REACTION ON FORMATION OF INTERIM GOVERNMENT AND

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 06 KATHMANDU 000676

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL PGOV PINR NP
SUBJECT: REACTION ON FORMATION OF INTERIM GOVERNMENT AND
BIOGRAPHIC INFORMATION OF MINISTERS

REF: KATHMANDU 669

Summary
--------------


1. (SBU) Political leaders offered mixed reactions to the
formation of the 22-member interim government headed by Prime
Minister Girija Prasad Koirala (reftel). Although the
leaders were largely supportive of the formation of an
interim government, they were not pleased with the
reappointment of Krishna Prasad Sitaula as a Home Minister.
Many also criticized the distribution of portfolios given to
the Maoists. Biographic information provided below.

NC Leader Worried About Maoist Role in Government
-------------- --------------


2. (SBU) Chakra Prasad Bastola, Central Committee Member of
the Nepali Congress (NC) Party, believed that the inclusion
of the Communist Party of Nepal - Maoists (CPN-M) in an
interim government was critical to the peace process and to
bringing the Maoists into mainstream politics. He was less
sanguine, however, about Maoist intentions. Bastola
commented that NC party workers were demoralized after seeing
the Maoists grab control of important ministries having
direct links with the public, particularly the Ministry of
Information and Ministry of Local Development. Control of
these ministries has created an opportunity for the Maoists
to influence the public in their favor, he said. Bastola
particularly lamented the reappointment of Krishna Prasad
Sitaula as Home Minister; he believed that Sitaula followed
the directives of the Maoist leaders.

NC-D Leader Unsure of Maoist Intentions
--------------


3. (SBU) Prakash Sharan Mahat, Central Committee Member of
the Nepali Congress (Democratic) (NC-D) party, was
apprehensive about the formation of an interim government;
most of the ministries that directly deal with the public
have fallen in the lap of the Maoists, he said. Mahat
quipped that, considering the Maoist track record, he was not
optimistic that they would make positive changes in their
behavior now that they were part of the government.

CPN-UML Leader Positive That IG Means Progress On Elections
-------------- --------------


4. (SBU) Jhalanath Khanal, Central Committee Member of the
Communist Party of Nepal - United Marxist Leninist (UML),
said that the formation of the interim government was a
critical step on the path towards holding Constituent
Assembly elections. However, he was dissatisfied with the
distribution of portfolios, claiming that the Maoists had
snatched a few major ministries critical to the government's
public relations. Like others, Khanal was displeased with
the reappointment of Home Minister Sitaula and believed it
was due to combined pressure from India and the Maoists.
Khanal further noted that PM Koirala needed to take
responsibility for imposing law and order in the country.

NSP-A Leader Says IG Formation Failed To Mention Madhesis
-------------- --------------


5. (SBU) Sarita Giri, Central Committee Member of the Nepal
Sadbhavana Party (Anandi Devi) (NSP-A),said that she was not
satisfied with the policies and programs of the Interim
Government because there was no mention of the Madhesi rights
movement. Moreover, the Prime Minister had added fuel to
Madhesi grievances by reappointing Home Minister Sitaula,
whose resignation the Madhesi People's Rights Forum (MPRF)
had demanded as a precondition for talks with the government.
Giri also claimed that Nepali women were dissatisfied with
the interim government formation as only two out of 22
portfolios had been given to women.


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Comment
--------------


6. (SBU) Formation of the interim government, while greeted
by political party leaders as a necessary step toward holding
Constituent Assembly elections, was broadly criticized for
giving the Maoists ministries with too much direct contact
with the Nepali public and not going far enough to include
ethnic minorities. Political party leaders also
unequivocally criticized the reappointment of Home Minister
Sitaula, which we agree will do little to allay continued
tensions in the Terai or to improve enforcement of the law
against Maoist violations.


7. (SBU) Biographic Information:

Girija Prasad Koirala
Prime Minister and Defense Minister
--------------

Girija Prasad Koirala was appointed for the sixth time as
Prime Minister of Nepal and formed a 22-member cabinet on
April 1. He is regarded as a tough, decisive and shrewd
party organizer. He is well-disposed towards the U.S. and
favors U.S. business investment in Nepal. Koirala maintains
close ties to Indian politicians and favors a strong
Indo-Nepalese relationship. He was born in 1925 in Bihar,
India to a politically active family of Nepalese origin. A
widower, Koirala speaks English well. His daughter, Sujata
Koirala, is politically active in the Nepali Congress Party.

Sahana Pradhan
Minister of Foreign Affairs
--------------

Sahana Pradhan was appointed as the Minister of Foreign
Affairs in the interim government. In the interim government
of 1990, Pradhan had served as the Minister of Industry and
Commerce. She also served as the Minister of Forest and Soil
Conservation in 1997. She is an ethnic Newar of Kathmandu.
Pradhan is active and energetic, and was involved in the
women's preparatory group for the Beijing Conference. She is
the wife of late Pushpa Lal, Founding President of the
Communist Party of Nepal. She was born on June 15, 1932 in
Kathmandu, and holds a Master's degree in Economics from
Tribhuvan University. She has one daughter and one son. Her
English is good.

