Time Closes In
G.P Koirala counts on one hand the number of times he's actually accomplished something for the people of Nepal.
Has the old man had enough? Unprecedented in his career, Girija asks for someone to take over for him as NC president during his upcoming three month vacation. http://kantipuronline.com/kolnews.php?&nid=52558. This comes from a man who has done virtually everything imaginable to increase his own wealth and power.
Assuming that all Nepali's have no memory, Koirala tries his best to be sneaky by saying that he's going "outside the country" for a health check up and a little relaxation. Gee, do you think he means Belize?
Old Girija took a nasty fall during one of his recent demonstrations against "regression." The old boy got banged-up pretty good. When you're 82 years old, falling down in the street might be just enough to take the fire out of you. Blogdai thinks Girija is going to India to retire and fade away.
Seems like a lot of the Koiralas are taking this route. Number 2, Sushil turned down a high post in the NC this week for no apparent reason other than boredom. If that pattern holds, maybe we'll see Sujata opening up a hair salon in Delhi in the near future.
-=blogdai
posted by blogdai @ 9/23/2005 11:12:00 AM
29 comments
29 Comments:
cmmon move on blogdai...dont waste your time on has been factors. lets get some relevant political discussion here not an elegy for an old crook.
Agreed, let's let the old fossil die. Problem is, every utterance out of Girija's mouth is treated as big news in Nepal.
Fools like ambassador James Moriarty still feel the need to meet with him, as evidenced this week; and Western journalists and governments still consider him to be the symbol of democracy in Nepal.
Most student protests are sponsored by the NC; which means Girija signs off on virtually every street action in Kathmandu.
We here at blogdai need to push this guy into obscurity. The rest of the world doesn't seem able to do the job.
-=blogdai
How you say has been? This kukur Koirala is number one reason for trouble in Nepal. Every one look to him for advice and money. He is all of the politics in Nepal and has runed our country.
Raj Kumar Thapa
blogdai, I'm not sure if these have just been temporary glitches, but I have encountered error messages a couple of times when trying to access your blog ("access forbidden" etc) - thought I would bring it to your attention...
also, there was quite a good article about Koirala's pseudo-abdication on United we Blog - "Greedy Girija"...I'd be interested in your comments...
Yes, I think blogger.com was doing some maintenance last week, so hopefully that explains you glitches.
I'll read that article and get back to you. United we blog can be one of those "democracy at all costs" blab-fests, so it might be interesting to see their treatment of old Girija.
-=blogdai
I've been waiting for the old goat to give up the ghost. But at this rate he'll outlive me. May his bottom roast in hell forever!
As for UWB, I just can't condone some of their sensationalistic reportage. One time I remember seeing a picture of a man with his lips sewn up. This was around the time of the press blackout - you get the drift.
I remembered that picture from somewhere else and recalled that it was in fact a picture of a certain Kurdish gentleman protesting against a certain European immigration service not giving him asylum. What's that got to do with Nepal? Thankfully, some of the other readers weren't so easily misled either and took them to task about it.
Also note their strapline is
*United We Blog! for a Democratic Nepal. We blog for a peaceful and democratic Nepal*
First thing's first. Why can't it be United We Blog! for a peaceful Nepal?
Democracy at all costs as you say, BD.
I'm still of the opinion that even if democracy were reinstated there will still be far too many disenfranchised people. The solution has got to be about *Nepal first* and self-interests and desires later. It doesn't have to be the final solution either.
naagboy
I think you are spot on, Naagboy.
It seems to me that 'western democracy' exists only in countries where there are no longer any real strong 'family ties' meaning clan/tribe type groupings. In other words there is no real competitor for 'national/state' loyalty. In Britain we have been moving around and intermarrying for a number of generations and, although we may feel a special relationship to our 'roots', most of us leave it at that - feelings.
Many (most?) other countries have not had the same population mobility and therefore retain close 'tribal' links which, not surprisingly, are much stronger than the relationship between an individual and a political state. (Iraq, at the moment, is a particular such example.)
