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Coalition leaders express 'ignorance' over TADO In what is seen as an interesting development, top leaders of the ruling coalition parties have expressed `ignorance' over recent amendment in the anti-terrorist law.
General secretary of major coalition partner, CPN UML, Madhav Kumar Nepal, said that his party was not consulted before revising the Terrorism and Disruptive Activities (Control and Punishment) Ordinance, also known as TADO. "The issue should have been taken up in the 'Multiparty Democratic Coordination Committee' (high-command of the coalition partners) before making such an important change," Nepal told reporters at the tea reception organised by Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba in the capital Thursday. "Since it is a coalition government, no one has the authority to take such a decision without consulting allies," he added. Chairman of the Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP) Pashuptai Shumsher Rana, too, expressed ignorance about the controversial TADO provision. When asked about his party's views, Rana told reporters Thursday that he had not read the amended ordinance yet. Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba, who was standing near the RPP leader during the tea reception, interrupted reporters and said, "It was the government's decision." He did not elaborate. Interestingly, deputy prime minister and UML leader, Bharat Mohan Adhikary, did not want to comment on the issue. "Let's not talk about this issue. The council of ministers has revised the ordinance. Let's not talk about details," he told reporters who had thronged the tea reception at the Birendra International Convention Center (BICC) Thursday. Section 9 of the TADO, re-promulgated on October 13, authorizes security officials to put anybody they suspect could indulge in terrorist activities under preventive detention for up to one year without trial. Earlier, this period was limited to 90 days only. nepalnews.com by Oct 29 04 Related
News Govt. can withdraw the TADO provision : Experts As domestic and international pressure is mounting upon the royal-appointed government to withdraw controversial provision in the recently amended anti-terrorist law, experts say the government can withdraw it any time if it wants to do so. Advocate Bhimarjun Acharya, who teaches at Nepal Law Campus, said that once promulgated an ordinance acquires status equivalent to law. "Hence, it can be amended in the same way as a law is amended," he said. His Majesty the King can amend the ordinance upon the recommendation of the council of ministers, he said. Constitutional lawyer, Purna Man Shakya, opined that the government will have to promulgate the new ordinance in order to replace the existing one. "The provision of keeping an individual under preventive detention without judicial review for up to one year is quite high handed," Shakya told Nepalnews. "There should be a provision of extra-judicial check and balance in the law to ensure that the state doesn't misuse its authority," he added. According to Shakya, a committee comprising retired judges, senior lawyers and retired civil servants - who can resist the government's influence or pressure-needs to be set up and that the government should consult such a committee whenever it has to extend preventive detention of individuals after, say, initial two or three months. "The government can take back this ordinance whenever it wishes to do so," said Shakya. Early this week, National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) criticized the revised law saying that it was against the constitutional and parliamentary norms. New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) and Geneva-based International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) have also condemned the government's decision to revise the anti-terrorist law. In a statement issued last week, Secretary-General of ICJ, Nicholas Howen, said, "Locking people away without due process and beyond the reach of the courts for up to one year will do nothing to reduce the violence or increase security in Nepal." The security forces are already regularly arbitrarily detaining Nepalis. This measure now gives a legal cover for local officials to hold people for four times as long, without sufficient safeguards or evidence of criminal wrongdoing. It will also put these detainees at risk of other serious abuses such as enforced disappearance and torture, said the statement. "(Nepal) is facing a crisis but our experience around the world shows that human rights abuses only make a conflict worse. The best way to bring security to the people of Nepal is for both sides to respect fundamental human rights," Howen said. Under the newly amended TADO, the Chief District Officer is empowered to detain any person for six months and may do so for a further six months on authorization by the Home Ministry. Major opposition parties, human rights groups and media trade unions in Nepal have warned that they would launch fresh protests if the government did not withdraw the controversial TADO provision immediately. nepalnews.com by Oct 29 04 Related
