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The historical victory of Com. Prachanda to the post of prime minister marks the beginning of a new era in Nepal. Once again, the Nepali people have endorsed the model of Nepali revolution that includes the fusion of both open and underground activities, pen and gun, bullet and ballot, people’s war and mass movement. With the election of Chairman Prachanda, our party has become the first ever party in the one-hundred-sixty-year history of international communist movement – with a separate army of proletariat under its command- to make it to the government using these different methods. Following the demise of Com. Mao in 1976, the CPN (Maoist) is the first ever revolutionary Communist party to lead the government after thirty two years.
The new Maoist government in our country is also different in the sense that it is based on the joint dictatorship of both the proletariat and the bourgeois class. There are not any references of such kind of joint dictatorship in any of the Marxist thesis; the Marxist principle that the joint dictatorship of two antagonistic classes in the state is impossible. However, the experience of Nepal has shown it otherwise. The philosophical and theoretical base of the Nepali experience and experiment will have to be synthesized in the days to come. History has put the onus to justify dual dictatorship of the state on the shoulders of Maoists of the twenty first century.
The victory of Chairman Prachanda has another historical facet. This marks the end of five decades of ‘Congressocracy’ and the Koirala dynasty that has served as the main bulwark for imperialism and expansionism, and has been an embodiment of feudalism and imperialism. The 30th day of Shrawan has a historical significance in this sense, too. The collapse of Koirala dynasty is a signal of the fall of a pillar of imperialism. This bears no less significance than the fall of monarchy. Truly, the Nepali people were equally suffering from the monarchy and Koirala dynasty. Generally speaking, it was the Koirala dynasty and the ‘Congressocracy’ that served as the main basis for the existence of Monarchy for half a century. The fall of Girija is a watershed in Nepali people’s fight for nationalism, against imperialism and expansionism.
After achieving the goal of republic, the immediate goal of the revolution has also changed and so has been the equation of friends and foes of the revolution. Obviously, hitherto friends have turned into foes and vice versa. Of the two gigantic mountains of feudalism and imperialism, the Nepali people have demolished one huge mountain of feudalism. As of now, standing in front of the Nepali people is the terrible and gigantic rock of imperialism and expansionism. The conspiracies to prevent the CPN Maoist forming the government during these last four months were the outcome of this.
The Nepali people have, to the large extent, won the struggle of democracy by defeating feudalism, even though it is yet to be institutionalized. However, the fight for absolute nationalism is yet to be started and victory accomplished. The nature and method of that battle cannot be predicted right at the moment. However, there are no two minds that the fight for nationalism will bear a national character, will be more complicated and a fiercer struggle. The political line of the party, now, must be directed towards that.
A lot of reverberation and kind of sensation was caused among the rank and file of revolutionaries by rapidly changing circumstances following the election of Constituent Assembly. The election of President and Vice-President as well as the collaboration with the UML generated a ripple effect in the party. Most importantly, whether it was correct to join the government has become the central point of debate in the party that has stirred the minds of the rank and file.
We must seek out the answers to the above questions in totality, not in fraction, in content, not in the form. The answer to these questions lies in the strategy formulated by the party, not in the tactics. The revolution never advances in straight line. The revolution moves ahead through many advancements and retreats, victories and defeats, offenses and defenses and so on and so forth.
There is no denying that imperialism and expansionism stands in the way of Nepali revolution. The party has identified this even before the beginning of the PW. Imperialism and expansionism are the two major strategic enemies of the revolution... The success in overthrowing Girija is a major chain in the struggle against imperialism.
We are in the transitional phase of negating the old contradiction and the emergence of new contradictions. This process will take a definite duration to complete. Without the completion of this duration, as well as the process to talk about the movement or uprising or to pull out from the peace process with petit -bourgeoisie impatience will be suicidal. In order to wage the struggle in the days to come, for nationalism along with the total struggle, the need of the hour is broad polarization and forging alliances not only on national level but also in the international level. This is the stage of forging alliance among patriotic, democratic and left forces. It can be done equally by joining the government or by staying out of the government. It is not the case of something to be ‘finished’ if the party joins the government or vice versa. Instead of initiating the debate on whether or not to join the government, it is more important and pertinent to start the discussions on whether or not we would be able to mobilize and open multi-dimensional fronts of the revolution in the future. The question that whether we will be competent to effect sharp polarization between revolutionary and reactionary forces is the most important one, rather than the question of joining or not joining the government.
The question of joining or not joining the government cannot be the theoretical one, it is a tactical question. If joining the government helps in the advancement of the future revolution, paves the way to achieve people’s democracy, ensures the victory in the struggle for nationalism or pushes the revolution one step forward towards a New Democratic Revolution, then participation in the government is correct, otherwise it is wrong. If we are unable to chalk out new plans and policies and program of the revolution, to formulate new political and military line in accord with the changed circumstances, we cannot advance the revolution even if we do not join the government. If we are able to sharpen and intensify the class struggle even if we remain in the government, we can advance toward the path of revolution.
