UPDATE ON NEPAL'S MAOIST INSURGENCY, FEB 8-14

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 06 KATHMANDU 000288

SIPDIS

STATE FOR SA/INS AND DS/IP/NEA
STATE ALSO PLEASE PASS USAID/DCHA/OFDA
USAID FOR ANE/AA GORDON WEST AND JIM BEVER
MANILA FOR USAID/DCHA/OFDA
LONDON FOR POL/REIDEL
TREASURY FOR GENERAL COUNSEL/DAUFHAUSER AND DAS JZARATE
TREASURY ALSO FOR OFAC/RNEWCOMB AND TASK FORCE ON TERRORIST
FINANCING
JUSTICE FOR OFFICE OF THE DEPUTY ATTORNEY GENERAL/DLAUFMAN

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PHUM PTER CASC PGOV NP IN
SUBJECT: UPDATE ON NEPAL'S MAOIST INSURGENCY, FEB 8-14

REFERENCE: (A) 01 KATHMANDU 2274

(B) KATHMANDU 0140

SUMMARY
--------------


1. No date has been set yet for the start of a formal peace
dialogue. Several international organizations are offering
help in mediating the process. Maoist leader Prachanda has
warned that if the peace talks fail, Nepal would suffer a
major catastrophe, while the student wing of the Maoists has
threatened more high-profile killings and mass murder if the
Government of Nepal is not serious about the ceasefire.
Nepal's political parties have demanded that the details of
the ongoing peace talks be made public and include all
parties. Amnesty International (AI),the National Human
Rights Commission (NHRC),and local non-governmental
organizations want human rights to be a priority of the
peace talks, while victims of the insurgency, women's and
children's groups, and Dalits all demand representation at
the peace talks as well. NHRC has prepared a draft code of
conduct to be followed during the ceasefire and is awaiting
responses from the Maoists and GON.


2. Summary continued. Three journalists were released from
detention on orders of the Supreme Court. Imprisoned
Maoists awaiting release staged protest demonstrations
against the GON. Security forces arrested suspected Maoists
in Doti, Kailali and Nawalparasi districts. Maoists remain
armed and reportedly are holding mass meetings and
conducting combat training. The Maoists reportedly are also
smuggling in weapons and ammunition from India. The
insurgents continue to extort money from civilians and have
abducted two brothers from their village. The dead body of
a man abducted by the Maoists was discovered earlier this
week. Children's rights activists have demanded that the
Maoists release all abducted children before proceeding with
peace talks, and that the GON implement plans to
rehabilitate children affected by the insurgency. End
Summary

SLOW MOVEMENT TOWARD PEACE TALKS,
INTERNATIONAL HELP OFFERED
--------------


3. No date has been set for peace talks between the
Government of Nepal (GON) and Maoist insurgents. Prime
Minister Lokendra Bahadur Chand said the GON sent a letter
to the Maoists proposing the monarch as focal point of the
peace talks and was awaiting their response. Chand said
that although the GON had conceded to several other demands
by the Maoists, it had turned down a request to revoke the
Terrorist and Disruptive Activities Act. Chand also denied
accusations by political parties that the ceasefire was put
together hastily and was intended to exclude the parties.


4. The Nepal branch of Amnesty International has requested
that the GON seek international help to monitor the peace
talks. According to one of the human rights activists
present at a meeting with Prime Minister Chand, the Prime
Minister reacted positively to the idea, calling it a good
suggestion. Several other international organizations have
offered to help with mediation, including the International
Red Cross and the United Nations, as well as the Government
of Norway.


5. The high-profile Carter Center reportedly is ready to
assist with the peace talks, if both sides are receptive. A
local NGO is preparing to invite the former President to
attend a conference, for members of civil society, about the
peace process. The event will be held in Kathmandu.

WARNINGS AND THREATS IF PEACE TALKS FAIL
--------------


6. Pushpa Kamal Dahal (AKA Prachanda),leader of the
Maoists, warned that if peace talks fail this time, Nepal
would suffer a " major catastrophe," which some have
interpreted to mean unprecedented bloodshed. According to
press reports, Prachanda said that the Maoists are committed
to the ceasefire, and warned political parties not to repeat
past mistakes of infighting and indifference. In a
statement released on February 13, the anniversary of the so-
called "People's War," Prachanda declared the ceasefire a
"strategic balancing act" and a "continuation of the war by
other means."


