Nepal’s “Himal” celebrates People’s Victory
(Victory cartwheel in Kathmandu – photo by KIRAN PANDAY)
It is celebration time at Himal Southasian magazine in Nepal. Over the years this monthly magazine has evolved as a truly South Asian magazine. The May-June issue of Himal has not gone overboard about the historical changes in Nepal.
Even its editor, Kanak Mani Dixit, who was in detention for defying the royal regime in Kathmandu, and released only on 25 April, has written a dignified and moving article under the heading Nepal’s people phenomenon. Excerpts:
Hum dekhenge …
Jab takth giraye jayenge
Sab taaj uchale jayenge*
* We shall see …
When the crowns shall be toppled
When the palaces will be demolished
“Well, the virtuous people of Nepal saw to it that the crown was dashed. Very late in the modern era, long after other countries of Southasia had experienced their uplifting, cathartic moments, Nepalis by their millions stood up against feudalism. People Power simultaneously pushed back a despotically inclined king, made space for pluralism, and created the conditions for peace…
“The mission now is to bring the Maoists in from the jungle while ensuring that the kingship is forever barred from mischief. Faiz Ahmed Faiz would have liked it here in Kathmandu this week, as would have Iqbal Bano, who sang that immortal people’s anthem…
“This ‘people phenomenon’ holds larger meanings than simply the shunting aside of an active monarch. It has united a country that has been historically, socially and geographically divided. Between eight to ten million citizens were engaged in the weeks-long agitation, coming in from the fields and terraces, trekking to the roadheads, demanding loktantra, the new term for total democracy.
“Perhaps the greatest gift of the People’s Movement of 2006, besides creating conditions for an end to the Maoist rebellion, is that it sets Nepali nationalism on more inclusive and solid foundations. To date, the nationalism of the modern era, together with its reliance on xenophobia and frivolous symbolism, was based on the midhill caste/ethnic identity, the Nepali language, a ‘Hindu’ monarchy, and a particular brand of hill Hinduism. Each of these elements had the consequence of excluding a large section of citizens, even whole communities…
“The path ahead will be necessarily bumpy, but the goal is clear: making inclusive democracy happen, righting the historical wrongs against the majority population in this country of minorities. The task began with the defeat of Gyanendra’s preposterous agenda. The kingship has been brought to its knees, which is where it will have to be kept, if it is kept at all.
“Nepal needs to go back to being a country where the people smile; where villagers on the trail look at you in the eye and brightly inquire into your personal history, rather than fearfully looking away. Already, during the People’s Movement, the twinkle had returned to the Nepali eye.”
