US embassy cable - 03KATHMANDU1677

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 KATHMANDU 001677 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR SA/INS AND DS/IP/SA 
LONDON FOR POL - GURNEY 
NSC FOR MILLARD 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/28/2013 
TAGS: PTER, PREL, PGOV, ASEC, CASC, NP, Maoist Insurgency 
SUBJECT: NEPAL: AMBASSADOR SENDS MAOISTS TOUGH WARNING ON 
AMERICAN SAFETY; MAOIST VIOLENCE CONTINUES 
 
REF: A. KATHMANDU 1356 
     B. KATHMANDU 1424 
     C. KATHMANDU 1431 
     D. STATE 219519 
 
Classified By: AMB. MICHAEL E. MALINOWSKI.  REASON:  1.5 (B,D). 
 
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 SUMMARY 
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1.  (C) The Ambassador sent a stern warning to the Maoists 
not to target American citizens or interests.  The message 
was sent through Shailendra Upadhaya, a former facilitator 
during the most recent three rounds of dialogue between the 
Government of Nepal (GON) and the Maoists. An August 29 press 
release from the Maoists states they have resumed "mass 
resistance" because the King did not abdicate, the Royal 
Nepal Army (RNA) did not disband, and the GON imported 
weapons and "American armies to train for the genocide of the 
Nepalese people."  On August 29 Maoists attempted to 
assassinate former State Minister for Home Affairs Devendra 
Raj Kandel.  The incident follows the August 25 attempted 
assassination of former Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba, in 
whose Cabinet Kandel served.  Two Maoists were shot in an 
armed engagement with GON security forces in the eastern 
district of Udayapur.  End summary. 
 
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MAOISTS WARNED NOT TO TARGET AMERICANS 
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2.  (C) Shortly before the August 17 round of dialogue, the 
Ambassador asked Shailendra Upadhaya, a former Foreign 
Secretary and Ambassador to the U.S. who was serving as one 
 
SIPDIS 
of four facilitators to the talks, to convey a tough message 
on American security.  Drawing on Department's language 
provided Ref D, the Ambassador asked Upadhaya to pass the 
message that the USG takes very seriously repeated Maoist 
threats against American interests in Nepal (Refs A-C).  Any 
Maoist action against American citizens or interests will 
have severe consequences for the insurgents.  The Maoists 
should not seek to make an enemy of the USG through their 
actions or their rhetoric.  On August 27 the Ambassador met 
again with Upadhaya, who related that he had passed the 
message both orally and in writing (with one copy for the 
Maoist negotiators and one for Maoist supremo Prachanda). 
Maoist negotiator Baburam Bhattarai replied that the Maoists 
were concerned about US security assistance and believe that 
the USG plans to build a military base in Nepal from which to 
attack China.  (Upadhaya told him such fears were 
ridiculous.)  Bhattarai claimed (as he had in the April 25 
meeting with emboffs) that the Maoists had not realized the 
two security guards they killed were Embassy employees, but 
were "certain" that they were spying for the GON.  He then 
complained that he and Krishna Mahara were treated like 
"untouchables" when they came to the Embassy for the April 25 
meeting. 
 
3.  (C)  On August 29 the Ambassador spoke again with 
Upadhaya and asked him to reiterate the message to the 
Maoists, now that the ceasefire had broken, in the strongest 
possible terms.  Upadhaya said he had no way to contact the 
Maoists on his own, but would pass the message on August 31 
through fellow facilitator Padma Ratna Tuladhar, who has 
close links to the insurgents.  (Note:  DCM had passed the 
same message to Tuladhar on July 30.  End note.)  Upadhaya 
said he believes that the Maoists would be most foolish to 
attack US interests. 
 
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FACILITATORS DISBANDED 
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4.  (SBU)  Upadhaya also related that the group of four 
facilitators has been disbanded.  The Cabinet thanked them 
for their service, and committed to reconvene them in the 
event of another ceasefire.  Upadhaya said that the 
disbanding was logical, but that he was open to serving as a 
facilitator again if events warranted.  The Centre for 
Humanitarian Dialogue, a Swiss organization, had been funding 
the facilitation effort. 
 
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MAOIST JUSTIFICATION FOR RESUMING VIOLENCE . . . 
--------------------------------------------- ---- 
5.  (U) On August 29 the Maoist website posted a statement in 
English that attemtpted to justify their decision to break 
the ceasefire.  The GON's continued "anti-people activities 
in the period of the ceasefire" showed it was not committed 
to a peaceful settlement.  Hence "mass resistance has 
resumed."  According to the Maoists, "a peaceful solution . . 
. would obviously mean that the autocrat king would abandon 
the throne in a peaceful way . . . election of the 
constituent assembly, the Royal army . . . would be abolished 
and a democratic system established."  (Note:  During the 
negotiations, the Maoists listed neither abdication by the 
King nor abolition of the RNA as demands.  End note.) 
Instead of immediately surrendering, "the old regime . . . 
indulged in petty formalities" during the talks and continued 
to "deter the Nepalese people by importing weapons, harboring 
American armies to train for genocide against the Nepalese 
people, signing several treaties on the guidance of America, 
and internally weaving a lot of conspiracies."  (Comment:  We 
view this latest diatribe as a disjointed Maoist attempt to 
justify their return to violence.  End comment.) 
 
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. . .AND VIOLENCE CONTINUES 
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6.  (U) Maoists continued their campaign of assassination 
attempts against prominent politicians and members of the 
security forces with the August 29 shooting of former State 
Minister for Home Devendra Raj Kandel.  Kandel, a former 
Nepali Congress MP who served in the Cabinet of former Prime 
Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba, was shot three times in his car 
in front of his home in Kathmandu at 7:00 p.m. local time. 
Kandel survived the attempt and was taken to the hospital. 
 
7. (SBU)  The shooting marks the Maoists' fourth attempted 
assassination (one successful) in as many days.  On August 25 
Maoists shot at a convoy carrying former PM Deuba in Kailali, 
while on August 28 two RNA colonels prominent in the 
counter-insurgency effort were shot (one fatally) in front of 
their Kathmandu homes.  It is believed that Deuba and Kandel 
were targeted for their counter-insurgency roles as well. 
Under Deuba's administration, the RNA was first deployed 
against the Maoists, a state of emergency was imposed, the 
Maoists were designated as terrorists with awards on their 
heads, and American security assistance was substantially 
increased.  When the GON first announced bounties for top 
Maoist leaders, Kandel was widely quoted as saying that 
anyone who brought in a Maoist head would walk away with a 
bag of money. 
 
8.  (U)  At about 4:00 a.m. on August 30 RNA troops in the 
eastern district of Udaypur engaged with Maoist insurgents. 
According to the local media, two Maoists were killed and 
three soldiers were injured. 
 
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COMMENT 
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9.  (C) We have no doubt that Upadhaya, a diplomat with a 
long personal and professional history of warm relations with 
the U.S., will convey our message exactly as we delivered it. 
 We have no indication that the Maoists intend to act on 
their vituperative rhetoric, but we continue to monitor the 
situation closely.  If politicians disenchanted with the 
Palace needed any reminder of who their real enemy is, 
Kandel's shooting will certainly provide it.  Whether the 
incident helps bring them closer to the GON--and prods them 
to call off their mass protest on September 4--remains to be 
seen.  The series of assassination attempts in the capital 
has rattled the urban elite, who long felt insulated from the 
bloody conflict raging in the hinterlands. 
MALINOWSKI