Bitter taste

MAY 14 -
Observers had long anticipated that passions would become inflamed as the deadline for the constitution-drafting process approached. And in recent days, as political parties have been discussing the delineation of provinces in Kathmandu, there have been numerous bandas across the country. Much attention has been focused on the unfortunate turn of events in the Far West. The entire region has been closed down for morethan two weeks, causing substantial hardships to the population. Negotiations between the government and ‘Indivisible Far West’ activists are in full swing, but it is clear that the government will not be able to accept the demand for a unified province, including nine districtsin the region, as the protestors have been demanding. The precise delineation of territorial boundaries will be created only after negotiations between all the parties and agitating groups. In the present situation, particular demands cannot be met. During negotiations with the groups protesting in the Far West, the government should at least attempt to listen to grievances and calm down inflamed passions.
This is all the more necessary, as violence has erupted in a number of areas in recent days. The clashes between supporters of a Tharuwan province and a unified Far West have been worrisome. Further, protestors have engaged in certain actions that are unacceptable in a democracy. The attack on symbols of Tharu culture is one such action. The shutting down by protestors of a power station providing electricityto the Mid Western region is another. General strikes and bandas have long been accepted as legitimate methods of putting pressure on the government in this country. But the protestors should realise that some of their actions in the past few days have breached the limits of acceptability. They should realise that they have caused much suffering to other members of the population who are not in any way concerned with their demands and simply wish to get on with their lives.
There is a chance that the recent incidents of violence will lead to continued bitter feelings and an escalation of communal violence in the future. One major task for the political parties and local leaders should be to prevent such an eventuality, as continued episodes as those whicherupted in the Far West in the past couple of days would signal danger. It is not enough to simply negotiate with the protestors. In addition, there should be campaigns undertaken by both political and civil society leaders that are aimed to create goodwill between members of various communities. The top leaders of the major political parties would do well to visit these regions, demonstrate unanimous commitment to address the grievances of all groups and encourage local leaders to engage in conciliatory—rather than polarising—politics. It will be necessary to engage in such measures regularly and consistently in the days ahead. For as the debate on federalism progresses, various demands will continue to collide with one another and passions will further be inflamed.
Posted on: 2012-05-14 08:50http://www.ekantipur.com/2012/05/14/editorial/bitter-taste/353916.html

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