King No Longer Sacred in Nepal (Reuters)
"'Gyanendra, thief, leave the country' is the warcry of the tens of thousands campaigning against his rule, a slogan that would have been heretical just a few years ago when the Shahs were worshipped by the Himalayan nation as reincarnations of the Hindu Lord Vishnu."
See also:
This Turbulent Monarchy: Nepal and the Shah dynasty (AsiaMedia, February 17, 2005) traces the rule of the bloody Shah dynasty from its founding by the eighteenth-century military king Prithvi Narayan Shah, who upon conquering Kathmandu Valley "cut off the lips and noses of every male citizen of the city-state of Kirtipur (save those who were musicians) after they successfully resisted his invasion force." (Obviously a music-lover.)
And see:
Turmoil (The Hindu, February 20, 2005) discusses the recent social context:
"The democracy movement had politically mobilised the voiceless, but post-multidemocracy, the representational pyramid remained even more restricted than under the Panchayat regime. Bahuns (Brahmins) and Chettris (including Ranas, Shah-Thakuris) made up 29 per cent of the population and monopolised 70 per cent to 90 per cent of the jobs and political representation. Many of the 69 indigenous nationalities which fought for multi-party democracy would turn to the Maoist revolution for their liberation. Indeed the insurgency is a testament to the failure of Nepal's experiments with (autocratic and) democratic governance to make a real difference to the desperate poverty and plight of the vast majority of Nepal's 24 million people. Forty-two per cent of them remain under the poverty line ... ."
But the Maoists offer no political alternative. They actually made a bloc with the old king, Birendra. One of their leaders declared in 2001:
''Many Marxists called the Maoists royalists. There were similar thoughts between King Birendra and us, with reference to many national interests. There was unannounced unity in the approach between us in many contexts. So, it was natural for the colonialists and their brokers to be frightened.''
See Maoist ideologue blames India, US for massacre [of royal family] (rediff.com, June 6, 2001).
And in fact there is no political solution to the deprivation and oppression of the Nepali masses within the national limits of this deeply impoverished country. But though there is only a small industrial working class inside Nepal, up to a million Nepalis—one out of eleven adult males—now work in India, making up part of a growing proletariat that has the power to transform the whole region. (See Nepal's Dependence on Exporting Labor by David Seddon.)
Update: (November 21, 2006) The Maoists have joined the bourgeois government and will liquidate their militia into the national army. See Nepal celebrates peace deal with rebels (The Guardian (UK), November 22).
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