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| Sunday, 29 January 2006 |
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Nepali opposition to protest one year after king's takeover KATHMANDU, Jan 28 (AFP) Opposition parties in Nepal plan to mark the first anniversary of King Gyanendra's seizure of power next week with a "Black Day" of protests across the nation, a party spokesman said. King Gyanendra seized absolute power in the Himalayan nation on February 1, 2005, saying the move was in needed to quell a decade-old revolt by Maoists battling to overthrow the monarchy and install a communist state. But the takeover, which led to arrests of political activists and suspension of civil liberties, sparked international condemnation and triggered wide protests in the tiny nation wedged between India and China. "Marking the one-year anniversary of the royal takeover, the seven-party (opposition) alliance is going to observe February 1 as a 'Black Day' across the country" with protests, said Nepali Congress spokesman Krishna Prasad Sitaula. "The opposition alliance will rally from different parts of the Kathmandu Valley and converge on Durbar Square" in the centre of the capital, Sitaula added. In Nepal, waving black flags or wearing a black armband or headband is a way of registering protest. |
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