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Nepalese media hit by crackdown
Nepal's media has been subjected to total censorship, as part of emergency measures announced by King Gyanendra.
Reports critical of the state of emergency declared on Tuesday have been banned for six months, according to a notice in the main daily newspaper.
Phone lines and internet links have been cut, so news of a three-day general strike called by Maoist rebels has not reached the general public.
The rebels have also rejected a request to return to the negotiating table.
The Maoists previously refused talks with the previous government, saying they needed a direct dialogue with the king, but have now condemned the crackdown.
The king's moves have been criticised by the UN, the US, the UK and rights groups, but he said he had to act as the government failed to protect Nepal from the Maoists.
Meanwhile, the US State Department has advised American citizens against travelling to Nepal, while not banning them outright:.
And a planned summit of South Asian leaders has been postponed, mainly because of Indian concerns at the developments.
Army on streets
King Gyanendra has sworn in a new cabinet which he will head himself.
The BBC's Charles Haviland in Kathmandu says the new measures are the most draconian taken by a Nepalese king since absolute monarchy ended in 1990.
Many basic rights have been suspended, including freedom of assembly, the right to privacy and the right against preventative detention.
Our correspondent says soldiers and police in riot gear are everywhere in Kathmandu, particularly near student campuses where protests tend to take place.
However, he says people have been saying they are too afraid to protest because so many fundamental rights have been suspended.
King Gyanendra on Tuesday placed Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba and members of his cabinet under house arrest.
There are reports that some opposition politicians have been arrested.
"The king is taking the country back to the Dark Ages," Shovakar Parajuli, leader of the opposition Congress Party, told the Associated Press news agency.
The country's new ministers, some of whom have served in previous governments, are mostly the king's close associates, our correspondent says.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/4231605.stm
Phone lines and internet links have been cut, so news of a three-day general strike called by Maoist rebels has not reached the general public.
The rebels have also rejected a request to return to the negotiating table.
The Maoists previously refused talks with the previous government, saying they needed a direct dialogue with the king, but have now condemned the crackdown.
The king's moves have been criticised by the UN, the US, the UK and rights groups, but he said he had to act as the government failed to protect Nepal from the Maoists.
Meanwhile, the US State Department has advised American citizens against travelling to Nepal, while not banning them outright:.
And a planned summit of South Asian leaders has been postponed, mainly because of Indian concerns at the developments.
Army on streets
King Gyanendra has sworn in a new cabinet which he will head himself.
The BBC's Charles Haviland in Kathmandu says the new measures are the most draconian taken by a Nepalese king since absolute monarchy ended in 1990.
Many basic rights have been suspended, including freedom of assembly, the right to privacy and the right against preventative detention.
Our correspondent says soldiers and police in riot gear are everywhere in Kathmandu, particularly near student campuses where protests tend to take place.
However, he says people have been saying they are too afraid to protest because so many fundamental rights have been suspended.
King Gyanendra on Tuesday placed Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba and members of his cabinet under house arrest.
There are reports that some opposition politicians have been arrested.
"The king is taking the country back to the Dark Ages," Shovakar Parajuli, leader of the opposition Congress Party, told the Associated Press news agency.
The country's new ministers, some of whom have served in previous governments, are mostly the king's close associates, our correspondent says.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/4231605.stm
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The office of the Himal Media group is nearly abandoned. The publishing house based in Nepal's capital, Kathmandu, produced two newspapers and two news magazines, until earlier this week. Papers and office clutter still litter the empty desks, signs of the reporting that used to take place here.
On Tuesday, King Gyanendra took control of the government, putting political leaders under house arrest and installing a new cabinet, which he says will rule for the next three years. Authorities also issued a notice forbidding newspapers from publishing articles critical of the king and government.
Rajendra Dahal, an editor of a bi-monthly news magazine put out by Himal Media, says the situation is almost hopeless.
"There are no legal ways out also," said Rajendra Dahal. "All doors are closed. So now we have just to confine within that notice and we have to censor ourselves. And if our censorship, our self-censorship, is not felt enough by the authorities, we are threatened, we are convicted, we are arrested. That's the thing, and some of our friends are already arrested."
King Gyanendra says he acted because Nepal's political parties had failed to organize elections and to stop a long-running conflict with Maoist insurgents in the countryside.
International communications to Kathmandu are cut off, as is most Internet access.
Still, some journalists and political activists are finding ways to express themselves.
Since the government takeover, several of Himal Media publications and some other independent newspapers have published editorials on archery, ballet dancing, and the importance of wearing clean socks. Those, Mr. Dahal says, are satire.
"That is also one way of protest, instead of royal address, writing editorials on tree felling, tree cutting, archery, ballet dance - that's also a demonstration of unsatisfaction, [and] protest," he said.
One of Himal Media's publications, the English language newspaper, the Nepali Times, published an editorial on how people should appreciate Nepal's fine weather, specifically, its sunny days. Another focused on the importance of saving trees.
Mr. Dahal points out the Nepalese Communist Party and the Nepali Congress Party opposed the king's actions. The party symbol for the Communists is the sun; for the Congress Party, it is a tree.
Newspaper publishers are not the only ones seeking other means to get their message out.
Sujata Koirala is a leader of the Nepali Congress party and the daughter of Nepal's former prime minister, Girija Prasad Koirala, who is one of the many political leaders under house arrest.
She says supporters of the former leader have smuggled out an audio cassette of a speech Mr. Koirala made after his arrest, which condemns the king's actions. It has been distributed across Nepal, to listeners eager for news.
"That cassette - we have made a lot of copies," she said. "We are sending everywhere. It's already distributed all over. Then they put that cassette on mic [microphone] and when the police come, they just run away. So the people there get very excited."
The international community has largely condemned King Gyanendra's actions, calling for the release of political leaders and the lifting of media restrictions. Mr. Dahal says that does not go far enough. He and other Nepalese journalists want the international community to cut off aid to the government and impose sanctions on Nepal. That, they believe, is the only way freedom of expression will return.
http://www.voanews.com/english/2005-02-05-voa13.cfm