Nepal's Parties In Internal Turmoil
By Yuba Nath Lamsal
Hopes are low and scepticisms are high in Nepali politics. This is mainly because of the behaviour of Nepal’s political parties and their leaders. The public faith in the parties and leaders has dwindled so badly that people do not believe that the current crop of politicians can lead the country to a better future. The parties and their leaders have a credibility problem.
Nepal’s major political parties are in internal turmoil. Although a split is not seen in the immediate future, these parties ultimately may not be in a position to remain united for long. The unity within the parties at the moment is just a temporary adjustment for their convenience and not based on ideological and political ground.
Divided parties
Given the way the parties are functioning, they have already broken into different factions. But they refuse to acknowledge that the parties have split, and claim that they are united and one in the party, although they openly clash and contravene party discipline. The leaders have their own factions within the party and operate separate offices where the supporters assemble and chalk out strategies.
Take at look at the election for the prime minister. All the three major parties are divided on who should lead the next government. The leaders and their factions are not prepared to accept the leader of the other faction of their own party for the position of prime minister. Instead they are offering the coveted position to the rival parties. This divided mentality of the party leaders will not keep them united under the same party for a long time.
This is a chronic disease prevalent in all the parties. There is no single party that is devoid of factionalism and factional rivalry. The bigger the party, the more the factional fighting. Look at the three main political parties, namely, the Unified Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist), the Nepali Congress and the CPN-UML. All these parties have different groups and sub-groups, which are in a nasty fight over power and position.
The UCPN-Maoist is the largest political force and the most disciplined as well as organised party in Nepal. Despite its hard discipline, the party, too, is suffering from factionalism and factional fighting. They describe it as a two-line struggle in the party, which was vividly seen in the recently held sixth plenum at Palungtar of Gorkha district. The debate was open, and criticism against one another was fierce.
But at the end they proclaimed unity and vowed to work together in a united manner to tackle the present political crisis. They reached the conclusion that there was no alternative to a revolution, transformation and unity. It is yet to be seen whether this message of unity would be translated into action. Since the plenum has just concluded, only time will tell what course of action the Maoists will take in the future.
No sooner did the Maoists resolve their differences at the sixth plenum than the problem surfaced in the Nepali Congress. The Nepali Congress national convention concluded sometime ago, and the party leaders and workers have described the national convention as a mega event to demonstrate unprecedented unity within the party. But this spirit of unity has hardly worked in the real sense. Even months after the conclusion of the convention, in which the party president, some officer bearers and some central committee members were elected, the newly elected party president has not been able to enlarge the central committee by nominating some officer bearers and central committee members.
As per the statute of the Congress, the party president must nominate some office bearers and some central committee members. The party constitution requires the nomination proposal put forward by the party president to be endorsed by the party’s elected central committee. The elected president - Sushil Koirala - has not been able to get his proposal endorsed by the central committee. Not only has the rival faction led by Sher Bahadur Deuba put the sword against the party president’s proposal, demanding a dignified share for this faction in the central committee, Koirala’s own camp has been divided over the issue.
The onetime Koirala loyalists have shown dissent over the party president’s choice of the remaining office bearers. Party president Koirala chose Ramchandra Poudel and Krishna Prasad Sitaula for the post of vice-president and general secretary. But some of the influential and senior leaders of the Koirala camp have openly spoken against the party president’s choice. It has created a situation where if a vote was to be held, the party president himself might be rejected. Given this situation, the party president has postponed the central committee meeting for some time so that he can try and convince his own supporters.
The Nepali Congress is, thus, already divided, mentally. It had split once already, and had reunited at the initiative of late Girija Prasad Koirala. Although united in principle, the two factions remain split emotionally. The party leaders, especially those who belong to the Deuba faction, have openly claimed that the party has not been emotionally unified. The party president has, therefore, now a big challenge to take the party ahead in a united manner. But he has not been able to take them all - both loyalists and detractors - along.
