| Sajha.com Archives | |
| Username | Post |
| paramendra | Posted
on 01-Jul-03 12:01 PM
Federalism For Nepal: The Only Solution Paramendra Bhagat July 1, 2003 http://www.geocities.com/paramendra/2003/fed.html |
| Bhunte | Posted
on 01-Jul-03 01:14 PM
federalism can be a solution, but not only. it will be unfair to devide terai. probably east, west, and middle region dissected N-S would be ok to me. rajje yesari tukriyo bhane neta ji haru ko lagi kurchi ko han thap pani kam hunthyo ki? |
| suva chintak | Posted
on 01-Jul-03 01:31 PM
Bhuntejyu, On the contrary, fragmenting Nepal into 25 to 35 states would solve most of our political problems! I think we have to look at the federalism suggestion in a very positive light. So if we have 35 states instead of one, there will be jobs for 35 kings/presidents (depending upon whether we want monarchy or republic), 35 prime ministers, 35 depty prime ministers, 35 speakers of the parliaments, 35 chairmen of the upper houses, 35 chief justices, 35 police chiefs, 35 army chiefs, and so on and so forth. With so many new political jobs created all of the politicians including the Maoists will be employed and get their coveted kurchi. Only then will they finally leave the rest of the Nepalis to get on with their lives - whether it is schools, business, travel, or plain minding your own business without the threat of bandh, schoold closure, transportation jam, relay hadtal, ranke julush, tire burning, vehicle smashing and people killing. So, let us go for it...the more the merrier, as they say! |
| Bhunte | Posted
on 01-Jul-03 01:45 PM
suva ji, i know that the idea just don't work.... |
| le chef du nuit | Posted
on 02-Jul-03 03:21 AM
foods all produced in the terai what would the consequences of this fact be like in a fedral goverment structure like the one paramendra dai advocated? |
| Bhunte | Posted
on 02-Jul-03 03:52 AM
export husk in hills |
| Brook | Posted
on 02-Jul-03 04:04 AM
Rice, wheat, sugar, jute and other industrial produces manufactured ouside of the central hills will be exported to the valley in return for momo-chaa and the grateful acknowledgement of the rights of the people of the Great Plains to be treated with the dignity, respect, and equity they deserve as legitimate citizens of this illegitimate state. |
| Hellbound | Posted
on 02-Jul-03 09:52 AM
Mr. Bhagat, That is a cool article, yet federalism is not the solution Nepali people are seeking. Right now, segregation of Tarai and hills, that you always want, is not the solution of Nepal's political calamity. Nepalse are not ready for the creation of an appropriate civic environment through civil society and civil community, capable of integrating federalism... |
| hyaterica | Posted
on 02-Jul-03 10:05 AM
Hellbound, how do u know what Nepalese are ready for and what not???? |
| paramendra | Posted
on 02-Jul-03 01:13 PM
Federalism For Nepal: The Only Solution Paramendra Bhagat July 1, 2003 Nepal saw the advent of multi-party democracy and a constitutional monarchy in 1990. Since then it has seen massive corruption, unstable governments, a full fledged civil war waged by the Maoists, and, recently, a rather activist monarchy. Many expectations of the population have been unmet. While the civil war has seen a momentary halt, the parliament stays dissolved, the constitution is in limbo, and the major political parties have been continuously agitating against the royal palace. As to wether the king will give away his powers and agree to a republic through table talk with the Maoists is less than a speculation. The monarch, since ascending the throne, has shown signs to the reverse, a penchant for more, not less, power. I personally am for a republic, but only if that is the peaceful result of the desire of the people as expressed through their representatives, possibly through some kind of a Constituent Assembly. As to wether the Maoists will revive the war is not for sure, but that might be an undesirable bloody showdown. Amidst this confusion might lie seeds of hope. And from the current mess might arise a new constitution. It might or might not give birth to a republic, but I sure hope it introduces federalism into Nepal. That might be the only way out for the centuries old grievances of the various ethnicities in the country, be it the Madhesis of the Terai, or the Janajatis of the Hills. The Kathmandu-based elites might stand to lose from such an introduction in relative terms, and so naturally they might oppose it. But then democracy itself did not come forth easily. An argument might be made that Nepal is too small for federalism. That is not the case. It might be sandwiched between more than a billion Chinese in the north, and over a billion Indians in the south, and thus might look small, but so it is not. Over three quarters of the countries are smaller populations than Nepal. Federalism might also be the answer to the impending torrents of globalization. As power shifts from the corridors of Singha Durbar to the various venues of global trade talks, so must it shift to the various parts of the country, so the local peoples feel more in control in an increasingly mobile world. And so it might be a good idea to have five states: Eastern Terai, Western Terai, Eastern Hills, Western Hills, and Greater Kathmandu. Strong regions do not weaken the nation: quite the opposite. References Center for the Study of Federalism Directory of Federalism Links Federalism in the United States of America Federalism Resources at Questia Pierre Elliot Trudeau Publius: The Journal of Federalism Real Federalism: Why It Matters, How It Could Happen When Federalism Works Will the shift to federalism really bring about a true lasting solution to the Mindanao problem? © 2003 Paramendra Bhagat |
