UPDATE ON NEPAL'S MAOIST INSURGENCY, FEB 22-28

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 KATHMANDU 000358

SIPDIS

STATE FOR SA/INS AND DS/IP/NEA
STATE ALSO PLEASE PASS USAID/DCHA/OFDA
STATE ALSO PLEASE PASS PEACE CORPS HQ
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 22-28

REFERENCE: (A) KATHMANDU 0152
(B) KATHMANDU 0311

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


1. Narayan Singh Pun, Minister of Physical Planning and
Works and government-appointed peace talks coordinator, said
the peace process will take time but can be accomplished
without the participation of other political parties if
necessary. Pun also said he expects to hold talks with the
Maoists within the next few weeks. The National Human
Rights Commission (NHRC) has called for information about
the peace process to be shared with political parties and
the people of Nepal as well. Girija Prasad Koirala, the
President of Nepali Congress (NC),criticized the GON for
failing to announce a code of conduct or its negotiating
team. Maoist leaders in town for negotiations with Pun
continue to meet with major party leaders. Maoist leader
Prachanda warned that his party was ready to resume the
armed conflict if the peace talks failed and criticized the
Government of Nepal (GON) for violating the ceasefire by
allowing security operations, including arrests of Maoist
cadres, to continue. Colonel Deepak Gurung, the Royal Nepal
Army (RNA) spokesman, says the army welcomes the ceasefire,
but is also prepared to resume fighting if the peace talks
fail.


2. Summary Continued. The Maoists continue to hold mass
political meetings in the countryside. Maoist prisoners in
a Kathmandu jail, who have already staged protests and sit-
ins, have threatened to go on a hunger strike if the GON
does not meet demands for the release of imprisoned cadres.
Maoists reportedly have issued a death threat to a
journalist who wrote an unfavorable article about the
insurgents, and confined another to his village. A man
accused of stealing was shot and killed by the Maoists on
February 22 in Dang District. Investigations into the
January 26 murders of Krishna Mohan Shrestha, Inspector
General of the Armed Police Force, his wife and bodyguard
(Ref A),continue. Maoists reportedly have admitted
mistakenly killing two children and seriously injuring
another at a primary school in northwestern Baglung District
on February 18 (Ref B),but denied other reports that they
are responsible for increased incidents of looting. End
Summary.

PEACE PROCESS WILL TAKE TIME;
GON READY TO MOVE FORWARD ON ITS OWN
--------------


3. Narayan Singh Pun, Minister of Physical Planning and
Works and government-appointed peace talks coordinator, said
on February 26 that peace talks were an ongoing, complex
process, which will take time to develop. Minister Pun told
reporters that peace talks between the GON and the Maoists,
which will require much patience and skill, might begin
toward the end of March. Pun was also quoted in the local
press as saying he communicates by telephone with the
Maoists, including Dr. Baburam Bhattarai, the leader of the
Maoist negotiating team, as often as five times a day.


4. Minister Pun reportedly said that the GON would first
hold talks with the Maoists, and then invite political
parties and representatives of civil society to participate,
but that peace was possible without participation from the
other political parties. Speaking at the Reporters' Club on
February 26, he asserted that a "thousand things" had
already been achieved, and the GON's patience was wearing
thin with criticism by the political parties. According to
Pun, the GON was committed to fulfilling the interests of
the people "on its own" if necessary.

DEMAND FOR CODE OF CONDUCT DETAILS
--------------

5. The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) criticized
both the GON and the Maoists for failing to make details of
the ceasefire and code of conduct public. Nayan Bahadur
Khatri, Chairman of the NHRC, said that details of the peace
process should not be limited only to the GON and the
Maoists, but should include other political parties and the
people of Nepal. According to press reports, Minister
Narayan Singh Pun, government-appointed coordinator for the
peace talks, said on February 21 that both sides had
exchanged drafts for a code of conduct, but refused to give
details, saying they would be made public soon. According
to press accounts, Minister Pun met informally with Krishna
Bahadur Mahara, a member of the Maoist negotiating team, on
February 27 to finalize the code of conduct, but there were
disagreements over the re-deployment of the army.


6. The NHRC also denounced the GON and the Maoists for
failing to respond to the draft it submitted to both sides
outlining its own proposed code of conduct. The draft had
called for a revocation of the Terrorist and Disruptive
Activities Act, an immediate end to violence, and a halt to
the use of weapons by the insurgents and security personnel.


7. Girija Prasad Koirala, the President of Nepali Congress
(NC),said his party hoped the ceasefire would turn into
lasting peace, but questioned the seriousness of the GON.
Koirala, speaking at a press conference on February 27,
accused the GON of creating further confusion by its refusal
to make public a code of conduct, and criticized its failure
to announce a negotiating team. Koirala said the most
desirable solution to the current problem should come from
the framework of the current constitution, and should not
merely be an agreement between only two sides. Koirala also
told the audience of foreign and national news media that
his party was not willing to recognize the government under
Prime Minister Lokendra Bahadur Chand, nor the Royal Act
that dissolved the Deuba Government last year.

PRACHANDA READY TO FIGHT TO THE END
--------------


8. Maoist leader Prachanda issued a statement on February
25, declaring that the Maoists would "fight to the end" if
the GON did not create a conducive environment for peace
talks. Prachanda accused the GON of violating the ceasefire
not only by continuing to arrest his cadres and carrying out
search and patrol activities, but also by allegedly
intensifying such operations. Prachanda criticized the GON
for its delay in preparing a negotiating team and for its
failure to take any "concrete or positive steps."


