Maoist-Led Strikes Endanger Nepal’s Peace Process, Parties Say

Two days of strikes have paralyzed the capital, Kathmandu, and other parts of the Himalayan nation, closing schools, government offices, shops and factories, Nepalnews.com reported. More protests are planned for today.

The Nepali Congress, a member of the coalition government, is ready to resolve the political deadlock in parliament, central committee member Man Mohan Bhattarai said yesterday as parties gathered in Kathmandu to discuss the unrest, according to the report.

The Unified Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) called the three-day strike to demonstrate against President Ram Baran Yadav, whom they accuse of acting unconstitutionally by overturning the previous government’s decision to fire the army chief. Strikes are choking the $9 billion economy as the nation tries to recover from a decade of civil war.

“This is our peaceful protest but if the government tries to suppress it, we will retaliate,” Maoist official Baburam Bhattarai told a gathering in Kathmandu, Agence France-Presse reported. “We are ready to withdraw our protest if our demand is addressed. Otherwise, we will be compelled to announce a next phase of protests.”