Nepalese king offers to reinstate parliament to head off protests
It would appear that King Gyanendra is backing down in his face off with the people and that he is offering to reinstate the Parliament that he dissolved in May 2002, which was one of the main demands of the politicians.
He also for the first time acknowledged the loss of life suffered by his opponents who had taken to the streets despite the shoot to kill curfew he had imposed.
Last night members of the party alliance said they welcomed the king's move. "It is the victory of the people's movement," said Arjun Narsingh, a senior leader of the Nepali Congress, the country's largest political party. Within minutes crowds of young men took to the streets of the capital, shouting "This is a victory for the people".The king's move came after hours of diplomatic arm-twisting by western powers and Nepal's neighbour India. After the royal offer, one diplomat told the Guardian that there was now a "road map" for the restoration of democracy.
According to the source in Kathmandu, a national unity government would be created which would begin a peace process with the Maoist guerrillas. Then there would be a creation of a special assembly to write a new constitution that could limit or eliminate the monarchy.
Perhaps the outcome will be that Gyanendra remains a figurehead, rather like the British monarch, without any actual political power.
If he tries to demand any more than that, one gets the feeling that the protests would resume very quickly.
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