Nepalese in the UK demonstrate for complete democracy

 

Nepalese in the UK demonstrate for complete democracy
Press release
Down with Despot Monarchy:
Solidarity with Peaceful Movement for People’s Rights

We Nepalese living in Reading and other parts of the United Kingdom are appalled by the excessive force being used against peaceful protestors in Nepal demanding end of autocratic rule. The Seven Party Alliance (SPA) has been organising a series of peaceful political protests throughout Nepal since April 6, 2006 (originally for 4 days which is extended indefinitely) to press the unconstitutional government headed by King Gyanendra to restore democracy, freedom and human rights. The protest has already taken a form of popular movement as people from all walks of life have joined the programme. King Gyanendra and his puppets are becoming more and more heavy handed and are responsible for indiscriminate use of bullets and batons at peaceful demonstrations, arrests of thousands of protestors and torture and ill treatment to the detainees. To prevent peaceful protests, the royal government is planning to slap further prohibitive measures; more arrests of common citizens, student, political leaders, human rights defenders, professionals, and journalists and assaults over people’s right to the freedoms of speech, peaceful assembly and movement. The royal government must stop its atrocity now.

Ever since became king at 58 in 2001 after the massacre of then constitutional monarch Birendra and his family, Gyanendra has been taking a number of regressive moves in order to full his ulterior motive to be a dictatorial monarch. Eventually, on February 1, 2005, he did a coup d’état and took over absolute power. The king has been ruling the country by decrees and systematically violating the fundamental freedoms guaranteed by the Constitution of Nepal 1990, the provisions of international human rights treaties, and the agreement it signed last year with the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights. The royal government has also defied the call from the and its member governments for the immediate restoration of democratic rights and civil liberties and reconcile with democratic parties. Gyanendra has made Nepal a country of disarray, chaos and bloodbaths. This must end now. We strongly support the 12-point understanding signed by SPA and Maoists insurgents as we hope that this understanding will encourage Maoists to stop violence, seek peaceful settlement to the conflict and join the democratic mainstream. Nepalese currently living in the UK support the agreement, while putting pressure on all parties that they do not walk away from the agreement or betray people’s new trust in them.

We, the members of the Nepalese diaspora in the United Kingdom would like to denounce crime committed by illegitimate regime in Nepal committing atrocities throughout Nepal. We express our solidarity with the ongoing movement and urge the leaders of SPA not to stop the movement until the full democracy is achieved. We also urge international communities to exert strong measures over the autocratic regime of the king in order to stripe him off power and rest the sovereignty of the country on Nepalese people. End military crack down to peaceful protestors NOW!LONG LIVE PEOPLE’S POWER!In Solidarity with,Nepalese Alliance for

Democratic RepublicReading, United Kingdom

13 April 2006