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| Kathmandu, Friday July 12, 2002 Ashadh 28, 2059. |
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Mindless act
The Maoists have time and again come under
severe criticism, especially in the past eight months or so, for a series of their
barbaric acts of terror. These acts of terror have, however, not been condemned or
criticised by the political leadership of the underground outfit. This would mean that the
leadership is either helpless in front of the Maoist guerrillas carrying out mindless
killings, loot and plunder, or it is a party to everything being done in the name of
‘revolution’. The Maoist activists after unilaterally breaking away from the
peace initiative in November and launching a spate of attacks on army and police posts
besides large-scale destruction of the physical infrastructure have alienated large
sections of the people who were either sympathetic or neutral towards their movement.
These sections are even cooperating with the security forces against the Maoists at
present for which only the Maoists are to be blamed.
Brutality in its worst form was demonstrated
when the Maoists went on the rampage, set ablaze a passenger bus in Chitwan burning 8-year
old Kajol and other five passengers to death last year. In other equally heinous acts,
they hanged some teachers to death while others were brutally attacked leaving some of
them crippled for life. As these brutal acts became their way of life, the Maoist Movement
gradually saw its political content and character on the wane to the extent that the West
started bracketing it with terrorist outfits like al-Qaeda and Taliban. The comparison
might be an exaggeration, but not entirely unjustified given the Maoists’ mindless
attack on individuals.
Akalgharuwa village in the Banke district is
the latest testimony to Maoist brutality –where they hacked two residents into pieces
until they breathed their last. Not content with the death of these two poor villagers,
the armed ‘revolutionaries’ went on the rampage, attacked others and destroyed
many houses. None of them was a political opponent of the Maoists, nor could they be
called Maoist class enemies by any stretch of imagination or definition. Has killing
become just a passion for the Maoists? Does its political leadership feel any sense of
accountability, or the need to explain the reason for taking innocent human lives? Such
incidents have become more of a rule than an exception in the rebel camps.
This, however, will not justify the state, a
democratic representative of the popular will to rule, if it reciprocates or matches the
cruelty of the rebels while dealing with them like in the Krishna Sen case. But equally or
more gruesome act on the part of the Maoists would be as contemptuous. It will only
minimise the possibility of peace initiative with the Maoists having to bank entirely on
external forces if they continue to indulge in such mindless crimes including murder. |
