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US envoy presses King to respect human rights
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US envoy presses King to respect human rights
A top US official held talks with Nepal?s King Gyanendra yesterday to press the monarch to respect human rights and restore civil liberties suspended when he seized power three months ago.US Assistant Secretary of State for South Asia Christina Rocca met the king at his sprawling Narayantihy royal palace, in their first meeting since Gyanendra sacked the government, jailed politicians and imposed emergency rule on Feb. 1.
Although Gyanendra lifted the state of emergency on April 29, strict curbs remain on the media and on the right to hold protests. The king defends the measures as necessary to crush a Maoist insurgency in which more than 11,000 people have died. India and Britain suspended arms supplies to Nepal in protest at the king?s move, but on Tuesday New Delhi said it would release some military supplies already in the pipeline.
Washington has welcomed the lifting of emergency rule but urged Gyanendra to restore civil liberties, free political leaders and work with squabbling political parties to fight the Maoists who it says threaten stability in South Asia.On Tuesday Rocca warned aid-dependent Nepal to respect human rights in its battle against the Maoists or risk losing American money. ?We will continue to stress this message to the king and to all political forces,? she said.
Details on what was discussed at Wednesday?s meeting were not immediately available but Rocca was expected to hold a news conference later in the day. US economic assistance rose to $ 42 million in 2004 from $ 24 million two years ago, while Washington has also provided an additional $ 22 million in military aid in the past four years.
On Monday, hundreds of Maoist rebels stormed a security base in eastern Nepal. The army said it killed at least 37 Maoist rebels and lost four policemen and soldiers in the clash.In February, Gyanendra told foreign ambassadors he needed 100 days to create a ?road map? to restore democracy, a deadline that ends yesterday.
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