By DM Thapa
Crimes take place all over the world. And there are criminals in different guises. They could be murderers, cheaters or even those who take advantage of women among others. But in most places, where the government is strong and the legal system works with severe punishments against those who are found guilty, ordinary people seem more aware of what they can or cannot do.
But in lesser developed countries, the governments seem to be weak and all other sectors are also affected either by individual greed or the influence of those in power. It is no different in Nepal, a country which is dominated not only by a big neighbor in the south but also by international powers and organizations as well. This has been seen in many instances and specially when through outside interferences many political changes were made, not for the welfare of the impoverished Nepali people, but for the interests of foreigners, including close neighbor India.
For example, even while expressing concern about the violence taking place here, the Indian powers were providing shelter to those who had initiated a violent political movement. This truth was unraveled much after things completely changed in Nepal. The main intention it seems was the desire of the Indians and also Western powers to see the end of the institution of monarchy in this tiny country.
Now our country and also the Parliament are in an uproar about how ‘high profile’ political leaders, besides bureaucrats and others were involved in a scam to send Nepali citizens to the United States by forging fake documents. They apparently did this by making the Nepali citizens look like Bhutanese refugees who are being given shelter by America and some other Western nations. How the people of Nepali origin were kicked out of Bhutan is another story and also in this inhuman act neighbor India was involved.
But for now, the political leaders are busy blaming each other for the misdeeds in sending Nepali citizens in the name of Bhutanese refugees to the US. No one seems accountable, though some people including the son of former deputy prime minister Top Bahadur Rayamajhi, have been arrested. Ram Bahadur Thapa, then home minister, was considered the brains behind the violent attacks carried out by the Maoists when they were waging a violent struggle against the then-establishment. It was none other than Sher Bahadur Deuba, who under American influence put a ransom out in the name of the present prime minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal, Baburam Bhattarai and also Ram Bahadur Thapa. Thapa has, of late, joined UML. This author can say with conviction that these fellows and other political leaders along with the bureaucrats promoted by them are definitely responsible for establishing a culture of political violence and also organized crime in this country.
At the same time, one cannot excuse the foreign powers and their Nepali stooges, who made Nepal a haven for outside interference and decided matters as per the whims of their masters. The Maoists also cannot escape from such allegations, as they were also pampered and given shelter by India, which their leaders said they hated and was one of the biggest enemies of Nepal. This author remembers the time when he met the then-Indian Foreign Secretary, who was once the Indian Ambassador to Nepal as well. At a regular press meeting in New Delhi, he told the Indian journalists also about how India was helping Nepal in its fight for peace. But it was later revealed that this same man was the main character to throw out the institute of monarchy here and also groomed the very armed group which his government was secretly supporting to fulfil its task. One must admire the writer Leo E Rose, who even back in the early Nineteen Seventies, realized the intentions of India and had predicted what would happen in Nepal.
To come back to Nepal where such an uproar has been created and one top political leader is on the run, the blame for the culture of corruption must be taken by many persons, including top-level leaders, senior bureaucrats and also others. The present ‘blame game’ cannot do any good for the nation. Those who have aspired to guide this country through this system or that must also be ready to accept the faults they have made and if they are involved in corruption, to accept the punishment meted out to them.
Meanwhile, we should also tell about superpower America, neighbor India and also the leading international agencies like the United Nations (UN) and the UN Human Rights Commission, who feel they have a big role to play in any country of the world. For example in Nepal, a very negative personality like Ian Martin was sent to head the UN Mission to overlook the peace process. This author still remembers a news report, carried in this Weekly as well, where some ‘abnormal personal habits’ of Martin were reported. A senior worker in the UN office here had told this author how infuriated Martin was when he saw such news, but he could never refute any of the allegations against him.
This man should also be held accountable for the misleading figures given by the then Maoist rebels, including present prime minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal, where much funds of the UN were misused and probably entered into the pockets of certain individuals. America also should not shirk its responsibility, as it has granted visas not only for Bhutanese refugees but also to people connected with the party which America itself had put in officially as a ‘terrorist group’. Two innocent Nepali citizens were killed by the Maoists, just because they were working as security guards for the US Embassy here. The then-American Ambassador had told this author frankly that his country would take the Maoists off the terrorist tag if they handed over the people responsible for shooting two workers of his country’s embassy. But his country itself welcomed the present prime minister of Nepal Dahal, when he visited America, and there were no questions about who had killed the two innocent employees of that country’s embassy in Nepal.
So the culprits who were involved in the sending of Nepali citizens to America by forging documents should also be punished and the political leaders cannot get away ‘Scot Free’ by just shifting the blame on one or the other. A nation that preaches all others about different aspects of democracy and the United Nations which considers itself as the ‘expounder’ of peace worldwide, should also be accountable in what they do, not only in once very peaceful Nepal but also in a lesser-considered nation where these mighty rulers think they have a right to poke their noses in completely internal matters. Probably they don’t realize it, but the world would be in a better shape without their interference. Crime cannot be eradicated, but it becomes worse when it is carried out in an organized manner by strong countries and powerful international agencies.
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