4-10-06, 8:50 am
Editor's note: The following press release from the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist Leninist) was issued last week during a general strike called by the seven main opposition parties in protest of the repressive policies of the royalist regime. The strike, originally scheduled for four days, has been continued indefinitely. Royalist forces have shot and killed pro-democracy protesters and have conducted mass roundups of political opponents it has labeled as terrorists. The regime has received universal condemnation for its actions.
Press Release 7 April, 2006
The regressive royal regime has barbarously been mounting its repression on the peaceful demonstrators belonging to the seven-party alliance (SPA). The autocratic regime had imposed restrictions on the vehicles entering in Kathmandu valley from several parts of the country prior to the general strike because of the fear of rising people's participation in the peaceful demonstrations. Similarly the government has declared restricted areas and night curfew in several parts of Kathmandu valley and intimidated the people spreading misleading propaganda. Despite all these kinds of government's repressive measures and propaganda the four-days-long general strike called by the SPA starting from 6th of April is widely supported by the people and launched successfully. The general strike is for the restoration of democracy and peace in the country and to materialize a progressive way out to resolve the problems.
The royal government, instead of paying heed to the voices of people, has resorted to autocratic repressive measures arresting party leaders and activists, baton charging the peaceful demonstrators and showing brutality. The government had taken desperate moves arresting several party leaders and activists even on the eve of the four-days-long general strike. Dozens of political leaders and activists including Mr. Keshav Badal (Standing Committee member and former minister), Mr. Bhim Rawal (Central Committee Member and former minister), Mr. Subas Nembang (Central Committee member and former Minster) – Mr. Rawal and Nembang were released afterward on the same day, Mr. Raghuji Panta (Central Committee member and former minister), Mr. Gopal Shakya (Central Committee member) of the CPN (UML) and many other leaders and activists of agitating parties were arrested on 5th April and they have been detained inthe armed police camps at Duwakot (Bhaktapur district and Maharajganja (Kathmandu).
In the early morning, the security forces searched the houses of Mr. Amrit Kumar Bohara, the Acting General Secretary of CPN (UML), Mr. Ishwar Pokhrel and Mr. Mukunda Neupane (Standing Committee members and former ministers), Mr. Rjendra Pande, Mr. Surendra Pande, Mr. Shankar Pokhrel and Mr. Gokarna Bishta (Central Committee members and former MPs) as well as other several leaders and activists of parties and the mass organizations.
The PAPAD, a net work organization of various professionals, has launched its protest demonstration ignoring the prohibition order of the government in Kathmandu on 5th of April. More than 50 eminent professionals like Mr. Shambhu Thapa- President of the Nepal Bar Association, were manhandled and arrested by the security forces. Some of the demonstrators have received serious injuries at the hands of security forces of the government. More than 50 students from Amrit Science College in Kathmandu are arrested and detained in various police custody in Kathmandu. The security forces intruded inside several campuses including the International Language Campus, Nepal Law Campus, and R.R. Campus in Kathmandu and ruthlessly baton charged upon the agitating students. Sano Thimi Campus students in Bhaktapur came out with torch demonstration against the repressive measure of the government. About 50 torch demonstrations and rallies took place in different places in Kathmandu breaking the prohibition order of the government.
The first day of the four-day-long general strike marked by peaceful demonstrations called by the SPA remarkably turned into a success despite all possible repressive measures of the government. Up to now, more than 700 leaders and activists of our party CPN (UML) including Mr. Ashok Rai (Standing Committee member and former minister), Central Committee members and former ministers Ms. Ashtha Laxmi Shakya, Mr. Rajendra Shrestha Ms. Vidhya Devi Bhandari, Mr. Bachaspati Devkota, Krishna Gopal Shreshtha, Central Committee member Mr. Govinda Koirala and Central Committee members and former members of the parliament Mr. Dev Raj Ghimire, Mr. Mahendra Pande, Mr. Pashupati Chaulagai and Mr. Kamal Koirala have been arrested from the rendezvous of the protest demonstration.
On the second day of the general strike even the doctors of the only government's University Teaching Hospital joined the general strike staging a protest demonstration. Along with the doctors, nurses, professors and students of medical science participated in the protest. The employees of the Nepal Rastra Bank (the central bank of the country) and other commercial banks joined the protest demonstration defying the government restrictions. The protest demonstrations were held all over the country including the major cities and towns like Biratnagar, Pokhara, Butwal, Nepalgunj, Dhangadi, Rajbiraj and of course in Kathmandu valley.
Police intervention and atrocity was so brutal at Rajbiraj, the District Head Quarter of Saptari that Mr. Darshan Yadav- an activist of the CPN (UML) collapsed on the spot and succumbed his injuries caused due to police attack. Amrit Kumar Bohara, the Acting General Secretary of the party, has strongly condemned the incident and he has paid tribute to the martyr of the democratic movement and expressed deep condolence to the bereaved family. Despite of prohibition and massive intervention of the autocratic government, colossal participations of the people in protest demonstrations have been 0bserved the whole day today at Kirtipur, Patan Kalanki and at Butwal more than 15000 people have participated in the rallies. Efforts of the security personnel in pouring of the lethal tear gas cells upon the demonstrators turned good for nothing to disperse them.
There is same schedule of seven o'clock for each and every rendezvous in the morning and after being assembled at Basantapur at two o'clock of the day, a grand mass meeting will be organized for tomorrow.
7 April, 2006 Department of the International Relations CPN (UML)
