Editorial
The gathering crisis in Nepal
Its political stakeholders must arrive at a solution
The resignation of the Maoist prime minister of Nepal certainly does not bode well for the country's nascent democracy. And it does not because it has brought the head of government into direct conflict with the army on an issue of a sensitive nature. Clearly, Prachanda's move to have the chief of the army sacked has backfired, given that the president has refused to countenance it. Now, a fundamental issue arises here, which is that in principle the supremacy of civilian authority must prevail in a democratic society. To that extent, when a government decrees that the army chief must go, it is the duty of the latter to obey.
In the Nepalese case, however, the matter appears to have been complicated by the prime minister's inability or reluctance to carry his coalition government with him on the issue. His rather brash move also did not quite take into account the difficulties the army thinks it faces in trying to absorb into its ranks the Maoist guerrillas that had for years fought the soldiers. Significantly, with many of Prachanda's coalition partners refusing to back him on the army chief's dismissal, President Ram Baran Yadav (he belongs to the leading opposition party) has found it easy to override the prime minister. One cannot be quite sure, though, that he had anticipated a piqued Prachanda's sudden move to quit office.
Obviously, the prime minister's resignation has grave implications for Nepal. It is so because of the fragile nature of democracy in a country which until recently was a monarchy. To have this crisis on its hands at a time when its democratic institutions are still evolving can only slow its progression to constructive pluralism. Prachanda and Yadav, especially the former, ought to have borne such truths in mind before precipitating the crisis. That has not happened.
Nepal cannot afford to slide back into disorder. For one thing, its democracy, though tenuous, is promising. For another, its politicians are all united in their belief that the monarchy is necessarily a thing of the past. It should now be for all constituents of political power and all political parties to get down to the business of tiding over the present grave situation. A face-saving way out of the national predicament is a must.
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