Nepal editorial
P Rana, Baridhara, Dhaka
Your editorial of 22 February on Nepal is based on incomplete information resulting in an inaccurate assessment of the situation prevailing there. You wrote that Nepal's fragile democracy and human rights situation have worsened and urged pressurising the king, through the suspension of military aid, to return power to a democratically elected government. If only it were so simple!Since 1996, the Maoist movement has grown into a terrorist army with regional links and a serious threat to the state. It has claimed 12,000 lives and pushed back economic and human development by years. It is surprising that you do not mention this once in your editorial and therefore miss the context of Feb 1. Moreover, Nepal had neither an elected government nor a parliament on 31 January. Parliament was dissolved by a democratically elected prime minister in 2002. Elections could not be held due to the threat of Maoists to disrupt polls. Since then, while the king urged political consensus to form an all party government to hold elections and negotiate with the Maoists, the parties failed to reach any agreement. Nepal is now pressurising the Maoists militarily and politically to bring them into the political mainstream and resume its course of multi-party democracy. A state of emergency is a legitimate instrument of nations and deserves international support. The media blackout may have affected the politicians and the press, but it broke the communication network of the Maoists who have been unable to claim any military successes lately. Military sanctions contribute to the possibility of a Maoist victory. Would the international community prefer to advocate for human rights and freedoms with a Maoist government believing in a dictatorship of the proletariat? Nepal and the international community should move together towards overcoming the Maoists to consolidate democracy and human rights.
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