| Echoes | Posted
on 03-Jul-03 07:41 AM
All new democracies have to struggle through these problems. Surely, the citizens want a radical change (revolution!) because they think they deserve it, but from the Political Science standpoint, transition from a deeply-rooted system to a new one is always cumbersome. So what we see in Nepal is a general phenomenon, although the instances of which might be more or less related to our local context. Opting for a republic merely because the king seeks more power would not be the wisest idea. Political Science recognizes the struggle for power in all forms of political systems. It is really a constant game to win the authority, which we can see in Nepal more obviously due to the lack of the rules that the players should abide by. A better solution would be to put a proper system of check-and-balance in place so that no stakeholder is allowed to undermine the essence of the system and pursue an absolute authority. I believe that nobody will win from the idea you have proposed. I agree that the power must be delegated to the lower levels as much as possible, but there is no need for a new way of reorganizing the population. Let me remind you that we already have 5 regions, 14 zones and 75 districts. The United Nations Development Program and various other non-governmental organizations in Nepal have been pushing the central government for more decentralization and it is gradually taking a momentum. Paramendraji, you havent made a single strong case as to HOW Federalism could improve the lives of the Nepali people. You are simply suggesting that it might, but there is no good reason to believe that because I dont think you are paying attention to the real problems we have in Nepal. If you are arguing for it just because you have seen it work in the United States, you are really missing the point. Certainly, there must be a way out. The constitution needs to be revised to improve the system so that the mistakes are not allowed to be repeated. Paramendraji, you have not specified how the grievances of the various ethnicities is related to the current model of Nepali democracy and how the Federalism would eliminate them. I think the answer rather lies in civic education, empowerment of women, abolition of the de facto discrimination based on caste and stricter laws that promote good governance. I see no need for a radically different political system although we do need radically different politicians! |
| knt | Posted
on 03-Jul-03 09:08 AM
Though I am not a political scientist and I might not know the true meaning of federalism --this I put as a disclaimer lest someone pinpoints errors in my thinking-- it would not be very prudent on our part to completely wipe out and overturn the political system we have developed over time, and put federalism in place like Paramendra ji's position seems to be here, even though that might not have been his intention. Federalism doesn't develop in a day. Just to take USA as an example, the founding brothers and their peers had to make innumerable changes to their formulations , assemble countless times to discuss the issues they had at hand, and resolve the dissensions among them before they were able to put in writing how the United States should go about making their government body. Plus, given that Nepal hasn't really had a government that makes and executes decisions properly, or take necessary action, self-governance is more paramount for a fledgling nation like ours than federalism. So, we can't localize without a strong central body, or the outcome might be a confederacy without anything to hold the zones/states together. |
| paramendra | Posted
on 07-Jul-03 05:15 PM
"Let me remind you that we already have 5 regions, 14 zones and 75 districts." But that is so arbitrary. The zones and the regions, particularly. You recognized the need for decentralization. But then it's logical outcome IS federalism. |
| Echoes | Posted
on 11-Jul-03 09:35 AM
"But then it's logical outcome IS federalism." No. I think you are wrong. Decentralization is desirable in all forms of governance and does not lead to federalism unless explicitly aimed. |
| supergeek | Posted
on 11-Jul-03 11:36 PM
Federalism will mean chaos! Stupid Multiparty system has destroyed our country like no other systems! The deterioration during panchayat was like a stream compared to Narayani river - the destruction of our country under 10-terrible years of multiparty democracy. At the moment, our only hope is active leadership of the Monarch - King Gyanendra! Let us all Nepalese get together and give our new King a chance!What say YOU? |