I was heartbroken when I visited Thawang on 5 May as part of survey team from the State Affairs Committee of the House of Representatives. ... The villagers' eyes are darkly veiled with doubt and fear. They fear that the Maoists might take action against them for letting the army stay in the village, or that the army might give them trouble them for having sheltered Maoists in the past.

Poor Thawang, a two-day walk from the nearest roadhead. Electricity and telephones are dreams here. There's a school, but children can't study. A little maize and potatoes is all their food. Now it is under fire from both sides in the name of revolution.

The western hills, the main control area of the Maoists, are going through a sad and difficult chapter. The sounds of gun fire and the killings of humans are not even discussed anymore. ...

The security forces are increasing their control, and the Maoists are bearing large losses in Satarbariya, Murkatti, and Lisne. But it's also clear that the Maoists, who captured many weapons from the 2nd Battalion, will continue making trouble for a long time, taking advantage of the difficult mountain terrain, the open border and the two-faced Indian rulers.

It is also perfectly clear that the longer this war rages, the more difficulties the people will face, the further back these areas will be pushed. Development has been at a standstill for nearly six years, education has been disrupted, the youth are fleeing, which has led to huge losses in production, land has been left barren, houses are empty and falling apart, the grass in school yards is growing taller. ... The villages have no local representatives, district headquarters are filled with refugees. ... In Rolpa, such excesses have led to rallies and public meetings being called, but that has not been enough to put an end to the ruinous behaviour of either the Maoists or the corrupt government officials. ...

We cannot forget that Thawang and Thawangis were brought to the point of revolt and terrorism due to the wrong policies and behaviour of the state. The army's divisional heads say "empty stomachs and naked bodies anywhere are fertile grounds for revolt." Hard to disagree with that. If we cannot find out why Rolpa's Thawang and Gaam, Rukum's Mahat and Taksera are Maoist bases, or why the vast Kham-speaking lands support the Maoists, then even if our military actions douse these fires for the moment, there will soon be other fires in other names. ...