US warns king after Nepal clash

A US diplomat has warned that Nepal could slide into chaos unless the king makes peace with dissident politicians who oppose his absolute rule.

“Unless the principles of freedom, civil rights, and democracy once again take root through a process of true reconciliation among the legitimate political forces, I fear that your country will inexorably slide toward confrontation, confusion, and chaos,” US Ambassador to Nepal James Moriarty said.

Moriarty made the remark yesterday in a speech before the World Council of World Affairs in the capital, Katmandu.

Since King Gyanendra took over absolute power on February 1, political parties have opposed the move by organising street protests. Immediately after Gyanendra declared a state of emergency, he ordered the jailing of most of the nation’s politicians and suspended civil rights.

Although the emergency decree has been rescinded and many of the prisoners released, political parties have continued to press for the King to relinquish his powers.

Before the King’s power grab, the US was Nepal’s biggest financial supporter in fighting a bloody Maoist insurgency. The Bush administration has urged the King to restore democracy and to work with political parties to resolve the insurgency.

Moriarty said “the continuing divisions between the Palace and the political parties aid only the Maoists and their plans to turn Nepal into a brutal and anachronistic state”.

“With a violent, ideological Maoist insurgency desiring to take over the state and then to export its revolution to peaceful neighbours, there is much to worry about,” he said.

Since the King took power, fighting between the rebels and government troops has escalated.

The rebels, who claim to be inspired by Chinese revolutionary Mao Zedong, have fought since 1996 to replace Nepal’s constitutional monarchy with a communist state. More than 11,500 people have been killed.

“We hope that one day the Maoists too will become part of the political mainstream and give up arms, but for now their own words and actions say otherwise,” Moriarty said.