CPN MAOIST GENERAL CONVENTION TO GET UNDERWAY Kathmandu, 9 Jan.: CPN Maoist will launch its general convention from Open Air Theatre Wednesday after splitting from ruling UCPN Maoist seven month Ago. The party is expected to give continuity to the present leadership and the objectives of the people’s movement launched by the united party.. UCPN Maoist and other parties have been invited for the launch. Two thousand delegates re participating in the convention. Nnnn WEDNESDAY MORNING’S VALLEY TEMPERATURE -1/5 DEGREES CELSIUS Kathmandu, 9 Jan.: The minimum temperature in the capital Wednesday was -1.5 degrees Celsius. This year’s coldest winter was Tuesday when the mercury fell to -1.7 degrees Celsius. The current cold wave has hit the hills, Valley and the terai killing ay 41 persons. Crops have been damaged an internal flights affected because of poor visibility. Nnnn PM OPPOSES ARREST OF JOURNALIST KILLERS Kathmandu, 9 Jan.: UCPN (Maoist) has been exerting pressure on the police establishment not to take action against those involved in the murder of Dailekh based Journalist Dekendra Thapa some eight years ago, Govinda NC reports from Dailekh/. Of the five Maoist cadres arrested for involvement in Thapa´s murder, four are district-level leaders and cadres of the UCPN (Maoist) while one is now affiliated to the CPN-Maoist, a breakaway faction of the former. According to a source, the police are under intense pressure from the UCPN (Maoist) for the released of the accused. The accused were not taken to the office of the district attorney on Tuesday to record their statements. “All the five people arrested have already conceded that they were involved in murder and have also expressed willingness to face due punishment,” police said. The source preferring anonymity said that the District Attorney´s Office is also facing pressure from Attorney General´s Office for the release of the accused. Under pressure from rights activists and journalists, the police had recently arrested the five Maoist cadres for their involvement in Thapa´s murder. The five-day deadline provided by the court for investigation into the case is expiring on Wednesday. • PM dissatisfied at Thapa´s murderers arrest “Police and the District Attorney´s Office are under pressure from the higher ups not to proceed with the case,” said the source, adding, “Officers investigating into the case have been warned of dire consequences if they continue investigation into the case.” “Maoists have started issuing threats to journalists in the district,” said Bishnu Kumar Shahi, Dailekh district secretary of the Federation of Nepali Journalists (FNJ). “The top Maoist leaders have been piling pressure on the police to discontinue investigation,” said Shahi. Dailekh-based journalists on Tuesday staged a protest in front of the District Police Office. The journalists also organized a two-hour sit-in protesting the Maoist party´s pressure on administration to release the murder accused. Four of the accused are yet to record their statements even five days after the arrest. Police had arrested Laxmi Ram Gharti Magar of Dwari VDC-1, Dailekh, on Thursday, four years after Thapa´s wife Laxmi lodged a written complaint against the four district-level leaders and cadres of the UCPN (Maoist). Laxmi Ram has already recorded his statement with the police admitting his involvement in Thapa´s murder. On Friday, Police had arrested Jaya Bahadur Shahi, of Raniban-1 , Nirak Bahadur Gharti of Baluwatar-9 , Bir Bahadur KC of Baluwatar-7 and Harilal Pun of Dwari-3 , for their involvement in Thapa´s murder. Thapa, a journalist working for Radio Nepal, was abducted on June 26, 2004 by then Maoist rebels and was found dead on August 11. Nnnn AMBASSADOR CHALISE INTENSIFIES FFFORTS FOR RELEASE OF COL.. KUMAR LAMA Kathmandu, 9 Jan.: Nepali Ambassador to UK Suresh Chalise, who reached London after cutting short his holiday on Monday, has intensified diplomatic efforts to secure release of Nepal Army (NA) Colonel Kumar Lama, Republica reports. The envoy held separate meetings with Minister of State at the Foreign & Commonwealth Office Hugo Swire and head of Britain-Nepal All Parliamentary Party Group John Stanley on Tuesday and discussed on ways to secure release of Colonel Lama, according to Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) in Kathmandu. The envoy is also holding meeting with Minister of State for International Development Alan Duncan. Shortly after his arrival in London, Ambassador Chalise had met the family members of Colonel Lama and his lawyer to learn about the case. “Our envoy in the UK has already initiated diplomatic efforts. He has sought appointment with UK´s foreign office,” Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Narayan Kaji Shrestha said. Colonel Lama, who was serving at UN Mission in South Sudan as senior Military Liaison Officer, was arrested on Thursday over suspicion of his involvement in torturing detainees in 2005, when the Maoist insurgency was at its peak. MoFA has already handed over a ´protest note´ to the UK, protesting the arrest and demanding immediate release of Colonel Lama. Colonel Lama, who was denied bail, will be produced in Central Criminal Crown Court on January 24. He is charged with intentionally "inflicting severe pain or suffering" as a public official on two separate individuals. Nnnn