Interview with Bhattarai: View of One Wing of Nepal’s Maoists

Correctly evaluating the international situation and its impact on Nepal's revolutionary options -- this is one of the key controversies today

This  interview appeared in Nepal’s press REPUBLICA.

In this newspaper, the interview was given a strange title “I am not a revisionist: Dr Bhattarai.” In fact Bhattarai does not say this when asked about revisionism in this the interview. Such “framing” of an otherwise informative interview reflects the approach of much of the press coverage — which seeks to play on the line struggles of the UCPN(Maoist) in particular ways.

However setting aside the distortions of certain press, there are major issues in dispute among the Maoists, and there are even potentially issues of “revisionism” (i.e. non-revolutionary politics contending within a historically revolutionary party).

As various positions are articulated, we hope to provide the materials here.

* * * * * * * *

Intro by Republica

Maoist Vice-Chairman Dr Baburam Bhattarai is an ideologue and one of the brains behind the 10-year-long Maoist insurgency in Nepal. The Maoist party is currently undergoing sharp ideological differences among Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal, Senior Vice-Chairman Mohan Baidya and Bhattarai.

The party is having a tough time forging a common “action-plan” for implementation in the peace process as the top three leaders are at loggerheads over the party’s future course of action. Republica journalist Post B Basnet caught with him on Saturday and talked about the role of his party in the peace process.

What is your party currently engaged in?

Right now our party is engaged in institutionalizing the progressive changes in society while passing through a historical transitional phase of evolution of autocracy, feudalism and institutionalization of modern industrial state based on multi-party democratic polity. This transition has its complications.

But, as a responsible political party, we are still trying to find a way out amidst the presence of bourgeois democratic forces who believe in parliamentary democracy and us, communist revolutionaries, who believe in people’s democracy.

We are trying to find a common meeting ground where we can institutionalize a democratic system in which the oppressed masses will have their participation in the state in a new socio-economic and federal structure.

Nepal: Prachanda Warns Against Conspiracies to Impede New Constitution

This article is from My Republica

The article below refers to Prachanda addressing the 18th National Convention of All Nepal Independent Students’ Union – Revolutionary (ANNISU-R) which began on December 10th.

Prachanda

Dahal to Turn Campuses into Barracks

Kathmandu, Dec. 10: Unified Communist Party Nepal – Maoist (UCPN -Maoist)  Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ on Friday warned that his party would turn all campuses and schools across the country into ‘barracks’ if conspiracies against peace and the new constitution go unabated.

Addressing the inaugural function of the 18th National Convention of All Nepal Independent Students’ Union – Revolutionary (ANNISU-R) in Kirtipur, Chairman Dahal claimed that regressive and reactionary elements both at home and abroad were hatching conspiracies against the historic achievement of democracy and republic through Janaandolan II.

He asked the students to keep themselves  in a militarized state, claiming that such conspiracies were getting more complex and intense.