AFP. 18 January 2002. Powell lends moral support, little else to Nepal in fighting rebels.
KATHMANDU -- US Secretary of State Colin Powell on Friday gave sympathy and moral support to Nepal in its struggle against Maoist rebels but was unable to promise concrete aid to either the counter-insurgency effort or the country's ailing economy. In addition, Powell urged the cash-strapped government to quickly end a state of emergency imposed after a surge in rebel activity in November and ensure respect human rights while it remains in place. "We fully acknowlege the government of Nepal's right to protect its citizens and institutions from terrorist attacks," Powell said at a news conference after a meeting and dinner with Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuda. "However, we hope that the current state of emegency will be of limited duration and we encourage the elected government to focus on protecting human rights while dealing with this emergency," he said. A senior official travelling with Powell said the secretary was referring to harassment and detention of journalists as well as the closure of some publications. Powell said the subject of military assistance had not come up in his meeting with Deuda or an earlier audience with King Gyanendra but noted he was to meet with Nepalese defense officials on Saturday before he departs for Japan. Nepal is one of the world's poorest countries. Earlier this week, the king approved hikes in taxes and custom duties of up to 50 percent to raise two billion rupees (26.13 million dollars) of an extra five billion rupees Kathmandu wants to finance the fight against the Maoist insurgents. But the senior US official said the Nepalese had not asked for cash to support the military operation but rather for development funding for education and health care, the lack of which has fomented interest in the rebellion. Washington now provides Nepal with 23 million dollars in such assistance per year -- roughly one dollar per person [!] -- and the official said there was a possibility of increasing that amount by "several million" dollars. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Barry Stoller http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ProletarianNews
