Chulachuli (Ilam), December 19, 2006

Calling the government’s move to appoint ambassadors to 14 world capitals a violation of the agreement reached between the government and the Maoists, thousands of People’s Liberation Army (PLA) fighters, carrying arms, came out of the camps they were put up in and staged demonstrations against the government today.

PLA personnel from the main camp at Chulachuli in Ilam came out with their weapons this morning and staged a demonstration demanding the government withdraw the move, annul the appointment of NHRC chairman, call the VDC secretaries back from villages and remove the recently re-established police posts.

Assistant Commander of Maoists’ first division Pawel said the PLA men left the camp as a symbolic protest against government’s violation of the agreement with the Maoists. He added that the Maoist army wouldn’t return to camps until their demands were met.

Altogether 3,500 PLA personnel, including 800 PLA men of the main cantonment camp of Chulachuli and the rest of other sub-camps, left the camps, Pawel said.

Maoist first division secretary Naresh said they would stay in locals’ houses until a decision is taken on their demands. The locals of Chulachuli joined the demonstration. They urged the government to provide electricity, drinking water and other infrastructure in Chulachuli.

The rallyists staged a sit-in for two hours after reaching the local camp management office situated at Kerkha in Jhapa.

According to our Biratnagarbased correspondent, around 1,900 PLA personnel putting up in two sub-camps of Morang left the camps this afternoon.

Jal manager held with banned currency

A police team at the Tribuvan International Airport (TIA) yesterday arrested a Pakistani and an American with banned currency notes and dollars, police said today.

Hasnain Alam, 35, (passport number AF 1755541), the manager of the Pakistani music band Jal, was arrested with INR 1,012,000 of 500 and 1,000 dominations.

The cash was found during a regular check at the departure section of the airport. Alam was accompanied by five band members all Pakistani nationals and was scheduled to board a Jet Airlines plane to New Delhi at around 2:15 pm, police said.

“Though the currency itself is not illegal, we arrested him because the dominations of 500 and 1,000 notes are banned here,” Prakash Kunwar, the Senior Superintendent of Police at the TIA, said.

Alam told the police that they had made the money from performances in India and Nepal. Also in the evening yesterday, police arrested Steven Lewis Ehrlich, an American, with $81,480 in cash and travellers’ cheques amounting to $25,400.

Steven was scheduled to board a Qatar airlines flight to Doha.