Samudaya.org » Nepal » October revolutions
Nepal
October revolutions
Source: NT Guest Column
Parallels between Russia 1917 and Nepal 2006
MOSCOW—The striking resemblance of contemporary Nepal to the October 1917 coup in Russia offers insight into Comrade Pushpa Kamal Dahal's talk of a 'October Revolution'.
Just like the Maoists, civil society and the seven party alliance, the main demand of Russian political parties, intelligentsia and Bolsheviks ever since World War I started in 1914 was for a constituent assembly. King Nicholas II was unpopular after he dissolved the State Duma in 1906 and during the war, protests over food shortages turned into a full-fledged anti-monarchy revolt. Ignoring the Tsar, the Duma chose a provisional government represented by middle class liberals while worker councils (or Soviets) dominated mainly by Bolsheviks took over local governance. In March 1917, with the Tsar's abdication, the three-century reign of the Romanov dynasty came to an end.
Dethroning an unpopular king was surprisingly easy in a country where 'God, Tsar and Russia' was a time-honoured formula of statecraft. However, preventing the country from sliding towards anarchy after that proved more difficult. Bolsheviks, Mensheviks, social democrats, and former royalists intensified their struggle for power targeting the constituent assembly election scheduled for November the same year.
The Bolsheviks had a strategic advantage as the workers and soldiers' councils had the local governments under control.
The central government was weak, local governance lay in tatters. On the eve of the October coup, an impatient Lenin asked his comrades to recognise that "an armed people's struggle is the only remaining option left to achieve our goal or else disappear into political oblivion". Then with Trotsky, he organised a spontaneous storming of the Winter Palace which housed the provisional government.
The Soviet of Workers and Soldiers Deputies set about nationalising land and replacing the old judiciary with people's tribunals. A flurry of laws designed to tame the national army were passed. But the Bolsheviks needed to legitimise their coup and the constituent assembly election offered a favourable opportunity. Their initial reluctance to consider peasants as 'proletariat' and the image of being led by workers undermined their position.
They won only 25 percent of the seats, while liberal democrats and moderate socialists had a majority in the assembly. Lenin rejected the verdict, declaring the Soviet of Workers' and Soldiers' Council the supreme authority, higher than any constituent assembly, saying: "All power to the Soviets." The Bolsheviks dissolved the assembly after a one-and-half day session.
The system finally crumbled in 1990, but not before more than 40 million people had died in war, repression and famine.
The Russian experience shows that with careful application of land, peace and local government any spontaneous revolution is possible as long the urban presence is strong. Just as workers and soldiers councils, Maoists have local jana sarkars to implement their agenda.
The seven party alliance's vacillation on the status of the defunct monarchy must have further encouraged Dahal. Civil society street protests provide the Maoists a much-needed urban platform. Kathmandu is festooned with Maoist banners this week that read 'Sampurna shakti krantikari jana parishad ma" similar to Lenin's 'all power to the Soviets'.
Nevertheless, Russia in 1917 did not have mass-based political parties like the Nepali Congress which is able to resist the extreme left despite being targetted in the past 10 years. Hence, despite Dahal's repeated threats of an Oktober kranti political parties and the NC in particular will continue to remain the biggest deterrent. The Russian experience proves that democratic forces and especially the two factions of the NC must strive for lasting unity.
Comments
My dear Long live
The non- state sector contributes three fourths of the GDP in your Mao’s land. What crap are you talking about? Or have you opted for another October revolution (one week away) to usher in a revolutionary republic with only a faint hope of attaining it by joining an interim regime under Girija Lauda Koirala.
The limping American pig hatched up conspiracies with Indian expansionism to kill the new revolution in Nepal has been blocked and the shining great revolution continues, giving rise to a wider and powerful upsurge against the hated puppet government and is gaining new victories. South Asia shall be turned into a flaming field of Maoist revolution.
LAL SALAAM!
It is the height of political naivetéto assume that a group of civilian UN observers will be able to check the Maoists.
You would have to be a dupe to think that the nation is on the brink of a new era of peace and communal harmony.
Long Live Marxism-Leninism-Maoism and Prachanda Path!
The Zionist genocide regime, acting as the front paw of the US imperialists, is becoming more and fiercer throughout the world, and is yet another adventure against an independent country. Even in South Asia, the US imperialists are more and more openly intervening in the countries of the region. They have been directly intervening in the suppression of the Maoist movements.
Take up the challenge to build a people’s revolutionary alternative.
New politics must come into being to lead the people’s revolutionary struggle — a new way of looking at how to change society, which classes are friends and which are enemies, who to rely on and what must be done to throw the imperialists out and stand up to its global hegemony; neither nationalism nor religion can accomplish this.
It is way past time to make common cause to confront the imperialists’ deadly arrogance with the conscious and powerful strength of the oppressed of the region whose interests lie in a totally different future, one that can only be wrested out of the current madness by developing revolution in countries throughout the region as part of the international struggle to bring down the vicious capitalist-imperialist system and usher in a whole new world.
It has been decided to develop the South Asia region as a thriving ground of people’s revolt by developing better coordination among the brotherhood and to take it to new heights. COMPOSA has conceptualized the Red Corridor Zone consisting of Nepal and India. The brotherhood is contributing to the development of South Asia as a thriving ground of Red Revolution.
Post a comment
Recent Posts
A History of Violence: Maoists attack Himalmedia
Possibilities Redefined, History Lived, Hope Renewed
Finance Minister Bhattarai’s Vision for Nepal
In Conversation with Prime Minister Pushpa Dahal
Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal at New School
Police aggression outside the Republican National Convention
Campaign for Liberty, Rally for the Republic
Terai in Trouble: A Conversation on Madhes with Prashant Jha
Recent Comments
Dilli Dhakal says: Dr. Saheb, happy New year. It is surprising for me and the people of Nepal that you couldn't show...
Penisinhermouth says: This is labour dispute... it has nothing to do press freedom or freedom of expression.... and...
salik says: I wonder if there is any chance of an uprising against the excesses of the Maoists now...
jesus says: Hello, i'm a peruvian student part of group o more than 500 south american students who came to here to...
hopson says: can children be adopted from the areas the ones with no family please sed only the facts I do not want...
Bookmarks
- Activate.us
- BBC
- Blogging Nepal
- Dahr Jamail’s Mideast Dispatches
- Democracy for Nepal
- Discovery of Nepal
- International Nepal Solidarity Network
- Kathmandu Post
- Nepali Kukur
- Nepali Times
- Pass the Roti
- photo.circle
- Projected Letters
- The Economist
- The Guardian
- United We Blog
Feeds
Contact
Submit your work, or send us feedback. Write to us at folks[at]samudaya[dot]org.
The aim of the revolution is to break the alliance between bourgeois capitalism and their pliant puppet government and the American imperialism and its running dogs.
The backward culture and thinking combined with the puppets and their alliance with the American imperialism is a threat. Our challenge is to break that alliance. There will be a grand Cultural Revolution to revamp Nepalese society as whole. The so called intellectuals , and also the irredeemable civil servants and army officers will be obliged to learn the basics of hard work.