Doublespeak
On Tuesday, Nepal police arrested Santosh Rai “Pratirodh”, a
Maoist commander from Main Cantonment,
2nd Division, of the People’s Liberation Army in Sindhuli
District, for possessing a hand grenade. He was on his way to Kathmandu in
advance of the mass demonstration being held in the capital on May 1 – a Maoist
protest orchestrated to topple the current government.
This came one day after the police seized a Maoist truck
headed for the capital loaded down with lathis (wooden batons).
In a statement published on Wednesday, the United Nations’ political mission in Nepal (UNMIN) condemned “this reckless risk of life” and called for an investigation:
Under that agreement, the Maoist ex-rebels has committed to confine
its combatants within the holding camps and register them with UNMIN, as well
as register and sagely sotre all its weapons and ammunition at the seven main
cantonment sites under 24-UN monitoring – except those weapons kept for
perimeter security and “leadership security purposes.”
Both incidents – the seizures of the grenade and truckload
of lathis – indicate the lack of
sincerity on the part of the Maoist leadership, who avowed the May 1
demonstration was designed to be a “peaceful” one.
As recently as Monday, Prachanda assured Robert Black, the
visiting U.S. Assistant Secretary for South and Central Asian Affairs, that the
Maoists intended no provocative acts and would do all they could to avoid
violence. Despite their move toward mainstream politics, the Maoists are still
listed by the U.S. as a terrorist organization and Washington closely monitors
their activities. During his trip to Kathmandu, Blake said the Maoists continue
to be on the list because of the violent activities of the Young Communist
League (YCL), the youth wing of the Maoist party.
For the YCL’s part, their activities of coercion in the
Kathmandu Valley have apparently intensified the past few weeks.
Businessmen terrorized
This week, the business community has come out with a flurry
of protestations against the youth league, accusing the YCL of forcing
businessmen to fill the Maoists’ coffers.
Surendra Malakar, president of Nepal Chamber of Commerce
claimed businessmen and industrialists had been threatened by a “forcible
donation drive” launched by the Maoists. Expected “donations” ranged from Rs
100,000 to 5,000,000 per businessman.
Officials of the Golcha Group of Organizations said their
offices were vandalized on Monday after they refused to pay donations to the
YCL.
Industrialist and member of the Constituent Assembly Diwakar
Golchha said the Maoists demanded Rs 5,000,000 from him.
Kush Humar Joshi, President of the Federation of Nepalese
Chamber of Commerce and Industries (FNCCI), said the business community was being
terrorized. In addition, the Maoists have taken over various private properties
to temporarily house thousands of their cadres, who have descended on Kathmandu
in preparation for the May1 demonstration.
Maoists turn schools into squatters’ camps
It was also reported by the BBC today that members “of the
Maoist youth wing, as well as ordinary supporters, are camping in hundreds of
private schools”, which the YCL forcibly closed down last week – 8,000 schools,
in fact, affecting 1.5 million students.
Tightened Security
Meanwhile, security has been ramped up in the Kathmandu
Valley. Use of the army has not been ruled out.
On Wednesday, Minister for Information and Communication
Shanker Pokharel told a group of journalists in Sunsari that the “army can be
mobilized if the Nepal Police (NP) and the Armed Police Force (APF) fail to
control violent demonstrations.” Accusing the Maoists of hatching various
conspiracies to obstruct the promulgation of the new constitution, Pokharel
added, as if to emphasize the government’s resolve to counter Maoist violence,
“The government will mobilize all security agencies to maintain law and order
in the country and if the situation goes out of control, then the situation may
arise to mobilize the army.”
Given the sheer influx of demonstrators pouring into the Valley, it’s hard to imagine how a violent face-off can be averted on Saturday, May 1.
