[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 48 (Thursday, April 27, 2006)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3722-S3723]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  SENATE RESOLUTION 451--EXPRESSING THE SUPPORT OF THE SENATE FOR THE 
 RECONVENING OF THE PARLIAMENT OF NEPAL AND FOR AN IMMEDIATE, PEACEFUL 
                        TRANSITION TO DEMOCRACY

  Mr. LUGAR (for himself, Mr. Biden, Mr. Leahy, Mr. Hagel, Mr. Chafee, 
Mr. Kerry, Mrs. Feinstein, Mr. Coleman, and Mr. Sununu) submitted the 
following resolution; which was considered and agreed to:

                              S. Res. 451

       Whereas, in 1990, Nepal adopted a constitution that 
     enshrined multi-party democracy under a constitutional 
     monarchy, ending 3 decades of absolute monarchical rule;
       Whereas, since 1996, Maoist insurgents have waged a violent 
     campaign to replace the constitutional monarchy with a 
     communist republic, which has resulted in widespread human 
     rights violations by both sides and the loss of an estimated 
     12,000 lives;
       Whereas the Maoist insurgency grew out of the 
     radicalization and fragmentation of left wing parties 
     following Nepal's transition to democracy in 1990;
       Whereas, on June 1, 2001, King Birendra, Queen Aishwarya 
     and other members of the Royal family were murdered, leaving 
     the throne to the slain King's brother, the current King 
     Gyanendra;
       Whereas, in May 2002, in the face of increasing Maoist 
     violence, Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba dissolved the 
     Parliament of Nepal;
       Whereas, in October 2002, King Gyanendra dismissed Prime 
     Minister Deuba;
       Whereas, in June 2004, after the unsuccessful tenures of 2 
     additional palace-appointed prime ministers, King Gyanendra 
     reappointed Prime Minister Deuba and mandated that he hold 
     general elections by April 2005;
       Whereas, on February 1, 2005, King Gyanendra accused Nepali 
     political leaders of failing to solve the Maoist problem, 
     seized absolute control of Nepal by dismissing and detaining 
     Prime Minister Deuba and declaring a state of emergency, 
     temporarily shut down Nepal's communications, detained 
     hundreds of politicians and political workers, and limited 
     press and other constitutional freedoms;
       Whereas, in November 2005, the mainstream political parties 
     formed a seven-party alliance with the Maoists and agreed to 
     a 12 point agenda that called for a restructuring of the 
     government of Nepal to include an end to absolute monarchical 
     rule and the formation of an interim all-party government 
     with a view to holding elections for a constituent assembly 
     to rewrite the Constitution of Nepal;
       Whereas, since February 2005, King Gyanendra has 
     promulgated dozens of ordinances without parliamentary 
     process that violate basic freedoms of expression and 
     association, including the Election Code of Conduct that 
     seeks to limit media freedom in covering elections and the 
     Code of Conduct for Social Organizations that bars staff of 
     nongovernmental organizations from having political 
     affiliations;
       Whereas King Gyanendra ordered the arrest of hundreds of 
     political workers in January 2006 before holding municipal 
     elections on February 8, 2006, which the Department of State 
     characterized as ``a hollow attempt by the King to legitimize 
     his power'';
       Whereas the people of Nepal have been peacefully protesting 
     since April 6, 2006, in an attempt to restore the democratic 
     political process;
       Whereas on April 10, 2006, the Department of State declared 
     that King Gyanendra's February 2005 decision ``to impose 
     direct palace rule in Nepal has failed in every regard'' and 
     called on the King to restore democracy immediately and to 
     begin a dialogue with Nepal's political parties;
       Whereas King Gyanendra ordered a crackdown on the protests, 
     which has left at least 14 Nepali citizens dead and hundreds 
     injured by the security forces of Nepal;
       Whereas the people of Nepal are suffering hardship due to 
     food shortages and lack of sufficient medical care because of 
     the prevailing political crisis;
       Whereas King Gyanendra announced on April 21, 2006, that 
     the executive power of Nepal shall be returned to the people 
     and called on the seven-party alliance to name a new prime 
     minister to govern the country in accordance with the 1990 
     Constitution of Nepal;
       Whereas the seven-party alliance subsequently rejected King 
     Gyanendra's April 21, 2006 statement and called on him to 
     reinstate parliament and allow for the establishment of a 
     constituent assembly to draw up a new constitution;
       Whereas on April 24, 2006, King Gyanendra announced that he 
     would reinstate the Parliament of Nepal on April 28, 2006, 
     and apologized for the deaths and injuries that occurred 
     during the recent demonstrations, but did not address the 
     issue of constitutional revision;
       Whereas political party leaders have welcomed King 
     Gyanendra's April 24th announcement and stated that the first 
     action of the reconvened parliament will be the scheduling of 
     elections for a constituent assembly to redraft the 
     Constitution of Nepal.

[[Page S3723]]

       Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) expresses its support for the reconvening of the 
     Parliament of Nepal and for an immediate, peaceful transition 
     to democracy;
       (2) commends the desire of the people of Nepal for a 
     democratic system of government and expresses its support for 
     their right to protest peacefully in pursuit of this goal;
       (3) acknowledges the April 24, 2006 statement by King 
     Gyanendra regarding his intent to reinstate the Parliament of 
     Nepal;
       (4) urges the Palace, the political parties, and the 
     Maoists to immediately support a process that returns the 
     country to multi-party democracy and creates the conditions 
     for peace and stability in Nepal;
       (5) declares that the transition to democracy in Nepal must 
     be peaceful and that violence conducted by any party is 
     unacceptable and risks sending Nepal into a state of anarchy;
       (6) calls on security forces of Nepal to exercise maximum 
     restraint and to uphold the highest standards of conduct in 
     their response to the protests;
       (7) urges the immediate release of all political detainees 
     and the restoration of full civilian and political rights, 
     including freedom of association, expression, and assembly;
       (8) urges the Maoists to lay down their arms and to pursue 
     their goals through participation in a peaceful political 
     process; and
       (9) calls on the Government of the United States to work 
     closely with other governments, including the governments of 
     India, China, the United Kingdom, and the European Union, and 
     with the United Nations to ensure a common and coherent 
     international approach that helps to bring about an immediate 
     peaceful transition to democracy and to end the violent 
     insurgency in Nepal.

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