Prachanda

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Prachanda (प्रचण्ड)

Prachanda speaking at a rally in Pokhara.
Born December 11, 1954 (1954-12-11) (age 53)
Kaski, Nepal

Prachanda (Devanagari: प्रचण्ड pracaṇḍa, born Pushpa Kamal Dahal on December 11, 1954) is the leader of the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist). He is also the leader of People's Liberation Army (PLA), the military wing of CPN (M). Under his leadership, CPN (M) launched the Nepalese People's War on February 13, 1996, in which about 13,000 Nepalis were killed.

Prachanda's extension of Marxism-Leninism-Maoism to take specific account of Nepal's situation is known as the Prachanda Path.He is known for his eloquent speech and strong leadership to lead the party. "Prachanda" is his nom de guerre; it means "the fierce one".

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[edit] Personal life and early career

Prachanda spent much of his childhood in the Chitwan District in Nepal. His family are reported to have been Brahmins of modest means. He received a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture (BSc-Ag) from the Institute of Agriculture and Animal Science (IAAS) in Rampur, Chitwan, and was reportedly once employed at a rural development project sponsored by USAID, the project site being Jajarkot.[1]

He became general secretary (party leader) of the Communist Party of Nepal (Mashal) in 1986. This party, after a number of permutations became the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist).

Prachanda lived underground even after the restoration of democracy in 1990. Until then a little-known figure, he controlled the clandestine wing of the party, while the parliamentary representation in the United People's Front was headed by Dr. Baburam Bhattarai. Since 1996, Prachanda has become internationally known as the leader of the CPN (M) military wing and its overall leader.

[edit] The Maoist insurrection

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On February 4, 1996, Bhattarai gave the government, led by Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba, a list of 40 demands, threatening civil war if they were not met. The demands related to "nationalism, democracy and livelihood" and included such line items as the "domination of foreign capital in Nepali industries, business and finance should be stopped", and "discriminatory treaties, including the 1950 Nepal-India Treaty, should be abrogated", and "land under the control of the feudal system should be confiscated and distributed to the landless and the homeless."[2] After that, and until 26 April 2006, Prachanda directed the military efforts of the CPN (M) towards establishing areas of control, particularly in the mountainous regions and western Nepal.

The 40 demands were whittled down to 24 in subsequent political negotiations.[3]

[edit] Relations with Bhattarai

In late 2004 or early 2005, relations between Prachanda and Bhattarai soured. [4] This was reportedly due to disagreement on power sharing inside the party. It was reported that Bhattarai was unhappy with the consolidation of power under Prachanda.But in reality it was not like that the news which came in public media houses. It has since been reported that they have reconciled their differences. [5] [6]

[edit] Twelve point agreement

On November 22, 2005 Prachanda and the Seven Party Alliance released a "twelve-point agreement" that expressed areas of agreement between the CPN(M) and the parties that won a large majority in the last parliamentary election in 1999. Among other points, this document stated that a dictatorial monarchy of King Gyanendra is the chief impediment to progress in Nepal. It claimed further that the Maoists are committed to human rights and press freedoms and a multi-party system of government. It pledged self-criticism and the intention of the Maoists and the Seven Parties to not repeat past mistakes. [7]

[edit] Ceasefires

Several ceasefires have occurred over the course of the Nepalese civil war.[8] Most recently, on April 26, 2006, Prachanda announced a ceasefire with a stated duration of 90 days. The move followed weeks of massive protests—the April 2006 Nepalese general strike— in Kathmandu and elsewhere that had forced King Gyanendra to give up the personal dictatorship he had established on the February 1, 2005, and restore the parliament that was dissolved in May 2002.

After that a new government was established by the Seven-Party Alliance. The parliament and the new government supported the ceasefire and started negotiations with the Maoists on the basis of the twelve-point agreement. The two sides agreed that a new constituent assembly will be elected to write a new constitution, and decide on the fate of monarchy. The Maoists want this process to end with Nepal becoming a republic.[9]

[edit] Interim government

Prachanda met for talks with Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala on June 16, 2006, in what was thought to be his first visit to the capital Kathmandu in more than a decade.[10] [11] This meeting resulted in an agreement to dissolve parliament, incorporate the CPN (M) into a new interim government, draft a new constitution, and disband the CPN (M)'s "people's governments" operating in rural Nepal. The two sides also agreed to disarm at a later date, under international supervision.[12] On September 18, 2007, the CPN(M) pulled themselves out of the coalition government ahead of the Constituent Assembly election, demanding the declaration of a republic by parliament and a system of proportional representation in the election. The CPN(M) rejoined the government on December 30, 2007 after an agreement to abolish the monarchy following the election and to have a system of partial proportional representation in the election.[13]

On January 25, 2008, the CPN(M) said that it wanted Prachanda to become President of Nepal when a republic is established.[14] In the April 2008 Constituent Assembly election, he was elected from Kathmandu constituency-10, winning by a large margin and receiving nearly twice as many votes as his nearest rival, the candidate of the Nepali Congress.[15] He also won overwhelmingly in Rolpa constituency-2, receiving 34,230 votes against 6,029 for Shanta Kumar Oli of the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist).[16] With the CPN(M) appearing to have won the election, Prachanda pledged that the party would work together with other parties in crafting the new constitution, and he assured the international community, particularly India and China, that the party wanted good relations and cooperation. He also said that the party had expressed its commitment to multi-party democracy through the election.[17]

[edit] References

  1. ^ Somini Sengupta,and he was also the teacher in high school in Aarught of Gorkha district."Where Maoists Still Matter," New York Times, October 30, 2005
  2. ^ Baburam Bhattarai, "40 Point Demand", South Asia Intelligence Review, February 4, 1996
  3. ^ "Maoists Demand Interim Constitution," Kathmandu Post, April 28, 2003
  4. ^ Singh Khadka, "Nepal's Maoist leadership divisions," BBC, May 6, 2005
  5. ^ Charles Haviland, "Meeting Nepal's Maoist leader", BBC, June 16, 2005
  6. ^ Sanjay Upadhya, Nepal: Maoists hide More Than They Reveal", Scoop, February 16, 2005
  7. ^ Unofficial translation, "The 12-point agreement between the Maoists and the seven-party alliance as listed in statement by Pushpa Kamal Dahal on Tuesday," Nepal News, November 25, 2005
  8. ^ Kamala Sarup (ed.), "Maoists declare three-month long ceasefire," Peace Journalism/Nepal News, September 3, 2005
  9. ^ "Nepal Maoist rebels declare truce," BBC, April 27, 2006
  10. ^ "Maoists to join Nepal government," BBC, June 16, 2006
  11. ^ "Power Play," Times of India Online November 3, 2001
  12. ^ Maseeh Rahman, "After a decade of fighting, Nepal's Maoist rebels embrace government," The Guardian, June 17, 2006
  13. ^ "Nepal Maoists rejoin cabinet after monarchy deal," Reuters, December 30, 2007
  14. ^ "Nepal Maoists want their chief as president", Reuters (AlertNet), January 25, 2008.
  15. ^ "Chairman Prachanda triumphs in Ktm-10 as his party takes initial lead", Nepalnews, April 12, 2008.
  16. ^ "Prachanda wins from Rolpa-2 as well", Nepalnews, April 13, 2008.
  17. ^ ""We want to continue working with parties and the int'l community," says Prachanda", Nepalnews, April 12, 2008.

[edit] External links