US embassy cable - 03KATHMANDU2347

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KATHMANDU 002347 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR SA/INS BAYER;NSC FOR MILLARD;USAID/ANE/SA 
FOR BUNDY 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PINS, PTER, PGOV, MARR, NP, Maoist Insurgency 
SUBJECT: NEPAL: REPORT FROM MAOIST HEARTLAND 
 
1. (U)  A journalist working for one of Nepal's most 
respected English language newspapers has recently visited 
Rukum, a district in west central Nepal considered part of 
the heartland of the Maoist insurgency.  His published report 
offers some insights into the autocratic nature of Maoist 
governance and the villagers' responses in the absence of 
Nepali Government administration.  Highlights of the report 
are the following quotes: 
 
2. (U)  While the district headquarters at Khalanga and 
former battle zones like Khara show strong army presence, 
most villages are under the sway of the Maoists.  The Nepali 
Government and representatives of the national political 
parties are conspicuous in their absence.  Once in a while, 
an army helicopter hovers overhead, but otherwise there is no 
sign of the Government. 
 
3. (U)  The rebels are so confident the security forces 
cannot invade their strongholds that they have left the 
villages under the control of their "village peoples' 
government."   Low-ranking Maoist rebels run day-to-day 
activities in Rukum.  They say the Maoist militia and 
district level leaders have gone to "special areas" and won't 
divulge any other details.  Reports from other sources 
indicate the leaders are gathering in the Terai. 
 
4. (U)  According to one Maoist spokesman, the revolutionary 
government plans to develop the villages in accordance with a 
public directive issued by a district leader, who threatens 
"severe punishment" if his orders are not obeyed.  Locals 
have to construct toilets in their homes or face the 
possibility of being taken to a Maoist labour camp, even 
though they have tried to explain that their more immediate 
priority is safe drinking water. 
 
5. (U)  In one village, the rebels have commandeered about 
300 ropanis of land belonging to one landlord.  A dozen or so 
convicts charged with murder and facing the Maoist brand of 
justice are forced to work the fields, while the former 
landlord has fled to the city of Nepalgunj. 
 
6. (U)  It is now mandatory for people to take permission 
from Maoist authorities for weddings, divorces, and even to 
travel to the district headquarters.  After they tied the 
knot two months ago, two 15-year-old newlyweds were forcibly 
separated and sent to their respective homes by the rebels 
because they were underage.  The couple was also forced to 
pay Rs 3,000 each.  The Maoists declare that they are 
strictly against child marriage and polygamy. 
 
7. (U)  Maoist laws change from one village to the next 
because Maoist government is irregularly administered without 
any rationale.  "Our laws change according to the times.  It 
is not necessary that the law of one village should be the 
same as that of another," explains a leader. 
 
8. (U) Areas of Rukum under Maoist control are officially 
dry.  But there is moonshine available and some villagers 
will secretly take a swig or two when they are sure no one is 
looking. 
 
9. (U) Maoists require those who want to leave a village to 
get permission first.  A Maoist 
"visa" is necessary for travel to Khalanga, the district 
headquarters.  People visiting relatives for the holidays 
recently needed special Maoist permits.  All travellers face 
intense interrogations by both Maoist sentries as well as 
security forces anywhere they go. 
 
10. (U)  In village after village, there are only older 
people and children.  There are no young men and women, no 
teenagers.  A whole generation has gone missing in the 
villages of the midwest; they have moved to the cities or 
left the country for safety and in search of work. 
 
11. (U) Most stayed away from their homes in the district 
even during the Dasai holidays out of fear of extortion and 
harassment.  The shortage of able-bodied men and women has 
meant that farm production has dwindled, and there are 
looming food shortages. 
 
12. (U) A teacher says that, "The children are forced to take 
on adult chores and now have little time for school."  So the 
schools have shut and it is the elderly who are left to fend 
for themselves and take care of their grandchildren. 
 
13. (U)  The locals have discovered that people's rule is not 
what they had been promised.  They mutter about how their 
real needs have gone unattended while the rebels are 
comfortable because they have no real opposition.  "Of course 
we are scared that they may take action against us if we 
complain," whispers one local.  "We just do what they tell us 
to do."  They are weary of the compulsory activities that the 
Maoists force on villagers, and some admit secretly that they 
are sick of obeying orders and being threatened.  But they 
are too scared to say these things openly for fear of 
reprisal. 
 
14. (U) Everyone is worried that, with the collapse of the 
last ceasefire, an outbreak of fierce fighting similar to 
what took place in Bhawang in neighboring Rolpa last month 
could erupt in their district.  Their overwhelming desire is 
for peace, so their loved ones can return home, and they can 
get on with their lives. 
MALINOWSKI