The agitation against direct royal rule found traction this week, forcing the government to counter it with daytime curfews.

Home Minister Kamal Thapa justified the curfews because of the real possibility of infiltration by insurgents, but surely there are more sophisticated means at the disposal of the security forces than to hit people over their heads with batons. What is the purpose of curfew anyway if they are being defied?

If we bothered to ask ordinary Nepalis what they think, they would see an urgent need to resolve the political and military stalemate with dialogue. There is universal realisation now that situation is careening into a dangerous phase the outcome of which can only be very undesirable.

The public posturing of the seven party alliance and the Maoists are well known, although it is by no means clear that it is the same thing that they want from the12-point agreement and the constituent assembly demand. The king wants to hold a parliamentary election in April 2007. The protagonists have already rejected each other's plans and it seems to be clear that neither the palace nor the parties will undertake any dialogue unless the other is on its knees. And if in the process the country is ruined, just too bad.

We see is an unruffled king flying back from Pokhara with his entourage and a government in Kathmandu determined to prolong his direct rule. As shown in successive public opinion polls, the citizens of this embattled nation desire something different. They want a benign and respected monarchy and multiparty democracy.
Most people also feel that the 1990 constitution had a pretty

good arrangement in relation to the monarchy. That the constitution got misused by the parties and the king is why some want to change it. What kind of a system we will get under a new constitution and will its spirit be respected, is anybody's guess.

So, the only way forward is for the king and the parties to come to an agreement, make amends for past mistakes and make the constitution work to uplift the lives of Nepalis.

How is this process to start? Since it was the king who took matters into his own hands and precipitated the crisis of confidence, it is incumbent on him to start the ball rolling by accepting his mistake of 1 February 2005 and thereafter put out a sincere call to the parties for negotiations.

This may instil some respect for him and could be the beginning of a rehabilitation process for the monarchy. The parties should accept this and if they can bring their newfound friends, the Maoists, to the table we would be heading in the right direction. There will be many more months of hardnosed bargaining, perhaps with international mediation, but it will be worth it. Accommodation requires flexibility and an understanding of the positions of the other sides in the triumverate.

By the time you are read this, we will know if the new year message from the king will have addressed the issue and whether it goes far enough to break the stalemate.