I may be mistaken, but I get a distinct impression that many Nepalis feel very strong loyalty to their own family - a group which seems to include many individuals not at all closely related from the point of view of a recent common ancestor - and will naturally show favour to them. I also get the impression that most marriages occur within these family groups, thus maintaining and strengthening the effect.
I cannot see anything wrong with this situation but I doubt if it is entirely compatible with our western ideas and models of democracy. A different system needs to be designed to embrace the realities of the Nepali culture and way of life.
Yes! - Peace is what Nepal and Nepalis need! Enfranchisement for all however will be needed to maintain this. But shouting about democracy as operated in totally different situations is of help to no-one.
Nationalism.
A key first step. Without a sense of national identity and national purpose, there can be no individual willingness to sacrifice for the good of the nation.
Nationalism is the emotional wake-up call that leads to political unity and compromise. It is the starter motor, if you will, for the engine of democracy. Once your engine is up and running, the starter sits in the background and waits for its opportunity to start the engine again.
Brit, Naag is usually on target; we just don't hear enough from him.
-=blogdai
Mirza is long gone and it's high time for Girija to bid adieu too. This man is going senile by the day.
His daughter has a voracious appetite for power, wealth and men. She, too, needs to get back to Germany or some place far from Nepal.
Moriarty needs Sher(lock) to take care of him over some fall in Switzerland.
I also hear that some Americans of Nepali descent are actually collecting some mullah to get Gagan Thapa to come to the US for yet another Rally. These people have nothing better to do than stir up the wanna-be leaders of tomorrow like Deepak Khadka, Mridula Koirala and Anil Shahi.
El! Good to hear from you again.
Blogdai must confess to some bias. I have trouble listening to the constant anti-king-pro-democracy drum beat of expatriot Nepalis.
My bias lies in the fact that, for these people to get to where they are: prospering in the West, they probably had a good handle on where to get the money under the old corrupt system. No wonder none of these people want new elections or even a dialogue with the king, the old corrupt money machine worked too well for them.
They want their pig-trough refilled and returned to them immediately.
Let them raise money all they want. Anil Shahi? Isn't he a guitar player in Kathmandu? C'mon.
Not a one of them cares about the future of Nepal; they only care about their wealth.
-=blogdai
As a human being, we have sympathy to person who is near to diminsh from this world. But looking at his worst tenure and present surrendering strategy to the maoist and India, he can be considered as the worst leader of the world.
Blogdai,
Anil Shahi is the guy who was acting like King G at the NY Rally with crown and that pout intact.
Blogdai, looking at some sites like partynepal.com, it seems that KTM's party crowd and social elite are either oblivious to the plight of the nation or don't give a damn. What's your take on that?
I like the guitar player Anil Shahi better...
I'd like to agree with anonymous's calling Girija " the worst leader in the world," but that would mean that I must acknowledge Girija as a "leader" in the first place; I do not.
There is a prevailing mentality in Nepal that, if you can get out and stay out of Nepal, you do it. Witness the hordes of laborers lining up for ANY overseas servitude.
On the higher end that you speak of, those at partynepal are part of the "take the money and run" crowd. They got their education, they got their money and they got out; to hell with the rest of us.
On the other hand, the plight of Nepalis is not really evident outside of Kathmandu. The painted picture of a country on the verge of collapse just doesn't hold for the man on the street in Kathmandu. We can thank the uneducated Western media for all the hype.
-=blogdai
This Girja Budda should call it quits or just die and let the next generation of leaders emerge from the ashes like a phoenix.
Girija Baje needs to be euthanized or something. He's too frail and too senile to be carrying on with the "democratic' mantel too long.
Why doesn't the Congress have any posible replacement for him? That itself is a very discomforting notion!
I think Nepali Congress and the agitating parties had enough kowtowing to the Indian delegation of meddling politicos. Let's try to salvage the little dignity that we have, pleeeeeeeeeeeeeezzzzzzzzz!
Blogdai must be vacationing, or may be 'trekking' in the remote himalayas where there is no internet access.
