regressive force will have great chance to plot against the democracy.

Similarly, the dream of a new democratic Nepal will only come true if all political parties comply with the practice of the complete electoral (competitive) democracy. This means the members of the Parliament of the national government both upper and lower houses are elected by the people without a single political party appointment. Under the federal system of government the people must directly elect the members of the state assembly and the governors of the state government, and members of local assembly and majors of the local governments. Then only the dream of a new democratic Nepal that is all-inclusive can be reality for Nepali people. People can then have chance to directly participate in nation building process.

The hanky-panky feudalistic political practice must be eradicated from main political parties like Nepali Congress (s), UML and the Maoists. Specially, the political party that advocates democracy must be clean with such undemocratic contaminations. If not those who claimed to bring rebels in the mainstream politics might have to fall back as corrupt authoritarian arbitrary rulers who like to keep people ignorant with the myth of the democracy.

Prakash Bom
April 27, 2007
pbom.usa@gmail.com

(Note from the Nepal Horizons Editorial Team: The views and opinion expressed in this article are that of the author and not of NHC. We request individuals with interest in Nepal to submit their views on contemporary Nepalese issues to the following e-mail address: editor@nepalhorizons.com.  Pictures of contributors or images that relate to submissions are welcome)