The Fall of a God King
Tomas van Houtryve
Winner of the 2006 Ville de Perpignan Rémi Ochlik Visa d'or Award
The story of modern Nepal is about the struggle between a rigidly traditional monarchy and the repeated attempts of the people to create a lasting revolution. The Shah dynasty conquered and united the Himalayan nation 238 years ago, and enshrined their power in the belief that the kings were the reincarnation of the god Vishnu. Their reign and organization of the country rested on the strict observance of the Hindu caste system. Nepalis watched as revolution swept the world from China to Cuba during the twentieth century, but their own peaceful attempts at democratic and socialist reforms led to disappointments for over 50 years. Then in 1996, a hard line leftist group decided to break off from the mainstream political parties, go underground and start an armed revolt against the monarchy. Lead by an elusive commander who calls himself Prachanda, which means “the fierce one”, the rebels meticulously followed the guerrilla strategies of Mao Tse-Tung. Though starkly unfashionable in the post-cold war reality, the tactics worked, and the Maoists steadily spread their control over most of rural Nepal. As they advanced they burned police posts and looted government weapons. Villagers who had lived for generations following the rules and rituals of the caste system were rounded up and marched to propaganda programs where the rebels preached Marxist style equality. The ideology proved particularly effective for recruiting women and “untouchables” into the rebel army, since both groups are routinely denied education, political rights, and social status in rural Nepal.
Preview
The center point of the Maoist strategy was coldly calculated provocation of the palace and the Royal Army, a technique that Che Guevara called "sharpening contradictions”. As predicted, the government responded to each rebel threat with increasing repression and disproportionate force. The state declared the Maoists a terrorist organization, and millions of dollars of military aid poured in from the United States, Britain and India. By 2004, violence had engulfed much of the country and the death toll was over 10 000. The United Nations noted a steep increase in grave human rights abuses, and by the end of the year, Nepal had the highest number of people who had gone "missing" while in state custody of any country in the world. At the same time, the Maoists were recruiting child soldiers no more than 14 years old. In February 2005, King Gyanendra Shah pushed the situation further to the edge. He arrested the mainstream political party leaders, muzzled the press, cut phones and internet service across the country, and declared himself the absolute ruler. Attempts to protest against the royal power grab were thwarted by mass arrests. Later, "shoot-on-site" curfew orders were declared whenever anti-monarchy demonstrations were organized. At this point, the Maoists reached out to the sidelined political parties and proposed a joint movement to topple King Gyanendra. In April 2006, the plan was put into action. Tens of thousands of people poured onto the streets in defiance of curfew orders, carrying their party flags and burning effigies of the king and crown prince. Police opened fire on protesters, killing 21 people across the country, but the momentum against the palace showed no signs of diminishing. On April 24, after three weeks of chaos in the streets of Kathmandu, the King came on television and tersely issued a short proclamation. He released his grip on executive power and reinstated the parliament. Gyanendra's direct rule of Nepal was over.
