Nepal: One year after the emergency: The Maoists are still calling the shots: Update 24.

South Asia Analysis Group

Note No. 166

25. 11. 2002

Nepal: One year after the emergency: The Maoists are still calling the shots: Update 24.

by Dr. S. Chandrasekharan

This is a people’s movement, a people’s was and it is a people’s force- Krishna Bahadur Mahara- Maoist leader in CNN.

It was on November 23^rd and 25^th last year that Maoists struck simultaneously at Dang and Solakhumbu, killing many army and police men and carried away a large quantity of sophisticated weapons. These incidents marked a watershed as the attacks were aimed at the army posts while in the past the police posts were the ones targeted. In the incident at Solakhumhu, the CDO ( Chief District Officer), the symbol of the government administration was killed. Emergency was declared on the 26th and from then on, the Army which was not allowed to be used by the late King till then began counter insurgency operations. With the declaration of an emergency authentic accounts of encounters and of the body counts were hard to come by and analysts had to go by official accounts and other means to get the figures.

Almost a year later, in a pattern distressingly similar, the Maoists struck at two different points on 14^th November in Jumla and Gorkha districts. ( 14^th November had another significance as it was the date fixed for the now postponed nation wide elections. The second significance was that it was another popular tourist destination- Rara Lake in Jumla like Solakhumbu) A large number of Maoists attacked Khalanga town, headquarters of Jumla district and the town was under their control for many hours. They set ablaze most of the administrative buildings including the District Administrative and the Police offices. Again this year the CDO besides two other Deputy Superintendents of Police was killed in the Jumla incident. In Gorkha, a police post at Takukot was attacked. In all 60 security personnel lost their lives in the two incidents.

Khalanga town in Jumla is at least five days march from the nearest road head. If the Maoists could attack simultaneously many of the important administrative buildings in the town, they should have been in large numbers. It is unclear how intelligence failed to notice the movement of Maoists from distant places like Acham, Dailekh and Surkhet towards Jumla.

Gorkha, the home district of Baburam Bhattarai is known to be one of the worst affected districts.( See the classification of 55 districts out of 75 affected in the last update) The Police post at Rakukot had been attacked once before. Yet the Police were taken by surprise.

The attacks followed a nation wide strike (bandh) called by the Maoists for three days from 11^th to 13^th, when life at Kathmandu came to a standstill. Two days prior to the strike, to prove their capability, the Maoists set off explosions in different parts of Kathmandu and Lalithpur. One major incident was an explosion near the Buddhist stupa adjacent to the RNAC building where, the library run by the Indian embassy is located. It is one of the busiest parts of the town. In the blast one person was killed and many more were injured.

There were many more serious incidents during the fortnight and these have all been listed in the Appendix. What is important to note is

* for some time now, the cadres and senior office bearers of UML of Madhav Nepal and Bam Dev Gautam are being targeted. The most serious one was the killing of ex UML MP of Seti Zone, Chakra Prasad Chaudhry on 13^th November. On August 15 last year, all the leftists leaders led by Madhav Nepal went on a "pilgrimage" to Siliguri to meet the Maoist leader Prachand and arrived at a nine-point agreement which included non targeting of UML workers. This agreement apparently is no longer in force.

* the frequent use of IEDs ( Improvised Explosive devices) to ambush vehicles of security forces. It is not clear, where from the Maoists obtain their explosives.

* Incidents in Terai are increasing

* There are indications that the ultra left groups in Bihar and Jharkhand ( PWG and MCC) are joining hands to coordinate their activities. Some years ago, the presence of PWG (People’s war group) in Bihar and Jharkhand was minimal. Now after coordination with MCC it has become very active. A link up with the Maoists of Nepal already exists and could expand further. It may be recalled that the Peoples’s war in Nepal started after a meeting between Indian communist Party (Marxist-Leninist-People’s war) and the Nepal -Communist Party-Maoist on 1^st of July 1995.

* Though denied by both Nepal and India, media reports indicate that UNHCR’s intervention on behalf of a Maoist seeking asylum in India made the latter drop proceedings against the Maoists for the time being. This would set up a bad precedent of India being unable to deport wanted Maoists. Under 1950 Indo Nepal Friendship treaty, people of Nepal have the privilege of living and working in India. It is not a foreign country to seek asylum and UNHCR to facilitate it.

Prachanda in the party’s web site ( ironically has the term "human rights" in the URL) congratulated his cadres on the two incidents and warned that they would go ahead with further resistance if the government does not pay heed to their "flexible" demands, namely, round table conference, interim government and election for the constituent assembly.

