NEPAL: PRELIMINARY READ-OUT ON MEETING BETWEEN

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 KATHMANDU 001723 SIPDIS STATE FOR SA/INS LONDON FOR POL - GURNEY NSC FOR MILLARD E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/04/2013 TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM UK NP SUBJECT: NEPAL: PRELIMINARY READ-OUT ON MEETING BETWEEN KING GYANENDRA AND BRITISH FOREIGN SECRETARY REF: A. LONDON 7151 ¶B. KATHMANDU 1713 ¶C. KATHMANDU 1692 ¶D. KATHMANDU 1620 Classified By: AMB. MICHAEL E. MALINOWSKI. REASON: 1.5 (B,D). -------------- SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. (S) According to the British Ambassador's read-out of the September 4 meeting between King Gyanendra and British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw in London, the King said that he would reach out to the political parties only if efforts to revive negotiations with the Maoists fail. The King also reportedly voiced suspicions regarding India's motives and activities in Nepal. Straw reportedly raised allegations of human rights abuses committed by the Royal Nepal Army in the eastern district of Ramechhap (Ref D),warning that credible evidence of such violations could jeopardize British security assistance. The British Ambassador could provide only a preliminary read-out, as he did not participate in the meeting himself but received his information second-hand through FCO channels. Further details may emerge upon the King's return to Kathmandu on September 10. If the account as related is accurate, however, we are concerned that the King may be missing an important opportunity to achieve the hoped-for reconciliation with democratic political leaders. End summary. -------------- MAOISTS ON THE MIND; PARTIES LAST RESORT -------------- ¶2. (S) UK Ambassador Keith Bloomfield provided the Ambassador with a preliminary read-out of the September 4 meeting between King Gyanendra and British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw in London. (Note: Amb. Bloomfield did not attend the meeting, but received the account from FCO channels. End note.) According to Bloomfield, the King said that the interim government of Prime Minister Surya Bahadur Thapa had not fulfilled its mandate to obtain a negotiated settlement to the Maoist conflict. The King said his immediate priority upon returning to Nepal will be to bring the Maoists back to the negotiating table. (Note: The King left Nepal on August 24, three days before the Maoists broke a seven-month ceasefire. He is expected to return on September 10. End note.) Should it prove impossible to do so, he acknowledged that he would have to give attention to the parties, but added that he could not ignore their foolishness in the past. In an apparent reference to the Government of Nepal (GON) ban on rallies and assemblies, he asserted that the government should be allowed to govern. -------------- HUMAN RIGHTS ALLEGATIONS -------------- ¶3. (S) Straw reportedly raised the killings of 17-19 Maoists by the Royal Nepal Army (RNA) in Ramechhap District on August 17 (Ref D). He indicated there was credible evidence, including a video, that gross human rights violations--possibly even war crimes--had taken place. (Note: The UK Embassy here has shared with us notes from an unidentified "impeccable" source alleging the RNA summarily executed 19 prisoners. It is not clear if the source was an eyewitness, a soldier, a Maoist, or how he had obtained his information. The notes included no mention of a videotape. An independent panel appointed by the National Human Rights Commission has investigated the incident and should be releasing its report within the next few days. End note.) If the allegations prove true, such violations would endanger UK security assistance to Nepal, he warned. He noted the UK's experience in Northern Ireland had demonstrated the importance of respect for human rights in the context of an insurgency. The King showed surprise upon hearing the allegations and said he had not received similar reports. -------------- KING COOL TOWARD INTERNATIONAL MEDIATION; BLAMES INDIANS -------------- ¶4. (S) Bloomfield said that Straw inquired if the GON were trying to marshal mediation/negotiation assistance from international sources. The King parried the query by noting that the Indians are sensitive and generally unreceptive to the possibility of international mediation in Nepal. It is hard to know what the Indians are up to in Nepal, the King continued, charging that they politicize even seemingly innocuous matters in the countries' bilateral relations. ¶5. (C) Straw reportedly raised the possibility of a trilateral meeting on Nepal on the fringes of the UNGA with him, the Indian Foreign Minister, and the Secretary of State. The King seemed to welcome the idea. -------------- COMMENT -------------- ¶6. (S) Since unilaterally breaking the ceasefire on August 27, the Maoists have engaged in a campaign of terror, including attacks on security forces, abductions and murders of civilians, and assassination attempts on key GON figures, that demonstrates to us no immediate inclination to resume negotiations. The usually recalcitrant political parties, on the other hand, displayed uncharacteristic flexibility and good sense in toning down their September 4 protests to avert the likelihood of Maoist-instigated violence and to offer a gesture of reconciliation to the Palace. But the parties' gesture was clearly predicated on the expectation of a reciprocal gesture from the King, i.e., an offer to form an all-party interim government and/or to reinstate Parliament (Ref C). The parties' mistrust of the Palace already borders on paranoia; a perception that they were "tricked into" modifying their protest will only deepen their long-held suspicions. If the King fails to respond to the parties' overture, he will lose a valuable opportunity to improve this important relationship and to cultivate key allies in the government's fight against the Maoists. MALINOWSKI