“O nce interim government is formed, there would not be separate militaries of the state and the Maoists; the talks team would also go, everything will have to be dissolved. All these things have to be settled beforehand.”
K.P. Oli, deputy prime minister and foreign minister, addressing a program of Unified Marxist Leninist (UML) party in Pokhara.
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“T his is not acceptable to us. We will not decommission till the final settlement of political issues.”
Krishna Bahadur Mahara , spokesperson of the Maoists, criticizing the content of the letter sent by the government to the UN in which the latter has been asked to ensure that “Nepalese Army remains within barracks” and monitor “decommissioning of arms of Maoists’ People’s Liberation Army.”
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“T he three accords will help address the major issues.”
Speaker Subas Nemwang , urging the government and the Maoists to sign ceasefire, peace, and human rights accord, after the parliamentary committee formed to monitor the dialogue process made public the letter sent by the government to the UN.
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“T hey are keen to join the political system, but if they come up with unrealistic demands, the peace process will break down.”
Neena Gill , head of the delegation of EU parliamentarians who recently visited Nepal, stating that the Maoists must lay down arms before going to the CA elections, in The Himalayan Times daily reports.
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“D o only 16 refugees seem to be suffering and victimized in the eyes of UNHCR and the government?”
Tek Nath Rijal , leader of the Bhutanese refugees, criticizing efforts to resettle select refugees to Canada, in Kantipur daily.
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“B ecause the war has intensified, anything can happen to anyone there. So, the government should not delay in rescuing them.”
Lok Bahadur Thapa , a Nepalese worker who has returned from Lebanon after he was rescued by Indian government, talking to reporters about the hazards to the workers in war-torn Lebanon , in Nepal Samacharpatra daily.
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“A ll the noodle industries have ceased distributing noodles since the budget announcement. The stock in market would not last more than a week.”
Rabindra Shrestha , chief executive of Himalayan Snacks and Noodles Pvt Ltd, informing that instant noodle-makers have decided to pull down the shutters in their factories to protest the budget decision to increase tax and impose excise duty on their products.
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Transition
POSTPONED: The second round of the summit talks between seven party leaders and Maoist leaders, which was scheduled for July 21.
REVOKED : The regulation that made it mandatory for pillion riders, too, to wear safety helmet, by the traffic police.
SWORN IN: Chief of Army Staff, Nepalese Army, General Pyara Jung Thapa and the heads of constitutional bodies, at the Parliament Secretariat office, by the Speaker of the House of Representatives Subas Nemwang, as per the House of Representative declaration.
INJURED: Sushil Koirala , Nepali Congress vice president, in an accident.
ARRIVED: Judy Cheng-Hopkins , Assistant High Commissioner at the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), on an assessment mission to take stock of the situation of Bhutanese refugees.
LEFT : The five-member delegation of European Union parliamentarians led by Neena Gill, after completing a brief visit to the country.
