PHA-Exchange> Please exhert Pressure for Ceasefire

[Mathura P Shrestha]

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Civil Society for Peace

P.O.Box No.7768

Tel.:-4781212

E-mail:nfn at ntc.net.np

Dear All

It is painful to share this information that people of Nepal continue to experience too many killings, often indiscriminate and extrajudiciary, too many atrocities, violence, torture and even rape. Both state party and Maoists are at their sleeves to fight to finish each other even though they are aware that military solution is impossible. Both Maoists and government's security personnel succumbed to their intents of deep mistrust among each other, militaristic attitude and intolerance. But far too many innocent civilians are caught up in their conflict. The nine-day ceasefire during Dasain festival declared by the Maoist was welcome move for all. Despite the skirmishes and casualty both sides on the first and the last day of the ceasefire remained largely intact without incident even though the Government did not reciprocated by similar declaration. We therefore demand that:

  1.. the present ceasefire be extended at least to the Tihar festival (Up to 28 )October). We demand that either the state party or the Maoist declare unilaterally and other party positively reciprocate with commitment to cease all types armed operations, arrests, abductions or conflict related violence of all types.
  2.. both parties should start initiatives immediately to establish active and two-way communication systems and be actively engaged to continue the ceasefire indefinitely. We demand that they take serious initiatives to hold dialogue for mediation and conflict resolution without making each other loose face.
  3.. both conflicting parties be engaged with serious commitment and action plans to address all root causes of the conflict and work for honorable conflict transformation and overall betterment of the lives of people and development.
  4.. the state party to assure human rights of the civilians according to the international treaties and declarations of which that has become party to.
  5.. state party shed all anti democracy overtures and come back to the process of parliamentary democracy and reinstatement of hijacked constitution immediately so that political treatment for the conflict resolution will be eased.
  6.. international  arms supply and trade in countries in armed conflict should totally be stopped as the arms acquired by these parties by whatever means are used against the innocent civilians, and to perpetuate human rights violations of all types and descriptions.
  7.. all civil societies should continue to exert pressures for the development of peace and to eliminate gun culture or culture of violent or forced subjugation.
We appeal all concerned - nationally and internationally -to be in active solidarity exert a strong moral and social or even economic pressure on both - the government of Nepal and the Maoists. We believe that organized voice is far stronger and more effective than guns, bombs and other hypes of war machine.

Please support us by writing letters to the concerned authorities and Nepalese Embassy in the respective countries.

Professor Mathura P. Shrestha, MD
President, Civil Society for Peace, and President, Physicians for Social Responsibility Nepal (PSRN).
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