E-Kantipur

SEP 05 - Baburam Bhattarai became prime minister partly as a result of the coalition he was able to forge within the Maoist party with the Mohan Baidya faction. When Bhattarai came to power, it was expected that this alliance would face strains, especially as the two leaders hold opposing views on the peace and constitution drafting process. But it was perhaps unexpected that this alliance would break down so soon. Baidya’s group, having opposed the decision of the party leadership to hand over the keys to the arms containers to the Special Committee, are now threatening to instigate a major movement within the party against such compromises in the name of the peace process. The handover of the keys was a relatively minor matter. As the process progresses, the government will inevitably have to take other decisions that anger the Baidya camp and it is almost certain that tensions within the Maoist party will exacerbate.

The decisions that Baburam Bhattarai and party Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal wish to take regarding the integration and rehabilitation of Maoist combatants are, at this juncture, of great importance. This issue has been neglected for too long, and in order to achieve a permanent settlement of the conflict, the future of the former Maoist combatants has to be fixed once and for all. On the other hand, while pushing ahead with this process, it is also important for the Maoist leadership that a majority of the party supports their decisions, ensuring a degree of coherence within the party. These two steps are difficult to undertake simultaneously and their management will require all of the skills of the government and of party Chairman Dahal.

In fact, progress can only be made on integration and rehabilitation, and on the constitution drafting process, if Bhattarai and Dahal are able to work closely together. In particular, Dahal will have to mobilise all his political resources within the rank and file of the party to obtain support for the decisions that Bhattarai will take in the Special Committee. While this seems to be happening at the moment, there are fears that the Dahal-Bhattarai relationship will fray, the longer Bhattarai continues as prime minister. If Dahal begins to feel that Bhattarai is becoming more powerful than him and develops resentment towards his colleague, there is a chance that he will work towards sabotaging the work of the government. If he does this, however, Dahal will be victim to extreme short-term thinking. It should be recognised that it will be in the long-term benefit of the entire party and that of Dahal personally, if all resources are mobilised towards the completion of the peace and constitutional processes. This will also help Dahal’s future reputation among the public and will enable him to gain the support of other important political forces. There is no option but to push forward wholeheartedly in the direction Bhattarai and Dahal are taking the party.

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Posted on: 2011-09-05 06:14

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