Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
08KATHMANDU1264
2008-12-04 09:57:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Kathmandu
Cable title:
AMBASSADOR'S DECEMBER 4 MEETING WITH PRIME
how-toO 040957Z DEC 08 FM AMEMBASSY KATHMANDU TO USMISSION USUN NEW YORK IMMEDIATE SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 9518 INFO AMEMBASSY BEIJING PRIORITY AMEMBASSY COLOMBO PRIORITY AMEMBASSY DHAKA PRIORITY AMEMBASSY ISLAMABAD PRIORITY AMEMBASSY LONDON PRIORITY AMEMBASSY MOSCOW PRIORITY AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI PRIORITY AMEMBASSY PARIS PRIORITY USMISSION GENEVA PRIORITY SECDEF WASHDC PRIORITY CIA WASHDC PRIORITY NSC WASHDC PRIORITY DIA WASHDC PRIORITY CDR USPACOM HONOLULU HI PRIORITY
C O N F I D E N T I A L KATHMANDU 001264
DEPT FOR SCA/FO, SCA/INS
E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/04/2018
TAGS: PGOV UN NP
SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR'S DECEMBER 4 MEETING WITH PRIME
MINISTER DAHAL
Classified By: DCM RANDY W. BERRY FOR REASONS 1.4 (B/D)
C O N F I D E N T I A L KATHMANDU 001264
DEPT FOR SCA/FO, SCA/INS
E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/04/2018
TAGS: PGOV UN NP
SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR'S DECEMBER 4 MEETING WITH PRIME
MINISTER DAHAL
Classified By: DCM RANDY W. BERRY FOR REASONS 1.4 (B/D)
1. (C) Summary: In a brief meeting with Ambassador on
December 4, Prime Minister Dahal confirmed that a request for
a six-month UNMIN mandate extension would be lodged "tomorrow
or the next day," despite the lack of consultation with
opposition Nepali Congress leaders. Dahal also promised to
look into and "take care of" labor problems which have beset
leading American investors Coca-Cola and Colgate-Palmolive
over the past few weeks. The PM also identified Barsaman Pun
(aka Ananta) as the Maoist point-of-contact to work with DCM
in providing fuller accounts of the killings of two American
Embassy security employees in 2002. End Summary.
Taken Aback by NC Losses
--------------
2. (U) Ambassador and DCM met with Prime Minister Pushpa
Kamal Dahal on December 4 at his Singha Durbar office in
Kathmandu. The Prime Minister's Foreign Affairs Advisor Hira
Bahadur Thapa and Pradhumna Shah, Joint Secretary for Europe
and the Americas at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, were
also in attendance.
GON Will Seek UNMIN Extension to July 2009
--------------
3. (C) Prime Minister Dahal said that an official letter
requesting a six-month extension of mandate for the United
Nations Mission in Nepal (UNMIN) would be sent to the United
Nations "tomorrow or the following day." Pressed on whether
or not the opposition Nepali Congress party had concurred in
approving the request, Dahal demurred, and indicated that he
believed they would ultimately support the request. An
extension would set the expiration of UNMIN,s mandate in
July 2009.
American Companies & Labor Issues
--------------
4. (C) Ambassador raised the recurring issue of illegal labor
practices affecting the business sector in Nepal, and
specifically recent closures and strikes which had affected
Coca-Cola and Colgate-Palmolive, two of the largest U.S.
investors in the Nepali economy. The Prime Minister appeared
unaware of the most recent strike action against Coca-Cola,
which transpired earlier this week, and asked the Ambassador
"which union" was responsible for the problems. "Yours" was
her reply. If illegal labor practices continued to thwart
companies already doing business in Nepal, the Ambassador
noted, the GON should realize that stated goals of economic
growth and increased foreign investment would be sacrificed,
since investors and companies would be looking to the GON,s
actions, and not only its words. The PM nodded, and said
"Let me handle it."
Point-of-Contact Identified to Pursue Murder of Embassy
Employees
-------------- --------------
5. (C) On several occasions, Ambassador and DCM had pushed
the Prime Minister and other senior Maoist leaders for a
fuller accounting/disclosure of events surrounding the 2002
murder of two Nepali employees of the American Embassy.
After several promises to name a point-of-contact, today the
Prime Minister indicated that Barsaman Pun (aka "Ananta,") a
Deputy Commander in the People,s Liberation Army, would be
in touch with DCM Berry to provide fuller information. The
Ambassador told the PM that no decision on the terrorism
designations could be made until additional information had
been provided.
