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View Full Version : Prachanda faces opposition, party says will go with ‘Maoist’ tag



Robespierre2.0
21st October 2008, 02:03
Kathmandu, October 20 : Nepal’s first post-monarchy Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’, who is committed to the continuation of a multi-party democracy in the country, is facing revolt from his party men, a majority of whom favour establishment of a one party Communist Republic.

Prachanda, who has the backing of another party stalwart Finance Minister Baburam Bhattarai is facing stiff opposition from senior Maoist ideologue Mohan Vaidya, who is supported by other powerful leaders within the erstwhile underground party.

A trial of strength seems to be in the offing in the upcoming first-ever Maoist National Party Convention beginning November 10, where Bhattarai’s recent proposal to drop the “Maoist” tag from the party name would be debated and decided.

Wary of moves by a powerful section of his own party, Prachanda tried to make up with Opposition Nepali Congress, an ardent supporter of multi-party system. Prachanda on Monday invited the Nepali Congress to join the Maoist-led coalition during a meeting with former premier G P Koirala, who rejected the offer.

“I met Koirala and formally conveyed our call for the Nepali Congress party to join the Cabinet,” Prachanda told mediapersons after the meeting on Monday.

Although Koirala rejected the offer, Prachanda expressed confidence that the Nepali Congress will finally join the Cabinet. Though Koirala did not accept the idea of joining the Government, he assured me to extend full cooperation, Prachanda said.

Prachanda, with the support of Bhattarai, has sought aid from international donors, including USA, by committing to pursuing a liberal market economy and promote private investment.

Meanwhile, senior leader Vaidya presented a paper aiming to establish a People’s Republic similar to that of Cuba and North Korea during the recently concluded central committee meeting of the party, insiders said, adding that an overwhelming majority favoured the leader.

Central member Matrika Yadav, a strong supporter of Vaidya, said nobody in the CPN-Maoist is in favour of a parliamentary system. “We want to establish People’s Parliament instead of Parliament,” he said. He also rejected the proposal to change the party’s name by omitting the word “Maoist” from it.

The Communist ideologues Bhattarai and Vaidya also differ sharply over the issue of working policy of the party, according to political analyst and journalist Pralhad Rijal.

Prachanda, who was considered close to Vaidya in the past, has now moved closer to Bhattarai’s line and openly extended support to his idea of omitting ‘Maoist’ from the party name, Rijal said.

Prachanda now faces the threat of being reduced...
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/Prachanda-faces-opposition--party-says-will-go-with--Maoist--tag/375702

Thoughts? Perhaps there still is the possibility of Nepal adopting the socialist system.

Edit: It appears he's being accused of revisionism as well! This could be interesting.
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/prachanda-faces-revolt-charged-with-revisionism/375313/

bretty
21st October 2008, 02:21
I really don't know everything about this story but I've read a few articles on it. When did Prachada turn into a proponent of neo-liberal policies?

I really hope they don't go that way.

Robespierre2.0
21st October 2008, 02:41
Well, the article states that the majority of the Maoists favor Vaidya, who apparently favors an immediate transition to a People's Republic a la Cuba/North Korea.

Now, obviously being Maoists, they have revisionist tendencies, but it'd be nice to see another hardline socialist state out there.

bretty
21st October 2008, 04:19
Agreed.

Red October
21st October 2008, 04:25
it'd be nice to see another hardline socialist state out there.

Yeah, the rest of those turned out great. :glare:

Robespierre2.0
21st October 2008, 05:19
Pshh.. why do you even use 'Red October' as your username if you believe the USSR was a 'totalitarian dystopia that ruined socialism'?

We need a corny 'ICE BURN' emoticon for comments like that.

RedHal
21st October 2008, 08:00
http://democracyandclasstruggle.blogspot.com/

this is a good blog to follow about the Maoists in Nepal

tellling picture?
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_pugAklByimc/SPnSkvYF9xI/AAAAAAAAA70/zBzWoOete9c/s400/mohan-baidya-kiran.jpg
Photo Mohan Vaidya being welcomed after release from prision in India

-suffering in jail has kept Vaidya true to his socialist commitments, while a comfortable life underground for Bhattarai has softened him.

Sprinkles
21st October 2008, 13:55
Thoughts? Perhaps there still is the possibility of Nepal adopting the socialist system.


Since when does the choice between a multi-party or single party system make a difference as to whether it qualifies as a socialist system?
Didn't that have something to do with who owns and controls the means of production?

The actual question is how diverse the political plurality in governance will be:
Prachanda's Democratic Republic will include a larger plurality of political parties, somewhat like the DDR where the Sozialistische Einheitspartei Deutschlands led the National Front coalition, which included several political parties and organizations in order to preserve political pluralism. While under Vaidya's proposed People's Republic “There will be one single major political party in the Centre and all others have to compete within the framework and norms set by that big party.”

Incendiarism
21st October 2008, 14:09
I feel I have to side with Vaidya on this issue. From the way it seems I don't think Prachanda is honest on his communist position anymore.

cyu
21st October 2008, 18:53
Since when does the choice between a multi-party or single party system make a difference as to whether it qualifies as a socialist system?
Didn't that have something to do with who owns and controls the means of production?

Exactly.

Saorsa
21st October 2008, 21:48
I feel I have to side with Vaidya on this issue. From the way it seems I don't think Prachanda is honest on his communist position anymore.

Don't dismiss so easily the man who led the first even remotely succesful communist revolution in decades. The fact that there's internal struggle going on in the Maoist party is a very good, healthy thing, and it's really positive that there's been no attempt to impose some kind of monolithic, Stalin-style "party unity".

I agree with what Kiran is saying in his document, and from the looks of things so does the bulk of the party. But let's not dismiss Prachanda and Bhattarai as counter-revolutionaries yet - let's wait and see how it all plays out.


suffering in jail has kept Vaidya true to his socialist commitments, while a comfortable life underground for Bhattarai has softened him.

It does seem that Kiran is more of a hard-liner than Bhattarai, which is good, but life underground during a revolutionary war would have been anything but comfortable. Don't dismiss the man unless his own party has also done so, which they so far haven't.