News India to provide thermal imagers to Nepal To help Nepal government in its fight against Maoist insurgents, the Indian government is supplying sophisticated hand-held thermal imagers that allow soldiers to see very clearly in the dark, a news report said. According to Friday's The Statesman, a leading Indian daily, Bharat Electronics (BEL) - an Indian company-- is making imagers for the Indian Army, mostly for use in Jammu and Kashmir and the Northeast for operations against militants. This new technology allows infantrymen to see far more clearly in comparison with earlier night-vision devices. A professional electronics company of India, BEL was set up in 1954 to meet the growing needs of Indian Defense services for electronic systems. The company has been manufacturing state-of-the-art products in the field of Defense electronics like Communications including encryption, Radars and strategic components. Speaking to reporters in New Delhi Thursday, senior BEL officials said they were working with the Defense Research and Development Organisation - an Indian government agency-- to produce a prototype of a fire-detection radar like the US ANTPQ-37 that the army has purchased. The prototype, according to Indian officials, would be ready within a year and further development will take another year. BEL has also produced the battlefield surveillance radar, which has substantial export possibilities. Countries like Indonesia and Thailand have sought the radar, being used to detect militants crossing the line of control, the news report said. There hasn't been any word from Nepali officials as yet regarding the purchase of thermal hand-held imagers from India. nepalnews.com by Oct 29 04 Maoists reportedly constructing bunkers in schools Maoist rebels have reportedly started constructing bunkers at school premises in the far-western district of Achham, reports said. Friday's Kantipur daily has quoted unnamed Maoist cadres as saying that they have started constructing bunkers to protect themselves and their leadership from the offensive of the security forces and also to launch counter-offensive. The rebels have already started constructing bunkers at the Kalikeswori Secondary School at Turmakhand in the district as per the decision of the Maoist's 'people's government' in the district. Such bunkers are being constructed in schools in 58 out of 75 Village Development Committees (VDCs) in the district. These bunkers are 200 meters long and 3 meters deep, the news report said quoting sources close to the Maoists. A central committee meeting of the CPN (Maoist) a few weeks back had decided to launch 'tunnel war' as part of its strategic offense phase. But the underground party is yet to comment on the reports of construction of bunkers by its cadres in the far-western district of Achham. There has been no official comment on such reports. The latest report has come at a time when human rights groups and UN agencies have been calling upon both the government and rebels to declare schools and health institutions as zones of peace. Meanwhile, security forces have destroyed tunnel and bunkers constructed by the Maoist rebels at the bordering areas of Kapilvastu on Wednesday. Reports had quoted the rebels as saying that they had constructed the bunkers to stop intervention from across the border. nepalnews.com by Oct 29 04 Related
News Students desert schools as Maoists intensify abduction Hundreds of students in the far-western district of Dadeldhura have left their schools following escalation of abductions by the Maoist rebels. Reports from the district said that the number of high school students quitting their studies has crossed 1000 and most of them have already moved to urban areas while a significant number of students has gone to neighbouring India in search of safety. Some two dozen schools in a dozen villages including Jogbudha, Alital, Rupal and Sirsha are on the verge of closure with growing number of students staying away. Some schools did open after Dashain vacation but classes have not been running due to absence of students. In the past, there were a number of cases of abduction of students, mostly the senior ones, which has scared the students away. The rebels had imposed indefinite blockade in the district which was relaxed after the announcement of a temporary ceasefire during Dashain. Many students and youths found it easy to flee their villages during the ceasefire period. An estimated 1000 families have already been displaced in the district due to the Maoist conflict. nepalnews.com mbk Oct 28 04 Related
News The govt will not extend `truce': PM Deuba Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba has said the government will not extend temporary truce that comes to an end today. Talking to reporters at the tea reception organised by his party, Nepali Congress (Democratic) on the occasion of Bada Dashain festival Thursday afternoon, premier Deuba said there was no possibility of extending the period of 'truce' adopted by the government in response to a similar move by the Maoist rebels. The Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) had declared that it would suspend all of its armed operations for nine days (October 20 through 28) during Dashain. The government later reciprocated the move. Responding to another question, premier Deuba said it would be good if negotiations could be held (with the rebels). If peace talks could not take place, then the government would go for (parliamentary) polls, said the premier. "There is no question of withholding elections if the talks don't take place for next ten years," he said. The Prime Minister also said that the government would make arrangements for security during the polls. He did not elaborate. Thousands of NC (Democratic) activists, ruling coalition members and people from various walks of life had thronged the Birendra International Convention Center to take part in the reception. Senior leaders of the CPN (UML), Rastriya Prajatantra Party and Nepal Sadbhavana Party were present at the function. Nepali Congress leader, late B. P. Koirala, had initiated the tradition of Opposition Nepali Congress, however, said it would not organize the tea reception this year due to the adverse situation in the country. A major coalition partner, CPN (UML), organised similar reception at its party headquarters at Balkhu on Tuesday. nepalnews.com by Oct 28 04 Related
