Maoists unveil CA polls manifesto for ‘New Nepal’

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Kantipur Report

KATHMANDU, March 7 - The CPN-Maoist party Friday unveiled its Constituent Assembly (CA) elections manifesto with the slogan ‘New Ideology and Leadership for New Nepal’.

The Maoists also publicized its ‘Commitment Paper’ during a press conference in the capital today.

Presenting the CA polls manifesto, Maoist Chairman Prachanda said that the party’s manifesto has addressed the spirit of its decade long people’s war.

He also said that the manifesto had put the dream of a New Nepal seen during the time of war itself into words.

The manifesto also focuses on state restructuring to build a new Nepal.

Maoist Manifesto Draft Committee Coordinator Dr Baburam Bhattarai informed that over one thousand people provided suggestions while the manifesto was being drafted.

He informed that a new constitution had outlined the need for a sovereign and people-based federal democratic republican system.

Saying that restructuring the state into a federal system should be done on the basis of ethnicity and regional autonomy with right to self-determination, Bhattarai added that the 11 federal states and two sub-regions as outlined by the party was its example.

The 39-page long manifesto is divided into four parts.

The manifesto, which covers most of the points of the interim constitution, further states that the president will be elected from the first-past-the post electoral system and the prime minister will be elected through the parliament.

The Maoists had forwarded a new transitional economic policy with medium level development in the next 10 years, high level growth in 20 years and ultra-high level development in the country in 40 years.

The manifesto states that the growth in agriculture, tourism, water resources and hydroelectricity, physical infrastructure and urbanization will be accelerated.

The party has also proposed to provide relief and suitable packages to the families of those killed in the war and to those injured and disappeared during the period.

In the last section of the manifesto, the party has claimed that Maoist Chairman Prachanda should be elected as the first president of a New Nepal.

Posted on: 2008-03-07 04:21:57 (Server Time)

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Nepali CPN-M unveils election manifesto
KATHMANDU

The Communist Party of Nepal ( Maoist) (CPN-M) unveiled its election manifesto on Friday, reinforcing its commitment to restructuring the state to establish a "federal democratic republican" system.

In its 39-page "commitment paper", CPN-M has proposed for 11 autonomous provinces with right to self-determination in the country. Delineation of federal units will be based on ethnicity and geography, the manifesto says.

Likewise, the party manifesto seeks to replace the "centralized feudal system" of governance by federal democratic republican order which will have a president elected with popular vote and a prime minister nominated by the parliament, local leading news website Nepalnews.com reported.

The CPN-M has proposed for bicameral parliament.

The manifesto says the first meeting of the Constituent Assembly (CA) should appoint an interim President and a new transitional government.

It says the party will go for "industrial capitalism geared towards socialism" and that the party has a policy to promote public-private partnership.

In what appears to be an ambitious development plan, the CPN-M manifesto says 10,000 MW (megawatt) hydroelectricity will be generated in the next 10 years, and drinking water will be made available to the entire population within five years.

The party has set another major target: ending illiteracy in five years. The manifesto also suggests that basic health care be available to everybody if the party makes it to the power.

Republican Nepal will be a secular state with self-sufficient economy while the country's relation with India and China will be based on Panchasheel (Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence), the manifesto says.

In the manifesto, the CPN-M has expressed commitment to respecting internationally accepted human rights laws and guaranteeing fundamental rights of the citizens.

The CPN-M signed the Comprehensive Peace Accord with the Seven- party Alliance government in November 2006, ending decade-long insurgency. It entered the Interim Parliament in January 2007 and joined the Interim Government in last April.

The Constituent Assembly, to be formed through the April 10 CA elections, is to decide Nepal's future political set-up and the fate of the monarchy.
March 7, 2008

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