Ram Saran Mahat
Minister of Finance
--------------

Ram Saran Mahat was reappointed Minister of Finance in the
interim government. He was appointed as the Joint General
Secretary of the Nepali Congress Party in 2005, but resigned

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from the post in May 2006. He also served as the Minister of
Foreign Affairs from June 1999 to February 2000. He was
elected as the Chairman of the Board of Governors of the
International Monetary Fund for 1999. Mahat was born in
January 1951 in Nuwakot District. He was awarded a Doctorate
degree in Economics from Poona University, India in 1979. He
is married and has one son and one daughter. His English is
excellent.

Krishna Prasad Sitaula
Minister of Home Affairs
--------------

Krishna Prasad Sitaula was reappointed Minister of Home
Affairs in the interim government. He was appointed as the
Spokesperson of the Nepali Congress Party on October 18,
2005, but resigned from the post on May 5, 2006. He was
elected to the House of Representatives on a Nepali Congress
ticket from Jhapa District in 1999. He was born on November
9, 1949 in Terhathum District. He holds a Bachelor's degree
in Law and Science from Tribhuvan University. He is married

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to Kabita and has one son and two daughters.

Ram Chandra Poudel
Minister of Peace and Reconstruction
--------------

Ram Chandra Poudel, NC Party General Secretary, was appointed
Minister of the newly-established Peace and Reconstruction
Ministry. He served as Deputy Prime Minister from March 2000
to July 2001 under G.P. Koirala. Poudel participated in a
State Department Voluntary Visitor Program in 1991, at which
time he toured the U.S. to study local governments. Poudel
holds a Master's degree in Nepali literature from Tribhuvan
University. Born in 1944, Poudel is married and has five
children. His English is good.

Krishna Bahadur Mahara
Minister of Information and Communications
--------------

Krishna Bahadur Mahara was appointed Minister of Information
and Communications in the interim government. As Politburo
Member and Spokesperson of the CPN (Maoist),Mahara is the
senior-most Maoist in the interim government. He was elected
to the House of Representatives in 1991 from Rolpa District
as a candidate of the United People's Front Nepal. Mahara
was born on June 29, 1958 to a Chettri family in Liwang,
Rolpa District. He was awarded a Bachelors degree in
Education from Tribhuvan University in 1985. Mahara is
married to Sita Mahara and has two sons and two daughters.

Pradip Nepal
Minister of Education and Sports
--------------

Pradip Nepal was appointed Minister of Education and Sports
in the interim government and is a UML Central Committee
Member. He served as the Minister of Information and
Communications from 1994 to 1995. Nepal was elected to the
House of Representatives in 1999 from Kathmandu District and
is considered very close to UML General Secretary Madhav
Kumar Nepal. He was born on January 11, 1954 in Bhojpur
District and holds a Bachelors degree in Political Science
from Tribhuvan University. He has written many articles and
books on Nepali literature and politics.

Mahantha Thakur
Minister of Environment, Science and Technology
-------------- --

Mahantha Thakur of the NC Party was appointed Minister of
Environment, Science and Technology in the interim
government. He was previously the Minister of Agriculture
and Cooperatives. He was appointed Treasurer of the NC Party
in October 2005 and resigned from the post in May 2006.
Thakur also served as the Minister of Law, Justice and
Parliamentary Affairs in 2001. Thakur visited the United
States in 1992 on an International Visitors Program Grant. A
Madhesi, he was born in May 1942 in Sarlahi District. He
holds a Master's degree in History, is married and speaks
English well.

Narendra Bikram Nemwang
Minister of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs
-------------- --------------

Narendra Bikram Nemwang of NC-D was reappointed Minister of
Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs in the interim
government. He also served as the State Minister of
Industry, Commerce and Supplies from February 2000 to April
2000 under G.P. Koirala. Nemwang was elected to the House of
Representatives in 1999 from Jhapa District as a Nepali
Congress candidate. He is the Central Committee Member of
the NC-D Party. Nemwang was born in 1944 and holds a
Bachelors degree from Government College, Darjeeling, India.
He is married to Ratna, and has four sons and one daughter.

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Dev Gurung
Minister of Local Development
--------------

Dev Gurung was appointed for the first time as Minister of
Local Development. He is a Central Committee Member of the
CPN (Maoist),and heads the Finance Department of the
People's Government. Gurung was a member of the Maoist
negotiating team in August 2003 and June 2006. He was born
in 1959 in Manang District and holds a Master's degree in
Arts from Tribhuvan University. He is married to Yasoda
Gurung and has two sons.

Rajendra Mahato
Minister of Industry, Commerce and Supplies
--------------

Rajendra Mahato was appointed Minister of Industry, Commerce
and Supplies in the interim government. He is the General
Secretary of the Nepal Sadbhavana Party (Anandi Devi). He

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was born on November 19, 1959 in Sarlahi District, and holds
a Master's degree on Public Administration. He is married
and has two sons and one daughter.

