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Journalism of Courage
Thousands of Nepalis protested in a southern business town today against a plan to turn Nepal into a secular state. Over 5,000 people burned tyres and logs, and blocked roads in Birgunj, about 150 km south of Kathmandu, resident Shiva Patel said. They were protesting over a plan approved by Parliament last week to turn Nepal, the world8217;s only Hindu kingdom, into a secular state.
Shouting Jay Shree Ram! Lord Ram is great!, demonstrators obliged shops to pull down shutters and forced vehicles off the streets, local journalist Govind Devkota said from the town on the Indian border.
8216;8216;They are demanding Nepal be declared a Hindu nation,8217;8217;Devkota said. 8216;8216;It8217;s peaceful so far, but could turn violent.8217;8217; About 80 per cent of Nepal8217;s 26 million people are Hindus and 11 per cent Buddhists.
Meanwhile laying the ground for substantive talks with the Maoists, Nepal8217;s interim government has named two ministers to hold preliminary talks with the rebels, official sources said. Minister for Tourism and Civil Aviation Pradip Gyawali of CPN-UML and Minister of State for Labour and Transport Management Ramesh Lekhak of NC Democratic have been included in the talk team, a senior minister said.
The team will be lead by Home Minister Krishna Situala. However, the government is yet to formally announce the talk team. The talk team members have been announced a day after chief Maoist negotiator Krishna Bahadur Mahara stressed on the need to initiate a dialogue with the government at the earliest to resolve the 10-year-long armed conflict.
Mahara, who is in Kathmandu leading a three member preparatory talks team, yesterday met with Nepal Communist Party-UML general secretary Madhav Kumar Nepal and senior politburo member Amrit Bohara.
During the meeting, the two sides expressed concern over the delay in initiating the talks. 8216;8216;We discussed ways to creating conducive atmosphere for talks and regarding procedures to move ahead the dialogue process,8217;8217; Bohara said, adding, 8216;8216;any delay in the dialogue process would give chance to sabotage the peace8217;8217;.