9. Prachanda has continued to contact members of political
parties, urging them to be involved with the peace process.
Girija Prasad Koirala, President of Nepali Congress (NC),
reportedly was contacted by Prachanda on February 25.
Koirala said the Maoist leader told him to play a key role
in the talks and reiterated that there had been no secret
agreements made prior to the announcement of the ceasefire.
A diplomatic colleague also reports that Maoists have
approached his embassy, asking it to arrange a meeting for
them with a number of European missions.


10. Krishna Bahadur Mahara and Dinanath Sharma, members of
the Maoist negotiating team for the peace talks, met with
former Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba. According to
Deuba, Mahara and Sharma asked for help in generating public
support. Deuba told the local press that his party would
neither help the Maoists nor fight against them, but
expressed concern over their sincerity and the possibility
that the insurgents were using the ceasefire to rebuild
their forces (Note: It was under Deuba's government that
the Maoists walked out of the third round of peace talks
last year and launched surprise attacks on army
installations. End Note.)

RNA READY TO BATTLE IF TALKS FAIL
--------------


11. Colonel Deepak Gurung, spokesman for the Royal Nepal
Army (RNA),said the RNA is committed to and will abide by
the ceasefire, but was prepared to fight a "decisive war"
with Maoist insurgents if necessary. Gurung, speaking on
February 25 at the RNA's first press conference since the
ceasefire was announced, said the army welcomed the
ceasefire, but was also prepared if the peace talks failed.
Gurung said the RNA would not spare anybody if they are
attacked, and expressed confidence that the insurgents did
not have the capabilities to win against the RNA. He also
said the army would not return to the barracks until peace
is completely restored.


12. Gurung described some of the ongoing projects the RNA
is currently involved in, including the reconstruction of
buildings, school and health facilities that were destroyed
during the insurgency. According to Gurung, the RNA is also
running health camps in the mid-western regions, which
provide medical treatment to Maoists as well as civilians.
The army's barracks in Dang, Achham and Arghakhanchi
Districts, which were destroyed by Maoist attacks, have also
been rebuilt.

PRISONERS THREATEN HUNGER STRIKE
--------------


13. Prisoners in Nakkhu Jail in Kathmandu have threatened
on February 25 to go on a hunger strike if the GON does not
meet the Maoists' demands for the release of its imprisoned
cadres. The prisoners, who are already staging sit-ins and
protests within the jails, said they would begin hunger
strikes if their list of demands, sent to Prime Minister
Lokendra Bahadur Chand through facilitators, was not taken
seriously. The memorandum insists the GON create a
conducive environment for peace talks, release information
on the whereabouts of missing Maoist cadres, and stop
propaganda against the Maoists. (Note: Government officials
have explained publicly that Maoist cadres who have been
arrested for serious crimes cannot be released without
following formal legal procedures. End Note.)


14. In Jhapa District, police allegedly rearrested nine
suspected Maoists immediately after they were released from
the Jhapa Jail. According to press reports, there are forty-
two suspected Maoists still imprisoned in Jhapa.

MAOIST THREATEN JOURNALIST
--------------


15. Maoists reportedly have issued a death threat to a
journalist who wrote an unfavorable article about the
insurgents. Rabin Prasad Thapalia, a journalist with the
weekly Ruprekha, blamed the insurgents for creating widows
and orphans, and preventing people from celebrating
religious festivals. The Maoists, in turn, threatened to
"terminate" Thapalia if he did not retract his story and
publicly apologize. According to Thapalia, he printed an
apology in the paper, but the insurgents said it was
inadequate. The insurgents allegedly have warned Thapalia's
family that if he returns to his village in central Nuwakot
District he will be killed.


16. According to reports from Accham District, Maoists have
confined a journalist to his village in Darna. Deepak
Bahadur Thapa has been restricted to his village and cannot
leave without permission from the Maoists. No reason was
given for his confinement.

17. The Reporters' Club Nepal, a local organization of
journalists, issued a press release on February 26
denouncing the Maoists for their treatment of journalists.
Rishi Dhamala, President of the organization, said
journalists should not be threatened or punished for what
they report, and that both the Maoists and the GON should
respect the role the press plays in the peace process.

IG KILLED BY MAOIST SPECIAL FORCES
--------------


18. A report submitted on February 21 by the team
investigating the murders of Krishna Mohan Shrestha,
Inspector General of the Armed Police Force, his wife and
bodyguard (Ref A),states that a special task force of
Maoists was responsible for the murder. The report states
that seven people were involved with the planning of the
murder, while four directly carried it out. The insurgents
allegedly had planned the murder for some time, monitoring
Shrestha's activities and taking note of his daily routine.

MAOISTS ADMIT KILLING; PLEDGE HELP
--------------


19. Maoists reportedly have admitted to mistakenly killing
two children and seriously injuring another at a primary
school in northwestern Baglung District on February 18 (Ref
B). The insurgents have pledged to help the injured child
with medical treatment and also gave twenty-six dollars to
each of the guardians of the deceased children. Villagers
said, however, that the insurgents refused to give the
corpses to the families and instead buried them near a local
stream. Villagers later helped to dig up the children's
bodies so that the families could perform a proper burial.


20. Maoists in Parbat District issued a statement on
February 22 denying that they are responsible for looting
and extortion in the district. The insurgents have also
warned criminals not to call themselves Maoists. Looting
incidents reportedly have increased in Tanahun District as
well, despite the ceasefire. Security forces suspect that
Maoists are involved. Maoists are also suspected in the
February 22 shooting death of a man in Dang District, who
they accused of stealing.

WAR WITH THE PALACE?
--------------


21. Maoists held a mass meeting in Bara District on
February 26 where they reportedly proclaimed that the war in
the future would be between them and the Royal Palace. The
insurgents said the ultimate goal is to gain control over
the central government. Jamin Prakash Shah, District
Commander, and other speakers at the meeting said that the
GON had failed to form a negotiating team because it is not
serious about the talks.

MALINOWSKI