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Strike empties nepal roads Original Source Link: (May no longer be active)
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Strike Empties Nepal Roads, Rebels Reject Talks
Sat Feb 12, 2005 08:42 AM ET
By Sanjeev Miglani
KHANIKHOLA, Nepal (Reuters) - Nepal's Maoist rebels rejected peace talks with the new government and began an indefinite blockade across the landlocked Himalayan kingdom on Saturday to oppose King Gyanendra's assumption of power.
The Maoist rebels, trying to topple the monarchy, appealed to political parties and citizens to launch a resistance movement against Gyanendra after he sacked the government, detained top political leaders and suspended civil liberties.
Rebel chief Prachanda rejected any possibility of talks with the government headed by the king, a day after the interior ministry said it was willing to discuss all demands including a constituent assembly to decide the future of the monarchy.
"Gyanendra has pushed the country into darkness ... there is no justification for immediate talks," the elusive leader said in a statement sent to Nepali media.
He urged the international community to stop aid to Nepal because of the autocratic rule of the king. Nepal, among the world's 10 poorest nations, is heavily dependent on aid.
Saturday was the first day of what the rebels said was an indefinite blockade and transport strike to coincide with the ninth anniversary of their revolt, in which more than 11,000 people have been killed.
TRICKLE OF VEHICLES
Until noon, barely 20 vehicles had entered hill-ringed Kathmandu from the Nagdhunga checkpoint on the main highway linking the capital with India.
Officials at the checkpoint said thousands of vehicles, many bringing in oil and food supplies, normally enter through the heavily guarded entry point.
"It is down to a trickle compared to what we usually get," said police officer Basudev Thapa.
The king's decision this month to take absolute power has prompted protests from many countries.
India, which has its own Maoist rebels in the states on the border of Nepal, fears the move will fuel the Nepali rebellion.
Diplomats worry Nepal could descend into anarchy and become a haven for international militants or drug traffickers.
Last August the Maoists imposed a successful week-long blockade on Kathmandu, relying on threats rather than physical action. The blockade stoked a fuel shortage and prices of essential goods jumped.
Officials say Kathmandu, a city of 1.5 million people, currently has two weeks of oil and enough food to last a month.
Soldiers and armed police patrolled deserted mountain highways on foot, checking the few buses and cars on the road running past terraced fields beneath snow-capped mountains.
Traffic also came to a halt in Nepalgunj, a major commercial town in a Maoist heartland in western Nepal following the call for a blockade.
At the farming village of Khanikhola, around 25 km (16 miles) from Kathmandu, two army trucks escorted a few buses and cars that had ventured out despite the Maoist call.
"I hope there will be no trouble. There are enough soldiers to escort us," said motorist Tilak Dhakal, who was traveling to his home town to collect documents for his passport.
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