Reporting by the BBC and comments by other foreign government representatives from the US, UK and India after King Gyanendra's declaration of emergency has been and still is, inaccurate and uninformed. The depth of ignorance about Nepal is amazing. King Gyanendra acted within the constitution (it wasn't a 'coup') by dismissing the 'government' because of the abysmal state Nepal was in due to the said government and the Maoists who have been declared terrorists. Nepal may have appeared to the outside world to be a democracy but, in practice, it never has been. For many people there is no such thing as a free and independent vote as they are coerced by their employers, the political party workers, fellow students or by bribes, into voting for a particular party. As for the 'elected' governments since 1990, the ministers have grown exceedingly rich by misappropriating huge amounts of foreign aid etc, which was intended to be used for the development of Nepal and to improve the lives of its citizens. This blatant corruption within the government may have initially made the Maoist insurgents but after 10 years the Nepali people are suffering from the actions of the Maoists in every respect. The whole country is being crippled by the Maoist road blockades and bandas. Is it surprising that King Gyanendra took the steps he did to try to save his country and his people from further abuse and devastation? The reactions of the US, UK and India are hypocrtical and the international media's reporting after February First is flawed.

Joan Winstanley Norwich,
UK