Proclamation by King Gyanendra of Nepal

[Guest guest]

Proclamation to the Nation from

His Majesty King Gyanendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev

http://www.nepalhmg.gov.np/

(Unofficial Translation)

"Monarchy is guided not by a cheap popularity but by the overall

welfare and continued progress of Nepal and her people. Everyone

should respect the people's desire for effective reforms."

 

May Lord Pashupatinath bless us all!

 

Jaya Nepal

 

Beloved Countrymen,

 

1. The Kingdom of Nepal was built on the foundations of the

unification process initiated by King Prithvi Narayan Shah the Great.

It is well known that to reign in accordance with the people's

aspirations, our forefathers initiated revolutionary measures of

historic importance, ensuring a bright future of the nation and her

people. History is witness to the fact that both the Nepalese people

and the King have, in unison, played decisive roles in each and every

period of the Kingdom's process of unification, democratisation and

modernisation.

 

2. Today, we have once again reached a juncture where, in keeping

with popular aspirations, a historic decision must be taken to defend

multiparty democracy by restoring peace for the nation and people.

Even when bloodshed, violence and devastation has pushed the country

on the brink of destruction, those engaged in politics in the name of

the country and people continue to shut their eyes to their welfare.

Tussle for power, abuse of authority on gaining power and unhealthy

competition in fulfilling personal and communal interests at the

expense of the nation and citizenry contributed to the further

deterioration in the situation. There were attempts to flout the

universally accepted rule of law in the name of politics. Our desire

to ensure social, political and economic justice for our beloved

people through the meaningful exercise of multiparty democracy could

not be materialised. There was a steady rise in crimes against the

nation and people, including destruction of development

infrastructures constructed for the people's benefit. Whereas all

democratic forces should have adopted an unified approach against

terrorism, leaders instead continued their tussle for power,

encouraging simple political workers to vandalise public utilities in

the name of politics. Faced with this steadily declining situation,

it is now time to bring to an end the ongoing acts of terrorist

violence and pledge, in earnest, to fulfill the people's aspirations

with the restoration of peace and security in the country.

 

Beloved countrymen,

 

3. Democracy and progress always complement each other. But, Nepal's

bitter experiences over the past few years tend to show that

democracy and progress contradict one another. Multiparty democracy

was discredited by focusing solely on power politics. Parliament

witnessed many aberrations in the name of retaining and ousting

governments. Not a single House of Representatives was allowed to

complete its tenure. Continuous confusion and disorder resulted in

the obstruction of the democratic process. While the people's

aspirations continued to be shattered and their trust trampled on,

they became increasingly disenchanted with democracy itself. After

being incapable of holding elections, there were conspiracies to form

undemocratic governments, which would be responsible to no one. There

was also a written consensus amongst all political parties on

vacuuming the people's representatives out but they could not see eye

to eye when it came to working together in filling this void. The

participation and concurrence of political parties in making way for

a form of governance, which negated popular representation, was

against the people's wishes and norms and spirit of multiparty

democracy. So, we appealed to all those who have faith in democracy

with the intention of activating, at the earliest, the system of

popular representation. We also met a number of times with members of

the general public, senior citizens, representatives of the civil

society and leaders of political parties in our effort to gauze the

popular mandate and try to convince them of the country's

requirements and people's aspirations. We reminded them that the only

wish of the Nepalese people and friends of Nepal was to bring to an

end the ongoing violence and destructive activities and return peace

and tranquility to the country without any further delay. In order to

conduct the general elections in an environment of peace and

security, opportunities were given to leaders of various political

parties to constitute the Council of Ministers, with executive power.

But the situation did not improve. National politics was plagued by

not uniting in running the government but opposing it on being ousted

from it. No serious efforts were made to attenuate the real threat

posed against democracy by terrorism in the form of a single-party

autocracy. The habit of passing carefree remarks on matters of

national security continued. Political parties were unable to display

responsible behavior in augmenting the patriotic fervour of our

dutiful security personnel, who are active round the clock in

ensuring security of the nation and people. Multiparty democrats

could not sincerely unite, with national interest as the focal point,

to forever end the cycle of devastation being lashed out against the

nation and people. Likewise, political parties also could not

identify national priorities in keeping with the people's aspirations.

 

4. Throughout history, the Nepalese people never had to bear the

burden of such terrorism, agony and exploitation. No democracy has

ever had to go through such a dismal situation, where the innocent

are punished by criminals, people whose property is seized and

innocent children, women and the elderly who are mercilessly killed

by criminals cannot receive any kind of protection from those who

govern in their name and parties who claim to represent the people do

not act in their defence. The nefarious designs of an individual or

group, negating the wishes of the Nepalese people as well as the

national interest and acting through sponsored mobs, cannot form our

national agenda. Conscientiousness towards our responsibility to the

future of the country and people has nudged us many a time.

