The growing personal rifts among the leaders and groupism have led to divisions within the party.

About one thousand seven hundred elected representatives of the CPN-UML will gather at Butwal from 16-21 February, 2009 for its 8th National Congress. Likewise, 30 foreign delegates from 21 countries including China, India, Russia, Vietnam, Italy and Greece have confirmed their participation in the Congress. According to the local host committee, around 200,000 people are expected to converge into the open ground on Feb 16 in Butwal for the inaugural session and President Ram Baran Yadav, Prime Minister Prachanda and leaders of other parties are invited to address the opening session. The five-day session will asses the party’s activities of the last six years as well as divulge a plan of action for the future. Similarly, it will elect a new range of leadership including the central committee president, vice-president, and general secretary for next five years.

Though the national congress is held every five years, the 8th National Congress was delayed by a year due to the party’s engagement in the democratic movements and the CA election held last April. In many ways, the upcoming congress is going to be an important event for the party as well as national politics. Generally, the congress is to assess the past policies and programs that the party has adopted and implemented. Since the national congress is the highest decision making body of the party, it has to thoroughly assess its past decisions on both political and ideological matters.

On the ideological front, the 5th Congress of the party held in February 1993 under the leadership of the then general secretary Madan Bhandari had adopted People’s Multi-Party Democracy (PMPD) as its guiding program and subsequently held 6th Congress and 7th Congress in 1998 and 2003 respectively and adopted PMPD as the guiding principle of the party.

The main thrust of the PMPD is to uphold the basic principles of democracy and universal values of human rights by democratising the state, party and society. It believes that the democratisation process will expedite the social and economic transformation of the society. The basic tenets of the PMPD have proven to be correct through its practice for the last 16 years. Therefore, the congress will reaffirm PMPD as the party’s guiding principles and programs after making some minor changes. Another issue the congress will discuss is the inner party democracy issue. Although the CPN-UML has adopted PMPD it has not been able to fully democratise its own decision making process as well as organisational structures. Towards this direction, a 15 point proposal for the party’s democratization has been drafted and circulated by the young leaders of the party.

The newly drafted proposal together with the official proposal will be discussed and adopted. The proposal includes provisions like direct election system for the major posts, two term provisions in the key posts, mandatory election for delegates of the congress, etc. It is believed that this will help bridge the existing gaps between the party’s principle of democratisation and its practices on its own organisational life. Another issue that has been taken is about the party’s electoral defeat in the CA polls. This defeat has not only posed electoral challenges to the party but also questioned its professed influences and organisational strengths.

Besides, the growing personal rifts among the leaders and groupism have led to division within the party. This congress must learn lessons from the past and find an appropriate solution to these problems, which have plagued the party. The best way to end the groupism and personal rifts is to uphold the democratic culture and promote rule based system. This will also help make leaders and cadres responsive as well as accountable. This congress should take steps towards this direction. Direct election provisions should be introduced in all the party’s structures by scrapping appointment provisions in its constitution. All the committees are to be formed through the election by the elected delegates from their respective congress.

The leaders and members should be made responsible for their work and system of accountability should be established. Likewise, the party’s candidate selection process for the parliament and elections for other levels should also be made more democratic by allowing the party members to take part directly in the selection process. Apart from these, the congress has to discuss and formulate policies and programs related to the national political and social issues. The congress also has to develop its own policy frameworks on a number of issues pertaining to national politics including on new constitution, state restructuring, socio-economic transformation, and model of democracy that best safeguards national interests. The decisions of the congress will have far reaching implications not only for the party’s individual life but also for the nation’s future course.

Bhattarai is affiliated to CPN-UML