KATHMANDU, May 13: Nepal’s new government suspended nine top security officials on Saturday, a day after arresting five former ministers, in a crackdown on King Gyanendra’s old royal regime.
The government action came as Maoist leader Prachanda warned that the country faced another ‘people’s revolution’ if lawmakers broke their commitment to the rebels and defied ‘republican sentiment’.
The nine high-ranking security officials suspended on Saturday included the heads of the police, armed police and the national investigation department.
“Friday’s emergency cabinet meeting took the decision to suspend the security officials,” said Home Ministry Secretary Umesh Mainali.
State-run media reported that the officials were suspended for ‘using excessive force against pro-democracy protesters’.
On Friday, four ex-ministers and one assistant minister — including the former home minister, information minister and foreign minister — were jailed for 90 days. A family member of one of the ministers has said he was being held on charges of plotting against the new administration.
The new multi-party government took power last month after King Gyanendra was forced to give up absolute rule following nationwide pro-democracy protests that were backed by the rebels and left 19 people dead.
The king had sacked the government in February last year, claiming it failed to tackle a bloody Maoist revolt that has left 12,500 dead.
The rebels confirmed in a statement that Prachanda would head the guerilla side in planned peace talks to end the decade-long insurgency.
“The central committee meeting of our party has decided that chairman Prachanda will lead the team,” the Maoists said in the statement.
But it added that all Maoist prisoners must be freed before talks begin.
There are believed to be some 1,200 Maoists in jail in Nepal, rights groups say. The government has not commented on the rebel demand.
The date of the talks has yet to be announced and the government has not yet named a negotiating team.
The Maoists said ‘there are important decisions to be made during high-level talks with the seven-party government’.
The seven parties had spearheaded the pro-democracy movement.
The parliament restored by the king last month has pledged to hold elections for a constituent assembly — meeting a key rebel demand — to rewrite the constitution that would decide the future of the world’s only Hindu monarchy.
The Maoists have battled since 1996 to install a single-party communist republic in the impoverished Himalayan nation sandwiched between India and China.
But they have since agreed to accept whatever constitution is agreed to by a new assembly and to function in a multi-party democratic system.
However, Prachanda warned in the statement that if the government broke its promises to the Maoists ‘we are prepared to lead the revolution’. —AFP