Comment
--------------
6. (C) The decision to seek an extension of mandate for
UNMIN is generally welcome news, except for the fact that the
Maoists appear to be moving forward without the concurrence
of the Nepali Congress. As obstructionist and difficult as
the NC has become in the past several weeks, the decision to
move forward without their agreement potentially spells
additional problems. Welcome also was the PM,s quiet
acknowledgment on the labor front and the promise to do
something about it. And after months of promising
information on the guard killings by Maoist and GON
officials, the identification of a well-known Maoist insider
to deal with the issue is a step forward. Post will track
these most recent issues for tangible progress and report
separately.
POWELL
DEPT FOR SCA/FO, SCA/INS
E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/04/2018
TAGS: PGOV UN NP
SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR'S DECEMBER 4 MEETING WITH PRIME
MINISTER DAHAL
Classified By: DCM RANDY W. BERRY FOR REASONS 1.4 (B/D)
1. (C) Summary: In a brief meeting with Ambassador on
December 4, Prime Minister Dahal confirmed that a request for
a six-month UNMIN mandate extension would be lodged "tomorrow
or the next day," despite the lack of consultation with
opposition Nepali Congress leaders. Dahal also promised to
look into and "take care of" labor problems which have beset
leading American investors Coca-Cola and Colgate-Palmolive
over the past few weeks. The PM also identified Barsaman Pun
(aka Ananta) as the Maoist point-of-contact to work with DCM
in providing fuller accounts of the killings of two American
Embassy security employees in 2002. End Summary.
Taken Aback by NC Losses
--------------
2. (U) Ambassador and DCM met with Prime Minister Pushpa
Kamal Dahal on December 4 at his Singha Durbar office in
Kathmandu. The Prime Minister's Foreign Affairs Advisor Hira
Bahadur Thapa and Pradhumna Shah, Joint Secretary for Europe
and the Americas at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, were
also in attendance.
GON Will Seek UNMIN Extension to July 2009
--------------
3. (C) Prime Minister Dahal said that an official letter
requesting a six-month extension of mandate for the United
Nations Mission in Nepal (UNMIN) would be sent to the United
Nations "tomorrow or the following day." Pressed on whether
or not the opposition Nepali Congress party had concurred in
approving the request, Dahal demurred, and indicated that he
believed they would ultimately support the request. An
extension would set the expiration of UNMIN,s mandate in
July 2009.
American Companies & Labor Issues
--------------
4. (C) Ambassador raised the recurring issue of illegal labor
practices affecting the business sector in Nepal, and
specifically recent closures and strikes which had affected
Coca-Cola and Colgate-Palmolive, two of the largest U.S.
investors in the Nepali economy. The Prime Minister appeared
unaware of the most recent strike action against Coca-Cola,
which transpired earlier this week, and asked the Ambassador
"which union" was responsible for the problems. "Yours" was
her reply. If illegal labor practices continued to thwart
companies already doing business in Nepal, the Ambassador
noted, the GON should realize that stated goals of economic
growth and increased foreign investment would be sacrificed,
since investors and companies would be looking to the GON,s
actions, and not only its words. The PM nodded, and said
"Let me handle it."
Point-of-Contact Identified to Pursue Murder of Embassy
Employees
-------------- --------------
5. (C) On several occasions, Ambassador and DCM had pushed
the Prime Minister and other senior Maoist leaders for a
fuller accounting/disclosure of events surrounding the 2002
murder of two Nepali employees of the American Embassy.
After several promises to name a point-of-contact, today the
Prime Minister indicated that Barsaman Pun (aka "Ananta,") a
Deputy Commander in the People,s Liberation Army, would be
in touch with DCM Berry to provide fuller information. The
Ambassador told the PM that no decision on the terrorism
designations could be made until additional information had
been provided.
Comment
--------------
6. (C) The decision to seek an extension of mandate for
UNMIN is generally welcome news, except for the fact that the
Maoists appear to be moving forward without the concurrence
of the Nepali Congress. As obstructionist and difficult as
the NC has become in the past several weeks, the decision to
move forward without their agreement potentially spells
additional problems. Welcome also was the PM,s quiet
acknowledgment on the labor front and the promise to do
something about it. And after months of promising
information on the guard killings by Maoist and GON
officials, the identification of a well-known Maoist insider
to deal with the issue is a step forward. Post will track
these most recent issues for tangible progress and report
separately.
POWELL