National security advisor

Nepal has, at last, got a new prime minister after a wait of nearly seven months. Immediately after assuming office, PM Jhalanath Khanal took a significant decision to address the ongoing power crisis as the first prime ministerial decision. Next he will select or has already selected his advisory team consisting of a political advisor, a foreign affairs advisor and a press advisor. Unfortunately, there is no position for a security advisor in the advisory committee. There was none in the previous government either.

However, PM Khanal is not solely to be blamed for not selecting a security advisor in his advisory team. In Nepal, security doesn’t get the priority it deserves, which reflects the lack of awareness and seriousness of our leaders concerning national security. No wonder the country is facing serious security lapses. They seem to forget the maxim that peace comes only through stable security and only peace can ensure development and growth.

Our leaders pay lip service to security and peace. They wrongly assume that security is solely the responsibility of the uniformed personnel. Due to its very nature the national army has to be apolitical, but that does not mean the political leaders should be unaware and concerned about national security. Many countries have a provision for the post of National Security Advisor (NSA), who advises and briefs the head of the government on issues pertaining to security. One of the most successful models of this is the US system in which the NSA regularly briefs the president and plays an important role in shaping the administration’s foreign and defense policies. Although it will take time for us to perfect this model, the time has come to appoint a security advisor and institutionalize the National Security Council (NSC) to safeguard our national interests.

SECURITY ISSUES

It is a well-known fact that PM Khanal became the prime minister because of the Maoists’ support. It will indeed be unfortunate for the country if he thinks that he has to serve the interests of the UCPN (Maoist) only. If he feels obligated to serve the Maoists’ interests only, then it would be quite unfortunate for the country.

On one hand PM Khanal expresses his commitment toward peace building but on the other hand agrees to the Maoists model of integration of their combatants. They have suggested a separate security force consisting of a bulk of their ex-combatants. If that is allowed, they will maintain their chain of command and have a control over the weapons too. If PM Khanal had a security advisor in his advisory body s/he would have definitely warned him of the consequences of signing such a deal with the Maoists.

Peace was possible only because the rebels laid down their arms after a decade long conflict. The demobilization of the combatants should have been the next step in the peace process, instead, thanks to the UNMIN, they were kept in camps across the country, which provided fertile grounds for further militarization. All this could have been avoided only if the political parties had a provision for security advisors in their apparatus. In this context, it is quite interesting to point out that none of the political parties, except for the Maoists, had security advisors when the Comprehensive Peace Agreement was signed.

Now that the combatants are at last under the supervision of the Special Technical Committee, it will be in everyone’s interest to let the committee function without any outside influence. Even though the model of integration is yet to be finalized by the committee, lets hope that they will suggest the appropriate model in due course of time.

Security of leaders too is an important aspect of national security. It is natural and appropriate that the prime minister of the country should get more than two hundred security personnel to provide security to him . The chairman of the UCPN (Maoist) has his own combatants, nearly one hundred and fifty in number, guarding him. Since the Nepali Congress has decided to sit in the opposition, so its president too, should be provided with security personnel by the state.

There can be no peace without security and without peace there can be no development. The prime minister must understand security in its totality and have a competent security advisor to guide him. Therefore, the need of the hour is to appoint a competent security advisor.

Similarly, shouldn’t the government provide security to the leaders of the other political parties too? Or can they recruit their own security guards like the Maoists leaders have done? Maoist leaders not only have armed security guards, they themselves have been found carrying weapons. So what is stopping the other political party leaders from having their own trusted security guards to protect them?

Just a Rambo look-alike guard with a lethal weapon following his master doesn’t constitute real security. Large number of guards and guns don’t necessarily mean security. If the Maoists are to continue with their security arrangement, the foyer of the Constituent Assembly would resemble an arms exhibition centre. And a scuffle between the members would result in a gunfight amongst the bodyguards. Therefore, this trend of letting the political leaders have their party’s or private armed security guards has to stop immediately.

There has to be more confidence building measures between the political parties to improve the trust between them. Having security advisors, rather than hiring more guns, would definitely improve the overall security situation of the country. The previous government spent millions to improve the security situation but in vain. Only if the then PM had his own security advisor, he could have option to either refuse it or amended the plan appropriately, saving the country millions of rupees.

Also in the name of democratization the political parties never fail to emphasize inclusiveness and equality to Janjatis. But look at any advisory team or lucrative appointments and it will be very difficult to find proportionate representation or any janjatis or the marginalized communities in that team.

Let us not take the issue of security so lightly. As mentioned earlier, there can be no peace without security and without peace there can be no development. The prime minister, as the head of the government, is responsible for running the government and he must understand security in its totality and have a competent security advisor to guide him. Understanding of the security will smoothly lead the peace process to its logical conclusion. Therefore, the need of the hour is to appoint a competent security advisor.

The security advisor, whether uniformed or un-uniformed should be independent of the government and be supported by a competent staff to gather intelligence, carry out researches and prepare briefs to help forecast events. Therefore, there should be no delay in establishing a national security council like that of the US which will definitely enhance the overall security environment of the country.