Govt. is ready to release trade union activists: DPM Adhikari

September 11, 2004
2 MIN READ
A
A+
A-

Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Bharat Mohan Adhikari has said the government is ready to release Maoist trade union leaders from custody if the latter withdraws its call for closure of nearly 50 industries in the country.

Talking to reporters in the capital Saturday, Adhikari, who is also the acting Prime Minister, said that the government was ready to free two leaders of Maoist-affiliated All Nepal Federation of Trade Unions (ANFTU) and make public whereabouts of other activists.

In response to the indefinite `blockade’ imposed by the Maoists last month, the government had announced that it would make public whereabouts of ANFTU members, who had allegedly ‘disappeared’ from the government custody, within one month.

“Now, you can see that the Maoists are not ready to allow industries to open despite my repeated requests,” said Adhikari. “So, I have been urging all sides to help us (to facilitate) resumption of the closed industries,” he added.

One dozen industries remain closed for the last 26 days amid Maoist threats while 34 more industries have closed down from Friday after the ANFTU included them in its list of establishments under target.

Entrepreneurs say the country is losing millions of rupees worth revenue every day and thousands of workers are on the verge of losing their jobs due to the indefinite closure of major industries in the country. nepalnews.com by Sep 11 04