The Hindu : 'U.S. presence in Nepal a threat to India'

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Nov 30, 2003

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'U.S. presence in Nepal a threat to India'

By K.P.M. Basheer

Laxman Panth

KOCHI NOV. 29. The American intervention in Nepal, `in the name of fighting global terrorism and defeating the Maoist revolution,' is a potential threat to India's sovereignty, says Laxman Panth, president of the Nepali People's Rights Protection Committee-India.

In an interview to The Hindu, Mr. Panth claimed that Nepal was the starting point of the `American imperialist' designs in South Asia, which had been relatively free of Washington's `stranglehold.' Nepal's geostrategic position — lying between the regional super powers, India and China — was ideal for the U.S. to throw its weight about in the subcontinent, Mr. Panth said. "It will in no time spread its tentacles to other countries in the region, particularly India,'' he said.

Mr. Panth, whose organisation supports the cause of the revolution led by the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist), pointed out that 400 U.S. military officials were in the Himalayan country to advise the monarchy on fighting the Maoists. The U.S. State Department had recently listed the CPN(M) as a terrorist organisation that posed a threat to the United States' security. He claimed that the U.S. was re-equipping the Army to defeat the revolution and that Nepal's `feudal monarchy' had become a puppet in the hands of the U.S.

He said India, which was supporting King Gyanendra, should realise the danger of a U.S. military foothold in Kathmandu. The popular notion in India that Nepal was a Hindu nation was wrong — 50 per cent of the Nepali population were Janjatis (tribals) and 20 per cent were Buddhists. Though the Hindu ruling classes would claim that the Janjatis were Shudras, the tribals (many of whom were animists and nature-worshipers) rejected the Hindu label, he said.

Mr. Panth claimed that in eight years, the Army had killed 8,000 Maoists.

However, now a sizable chunk of the country was under the control of the parallel government called the United People's Revolutionary Council headed by India-educated Baburam Bhattarai. "The powers of the `old State' are now confined to the palaces and the Army barracks,'' he said.

The UPRC had, in the territory under its control, eliminated casteism and untouchability and inequalities based on birth, gender and wealth, he said. "A new value system based on human dignity and equality is in place.'' Six autonomous areas had been created for the tribals. The objective of `land to the tiller' was being achieved by seizing the huge tracts of land owned by feudal lords and distributing them to the landless farmers. The seized estates included those owned by the Prime Minister and the Army chief. A major achievement of the revolution was the liberation of women from the feudalistic male dominance, he said. Mr. Panth said Nepal was the second poorest country in the world, though it had huge natural resources.

Its literacy rate was one of the lowest and the educational and medicare facilities were extremely inadequate for a population of nearly two crores.

The Maoists were trying to establish a new democracy to achieve socialism, economic development, social equality and freedom from hunger and exploitation for the poor majority of the Nepalese.

However, the CPN(M) was being painted as a terrorist group, which it was not, he claimed.

Mr. Panth, born and raised in India, is on a `talking tour' of South India to seek people's support for the cause of the Nepali revolution.

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