Nepal Maoists give 10-day ultimatum to the govt, warn of fresh stir

Unified Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) on Friday warned that it would stage stringent protest activities if the ruling political parties failed to address their demand for ‘civilian supremacy’ even after next 10-day.

A standing committee meeting of the party held in Kathmandu decided to go for fresh round of stir to exert pressure on the government to address the demand raised by the party regarding the move of President Dr Ram Baran Yadav to reinstate army chief on May 3.

The Maoist Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal-led government had stepped down from the power on the next day, terming the president’s move ‘unconstitutional’.

The Maoists have been obstructing parliament since May demanding the government to allow admitting a debate in the house on the role of the president over army chief dismissal row.

According the party spokesperson Dina Nath Sharma, the standing committee meeting set November 1 deadline for the government to resolve their demand vis-à-vis president’s move. The meeting also decided to launch a strong protest movement if the ongoing dialogue with the ruling parties failed to yield positive result in restoring civilian supremacy and rectifying the President's 'unconstitutional' move.

The nationwide protest programs of the Maoists include picketing of government offices, staging sit-in protests and non-cooperation with government programs.

Sharma added that the party was ready to lift House obstruction within a minute if the main ruling parties agreed for a parliamentary debate on the President's move.

The Maoists’ announcement of the protest activities come in the wake of the government acute financial crisis due to Maoists obstruction to pass the budget unveiled for the fiscal year 2009/10 in the House.

The cash-strapped government has not been able to pay salaries to its ministers, security forces and other employees from mid-October, when the new Nepali month of Kartik started as it can spend only one third of the total budget allocated without passing the budget through House.

- Asian Tribune -