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Katmandu Protests: 11/13/05
Citizens Demonstrate Solidarity Against Monarchy
By the Collective Campaign for Peace
Katmandu, November 13, 2005- While King Gyanendra was participating in the 13th South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) Summit in Dhaka, thousands of Nepalese citizens, including representatives from civil society, student unions, and political party leaders, took to the streets to express their desire for democracy in a Citizens’ Solidarity Demonstration.
The rally was fueled by a recent media ordinance issued by the autocratic national government that undermines freedom of the press and citizens’ right to information.
In addition to the large turnout, the event featured speeches and performances by prominent Nepalese activists and artists, articulating opposition to the media ordinance and the regime of King Gyanendra.
The rally began in Tripureshwor with a rendition of the song “We Shall Overcome,” slogan chanting, and a speech by Bishnu Nisthuri.
In New Baneshwor, the rally took the form of a rather large citizens’ meeting. Raghu Mainali from Save the Independent Radio Movement, Govinda Acharya from the Differently Abled Struggle Coordination Committee for Loktantra, Bhupati Dhakal from the Professional Alliance for Peace and Democracy, Madhu Ghimire; Shyam Shrestha from Citizens Movement for Democracy and Peace, Sambhu Thapa from the Nepal Bar Association, and Madhu Ghimire also delivered speeches. Inspiring songs were performed by Ramesh Rayan and Ram Krishna Lal, and the recitation of a sarcastic poem by Arujun Parajuli and Dr. Benju Sharma was well-received by the crowd.
The Citizens Movement for Democracy and Peace, the Federation of Nepali Journalists (FNJ), and Save the Independent Radio Movement asked all pro-democracy citizens to take part in the demonstrations.
"Let's unite for freedom of press and expression and let's denounce media ordinance!” declared the protestors as they demonstrated in support of Loktantra, the Nepali word for democracy. With the approval of those gathered, the location was symbolically named “Loktantra Chowk.”
-COCAP Human Rights Monitoring Team
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