By a Post Reporter

KATHMANDU, April 21 - Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala today said Nepalis believe that the regional organizations like SAARC can provide a framework for greater regional cooperation and prosperity.

"We will work to make SAARC a more effective forum for us to discus the ways and means for achieving better living standards for the people in this region," he said while addressing the 53rd anniversary of the Council of World Affairs here today.Stating that he was well aware that democracy does not flourish without social justice and economic development, Koirala said that Nepal’s both domestic and foreign policies are commonly geared up to achieve these goals.

"Despite our crying need for infrastructure development, we have been spending more than one third of our national budget on social sector," he said. "Education, health, environment and poverty alleviation are our priorities."

Koirala appreciated the "generous aid" by friendly neighbours like India and China and other donors in social sectors and listed the names of some of such projects.

"Being so close to each other, we may run into difficulties at times," he said, "but I am confident that, given the long history of good will, we will overcome all of them together. Together we will fight internal and cross-border terrorism and other criminal acts such as drug trafficking and flesh trade."

Robin Cook ends visit Nepal advised to handle insurgency through dialogue and peaceful means

By a Post Reporter

KATHMANDU, April 21 -British Secretary of State for Foreign andCommonwealth Affairs Robin Cook today hinted that Nepal should learn from the British experience in Ireland in handling terrorism and seek peace through dialogue.

He also condemned the Maoists for spreading terrorism and hindering development works.

Talking to reporters after the formal talk with his Nepali counterpart Chakra Prasad Bastola at Sital Niwas here today, Cook said: "We discussed the Maoist insurgency and I did record the British condemnation of terrorism wherever it is."

"I have shared with the minister the way with which we have sought to bring peace in northern Ireland through a peace process of dialogue," said Cook. He said the British government were trying to take forward both the economic development of northern Ireland and at the same time seeking dialogue with the terrorist. "It has been very successful with us. I very much hope that the commission appointed by the Nepali government will pave the way for similar dialogue here in Nepal," said Cook referring to the High Level Consensus Seeking Commission to Resolve Maoist issue. The High Level Commission headed by former prime minister Sher Bahadur Deuba has been trying to hold talks with the Maoist insurgents.

When asked if Britain was planning any development projects the insurgency affected areas, Cook said they stand by ready to assist in any development that can be provided to those areas.

"But I do have to say that the thing at the moment that makes most difficult to get to those areas is the violence from the Maoists and terrorists and the fact that we have had to consider whether it will be safe for our development workers to go there," he said.

"I know some of our partners have withdrawn aid workers from that region and I think that the people of the region fully understand that their greatest enemy and the greatest enemy to development are the Maoists who are frightening away the development that would help the people," he added.

As to the question on what he thought of the situation of human rights violations in Nepal, Cook said they condemn the violation of human rights by Maoists as well. "We discussed the human rights violations and I condemned the human rights violations by the Maoists as well," he said, adding "Human Rights violation by the Maoists are real and must be condemned as they are the root of the problem."

Cook also spoke on the need to convince people about the government’s sincerity. "I have also discussed with the minister the impulse of making sure that the people understand that the government is in their side and it is the Maoists who are their enemy," he said.

Lauding the people in the Maoist affected areas for not supporting the insurgents, Cook said "I welcome the fact that even in the areas where Maoists are active people do not vote for them," and added it was upto the government to tackle the problem.

"They have voted for the governing party and it is important that the response to the Maoist insurgency is the one that convinces the people that the police and the government is also on their side," he said.

Foreign Minister Bastola told reporters that though he said the issue of British Gurkha was not in the agenda, it came up during the talks.

Earlier today, Cook laid the foundation stone for the British Council in Nepal. "So many young people come from Nepal to Britain to study we want more and we’ve set us a target for doubling the number of students from Nepal to Britain," he said.

Meanwhile, His Majesty King Birendra granted an audience to British Foreign Secretary Cook earlier in the day. Cook returned home today.

By a Post Reporter

NEPALGUNJ, April 21 - Maoist rebels today shot dead Amar Bahadur Pun, Chairman of Bhawang VDC, Rolpa.

According to police, Pun who lived in a rented house in Liwang, the district headquarters, was attacked by four unidentified people at 1 O’clock in the afternoon. Police claims the four were Maoist insurgents.

Locals are preparing to organise a programme tomorrow to protest against the killing.

Meanwhile, Nepali Congress today issued a press release in Kathmandu condemning Pun’s death. Pun was a member of Nepali Congress District Committee.

The press release states party president and Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala condemned the killing saying, "the government is determined to stop the spiral of murder and provide security to the people", says the release.

Likewise, Maoist insurgents attacked a police post in Pakhapani, around 84 kilometres north of district headquarters, on Thursday. two policemen were injured in the attack.

According to police, the Maoists attacked the post at 11 p.m and the crossfire continued for four hours.

The tow injured policemen Head Constable Nar Bahadur Thapa and Constable Pandav Kasyal have been taken to Kathmandu for treatment.

According to a source at the Rolpa District Police, 13 Maoists were killed in the incident.