Similar is the case with the third largest party - the CPN-UML. The factional fighting is worse in this party than in the others. The three factions are openly challenging one another. While the struggle between the two groups in the Nepali Congress is for party position and the struggle within the Maoist party is based on ideology, the UML’s factional fighting is meant at negating and eliminating the existence of the other groups and leaders belonging to the rival factions.
Currently, there are three distinct factions in the CPN-UML - Khanal group, Madhav group and Oli group. The respective stances taken by the three groups on the prime ministerial election say it all. Party chairperson Jhalanath Khanal wants to grab the post of prime minister in the name of consensus. And he is even prepared to get the post through any kind of alliance with any party.
However, Oli has opposed this idea and has instead backed the Nepali Congress candidate Ram Chandra Poudel for the post of prime minister. Madhav Nepal has his own strategy and that is to further widen the rift between the Khanal camp and Oli group. He seems to be quite comfortable with the status of caretaker prime minister and wants to prolong this situation.
The leaders and factions are, therefore, calculating the gains and losses out of the present political equation. Leaders are not even concerned with the interest of their parties let alone the interest of the country and the people. This way, the leaders have shown their selfish motive, which is responsible for the present crisis. If this tendency continues, neither the constitution will be written nor will the peace process come to a conclusion. This means that the country is destined to return to the old days of conflict.
The UCPN-Maoist has announced that it would launch a decisive revolt if the constitution is not written and the peace process is not concluded in time. The extended life of the Constituent Assembly will be over in the next five months. Given the lackluster performance of the parties and representatives in the Constituent Assembly, the constitution is not likely to be drafted within the extended schedule as well. The life of the Constituent Assembly has already been extended for one year and it would not be justified to extend its tenure again.
Acting responsibly
No one can forecast what the situation of the country will be after May 28, 2011 if the constitution is not written. The situation would definitely be precarious. Despite the grave mistakes committed by the parties and leaders, yet there is no alternative to the parties. Thus, the parties and their leaders must act more responsibly by rising above their partisan and personal interests to avert the looming crisis of the country. As long as the parties are entangled in the internal imbroglio they will not be able to find an amicable solution to the country’s problem. One cannot expect the leaders to resolve the national crisis when they are unable to manage their own internal problems.
Hopes are low and scepticisms are high in Nepali politics. This is mainly because of the behaviour of Nepal’s political parties and their leaders. The public faith in the parties and leaders has dwindled so badly that people do not believe that the current crop of politicians can lead the country to a better future. The parties and their leaders have a credibility problem.
Nepal’s major political parties are in internal turmoil. Although a split is not seen in the immediate future, these parties ultimately may not be in a position to remain united for long. The unity within the parties at the moment is just a temporary adjustment for their convenience and not based on ideological and political ground.
Divided parties
Given the way the parties are functioning, they have already broken into different factions. But they refuse to acknowledge that the parties have split, and claim that they are united and one in the party, although they openly clash and contravene party discipline. The leaders have their own factions within the party and operate separate offices where the supporters assemble and chalk out strategies.
Take at look at the election for the prime minister. All the three major parties are divided on who should lead the next government. The leaders and their factions are not prepared to accept the leader of the other faction of their own party for the position of prime minister. Instead they are offering the coveted position to the rival parties. This divided mentality of the party leaders will not keep them united under the same party for a long time.
This is a chronic disease prevalent in all the parties. There is no single party that is devoid of factionalism and factional rivalry. The bigger the party, the more the factional fighting. Look at the three main political parties, namely, the Unified Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist), the Nepali Congress and the CPN-UML. All these parties have different groups and sub-groups, which are in a nasty fight over power and position.
The UCPN-Maoist is the largest political force and the most disciplined as well as organised party in Nepal. Despite its hard discipline, the party, too, is suffering from factionalism and factional fighting. They describe it as a two-line struggle in the party, which was vividly seen in the recently held sixth plenum at Palungtar of Gorkha district. The debate was open, and criticism against one another was fierce.
But at the end they proclaimed unity and vowed to work together in a united manner to tackle the present political crisis. They reached the conclusion that there was no alternative to a revolution, transformation and unity. It is yet to be seen whether this message of unity would be translated into action. Since the plenum has just concluded, only time will tell what course of action the Maoists will take in the future.
