Miscellaneous
Nepal crisis should be resolved through dialogue
China’s senior government officials and a leading government think tank have said that they are anxious to see Nepal resolve its constitutional stalemate, move on a firm path to political stability and long-term prosperity.Akhilesh Upadhyay
China’s senior government officials and a leading government think tank have said that they are anxious to see Nepal resolve its constitutional stalemate, move on a firm path to political stability and long-term prosperity.
This reaction comes on the heels of more than 40 deaths in the Tarai unrest in recent weeks. As of the time of this writing late Saturday, the major parties continued to stick to the Constituent Assembly process, which was scheduled to resume on Sunday. A major demand from the Tharu and Madhesi parties is to put the CA process on hold to find a political solution to the current standoff.
In a press briefing on Friday, Vice-Minister Chen Fengxiang said China is anxious to see a stable and prosperous Nepal and that Nepal’s political parties should work together to get the constitution out.
In an interview, Prof Hu Shiseng has warned that the situation in Tarai could get out of control if the three leading parties—Nepali Congress, CPN-UML and UCPN (Maoist)-fail to politically resolve the current “fragility” in the plains.
“Should Nepal get drawn into a long-term conflict,” Prof Hu told the Post on Saturday, “the three major parties will have to take responsibility for the disastrous situation. If the current fragility is not controlled, it can get larger and larger and ultimately out of control. But in the past the three major parties have shown the capacity to come together to resolve the crisis.” He hoped that they would once again be able to do so.
Hu, however, suggested that Nepal should not look for a “military solution” to the current problem in Tarai and the ongoing standoff between communities.
Prof Hu , who closely follows developments in Nepal and South Asia, hoped that Nepal’s parties reach consensus soon. The Director at Institute of South & South East Asian and Oceania Studies at the CICIR, a leading government think tank, said: “I hope (Nepal’s) parties reach consensus. The best way out is through political dialogue and engagement.” Describing the current political situation in Nepal as different from the one before 2006, he said, “The past struggle was a political one between parties. It is now taking a communal turn and mingled with party conflict.”
He suggested that the three major parties immediately engage leaders from various ethnic groups within their parties and outside. The major parties should also encourage their ethnic leaders to reach out to their communities, he said.
He expressed nervousness about the possible “spillover” effect of the Nepal situation. “Nepal is not isolated. A military solution will have disastrous consequences within and without.” “Nepali leaders should give a statute that’s acceptable to Nepalis,” said Zhang Xuyi, deputy Director General of the Chinese Communist Party International Department. “But I am aware it is not going to be easy as it means looking for agreement between various parties and communities. But once you keep the public interest at heart, such a thing becomes possible.”