Maoists call for strike across schools
In the latest chaos, Maoist supporters call for strike at schools across Nepal, affecting 5.4 million students in 38,757 schools.
Maoist rebel supporters vowed today to shut down all schools across Nepal in the latest chaos for the Himalayan kingdom.
The pro-Maoist All Nepal National Independent Students' Union-Revolutionary in a statement called an indefinite strike from June six to demand the government fulfill an agreement last year to bring down tuition fees at private schools.
The strike would affect 5.4 million students at 38,757 schools across the kingdom, according to an Education Ministry official. Universities would not be affected.
Students have been at the forefront of nearly two months of protests in Kathmandu against the monarchy sponsored by opposition parties, which have received moral support from but are not affiliated with the Maoists.
The rebels took up arms in 1996 to turn the Hindu kingdom into a secular communist republic. More than 9,500 people have died in the fighting and the rebels control vast sections of the countryside.