This in order to appease Maoist rebels. From AP-
KATMANDU, Nepal - Nepal's parliament voted Friday in favor of abolishing the centuries-old monarchy and turning this Himalayan nation into a republic. The decision to remove the king, however, would be implemented only after elections to a special assembly expected to be held by mid-April next year.There is recent precedent for a country to do what Nepal did. Greece abolished its monarchy only in 1973.The vote endorsed an agreement by the main political parties on abolishing monarchy reached earlier this week. More than two-thirds of the members voted in favor of amending the interim constitution, said Speaker Subash Nembwang.
The parliament proposal says that Nepal would be turned into a federal democratic republic and that all the powers of the state would be held by the prime minister.
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The main political parties, including the former rebels widely known as Maoists, had signed an agreement this week on abolishing monarchy after the elections.
It initially was agreed last year that the first meeting of the Constituent Assembly would decide the fate of the king. Now there will be no voting and it is certain the king will be removed.
The Maoists had given up their armed revolt last year to join the peace process in April 2006 after weeks of pro-democracy protests forced King Gyanendra to give up his authoritarian rule. The Maoists joined Parliament last January and government three months later.
They withdrew from the government in September demanding immediate removal of the king. Since then, Nepal has been facing a political crisis and elections planned for November also were postponed.
Color me skeptical as to this measure causing the Maoists to give up their cause. Rebels want victory, not compromise. History has taught us that over and over. If you need examples in Asia, take Vietnam, China, Malaya. Only in the last were the communists defeated, and it took 12 years.
I don't know you, but I'm betting the peace between the Nepal government and the Maoists is just brief one.
Note- Nepal's monarchy has been touched by scandal and assaination in recent years. Overall its abolition isn't necessarily a bad thing.
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Comments (1)
It's best to allow self det... (Below threshold)1. Posted by bryanD | December 28, 2007 7:02 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
It's best to allow self determination for the natives.
I say "allow" because of your Vietnam, China mentions.
Sponsoring Bao Dai and cancelling elections to favor Diem didn't work out so well in Vietnam. The US was beaten soundly in a colonial war begun by France all because of Who Lost China-phobia.
As Service and Davies foretold, the communist movement in China was basically anti-colonial and nationalistic and could only be solved the Chinese way. Of course, they were right. And they were fired and endure several security investigations with banishment as a result.
Investigated by the same folks who IMMEDIATELY had Vietnam pegged as the new firewall against the international communist conspiracy. The troubles that signalled the Sino-Soviet split and exposed the new experts' ignorance were ignored as Inconvenient to US Interests.
In short, fighting under the banner of Colonialism morphed into fighting under the banner of anti-communism. "Colonialism" would never had engendered even a thread of support from the American electorate.
As for Malaya: different circumstances allowed victory there for the British. The communists were not native Malayans. They were Overseas Chinese. Here the natives' and the west's goals were complimentary. I.e. Call open season on all Chinese. Headhunting is the Malayan way. And even an Australian farmboy can tell the two races apart. The Chinaman's skin was his uniform.
As for Nepal, it's a no-brainer for them. Political reorganization among an homogeneous community through representative government sounds rather enlightened.
1. Posted by bryanD | December 28, 2007 7:02 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on December 28, 2007 19:02