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Nepal holds 1st municipal elections in over decade+(Japan Economic Newswire Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge)KATHMANDU, Feb. 8_(Kyodo) _ Nepalese voters headed warily to polling booths early Wednesday as a controversial municipal election kicked off, overshadowed by boycott calls by major political parties and fear of attacks by Maoist insurgents enforcing a general strike. Voters began casting their ballots at 8 a.m. at more than 1,000 polling stations in 22 administrative districts, and the polls were to stay open until 5 p.m. Though 1.4 million people are eligible to vote for 618 seats being contested by 1,682 candidates, voter turnout is expected to be low because of the boycott calls. The king-led government hopes the elections will help bring a measure of democracy in the violence-wreaked kingdom. On election eve Tuesday evening, top leaders of the major political parties made their final appeal to the people to stay away from the polls, saying the municipal elections would offer no solution to the political crisis facing the kingdom. The parties, which demand that King Gyanendra restore democracy, held gatherings Wednesday at various places in the capital to protest against the municipal elections, and police said a number of arrests were made. The last election for Nepal's 58 municipalities was in 1993. In October 2002, Nepal's parliamentary democracy came to a screeching halt with the king's sacking of an elected government. The constitutional monarch followed up in February 2005 by seizing executive power for himself, though he vowed to reactivate multiparty democracy within three years. In the capital Kathmandu, an elderly couple were the first to cast ballots at the Mahabouddha polling station. "I am only exercising my democratic rights," said Bhai Bajracharya, 86, as he emerged from the booth. His sister Sumati Bajracharya, 88, said she was scared to come to the polling station as she was worried about possible attacks and violence. The Maoist rebels have upped their attacks on government positions across the country, while the government has vowed to deal firmly with those trying to disrupt the elections. According to reports, rebels attacked the eastern town of Dhanakuta overnight, killing at least half a dozen government security personnel. Heavy security was in place at each of the over 100 polling centers in the capital, and the one at Mahaboudha was surrounded by more than a dozen armed soldiers. Home Minister Kamal Thapa said Tuesday evening he has given security personnel authority to shoot at troublemakers. |