Indo-Nepal People's Solidarity Forum

recieved via mail

Dear Friends,

Here is an example how media is disseminating misinformation on Nepal. Awaiting your comment.Anand Swaroop VermaIndo-Nepal People's Solidarity ForumNew DelhiMay 19, 2008Dear Mr. Karan Thapar,Yesterday i.e. on 18 May 2008 the first part of your interview with Prachanda, leader of Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) was telecast by CNN-IBN in your program "Devil's Advocate". We are writing to you because the transcript of the interview and the video recording of the same are at variance with each other and there is reason to believe that there has been doctoring, nay censoring, of what Prachanda had actually spoken. For instance the transcript gives the following version: Karan Thapar: Looking at your own experience in Nepal during the last two years and six months in particular, would you advice the Indian Maoists to give up the peoples war, to join mainstream, to use the ballot rather than the bullet as a way of acquiring power?Prachanda: I think that I cannot directly address them, but our behaviour and our policy and our practices give out the message of the power of ballot.The actual spoken words which can be heard on the video are very different:"I think that I cannot directly address them, but our behaviour and our policy and our practices itself strongly gave the message of our changed policy and benefit of the FUSION of bullet and ballot and all these things."At another place similar editing can be noticed. The transcript claims the following:Karan Thapar: What sort of relations will you be looking at with India?Prachanda: A new relation on a new basis. The new base has been laid down with the understanding from Delhi. A new unity with Delhi is already in process. The actual spoken words are different:"The new base has already been laid through the 12 point understanding from Delhi. This 12 point understanding created a conducive atmosphere for peace process, created a huge mass movement to bring out a historical change in this country. It has also laid down a new basis for unity with Delhi."Perhaps you are not aware of the mismatch between the spoken word and transcript put out by CNN-IBN. However, such doctoring are not necessarily innocuous. We wonder if it is your practice to edit/censor words in such a way that it changes the meaning or gives a different meaning than the one intended by the interviewee? Is it ethical to 'touch' the original spoken words in an interview which go beyond requirement of grammatical precision? Also does this not amount to disrespect for views contrary to yours? These questions become all the more important because PTI, presumably privy to your interview or at least its contents, prior to its telecast, released a news item on May 17, 2008 which was carried by Sunday Times (May 18, 2008), which quotes Prachanda as saying the following:"Though we don't want to directly address them, the benefit we have got, the differences of ballot and bullet has already sent a message". This entire sentence is nowhere present in your interview and is an interpolation which twists the meaning. And, yet, your office did not bother to contest this? We find all this rather strange.We, therefore, ask you to kindly look into the matter, rectify the mistake and ensure that the transcript put out by CNN-IBN are those which were the actual spoken words rather than a censored/edited version of someone else's imagination. This we believe is the least you can do to ensure highest standards of journalism, which you subscribe to. Anand Swaroop Verma / Gautam Navlakha(on behalf of Indo Nepal People's Solidarity Forum) New Delhi 19th May 2008Dear Friends,Here is an example how media is disseminating misinformation on Nepal. Awaiting your comment.Anand Swaroop VermaIndo-Nepal People's Solidarity ForumNew DelhiMay 19, 2008Dear Mr. Karan Thapar,Yesterday i.e. on 18 May 2008 the first part of your interview with Prachanda, leader of Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) was telecast by CNN-IBN in your program "Devil's Advocate". We are writing to you because the transcript of the interview and the video recording of the same are at variance with each other and there is reason to believe that there has been doctoring, nay censoring, of what Prachanda had actually spoken. For instance the transcript gives the following version: Karan Thapar: Looking at your own experience in Nepal during the last two years and six months in particular, would you advice the Indian Maoists to give up the peoples war, to join mainstream, to use the ballot rather than the bullet as a way of acquiring power?Prachanda: I think that I cannot directly address them, but our behaviour and our policy and our practices give out the message of the power of ballot.The actual spoken words which can be heard on the video are very different:"I think that I cannot directly address them, but our behaviour and our policy and our practices itself strongly gave the message of our changed policy and benefit of the FUSION of bullet and ballot and all these things."At another place similar editing can be noticed. The transcript claims the following:Karan Thapar: What sort of relations will you be looking at with India?Prachanda: A new relation on a new basis. The new base has been laid down with the understanding from Delhi. A new unity with Delhi is already in process. The actual spoken words are different:"The new base has already been laid through the 12 point understanding from Delhi. This 12 point understanding created a conducive atmosphere for peace process, created a huge mass movement to bring out a historical change in this country. It has also laid down a new basis for unity with Delhi."Perhaps you are not aware of the mismatch between the spoken word and transcript put out by CNN-IBN. However, such doctoring are not necessarily innocuous. We wonder if it is your practice to edit/censor words in such a way that it changes the meaning or gives a different meaning than the one intended by the interviewee? Is it ethical to 'touch' the original spoken words in an interview which go beyond requirement of grammatical precision? Also does this not amount to disrespect for views contrary to yours? These questions become all the more important because PTI, presumably privy to your interview or at least its contents, prior to its telecast, released a news item on May 17, 2008 which was carried by Sunday Times (May 18, 2008), which quotes Prachanda as saying the following:"Though we don't want to directly address them, the benefit we have got, the differences of ballot and bullet has already sent a message". This entire sentence is nowhere present in your interview and is an interpolation which twists the meaning. And, yet, your office did not bother to contest this? We find all this rather strange.We, therefore, ask you to kindly look into the matter, rectify the mistake and ensure that the transcript put out by CNN-IBN are those which were the actual spoken words rather than a censored/edited version of someone else's imagination. This we believe is the least you can do to ensure highest standards of journalism, which you subscribe to.

