Let's start a step
BY PAVAN S SHAKYA
Kathmandu , 24 April:
Dear All,
Saw this movie ''Rang de Basanti". It may sound funny but sincerely, after childhood days, for the first time I really got inspired by a movie. I really started to think about Nepal and the political crisis continuing. Lack of interest in country's system and adequate patriotism prevails in Nepal too, I felt that. That doesn't imply that the solution is to kill someone as shown in the movie. I tried to see within myself, what is my contribution? Found it is okay, I am studying and becoming manpower for the nation. But went through the news from Nepal and this time I could not satisfy myself. Going regular is not enough; felt that. It's high time for each of us to try to do something more than the regular! On the process, what can I do at most now, I found I can share my understanding of the crisis to my friends and then forward it to maximum Nepalese as far as possible. There might be various view points on that between us. This is one amongst them. Please read it once. Give a second thought on that and if you don't agree, it's your right not to.
In due course, I'd be grateful to get your opinions as well. This way we can interact and start to think about the country more seriously. UNTIL AND UNLESS WE START A STEP, NOTHING BIG WOULD BE ACHIEVABLE.
Believing on this, I am sharing my opinion:
As we see the situation in Nepal, anyone would think that the problem lies between the King, seven political parties and Maoists. And why? What each of them wants? We'd find answers for that also. One may say political parties want full-fledged democracy. Similarly Maoists want the communism, and King wants to reestablish Panchayat or something like that in other form. It may sound weird to you at first, but I see this crisis in completely other way. This is not any kind of conflict between Nepalese themselves. This is something between India and Nepal. It's a grand and interesting game. At the same time, highly challenging for both the states. Every one of us knows the Indian approach of trying to dominate others, especially the neighboring countries. Defense and foreign affairs related decisions of Bhutan are directly handled by India. Nothing new about it, right? Which country in the SAARC except Bhutan is happy with India? Forget SAARC, what about other neighbors? China? Burma? Mentioning these issues just to rethink on India's foreign policies! Now let us go to what's there between India and Nepal? Care to see it through big brother's side. India's average economic growth rate has reached around 7.5% which is one of the best in world today. India is second largest market in the world in terms of population. Foreigners are seeing China and India as the new markets of this age and investing here rapidly. Bottom-line is -- India is developing. But how long people will invest in India if basic infrastructure is not there? How much investments would be there in agricultural industry if outsiders don't see basic irrigation facilities in the field? In other way, when other area is developing, what about large Indian farmer population? When they'll prosper if irrigation is not there? And most importantly, energy is vital for all development -- industries, technology and everything. India is not capable of producing the required amount. India has successfully taken control over Bhutan's energy resources and already started to have the benefit. Bhutan is also getting something out of it but in cost of sovereignty. Now comes Nepal's part. Nepal is second richest in water resource having potential of large amount of energy. Enough energy to cater India's energy need for industrialization and irrigation and clean drinking water for eastern India (perhaps more than that). For that, India can have straight business deals with Nepal. Take it if u want, but please pay. But no! India wants all those in the way they got from Bhutan. They want to have total control in any hydro projects that'll be build in Nepal. They want to give us something out of it - lot less value than what we deserve. Since history India has been trying for this and as it was obvious for them to get refusal. In the mean time, foreigners wanted to invest in hydro projects in Nepal. But India always fumed and fretted for any manipulation in rivers will lead to flood in India. So, all the big projects were cancelled. India didn't stop. They wanted to get the resources according to their desire. When Nepal refused, they came into games with long vision. What I interpret the game could possibly be as such- Change the non cooperative government of Nepal. Keep people in power that will be ready to sell the resources of the country fro some money. And if required, will be ready to sell the whole country. India knew that until and unless royal family is in power, it's not possible. This is because for the royals, Nepal is the only place in the world where they will get highest degree of respects and they'd never sell the country. For that, India played the key role to instill democracy in 2046 and implant corrupted people in the government. According to the plan, some leaders of ours sold out rivers and lands during the 15 years. That we all know. Now India could not depend only on those dogs. For that, how to make Nepal completely helpless in shortest period? So that Nepal will come down on the ground with knees. There won't be any other option remaining for Nepal and finally turn towards India and beg them to utilize our own resources, and give some riots two feed Nepalese twice a day. Attack on the source of economy was the simplest route towards Nepal's bring down. And then something happened out of blues. Maoists were born in western Nepal which is the hub of ayurvedic medicine and one of Nepal's major exports. The area is still under Maoists control and no one knows how much of yarshagumba is smuggled from there every year. Country's revenue is going in vain. And let us recall, it was Girija's tenure and whole Nepal knows how Maoists flourished in no time. Besides that, major objective of giving birth to Maoists was to attack the spinal of Nepal's economy- tourism. And things happened accordingly. Nepal broke and got trapped into the crisis we r seeing today. Now please don't doubt on who gave birth to Maoists. India was the first to call Maoists as terrorists when Nepal government was still calling it as insurgents. After that, US hit listed Maoists of Nepal in top ten among the world terrorists.
