 According to Reuters News Agency, the King of Nepal has pleaded from assistance from foreign nations in the coutry's battle with guerrila forces in the countryside.
(The photo at left is from the www.kathmandupost.com Web site and shows Arjun Narsingh K.C., spokesman of the Nepali congress, being arrested at the party office in Sanepa on Feb. 16. Photo: Chandra Shekhar Karki)
Since King Gyanendra took power by dissolveing the Nepal government back on February first, long-term allies India and Britain have canceled or suuspended aid packages that were to be used in battling the long-running insurgency. The US has also expressed concerns about the curtailing of press freedom in the nation. The Maoist revolt against the monarchy has reslted in thousands of dead.
India had been providing arms, trucks and helicopters to the Nepali army, while Britain suspended a planned $2.5 million aid package for vehicles and equipment.
The independent online Nepalnews.com quoted the king as saying, "We want our friends to help us by word and by deed. If that is not the agenda they want to go along with, then they should tell us what their agenda is. Are they telling us that we should not fight against terrorism, that we should put our democracy into jeopardy?"
In related developments, officials said guerrillas raided a local television station of state-owned television west of the capital city, Kathmandu. the razed the studios and made off with television cameras and broadcast equipment.
"The TV transmission in the area has been disrupted but no one was injured," an army officer told Reuters.
The King took power at the beginning of February, justifying his actions as being the only way to effectively the Maoists rebels, who have been battling the government in a nine-year conflict. The King's actions appear to have given momentum to the rebels, as they have now set up a nationwide roadblock to protest the power grab, preventing the transportation of food throughout much of the countryside.
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