PARTIES BUSY IN MEETS; NO CONSTITUTION BY 28 MAY

PRACHANDA PROPOSAL APPROVED BY MAJORITY IN CENTRAL COMMITTEE UPDATE

Kathmandu, 29 April: Proposal of Maoist Chairman Prachanda to temporarily suspend a people’s war for constitution drafting and peace was approved Friday by majority in the central committee which began discussions Friday.
The Maoist chief he waned to ‘appear responsibly’ to complete the peace process and basic law promulgation.
The central committee meeting concluded Friday with the majority decision.
Secretary C P Gajurel said earlier there would be no voting; the view was apparently personal.
Supporters in the committee of Vice-president Dr.Baburam Bhattarai, considered a liberal in the radical communist party, supported Prachanda’s changed political programme to be adopted after 28 May when a second deadline to promulgate a constitution to institutionalize a declared republic won’t be met.
Another hard-line Vice-chairman Mohan Baidya who presented a separate proposal for continuing a people’s war for a communist state was defeated.
Baidya, accusing his boss of ‘surrender’ and abandoning people’s war was defeated as the second ranking member in the UCPN (Maoist) wrote a note of dissent.
The Maoist chief himself was considered a hardliner in the largest communist and main communist party.
Baidya’s political report which was rejected by the committee will be recorded in party document as a different opinion, politburo member Debendra Paudel said.
Maoist central committee Friday also discussed integration of its former fighters and selection of remaining members of its government team, Dev Gurung said.
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NC CALLS FOR INCLUSION OF OTHER PARTIES IN CONSTITUTION DRAFTING

Kathmandu, 29 April: A summit of the Big Three- Maoists, NC and UML was held Friday in the presence of Speaker Subash Nemwang and
and another meeting will be held again Monday.
Nemwang convened the meeting as it’s its certain the 28 May deadline to convene a basic law won’t be met again.
NC President Sushil Koirala wasn’t present.
Parliamentary party leader and recently appointed Vice-president Ram Chandra Paudel came out of the inconclusive and demanded “inclusion of Madeshbadi and small parties’ promulgate a constitution.
‘Three parties have failed,” he said and added constitution can’t be promulgated without them.
At this late moment, Prachanda called for a ’new process’ to draft a constitution and admitted a sub-committee he heads to resolve differences on articles to be incorporated in a basis law can be activated only by a main constitution drafting committee headed by Nilambar Acharya.
Interestingly, NC has only this month finalized its official positions on the peace process and a state structure as parties trade charges and blame each other for the non-progress in writing a constitution shred to pieces by the present parties themselves.
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UML FIRMON BUDGET UPDATE

Kathmandu, 29 April: UML central committee Friday decided to discuss with other parties an budget for fiscal year 2011/12 being presented one month ahead of normal parliamentary budget session ‘without affecting peace and constitution drafting’.
Prime Minister Jhalanath Khanal, who is also party chairman and leader of the parliamentary party said opposition to the budget was ‘technical’ and it will be resolved through discussion with other parties.
A meeting of the party politburo to discuss current issues will begin 5 June, the party said.

NC PARLIAMENTARY PARTY MEET ALSO OPPOSES EARLY BUDGET

Kathmandu, 29 April: NC parliamentary party protested government plans to present a budget at a meeting Friday.
The party will meet again 2 May to develop firms plans against the budget presentation the same day, Spokesman of the parliamentary party Nabindra Raj Joshi said,
‘The budget is being presented to draw attention away from the peace process and constitution drafting,” Joshi charged.,
The main opposition party will hold discussions with other parties to prepare concrete plans for opposition against the budget.
The parliamentary party met Friday as NC and 10 other parties presented protests separately to Prime Minister Jhalanath Khanal and Speaker Subash Nemwang protesting plans of UML and Maoists to present a budget for fiscal year 2011/12 one month ahead of he normal budget session.
NC has already collected support of 10 parties so far; but the coalition still doesn’t have a parliamentary majority.
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