Within 12 hours of the Maoist attack on two Colonels, the government has declared Maoists terrorists and any organization affiliated with them as terrorist outfits, an official announcement said Thursday evening (August 28, 2003).
According to a notice issued from Secretariat of the Council of Ministers, a cabinet meeting took the decision keeping in mind Maoists’ increasing criminal activities and also considering the recommendation of the Central Security Committee forwarded to the cabinet.
“Maoists have been carrying out terrorist activities before and after the unilateral announcement of the ceasefire break,” the statement said. “They are involved in terrorist activities such as killing common people and politicians, abduction, money extortion, setting ablaze industries, placing bombs, robbing banks, smuggling arms and other various crimes.”
“On the other hand, the government was showing maximum tolerance and responsibility, only for the sake of peace. The government was always committed to finding out a peaceful solution of the impasse through the means of dialogue,” said the statement.
But the Maoists, in response, even tried to kill respectable former Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba and even attacked two Army Colonels Thursday morning, said the notice.
“Everybody knows the Maoists have been terrorizing people this way and other means with frequent breach of peace and security,” the statement said mentioning the reason for declaring the Maoists terrorists.
Maoists were first declared terrorists nearly two years ago, when they moved away from two rounds of talks with the then Sher Bahadur Deuba government, attacking an army barrack in Dang.
The then Lokendra Bahadur Chand government removed the terrorist tag from the Maoists with the announcement of ceasefire seven months ago. The Maoists were then recognized as “rebels”.
With the decision of incumbent Surya Bahadur Thapa government to declare the Maoists terrorists again, the Maoists have automatically lost the recognition of being “rebels”, analysts said.