Tuesday, December 13, 2005

Nepal leader urges India not to back Government headed by King

By: Marcus Dam

External support will make it more repressive: Communist Party of Nepal (UM-L)

# Several smaller political parties of Nepal are joining the pro-democracy movement
# Maoists are slowly veering towards the idea of a peaceful political transformation

KOLKATA: "We urge the Indian Government not to lend any support to the Nepal Government that could end up with the latter turning even more repressive towards the movement for democracy in Nepal," Keshab Badal, former Nepalese Industries Minister and senior leader of the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist), one of the largest mainstream political parties of Nepal that is in the forefront of the anti-monarchy and pro-democracy campaign in that country, said here on Sunday.

"We seek the sympathy of the Indian Government in our endeavours to replace the monarchy in Nepal with a democratic republic. The Government headed by the King is stockpiling arms and procuring weapons in preparation for the bloodiest civil war in the country," Mr. Badal told The Hindu.

The militants belonging to the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoists) are slowly veering towards the idea of a peaceful political transformation to people's democracy in the country, he observed. "We cannot expect them to change [their violent ways] overnight but they seem gradually to be coming around to the point of view of the seven political parties spearheading the pro-democracy movement in Nepal," Mr. Badal said.

The Maoist rebels who had called for a three-month ceasefire that lapsed on December 3 have, under pressure from various international and national groupings including the seven party forum of Nepal's democratic parties, reportedly extended it by another month.

"Talks between the Maoist leaders and us started nearly six months ago and it's been only a month since we [the seven democratic parties and the Maoist rebels] have been able to reach a 12-point understanding for a joint movement against the monarchy and the setting up of a democratic republic in Nepal," Mr. Badal said.

"Several other smaller political parties of Nepal were joining the pro-democracy movement," Mr. Badal said. "There were also other organisations from the civil society like teachers' groups, bar associations and human rights organisations which were coming together and widening the base of the movement.

"The recent reshuffle in the Nepalese Ministry is nothing but a move by the monarchy toward greater oppression of the people by intensifying the repression of the present regime, taking us further from any solution to the present political crisis in Nepal," he said.

Mr. Badal was in the city to lead a procession brought out by the Nepali Democratic Movement Solidarity Forum - a Kolkata-based organisation comprising various organisations supporting the movement for democracy in Nepal. He, along with representatives of the Forum, later addressed a rally in support of "the struggle of the Nepalese people for a sovereign and self-reliant Nepal."
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