Assembly Elections Delayed In Nepal
Elections
for an assembly to draw up a new constitution for Nepal have
been delayed, after the ruling coalition failed to break a
political deadlock with Maoist former rebels.
Peace and Reconstruction Minister Ram Chandra Poudel said in
Katmandu, "We were compelled to change the election date because
of the Maoists, who let us down."
It is however unclear when the election, scheduled for November
22, would now be held, but Poudel said it could be in March or
April.
Demands
The Maoists say they remain committed to democracy and will not
return to insurgency. The election was a key demand of the
Maoists during their civil war, but they wanted the assembly to
abolish the monarchy ahead of polls and give them a republic,
what they had been fighting for since 1996.
The Maoists walked out of the government last month, after the
other political parties opposed fresh demands to abolish the
monarchy ahead of the elections and introduce full proportional
representation.
A special session of parliament, called by the Maoists, will
meet on October 11 to debate their demands.
"We have agreed to delay the election until ... parliament
called by us takes a decision on some political issues,
including our demand to declare a republic and introduce
proportional representation," Maoist spokesman Krishna Bahadur
Mahara said.
However, Prakash Sharan Mahat, a leader of the Nepali Congress
party, the biggest political group in parliament, said the
Maoists were unlikely to muster the two-thirds majority required
to abolish the monarchy.
“The Nepali Congress will oppose the Maoist move to declare a
republic through parliament because this has to be settled by a
new elected assembly,” Mahat said.
Implications
The delay is a major blow to last November's peace deal that
ended the Maoists' decade-long civil war against the monarchy.
Reports say the Maoists' decision to leave the government
highlighted the growing pains of rebels who spent years in the
jungles of Nepal but now face the possibility of losing an
election as they enter the mainstream.
The current Nepali parliament was formed in January after a
period of absolute rule by the monarchy.
REU/MIA
