Forget Kathmandu: An Elegy for DemocracyIn June 2001, King Birendra Bir Bikram Shah was killed in a massacre at Kathmandu s Narayanhiti royal palace, allegedly by his own son, the crown prince, and the world took new notice of Nepal. Since then, several thousand lives have been lost to a violent Maoist insurgency and repressive state counter-insurgency. Parliamentary democracy, too won late, in 1990 has been lost. And there are no clear indications of how long it will be before the civil war ends and popular government is restored. In this illuminating study of the tangled politics of her country, Manjushree Thapa examines what has gone wrong, and why. Starting with an account of the Narayanhiti massacre and its aftermath, she goes back in time to trace the history, often chaotic, of Nepal s monarchy since unification in the 18th century, and of the struggle, in the 20th century, for genuine democracy. She ends with a record of her trek into Maoist-held territories in west Nepal, where the majority continue to live in poverty, human rights abuses are on the rise, and boys and girls as young as thirteen have taken to the gun. A skilful mix of history, reportage, memoir and travel writing, Forget Kathmandu is an unprecedented examination of Nepal s past and present. The gifts of insight and lucidity that Thapa brings to her intensely political narrative make this one of the finest works of non-fiction from the subcontinent in recent times. |
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Common terms and phrases
activists army arrested asked Bahadur Kunwar Rana Bahun began Bharat Bhattarai Bikram Shah bombs bourgeoisie British brother ceasefire Chitra Bahadur committee Communist Party CPN UML crown prince Dailekh Dailekh District democracy democratic Dipendra Dullu elections faction G.P. Koirala girls Gorkha head Hindu human rights India insurgency Jumla District Jung Bahadur Kunwar Jung Bahadur Rana Kalikot Kalikot District Khalanga killed King Birendra king's Krishna Prasad Bhattarai Lauda Air leaders lives looked Mahendra Bir Bikram Malcolm Mama Manma Maoists massacre mukhtiyar National nearby Nepali Congress Panchayat Panchayat system Parliament Party of Nepal party's People's police political parties Prachanda Prasad prime minister Prince Paras Prithvi Narayan Shah Rajyalaksmi regent queen Rolpa royal coup royal family royal palace security forces Shah King Shahi Sher Bahadur Deuba shot Singh Sumshere Jung Bahadur talk Thapa told took village walked wanted women
References to this book
Histoire politique du Népal: aux origines de l'insurrection maoïste Michelle Kergoat Limited preview - 2007 |