7. Prachanda warned against any conspiracies, hatched by
the "outgoing regime and the imperialist and expansionist
forces," declaring that his army was ready to go back to the
jungle with "guns in hand." The Maoists have said that in
order for peace talks to succeed, all parties involved must
be serious about and committed to the peace process; the
Government of Nepal (GON) needs to make public the names and
whereabouts of imprisoned or missing suspected Maoists; the
army must suspend all operations and return to its barracks,
and a code of conduct must be established.


8. The All-Nepal National Independent Students Union--
Revolutionary (ANNISU-R) has threatened the GON with
unprecedented violence if it is not serious about the
ceasefire. Dipendra Panta, chairman of ANNISU-R, speaking
at a mass meeting commemorating the anniversary of the
People's War, warned that the brutal attacks in Dang and
Syangja (Ref A) could be repeated in other places at any
time. The militants also made reference to the vicious
murders of Krishna Mohan Shrestha, Chief of the Armed Police
Force (Ref B),threatening that new tactics targeting high
officials could be implemented, and the ceasefire could turn
into the "drama before mass murder."

POLITICAL PARTIES REACT TO CEASEFIRE
--------------


9. Amik Sherchan, leader of the People's Front Nepal (PFN),
told the press that Maoist leader Prachanda met with a
special emissary of the King before the ceasefire was
announced. Sherchan claimed that Prachanda told him of the
meeting and that the Maoists agreed to the ceasefire as
proposed by the emissary. Sherchan stressed the need to
have all political parties involved in the peace process,
saying that only a "united movement" can solve current
national problems.


10. Jog Mehar, a central member of the Rastriya Prajatantra
Party (RPP),warned that the Maoists might use the ceasefire
to regroup. Mehar reiterated that a code of conduct must be
established for the duration of the ceasefire and peace
talks. Mehar, speaking at the Reporter's Club, also
ridiculed the idea of an all-party round table conference,
one of the Maoists' main demands.


11. Madhav Kumar Nepal, General Secretary of the Communist
Party of Nepal-United Marxist Leninist (CPN-UML) said that
the GON should not rush into peace talks. Nepal admitted
talking to Maoist leader Prachanda by phone, but denied any
secret agreements between the two. Nepal, speaking at a

SIPDIS
press conference, said both sides should do their homework
before sitting at the negotiating table or the talks would
fail again. Nepal said that the agenda must be defined
clearly and also asked the GON to rehabilitate those who had
been displaced by the insurgency. Nepal also demanded that
the details of the peace talks be made public, citing
concern that political parties are not being consulted. In
addition to the CPN-UML, the Rastriya Prajatantra Party
(RPP),Nepali Congress (Democratic),and Nepal Sadbhavana
Party (NSP) also have insisted that the details of the peace
dialogue be made public. The parties said the confusing and
uncertain atmosphere surrounding the talks must end.


12. Narayan Man Bijukchhe, President of Nepal Workers and
Peasants' Party (NWPP),criticized the GON for accepting too
many of the demands made by the Maoists. Bijukchhe called
it humiliating and said the GON was conceding too much too
soon. He lambasted the Maoists' demands for space and time
in the media, and their call for military withdrawal.
Bijukchhe expressed doubts over the GON's ability to bring
the Maoists to the negotiating table.


13. The United Kingdom and Switzerland have both pledged
continued support to Nepal and called on the GON and all
parties involved in the ceasefire to agree on a common
vision for Nepal to make the ceasefire permanent. Keith
Bloomfield, the British Ambassador to Nepal, pledged
continued support to Nepal, including strengthening of
security forces, while Walter Fust, the Director General of
the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC),in a
recent visit to Nepal, said the Swiss too would continue
their aid programs in Nepal.

