General Secretary of the UCPN (Maoist) Ram Bahadur Thapa has said that peace and constitution cannot be guaranteed until the oppressed minority ethnic groups including workers, farmers and women are empowered.

Addressing a training program organised for the party activists on Wednesday, he denied rumors that the Maoist party is on the verge of a split. Thapa termed the dispute and rift seen inside the party as just a part of the ongoing "ideological debate" and assured that it will not break up the party.

Thapa said that such ideological debate shows that there is internal democracy in the party, adding that it will further unite and strengthen the party.

Accusing the main opposition Nepali Congress of trying to delay the ongoing processes of peace and constitution drafting by creating problem on the issue of forms of governance in which the parties had already forged an agreement, the Maoist general secretary said that the party will firmly deal with this obstruction created by NC and CPN-UML in order to complete the important task of ensuring peace and constitution. He didn't elaborate

Around one thousand Maoist party activists from Kathmandu attended the training program imparted by general secretary Thapa, politburo members Hitman Shakya and Nawaraj Subedi and party central members, among others. nepalnews.com