Democratic rally foiled by the government

A much anticipated anti-government rally in the Nepalese capital, Kathmandu, was foiled by a daylong curfew imposed by the authorities on Friday. According to the main seven political parties, who were the primary organisers, over 500,000 people were expected to participate in the rally to protest against the municipal elections scheduled for 8 February. The top party leaders, including Girija Prasad Koirala of Nepali Congress (NC) and Madhab Nepal of Unified Marxist-Lennist (UML), the country’s two largest parties, have already been placed under house arrest. The prominent local human rights group, Insec, said the government had issued three months arrest warrants for their leaders. Their telephone lines had been cut off and security forces have prevented journalists and rights activists to meet with them. Nearly 200 political activists were arrested just before they reached the street to organise the rally. The number of arrests over the past two days has already crossed 300. At the end of Friday’s curfew, which was called off at 6 PM, hundreds of protestors reached the main areas of the city to organise the rally but were dispersed in less than an hour by hundreds of police and army personnel in the streets. There is yet no report of arrests published by rights groups. "These arrests, combined with the heightened restrictions on civil and political rights over the past week, highlight the government's continuing disregard for human rights," said Purna Sen, director of Amnesty International's Asia Pacific programme. "The curfew, the ban on demonstrations, today's mass arrests and severe communication restrictions are all attempts by the government to silence peaceful and legitimate political protest, which is needed now more than ever in Nepal," said Nicholas Howen, secretary-general of the International Commission of Jurists. "Today's arrests are an attempt to suppress any vocal opposition to the king, or his attempts to win legitimacy by holding elections," said Brad Adams, Asia director of Human Rights Watch. "Silencing the leadership, the king hopes, will silence the people. Such actions belie his stated belief in democratic principles and the rule of law." The political organisers have planned a mass rally on Saturday but there are concerns that the government may again impose a curfew during the daytime and hundreds of peaceful protestors are expected to be arrested. Meanwhile, in the country’s most conflict-affected city, Nepalganj, 500 km west of the capital, Maoists rebels, who have been waging a 10 year war against the royalist government, stormed and hurled bombs for half an hour in the main centres. Thousands of panicked civilians were unable to reach their homes and found themselves stranded in the city for hours. Six policemen were killed and dozens more were injured in the violence.