Just guessing from the last 3 posts that are here which should have been deleted the second they were posted!
No, on the contrary, I'm having quite a nice little war with these internet spammers. To the tune of 20 crappy links per day.
Blogdai has automatic alerts and deletes them when they show up.
Pesky little flys.
-=blogdai
Blogdai, the spammers are obviously getting the better of you in recent days - is there anything the rest of us can do??
Not really, unless we all leave messages at blogger.com
This is really not as bad as it could be. My access has been limited in recent days due to the set-up of blogdai's new satellite connection.
I'll try to be patient with these idiots until then.
-=blogdai
Is Kathmandu in Nepal?
Walk around Thamel and Durbar Marg and wonder where the f*ck you are. Go to Jai Nepal Cinema and wonder whether Qatar Airlines flew in the wrong direction. They dress like American hip hop kings, London business men, fair skinned models from Bollywood.
These are the democracts. The so called oppressed people who want to bring Democracy back to Nepal because it has been 'stolen' from them.
Go to Humla and figure out what democracy means to the farm boy who can't read or write. Go to Dhading and ask the girl crushing stone what she thinks about the political situation in Nepal. Indeed, go to Ramachapp and ask the old farmer what he thinks about a constituent assembly.
In the words of famous american poets -Girja "go f$ck yourself"
Democracy, who needs democracy when i can't feed my children?
It's like arguing with your wife about the colour of the walls in the living room whilst your house collapses all around you.
Your analogy may be closer than you think.
A few years back, during a particularly brutal season of Maoist atrocities, Girija and Deuba argued, not over how to deal with the problem, but who would carry the Nepali Congress official flag during some event.
The rich and corrupt you witness are not asking for a return to democracy so much as a return to their corrupt feeding troughs.
It's what we've been saying for quiet some time now: Nepalis in power have a fundamental misunderstanding of democracy. It is not a license to steal, it is a mandate to serve your country.
-=blogdai
Blogdai,
I agree with you that the Girija and Deuba were a disappointment. However, how is King G different than Girija and Deuba?
How good is KG, who gives himself a 5 fold raise? The cumulative amount of this raise for last couple of years is probably greater than the infamous Lauda deal. Who is paying for his Blue Label? May be not you Blogdai, but certainly my dad is paying taxes. Imagine US president or a CEO of any company giving himself such a raise. It would be an outrage. How different is KG in looting the country than Girija? Our countrymen are dying. Just think about the wives and children of RNA army men who died. Why does King G think his welfare is more important than helping the victims of this war? For every Rupees King G wastes, there is a rupee less for these poor people. What are these poor army men fighting for? Are they fighting so that KG can buy a new Limo and Paras can roam around in a Harley? Are they fighting so that Tulsi Giri can suppress our fundamental rights and run amok with corruption?
How different is Tulsi Giri from Girija? Why do you not see any wrong when Giri defaults loan and an Indian mysteriously pays the bill. Blog Dai has a problem whenever an Indian breathes in Nepal. However, why don't you smell anything wrong here?
Do you even keep up with news in Nepal? Why do you not see any wrong with Tulsi Giri giving land ownership of Bardia National Park to some Ranas? Why do you not see any wrong with King G playing sleazy games to kill Nepal Telecom, a public company, in favor of his son in law's private business? Why do you not find any problems with RNA men killing a poor woman and getting away with almost no punishment? Why do you not see nothing wrong when the King's chosen men are bank defaulters, convicted criminals, and corrupts being currently investigated by CIAA? Why do you think these King's men are the best people to lead Nepal? What do you say about finance minister being involved in the fertilizer scheme and why is it different than the corruption cases during last 10 years? Mind you all these abuse of power and corruption took power after King G promised to clean the system. How can we trust King G when he failed to keep up with one of his main agenda of curbing corruption?
I just have too many questions and I expect to hear answers from you since you are the enlightened one. To me, King G is no different than Girija and Deuba. Girija deserves most of the blame for the situation today. However, during democratic times, at least you could defeat Girija in an election. And this happened when Nepali people defeated his party in election.
