Nepal Protests Continue; 4 Wounded

Police shot and wounded four pro-democracy protesters Saturday in a suburb of Katmandu and arrested dozens of people in raids on homes to quell mushrooming demands for political freedom in the Himalayan kingdom.

Despite the early morning police crackdown in Patan, about 7,000 demonstrators spilled into the streets in the afternoon for a second rally, and organizers vowed not to be intimidated by the killing Friday of two pro-democracy activists.

Since Feb. 18, a democracy movement has tried to break King Birendra’s hold on power. The movement has led to thousands of arrests, at least 16 deaths and paralyzing strikes by professionals, students and others.

There has been little direct criticism of the king, which would be a criminal offense, but the movement appears to be broadening.

Two people were killed and 10 wounded in Patan on Friday when police fired on protesters demanding an end to Nepal’s 29-year ban on political parties. Hours later, Foreign Minister Shailendra Kumar Upadhyaya resigned from the bitterly divided government to protest the government’s handling of the protests.

Hundreds of townspeople took to the streets Saturday morning to protest the killings.