Madhesi resume strike in southern Nepal

Mar 6, 2007, 7:15 GMT

Kathmandu - The ethnic Madhesi People's Rights Forum (MPRF) Tuesday resumed strikes in more than two dozen districts in southern Nepal, saying the government had not created an 'atmosphere for talks,' officials said.

   On Monday, the MPRF, in a statement, accused the government of not being serious in February talks and said its strike will be 'peaceful.'

    The first day of the general strike Tuesday closed schools, businesses and markets in at least a dozen districts where the ethnic Madhesi community are a majority.

The MPRF, whose key demands for federal structure of governance and proportional representation in the electoral system were met by the government in February, has put the resignation of the home minister as a precondition for talks.

The group says it holds Home Minister Krishna Prasad Situala morally responsible for the deaths of at least 25 people during violent protests in January and early February.

    Officials in the Nepalese capital Kathmandu said security had been beefed up along the major highways to protect transport operating in defiance of the strike in the Nepalese plains know as Terai.

    The Terai region has been under virtual standstill for the past two weeks due to strike calls by various groups.

On Monday, trade unions affiliated with the major political parties said they would defy the strike as it was affecting the people as well as the economy.

Nepal's fertile southern plains is a narrow strip of land bordering India that produces much of Nepal's food grains and is important for Nepal's economy.

MPRF says despite the region's importance, the Madhesi community has been discriminated by successive governments in Kathmandu and wants more of a share in the country's decision-making.