Political dialogues

Top leaders of the major political parties have restarted consultations. NC President Girija Prasad Koirala and Maoist Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal met on Monday and reports are that the two leaders agreed to end the political impasse through dialogue. This morning Koirala met UML Chairman Jhala Nath Khanal, and the latter also consulted Dahal over the phone. It’s a good sign that the party leaders have at least resumed dialogue. In the absence of a political agreement, the Maoists have launched another round of protests disrupting normal life, and there are growing fears the protests will get worse in the coming days. As the parties have locked horns over petty interests, completely distracted from their main responsibility of writing the constitution, the general citizenry feels let down and frustrated. This has to end, and the sooner the better.



Though resumption of dialogue is welcome, there is also concern that the politicians are holding such negotiations/consultations while remaining fixated on power. The reasoning goes: Koirala has initiated a dialogue hoping to exploit the current stalemate for propelling his undeserving daughter to Baluwatar. Khanal is taking a chance because he hopes that the post of prime minister might actually land in his lap or at least that Madhav Kumar Nepal will be removed from power, strengthening his own grip on the party. As for the Maoists, their intentions have been clear right from the word go: They have been desperate to get back into power ever since Dahal resigned as prime minister.



Politics cannot be turned into musical chairs played over Singha Durbar. It has to be something more meaningful, and more so during times such as this when the country is facing enormous challenges. So the dialogue should instead focus on constitution writing, integration/rehabilitation of Maoist combatants and breaking the deadlock in parliament that has stalled even the passage of the annual budget. In other words the parties should focus on concluding the peace process, writing the new constitution in time, and holding the next general election to hand over power to a government elected for a five-year term.



The parties can do so only if they leave behind the past and focus on the tasks at hand. For this they should be ready for this: Dump the stale and by now irrelevant issue of “civilian supremacy” and instead kick-start negotiations on charting a joint course till the formation of a new government through elections. If all the parties agree on that, they can then discuss the nature and composition of a national government and its leadership to achieve the agreed goal. This can be a face-saving way out for all the political parties and also provide hope to the people that those parties have not completely lost sight of their responsibility.

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