It is essential to understand the reality that if the interim government does not exercise discretion and sensitivity, an entire generation, and even those within it who have been marginalized by historical exclusion, could become targets of police retaliation.
What you should know
How can one side of the same conflict be criminal and the other political? On the one hand, we have to wait for the report of the investigation commission formed under the leadership of Gauri Bahadur Karki to take action against the police and the officers and leaders who gave the orders to kill unarmed civilians by shooting them.
Because, on the one hand, it is called a political incident. On the other hand, the people, angered by the fire caused by their own incompetence and barbaric repression, are forced to become victims of the revenge of legitimate armed men in the name of criminal offenses.
Because the interim government and the Karki Commission did not take the path of truth-telling and reconciliation, the police have created an environment where they can take revenge on the Nepali people – Gen-G and the younger generation – for their incompetence and humiliation. Since the mass movement led by Gen-G has been criminalized by putting ‘material and human damage’ in the same basket, police torture has begun on the youth of historically marginalized communities. Of the 132 people arrested in the Valley on charges of police killings, weapons looting, vandalism, arson, theft and indecent behavior, most of them are Dalit, indigenous and Madhesi youth. Not all the data is publicly available. The youth, who have always been criminalized by the state, have once again been trapped in the quagmire of a racially and ethnically biased criminal justice system. The court's decision to make those who criticize the judiciary faint in the courtroom forces us to ask whether the judiciary is also licking its wounds. However, so far, there has been no information that the police have arrested any cadre who burned down the house of a leader of another party.
The commission has directed the Nepal Police to take forward the process of investigating criminal incidents. The commission's interpretation has played a role in making one side of the conflict political and the other side criminal. They have no connection or concern with the class that is being most seriously affected by this. The youth from the same class who have to endure police torture and are trapped in a criminal justice system that has become a maze of injustice are the same class.
The main factor behind all the incidents of 23 and 24 Bhadra is the 'communist' supreme commander who considers himself invincible, who is drunk with power despite his term having expired, has lost his morals and is now sitting in the guise of a gangster. His game of escaping the guilt of extrajudicial killings by prolonging the transition period by not accepting the Karki Commission is still going on. His arrogance is also because it is very difficult to gather evidence to convict him through this judicial system.
Human rights activists, who have made human rights a means of earning money, are keeping their mouths shut when they should be most active. The analysis of some intellectuals that the building inherited from feudalism, forgetting the genocide, has disrupted peace and security. Another creator of this commentary is the self-proclaimed leaders of the ‘people’s movement led by Gen-G’ from the class that does not have to work for food. The tendency to become leaders by selling the struggle of the marginalized is also not a new story in the pages of history.
This people’s movement is the result of the failure to timely resolve the structural causes of conflict, such as social, economic, and political injustice, which have been institutionalized for decades. It is a result of the state's failure to guarantee the common citizen and the state's failure to ensure any of its citizens' rights. It is well known that the despair among the youth and the compulsion to emigrate to survive have reached their peak. The 'Nepo Baby' trend that spread like wildfire on social media exposed the gap between the political class and the lifestyle of the common people. And, created a crowd ready to take to the streets. The brutal repression of the then government turned the despair of the youth into anger.
It is not unjustified for middle-class Nepalis to feel insecure. But is the cause of that insecurity those marginalized, lower-class youth or the incompetent security agencies? The root cause of this insecurity is the failure of those in power to fulfill their duties and prevent these incidents. When will we question the economic hardship experienced by citizens who snatch gold and silver from the burning house of a corrupt leader, take a 'doll' from a burning stove, or take utensils for the kitchen? When will the Nepali people get economic and social justice? It is not unreasonable to worry about what message the anarchic elements of society will receive tomorrow through truth-telling and reconciliation. But what purpose does criminalizing the youth on the margins serve other than deepening the gap of economic and social injustice? The result of this could be a situation where the youth of Nepali origin will go abroad, carrying sacrifices, disappointment, and discouragement in their lives. If someone again draws a match in despair, what can happen except another rebellion?
High morality outside of behavior and social reality is not a special right for all classes. As Arundhati Roy said, ‘Can the hungry go on a hunger strike? Nonviolence is like a play. It needs an audience. When you don’t have an audience, what can you do? People have the right to resist to avoid annihilation.’ Black revolutionary Asata Shakur says, ‘No one in the world, no one in history, has ever achieved freedom by appealing to the morality of their oppressors.’ Liberation from autocratic rulers and political rule culture is not possible through satyagraha. From Tharuhat to Madhesh movement, from Chure to Mukumlung, and from the meter badge movement to the Gen-G people’s movement, this is a response to the oppression that the Nepali people have repeatedly suffered in a republic limited to paper.
Sometimes ‘Ha Hu Ko Sarkar’, sometimes by indicating that the incidents of 23 and 24 Bhadra were caused by foreign powers, Khadga Prasad Oli has tried to escape easily. If foreign powers can destroy the state in 27 hours, then those in power should be labeled traitors. Did the intelligence agencies under him, the Nepali Army, and the Nepal Police, have no information about such a big conspiracy? How powerful have the permanent leaders of the state made the country and its security mechanisms?
It is necessary to understand the reality that if the interim government does not adopt discretion and sensitivity, an entire generation, and even those who have been marginalized by historical exclusion, may become the target of police retaliation. This conflict can only be resolved through transitional justice. The state can also invite the UN Special Rapporteur for truth and reconciliation. There is no alternative to reforming the police system. No matter how long it takes, it is necessary to start that reform without delay. In addition, all those responsible for police torture must be immediately prosecuted. If the police do not immediately stop criminalizing and torturing protesters, it is also necessary to consider the possibility that this could become the seed of another uprising.
