Maoists in Nepal to embrace capitalism

By Binod Bhattarai in Kathmandu

Published: April 16 2008 18:54 | Last updated: April 16 2008 18:54

Nepal’s Maoists, poised to win a clear majority in the country’s constituent assembly, will work with other parties to set up a federal democratic republic with a capitalist economy, a party leader told the Financial Times on Wednesday.

“We are fully committed to building a good coalition with other political forces,” said Baburam Bhattarai, who as a member of the central secretariat of the Communist party of Nepal (Maoist) is seen as the group’s number two leader and a likely candidate to be prime minister.

“Our understanding is that the [constituent assembly’s] main function is to draft a new constitution,” he said in an interview. “For that, we would need political consensus [and] we will have to work with other political forces.”

As of Wednesday, reported results gave the CPN (M) 119 of 239 directly elected district seats, with results yet to come in from about 20 more.

Voting has been put off in one, following the murder of a candidate.

The Maoists were also well positioned for a large share of 335 seats to be awarded on a proportional basis. The assembly will have 26 members appointed by the government.

Candidates from the current prime minister’s Nepali Congress party had won in 32 districts and the other large Communist party, the UML, had won in 30.

A new regional party representing the restive Terai southern plains was in fourth place.

“Our immediate agenda is not to build socialism, but to build a strong economic foundation . . . to develop industrial capitalism, to abolish all remnants of feudalism,” said Mr Bhattarai, who is an architect by training.

He said the next government’s main challenge would be to prevent “reactionary forces” from creating instability, and meeting popular expectations for rapid economic development.

Almost 30 per cent of Nepal’s 27m people live in absolute poverty or on less than $1 a day.

The Maoist leader said his party would welcome both domestic and foreign investors.

“There will be full scope for the private sector and nothing will be nationalised or socialised,” he said. “There is no reason to panic.”

Mr Bhattarai said his party was convening a meeting on Wednesday with businessmen and industrialists.