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Nepal's Politicians Live Life on the Run
By TIM SULLIVAN
Associated Press Writer
KATMANDU, Nepal (AP) - The gates to the party headquarters are locked, the offices empty. But around back, a party official gestures to a group of visitors to follow him, and drives a few blocks away on his motorcycle. He stops along a busy road, hoping no one will notice him amid the clamor of Katmandu's morning traffic.
"I'm just in and out," said Shovakar Parajuli, who risked arrest for his quick trip Wednesday to the office of the Nepali Congress party, the country's main opposition group, slipping in for a few sheets of party stationery.
He'd been on the run since the day before, when King Gyanendra declared a state of emergency and ousted the government, saying it had failed to bring Nepal's growing Maoist revolt under control. Parajuli now avoids his house and office, stays with friends and moves around the city constantly, dodging police sweeps.
This is what passes for political activity now in Nepal, where all the phones lines are cut, soldiers oversee newspaper newsrooms and most political activists are either in jail or have gone underground.
The upheaval has neighboring India worried that an unstable Nepal could cause regional turmoil, with refugees or militants spilling across the border.
"The king is taking the country back to the Dark Ages," said Parajuli, an intense man who is _ he thinks _ the highest ranking member of his party still able to work. "We don't even know how many of our people have been arrested." He estimated at least 50 party leaders had been rounded up.
He wants to organize a protest against the king, but with the phone lines down and so many people under arrest, he has spent all his time simply trying to stay out of jail and keep in touch with colleagues.
"I don't mind getting arrested, but somebody has to coordinate," he said.
Technically, political activity remains legal in Nepal. But the draconian legal measures ordered by the king and the swift deployment of security forces, has frozen the political scene. The measures include suspending constitutional provisions protecting freedom of speech and public assembly, and outlawing preventive detention.
The turmoil threatens the stability of a nation where some of the world's worst poverty exists alongside some of its most spectacular scenery. The Arkansas-sized country of 25 million people is home to eight of the planet's 14 highest peaks, including Mt. Everest, and is a premier destination for trekkers and mountaineers.
In neighboring India, already dealing with a decades-long dispute with Pakistan, the concerns go far beyond tourism.
A statement Tuesday by India's foreign ministry called the king's actions "a cause of grave concern." On Wednesday, a clearly frustrated Indian foreign secretary, Shyam Saran, complained that New Delhi officials could only reach their embassy in Katmandu by satellite telephone.
"We are unable to really make a comprehensive assessment of the situation in the absence of communication," he told reporters.
Even in Katmandu, few people had a full assessment.
On Wednesday, it was hard to find a politician operating openly: Ousted Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba was in his house under armed guard and the offices of the Nepali Congress were locked down. At the headquarters of the United Marxist Leninist Communist Party, a caretaker said the building was empty and at the home of the party's leader, Madap Kumar, at least a half-dozen soldiers were making sure no one visited him.
It was only at the sprawling royal palace, behind high walls, that politicians worked in peace.
Gyanendra swore in a 10-member cabinet on Wednesday, with himself as its head. Later, officials said the new government would try to bring the rebels back to the peace table.
"The king has the chief executive authority now, so it will be easier for the rebels to come," Home Minister Dan Bahadur Shahi said on state radio.
The rebels, who say they are inspired by Mao Zedong, the Chinese communist founding father, control much of rural Nepal. They broke off peace talks in August 2003 and balked at invitations from Deuba's now-ousted government to restart talks, insisting real authority remained in the king's hands.
Most of the new ministers are fierce supporters of the king, who came to power in 2001 after his brother, King Birendra, was gunned down in a palace massacre apparently committed by Birendra's son, the crown prince, who also died.
"The king has expressed confidence that everyone will support and cooperate with the new Cabinet," the palace said Wednesday.
That's not likely.
This country has become increasingly cynical about both politics and royalty since a popular "People's Movement" revolt forced the absolute monarchy to allow multiparty democracy in 1990. While opinion polls indicate the country supports the idea of democracy, relentless inter-party squabbling and government inability to deal with the rebellion means few parties get widespread support.
And while many Nepalese, particularly in rural areas, still see the king as an incarnation of a Hindu god, Gyanendra has never been popular.
Not that anyone is talking openly about his unpopularity these days.
Soldiers have been deployed to a number of newspapers to oversee what gets in print.
"We have not been able to publish what we're writing," one prominent editor said on condition of anonymity. "Instead, we're just giving the government version."
Or they're not talking about politics at all.
In the newspaper Kantipur, normally one of the most vibrant outlets for government criticism, most of the opinion page was filled with a transcript of the king's Tuesday speech.
The rest was taken up by an editorial calling for the protection of archaeological sites.