How do you send the message to King G when he is heading towards the wrong direction? How are you going to tell King G that it is time for him to step down peacefully? In democracy, I have a say since I can either vote in or out Girija or Deuba? Does King G listen to any common Nepalis? May be to you Blogdai, but not to common Nepalis like me.
I do not expect any tangible results from King G in 8 months. However, to get results you need to take some actions. You need to take some steps. All you royalists say that we need peace over democracy. However, what steps have King G taken (not results) to achieve this thing called peace? King G himself expressed that dialogue is necessary to solve this problem. But where is the initiative for peace from King G? Now stop the rhetoric and get down to reality.
Dear Nepali
Thankyou for your thoughtful contribution. You put your finger on some major current issues which need addressing.
Do you even keep up with news in Nepal?
As you will guess from my 'name' I am not Nepali nor am I currently in Nepal and there are many gaps in my knowledge, however I am sure Blogdai keeps up with it.
Why do you not see any wrong with Tulsi Giri giving land ownership of Bardia National Park to some Ranas? Why do you not see any wrong with King G playing sleazy games to kill Nepal Telecom, a public company, in favor of his son in law's private business? Why do you not find any problems with RNA men killing a poor woman and getting away with almost no punishment?
I see serious problems with these - are the first two of them recent? (i.e. this year?) - If so then I am seriously disappointed - yes, this is the wrong direction.
Regarding earlier acts of dishonesty/ corruption - I wonder if anyone is totally 'clean'. I think present actions are the ones to be judged in this situation for there to be a positive move forward. It is wise to learn from history but, in my opinion, foolish and sometimes disasterous to be controlled by it (see Northern Ireland, Former Yugoslavia).
The big question is - who is there who will take on the responsibility of 'managing' a corruption-free government and who will support such a hero? Can leaders in Nepal only find support by bribery or terrorism? Shame on you!
Yes, I support King G at present but not unreservedly so. I reckon he is wealthy enough. He and Nepal stand to lose more than they can gain if he allows further corruption in this situation.
Girija is bad, but Gyane is worse. Girija is representative of
crimes that an elected dictatorship commits, but he's the price Nepal has to pay for tolerating an authoritarian regime for so long.
We have to find a way forward. Embracing the King won't do that. Its so nice to assume that the King is going to solve everything, but those who do so are stuck too far in the past to understand the situation. Maoism is a modern problem, that requires a modern solution. Sure, embracing modernity means having to sometimes confront unpleasant people like the much hated Girija Prasad Koirala, but who said democracy was ever easy?
As for those who wonder what Democracy has done for people of Western Nepal, you might also ask what centuries of absolute monarchism did. Hell, the monarchy is a prime reason this is such a poor country. The royal family lived in Kathmandu, never bothering with what happened at the extremities of the Kingdom, leaving that for surrogates to worry about, and those people were happy just to loot the people and rape the land. At least with a democracy, people from neglected parts of the country have a chance to be represented. They may be getting bad representation now, but you can hope to change.
Democracy is a bad thing. Democracy could lead to Nepal being a Bihar tomorrow. But it could lead to new leadership in the country. Its chance, democracy is, but its long-run prospects appear to be quite good.
I see serious problems with these - are the first two of them recent? (i.e. this year?) - If so then I am seriously disappointed - yes, this is the wrong direction.
Brit, All the examples I cited are recent (after the coup). Why is King G getting sucked into the same spiral of greed for money and power as Girija? What is the point of all this exercise of kicking out the parties if he is going to do the same? Who is advising the King?
Regarding earlier acts of dishonesty/ corruption - I wonder if anyone is totally 'clean'.
The big question is - who is there who will take on the responsibility of 'managing' a corruption-free government and who will support such a hero?
I think the present generation of Nepali leaders from Girija to King G is a total failure. There were so many promises, expectation and talents but they failed to rise and live up to the occasion. Why do they not learn anything from the past mistakes? Why is Girija still manipulating election in his party? Why is King G still rewarding corrupts?