What does this all add up to?

It looks that Nepal is moving steadily towards civil war conditions. The country had not experienced war for the last two hundred years. There were civil disturbances before but none like the present one in its magnitude and severity. An Indian analyst recently in one of the papers had said that India should "take the bull by the horns and not let others do". India is supposed to use its leverage to get the Maoists for peace talks. But how? He had also said that if the Maoists do not agree for the talks, Nepal with its troops nearing corps level should go all out against them. It does not appear to be that simple. Military analysts tend think that it is a law and order problem. The political parties in Nepal think that it is a political one. These parties while in government or outside did not take them seriously and did nothing worthwhile to understand the problem Pious projects like Integrated Security and Development Programmes were never implemented seriously..

The emergency in November last year and subsequent intensified search operations by the Army have not yielded the desired results. In the interior, the families of security forces are being harassed. Over 700 private schools are said to have been permanently closed as the private schools were considered "elite" schools by the Maoists and harassed. A sense of fear has gripped the people in the remote villages. Even in the valley, only main Kathmandu town is safe.

In this grim situation, the political parties are unable to agree to the next step. The UML continues to maintain that an all party government under Article 128 of the Constitution is the only way out. Their leader Madhav Nepal made a strange statement that his party is ready to hold a referendum for Constituent Assembly or reforms in the Constitution but would not join the present government. The Nepali Congress of G.P.Koirala has continued to maintain that the first step should be to reinstate the dissolved parliament. The spokesman of the party Arjun Narsing KC has given a deadline of November 24 , the day dissolution completes six months to reinstate the assembly failing which the country will be plunged into deeper crisis. By making such empty threats G.P. Koirala and his party will soon become irrelevant in the present crisis. The Nepali Congress (democratic) representative Bimalendhu Nidhi has a one point programme of reinstatement of Sher Bahadur Deuba before any other step like elections to a constituent assembly is thought of!

King Gyanendra has rightly guessed that the political parties besides making noise are in no position to cause any problem to him. He has treated them with contempt and has approved the expansion of the interim government of Lokendra Chand on November 18 with inclusion of eight of cabinet rank and five assistant ministers raising the strength to 22. This move has foreclosed any chance of other political parties joining the interim administration. The list of new ministers contains many eminent and capable people

The cabinet has recently taken a decision to amend the regulations relating to the carrying out of different official tasks and endorsing a system by which all tasks are first presented before the King for his approval. This is going to be a controversial move and would only support the view of political parties particularly the UML that the executive powers still rest with the King

Should the interim government go for peace-talks or for conducting the elections? This is the dilemma the government will be facing soon. The Maoists are totally opposed to elections right now and w ant three steps- first a round table conference of all political parties including representatives of the King, an interim government and elections to a constituent assembly. If the demands are to be accepted before cease-fire talks, then the current scheduled elections sometime in April cannot be conducted. The government through its intermediaries is said to be in touch with the Maoists for a cease-fire to begin with. Padma Ratna Tuladhar, a left wing Human Rights who facilitated the previous aborted peace talks and said to be close to the Maoists has also offered to mediate in case the government comes up with a clear agenda. Surely the government cannot be pressurised to accept the demands of the Maoists.

A list of incidents by Maoists from the last update is given herewith in the forma of an Appendix.

Date                        Incidents

November 2002

6              A group of armed terrorists destroyed VDC buildings and police posts in the Rautahat.

7              Chandra Kanta Bhattarai, a local resident of Namsaling village of Illam was murdered by a group of armed terrorists in the presence of his sisters. Bhattarai, is an activist of Rastriya Prajatantra Paprty (RPP).

The terrorists continued to extort money even during the festival deusi-bhailo of light. From those who had hardly any cash to offer, the terrorists looted their crops and wooden furniture. In Dhankuta, the terrorists had even restricted the locals from organising deusi-bhailo. Terrorists patrolled villages to ensure that no people came out for deusi-bhailo.

They also destroyed a telephone tower at Waling of Syanja district, disrupting telephone services in many VDCs of Palpa and Syanja. The terrorists in Kapilvastu launched simultaneous attacks on some two dozen VDC offices.

8              A 12-year-old boy was killed in Banepa, Kavre and the office buildings of more than two dozen Village Development Committees (VDCs) were set ablaze apart from the range posts in Kapilvastu and Morang. A bomb, reportedly planted by the terrorists, exploded on a pile of garbage in front of Nepal Telecommunication Corporation (NTC) at Banepa Municipality-6

In Bardiya , the people living in Rajapur delta have been forced to travel through Indian territory to reach Bardiya’s district headquarters, Gulariya, after the terrorists destroyed a steamer-boat plying across Karnali River.

