Nepal's third king in four days received the royal Shah dynasty crown and was enthroned yesterday amid rioting outside the stone courtyard of a centuries-old, intricately carved palace.
The pageantry was marred as thousands of youths protesting across the city, demanding an explanation for the bloodbath that put Gyanendra, brother of slain King Bidendra, on the throne.
Two people were killed and 19 injured during confrontation between police and angry residents.
PHOTO: REUTERS
Thousands of mostly young men marched, chanting "Dipendra is innocent" and "Punish the real murderers." Others yelled: "We don't want Gyanendra."
Many shouted that they did not believe that the former Crown Prince Dipendra, who was king while on life support for two days before he died yesterday, had carried out the shootings, as claimed by government sources. Others blamed the new king for the murders.
Police declared a 4pm to 5am curfew after an emotionless Gyanendra became the king of Nepal, following the death of his nephew Dipendra.
Hundreds of soldiers, police and armed riot police stood guard across the city as a royal entourage marched through the streets, with King Gyanendra in a wooden chariot drawn by cavalry soldiers atop six horses.
Thousands of people lined the route, from the ancient Hanumandhoka Palace, where Gyanendra became king, to the Narayanhiti Palace, the royal residence where nine royals were shot dead on Friday night.
Few cheered or raised slogans hailing the new king. Most stared in silence as the horses trotted by and did not even raise their folded hands in the traditional Hindu greeting of respect.
Nepali people say King Gyanendra's image cannot match up to that of his older brother. Public opinion is also stacking up against him due to frustration over the secrecy surrounding the killings and rumors about who might be involved.
Protesters carrying placards or shouting slogans were pushed back by armed riot police in several side streets leading to the route of the entourage.
"We are not feeling good, but we respect the monarchy," said Rajkumar Srestha, a teacher who had tears in his eyes as he walked toward the Narayanhiti Palace minutes after the king rode in.
CLOSURES: Several forest recreation areas have been closed as a precaution, while some ferry and flight services have been suspended or rescheduled A land warning for Tropical Storm Danas was issued last night at 8:30pm, as the storm’s outer bands began bringing heavy rain to southeastern regions, including Hualien and Taitung counties, and the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春半島), according to the Central Weather Administration (CWA). As of 9:15pm, the storm was approximately 330km west-southwest of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan proper’s southernmost tip, moving north-northeast at 10-20kph, the CWA reported. A sea warning had already been issued at 8:30am yesterday. The storm had maximum sustained winds near its center of 83kph, with gusts of up to 108kph, according to the CWA. As of 9:30pm last night, Kaohsiung, Tainan,
Taiwan yesterday said it was looking forward to attending an upcoming memorial in Japan to mark the 80th anniversary of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki, a day after the Japanese city said it had retracted its previous decision to not invite Taiwan to the event. The case has been dealt with by Taiwan’s representative office in Fukuoka and the Nagasaki City Government, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. The ministry would decide who to send to the Aug. 9 event once it receives the invitation, it added. The ministry made the remarks following a Japanese media report on Saturday that said Nagasaki Mayor
POWERFUL DETERRENT: Precision fire and dispersed deployment of units would allow Taiwanese artillery to inflict heavy casualties in an invasion, a researcher said The nation’s military has boosted its self-defense capability with the establishment of a new company equipped with the US-supplied High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS). The company, part of the army’s 58th Artillery Command, is Taiwan’s first HIMARS unit. Minister of National Defense Wellington Koo (顧立雄), who presided over the formation ceremony in Taichung on Friday, called the unit a significant addition to the nation’s defensive strength, saying it would help deter adversaries from starting a war. The unit is made up of top-performing soldiers who received training in the US, according to the Ministry of National Defense. The HIMARS can be equipped with
UNILATERAL: The move from China’s aviation authority comes despite a previous 2015 agreement that any changes to flight paths would be done by consensus The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) yesterday slammed Beijing for arbitrarily opening the M503 flight route’s W121 connecting path, saying that such unilateral conduct disrespected the consensus between both sides and could destabilize the Taiwan Strait and the wider region. The condemnation came after the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) earlier yesterday announced it “has activated the W121 connecting path of the M503 flight route,” meaning that west-to-east flights are now permitted along the path. The newly activated west-to-east route is intended to “alleviate the pressure caused by the increase of flights,” China’s state-run Xinhua news agency quoted China’s Taiwan Affairs Office
RSS