JUL 04 -
Major political parties have accepted political solutions based on political understanding, even during periods of violent conflict in the country. The 12-point understanding and the subsequent peoples’ movement were the outcomes of that kind of political understanding. After the success of the peoples’ movement, the parties displayed flexibility and magnanimity signing the Comprehensive Peace Accord, reinstating the dissolved House of Representatives and promulgating the interim constitution.
Consequently, deep seated mutual distrust and suspicions were largely erased, paving the way for the election of the Constituent Assembly (CA).The CA carried out its responsibilities effectively until serious issues regarding the state restructuring and the form of governance came between the political parties. Approaches and understanding regarding these issues varied, which gradually diminished the delicate confidence that had existed among the parties. Now, as a result, long-cherished aspirations of the Nepali people are shattered while the CA is dissolved without promulgating a new constitution. This serious setback to the political process should be an eye-opener for all responsible political parties.
Major tasks of the peace process—such as integration and rehabilitation of the Maoist combatants and promulgation of a new constitution in the country—are left unattained. A complicated constitutional and political void is producing uncertainty, pessimism and frustration among both the political parties and the populace. Serious differences on the underlying principles, number and nomenclature of provinces and form of governance are still haunting not only the political parties, but also the society as a whole. It is not only dichotomous to the several agreements and understandings—including the Comprehensive Peace Accord (CPA), signed between the major political parties in the past—but also contrary to the spirit and letters of the interim constitution.
Active participation of the CA members successfully brought 11 thematic reports after soliciting public opinion throughout the country. The CA and the Constitutional Committee discussed and debated on those reports and people’s suggestions. Some important understandings were reached in these deliberations through various task forces and sub-committees constituted for the resolution of differences. Four major political forces of the country agreed upon the number of provinces, leaving the responsibility to the federal structuring commission, legislature-parliament and provincial assembly for nomenclature and delineation. They reached an important agreement on May 15 regarding contentious issues such as the form of governance, election system and the numbers in the legislature-parliament and provincial assembly. On the basis of this political understanding, the sub-committee could introduce a report in the Constitutional Committee facilitating to draft the constitution. However, the whole exercise proved futile because the UCPN (Maoist) and Madhesi Morcha backtracked the next day of the agreement. This breach of understanding had a serious impact on the whole negotiation process, including the fate of the CA and the new constitution.
On May 27, no document or material was at hand during the CA meeting. Hours-long meetings held at the office of the CA Chairman failed to establish understanding among the parties. The ruling coalition parties did not agree with the proposal put forth by the CA Chairman for some vital amendments in the constitution and the law to pave the way for a new CA election. Eventually, the historic CA dissolved without completing its mission.
Today, every responsible party has to analyse all events in retrospect to pursue the path of national unity. The constitutional provisions—Articles 38, 43 and 158, and the past agreements and understandings—provide ground to break the political imbroglio. On this ground, the country can have a unified government which can declare a new date for the election of the CA. The tenure of the elected CA could be for four years. Elections of local bodies should also be held simultaneously with the CA election. The CA would have to promulgate the new constitution within a year, and it may be transformed as a legislature-parliament for the remaining three years.
If the CA fails to bring the new constitution within the stipulated time then the responsibility of the promulgation would rest on the legislature-parliament. The parliament will also have to fulfill its responsibility within six months. If it fails to do so, the contentious issues would be resolved by referendum. The third year of the parliament would be utilised for restructuring the state, and the final year may be used for the preparation of parliamentary elections.
At this juncture, of course, the main responsibility for initiative lies on the Prime Minister’s shoulders. It is obvious that the election of the CA is almost impossible without the necessary constitutional amendment and legal arrangements, and such amendment and arrangements are not conceivable without sufficient political consensus. Any kind of authoritarian attitude and tactics may only aggravate the political crisis. Politics of self-aggrandisement and divisive thinking cannot help guide the country in right direction. At the moment, the country—having 118 ethnic groups and 103 languages, along with diverse cultures—direly needs unity, harmony and mutual respect both in politics and in society.
Dissolution of the CA, an incomplete peace process and the deepening fear of crisis evidently show the failure of the incumbent Prime Minister and his government to create a desired political environment. Therefore, the Prime Minister has to pave the way for a broader political understanding among the major political parties to bail the country out of a serious political crisis. Nepal and its people require an urgent solution to the ongoing political impasse.
Rawal is a Central Committee member of CPN-UML
Source: http://www.ekantipur.com/2012/07/04/oped/impasse-invites-action/356563/
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