Posted by: Nepe March 4, 2005
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Feb 27, 2005
Emailed to Peace Media advosors and others
Kamala ji,
As a well wisher of Peace Media, it is a pleasure to see that you are
rectifying what I will call a lapse of judgment on your part to publish a
notice whose words implied, if not explicitly stated, that (i) Peace Media
has decided to support the royal coup d'etat back home and (2) it shall not
accept the articles critical of HM's action, (3) you now have a loyalist
like Dipta Shah in your team and you don't care if the old advisors who are
disappointed with your decision want to quit, and so on.
I think, at a personal level, you are free to support whoever you like, even
if that is the despotic regime of the King. I think it is even okay to
express your support in your editorials, because that still is your
personal view. However, you can not run the whole magazine to support a
given party unless you don't mind to lose it's credibility as an
independent media, not to mention many of your advisors and well-wishers.
When you own, edit, contribute and also run a magazine, taking a side might
bring what is called a conflict of interests. And the conflict of interest
is that nasty thing which might affect your credibility. So you be
careful.
That brings me to your new editor Dipta Shah ji. Having exchanged couple of
frank emails from the initial contact you made for us with him, I have good
reasons to believe that he will not take my frank comments below as
offensive.
From the number of his contributions, their contents and his stands, I see
him working as an unofficial (hopefully self-appointed) spokesman for the
royal takeover. And that's fine. I only wonder if his new job of editor too
provokes this nasty "conflict of interests" !
On the interesting debate you initiated on democracy and peace, I better
leave it to qualified friends like Alok ji, Anup ji and others to learn
from your sincere remarks and teach us back in return.
Nevertheless, I would like to put my dui paisa at this rare jamghat of some
of the brilliant minds of Nepali Diaspora.
It is true, really true, whether people like or not, there is nobody in
Nepal except Mr. Gyanendra Shah (Sorry, I am not calling him HM because,
since Feb 1, he is not the King. He is now the self-appointed
prime-minister of Nepal. He is reluctant to call himself the prime-minister
and instead calls himself the President. However, our Constitution does not
envision this provision. Since the former King Gyanendra clearly proclaimed
that everything is done according to the Constitution of Nepal, there is no
doubt that he is the prime-minister !) who can bring peace, stability and
establish "true" democracy in Nepal.
At this point, I agree with you (if that is what you meant), Dipta Shah and
number of other pro-coup d'etat contributors and disagree with those who
are implying that political parties in pre-royal takeover position have
that capacity.
What I disagree with you, Dipta Shah and other pro-coup d'etat contributors,
however, is that the King (oops ! okay, let him be the King too, who knows
for how long !) is not doing what you think he is doing.
A draconian regime and a gradual revival of the discredited Panchayat is not
how you bring peace and stability and strengthen democracy.
Here is how he can and should bring peace and stability and strengthen
democracy in Nepal.
Declare Nepal a republic and run your own political party, Gyanendra Shah
ji.
Look how it will make everything right.
1. Maoists will disarm, join the mainstream and accept the republic and run
in the election (else, they will face the united force of the King's party
and all other political parties and every single Nepali, from Mechi,
Mahakali to the USA !)
2. King can show the whole world and unconvinced people like me how much
people trust him and win the election and thereby show other corrupt
parties and incompetent leaders how to run a democracy and do good
governance, accountability, transparency, rule of law, equality before the
law, reward and penalty, you name it.
3. Our corrupt parties will learn the lesson that we all want them to
learn.
See how simple and how wonderful.
I don't understand how great minds like that of Dipta Shah and Dr. Khagendra
Thapa could not think of it. As a matter of fact, I shared this idea of
mine with Dipta Shah in one of my private emails. Dipta ji said we are not
mature enough for a republic. Ye Baba, when the King himself will be
demonstrating every step of it to us, how can we not learn to do it ?
Back to peace, stability and democracy. Can there be anything more peaceful,
stable and truly democratic than a republic Nepal blessed, nurtured and
accompanied by the King himself and supported by all Nepalis ? Hello ?
Kamala ji, Dipta Shah ji and Dr. Khagendra Thapa ji ! And self assuming
centrists, pro-constitutional monarchists too, do consider this wonderful
option, please.