In Dailekh the terrorists have been forcing family members of the government forces (army, armed police and police) to give the terrorists a certain amount of money as levy on a monthly basis if they want to live in their village.

In Morang, a group of terrorists bombed two buildings of range post in Madhumalla VDC.

9              Two civilians were killed when a jeep hit a landmine planted by the terrorists on a road at Murtiya in Sarlahi.

                In Udayapur, a cement plant, Nepal's biggest, is to close down temporarily following shortage of limestone, the raw material used to produce cement. The terrorists set ablaze a vehicle utilised to transport the raw material from Sinduli, ambushed security personnel and created insecurity amongst workers.

They bombed and damaged a computer, furniture and a cupboard at the Kirtipur sub-metropolis office.

A terrorist threat has forced the postponement of the renowned and traditional Kattik dance that was to be held at Lalitpur . Maoist outrages continued unabated as they murdered two persons celebrating Chaat festival in Sarlahi district.

The terrorists shot dead Nepali Congress leader Dinesh Sharma and injured three others at Ramnagar in the district.

They torched and destroyed a bus at Lalpatta as it was going from Gaighat in Udaipur to Kakarvitta after forcing passenegers out of the vehicle.
They also torched and destroyed a bus travelling between Janakpur and Bardibas at Aurahi in Mohottari district .

The terrorists destroyed the office of the Annapurna Conservation Area Project (ACAP) managed by the King Mahendra Trust for Nature Conservation (KMTNC) of which Crown Prince Paras is Chairman.

They attacked and damaged two generators of the Nepal Television at Jalewshwor in Mohottari district. Transmissions in Janakpur and Sagarmatha anchals have been disrupted.

A youth, formerly involved with a terrorist outfit but leading a normal life recently, was brutally beaten up by a group of terrorists on the eve of three day nation-wide strike called by the outlawed party at Sijuwa VDC-8 in Morang.

12            In Kailali, a civilian, Hem Sagar Baral, a carpenter from Morang district, died in a crossfire between security forces and the terrorists in Pahalmanpur VDC.

In Chautara, the district headquarters of Sindhupalchowk the power supply to more than a dozen VDCs in the district was cut off after the terrorists demolished an electric tower carrying 33 KV transmission line of the Sunkosi Hydro-power Project at Fulpingdanda.

13            In another tragic and gruesome bandh-related incident, a 14-year-old boy was blown to death as a bomb laid by the terrorists went off at Budar of Doti district.

Although major cities across the country were reported to have partially opened on the third consecutive day of the bandh, it was the transport sector, which was affected the most, as none of the long-distance vehicles plied on the highways.

The terrorists threw a socket bomb at Dr. Rayamajhi’s residence ,who is a Chairman of Raj Parishad Standing Committee in Baluwatar.

14            At least two civilians lost their lives and 25 others sustained injuries, 18 of them seriously, when a passenger bus on its way to Kathmandu from Dolakha, came under a landmine reportedly planted by the terrorists.

In Kailali the terrorists blew up a two-storied house of retired Inspector General of Police Motilal Bohara in Gajra VDC in Achham district. None of the family members was there when the terrorists blew it up.

In Hetauda a group of terrorists shot dead a 42-year-old civilian Netra Bahadur Timilsina, in Aam Bhanjyang. A group of terrorists shot dead Chakra Prasad Chaudhary, former parliamentarian and a CPN-UML worker of Seti Zone.

At least 60 security personnel - 37 in Jumla and 23 in Gorkha districts - as well as three civilians lost their lives in fierce encounter with the terrorists.

In Khalanga town, the district headquarters of Jumla, came under siege of the terrorists. The police as well as military personnel were locked up in a fierce encounter with well-armed terrorists, estimated to be around 4,000 in number. The top civil administrator - Chief District Officer Damadar Pant along with two Deputy Superintendents of Police Shiva Narayan Mandal and Vijayaswor Ghimire - lost their lives while the district judge is missing. The terrorists set ablaze the District Administration Office, District Police Office, Land Revenue Office, Jumla Airport Tower, a barrack of Armed Police Force, Regional Police Unit and local branch office of Rastriya Banijya Bank. The terrorists also looted Rs. 2.1 million in cash and valuables worth Rs. 1.7 million from the bank.

A group of terrorists set fire to the house of Captain Krishna Bahadur Khadka at Tityang VDC-1 of Baglung district.