Prithvi Subba Gurung
Minister of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation
-------------- --

Prithvi Subba Gurung was appointed for the first time as
Minister of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation in the
interim government. He is a UML Central Committee Member.
He contested, but lost, the general election of 1999 from
Lamjung District. He holds a Bachelor's degree in Science
from Tribhuvan University. He is married and has one son and
four daughters.

Matrika Prasad Yadav
Minister of Forest and Soil Conservation
--------------

Matrika Prasad Yadav, a Maoist Central Committee member, was
appointed for the first time as Minister of Forest and Soil
Conservation in the interim government. He was appointed as
head of the Maoist Madhesi Liberation Front on July 11, 2003.
He was arrested in Patna, India in 2004 and was handed over
to the Nepal Government on February 8, 2004. He was released
from Jail on May 11, 2006. Yadav was born in 1947 in
Dhanusha District of central Nepal.

Chabi Lal Biswokarma
Minister of Agriculture and Cooperatives
--------------

Chhabi Lal Biswokarma of the UML party was appointed Minister
of Agriculture and Cooperatives in the interim government.
He served as Vice President of the UML-affiliated Free
Student Union from 1981 to 1985. He was born on 1963 in
Syangja District and holds a Diploma degree in Sports from
Patiyala University, India. He is a Dalit and is married
with three daughters.

Hisila Yami
Minister of Physical Planning and Works
--------------

Hisila Yami, a Maoist Central Committee member, was appointed
Minister of Physical Planning and Works in the interim
government. She was formerly the CPN-M Deputy Chief of the
International Department, but was placed under disciplinary
action in March 2005. She is a trained architect and
lecturer of Nepal Engineering Campus prior to joining the
Maoist insurgency in 1996. She is the wife of Baburam
Bhattarai.

Jagat Bahadur Bogati

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Minister of Land Reform and Management
--------------

Jagat Bahadur Bogati was appointed Minister of Land Reforms
and Management. He is the leader of the United Left Front.
Bogati was with the UML until 2003. In 1998, he was the UML
Central Advisory Committee Member and served as the State
Minister of Commerce in the coalition government under G.P.
Koirala in 1998. He was born on September 25, 1953 in Achham
District. Bogati was awarded a Master's degree in Political
Science from Tribhuvan University in 1981. He is married and
has one son and three daughters.

Khadga Bahadur Biswokarma
Minister of Women, Children and Social Welfare
-------------- -

Khadga Bahadur Biswokarma, a Maoist, was appointed for the
first time as Minister of Women, Children and Social Welfare
in the interim government. He is an alternate Central
Committee member of the CPN-M and is also the Chairman of
Bheri-Karnali Regional Autonomous People's Government.
Biswokarma is also Chief of the Maoist Central Dalit
Department.

Ramesh Lekhak
State Minister of Labor and Transport Management
-------------- ---

Ramesh Lekhak was reappointed State Minister of Labor and
Transport Management in the interim government. He was
appointed as a member of the government's Peace Talks team on
May 25, 2006. Lekhak was elected as a Member of Parliament
from Kanchanpur District on Nepali Congress ticket in the
general election of 1999. He is now with the NC (Democratic)
Party headed by Sher Bahadur Deuba. He started his political
career in 1991. He was born on December 11, 1963 in Baitadi
District, and holds a Master's degree and a Bachelor's degree
in Law from Tribhuvan University. He is married, and has one
son and two daughters. His English is good.

Gyanendra Bahadur Karki
State Minister of Water Resources
--------------

Gyanendra Bahadur Karki was reappointed State Minister of
Water Resources in the interim government. He was elected as
a Central Committee Member of the Nepali Congress
(Democratic) in January 2006. Karki was the Member of the
Coordination Committee of the seven-party alliance (SPA)
during the People's Movement of April 2006.

Ram Chandra Yadav
State Minister of General Administration
--------------

Ram Chandra Yadav was appointed State Minister of General
Administration in the interim government. He joined the CPN
(UML) Party in 1992. He was elected to the House of
Representatives as a UML candidate from Siraha District in

1999. He was previously with the Communist Party of Nepal
(Manandhar). He was born October 22, 1961 in Siraha
District. He is married and has three sons and two
daughters. He does not speak English.

Indra Bahadur Gurung
State Minister of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs
-------------- --------------

Indra Bahadur Gurung was appointed for the first time as
State Minister of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs in
the interim government. He is the Central Committee Member
of the Nepali Congress (Democratic) Party.

Mohan Singh Rathour
State Minister of Education

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--------------

Mohan Singh Rathour was appointed for the first time as State
Minister of Education in the interim government. He is a CPN
(UML) district leader of Kailali District, and is a Member of
the Disciplinary Supervision Committee of the UML.
MORIARTY