Pokhara, September 12:

Speaker Subash Chandra Nembang today said the Maoists’ 22-point charter of demands is well-timed and this should be negotiated at a meeting of the eight political parties.

Addressing a press conference organised by the Federation of Nepalese Journalists-Kaski here, Nembang said, “It will be appropriate to decide on the 22 demands of the Maoists at a time when the constituent assembly election is knocking at the door.”

Saying that discussions among leaders of the eight parties on the demands have started, Nembang said, “We better arrive at a conclusion within a week.”

He underscored the need to resolve the issue through dialogue rather than an agitation in the streets. “Since the constituent assembly election is the eight parties’ main agenda, the Maoists should not demand that it be deferred,” he said, adding, “There is no alternative to it.”

He said that a five-member parliamentary team is touring the country to gather information about the people’s interest in the polls.

Saying that a House session will be convened shortly, he said, “It will take up issues related to the polls.”

He further said that security has been beefed up for the polls and claimed that incidents of murder and violence have gone down.

Also today, Nembang inaugurated the third seminar of indigenous communities being organised by the Asian Indigenous People’s Pact Foundation here. Addressing the function, he said social, political, cultural and economic development of the Janajatis, Madhesis, Dalits and other marginalised communities is possible only through a constitution to be drafted after the polls.

In the function, MP Bijay Subba accused the government of still ignoring the indigenous communities.

General secretary of the Nepal Indigenous Communities Women’s Federation, Soma Rai, said the four-day-long seminar will see discussions on political, social and cultural rights of the indigenous communities.

Forty representatives, including 35 from Malaysia, Indonesia, China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Thailand and Burma and five from Nepal are participating in the seminar.

The first and the second such conferences were held in Thailand and Malaysia respectively.