Anand Swaroop Verma / Gautam Navlakha(on behalf of Indo Nepal People's Solidarity Forum) New Delhi 19th May 2008

Nepal leader to meet naxal leaders.

source-ibnlive
New Delhi: Nepal Maoist leader Baburam Bhattarai will be in Kolkata in June to meet Naxalite groups – but not the Left Front.
His visit is being organised by three Naxalite groups including CPI-ML, new Democracy and Santosh Rana's Provincial Coordination Committee.
They plan to hold a rally in Kolkata to celebrate the victory of the Nepali Maoists in the recent constituent assembly elections.
The parties have confirmed that Bhattarai will address the rally. This will be the first official engagement between the Nepali Maoists and Naxal groups.
Incidentally, these parties believe in armed struggle. It's not clear why the Nepali Maoists are ignoring West Bengal's ruling CPI-M, which brokered the first contacts between them and the Indian government.

Earlier, the envoy of the Himalayan nation held a meeting with senior CPI-M leader Sitaram Yechury, who has played a key role in bringing the Nepal Maoists into mainstream politics.
India has favoured consolidation of the process for the formation of a democratic republic through the drafting of a new constitution at the earliest.
Yechury, during his visit, had expressed confidence that all issues, including formation of a new government and drafting of a new constitution would be resolved through a ‘consensual approach’.
(With agency inputs)

