No plans for elections in Nepal

The government of Nepal has said it will not restore multi-party democracy and allow elections until it has defeated Maoist rebels.
On Tuesday, King Gyanendra sacked the government, declared a state of emergency and imposed media censorship. He said he was forced to seize power as the previous government had failed to tackle the rebel uprising.

The army on Friday vowed to crush the Maoists who are attempting to overthrow the monarchy in the Himalayan state.

In an interview with AFP news agency, a senior minister in a new 10-man cabinet appointed by the king said elections would not be held until security was restored.

Elections on hold

"We have learnt the lessons after paying a heavy price, that without restoring peace and security, we cannot hold elections," said the state's new Foreign Minister, Ramesh Nath Pandey.

Political parties have said they plan to hold peaceful protests against the king's move.

Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba and other leaders have been put under house arrest.

In Geneva, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Louise Arbour, on Friday denounced widespread arrests of political leaders and trade unionists, and called for an end to their "arbitrary detention".

"Basic human rights cannot be suspended under any circumstances, not even in time of public emergency," Ms Arbour said in a statement.

Some 11,000 people have died since the Maoists began their insurgency in 1996.

Mr Pandey said he believed it would take three years to reach a stage where a multi-party democracy could be reintroduced.

"The concern of the international community is about the future of multi-party democracy in Nepal [...] the king's commitment to multi-party democracy is total," he said.

But until the insurgency is stopped, "multi-party democracy cannot come back on track," he added.

The rebels have turned down several calls to resume peace talks that were abandoned in late 2003.