BIRATNAGAR, MAY 02 -
Claiming his party an agent of change, UCPN (Maoist) Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal
has said the onus lies on the Maoists to guarantee a pro-people constitution.
Inaugurating a national convention of the party in Biratnagar on
Thursday, Dahal called on all the political forces—Madhesis, Janajatis,
Muslims and Dalits—to unite and exert pressure to ensure a progressive
constitution.
A key leader of the ongoing peace process, he wants to press the ruling
Nepali Congress and the CPN-UML for timely promulgation of the national
charter.
Even after the election of the second Constituent Assembly, the chief
of the third largest party said, there was still no guarantee of a new
constitution. The statement comes at a time when five CA committees have
got down to constitution writing, resuming the task where it was left
after the dissolution of the first CA.
Dahal underlined the need for a lasting alliance of like-minded parties
as the chances of any one securing a majority in general election
appear “slim for the next 10-15 years”.
Stressing the need for a broad alliance of forces representing all
classes and geographies of people, the Maoist supremo said, “Politics in
South Asian countries shows that a single party will not secure a
majority. Hence our preparations for an alliance with likeminded
parties.”
The party plans to unify with Leftist forces, mainly the breakaway
CPN-Maoist. The convention is expected to pass a resolution on allying
with communist parties.
Addressing the event, senior leader Baburam Bhattarai said a campaign
has begun for forming a new political force. The Maoist ideologue said
old party, ideology and leadership are not sufficient to lead a new
force.
After the party’s unexpected loss in the November 19 election,
Bhattarai has been advocating the inevitability of a new political
force.
“We have initiated a serious debate once again. Political revolution is
over with the onset of a new phase of socialism,” said Bhattarai,
pressing the need to transform the party leadership.
Another key leader, Narayan Kaji Shrestha wants the party to revamp
itself to retain its revolutionary zeal. “Or else, there is the
possibility of our party turning into a Nepali Congress or CPN-UML,” he
said, charging that the two parties have lost their original character
and made opportunistic moves in parliamentary politics.
In the Maoist discourse, the word transformation means that the party
has abandoned the key principles of a communist party which should be
retained. Shrestha and Bhattarai argue that the party has lost its
proletariat image with a new mix of the haves and the have-nots against
the ideology.
Shrestha said Dahal’s leadership may be continued but he should
transform himself. “Our party has been like one of bourgeois and we
should retain our original image,” he added, regretting that there were
problems of factionalism, code of conduct violation and lack of
impartial evaluation. According to convention management committee
coordinator Gopal Kiranti, around 1,500 leaders and cadres are attending
the event. An additional 400 are volunteers and observers. The local
administration has beefed up security for the convention by deploying a
huge number of personnel.
The closed session of the convention begins on Friday. Dahal is
scheduled to present a political document addressing issues related to
party organisation and
ideology. Indicating an ideological transition in the party, Chairman
Dahal has called for formulating a new doctrine to suit the present
context, according to leaders. He sees an ideological divide in the
party. The policy of “protracted people’s war” exists no more and a new
policy has not been adopted, putting the party in a state of indecision,
Dahal notes in the report. “The party cannot do well in the present
set-up so we need to prepare to adopt a new ideology.”
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