It feels so good to be overwhlemed with people wanting to join the rally, despite some chyaun chyaun from the (nuanced) royalists at the obvious losing end. I happy to report that the two 45-capacity buses chartered by the NY coordinators of the rally now seems not enough for the the overhwleming number of people showing interest. We are in a last minute frantic attempt to rent three more 15-seater vans in addition to encouraging people with private cars to car pool. So goes the story of people's true desires and aspirations. In the mean time, some of you please pardon the redundancy of re-pasting the following appeal that I wrote to garner support for the rally. It might be useful for those who havn't seen it yet. Just one more day, so please excuse just one more attempt. [What follows was first published in target=_blank>www.samudaya.org] "Support the Pro-Democracy Rally in Washington DC" by ANIL J. SHAHI May 2005 Serious (in terms of intensity by which they thrive) and protracted violent movements?like the Nepali Maoist conflict?take years, if not decades, to ferment. The root of Maoist problem in Nepal is the culture of inequality and suppression based on hierarchical system that was started by the Rana oligarchy and further perpetuated (at the most) and promoted (at the least) by the Panchayat autocracy. Therefore, the real and sustainable solution to Maoist crisis would come not from further absolutism of the King, but from genuine and sincere empowerment of the people, which can only be guaranteed in a democratic system. Despite many failures of successive democratic governments of the post-Panchayat era, one area that Nepal made remarkable progress under democracy?albeit weak?was in empowerment of the people who were ignored, suppressed, and deprived of rights, privileges and opportunities, particularly those from the rural areas, who were/are the vast majority of Nepali population. In the long run, what really matters?and what really holds true solutions to social ills (corruption being one of them)?is the real and genuine power to the people. Yes, the progress during the democratic era was very slow and definitely was not enough, and much, much more needed to be done. Nevertheless, we would be mistaken not to recognize the fact that the progressive trend towards better awareness (among the people) was started and was slowly but surely gaining pace in the 14 years or so of nascent democracy in Nepal. Despite some serious difficulties, this trend need not be halted, not even for a moment. KingG and his coterie of vision-deprived, obviously-not-fit-for-modern-times crooks, after extended efforts to undermine the democratic governments, have done just that. There is not a shred of doubt that the political parties needed to be profoundly reformed and the likes of Girija, Deuba and MaKuNe (who too lacked any sense of vision and who also heralded from the old school that makes absolutely no sense whatsoever in today's world) needed to be properly checked. However, this very process of desperately needed political, social and cultural transformation (not limited to political leaders alone) is not fathomable in any other system but democracy. Any course towards reform and positive changes is only viable in a democratic platform where the people can vibrantly debate, argue and draw constructive conclusions. Democracy, not autocracy, ensures greater awareness among the people and empowers them. Empowered people create better political alternatives. Better political alternatives, in turn, obviously guarantees better results for the people. This is the way it works. And this is the way it should be. There have been legitimate questions about the effectiveness of a rally being held half way around the world, hence reluctance of some to attend the rally. First and foremost, my friends, please remember that it is a very simple matter of freedom of expression. If we are to deprive ourselves of our own very basic, fundamental rights just because of the fear of it?s ineffectiveness, then we'd be no worse than the King who deprives his people of those very rights. The right to freedom of expression is ours, and let us use it! We all have traveled thousands of miles to an alien land because we all had our own respective dreams. Some of us will go back, or at least are seriously contemplating the idea, others won't?those are the freewill of every individual that must be respected. Nevertheless, the differences in personal choices of ways of livings do little to undermine the love for the land that we all grew up in, and the place that we all can commonly dearly associate with. It is in this spirit that ? despite the differences in the way we wish to live?the least we can do is show our support for those who are fighting for people's rights back home. Those who are risking jail, torture, or in some extreme cases "disappearance", to peacefully struggle for the much-needed genuine empowerment of the people are brave souls whom we must all have utmost respect for. Showing solidarity is one way to do so. And being at the rally is one way of expressing that solidarity. At this critical juncture in our country's history, it has become imperative that we all stop and think of what kind of future we all desire for our country. We have lived under autocracies of one form or the other for most of our modern political history. It is about time we began to let go of the concept of needing a "father figure" to guide us all the time. It is about time that we begin to have confidence in ourselves, individually and collectively. And it is about time that we began to arouse better awareness among the people who still believe that an "individual" other than ourselves has the solutions to our problems. It is about time we fought absolutism of the King so that then we can effectively fight the tyranny of the Maoists, with the best weapon available: freewill of the people. The rally is one way of making our voices heard, of showing our support for all those who dare to believe in the collective we, of spreading our message of people's power, and of creating better awareness amongst ourselves, so that when all is said and done, we will have a country that is thriving with democracy and personal liberty. There is absolutely no alternative to democracy in a multi-ethnic and pluralistic society like ours. Please join the rally in DC if you can and support the cause for democracy and human rights in Nepal. This rally is not about the political leaders who undoubtedly have failed us time and again. Neither it is limited to fighting against absolutism of the King. This rally is about us?it is about you and I and every Nepali who dares to dream of a better future for ourselves. After all, it is not up to Girija, or MaKune, or Deuba, or KingG to deliver for us. We have the keys to our own future and it is only when we develop a sense of collective confidence in ourselves?through democracy?that we will succeed in achieving what now seems impossible. Better tomorrow is achieved by believing in ourselves today. Let us believe in our rights, our strengths and our future. Let us not let an individual take those away from us. Washington, DC, May 15th, Sunday. Be there!