CIVIL SOCIETY WARNS A/S BOUCHER OF MAOIST THREAT

C O N F I D E N T I A L KATHMANDU 001186 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPT FOR SCA/INS E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/09/2016 TAGS: PGOV PTER PHUM NP SUBJECT: CIVIL SOCIETY WARNS A/S BOUCHER OF MAOIST THREAT REF: KATHAMNDU 1090 Classified By: Ambassador James F. Moriarty. Reasons 1.4 (b,d). Summary -------------- ¶1. (C) In a May 2 meeting with SCA A/S Boucher and NSC Senior Director Millard, Nepali civil society and human rights organization representatives voiced concern over the continuing Maoist threat as Nepal transitioned to a democratic government. A/S Boucher stressed the need for the political parties to stay united and focus on key issues to prevent the Maoists from gaining ground. Ian Martin, United Nations Representative for the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR),stated there was "anarchy" in rural areas, with little or no government presence. Maoists in rural areas continued to extort money, and force people to participate in meetings despite the current unilateral cease-fire. Sudip Pathak, Member of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC),commented that he had seen nothing to indicate the Maoists wanted to give up arms. Other leaders worried that the parties were not focused on the demands of the people, and were instead squabbling over Cabinet seats. Martin said the Parties and the Maoists should enter into a negotiated cease-fire that could be monitored and verified. Martin and Pathak agreed that local civil society could help an international force monitor. A businessman suggested that focusing on tourism would create jobs and quickly help the economy. End Summary. U.S. Stands Ready To Assist -------------- ¶2. (C) SCA A/S Boucher and NSC Senior Director Millard met May 2 with leaders of civil society and human rights organizations to discuss the current situation and the way ahead. A/S Boucher explained that the immediate U.S. goal was to build up the new political government's ability to govern, including strengthening the intra-party democracy of political parties and building capacity in the election and anti-corruption commissions. He also expressed interest in "quick impact" economic initiatives, but added, with the lifting of the Maoist road closure, that commercial mechanisms were taking care of immediate needs, such as getting fuel into the Kathmandu Valley. Surya Nath Upadhyaya, Chief Commissioner for the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA),expressed appreciation for U.S. assistance to his organization, stressing that fighting corruption remained relevant. Similarly, Sudip Pathak, Member of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC),thanked the USG for continuing to support his organization. "Anarchy" Outside Capital -------------- ¶3. (C) Ian Martin, United Nations Representative for the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), warned that while the political parties were focusing on Cabinet posts and building the central government, there was "anarchy in the countryside." He suggested it would be "a long time before Nepal has effective local governments in place." Local government structures had "collapsed." Millard worried that the Maoists would take advantage of the lack of government in the countryside. Martin acknowledged that the Maoists were the strongest, best organized force in most areas. Their actions would indicate their true objectives, Martin said. Prasidha Pandey, President of the Nepal-U.S. Chamber of Commerce, commented that the Maoists were extorting money from businesses, including in Kathmandu, and would continue to do so while they had weapons. Maoists Show No Sincerity -------------- ¶4. (C) Sudip Pathak, Member of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC),worried that although the political parties had addressed the Maoist demand for a constituent assembly, the Maoists were still not satisfied. Pathak noted that rural people in all areas of the country continued to be "very afraid" of Maoists. Maoists continued to force people to join mass meetings, even during the current cease-fire. Pathak noted his Commission had repeatedly asked the Maoists to follow the November 12-point understanding by allowing people to return home. He gave the example of one area where Maoists continued to padlock the homes of at least 200 families, preventing them from going home. Maoists there had also failed to return over 5,000 acres of land they had confiscated from people. Pathak said he could only conclude that the Maoists were not serious about joining a peace process. He suggested that the key issue for the new government was how to get the Maoists to stop violence and enter into the political mainstream. (Note: In the past, Pathak, who has ties with the Maoists, has been more critical of the security forces. His focus on the Maoists as his primary concern is thus surprising and worrisome. End note.) Cease-fire Needs Rules to Monitor -------------- ¶5. (C) Martin said it was "urgent" for the government and the Maoists to negotiate a cease-fire. Simply announcing a cease-fire did not address key issues such as what the Maoists and the security forces should do with