Nepal rebels extend truce as anti-king rally starts

By Gopal Sharma

KATHMANDU (Reuters) – Nepal’s Maoist rebels extended a
unilateral ceasefire by one month on Friday as thousands of
protesters rallied against King Gyanendra who seized power in
February and cracked down on political dissent.

Political parties, which agreed last month to form a loose
alliance with the Maoists aimed at ending the absolute monarchy
and returning Nepal to democracy, immediately welcomed the
statement.

The announcement also came just ahead of the return of King
Gyanendra to the Himalayan kingdom after an African tour, and
followed an appeal from the United Nations for the rebels to
extend the truce — and for the government to respond in kind.

“Our party has decided to extend the ceasefire by one month
after seriously considering the demand by various forces within
and outside the country,” Prachanda, chairman of the Communist
Party of Nepal (Maoist), said in a emailed statement.

The impoverished Himalayan kingdom has been mired in
political turmoil since the king fired the multi-party
government on February. 1, seized power and curbed political
dissent.

The deal between the seven main political parties and the
rebels has increased pressure on the king to relinquish power.

The parties welcomed the Maoist move as a positive step.

“This has raised the Maoists’ credibility with respect to
the recent understanding reached with seven political parties,”
Madhav Kumar Nepal, General Secretary of the country’s second
biggest party, the Communist Party of Nepal (UML), told
Reuters.

“DOWN WITH AUTOCRACY”

Tens of thousands of people carrying red hammer-and-sickle
flags marched in Kathmandu in a UML protest and shouted slogans
against the monarch’s assumption of absolute power.

“Down with autocratic monarchy” and “Let us move ahead for
a democratic republic,” protesters chanted.

Analysts said the king should respond positively to the
rebel truce move to build a peace momentum.

“Otherwise, there is a risk of the ongoing peaceful
protests of political parties turning violent and the
government could be more repressive,” said Padma Ratna
Tuladhar, a leading human rights activist who mediated failed
peace talks in 2001 and 2003.

“This will increase pressure on the government and the king
to reciprocate and create an atmosphere for peace talks to
begin.”

There was no immediate response from the government which,
in the past, has said the rebels could not be trusted.
Officials say the rebels have used past truces to regroup and
re-arm.

The Maoists had been under popular pressure to extend their
three-month truce, which has largely held and reduced deaths in
the conflict. It had been due to expire at midnight (1815 GMT)
on Friday.

King Gyanendra, isolated internationally, has been touring
Africa after attending a South Asian summit in Dhaka in
November.

On his return, he is expected to meet loyalists to
formulate the first official response to the deal between his
opponents.

The rebels have vowed to rejoin the political process after
the restoration of democracy and have used the unilateral truce
to build trust with the parties.

The monarch is also under pressure from key donors
including, the United States, to reconcile with the parties and
negotiate peace with the rebels who want to set up a communist
state.

Britain, the United States and neighbor India have
suspended weapon supplies to Nepal to protest the power
seizure.

The king said he had to act in February to crush the
anti-monarchy guerrillas who started their revolt in 1996. More
than 12,500 people have died in the past nine years.