Kathmandu, February 27:

Even as those representing the seven-party alliance concede that any controversial remark from the US ambassador on Nepal and its political problems should be free from paranoia, there are claims that the US policy towards Nepal has every element of elitism and, thus, likely to promote the interest of the elites here. “The foreign policy is determined by a number of factors. We must take note of the fact that (James F) Moriarty is a career diplomat who has a problem with those on the Left. Also consider the underlying elitist inclination which is in play,” said CK Lal, a veteran journalist and columnist. He was speaking at the Reporters’ Club today.

He said this by way of analysing the US policy towards Nepal based on the speech delivered by US envoy Moriarty on February 15 at a function organised by the Ganesh Man Singh Academy and co-sponsored by the USIS. Moriarty had, among other things, cautioned the alliance about the consequences of not cooperating with the monarch.

Lal also claimed that the US attitude towards the seven-party alliance in general and the Maoists in particular can be analysed against the backdrop of the professed need reinforced by Moriarty to the effect that the 12-point understanding be sabotaged.

Saying that NC-D leader Sher Bahadur Deuba appears to gain from the unfolding policy, he reinforced the view that the alliance should not go with the monarch, but should further consolidate rapport with the rebels keeping the fight peaceful. He conceded that the visit of US president George W Bush to India could affect Nepal in either way depending on the outcome of interaction between the US and India.

CPN-UML leader KP Oli insisted that “we must not miscontrue the random remarks of the envoy and that the relationship with the Maoists was based on the assumption that they are genuinely interested in fighting for a pluralist society.” He reinforced the claim that Maoists have in the 12-point pact expressed commitment to competitive politics. He, however, conceded that “further synchronisation of political mission was still the need of the day.”

Earlier, RJP co-Chairman, Dr Prakash Chandra Lohani, insisted that the 12-point pact cannot be expected to go far and that the alliance needs to be wary of the remarks coming from Dr Baburam Bhattarai that “Maoists cannot take consolation from bourgeois democracy.”