SCHEDULED MAOIST CENTRAL COMMITTEE MEET AGAIN POSTPONED

SCHEDULED MAOIST CENTRAL COMMITTEE MEET AGAIN POSTPONED

Kathmandu, 22 Dec.: A Maoist central committee scheduled
for Friday has again been postponed by one day until Saturday citing incomplete home work.
Central committee where Chairman Prachanda .doesn’t have a majority has been repeatedly postponed following differences in the party that have openly surfaced.
Differences are both ideological and strategic
Leaders are openly talking of a split.
Party chief is busy preparing his political report to the committee.
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Kathmandu, 22 Dec.: Details of discussions between Army Chief Gen
Chatraman Singh Gurung and President Dr. Ram Baran Yadav weren’t
immediately available..
Army Chief Gen. Gurung held consultations with Prime Minister Baburam
Bhattarai Wednesday before the consultations with th president Thursday..
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PACHANDA SUB-COMMITTEE MEET INCONCLUSIVE AFTER
DIFFERENCES SURFACE IN MAOIST CAMP

Kathmandu, 22 Dec.: A Prachanda sub-committee to sort out differences on themes to be included in a delayed constitution to be promulgated by 28 May began a
meet Thursday morning.
The meeting was inconclusive and will assemble again Saturday/
The sub-committee has to sort out differences on 11themes before a 30
December deadline to enable the main constitution drafting committee headed by Nilamba Acharya to prepare a first draft of a basic ;law for circulation.
Differences surfaced at the Acharya committee Wednesday on agreed themes at the sub-committee to proceed with drafting articles in a constitution.
Dissidents in UCPN (Maoist) brought out disagreements sent back to the sub-committee.
Differences will have to be sent to the constitution assembly for majority voting of there’s no agreement by 30 December or another eight days.
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MORE DETAILS OF NATIONAL DAY

Kathmandu, 22 Dec.: Cabinet’s political committee chaired by Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai decided to observe Jesth 15 coinciding with republic day as a national day.
After political upheaval and change five years, the country had no national day.
Falgun7 was previously observed as national day.
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MEDIA GOOGLE

‘There’d now no role. It was there with hoinour when I was first VDC
chairman I feel ashamed to say I’m’ a minister without portfolio.’

(Minister Without Portfolio Ram Lal Yadav announcing plans to resign, Annapurna Post, 22 Dec.)
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GOVT. WOOS PAKISTANI FAMILY TO SAVE A NEPALI LIFE IN
SAUDI ARABIA
Kathmandu, 22 Dec.: The Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Wednesday asked its Islamabad and Riyadh based missions to reach out to the family of Mohammad Latish Wasir, a Pakistani national who was accidentally killed by a Nepali national in Saudi Arabia in 2006 and accept the blood money offered by the Nepali side, The Kathmandu Post writes.

Wasir was killed by a Nepali national, Umesh Yadav (31), in 2006 during a minor brawl between them. Yadav, a native of Dhausha, was convicted of murder and sentenced to death by a Saudi court. He is languishing in a local, Jubail jail, since five years.
The Nepali mission in Riyadh has already requested the Saudi authorities to either pardon Yadav (if possible) or put off his execution for the time being.
The decision to this effect was taken during a meeting chaired by Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Narayan Kaji Shrestha on Wednesday, where Secretary of Labour and Transport Management, Ram Hari Aryal, and Director General of Department of Labour, Purna Chandra Bhattarai, were also present.
“We just want to save his life. So we have instructed our two missions to reach out to the family of Wasir to accept the blood money to be offered by the Nepali side. Once our officials will hold talks with the Wasir family, they will request them to save the life of Yadav on a humanitarian ground and extend pardon,” said a joint-secretary who participated in the meeting.
According to the Saudi law, if the deceased family accepts the clemency plea and makes a court request, the court would consider execution and sentence to life in prison.
With the instructions, the Islamabad based Nepal Embassy would directly hold talks with Wasir family and the Nepali mission in Riyadh will also make a similar request to the Pakistani mission.
In a bid to save the life of Yadav, the Nepali mission in Riyadh has already reached out to the brother of Wasir who personally does not want to wrangle over the case, said officials. The only problem, according to officials, is Wasir’s wife who has already married with another person after his untimely death. “The Nepal’s Embassy in Pakistan is now searching her and will talk to her about the request to accept the blood money,” said officials.
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DELAYED INTEGRATION, RETIREMENT BREEDING GROUPISM IN FORMER PLA RANKS
Kathmandu, 22 Dec The delay in starting the process of integration and voluntary retirement of the categorized Maoist combatants has started to affect the otherwise harmonious relations among the combatants in different cantonments, Gajendra Bohara writes in Republica
from Dang.

Combatants from different cantonments in Rolpa and Dang told Republica that they have seen groupism between those opting for integration and those for voluntary retirement following the completion of the categorization three weeks ago.

The combatants said the delay has posed challenges in maintaining discipline and chain of command in the cantonments. The combatants who have opted for retirement have grown indifferent toward their military life inside the cantonments and have started declining responsibilities. Such combatants have also stopped wearing military uniform, saying they are going to give up military life once and for all.

“They [those opting for voluntary retirement] do not participate in regular exercise. Nor do they carry out assigned duties, saying they would retire soon,” said Bikash Malla, a combatant at the Fifth Division in Rolpa, “They sleep until 8 am.” Though the categorization was completed almost three weeks ago, the process of integration and voluntary retirement is yet to start. The internal conflict within the UCPN (Maoist) has been blamed for the delay though Nepali Congress and CPN-UML have pressed the Maoists to start both the process as soon as possible.

The Special Committee meeting, which is supposed to take a decision on the matter, has not met since last Friday though it was to be convened Sunday.
In addition, the combatants opting for integration despise those who are going to take voluntary retirement, according to combatants who have chosen voluntary retirement.

“They despise us,” said vice commander Ram Lal Roka Pun, who has opted for retirement. “They call us cowards.”

According to Pun, those opting for voluntary retirement are in touch with their commanders in other cantonments to form an alliance and chart out their future move.
Pun said in some cantonments the combatants opting for integration and voluntary retirement have been kept separately.

Combatants from both the categories said they are holding consultations to exert pressure on the Maoist leadership to immediately begin the process of integration and voluntary retirement.

“We are holding discussions to demand an end to our cantoned life immediately. We are desperately waiting to bid farewell but we have been confined in the cantonments due to indecision,” Malla said.
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