No compromise in ideology and politics

- CP Gajurel, In-charge, International Bureau, Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist
What are the major problems that CPN-Maoist has to face in the national and international context after the landslide victory in the election constituent Assembly?
After the completion and result coming out of the election of the Constituent Assembly (CA), our party has been victorious and has become established as the single largest party in the CA, That is a victory not only for the people of Nepal but also it has to be considered as the victory for the oppressed people of the world. But it is not the final victory and it doesn't mean that we don't have any more challenges. We still have big challenges. In spite of our victory, the other parties are not ready to hand over power to our party and there is still a debate going on regarding who will be the Prime Minister and who will be the President. Also, a debate is on how the major posts should be divided among major three parties.
Secondly, some powers didn't want the Maoist to be the single largest party; they didn't want the Maoist to become victorious on the election. They are still trying to create hurdles, firstly to the formation of a government, and secondly, if the government is formed, they will try to create problems so that the Maoist government cannot run smoothly. Because of the scarcity of things, goods and materials, there will be discontent among the masses and the Maoist will not be able to run the government well. These are challenges before us. But, as we are have the support of millions and millions, we have the support of the masses of Nepal and of billions of people around the world. We are confident that we will be able to meet the challenges.
The victory of CPN-M in the election of CA is the victory of the Proletarian class. In history, the Bolsheviks under the leadership of Comrade Lenin held a CA election, but were defeated. Here in Nepal, the CPN-M has been victorious. What message does it convey to the international community?
Yes, during the time of Russian Revolution, it happened during CA election. Because the Menshevik and Socialist Revolutionaries (SRs) were strong at all levels, together they were able to get a majority of seats. The Bolsheviks had to be satisfied with minority seats.
After this situation, Lenin decided to continue the revolution and dismantled the CA. Because the rightists and opportunists were really the agents of the capitalist class, they didn't allow the Proletariat to form a new constitution; there was a deep risk to the Bolshevik party, a risk that revolution would have been smashed.
But now the situation is quite different. We were able to win in over half in the first past the post election system. We were not able to get the majority in the proportional election but our party has become the single largest party. None of the other parties could achieve this percentage of votes. It is because the reactionaries, rightist parties and the revisionist parties have no confidence in the masses and the masses do not trust these parties. Our party, during the decade long People's War and the 19 day People's Movement played a major role; because of our experience in the past in forming a new government in the countryside, the masses had hope only in the CPN-Maoist. So they voted for us to write a new constitution.
There are so many problems before the future government, and people feel very hopeful toward the CPN-M, What agendas will be prioritised in the new constitution to address the aspiration and needs of the people?
The major questions to be addressed in the new constitution has been already laid down in our commitment paper. Most importantly, the demand of the Revolution and of the Nepalese people is to overthrow the monarchy and establish a Federal Democratic Republic (FDR). Definitely, we will have a good position in the Assembly and our party will be able to win over other forces. We are in favour of writing the new constitution in a specific form of FDR.
Also, there are some basic questions that have to be solved. The question of livelihood and overall development of the society is very important because there is severe poverty in the society. We have to meet the necessity and basic requirements of the masses. Immediately, we have to fulfil all these necessary basic requirements. Definitely, there are unequal treaties that had been signed during the past and we have to review them. Some of them have to be renegotiated; we have to review all those treaties. The treaties should be signed on an equal basis. There are some problems of how to manage the New Democratic Republic. Because the bourgeois will definitely try to sabotage this process; the class that has been defeated will try to return to power. They will create problems whenever they can, they will find some excuses for that, there is the atmosphere to create problems.
On the basis of priority, we have to address all these questions. For example, first of all, politically, it is necessary to overthrow the monarchy and establish a Federal Democratic People's Republic in our sense. And, secondly, we have to resolve the basic economic problems of the society and we have to overcome the poverty of the people. It is necessary to fulfil the basic requirements of the masses.
In the developed new situation CPN-M has to make diplomatic relationship with other countries. What will be the basic principle for deplomatic relationship?
The basic principles will be the five principles of co-existence. That is the basis of state to state international relation. Another fundamental aspect of it is we have to develop the relationship with other states or governments, with the national interest of Nepal as its first priority. Definitely, we should have to develop the relation with all the country. The basis will be in the largest interest of the Nepalese people and the nation.
These two things, as has been explained by the United Nations Organization, the basic five principles of co-existence and the largest interest of Nepalese people and our Nation are the fundamental criteria of the diplomatic relationship.
CPN-M is going to the government. How will you handle the controversial relationship between state to state relationship and party relationship among Communist parties and organizations of the world?
Definitely, when we will be in the government, we will have to handle these two types of relationship. Because we are Communists and our party is a Communist party; we have as our goal the transition from socialism to communism. We have not given up our goal. We are moving in that direction. We are Internationalists because we are Communists. So the relation with other Communist parties will be developed on the basis of Proletarian internationalism. And, without interfering in the affairs of any Communist Party, our relationship will develop on the basis of proletarian internationalism.
So far as state to state relationship is concerned, on the basis of five principles of peaceful co-existence, the relation will develop between state to state. To carry on both the relationship will not be a big problem because we have learnt so many lessons from the Communist parties that were previously in power. For example, the Bolshevik party was in the power The Chinese Communist Party was in power and they maintained their relationship with different states and also the relation with other communist parties. We shall not compromise or negotiate our ideology and politics- in the name of being in government; we will never negotiate our fundamental principles, our ideology and politics.

Revolutionary Greetings from the Ceylon Communist Party-Maoist.

As a contingent of the Revolutionary Internationalist Movement, the CPN-had waged People's War against the Nepalese State for ten years, from 1996 to 2006. Under the leadership of the CPN-M, the People's Army had achieved great heights principally by establishing and expanding the red liberated base areas and other areas under the control or influence of the Party throughout the country. In these liberated areas, the proletariat, peasantry and oppressed nationalities and masses, led by the Party, exercised their own New Democratic state power, while clearing the path to the Socialist Revolution, as part of advancing the World Proletarian Socialist Revolution aimed at achieving Communism worldwide. These precious achievements won through great sacrifice, under tenacious Maoist leadership, provided inspiration to all Maoists and other revolutionary forces throughout the world, while creating panic among all imperialist and reactionary forces. These historic advances also served to unite Maoist revolutionary forces in South Asia .

