Read this analytical news from Reuters - ANALYSIS - Maoists an invisible hand in Nepal struggle KATHMANDU (Reuters) - Weeks of violent protests against Nepal's King Gyanendra are headed in name by a seven-party alliance, but the invisible hand of Maoist guerrillas, who control over a third of the countryside, is dominating the campaign. Analysts said the reason the parties rejected the king's offer on Friday to set up a government was the fear of alienating the hundreds of thousands who have staged violent anti-monarchy protests for over two weeks. And many of those appear to be Maoist supporters. "The king's move meets one important aspect - the end of autocratic rule," said Yubaraj Ghimire, editor of the local Samay weekly. "Why are the parties not accepting? I think they are a bit scared of the crowd because they are not in direct communication with the crowd." The parties have said the king has not addressed many of their demands - setting up a constituent assembly to frame a new constitution which will curb the monarch's powers and deciding how to bring the Maoists into the mainstream. But analysts say the parties don't need the king for any of this, they could do it all once they were in power. "They are not mustering the courage to say we will reinstate parliament, hold talks with the Maoists and announce formation of a constituent assembly," said Ghimire. Nepal's two main political parties -- the Nepali Congress and the Communist Party of Nepal (UML) -- shared power between 1990 and 2002. But their years in office were marked by internal squabbles and rising corruption - and the increasing influence of the Marxists. "My real concern is that the successor government may end up being dominated by the Maoists," U.S. Ambassador James Moriarty said last week. "The Maoists would under the current situation swing a lot of weight because they have the weapons and the parties do not." The Maoist insurgency began in 1996 and over 13,000 people have been killed. The guerrillas control large swathes of the countryside, have their own local government in places and are even building a 90-km road through the mountains. They collect taxes and run collective piggeries and fisheries. Gyanendra sacked the party-based government in 2002 and assumed full power last year, vowing to crush the Maoists. His moves only brought the rebels and Nepal's opposition closer. The insurgents now have a loose alliance with the seven parties and have said they will not conduct any armed operations in the Kathmandu valley to allow the anti-monarchy campaign to remain peaceful. BOOST THE MOVEMENT But they appear to have sent their supporters in to boost the movement. Local residents say many of those on the street have come from the countryside and they are the most aggressive of the protesters. "Indications are the Maoists may not have sent armed cadres here, but have encouraged people to come in large numbers," said Ghimire. Giant neighbour India, which is a battling a Maoist insurgency of its own, has been extremely worried about the guerrillas' growing influence. New Delhi exerted pressure on King Gyanendra to offer the parties executive power, and is now using its influence with the alliance to accept. So too are the European Union and the United States. Ghimire, the editor, said he expected the parties to form a government within the next few days. "You will have a fully empowered government with a sense of direction and purpose." But Ambassador Moriarty said: "The end-game has gotten very tricky. "For the parties it's going to be, how do they manage the Maoist part of the equation? Can they come up with a formula which brings them closer to the political mainstream without risking the political mainstream? "I do think that a new democratic government will have a better shot at it because they do have international support, and it will have genuine democracy." http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060423/india_nm/india246025