Circumstances have reached such a critical stage that it has now

become imperative for us to take a decision in the greater interest

of the nation and people in accordance with their aspirations.

 

Beloved Countrymen,

 

5. Nepal's independence, national unity and sovereignty are best

safeguarded by the intimate relationship between the King and people.

An Institution of M onarchy ever devoted to the country and people

and a people with an innate love for their land is the glorious

history of the Kingdom of Nepal, its present and also its future. In

keeping with this glorious tradition, popular will as always remained

the guiding light for Nepal's Monarchy. We are committed to social

justice; totalitarianism and authoritarianism are entirely

inconsistent with the Monarchial traditions of the Shah Dynasty. We

are convinced of the fact that the Nepalese people have deep faith in

and are firmly committed to Constitutional Monarchy and multiparty

democracy. We believe that centralisation of authority is against

democratic norms. We feel that a meaningful exercise in democracy can

take place only when elected representatives at all levels are given

their share in the governance of the country in accordance with the

principles of separation of powers. It is our desire that, while no

Nepalese should experience pain or suffering, every citizen should

have unfettered access to social, economic and political justice. We

strongly believe that the people should always feel that their wishes

are being fully honoured and their interests completely protected in

the governance of the country. It is our desire to ensure that the

Kingdom of Nepal forges ahead towards the creation of a mature

democracy and welfare society with the collective judgment,

understanding and farsightedness of all patriotic democrats. We are

confident that there can never be any differences among democrats on

achieving the fundamental objectives of national welfare.

 

6. We have no interest other than the restoration of sustainable

peace and exercise in meaningful democracy for the welfare of Nepal

and Nepalese people. Monarchy is guided not by a cheap popularity but

by the overall welfare and continued progress of Nepal and her

people. Everyone should respect the people's desire for effective

reforms. Let no Nepalese feel compelled to take up arms as a means of

expressing frustration or disenchantment. At the same time, it must

be ensured that every citizen has the opportunity to express

discontent effectively without jeopardizing social harmony. It is

clear that what the people want are a meaningful exercise in

democracy, an effective market economy, good governance, transparency

and a corruption-free rule of law. Our only wish is to guarantee our

people's happiness through democracy, instill hope among the youth

for a brighter future and to ensure dignity for Nepal amongst the

comity of nations. Equal opportunities for the development of all our

languages, peoples and their cultures alone can preserve and

consolidate the Kingdom's distinct characteristics.

 

7. Contrary to the wishes of the Nepalese people, on whom sovereignty

is vested, no serious efforts were made towards initiating elections

to the House of Representatives within the year 2061 B.S. by

maintaining, to the extent possible, peace and security. Instead of

preparing the electorate and political parties for the elections and

laying the necessary legal, managerial and technical groundwork, time

was wasted on paying only lip service on the urgency of holding

elections. As it is our responsibility to preserve our nationalism,

national unity and sovereignty, as well as to maintain peace and

security in the country and ensure that the state of the nation does

not deteriorate any further, we have, by virtue of the State

Authority as exercised by us and in keeping with the spirit of the

Constitution of the Kingdom of Nepal – 1990, taking into

consideration Article 27 (3) of the Constitution, dissolved,

effective from today, the current Council of Ministers to fulfill the

people's desire for the restoration of peace and security and to

activate soon the democratic dispensation. The Council of Ministers

to be constituted will be under our Chairmanship. This Council of

Ministers will give utmost priority to reactivating multiparty

democracy in the country within three years with the implementation

of effective reforms by restoring peace and security.

 

Beloved countrymen,

 

8. Only a meaningful multiparty democracy can be an effective means

of governance by the people. A successful multiparty democracy alone

is synonymous with people's democracy. Such a system, which is people-

oriented, mature, cultured and refined, has been disrupted.

Terrorising the innocent population, extorting money through

intimidation, brutally murdering those who dissent, kidnapping

students and perpetrating atrocities against teachers, making false

promises to simple people and destroying development projects aimed

at the people's welfare are crimes against the nation and people,

which have to be brought to an immediate end. From now on, such

crimes will be dealt with firmly in accordance with the law. Our

security forces have been mobilised to carry out their

responsibilities more effectively to end terrorism and restore peace

and security in the interest of the nation and people. All the organs

of the state must remain alert in honouring and upholding human

rights. However, it will be unfair to put the state and terrorists on

equal footing. We are confident that all peace-loving Nepalese who

have faith in democracy will, as always, continue to cooperate with

the security forces in maintaining peace and tranquility.

