| |
KATHMANDU : Nepalese troops and police maintained armed escorts for trucks carrying supplies to the capital despite a decision by Maoist rebels to call off a nationwide transport blockade.
The rebels Saturday called off the 14-day blockade staged to protest at King Gyanendra's seizure of power at the start of the month.
The Maoists cancelled the protest after it slowed traffic to a trickle, sent food prices soaring and caused hardship for families in one of the world's poorest countries.
But the Maoist supremo Prachanda, or the "Fierce One", warned of a countrywide general strike next month unless the king reverses his power grab.
Security personnel were seen at a key checkpoint escorting vehicles in and out of Kathmandu Sunday.
"More than 400 vehicles left the Kathmandu valley escorted by security personnel Sunday morning," a police officer said Sunday at the Nagdhunga checkpost, 14 kilometres (nine miles) south of the capital. "Around 25 have came in."
"Escorting will continue as we cannot totally trust the rebels who said they have called off their blockade call," the police officer said.
An army official at the Gajuri checkpoint, 54 kilometres (34 miles) west of the capital also said armed convoys were continuing.
"The escorting of vehicles by security personnel will continue until further notice comes from our office," he said. "None of the vehicles has been allowed to operate without escorts."
No incidents of violence or barriers such as trees and boulders in the road have been reported since the Maoists called off the blockade, the army official said.
The action was enforced mainly through fear of rebel reprisals rather than through a show of force. But police said a bus driver was killed and nine passengers hurt on Monday last week when rebels opened fire on a convoy in western Nepal.
"There are no obstacles on the roads and the situation is gradually returning to normalcy," the army official said.
Owners of truck companies welcomed the move.
"The withdrawal of the strike has come as a relief to the transport operators and we hope the blockade will not be repeated," said Hira Udas, president of the Nepal National Transport Syndicate Organization.
Armed convoys had escorted trucks and buses in and out of Kathmandu since the blockade began on February 13.
The Maoists have been waging an increasingly deadly battle for a communist republic since 1996 and the insurgency has claimed more than 11,000 lives.
In a widely condemned move, King Gyanendra declared emergency rule -- including press censorship -- and sacked the government on February 1 for what he said was its failure to deal with the insurgency.
Gyanendra has promised to restore peace and democracy in the kingdom in three years. He has also offered unconditional peace talks with the rebels, who have denounced him as the "great betrayer."
- AFP
|