In 2006, the CPN-M had taken the initiative in entering into a power sharing arrangement with the Nepalese bourgeois parliamentary opposition aimed at overthrowing the Monarchy. This has taken the form of contesting an election to a Constitutional Assembly that would formulate a new republican federal constitution. This tactical compromise was made at the cost of de-mobilizing the Peoples Liberation Army and suspending the People's War. In these elections the CPN-M has come out as the leading force, with an overwhelming majority of votes.

This tactical turn has been based on the analysis that the Monarchy represents the semi-feudal production and social relations and constitutes the immediate and principal obstacle to the forward march of the New Democratic Revolution. On this basis, the CPN-M had decided to enter into an alliance with the bourgeois parliamentary opposition to dispose of the Monarchy represented by king Gayendra. This decision was also propelled by the heroic advances gained by the people's war and the mass upsurge generated by it, which compelled the Nepalese bourgeois parliamentary opposition, world imperialism and India , to concede political space for the CPN-M. For their part, their tactical option was, " if you cannot devour them now, let us co-opt them, so we can devour them that much better ". However, the real danger lies in turning this tactical 'necessity' into a strategic principle.

The principal contradiction in all oppressed countries remain that between imperialism and the oppressed people. The strategic path defined by this contradiction is to wage protracted people's war to overthrow and uproot the Comprador Bureaucratic state by combining the Agrarian Revolution and the National Democratic Revolution aimed at overthrowing both semi-feudalism and imperialist domination and establishing the People's Democratic State, representing the Dictatorship of the Proletariat and Peasantry, in alliance with all classes and nations oppressed by imperialism, as a necessary transition to waging the Socialist Revolution. That is why we need to target imperialism as the principal enemy of the New Democratic revolution and continue waging protracted people's war, against all odds and placing our faith in the international proletariat and the oppressed masses that they shall fight and seek liberation in Communism.

We extend our internationalist solidarity with the CPN-M at this most momentous conjuncture. We urge that through all the compromises that have to be made, you strengthen and build the New Democratic state power , embodied in the liberated red base areas, already gained through so much heroic sacrifice of the people and the warriors of the PLA, maintain the independence and initiative of the CPN-M to carry forward the New Democratic Revolution, in unity with the international proletariat and the world revolution.

People's War News [8th May 2008]

RANCHI: In Jharkhand more than 1,000 CPI (Maoist) activists, armed with modern weapons, blocked the National Highway 100 (NH), which connects Chatra to Bagodar via Hazaribag for four hours from 8 in the morning. The Maoists also blew up a police vehicle in which a wireless supervisor of Giridih police Oliver Purti was killed and three other policemen were injured at Roll Pathar on Holong Ghati under Bishungarh police station. An eyewitness said they also hurled powerful bombs on the police. They said, "A Ranchi- bound Tata 407 police van of the Giridih police was ambushed by armed Naxals as it reached the Holong Ghati." According to the reports, the Maoists, after blowing up the police vehicle captured the 5 km stretch of Hazaribag-Dhanbad road via Bishnugarh and Bagodar (NH-100) blocked it from both the sides.

Shameless Bengalurians!!

They speak about infrastructure, they comment in national media about the bad infrastructure , bad roads, irritating traffic and other negative elements of the city .Do you think they are responsible citizens ? if you think so you are wrong .

In the first phase of election in Karnataka the vote percentage is around 65% . Excluding BBMP and Bengaluru city the percentage rises to 73%. BBMP has a percent of 55% and bengaluru city has the lowest 44.5%!!! what right do the bengalurians have to question politicians??

Where are they? election was on saturday and there was holiday on thursday[ basava jayanthi] , so if you put a cl on friday you will get 4 day holiday and people of bengaluru are enjoying it. while returning to their home they will comment on roads and traffic and criticise politicians ..................... jai hind

Nepal Maoists must concentrate on continuing the class struggle'

