Nepal peace talks jinxed?

The jinx on a crucial round of peace negotiations between Nepal's government and the Maoist guerrillas, scheduled to be held Thursday after a hiatus of three months, continued with the government deferring it first to Friday and then, next month.

Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala sent Home Minister Krishna Prasad Sitaula and his nephew, Shekhar Koirala, an influential member of the Nepali Congress party, to convey to the Maoist leaders that the talks were postponed as the last rites of Gopal Rai, minister of state for forest and soil conservation, and 23 other people killed in a tragic chopper crash last week, including top officials and conservationists, were to be held on Thursday.

With Thursday being the last working day before Nepal goes on a long holiday to celebrate Dashain, its biggest festival that continues till October, the meeting was rescheduled for Friday.

Frustrated by the deferment, the Maoist guerrillas charged the government with delaying the vital round of negotiations on various pretexts.

"It is evident that the government is not sincere about holding talks and implementing the mandate given to it by the popular stir that put it in power," Maoist spokesperson and former legislator Krishna Bahadur Mahara said.

"The talks might not be held even on Friday," Mahara told the local media. "The government could ditch us again."

The rebels say the delay is part of a conspiracy between King Gyanendra, who was stripped of power in April by a mass uprising, and royalists in the seven-party alliance to scuttle the peace parleys that aim at abolishing monarchy.

Even the allies of the Koirala government said the government has been putting off the decisive round of talks since it has not been able to reach an understanding among the coalition partners on vital issues. These include the fate of the king and whether the Maoists should be allowed to join the government without laying down arms.

However, in a surprise development, Maoist chief Prachanda Thursday went to the prime minister's residence for a long discussion, after which it was decided that the stalled talks would be held on Oct 8.

The two sides locked horns on the two key issues in June, after the third round of negotiations was held, resulting in a stalemate for three months during which the rift between the two widened and the rebels even threatening to walk out of the peace talks.

Nepal has been reeling under the communist insurgency since 1996 during which over 13,000 people were killed, thousands were displaced and the economy was reduced to shambles.

Nepal, among one of the poorest in the world, received a ray of hope this year when the political parties and the Maoist rebels united to jointly oppose the king, who had grabbed power through a bloodless coup, and both sides declared a ceasefire with the king's ouster.

However, though fresh peace talks progressed and the warring sides asked the UN for help in facilitating the peace process, the negotiations have been languishing since then.sud/rs (IANS)

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