Thanks to British ambassador Keith Bloomfield for calling a spade a spade (Interview, #171). Although couched in diplomatese, his message is clear, that the Royal Nepali Army has to respect human rights because it is good military strategy. It doesn't make sense if you help Maoist recruitment by indiscriminate targeting of civilians. There are too many examples of historical blunders made by standing armies pushed into this trap by guerrilla forces. Some of these blunders have been made by the British Army around the world, and this is why Bloomfield's remarks ring true.
Col J Morton,
by email
. Keith Bloomfield should mind his own business and not poke his nose into the Royal Nepali Army's conduct of counterinsurgency operations. Through his remarks he shows that his true sympathies lie with the Maoists. The rebels have twice hoodwinked civilian governments by going for a ceasefire they had no intention of observing. They manipulated the disunity in the corrupt civilian leadership to gain time, get their comrades released and fight on. Their force must be met by force, so that this war can be brought to a swift end, otherwise the Nepali people will be made to suffer a long-drawn conflict that may cost us our freedom.
Bickram Thapa,
by email
. After reading your issue #171, I get the feeling Nepal is on the verge of collapse. It is in a state of terror, human rights abuses, landmines, daily killings and a poor future outlook. Outside Kathmandu, the Maoists are acting more like bandits than the freedom fighters they once were. The army, which used to behave marginally better seems to have lost it. A taxi driver is killed in Kathmandu by a soldier after a traffic altercation. Now, aid agencies are warning that unless this is curbed, no more money. So let me ask: where is the will for getting back on the road of peace? To the establishment and the political parties: open your eyes and for once act for Nepal, not for yourself. That is the reason Nepal is on this tragic path.
Lars Gundersen,
Denmark
