King Gyanendra's New Year's Call (2063 BS): Expectations and Challenges

King Gyanendra's New Year's Call (2063 BS): Expectations and Challenges

Dwarika N. Dhungel*

Unlike the earlier years, this year ' the New year 2063 BS (April 13/14, 2006)' came in a very fluid political situation and the people of Nepal heard/read King Gyanendra's new years' speech with mixed feeling. To many the king's speech contains nothing new except the continuation of his own road map, which he has been pursuing since he directly took over the responsibility of running the administration and wants to pursue it vigorously. He has not budged from his known position except making a formal call to the political parties for a dialogue to activate the multiparty democracy on the basis of the Constitution of the Kingdom of Nepal 1990, which for some is in state of coma. While for others it is already dead.

The agitating seven party alliance, in return, not only turned down the King's call but also came out with a statement which say that 'they want to establish loktantra through people's movement, not through negotiations with the king'. Its leader GP Koirala, even has gone further and stated that 'he sees a clear possibility of unity between democratic and republican forces in the country'. Thus both these political actors are at loggerhead to each other. One wants to finish the other.

It may be recalled that over the last couples of days, the country has witnessed demonstrations peaceful and bloody, in almost in every part of the country including the big ones in the urban areas such as Kathmandu. These demonstrations have been going on, on the call of the seven agitating political parties with the support of the CPN Maoists, against the direct rule of the king, to force him to relinquish the absolute power and restore the democracy. The movement is getting fierce day by day. Professionals are joining the ranks of demonstrators. And, from all the news and TV images that are coming from different parts of the country, it is becoming more and more clear that Nepal was never in a difficult situation which she is facing now, not even during the 1989/90 movement for the restoration of democracy. But the current establishment seems to be bent on crushing the ongoing demonstrations through the use of force and clamping of the curfew, which was floundered and openly challenged by the people.

In these contexts, on the eve of the new years, some had expected that the King would extend the olive branch to his opponents with a view to solve the growing seriousness in the problem and save the country from being collapsed. In other words, it was expected by some that the king like his slain elder brother King Birenandra during the movement of 1989/90, would read the lines written on the wall and save the country from the current political impasse. Others who had been observing the situation keenly and reading the mindset of the current king, on the basis of all his behaviours since he directly took over the administration of the country, had not expected any magic in his new years' speech. Therefore for them, the call of the king was nothing but 'too little to be considered seriously'.

It is becoming more and more clear that of the political actors locked in the present conflict, it is the king who is the weakest and has isolated himself not only from the people but also from the international community. The closure of its consular section and the American library by the US Embassy in addition to the travel advise of not visiting Nepal by many friendly countries are some of the examples. Within the country, he is waging war against in all the fronts, against the agitating political parties, who have been able to get the support of almost all the professionals, the bodies representing them, and against the CPN Maoists who are in control of the rural areas and semi-urban areas. In such contexts, it seems almost an impossible task for the king to come out of the present situation. Thus, the challenge before him, is how to make a 'u turn', which is not impossible in politics, from a point of no return to which he seems to have arrived. The other challenges are: to contain the ever increasing protests against him and the institution of monarchy and or to control the ever-increasing political un-rests and the CPN Maoists insurgency from the over stretched security apparatus and to maintain and sustain the morale of the security personnel, to ensure the regular supply of essential services to the people in general and especially to the transport locked Kathmandu Valley. In addition, another challenge before him is how to get and start the dialogue with the political parties and deal with the CPN Maoists insurgency.

So far the political parties with the support of the CPN Maoists have been able to bring the people including the professionals to the streets against the king. Consequent to which, different slogans such as, the restoration of the democracy or putting back the Constitution of the Kingdom of Nepal 1990 on track, establishment of Loktantrik system (total democratic system) and even the establishment of a republican system have been heard during the course of demonstrations. As a result, according to some observers, who have been keenly observing the developments, the leaders of the agitating political parties have to have to make clear whether they are thinking of a Loktantrik system with or without monarchy? If they are thinking of the system without monarchy, then how they are different from the CPN Maoists? In addition how they are going to solve the CPN Maoists, which they claim they would once they are in power. In other words, what is the ultimate destination and the manner through which they would make the safe landing of the present agitation, which because of the said slogans raised by the demonstrators are not clear, the leaders of the agitating political parties want to reach has to made clear. Above all what plan/s they have to make the transition, when that would happen is still not clear, smooth and less painful. There are a lot of people in the country, according to the observers said ones, especially in the valley of Kathmandu, who want to have the clear picture on all these matters. Therefore, these are the main challenges before leaders of the political parties and once they would make the picture clear, Kathmandu will rise as in the 1989/90, which would then become a sever blow to the king's rule. In other words, these are still unanswered questions and as a result, there are a number of people, especially in Kathmandu, who despite the fact that they do not have sympathy to the King nor support the brutal use of force against the demonstrators, are still standing in the fence and yet to come openly to support the movement.

The net effect of the above challenges is that the country will bleed more. People will have to wait some more time, when that would be is still not clear, for being relieved from the on going movements-- one raised by the political parties with the support of and the other being the armed and bloody movement raised by the CPN Maoists. On the whole the country's future is uncertain, getting more fluid day by day, and it is going down the hill. The country is heading towards total collapse, which might cause mass killing and possibly it may face the problem of ethnic clash as seen in some other countries.

Kathamndu,
April 15, 2006.

Note: This article has been send to the Himalayan Times for publication.