Mass+boycott+of+Nepal+elections+hits+king,+FT



=Mass boycott of Nepal elections hits king's hopes=


 * By Jo Johnson and Binod Bhattarai in Kathmandu**

Financial Times, London, February 9 2006 02:00 | Last updated: February 9 2006 02:00
A devastating boycott of Nepal's municipal elections last night dashed King Gyanendra's hopes of gaining a popular blessing for his seizure of power in a coup early last year.

An hour before polls closed, only 15-16 per cent of Kathmandu's registered electors had voted, according to provisional Election Commission statistics.

"The election was designed to strengthen the absolute monarchy and has been a total failure," said Krishna Sitaula, a spokesman for the Nepali Congress, traditionally the party of government. "It now shows a boycott of the king himself."

Shrish Shumsher J. B. Rana, the information minister, said that he remained confident turnout would reach an average of 30 per cent across the country. He said voters had been deterred by rumours of violence from Maoist rebels, who ended a four-month ceasefire in January.

Yesterday's turnout was sharply down on previous elections. In the last parliamentary contest in 1999 it reached 66 per cent, against 62 per cent in the last local election in 1997, according to the Election Commission.

Armoured vehicles patrol-led the capital, which has been shut for business since the Maoists ordered a week-long national strike.

A combination of Maoist threats and an election boycott by a seven-party alliance resulted in a complete absence of candidates for55 per cent of the 4,000local government posts at stake.

With another 30 per cent of posts having only one candidate, voters had a choice in just 15 per cent of the seats - contributing to the lack of interest and low turnout.

The king pressed ahead with the vote in the belief that it would legitimise his coup against a multi-party government, justifying the move by pointing to the failure of Nepal's parties to create a secure environment for elections.

Although the boycott by the parties has deprived these elections of much legitimacy, it has left the field clear for the king to put his supporters in positions of influenceacross the country.

The Maoists, who aim to turn Nepal into a socialist state, formed a loose alliance last November with the seven main parties to seek an election for a constituent assembly that would draw up a new constitution. Ministers say that the holding of elections after a 10-year insurgency is itself an achievement. No international groups are monitoring the elections.

Security forces killed one party worker during an anti-election protest and one Maoist rebel in an otherwise peaceful day that defied predictions of widespread clashes and bloodshed.

India, the US, the EU and the UN have expressed concern at the king's arrest of some 800 politicians and rights activists in the past month, and have called on the palace to talk to the parties.

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 * From: http://news.ft.com/cms/s/51a245bc-9912-11da-aa99-0000779e2340.html