Nepal Maoists disapprove of Nobel for German author

Kathmandu, Oct 9 (Inditop.com) Nepal’s former Maoist guerrillas have denounced the award of the 2009 Nobel Prize in literature to German author Herta Mueller by the Swedish Academy Thursday, saying it reflected the institution’s growing bias towards the communists.

The 56-year-old ethnic Romanian writer experienced persecution and censorship under the repressive Nicolae Caeusescu regime in Romania and her writing focuses on living in a dictatorship steeped in corruption and intolerance.

“An anti-communist gets the Nobel Literature Award,” Maoist mouthpiece Janadisha daily said Friday commenting on the award.

“In the past too, Nobel prizes were awarded to people who are against the communist philosophy and movement,” the daily said.

“Some people have rejected the Nobel prize in condemnation of the Swedish Academy’s anti-communist bias.”

The Swedish Academy’s decision Friday to nominate US President Barack Obama for the 2009 Nobel Peace prize would also sting the former guerrillas.

Even though the Maoists ended their insurgency three years ago and led the government for eight months after winning an election, the Obama government has still kept them on its watch list of terror organisations.