Thursday, May 29, 2008

UN hails dawn of republic in Nepal

Hindustan Times, May 29, 2008

The dawn of a new republic in Nepal, ending its 239-year-old royal dynasty that had become a symbol of oppression, has been hailed by the UN, which called the event historic and urged for the speedy formation of a new government.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's office in New York issued a statement early Thursday congratulating the people of the new republic of Nepal for successfully holding the first meeting of its constituent assembly Wednesday and voting overwhelmingly to turn King Gyanendra into a commoner and ask him to vacate the royal palace in 15 days.

"The people of Nepal have clearly spoken for peace and change through the April 10 assembly election," the statement said. "The secretary-general encourages all parties to continue working in a cooperative manner and to form a new government as soon as possible."

Ban's special representative for Nepal Ian Martin, who attended the near-midnight proclamation of republic Wednesday, called the meet an achievement and said the UN was proud to have assisted in the election of the "most inclusive body Nepal has yet known".

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