The CPN-UML and ML, which split about one and half years ago are again very close to unity. The ML leaders and workers may join the UML in the name of party unity or in the name of unified communist movement. It is yet hard to believe this news, but this was the indication of first interaction between the ML and UML. The reason for this both personal, national as well as international. The result of the general election is one of the causes. ML lost the battle whereas UML won. Still the UML is not feeling secure.
(Nepal Aawaj, Thursday, Sept. 30)
More and more people seek porno magazines. Recently a group of ladies entered a shop in Dillibazar and asked for sexy and porno magazines. They even had the names of four such magazines they were seeking. They found only two of them in the shop. They took them. According to the shop keeper, the group frequently comes and asks for such magazines.
The number of people seeking porno magazines has dramatically increased in the capital. A lot of them are women and girls. A magazine seller in Lazimpat says people asking for porno magazines have increased drastically in the last seven years.
(Patrika, Thursday, Sept. 30)
The Nepali Congress may be heading towards another crisis due to the increasing conflict between Prime Minister and the party President.
If the situation is not improved, Congress may suffer a big problem. The clash may surface again after Bhattarai returns from New York. Taking benefit of Bhattarai’s absence, the Koirala side has begun making preparation. Nepali Congress General Secretary Sushil Koirala not only strongly criticised the government’s political appointments but also called for cancellation of appointments. Congress sources say Koirala raised the question, of appointments of persons who have been labelled as corrupt by the CIAA.
Last week, Koirala called a secret meeting of some of his close aides at his residence. Those present included Jaya Prakash Ananda, Narahari Acharya, Finance Minister Mahesh Acharya and several others. Congress sources say pressure will be given to Prime Minister Krishna Prasad Bhattarai after his return from the UN General Assembly.
However, the Bhattarai side also are arming themselves. The Bhattarai side even looks stronger. The Nepali Congress has an altogether 134 MPs in Upper and Lower House, and only 58 of them have signed against the government.
(Patrika, Thursday, Sept. 30)
The Maoist have increased their activities in the recent days. Their main aim could be to take revenge of the “search operation” introduced by the police as the operation was effective to control Maoist terror, Maoists have shown their aggressive attitude.
The Maoist have taken extreme attitude after the killing of their alternative member of the central committee of the party, Suresh Wagle and disappearance several of their influential leaders including Bishnu Pukar Shrestha. Maoists even destroyed local people’s property at the Mahat village in Rukum after the death of wagle.
They have also announced that they would organise a countrywide bandh (closure) on October 7. They have already deployed trained commandos in Kathmandu valley and other cities to made the bandh successfuly.
On Tuesday, Maoists even organised a corner rally at Thahiti, at the heart of the capital, openly challenging the security management of the country. Posters urging people to make the October 7 bandh have also appeared at different places in the valley. But, the police have not been able to arrest a single Maoists in the Valley. The Maoist have also launched people’s mobilization programmes against the proposed ‘black’ Act.
They are also launching ‘people’s action’ programme this week. The aim of this programme is said to murder top level politicians and workers especially of the Nepali Congress as a revenge for Wagle death.
Accordingly, they have also plans to kill or kidnap high government officials or their families to make the government release the Maoists arrested by the police. Meanwhile, there is a possibility of the nine Left parties, including the ML, supporting the October 7 bandh called by the Maoists.
(Ghatana Ra Bichar, Wednesday, September 29)
Indian Embassy is again planning to throw a weapon to destabilize the NC government. Prime Minister KP Bhattarai has, however, foiled the weapon fired against him through some ruling party MPs.
Now, the embassy is preparing to launch another weapon through the main Opposition party, UML leader.
Indian ambassador K.V. Rajan met with UML’s K.P. Oli for two hours in the morning of September 26. The deputy leader of the opposition party in the parliament, who had entered the Indian Embassy at 8 A.M. exited fromt he embassy at 10 A.M.
It is learnt that, among others, the talks was focussed on how to create and widen the differences between the government and the ruling party and what would be the appropriate time for the UML to launch its street protests.
Meanwhile, the Indian ambassador is also keen on ousting Minister for Sports Sharat Singh Bhandari. It might be mentioned here that Dipak Malhotra was given the responsibility (by the minister) of importing sporting good for the SAF Games and he imported them from China.
However, during the visit of former Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba, China has also shown interest to construct the Arun-3 hydro-power project. During his visit Deuba had met with important Chinese leaders. This has also created doubt in the mind of the Indian ambassador.
(Tarun weekly, Monday, September 27)
For sometimes, anti-China activities have been increasing in Nepal. The government itself is unwittingly getting involved in such activities.
