"His father is the acting secretary of Nepal United Marxist Leninist, one of the parties that brought democracy to Nepal in 1990, Chitrakar said. He is taking the place of the general secretary who is currently under house arrest." A Nepali student at Ithaca College claims that his father, .... Chitrakar, is the acting secratary (general) of UML. I thought Jhalnath Khanal had replaced Makune. Who's this Chitrakar fellow? Never heard of him. http://www.ithaca.edu/ithacan/articles/0502/17/news/2nepalese_.htm Nepalese students react to takeover By Alexander Norelli / Staff Writer February 17, 2005 On Feb. 1, freshman Nirbhik Chitrakar received an e-mail that shocked him. Chitrakar read the message from a friend that the king of his home country of Nepal disbanded his congress and assumed the role of an absolute monarch. King Gyanendra took complete control of the landlocked nation, sandwiched between India and China, and appointed a 10-member cabinet to replace the former governmental body. Chitrakar?s first thoughts were of the safety of his family back home. ?I couldn?t talk to my family, and I didn?t know if they were well or if anything had happened to them, especially because my dad is a politician, and I read somewhere that all the politicians were getting house arrested or arrested,? Chitrakar said. His father is the acting secretary of Nepal United Marxist Leninist, one of the parties that brought democracy to Nepal in 1990, Chitrakar said. He is taking the place of the general secretary who is currently under house arrest. Exactly one week after the king dissolved the congress, Chitrakar finally heard from his family. Chitrakar?s father has been hiding underground, but his mother was able to contact him. ?[My dad] did send me an e-mail though,? Chitrakar said. ?I replied, but he hasn?t replied since.? Communication between Chitrakar and his family is possible, and he has been talking to them every few days. However, the content of his conversations with his mother is limited. ?They say that all the phones may be tapped so no one is willing to talk on the phone,? he said. One Ithaca College student, junior Ryan Mauk, is studying abroad in Nepal this semester. His journey was at first disrupted by the political upheaval. Mauk?s plane, which was to arrive in the capital of Kathmandu on Feb. 1, turned back to Bangkok, Thailand due to the closing of the airport 20 minutes from the plane?s scheduled arrival. He was able to arrive safely in Nepal the following day. Mauk could not be reached directly. However, his parents said he is fine and has sent them several e-mails. ?I was very upset,? said Judy Mauk, Ryan?s mother and an employee in The Bookstore. ?Luckily before the phone and e- mail lines were opened Ryan went to the American embassy and hand-wrote a note to us which the embassy was able to e-mail to us since their lines were not affected,? she said. King Gyanendra assumed power of Nepal in 2001, when his older brother was assassinated. King Birendra, the former leader, held power during a time when multiple political parties and free elections were allowed. But since his death, life in the country is increasingly different under the rule of his brother, Gyanendra. One of the reasons for Gyanendra?s removal of the congress, he has stated, is because the body?s poor performance in dealing with the rebels who wish to install a communist government. The Maoists are a communist insurgency that has been plaguing the country since 1990, when Birenda took power and was then forced by a pro-democracy movement to allow free elections. Gyanendra has stated that his cabinet will try to reestablish multi-party democracy in Nepal within three years, according to the U.S. Department of State?s Web site. ?Democracy has been basically suspended,? Chitrakar said. Sophomore Adhish Rajkarnikar, who is also from Nepal, heard about the events through the BBC Web site. ?I wasn?t sure what happened, because I just heard that all communications were down,? he said. Rajkarnikar contacted Chitrakar to find out more information about the situation in their country. Rajkarnikar talked to his parents recently, and they told him that things are peaceful, but there is still a lot of tension and uncertainty. ?I try to be hopeful,? Rajkarnikar said. ?But at the moment I can?t be certain of anything.? Rights such as freedom of the press and speech are being withheld from the Nepalese people, and there have been many arrests of those who may be seen as a threat. ?Many, many, many reporters have been arrested, and some have even been, in quotations ?disappeared,?? Chitrakar said. ?That disappearing has pretty much been the case since the new king came to power.