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Nepal: Maoist affiliated student union submits its demands

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Maoist affiliated student union submits its demands to Prime Minister

Slogans painted on the walls at Bhrikuti Mandap by ANNISU-R.
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The Maoist affiliated student union, All Nepal National Independent Students Union-Revolutionary (ANNISU-R), has formally submitted its nine-point demand to the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) on Thursday and asked the government and the Maoists to express commitment to meet their demands before embarking on talks.

The demands include the disclosure of the whereabouts of its former general secretary Purna Poudel, former central committee members Bipin Bhandari, Nabin Rai, Dil Bahadur Rai, Kamal Pun, Janaki Chaudhary, Krishna Chaudhary, Katak Rai, Gyanendra Tripathee, Devhari Rijal, Nirdal Shah, Gokul Niroula, Dipendra Panta, C N Dhungana, Prakash Poudel and Sindhupalchowk district president Akhil Nepal.

Other demands put forth by the students' body include drafting of new Loktantrik (democratic) curricula, renaming of the educational institutions named after the kings, namely the Tribhuvan University, Mahendra Sanskrit University, Prithvi Narayan Campus, Mahendra Ratna, Ratna Rajya and Birendra Multiple Campuses.

The ANNISU-R also demanded that the statues of the kings and their family members be removed from colleges. The king should not be the chancellor of TU and Mahendra Sanskrit University, the nine-point demand states, adding that university councils should elect their chancellors.

Holding a press conference after submitting the memorandum to Prime Minister, president of ANNFSU-R, Lekhnath Neupane said, "Before opting for talks, both the parties — the government and the Maoists — should express commitment to meet these demands."

"We won't accept the talks if these demands are not addressed," he said, adding the Maoist-affiliated students' wing would launch another phase of people's movement if their demands were not met.

"The private education policy of the government should be scrapped. The government should take over the ownership of all such schools after providing compensation to the owners of private schools. As the process of taking over the schools may take time, fees should be reduced at the earliest and exploitation of teachers should be ended," the nine-point
demand states.

Neupane also demanded the immediate arrest of all the 'murderers' who killed the demonstrators during the people's movement and probe into the murders thereafter.

He also demanded that all the detained students affiliated to the ANNISU-R, including former vice-president Krishna KC, former general secretary Himal Sharma, Ratna Dhakal, Raj Kajee Maharjan, Aendra Bikram Begha, Ram Chandra Adhikary and Tara Bhandary be released, handing over of schools to the communities be stopped, all temporary teachers be made
permanent, school admission campaign be stopped and the government take over the ownership of all 10+2 colleges.

The student wing has established a contact office in Bagbazaar
following the government's decision to remove red-corner notice and terrorist tag of the Maoists. The student body also painted walls of various colleges with their slogans.

nepalnews.com pb May 12 06