US embassy cable - 04KATHMANDU279

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KATHMANDU 000279 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
DEPT FOR SA/INS, LONDON FOR POL/GURNEY, NSC FOR MILLARD 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV, PREL, PTER, NP, Political Parties 
SUBJECT: NEPAL: KING'S PUBLIC APPEARANCE FAILS TO APPEAL TO 
POLITICAL PARTIES 
 
1. (SBU) Summary.  King Gyanendra's civic reception in the 
southwestern city of Nepalgunj on February 8 did not attract 
the numbers expected despite government-provided buses and a 
heavy security presence.  The low attendance can be 
attributed in part to the forced closure, or bandh, declared 
by the Maoist-affiliated Tharuwan Liberation Front, as well 
as Maoist threats.   In his public remarks, the King 
committed himself to preserving multiparty democracy, while 
also playing a more active role in government.  He supported 
anti-corruption efforts, elections and economic development 
of the mid-western region of Nepal, but also issued veiled 
criticisms of the political parties.  The King's speech 
sparked predictably negative reactions from the political 
parties.  End Summary. 
 
2. (SBU) On February 8, King Gyanendra offered public remarks 
to an assembled crowd in Nepalgunj, a city on the Nepal-India 
border in Banke District, during a pre-planned "civic 
reception." Prior to the event, the Tharuwan Liberation 
Front, an organization linked to the Maoists, declared the 
ceremony illegal and imposed a three-day closure ("bandh") in 
the mid-west and far-west of Nepal to prevent the public from 
attending.  Maoist activity in Nepalgunj in the days leading 
up to the event increased; insurgents shot and killed two 
policemen on February 4 and exploded four bombs in the city 
on February 6. 
 
3. (SBU) On the day of the event, according to press reports, 
only government vehicles traversed the roads, ferrying 
security personnel and other officials to the reception.  The 
former mayor of Nepalgunj reported that the Government of 
Nepal (GON) had hired hundreds of buses to bring people from 
various districts in mid-western Nepal, but most returned 
nearly empty due to the Maoist threat.  According to press 
reports, Maoists felled trees onto the highways and used 
"banner bombs" to prevent the government-hired buses from 
reaching Nepalgunj.  Roughly 25,000 people, mostly from 
Nepalgunj and the surrounding environs, reportedly attended 
the felicitation ceremony.  The Banke Chief District Officer 
indicated that approximately 2,000 security personnel were 
mobilized in the district, with 500 in Nepalgunj alone, on 
the day of the event. 
 
4. (U)  In his public remarks, the King expressed his 
commitment to multiparty democracy and articulated his 
intention to maintain an active role in government.  He noted 
the need to address some of the root causes of the conflict, 
such as public sector corruption and lack of development in 
the mid-western region of Nepal.  The King also issued veiled 
criticisms of the political parties for not responding to the 
needs of the people and appealed to the students to turn away 
from public protests and towards more productive ventures. 
Excerpts of his speech follow. 
 
BEGIN EXCERPTS 
 
"We are totally committed to multiparty democracy. It is Our 
conviction that it will have meaning only if politics is 
inspired by the people, dedicated to the people and dependent 
on the people. 
 
Top priority must be accorded to the all round progress of 
the Mid-Western Development Region, which has lagged behind 
in the process of development....  Let nobody take advantage 
of the people's simplicity or a situation wherein they are 
deprived of the fruits of development.  The days of Monarchy 
being seen but not heard, watching people's difficulties but 
not addressing them and being a silent spectator to their 
tear-stained faces are over.... 
 
On this occasion, We, once again, call upon politicians to 
stop saying 'me' but say 'us,' stop saying 'party' but say 
'people' and ensure that multiparty democracy is dedicated to 
the greater interest of the nation and people.  Consolidation 
of democracy with pro-people governance is Our only desire, 
happiness of Our countrymen and the overall welfare of the 
nation Our only goal....We wish to see a corruption-free 
economic structure, which guarantees realization of their 
(the people's) basic needs.... 
 
Tussles for power should not jeopardize our national unity, 
which, in fact, should be further refined and consolidated in 
upholding our national dignity with the active participation 
of the youth, the pillars of tomorrow.  Instead of hindering 
the acquisition of useful abilities and misguiding them into 
politicking, it has now become imperative to give the youth 
an opportunity to harness their creativity by enhancing their 
skills and diligence....We call on those who have faith in 
the multiparty system to...contribute to the maintenance of 
peace and security along with the creation of an environment 
wherein the governance of the country can be handed over to 
elected representatives by holding general elections at the 
earliest." 
 
END EXCERPTS 
5. (SBU) The King's remarks received extensive press coverage 
and comment by the political parties, as well as from the 
Maoists.  The press quoted party leaders expressing critical 
reaction to the King's speech.  Even in private, CPN-UML and 
Nepali Congress party leaders felt that the King was unfair 
in his characterization of the parties.  Jhala Nath Khanal, 
Director of the CPN-UML's International Relations Office, 
believed the King's address was "aggressive" towards the 
parties, "as if the parties were only thinking of 
themselves."  Khanal was also concerned that the King failed 
to mention constitutional monarchy and interpreted the 
omission as an indication that the monarch seeks a more 
active role in government than the previous King.  Khanal 
concluded that although many principles outlined by the King, 
such as support for multiparty democracy, anti-corruption, 
and economic development, were positive, they were 
overshadowed by the more negative comments about the 
political parties.  Sushil Koirala, General Secretary of 
Nepali Congress party, echoed Khanal's sentiments.  He 
criticized the King's failure to address either the Maoist 
insurgency or the current political impasse.  The speech 
"only pulls us further apart," Koirala said. 
 
6. (SBU) The Maoists issued a poorly-worded statement on 
their website the same day of the King's speech belittling 
the civic reception.  The Maoist statement claimed that only 
a "few hundred" old Panchayat supporters, security personnel 
and bureaucrats were present at the program.  The insurgents 
characterized the reception as a "desperate bid to show the 
international community that the people approve of the 
autocratic feudal king."  The Maoists claimed success of the 
Tharuwan Liberation Front's bandh and their own efforts to 
distribute propaganda at the event despite a heavy presence 
of security personnel. 
 
7. (SBU) Comment.  Many observers view the civic reception as 
the Palace's counter to the parties' mass rally on January 30 
-- an effort to demonstrate that the King can draw just as 
large crowds, if not larger, than the politicians.  While the 
King used the reception to reiterate his commitment to 
multi-party democracy, he also took the opportunity to take 
thinly veiled swipes at the very parties that make up that 
democracy.  The King's recent public comments, underscored by 
his February 8 statement that the days of monarchy being seen 
but not heard are over, so far show little evidence of an 
effort to forge a path of reconciliation with the parties. 
End Comment. 
 
MALINOWSKI