Exactly after a fortnight of the popular agitation against the Royal government, the King made a proclamation conceding to the political parties’ demand. In the last three years, the popular mood had vastly changed because of several factors. The most prominent factor was the people’s aspiration for peace, as they passed through the trauma of violence as well as loss of freedom guaranteed by the 1990 Constitution.

When the seven-party alliance announced a date to restart their agitation against the government, the rulers took it lightly and felt that the agitation would be a repetition of the two-year-old phenomenon and that the people would keep aloof as in the past. But millions took to the streets defying curfew orders. The people, who had been tired of the hollow promises of the government, heeded the parties’ call.

Peace was on the agenda of the overwhelming number of people, who had hoped that the government would develop a strategy to bring the Maoists into the mainstream by recognising their demand for restructuring the state apparatus. Instead of trying to negotiate with the Maoists, the government depended on the stre-ngth of arms and calculated on wiping out the insurgency by branding it as terrorism.

The government failed to recognise the political aspect of the Maoist rebellion and focused only on violence. The parties, although late, realised that the Maoist insurrection was based on certain political values, though the method adopted by them to achieve political gains was heinous and could be gained through peaceful means. However, the decision of the alliance to hold talks with the Maoists to bring them into the mainstream politics and their 12-point agreement with them attracted the attention of the people, who had been hankering after peace and stability. Where the government had failed, the alliance brought hope for peace.

The people who had been indifferent to the calls of the parties suddenly developed a liking for them. The reason is obvious. The parties were not hankering after a berth in the government but were fighting for the establishment of peace and for the creation of a new Nepal based on equality.

The ill-informed rulers were totally unaware of the change in the popular mood. They concocted fairly tales like penetration of Maoists in the mass agitation with lethal weapons and explosives. They warned that the party leaders would be treated as terrorists. They even threatened to use force, including the use of firearms, against the demonstrators. But nothing deterred the people from joining the movement. They valiantly braved lathis, tear gas shells and bullets and the number of participants in the agitation kept increasing.

The Royal proclamation could not be received by the people as a right step in the right direction. The people do not want to see new faces in the government, but they want to see the creation of a new Nepal and a road map leading to it.

For the last 15 months, the government could not make a single trustworthy political move. Except curbing the fundamental freedoms of the people in the name of combating terrorism and spending the people’s money randomly, the performance of the government in development sector was negligible. It was the duty of the government to heed the popular sentiment and act in accordance with the wish of the people. However, the government confined itself only to dealing with the people with ruthlessness and terror. Today it is not only the cadres and members of the parties who stand against the non-performance of the government, but all, including the civil society, professionals, intellectuals and creative geniuses, have taken a stand against the insensitive government. The people want to be assured that on the basis of the nation’s experience of the past, a restructuring of the state structure would be done by the elected representatives which would give birth to a new Nepal that would equally belong to all men and women, the ethnic groups and the Dalits — a political system free from discrimination on the basis of caste, religion and sex.

To transform the present political system and state apparatus, the election of a constituent assembly is the only rational solution. In order to bring peace and to have a free and fair election, the insurgency has to be transformed into a peaceful negotiation.

The alliance is committed to bringing the Maoists into peaceful political mainstream. The Maoists too have repeatedly expressed the commitment in favour of multiparty system and competitive politics.

The King can immediately arrest the deteriorating situation in the country by inviting the alliance to suggest a modus operandi for a peaceful solution of the crisis and should show readiness to concede to any demand that may lead to peace and stability in the nation, including the framing of a constituent assembly. The Royal initiative will be a great leap forward to usher a new era in Nepal.

Upadhyay is a former foreign minister