The handicraft sales store, a government unit under the ministry for industry, is openly selling T-shirts bearing “Free Tibet” logo. The T-shirt is priced at Rs. 150.
According to our news source, there are efforts to make Nepal a centre of anti-China activities. India, as well as different Western countries are trying to make Nepal a centre for anti-Chinese activities. Even some ministers have been found to be involved in Free Tibet programmes organised under the sponsorships of Western NGO’s.
Espcially when the Nepali Congress, UML, RPP and Sadbhawana parties reach or join the government, such activities increase.
Whenever Nepalese political leaders visit China, they say that Nepal has followed one-China policy and that they will not allow any kind of anti-China activity in Nepal. But, the political parties are failing to live by their words.
(Prakash weekly, Monday, September 27).
A letter written by British MP to His Majesty the King has been a matter of debate in the Nepalese parliament. Member of the parliament has raised objection to the language and the attitude of the letter by David Alton, a member of the British House of Lords to His Majesty the King.
In his letter exactly one month back, Alton had claimed repressions by Hindu extremists againt Christians in Nepal and had asked the king that they be stopped immediately. In his letter Alton had also accused Ashok Nath Tiwari, an Upper House member for atrocities against the Christians.
“The member of the British parliament, called as the mother of parliament has used such language which befits only the Crown Prince,” Dr. Ramman Shrestha, an Upper House member of the CPN-ML told the parliament.
Does it mean the MP of the British parliament is unaware of what language should be used to address a monarch, he asked. Or, he said, he is trying to demean our monarchy. At the meeting, MP Tiwari has submitted proof of the plan to convert 1 million Hindus into christianity, and drew the government’s concern towards this.
(Deshantar, September 19, Sunday)
There are strong indications that the days of the Maoists’ People’s War are numbered. The Maoists armed movement had flourished during the instability in the government. The present majority government of the Nepali Congress is exercising to quell the Maoists’ movement once and for all.
The Maoists’ bad days started after it also began attacking the UML and the RPP, and these parties too began taking them as their common enemy.
The Nepali Congress, especially under the initiative NC’s president Girija Prasad Koirala, is working out plans and also sharpening the legal provisions to fight the Maoists. The recent bill registered in the parliament to amend some laws regarding internal administration is an example. These amendments are proposed keeping an eye on the Maoists.
Though the Nepali Congress can easily get the bill through the parliament, but it wants other parties on its side to pass the bill.
Recently, RPP president Surya Bahadur Thapa indicated that his party might support the bill. Similarly, in his recent statement UML’s K.P. also called the Maoists movement as directionless and insane. But the Congress is not certain that it would get the support of these parties.
Meanwhile, the government, after much criticism for the law and order situation of the country, increased police activities in the Maoist-affected areas.
In the recent ‘Jungle Search Operation’ of the police several central level leaders of the Maoists are killed. Almost two dozen Maoists have been killed since the police launched its operation. But the police has suffered no loss. This has encouraged the police. The government is trying to assist them with strong legal provisions. After the bill is passed, the police can indict the Maoists, who are till now are dealt for stealing, robbery and murder only, as terrorists and take action.
(Deshantar, September 19, Sunday)
A student union close to the Nepal Communist Party (ML) is to launch border security campaign starting from September 21.
Party General Secretary Bam Dev Gautam will inaugurate the campaign. Participants of the campaign are to visit encroached areas of the country and return by Sept. 28.
(Saptahik Janasatta, Saturday, Sept. 18)
Since the ‘People’s war’ was launched by the Maoists four years back, for the first time the Maoists have lost 22 of its fighters activists in a single week and some of them their top brasses. The Party’s General Secretary has revealed that among those killed is an alternative central politburo member Suresh Wagle alias Comrade Basu, who was killed in Gwarkhu of Gorkha.
Similarly, out of the three Maoists killed in Pakhapani VDC of Rolpa, two were at the leadership rank. Meanwhile, a Maoist source said that the style of People’s War has been changed after it was criticised by various quarters. During four years period more than 1,000 people have been killed and property worth more than Rs. 100 million has been destroyed.
Now the Maoists has changed the strategy. Accordingly, they visits villages and take one son or daughter with them by giving Rs. 20,000. They also send Rs. 1,000 per month to the family.
The Maoists’ new strategy is also confirmed by the police. This shows the Maoists are desperate to recruit new and more personnel. But the illiterate and poverty-stricken villagers may have approved the Maoists new tactic.
(Saptahik Janasatta, Saturday, Sept. 18)