their arms. Only once a framework was in place could people monitor and verify Maoist actions against their stated intentions, he said. Martin stressed the continued importance of local human rights organizations, but worried Nepalis could not view local organizations, many of which had political ties, as neutral monitors. While unsure of the overall role the United Nations would play, Martin noted that his organization had a broad human rights mandate and good local relationships that could help in a monitoring situation. Martin believed that cease-fire violations were unlikely to be clear-cut armed assaults of one armed force against another, but rather were more likely to be isolated cases in rural areas where international representatives could play useful roles as objective observers. Pathak said that his organization and other Nepali human rights organizations could help monitor a cease-fire, but agreed with Martin that it would be useful to have some sort of international guarantor. A/S Boucher said no one could guarantee what the Maoists would do, so it would be difficult for anyone to monitor. Security Forces Need to Build Trust -------------- ¶6. (C) A/S Boucher asked whether the police had the hardest task to rebuild trust with the people. Martin said that "security forces were discredited in the eyes of the people." Martin said that all security forces, including the army, police and armed police needed to reestablish their relationship with the people. Martin noted that the Royal Nepalese Army had the lead over the police and armed police under the unified command structure, so people blamed the army for suppressing pro-democracy demonstrations. The Ambassador noted that, in case negotiations with the Maoists failed, Nepalis needed to start developing a counter-insurgency plan to address a continued armed Maoist threat. Focus on the Economy -------------- ¶7. (C) Pandey, a hotel owner and businessman, hoped the transition to democracy would bring stability needed for increased economic activity. He commented that hydropower investment was important in a ten-year time frame, but the immediate need was to "get the economy moving." He stated that increased tourism was an achievable short-term goal that would create employment. Nine Nepalis were employed for every tourist who came to Nepal. He supported a Nepal Tourism Board campaign to bring visitors to Nepal. Sapana Malla, President of the Forum for Women, Law and Development, also supported actions that created jobs, adding that employing women was one of the best ways to advance women's rights. A/S Boucher noted that, unlike other countries such as Sri Lanka, the Maoists were in all areas of Nepal. Thus it was more difficult to attract tourists because there were fewer Maoist-free zones. Parties Must Keep Focus -------------- ¶8. (C) A/S Boucher said that in order to deal with the Maoists, the parties needed to stay united and create momentum that would make it difficult for the Maoists to do anything but join the process and give up their weapons. Upadhyaya commented that "the stakes were high" for the Parties. Noting the country's "euphoric" mood, he worried that the recent political squabbling delaying formation of a Cabinet (reftel) showed that the political parties were not focused on the demands of the people. Malla agreed, adding that the Parties had yet to articulate what they meant by a constituent assembly. Bandana Rana, President of the National Women's Commission, said she was "scared" that the political parties were falling into their old pattern of behavior. She worried that they would do nothing to address discrimination against women and disadvantaged groups, noting that the new seven-member Cabinet consisted solely of men, with five coming from high-caste Brahmin families. A/S Boucher said that the Parties had to work on intra-party democracy, and that the Parliament needed to immediately address key issues, such as the role of the King, civilian control of the military, and fleshing out details of a constituent assembly election. Comment -------------- ¶9. (C) It is troubling that so many members of civil society and human rights groups openly doubted that the Maoists intend to give up violence. The mood of the National Human Right's Commission Member was especially telling, as he has personally traveled throughout the country listening to people's pleas for peace and security. The participants' lack of confidence in the political parties shows the importance of urging the new government to stay focused on key issues. ¶10. (U) Attendees: Local Guests -------------- Sapana Malla, Forum for Women, Law and Development Ian Martin, United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) Sudip Pathak, National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) Prasidha Pandey, President, Nepal-U.S. Chamber of Commerce Bandana Rana, Chairperson, National Women's Commission Surya Nath Upadhyaya, Commission for Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) USG -------------- Richard Boucher, SAC A/S Elisabeth Millard, NSC Senior Director James Moriarty, AMB Steve Blake, ADCM Grace Shelton, P/E Chief JoEllen Gorg, notetaker ¶11. (U) A/S Boucher did not have the chance to clear this cable. MORIARTY