 

9. We call upon all those who have gone astray, taking up arms

against the nation and people, and those who are engaged in criminal

activities against peace and democracy to return to the mainstream of

national politics peacefully. Ensuring opportunities to freely

express one's views with patriotism as the focal point, fulfilling

one's aspirations and contributing to the welfare of the nation and

people are the inherent features of multiparty democracy. We assure

all those who avail of this opportunity to join the national

mainstream that the state will give them opportunities and rights

equal to those enjoyed by all our citizens, without any

discrimination whatsoever; neither the people nor the law will

tolerate any terrorist activities against the state or its citizens.

 

Beloved countrymen,

 

10. We would like to thank all the friendly nations who have

generously supported us, appreciating our commitment to fight

terrorism, as well as donors and international financial institutions

that have rendered invaluable assistance in our development

endeavours. Even the world's democracies are presently faced with the

threat of terrorism, which cannot be confined within geographical

boundaries. The world community has in fact realised that the more

secure, stable and prosperous the smaller nations become, the more

secure, stable and prosperous will the region and the world as a

whole be. Nepal is, therefore, committed to eliminating terrorism in

her own interest as well as in the interest of democracies around the

world. Nepal aspires for peace - for herself, her neighbours and

South Asia - and to rid the world of the threat to peace.

 

11. While expressing our unflinching faith in multiparty democracy,

we would like to mention that economic and institutional reforms will

continue. Efforts at reforms in the utilisation of public expenditure

and public service delivery will be made more effective. Banking

discipline will be restored. Measures will be adopted towards the

effective implementation of the poverty reduction strategy and the

anti-corruption drive. Sustainable development is now our national

agenda. No one will be allowed to jeopadise the people's security and

the future of democracy. Nepal will not allow terrorists to use her

territory against herself or against any other friendly nation. In

our ties with other countries, emphasis will be laid on fostering

constructive relations based on mutual benefit and pragmatism.

 

12. Corruption, which has been continuously spreading its tentacles,

has not only cast a shadow over politics and administration, but has

also obstructed the nation's march towards progress. Corruption has

struck at the very core of our society, the result of which the

common man's confidence in the laws of the land has been shaken.

Therefore, in keeping with the popular will and to fulfill the main

criterion of good governance, effective measures will be adopted to

curb corruption, while ensuring that the principles of justice are

not infringed upon.

 

13. It is our desire that democracy be a way of life, politics be

conducted in keeping with democratic norms and values, people from

all strata of society honestly adhere to democratic ideals and

everyone be guided by the interest of the country and people. All

Nepalese wish to see our country as a progressive nation, occupying a

pride of place in the international community, where democratic

ideals thrive in a peaceful environment. It is our belief that

upholding human rights not only preserves and promotes democratic

values but also enhances a way of life and civilisational values

commensurate with the 21st century.

 

Beloved countrymen,

 

14. Our decision should leave no room for confusion amongst the

security personnel and civil servants in discharge of their duties

and responsibilities. Today, it is we Nepalese who must take an

initiative to ensure a bright future for Nepal and the Nepalese. An

independent press serves as the medium for raising the level of

democratic consciousness. It plays a crucial role in the promotion of

national interests. We believe that the press will make effective

contributions in ensuring that democratic norms and values inspire

our way of life as well as governance. We are confident that, with

this in mind, all those who have faith in multiparty democracy will

discharge their duties from their respective places and the people's

aspirations along with the country's requirements will be realised

through the shared efforts of all the countrymen.

 

15. Today, the nation has made a firm commitment and a decision has

also been taken accordingly. The nation has taken a step forward

towards democracy and progress, leaving behind violence, insecurity

and conflict. At a time when the country is in the grip of terrorism,

all those who believe in democracy and peace must unite. Let us,

therefore, be inspired by our collective wisdom and guided by our

national perspective. Any nefarious attempts at disturbing peace and

security and hindering efforts at making democracy meaningful will

not be tolerated either by the nation or people. Yet, in pursuit of

liberalism, we should never overlook an important aspect of our

conduct, namely discipline. This is also the thinking of the 21st

century. We wish to repeat once again that those who cannot do

justice to Nepal, those who cannot believe in the sound judgment of

the people and those who cannot stand in favour of peace will stand

condemned by the motherland.

 

May Lord Pashupatinath bless us all!

 

Jaya Nepal

http://www.nepalnews.com/archive/2005/feb/feb08/king_address.php