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Major Events in Nepal
BY KTM Metro Reporter in Kathmandu
On May 17, 2008, speaking at a function held by the Association of Narayangadh Commerce and Industry in Chitwan to felicitate the newly elected representatives to the Constituent Assembly from the Chitwan district, senior Maoist leader Ram Bahadur Thapa called ‘Badal’ in response to the call of the Nepali Congress (NC) and the Communist Party of Nepal-Unified Marxist and Leninist (CPN-UML) leaders for dissolving the Young Communist League (YCL) said what would be the response of those leaders if his party also demanded the disbanding of NC and CPN-UML that had been responsible for the deaths of 10,000 people in the conflict in the past. He, however, said that it would be reasonable for the parties to call for taking actions against the culprits according to “The Rising Nepal”.
On Saturday, May 17, 2008, speaking at the same function Senior Maoist leader Ram Bahadur Thapa 'Badal' said the seven-point pre-conditions put forward by the Nepali Congress for joining a new government was a ploy to prevent the CPN-Maoist from forming the next government according to the news posted on the website of “The Himalayan Times”. Maoist leader Badal also warned of a popular revolt if the political leaders did not honor the people’s verdict. Another Maoist leader Mohan Baidya ‘Kiran’ told the reporter of “The Himalayan Times”, “We will quit the Koirala-led interim government and go to the people if he does not respect the people’s mandate and clear the way for us to form a new government. We will pile pressure on him to step down on moral ground.”
Maoist and Nepali Congress (NC) leaders have been trading charges with each other. On Saturday, May 17, 2008, speaking at a function held by National Human Rights Concern Center in Kathmandu, Maoist Chairman Prachanda said that the Prime Minister delaying tendering his resignation has shown disrespect for the people's verdict, and leading to suspect a link between those sticking to power shamelessly and the royalist forces possibly inviting a counterrevolution according to the news posted on Kantipuronline.com on May 18, 2008. NC Vice-President Ram Chandra Poudel had questioned the honesty of the Maoists after they frequently met with the king’s favorite Mr. Kamal Thapa.
On May 17, 2008, speaking at a function to mark the 15th anniversary of Norvic Hospital in Kathmandu, Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala said that he has one more responsibility of drafting a new constitution and he needed support and cooperation of the people engaged in all sectors including health and education.
Nepalese Maoists’ Chairman Prachanda saying his party’s electoral victory is the example of the difference between ballot and bullet sent a strong message to the Indian Maoists and of the world to turn away from violence according to ‘The Hindu’ of May 17, 2008. Chairman Prachanda said, "Our behavior, our policy, our practice itself strongly gave the message to the Maoists of India and of all over the world. A strong message has already gone to them about the benefit of our victory."
Talking to Karan Thapar on CNN-IBN’s Devil’s Advocate, Nepalese Maoists’ Chairman Prachanda said that he believed the revision of the Treaty of Peace and Friendship of 1950 would lead to a new relationship with India means better relation, better understanding and better cooperation between India and Nepal according to the news posted on CNN-IBN on May 18, 2008.
CPN-Maoist leader Dr. Babu Ram Bhattarai has been interacting with business community at major towns of Nepal to convince them of the Maoist-capitalism that it would do well to them than harm. Dr. Bhattarai has been saying that the CPN-Maoist’s government would provide the industries with full protection and help them build an atmosphere conducive to the industrial relations according to “The Rising Nepal”. He explained that the Maoists’ economic policy specified in the election manifesto is on removing the bottlenecks to the economic development of the country for ensuring the best utilization of the national resources.
Thousands of Nepalis including school children and teachers rush to Saipal peak in Bajhang district in May every year to collect a herb called Yarshagumba that fetches extremely high price in the international market reported Nepalnews.com. More than forty thousand people have already reached there to collect this year’s Yarshagumba. A single piece of Yarshagumba fetched Rs 125, and a kilo of it Rs 600,000 last year; this year the prices are anticipated to be even higher. However, the job of collecting it is not an easy one. Yarshagumba-pickers have to trek at east five days to reach the area and then live in the very harsh condition and on dry foods. In addition, it is not so easy to locate and pick up Yarshagumba. It is still a gold mine for those people living in this area. May-June is the season for picking up Yarshagumba; so, all schools are closed in this area during this season.
On Wednesday, May 21, 2008, with the support of the Nepal Students’ Union affiliated to the Nepali Congress, the family of Ram Hari Shrestha killed at the cantonment of the Maoists’ militia, called for the shutdown of the Kathmandu Valley to protest the killing. On Thursday, May 22, 2008, Maoists’ Chairman Prachanda met with the family members of the deceased Ram Hari and assured them of an impartial investigation into the killing and bringing the perpetrators of killing to justice.