I do not think anything will happen in Nepal if we do not put pressure on these leaders whether it is Girija or King G. We need to be on their ass for something to be done.
I think we need to think outside the box for the solution. I see hope in a new breed of leaders from our generation (an outsider from present power structure) to infuse new ideas, new perspective to solve today's problems. More than 50% of 20 million Nepalis are under 25 and we got to have some leadership or talents there given a fair chance - more reason why we need to have a democracy. I am not willing to put all my buck in one basket or a family. I think this is a risky strategy.
Yes, I support King G at present but not unreservedly so. I reckon he is wealthy enough. He and Nepal stand to lose more than they can gain if he allows further corruption in this situation.
I beg to differ. King G has little to lose. With the backing of military, in the worse case scenario, King G will have to go back to the previous role of constitutional monarchy. Maoist or political parties do not have enough power to shake him if he decides not to relinquish his power. Yes, he is wealthy but that does not stop him from giving himself a 5 fold raise.
However, let us see who is gaining from all this exercise and maneuverings? What about all the sycophants around the King? They have absolutely no accountability, and nothing to lose, and everything to gain by the King being in power.
The King may have had good intentions but he is heading the wrong directions now. How does King G get advice? How can we expect him to make right decisions when there is no opposition to challenge him in his government? I just get troubled by all the group thinking that goes on.
I also get troubled when young and educated Nepalis run after the bandwagon rhetoric of peace vs. democracy. After all what is peace? What is a definition of peace? Is the state in North Korea or Cuba, where there is suppression but no bandhs or rebellion peace? And how do we get from the current state of chaos to the state of peace? What is King G's roadmap to reach to this ultimate goal of peace?
I think we've hit on something important here: Nepal can institute a democracy, republic, benevolent dictatorship, anything in wants; but we have seen that these systems are mere titles only.
There is a fundamental inability to grasp the concepts of democracy throughout the Nepal political diaspora. It's true. Perhaps Girija's only model for how to do things since 1990 has been the corrupt Indian method of political gamesmanship and profiteering.
G. is no better. We've said it here on many occasions: G. needs to hire a PR person--from the West--to keep him from hiring thugs like Giri and making other high profile mistakes.
What may be missing over all, from all parties to this mess, is the sense that public trust must be earned and cultivated in order for ANY representative system to work.
Girija won't do it and G. seems clueless about it.
-=blogdai
As much as I hate Girija, he was by far more receptive to the concerns of the people than the King apparently is. Despite his hunger for power, Giriji did step down voluntarily a couple of times and ensured peaceful transfer of power (as numerous times as he became PM during the days of the revolving governments).
In contrast, King G has usurped power and has yet to demonstrate a graceful and peaceful transfer of power if ever. There is utter disregard, arrogance, and little indication of a response to people's concern, other than to consolidate his own power.
Anyway, let's step out of this personal politics for a minute and look at the current situation of the country. How do you begin to de-escalate the crisis? A constituent assembly is the meeting point for all 3 political forces today -- and the ultimate test for them all. Is King G willing to subject himself to the test of the people?
The other two players have already spoken their mind.
Are you kidding? Describe your concept of "receptive."
Under Girija, concerns of the average citizen were actively and ritually ignored. Open corruption and hubris was a slap in the face of Nepalis as well.
WAnt proof? Ask yourself if a fledgling and ineffective Maoist movement would have been allowed to reach its brutal apex under a government that actually paid attention to its citizens. Put another way, Maoists are powerful because an incompetent administration under Girija and others ignored them.
King arrogant? UNconcerned? WEll, I am in Kathmandu this moment and there is no evidence of this from any sector, ANY. Shutting down Kantipur was a crude move to be sure but not one citizen feels pain from it. Where do you get your opinions, from the western media? YOu most definitely are not living in Nepal right now or you would see a different picture.
Even the slightest bit of insight would tell you that Maoists would not allow a fair election of a constituent assembly.
Blogdai must constantly repeat this information as long as persons like yourself spout off irrelevant, disjointed statements that are based on cursory insight.
Practice your English elsewhere.
-=blogdai
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