News Four of a single family commit suicide in Nawalparasi Four members of a single family have committed group suicide in a village in southern Nawalparasi district, reports said. Acocrding to reports, Rajesh Badhai of Thulo Khairatawa VDC, his wife, their 13-yr-old daughter and a son killed themselves by diving into the Gandak Canal in the district Thursday. The reason behind their suicide is said to be family squabble. Their bodies have not been found so far due to the high-level of water in the canal, reports said quoting police sources. Police have requested the Indian authorities to lower the level of water in the canal, reports added. nepalnews.com amt Oct 28 04 Related
News Thapa to hold press conference tomorrow Former prime minister and founder president of Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP), Surya Bahadur Thapa might announce split in the party through a press conference in the capital tomorrow, reports said. In the press conference that will kick off at Hotel Sangrila in Kathmandu at 1 pm, according to reports, Thapa will present a concept paper on “how the negligence shown by the current RPP leadership to address the various problems, difference of opinions and disagreements existing in the party for quite some time led to a split in the party”. Leaders of the Thapa faction of RPP have been demanding a general convention of the party for the past few months to resolve the various problems but the party establishment has neglected both the general convention demand and the problems, which has brought the party on the verge of split, reports said quoting a RPP leader close to Thapa. The rift in RPP was apparent when the party establishment headed by president Pashupati Shumsher Rana demanded the resignation of Thapa while he was prime minister until the formation of the Deuba-led four-party coalition government. This rift further increased following the nomination of RPP leaders to be inducted in the current Deuba-led cabinet by party president Rana. nepalnews.com amt Oct 28 04 Related
News There has been very good response to our services: Cosmic Air Cosmic
Air, the private sector airlines that has launched jet aircraft for
"There is sort of craze among the passengers and we are getting very good response from them," Upendra Karki, marketing director of Cosmic Air told Nepalnews. Cosmic Air had launched Fokker-100, the 105-seater jet plane, in domestic sectors to ferry passengers from Kathmandu to Nepalgunj, Bhairahawa and Biratnagar from Tuesday morning. "The occupancy in these sector so far is more than 80 percent," said Karki. Cosmic Air is operating two flights a day between Kathmandu and Biratnagar while there are daily flights being operated along Kathmandu-Bhairahawa and Kathmandu-Nepalgunj sectors. "We hope our services would become popular from the point of view of comfort as well as that of safety," said Karki. It is a new revolution in the country's history, he added. Powered by Rolls Royce engines, the aircraft is equipped with all modern equipment in accordance with the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) regulations, Cosmic Air officials said. They said they would operate international flights to Delhi and Dhaka from next month after acquiring another Fokker-100 aircraft. One
of the world's oldest aircraft manufacturers, Fokker first began The Fokker plane being operated by Cosmic Air has been brought from The Netherlands. Industry watchers say though the number of foreign visitors to the country was declining, domestic aviation had witnessed growth mainly due to the increasing number of Nepalis using air services within the country. nepalnews.com by Oct 28 04 Rebels 'abduct' hundreds of youths in Baglung Maoist rebels have 'abducted' nearly 150 youths during the time of Dashain holidays and are forcing them to undergo 're-education' training in western district of Baglung, reports said. The
rebels forcibly took away some 50 activists affiliated to the pro-left Kantipur daily quoted Damber Bahadur Kumal, a villager from Baglung, as saying that people in Nishi and Bobang VDCs could not enjoy the festivities and spent the Dashain hoping that their kiths and kins would return home from Maoist camps. The daily quoted sources as saying that hundreds of senior Maoist leaders and workers had participated in the 'political training camp' launched by the underground party in Bhalkot area of the district. When contacted by Nepalnews Thursday morning, a junior staff at the District Administration Office of Baglung said that he did not have any information regarding the Maoist training camp or the abduction of the youths from the district. "Chief District Officer (Prem Narayan Sharma) has left for Kathmandu for Dashain and no officer level staff is present in the office today," he said. Wednesday's Nepal Samacharpatra daily reported that hundreds of people from the remote mid-western district of Dailekh are fleeing their villages on the way to India following Maoists' order to join their programmes. Those who have fled their houses include a four-month-old child to 85-year-old women, the news report said. nepalnews.com by Oct 28 04 Related
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