On 9 January 2013, the Communist Party of Nepal - Maoist (CPN-M) held the inaugural ceremony of its 7th general convention at 1 pm at the Open theatre in Tundikhel, Kathmandu. Many Nepali leaders and foreign delegates from countries such as China and USA attended the ceremony. Speeches were given to encourage and motivate the party's members and supporters. This is the photo report by Nepali Times journalist Cindrey Liu.

Martyrs
A police officer and a volunteer stand guard in front of a wall pasted with photographs of Maoist rebels who had disappeared during the civil war.
Party Popper
A volunteer gets ready with his party popper before the start of the convention.
Media on the front
Leaders and foreign delegates on the stage observe one minute of silence in respect for martyrs of the insurgency. The media covered the convention from beginning to end.
People in line edited
Leaders and foreign delegates raise their hands as they recite the communist pledge.
Marching soldiers
Cadres dressed in fatigues march on stage during one of the performances.
Animated Speech
Matrika Yadav, one of the CPN-M leaders, rouses the crowd with his animated speech.
People laughing edited
People in the crowd laugh as the speaker cracks a joke.
Chairman Speaks
Mohan Baidya, chairman of CPN-M, addresses the crowd.
Paparazzi
A photographer climbs onto the roof of a building to get a better shot of the entire crowd. Thousands of people turned up for the event.
Historic(al)
A typographical error on the banner is corrected using red tape.
Happy Birthday
Balloons on the stage commemorate the party's 7th convention.

The closed session of the convention, held nearly after 21 years, will go on until 13 January 2013. Leaders will deliberate on the CPN-M's future policies, which can determine whether there will be conflict or peace in the nation.