The Ballot and the Bullet
The Economist January 26, 2006/Banepa and Katmandu
A year after his coup, King Gyanendra does it again
IN MANY nasty dictatorships, people take to the streets to demand an election. In Nepal, they want to stop one. Popular demands differ, but dictators tend to react the same way. Before a big demonstration planned for Katmandu on January 20th, a curfew was imposed, armed soldiers patrolled the streets and hundreds of people, including political leaders, were detained without trial. King Gyanendra's security forces used the same tactics, including the cutting of mobile-phone connections, when he seized absolute power for himself on February 1st last year.
This year, the king's government lifted most restrictions after a weekend of street fighting in the capital, and freed some detainees. It offered talks to released politicians. But they were rejected, as an effort to divide and rule, and the government insisted the elections would go ahead. They are to be held on February 8th in 58 municipalities, covering 43 of Nepal's 75 districts. They are a first step in the king's professed plan to restore democracy, to be followed by national elections next year. This is an ambitious aim, since in most districts the government's writ barely extends beyond its headquarters. Most of the countryside is prey to intimidation and violence from Maoist insurgents.
More:http://www.economist.com/world/asia/displaystory.cfm?story_id=5447232
A year after his coup, King Gyanendra does it again
IN MANY nasty dictatorships, people take to the streets to demand an election. In Nepal, they want to stop one. Popular demands differ, but dictators tend to react the same way. Before a big demonstration planned for Katmandu on January 20th, a curfew was imposed, armed soldiers patrolled the streets and hundreds of people, including political leaders, were detained without trial. King Gyanendra's security forces used the same tactics, including the cutting of mobile-phone connections, when he seized absolute power for himself on February 1st last year.
This year, the king's government lifted most restrictions after a weekend of street fighting in the capital, and freed some detainees. It offered talks to released politicians. But they were rejected, as an effort to divide and rule, and the government insisted the elections would go ahead. They are to be held on February 8th in 58 municipalities, covering 43 of Nepal's 75 districts. They are a first step in the king's professed plan to restore democracy, to be followed by national elections next year. This is an ambitious aim, since in most districts the government's writ barely extends beyond its headquarters. Most of the countryside is prey to intimidation and violence from Maoist insurgents.
More:http://www.economist.com/world/asia/displaystory.cfm?story_id=5447232
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