UNDER SECRETARY FORE CALLS FOR ROUNDTABLE TO

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 KATHMANDU 000551 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/15/2017 TAGS: PREL PGOV ECON ENRG PREF PHUM BH IN NP SUBJECT: UNDER SECRETARY FORE CALLS FOR ROUNDTABLE TO ADDRESS ETHNIC UNREST: CORRECTED COPY REF: A. KATHMANDU 530 ¶B. KATHMANDU 525 ¶C. KATHMANDU 537 Classified By: Ambassador James F. Moriarty. Reasons 1.4 (b/d) ¶1. (U) THIS IS A CORRECTED COPY OF KATHMANDU 550. CORRECTION IN FINAL PARAGRAPH (COMMENT). Summary -------------- ¶2. (C) On March 10, Under Secretary of State Fore urged Prime Minister Koirala to hold a national roundtable to begin to address the political concerns of Madhesis as well as ethnic minorities and other historically disadvantaged groups. The Prime Minister responded that he had asked Subash Nemwang, the respected Speaker of the Interim Parliament, to take on that task. The Under Secretary and the Prime Minister also discussed the need for a similar roundtable on economic issues. The Ambassador, who stressed the importance of hydropower as a source of economic development for Nepal, promised to provide the Prime Minister with some suggestions for an economic agenda. The Prime Minister's Advisor confirmed that the PM supported resettlement of Bhutanese refugees. Koirala noted that the term of the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights was two years. Solving the Maoist Problem First, Then the Terai -------------- --- ¶3. (C) In his March 10 meeting with Under Secretary of State for Management Henrietta Fore and the Ambassador, Prime Minister G.P. Koirala explained that the Government of Nepal (GON) was working to resolve its issues with the Maoists first. Then it planned to settle its problems with the Madhesis in the Terai, Nepal's border region with India. In order to solve the Terai, he said, he was seeking India's help. Koirala related that he had told New Delhi's Ambassador to Nepal Shiv Shankar Mukherjee that India had to give Nepal every sort of assistance because if the Terai problem persisted (Note: A reference to the at times violent Madhesi unrest that has plagued the populous region since shortly after the GON promulgated the Interim Constitution in mid-January.) India too would be affected. The PM insisted that the GON had done practically every thing the Madhesis had asked, citing his second speech to the nation in February and the amendments to the Interim Constitution that the Interim Parliament had adopted March 9, which provided, among �A;other things, that Nepal would be a federal state. India Being Helpful -------------- ¶4. (C) The Government of India (GOI) had in fact been helpful, the PM continued. Koirala said that Hindu fundamentalists from India were involved in the violence in the Terai, inciting religious agitation. During the Hindu festival of Shivaratri (Note: An occasion when hundreds of thousands of pilgrims travel to Kathmandu's Pashupatinath Temple.),the GOI had supported the GON by closing the border. He acknowledged, however, that the GOI was in a very delicate position. It had to be mindful of the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party, which drew support from these same Hindu groups. National Roundtable To Address Ethnic Minorities Needed -------------- -------------- ¶5. (C) The Under Secretary of State encouraged the PM to organize a national roundtable to discuss the whole spectrum of political concerns of the Madhesis as well as those of other historically disadvantaged groups, including janjati (ethnic Tibeto-Burman minorities). This was particularly necessary in order to ensure they would support the planned Constituent Assembly elections. Koirala said that he had asked Subash Nemwang, the Speaker of the Interim Parliament, KATHMANDU 00000551 002 OF 003 to bring all these people together. The Speaker was in the process of doing that. The Prime Minister described Nemwang as the perfect man for the job: he held one of the country's highest offices and was widely respected. The Ambassador noted that Nemwang was himself a janjati (note: a Limbu) and had another advantage of being from the Communist Party of Nepal - United Marxist Leninist, which was not the Prime Minister's party. The Ambassador suggested that the roundtable should discuss the complicated issue of federalism. The Prime Minister and Chalise concurred: people needed to have a clear idea what it meant. Roundtable on Economic Issues Advisable Too -------------- ¶6. (C) The Under Secretary asked whether the Prime Minister had decided on an economic way forward once the outstanding political issues were resolved. This too, she suggested, was an area where a national roundtable would prove useful. She inquired specifically what the GON was doing to provide employment for Nepali youth. Chalise agreed that economic issues were very important. Economic growth would help the peace process. The Prime Minister and he both concurred that a lack of economic opportunity had been a major reason why the Maoists and other groups had been able to attract so many Nepali young people. Under Secretary Fore said that people needed to see a reward for peace. The Foreign Policy Adviser remarked that the GON had to give people hope. Hydropower As a Potential Solution -------------- ¶7. (C) The Ambassador pointed out that Nepal had been dependent until the present on donors to fund much of its economic development, to the tune of some USD 500 million a year. Meanwhile, the country had the opportunity to earn three or four times that amount annually if it developed its hydropower potential. The Ambassador said the principal missing element was a national consensus. That consensus to develop the country's hydropower resources would then have to be implemented. Up until now, the GON had been very cautious. It needed to get the Nepali public on board. Investors were reluctant to invest because they were unsure about the GON's support for private investment in the sector. The Prime Minister stated that the political situation in the country was not normal. Once it was normal, investors would have more confidence. The Prime Minister asked the U.S. to provide him with concrete ideas how to strengthen the economy and the Ambassador agreed to do so. Refugees and the UN Human Rights Office Mandate -------------- -- ¶8. (C) Koirala's Foreign Policy Advisor reiterated that the Prime Minister continued to support third-country resettlement of Bhutanese refugees. The Ambassador asked whether the Prime Minister had decided to extend the term of the Nepal Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR). Nepal OHCHR Chief Lena Sundh had expressed her concern that same morning at a breakfast meeting of political, business and civil society leaders with Under Secretary Fore that the GON would only allow the office to SIPDIS remain open for another six months. Koirala -- and Chalise -- seemed surprised by the question. The PM said he had already made his decision: the office would be extended for another two years. He agreed it still had important work to do. Comment -------------- ¶9. (C) One of the fundamental constraints the Government of Nepal faces is its inability to address the range of problems simultaneously. While it is understandable that the Prime Minister would want to focus on "fixing" the Maoist issue, Madhesi unrest in the Terai, which is currently relatively low-grade in comparison to January and February, could easily KATHMANDU 00000551 003 OF 003 flare up again. This could happen, as a senior Madhesi leader warned post March 14, if the Maoists decide to take a hard line on the Terai after joining an interim government. The earlier Speaker Nemwang organizes a national roundtable to address some of the issues of Madhesis and disenfranchised groups the better (Ref C). Post will pass to the PM's Office ideas on how best to create national consensus and forward momentum on Nepal's economy. Peace must be restored. If peace is to last and there is to be a new Nepal, it will be the economy, especially jobs and opportunities for this country's overwhelmingly youthful population, that will make the difference. ¶10. (U) Under Secretary Fore did not have an opportunity to clear this message. MORIARTY