Nepal government never called them terrorists those days. And in many cases, we have seen Maoists leader making rounds to Delhi in the same fashion as Girija and his daughter. The recent meeting between the parties and Maoists leaders occurred in Delhi. How could India arrange the facility when Maoists are terrorists? Do they want to send a message that Lashkar-e-taiba should be entertained by governments of various nations? And surprisingly, nowadays Indian media do not right the word "terrorists" for Nepalese Maoists. The respected word given by them these days is " Nepal rebel". This is all happening because of the slavish mentality India possesses due to 200 years of British rule. Anyways, now let us come to the major issue. After knowing all these, I m not in a condition to agree that the dispute in Nepal is for democracy. What I believe is it is for nationality. It is for saving the nation. It is for raising the nation with what we have. It is for replying back to all those who try to play with us. Now, it's up to your intellect to identify who is working for what. What King is doing, parties are doing, and Maoists are doing. It'll be a very appreciable opinion if you say what those pancheys are doing again here? We should not forget that democracy is nature's law. When you are born, you come along with your freedom. No force can stop u for that. Let's see the cause and what's happening around. Democracy within the boundary is so important? Or democracy in a country will be there when a country will b there? Let all Nepalese get together and stop the external force for some time when Nepal will try to lift up in a position from where no force would be able to bring it down.
Democracy is always there. When Nepalese can change the government in 2046, same Nepalese can change the government again in 2066. And if required, forever free Nepalese could change the system around the world. We don't have to doubt in our capability. But the current need is not "restore democracy" as India is saying. Current need for each and every Nepali is to "save and raise the nation". When US envoy to India made one statement related to India's internal politics last week, whole India shouted back to the ambassador. This is something good we need to learn from Indians. When India, and other far away nations are repeatedly trying to interfere our internal matter, our corrupted media (do I have to name the media which have bosses of Non Nepalese origins? Or you find it yourself) is not tired of singing their songs everyday. These media is responsible for creating a pessimistic environment in the nation. People are not protesting those external interferences which are vital in present. Restoring democracy is not the issue as far as I understand. What if democracy is restored tomorrow immediately? Same old faces who tried to help the neighbor more than own country itself will be back to power. And the process of losing the nation's independency which has been stopped temporarily through King's move will get momentum again. But if Nepal and Nepalese succeeds to pause that external force for some more time, its strength will be minimized. Many things can happen within few years.
Zest is - country first! Now, If you don't agree on this, I am open to have your opinion. If you feel that there is some logic in what I have said, please forward it to as many Nepalese as possible. There is nothing good happening to you within 24 hours or 3 days or 1 week or so forth. But only God knows, long term benefits could be there. Thank you please forward it to as many Nepalese as possible.
(The author is the director, World Link and president, ISP Association of Nepal. He can be reached at: pavan@wlink.com.np)
