Nepal can now look forward to political stability

Finally, the Himalayan nation of Nepal has been able to break the long stalemate stemming from the fate of the former Maoist guerrillas as the lawmakers succeeded in clinching a deal cutting across political divide. They have decided that a section of the guerrillas will be integrated in the army while the rest will be given financial assistance so that they can lead a normal life. At the same time, the weapons under the possession of the former radical cadres will be deposited and the lands taken over by them returned to the original owners. The deal reached after painstaking efforts removes the most contentious element in the political crisis of the country, as the future of the former guerrillas proved a stumbling block to any political stability since the largest political group supported the integration of the cadres in the army and most other parties opposed. The deal appears to have accommodated positions of all groups at varying degrees and it is now expected that parties in parliament would begin their much bigger task - a new constitution for the nation. Nepal got bogged down in political instability even though the country admirably accomplished several remarkable feats like the abolition of the monarchy and the introduction of democracy in recent years. All the major political parties were at the vanguard of the process that was often bloody and destructive. The Himalayan kingdom had seen absolute rule by the throne for more than two hundred years and in 1990 parliamentary democracy was introduced following pro-democracy movement while monarchy was reduced to ceremonial status. But parliamentary democracy was often scuttled because of rivalries and corruption of the politicians and unfortunately monarchy returned with full powers when King Gyanendra took over the throne following the killing of the titular King and devastating insurgency of the Maoists fighters. When the radical leftist cadres joined the mainstream political parties in the anti-King agitation, the authorities sought to quell it with iron-fist, but finally capitulated. Elections took place and the Maoists emerged as the largest group in the constituent assembly that is also functioning as an interim parliament. Political parties in parliament abolished the monarchy and turned the country into a republic and tasked the assembly to enact a new constitution. However, the governments formed by different groups proved mostly instable as the politicians quarrelled and the main task of drafting the constitution remained unfulfilled. The major problem was the demand by the Maoists for integration of their 19,000 former cadres in the army, which other political parties like Nepali Congress opposed fearing Maoist influence in the armed forces. When their leader "Prachanda" whose real name is Pushpa Kamal Dayal was the prime minister, the Maoists pushed the move but were unsuccessful as the president of the country, who was a Nepali Congress leader, and the army chief opposed it tooth and nail. Political parties wrangled on the issue, dampening the euphoria over the abolition of monarchy and Nepal remained instable with frequent changes of government. Now once again with the Maoists at the helm, the issue received priority and Prime Minister Babu Ram Bhattarai succeeded in clinching a deal that provides that 6,5000 guerrillas would be taken into the army and the rest would be taken care of financially. The government has described the development as "historic" while several foreign powers including the United States called it "landmark" development. Hopefully, this would usher in a new phase of political stability in Nepal unless things unexpectedly go wrong once again. The parliament now can also concentrate on the new constitution, the prime task of the constituent assembly. Nepal should now appear more stable and strong politically, if the hopes raised by the settlement of the vexed Maoist guerrilla issue are not dashed. The country has suffered too badly during the anti-King agitation and also at the hands of the Maoists fighters in the insurgency which ended in 2006, but the road to democracy and progress for the nation remains strewn with myriad of problems. Thanks to the acumen and sagacity of the political parties the delay albeit-the Himalayan nation can now look forward to a desirable political process. Then once again, the politicians must not revert to the old game of too much rivalry over power relegating the national and bigger interests to the back seat. zaglulbss@yahoo.com