Nepal has of late been mired in problems and consequently the hearts and minds of the Nepalese have been overshadowed by terrifying clouds of negativity. Hope is the strongest pillar of life. To live without hope is like not living at all. Suspicion and counter suspicion is rife and threatens to tear the country apart. ‘Whatever we do is not enough’ is the general feeling among the Nepalese. For most people, duties towards family and self surpass allegiance to the government and the state. As a result, a large part of the Nepalese workforce continues to migrate out of the country, leading to brain drain.
The author, who served as aide-de-camp to King Birendra of Nepal, says that multiparty democracy in Nepal is still “immature, floundering and trying to find its feet. We are only too aware of our rights yet we demand them unmindful of our duties.” He wonders that if the civil servants’ union thinks only of its own welfare, if the drivers’ association asserts its rights over those of others, if hotel associations work only for their own good and politicians advocate only their parties’ interests, who is to think of the nation’s well-being!”
Over the last 10 years or so, Nepal has been deeply shaken by numerous upheavals. Many political experiments have been carried out with zeal during which the citizens of the country have been able to closely evaluate the performance of various political parties. Nepal has experienced the governments of Nepali Congress, a traditionally democratic party, the United Marxist-Leninist Communist Party, the Rashtriya Prajatantra Party, a reformist democratic party and their alliances apart from monarchy. Throughout the rule of the sundry political systems, it has become clear that no government can work effectively without the support of the people. The author points out that in Nepal both political parties and opportunists indulge in power games in the name of the ‘people’ and ‘subjects’. He feels that they “cheaply use the wishes of the people as a medium with which to fulfil their selfish interests, however harmful to the country. They have used the public as nothing more than roses with which to decorate the lapels of their political jackets.”
Interspersing his political views with his personal contributions the author strikes a positive note by pointing out the unprecedented progress made in different sectors. However, Sakya’s account of growing up in a large Newari joint family in Kathmandu, his higher education in the Forest Research Institute in Dehradun, his work with the forest department and his distinguished career as an entrepreneur and hotelier make for not very interesting reading. In 1987, after losing his first wife and daughter to cancer, he overcame personal grief to build Nepal’s first cancer hospital by coming up with an innovative idea of charging a one-paisa tax on every cigarette sold in the country. Here relates how he set up the now iconic Kathmandu guest house in his family’s historic house in Thamal.
In the author’s view the 14-year period of democracy in Nepal could not flourish because of the shortsightedness of leaders coupled with political instability. Though democracy can hardly be said to have been successful, there were numerous positive changes which occurred during the period.
-MG
(Penguin Books India Pvt Ltd, 11, Community Centre, Panchsheel Park, New Delhi-110 017.)