MAOISTS HOLD MEETINGS, TAKE UP ARMS
--------------


14. In Khotang District, armed insurgents have been holding
mass meetings that students, teachers and local villagers
are being forced to attend. According to the villagers, the
Maoists expressed anger about the GON's failure so far to
announce a negotiating team, and said that if the GON failed
to meet the Maoists' conditions, there would be no other
option than to take up arms again. The insurgents
reportedly have launched combat training exercises in the
district, with as many as 5,000 people participating.


15. A CPN-UML activist in Nepalgunj District has reported
that Maoists have stepped up extortion campaigns throughout
the district. They also have taken up arms and are
conducting mass meetings, proclaiming that the insurgents
have won the struggle with the GON. There are also reports
from the district that the Maoists are bringing in
ammunition and weapons from India.


16. Journalists from the local press visited Jumla
District, one of the areas hardest hit by the Maoist
insurgency, and reported that the militants are still armed
and ready to fight again should the peace talks fail. Over
one hundred insurgents carrying weapons were observed, many
of whom were children. Insurgents in the area were quoted
as saying that if the government tried to trick the Maoists,
they would re-launch their violent campaign and it would be
more severe than last time.

SECURITY FORCES ARREST MAOISTS
--------------


17. Security forces reportedly arrested three Maoists,
including the regional leader, in Nawalparasi District on
February 8. Area police denied any knowledge of the arrests.
Maoists have been organizing daily public meetings
throughout the district.


18. In Doti District, three Maoists also were arrested by
security forces after they were seen carrying arms and
explosives. Security forces also arrested twelve Maoists
returning from a mass gathering in Kailali District who were
openly walking with guns.

PRIORITY FOR HUMAN RIGHTS AND REPRESENTATION
--------------


19. The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) is awaiting
responses from the GON and the Maoists to its proposed code
of conduct for the ceasefire. The six-point draft, which
was sent to both the GON and Maoist leader Prachanda, calls
for an immediate stop to nationwide extortion, kidnapping
and violence perpetrated by the Maoists. The draft also
asks the GON to order the army back to its barracks and
revoke the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities Act. The
NHRC has also advised both sides to form groups to monitor
and observe adherence to the code of conduct.


20. Amnesty International (AI) demanded that human rights
be given top priority in the upcoming peace talks. In its
recent meeting of the Nepal branch, AI requested that the
GON and the Maoists stop all abductions, killings, torture,
curfews and search and destroy missions. AI also called for
the implementation of a program to rehabilitate children
used as soldiers in the Maoist insurgency, and called for
the release of all people arrested under the Terrorist and
Destructive Control Act.


21. Human rights organizations in Nepal are urging the
United Nations Human Rights Commission (UNHRC) to appoint a
special investigator for Nepal to investigate cases of human
rights violations during the period from February 1996 to
January 2003. The groups want representation for women,
children, and indigenous people in the peace talks, and have
appealed to the Maoists to stop extorting funds, kidnapping
people, disrupting education, and to release all child
soldiers. According to a report compiled by local non-
governmental organizations, children comprise thirty percent
of the Maoists' fighting force.


22. Child Rights Watch-Nepal (CRW-N),a newly formed
organization comprised of local children's rights groups,
has demanded that the peace talks focus on rehabilitating
children affected by the insurgency. In its annual report,
Child Workers in Nepal (CWIN) said thousands of children had
been orphaned and displaced as a result of the insurgency.
CRW-N is insisting that the GON makes issues facing these
children a priority of the peace talks.


23. In addition, the human rights groups want the GON and
Maoists to make public the names of missing civilians.
According to a report prepared by the organizations, twenty-
eight people have disappeared from the mid-western district
of Rukum and are presumed dead. The groups are calling for
compensation to the families and investigations into the
disappearances.


24. In a report released on February 13, the National Dalit
Commission claims that the violence, murder, arrests and
disappearances that have occurred during the Maoist
insurgency have largely affected the Dalit (low caste)
community. The report says that almost 200 members of the
Dalit community have been killed in the Maoist affected
districts of Dang, Bardiya, Kailali and Jumla by security
forces and thirty-two others were killed by Maoists. The
commission wants representation in the peace talks, accusing
the GON and the Maoists of sidelining their concerns, and
have warned of grave consequences if they are not included
in the peace talks.