K. Srinivas Reddy in Hindu - 5th May 2008
It is possible only when they do not become part of governmentBe wary of the possibility of coups, assassinationsThey would be powerless to effect radical changes in ConstitutionHYDERABAD: In a shift from their earlier stand on the Nepalesedevelopments, Indian Maoists maintain that the current situation inthe neighbouring country provides immense possibilities for carryingforward the revolutionary programme by relying on the masses andcarrying out the class struggle, while utilising the State.However, such a scenario will be possible only when the Maoistleadership in Nepal does not become part of the government butconcentrates on continuing the class struggle, says Azad, Maoistspokesman in India.In a statement on Wednesday, the CPI (Maoist) Central Committeedescribed the electoral victory of the Communist Party of Nepal (CPN)as "a verdict against feudal monarchy, Indian expansionism and U.S.imperialism. " Cautioning them "not to become dizzy with success" andto be wary of the possibility of coups and assassinations, thecommittee said the real test would begin once the CPN took over thereins of power.The Maoist party was of the firm view that radical restructuring ofthe system would not be possible without militant mobilisation ofmasses. Such systemic changes could not be brought about throughState decrees and laws.With the Nepal Maoists lacking a majority in the ConstituentAssembly, they would be powerless to effect radical changes in theConstitution.There were only two alternatives — either to compromise and adjustwith reactionary forces or to mobilise people and intensify strugglethrough all means, including armed insurrection. The CPN should befully prepared to confront coup attempts, assassinations, artificialscarcity of goods through economic blockades and sabotage by inimicalforces that included India and the U.S, the Maoist party said.While sending their "fraternal revolutionary greetings,' IndianMaoists reminded the CPN leaders that very limited gains could beachieved by a government which came to power through elections."Survival of such a regime depends on taking a conciliatory stand onseveral crucial matters. Hence to overestimate the prospects ofradical restructuring of the society or economy by a Maoistgovernment would be illusory," the statement said.

Stop war and start talks: plea for new tactics in India's Red Corridor

source

India should seek peace talks with Maoist rebels whose influence has spread to half the country and who threaten to undermine an economic boom, according to an internal report sent to the Government yesterday.
The report, a copy of which was seen by The Times, urges the reversal of the 40-year policy of refusing to negotiate with the Naxalites, as the Maoists are known, until they renounce violence.
It also criticises the Government for treating the insurgency as a law-and-order problem rather than addressing its underlying causes: poverty, illiteracy, unemployment, social injustice and the caste system.
“The first point is to talk to them - we just have to open the lines of communication,” said Santosh Mehrotra, a member of the panel that compiled the report for the Planning Commission, the Government's internal think-tank.

“Point two is that the Government's approach has been so heavily security-centric. That's not the way to go. It has to be walking on two legs - security and development.”
Dr Mehrotra said that the report was sent to the offices of Manmohan Singh, the Prime Minister, and several senior Government members yesterday.
The recommendations mark the first time since the 1980s that the Government has explored the root causes of the Naxalite movement and highlights growing concern about India's unbalanced economic development.
Mr Singh described the Naxalites last year as India's single biggest internal security threat. Officials now fear that the Naxalites have been encouraged by the success of the Maoists in neighbouring Nepal, who won a parliamentary election last month after fighting a decade-long insurgency.
Inspired by Mao Zedong, the Naxalite movement began with a peasant uprising in 1967 in the village of Naxalbari - after which it is named - in the state of West Bengal. Since then it has claimed about 7,000 lives and grown into a force of 40,000 permanent armed cadres and 100,000 militia members, according to the South Asia Terrorism Portal, a research centre based in Delhi.
The Naxalites now control a “Red Corridor”, consisting mainly of dense forest, stretching from West Bengal to the border of Nepal. The group is active in 16 of India's 28 states.
Last year Naxalite violence caused 696 deaths, compared with 678 in 2006, and so far this year more than 220 people have died in Maoist-related violence.
The latest reported deaths came over the weekend when Naxalite rebels killed three policemen in the eastern state of Jarkhand.
The Maoists are also now striking at economic targets, such as an iron ore enrichment plant in the state of Chhattisgarh, where they set fire to more than 50 lorries eight days ago.
Several state governments have responded by supporting local armed vigilante groups, known as Salwa Judum, which means “purification hunt”.
But the report recommended disbanding them, saying that it “delegitimises politics, dehumanises people, degenerates those engaged in their security and above all represents the abdication of the State itself”. In Chhattisgarh, the violence between the two sides had displaced about 100,000 people, many of them from indigenous tribal groups, it said.
The report said that the Government should focus instead on bridging the widening income gap between urban and rural populations, and between upper castes and lower castes or ethnic minorities. “To reduce the anger of the people, it is necessary that those affected should feel they are a part of mainstream Indian society and not an external element to be looked down on by others.”
Some experts on the Naxalites disagreed with the report's recommendations, claiming that development would take too long and security should remain the priority. But Dr Mehrotra said that he hoped the report would prompt the Government to place greater emphasis on development in Naxalite areas, instead of simply trying to crush the rebels.
“I think the tide is turning,” he said.