Jan. 15 (Bloomberg) — Nepals political parties started
campaigning for April 10 elections that are central to the
Himalayan nations peace accord, as a bomb exploded in the
capital at a rally by the seven groups in the ruling coalition.
Eight people were injured when a bomb was hurled at a bus
carrying political workers at about 3:30 p.m. Kathmandu time
yesterday, minutes after the rally ended, Nepalnews.com
reported. As many as 50,000 supporters of the seven parties
marched through the city to demonstrate their commitment to the
ballot, which was postponed from November after divisions within
the Cabinet.
No one claimed responsibility for the attack and security
was tightened in Kathmandu, according to Nepalnews.com.
The November 2006 peace accord ended a decade-long civil
war in which the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) fought to
overthrow the monarchy. Under the agreement, the rebels became a
political party, joined the government and sent 30,000 fighters
to camps under United Nations supervision.
The UNs envoy to Nepal Ian Martin said yesterday that a
credible election in Nepal “is within reach, according to a
statement on the world bodys Web site.
“Achieving it still depends on the commitment and wisdom
of Nepali political and community leaders to address outstanding
differences and grievances through dialogue, Martin said. It
also requires “a climate of security for voters and political
actors in all parts of the country.
Election Postponed
The Nov. 22 ballot for the National Assembly was postponed
after the Maoists quit the Cabinet in September when other
parties refused to immediately scrap the monarchy. The rebels
said supporters of King Gyanendra may undermine the election.
The Maoists returned last month after lawmakers agreed to
amend the interim constitution to declare Nepal a republic,
subject to ratification at the National Assemblys first meeting.
“Now it is time to learn from past mistakes and move
ahead, Madhav Kumar Nepal, head of the Communist Party of
Nepal (Unified Marxist Leninist), told the rally before the
attack, Nepalnews.com reported.
“Election postponements have already put a question mark
on the credibility of the political parties and the leaders,
said Nepal, who is a member of the seven-party ruling coalition.
“We must fulfill our commitment to hold the polls.
Gyanendra became king in 2001 after his brother, King
Birendra, and most family members, were shot dead in a domestic
dispute. He dismissed the government in February 2005 for
failing to end the Maoist insurgency.
The king was forced to reinstate Parliament and end his
absolute rule in April 2006 after demonstrations and strikes.
More than 13,000 people were killed in the civil war, which
damaged the tourism-dependent economy. Located between India and
China, Nepal is one of the worlds poorest countries, where
about 40 percent of the population lives below the poverty line.
Nepals continuing violence prompted the Electoral
Commission to provide insurance of 1 million rupees ($16,000) to
officials involved in the ballot, according to Nepalnews.com.
To contact the reporter on this story:
Michael Heath in Sydney at
