The people of Nepal won a significant victory in their struggle for lokatantra with their long and arduous jan andolan. A struggle for democracy that led to many people losing their limbs and lives in direct mass clashes with the brutal armed forces of king Gyanendra. Over several decades the people of Nepal have fought for democracy however their aspirations were crushed by the monarchy in league with the local and foreign vested interests.
However the breadth and depth of people’s movement in the recent months, their indomitable spirit and valour, has forced all political forces in Nepal to bow down to their democratic aspirations.
The king has beaten a retreat and has restored the parliament.
In turn the parliament has declared a cease-fire against armed insurgents led by the Maoist party of Nepal and is setting the political process in motion for the election to a new Constituent Assembly. The insurgents too have agreed to abide by the ceasefire and have shown their willingness to fully participate in the democratic process.
Lok Raj Sangathan hails the struggle for the empowerment of people of Nepal and compliments them on their achievements so far.
Of particular significance is their demand for a new constituent assembly that will decide the future political system of Nepal . In the post colonial era, after World War II, in many former colonies, where a strong democratic and anti-imperialist movement was underway, the reactionary elites of these countries took over power and imposed their own constitutions and systems of governance. People had very little role to play. For example, in India , the heroes of 1857 war of independence declared that the people of India would decide the future of India . But on the eve of departure of British, the members of the constituent assembly were chosen from the propertied elite, without the people of India exercising universal franchise. The result was a constitution that followed British and other models, promised many nice things like republic, democracy, socialism and so on but subverted real change in the exploitative and oppressive conditions of the vast majority of Indian people.
Over five decades later, despite the large-scale marginalisation of people under this constitution, all the status quoist political forces in India not only abide by it but also defend it. They ignore the growing voice of millions of people for a new political system, which empowers them rather than marginalizes them, a system that keeps the economic and cultural well being of ordinary people at the center, rather than the profit margins and growth rates of the biggest monopolies and other elite. At the same time George Bush is hailing India as a great democracy and a beacon for all developing countries, ad nauseum.
In fact there is hardly any example in the last over fifty years of struggle for democracy all over the world, where people have won the right to write their own new constitution.
Lok Raj Sangathan is very excited by this victory of the Nepali people’s jana andolan, which can lead to a people’s constitution in Nepal and sends them fraternal greetings and good wishes.