Maoist terrorists also set on fire the house of Padam Singh Sewahang, of Panchali VDC-1 in the south-west of Fidim, the headquarters of Panchthar district

A clash between a patrolling unit of security personnel and the Maoist terrorists took place at Hasanpur area of Dhangadhi municipality-5

In Surkhet the terrorists set ablaze almost all the government facilities besides taking six prisoners along with them after breaking into the district jail. They shot dead Prakash Shah, an employee deputed at the prison.

Two Assistant Sub-Inspectors of Police, three Head Constables and 18 constables were killed in Takukot battle.

15            The terrorists owned responsibility for the killing of two security personnel working for the US Embassy in Kathmandu. The terrorists have also warned artist Santosh Panta, who is an honorary Subedar in the Royal Nepalese Army, for his alleged involvement in production and publicity of "anti-people’s war" propaganda. They have asked Panta "to resign from Department of Military Intelligence (DMI) within 7 days".The terrorists have brutally killed one CPN-UML activist Ram Bahadur Ghising. He was ex-Chairman of Katakuti VDC and CPN-UML member of Area Committee of Dolakha district.

                In Bardiya, the terrorists have started targeting the locals in Rajapur area, intensifying killings and torturing locals, with the result that many locals are fleeing the area.

16            Four Royal Nepal Army soldiers were killed in Bhadrutaar village in eastern Nuwakot district.

Maoist terrorists have set ablaze the office buildings of 32 VDCs in Arghakhanchi district in the past three days. The losses caused by the damage are assessed to be over 10 million rupees.

In Kailali’s district headquarters, Dhangadhi, a group of armed-terrorists killed retired DSP Harihar Prasad Adhikari at his sawmill in Manikapur of Tikapur Municipality in broad daylight.

The terrorists blew off a bomb at a bridge across Tadi stream along Trishuli-Kathmandu section of Pasang Lhamu Road in Nuwakot. The blast caused no substantial damage to the bridge except for a minor hole on it.

Outlawed terrorists killed five civilians, including two teachers and a retired Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), and cadres of the CPN-UML. They brutally killed Chandra Kharel, a teacher at Siddheshwor Primary School at Barbung in Oyam Village Development Committee (VDC), Panchthar and 27-year-old Keshar Bahadur Thapa, a teacher at Bhagawati Lower Secondary School in Gajurmukhi VDC, Ilam.

The terrorists also killed UML cadres - Devraj Neupane of Mumari VDC in Nuwakot and Hari Kambang of Nagi VDC in Panchthar.

The terrorists have imposed a ban on running rice-mills in the Rajapur area of Baridya district.

17            A group of terrorists damaged 13 vehicles of Bagmati Electricity Transmission Sub-station at Minbhaban, near Nepal Commerce College.

They also killed a civilian, Ramesh Bahadur Thapa, at Jonapur village of Pipladi Village Development Committee.

19            The driver of an army vehicle carrying several security personnel died instantly when terrorists opened fire at them. The rebels opened fire at the speeding vehicle (Na 2 Kha 5435) at Chauwa Khola of Bijauri Village Development Committee (VDC) on the Tulsipur-Ghorahi Highway and set ablaze another police van.

20            Two soldiers were injured when a group of terrorists targeted a vehicle carrying security personnel at Chaulahi VDC-3 lying between Ghorahi and Lamahi. In Dailekh three rebels, including a woman, were killed during an encounter at Bhirmaura area of Narayan Municipality.

21            In Kailali, Jayenta Shah, the manager of Eveready Battery Company, died on the spot and two others sustained serious injuries, after a jeep they were travelling in, hit a landmine planted by the terrorists targeting the security forces at Chandek of Shripur VDC. The terrorists were involved in attacking Khalanga bazaar of Jumla district. They have prohibited teachers from using government prescribed text books, in the northern belt of Humla district. They killed two civilians in Bardiya and Dang districts.

22            The terrorists brutally killed two persons in Taplejung district while they detonated a powerful pressure cooker bomb in the house of an ex-head constable of police in Janakpur.

24            In a search operation in Bhojpur district two army personnel were injured in an exchange of fire with the terrorists. The terrorists set fire to 15 more VDC offices - Shivpur, Tilaurakot, Jahadi, Ramnagar, Sisawa and Kajarhawa, Bhagwanpur, Bidyanagar, Shivanagar, Lalpur, Bisnupur, Bithawa and Udayapur. In Bardiya the terrorists looted nearly 100 quintals of rice from a house in ward number eight of Deudakala VDC

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