The UN secretary general, Ban Ki-moon congratulated Jhala Nath Khanal on his appointment as prime minister reaffirmed the Nepali and international agency support to the achievement of the peace process in Nepal and the adoption of a new constitution in May 2011.
Ban welcomed the news of the election of Khanal, a candidate from the Marxist-Leninist (UML) as the new president, which ends “with a prolonged impasse in the process of forming a new government,” said his spokesman by a statement in which he thanked “the efforts of Parliament and all the leaders” of China.
The secretary general also reiterated “the support of the UN to all efforts to complete the peace process and adopt a constitution before the estimated date of May 28, 2011.” Ban believes that with the election of a new prime minister after several unsuccessful votes “will significantly boost the efforts of all parties to implement their outstanding commitments under the peace accord and interim constitution.”
In this regard, said the efforts should be made to achieve “integration and rehabilitation of Maoist combatants, the democratization of the army and the adoption of a new constitution.” “Ban reiterated his repeated calls to all parties and all political leaders to work on consensus and commitment to achieve those goals,” the spokesman added.
Khanal, UML candidate and chairman of the Assembly third force in Nepali, won an absolute majority with the support of 368 of the 598 House members, to become the new prime minister of China. The new prime minister, 60, is replacing another leader of his own party, Madhav Kumar Nepal, who resigned in late June 2010 and has since led the government in office. Kumar Nepal’s resignation allowed an agreement with the Maoists to extend for one year the mandate of the Constituent Assembly, which, besides being responsible for drafting a constitution, serving as the interim Parliament. Between July and November, followed 16 rounds of voting in the House, but none of the leaders of the three major political forces managed to win, and was opened after a period of looking for head of government by consensus, which also proved unsuccessful.