No sooner did the Maoists resolve their differences at the sixth plenum than the problem surfaced in the Nepali Congress. The Nepali Congress national convention concluded sometime ago, and the party leaders and workers have described the national convention as a mega event to demonstrate unprecedented unity within the party. But this spirit of unity has hardly worked in the real sense. Even months after the conclusion of the convention, in which the party president, some officer bearers and some central committee members were elected, the newly elected party president has not been able to enlarge the central committee by nominating some officer bearers and central committee members.
As per the statute of the Congress, the party president must nominate some office bearers and some central committee members. The party constitution requires the nomination proposal put forward by the party president to be endorsed by the party’s elected central committee. The elected president - Sushil Koirala - has not been able to get his proposal endorsed by the central committee. Not only has the rival faction led by Sher Bahadur Deuba put the sword against the party president’s proposal, demanding a dignified share for this faction in the central committee, Koirala’s own camp has been divided over the issue.
The onetime Koirala loyalists have shown dissent over the party president’s choice of the remaining office bearers. Party president Koirala chose Ramchandra Poudel and Krishna Prasad Sitaula for the post of vice-president and general secretary. But some of the influential and senior leaders of the Koirala camp have openly spoken against the party president’s choice. It has created a situation where if a vote was to be held, the party president himself might be rejected. Given this situation, the party president has postponed the central committee meeting for some time so that he can try and convince his own supporters.
The Nepali Congress is, thus, already divided, mentally. It had split once already, and had reunited at the initiative of late Girija Prasad Koirala. Although united in principle, the two factions remain split emotionally. The party leaders, especially those who belong to the Deuba faction, have openly claimed that the party has not been emotionally unified. The party president has, therefore, now a big challenge to take the party ahead in a united manner. But he has not been able to take them all - both loyalists and detractors - along.
Similar is the case with the third largest party - the CPN-UML. The factional fighting is worse in this party than in the others. The three factions are openly challenging one another. While the struggle between the two groups in the Nepali Congress is for party position and the struggle within the Maoist party is based on ideology, the UML’s factional fighting is meant at negating and eliminating the existence of the other groups and leaders belonging to the rival factions.
Currently, there are three distinct factions in the CPN-UML - Khanal group, Madhav group and Oli group. The respective stances taken by the three groups on the prime ministerial election say it all. Party chairperson Jhalanath Khanal wants to grab the post of prime minister in the name of consensus. And he is even prepared to get the post through any kind of alliance with any party.
However, Oli has opposed this idea and has instead backed the Nepali Congress candidate Ram Chandra Poudel for the post of prime minister. Madhav Nepal has his own strategy and that is to further widen the rift between the Khanal camp and Oli group. He seems to be quite comfortable with the status of caretaker prime minister and wants to prolong this situation.
The leaders and factions are, therefore, calculating the gains and losses out of the present political equation. Leaders are not even concerned with the interest of their parties let alone the interest of the country and the people. This way, the leaders have shown their selfish motive, which is responsible for the present crisis. If this tendency continues, neither the constitution will be written nor will the peace process come to a conclusion. This means that the country is destined to return to the old days of conflict.
The UCPN-Maoist has announced that it would launch a decisive revolt if the constitution is not written and the peace process is not concluded in time. The extended life of the Constituent Assembly will be over in the next five months. Given the lackluster performance of the parties and representatives in the Constituent Assembly, the constitution is not likely to be drafted within the extended schedule as well. The life of the Constituent Assembly has already been extended for one year and it would not be justified to extend its tenure again.
Acting responsibly
No one can forecast what the situation of the country will be after May 28, 2011 if the constitution is not written. The situation would definitely be precarious. Despite the grave mistakes committed by the parties and leaders, yet there is no alternative to the parties. Thus, the parties and their leaders must act more responsibly by rising above their partisan and personal interests to avert the looming crisis of the country. As long as the parties are entangled in the internal imbroglio they will not be able to find an amicable solution to the country’s problem. One cannot expect the leaders to resolve the national crisis when they are unable to manage their own internal problems.
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