So: http://demrepubnepal.blogspot.com/ Paramendra Bhagat Location: New York City, US ______________________________ Federalism is just a word for the Bahuns. They feel the pressure, and so they say it, but their heart is not in it. Now that they are forced to pay lip service to the word, their next step strategy is to offer federalism in word but not in deed, and that includes the Maoist Bahuns. Maoist federalism is the Soviet model, the Chinese model. In the Chinese model, Tibet is an autonomous region, but we all know what that means. We want a federalism whose shape is democratically decided by the people. The Madhesi Movement has clearly shaped the boundaries of the Madhesh state, but these Bahuns are using all their powers to malign the very concept of that Madhesh state. They have not stopped talking disrespectfully of the Madhesi Movement and its martyrs. First they will offer MahendraPath federalism. You will have decentralization, you will have reorganized zones and development regions. They will want to create regions, not states. When they say federalism, they mean decentralization. You are talking apples and oranges. When you say federalism in Nepal, you are talking of about 10 states. And just like in India, they are going to be ethnic, lingual states. The Madhesi want that. The Janajati want that. Federalism is about democracy. If the people want federalism, they are going to get federalism. If the Madhesi people want a Madhesh state, that is what they are going to get. No force on earth can prevent the creation of a Madhesh state. Who are the Bahuns? The Bahuns are not preparing to obstruct the creation of the Madhesh state. They are preparing to lose elections. They are preparing to get wiped out of the Madhesh. The concept of a Madhesh state is the Madhesi Movement's gift to me. The Bahun mindgame is not taking the Bahuns anywhere this time. If they were democrats, they would compete to match their political programs with the aspirations of the people. But they are not democrats, they are Bahuns. They are not driven by the democratic spirit, they are driven by Bahun prejudice. First they will pay lip service to federalism. Then they will want to go into the elections without any specific map. They will tell us all that will be decided in the assembly. Then they will come up with a map in the assembly that does not grant the Madhesi and the Janajati their states. And then they will try to suggest that such are regions and not states, just bigger and better districts. That is their gameplan. And if all fails, and they are forced to give the Madhesi and the Janajati their states, they will do all to make sure those states have as little power as possible. We have to understand their gameplan, and we have to defeat the same. We want a Madhesh state that will have its own parliament. The Madhesh state will retain at least half the revenue it generates. As for the other half that goes to the center, the Madhesh will have MPs that are proportionate in number to the population of the Madhesh. The center should not have any power to dismiss a democratically elected state government. We have to get very specific about the federalism that we want. Otherwise these Bahuns are going to play mindgames every step of the way. It is urgent that the Janajati Movement produce a specific map for federalism. Work To Defeat Them The goal of the Madhesi Janajati Movement should not be to convince the Bahuns to change their minds. The goal should be to defeat them. The goal should be to force upon them fair procedures for the constituent assembly and then to beat them at the polling booth. The Madhesi Janajati Movement needs to work to form its own political party.