25. Victims of the Maoist insurgency are also demanding
that attention be given to their plight. K. P. Adhikare,
Chairman of the Society For Victims of Terror, said that the
victims of the insurgency are the ones who have lost the
most and deserve to be represented in the talks. Many of
the victims and their families are still awaiting
compensation from the GON, which they claim has never been
distributed.

IMPRISONED MAOISTS WAIT FOR RELEASE, PROTEST AGAINST GON
-------------- --------------


26. The Home Ministry has said it would not immediately
release imprisoned Maoists. According to press reports,
Prime Minister Lokendra Bahadur Chand had previously
reassured Narayan Singh Pun, Minister of Physical Planning
and Works and government-appointed peace talks coordinator,
that he would order the release of all detained Maoists.
Pun reportedly has been under pressure to ask the King to
grant a general amnesty to all imprisoned insurgents, as a
precondition for peace talks.


27. On February 12, Minister Pun was called to the Central
Jail in Kathmandu, when prisoners began demonstrating
against the GON, shouting anti-government slogans and
demanding their release. Prisoner Rabindra Shrestha, a
central member of the Maoist party, said that the ceasefire
would be called off if their demands were not met, and
threatened the GON with a strike within the prison if the
Maoists were not set free. Pun told the prisoners that he
would take the matter up with the Prime Minister and the
Home Minister.


28. Prisoners in Nakkhua Jail also demonstrated against the
GON on February 10, accusing it of not being serious about
peace talks and ignoring the demands of the Maoists. The
protests began after attempts were made to re-arrest a
prisoner shortly after the District Administration Office
ordered his release. Minister Pun was called to the prison
and was handed a letter by the prisoners demanding the
release of all imprisoned Maoists before peace talks can
begin.


29. The local press has reported that some prisoners have
been released, but are refusing to leave jail for fear of
being re-arrested. As many as eleven prisoners were given
release orders from the Central Jail in Kathmandu, but
refused to leave. The prisoners are demanding that human
rights representatives be present at their release. Maoists
are warning that the prison issues could disrupt the
ceasefire.


30. According to the Siraha District Administration Office,
fifteen suspected Maoists were released from jail in Siraha
District on February 11. Thirty-one people still remain in
jail on suspicion of being Maoists. In Banke District seven
Maoist activists were released on February 12.

JOURNALISTS RELEASED FROM PRISON
--------------


31. Following orders from the Supreme Court, the GON
released three journalists from the Central Jail in
Kathmandu. Two of the journalists worked for Janadisha, a
pro-Maoist newspaper. The journalists were arrested under
the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities Act, after the
imposition of the State of Emergency in November 2001. The
Federation of Nepalese Journalists praised the release and
demanded that the remaining detained journalists be released
as well.


32. According to the Centre For Human Rights and Democratic
Studies, there are at least fifteen journalists who remain
in jail on charges of being sympathetic to the Maoists.
Gopendra Pandey, Home Ministry spokesman, said there was no
time frame for when the rest of the journalists would be
freed. Media organizations have called the arrests of
journalists an indication of the deterioration of press
freedom in Nepal.

CEASEFIRE DOESN'T STOP EXTORTION AND KIDNAPPING
-------------- --


33. There are reports from Ilam, Dang, Baglung and Sindhuli
Districts of increased extortion efforts by the Maoists.
Police arrested four Maoists in southwestern Dang District
on charges of extorting money from villagers. Police
recovered cash and donation receipts from the insurgents.
Local press from eastern Ilam District and Sindhuli District
also report that Maoists are going house-to-house, extorting
money from everyone. The insurgents reportedly claim that
all their activities are to continue as normal, despite the
ceasefire. In northwestern Baglung District, the insurgents
are demanding food, grain and cash from villagers.


34. In western Surkhet District, Maoists reportedly have
abducted two brothers, whose whereabouts remain unknown.
The insurgents have also stepped up their demands for
donations from businessmen and teachers.


35. The body of a man abducted from Dang District almost a
month ago by Maoists was discovered on February 11. Maoists
sent a letter to the man's father on February 7, declaring
that his son was killed for being an informant for security
forces.

MALINOWSKI