RNAC opens ‘tampered’ bid

By a Post Reporter

KATHMANDU, April 21 - Royal Nepal Airlines (RNAC) today opened the last remaining aircraft-leasing bid from an Australian company on the direct orders of its new executive chairman Hari Bhakta Shrestha. RNAC staffers opened the bid from Ansett Worldwide, an affiliate of the Australian national-carrier Ansett Airways, in the presence of Royal Nepal’s legal advisors Friday afternoon, sources deep inside RNAC said.

The bid, and four others that were opened on Tuesday, will now be presented to the airline’s governing board. The board is expected to form an evaluation committee to look into the bids and recommend a winner.

RNAC had called bidders to supply a wide-bodied Boeing B-767-300-ER jet for two years. The aircraft should be supplied with its insurance and maintenance packages whereas RNAC would itself provide the crew, the airline had stipulated.

The national carrier, in response, got five bids. Four were opened on Tuesday but the Ansett bid was cast aside because RNAC bosses and representatives of other bidders charged that the Ansett envelope was tampered with. However, a forensic report yesterday cleared the suspicion, paving the way for its inclusion in the competition. It also fulfils the necessary quorum requirements under government financial regulations.

Sources say, the opening of Ansett bid today clears a major hurdle for airline bosses who were fervently seeking a third valid bid to complete the necessary "quorum" of bids as required under government financial regulations. Of the total five bids they got, two are of little consequence. But two others are with enough merit to be included in the quorum. With today’s development, RNAC now has the minimum three bids to evaluate from.

Critics allege that the whole game is being played to grant the aircraft-leasing agreement to Babcock and Brown, an Irish middle company that is representing AerFi, an aircraft leasing group. Babcock and Brown is represented in Nepal by a well-known trading house that has major interests in a Bangladeshi joint-venture bank.

Knowledgable sources inside RNAC say, the game being played calls for awarding the leasing contract to Babcock and Brown at all cost. That is why Ansett, the only real competitor, was first thrown aside, and then included today after RNAC bosses suddenly realized they needed the quorum.

Babcock is proposing a 9 year-old aircraft at 3576 US dollars a flight hour. Ansett’s bid proposes two different aircraft - one seven years old and the other five years old. The seven-year-old aircraft has been offered at US 4100 dollars a flight hour. The newer one is being offered for US 4300 dollars a flight hour. Sources say, the Babcock and Brown offer has many conditions attached to it, so the final cost per flight hour could hit at par with Ansett.

The remaining bid of any merit - from A and H Aviation of London - does not have the necessary US 25,000 dollars bid bond, though its aircraft is the cheapest on offer. RNAC is always mired in a controversy whenever it leases or aircraft. Charges of corruption always swirl in such cases.

NDF meet clubs assistance firmly with reform process

By Prateek Pradhan

KATHMANDU, April 21 - Finance Minister Mahesh Acharya arriving at the airport from Paris meet was visibly not so pleased to find all the major news dailies highlighting only the assistance amount committed by the donors at the Nepal Development Forum’s meeting. The dissatisfaction on the face of the Minister was obvious because he had earlier explained that the main objective was to change the mind set in the process of acceptance of foreign aid.

In the memorandum presented at the meeting (April 17-19), Nepal did not categorically mention the amount of money it would need for various projects, which had been the trend in the past. This time Nepal just presented its reform agendas. It outlined priority actions in the areas of macro-economic stability, civil service reform, anti-corruption initiatives, decentralization, financial sector reform and private sector development, aid effectiveness and the role of civil society in national development.

In nutshell, Nepal presented its foreign aid requirement basically for the reform of the various sectors, and sought foreign assistance for the same. That means the country explicitly made the point clear that the loans would now be more on demand driven basis, and not donor-offered, as it used to be.

In Hans Rothenbuhler’s words, the Country Director of the World Bank for Nepal, the donor community commended the serious commitment articulated by His Majesty’s Government. It seems the donors have also realized that the donor-guided development effort so far has not been very successful and Nepal needs to take the driving seat in demanding assistance for its own needs.

The Chairperson for Nepal Development Forum’s meeting and Vice President of the World Bank for South Asia Region Mieko Nishimizu also remarked that the change of the name from Nepal Aid Group to Nepal Development Forum was because the gathering was no more only about aid but more about development.

It shows that the donor community is very much convinced about Nepal’s commitment on reform process, improvement on corporate governance and control of corruption. They seem convinced that if Nepal is provided with the opportunity to set its own priorities for development it would certainly bring the change, which last forty years of development effort could not achieve.

However, it should be noted that Finance Minister’s effort to set the guidelines for the foreign assistance by the country itself is a last ditch for Nepal to prove its credibility among the donor countries. Nepal’s position of highest aid recipient as percentage of GDP among all South Asian countries will not remain the same if it fails in achieving the goals of reform and development set by the country for itself.

Whatsoever may be seen or heard in words, in reality the donors have not committed exuberant amount of assistance even to this government. Coming to the money basics, the donor community has committed only 1.25 billion dollars in assistance, which is merely 250 million dollars more than the last commitment in 1996.

Looking at the various institutional and resource constraints and rock-bottom level of ethics and morality in the country, it will be certainly a daunting task for the country as such to fulfil what it has promised to the donor community. Now, when all the assistance is linked with the reform process, the political turmoil and lack of the reform process will have serious impact on the aid disbursement.

As such, Minister Acharya has not only bought the freedom to set own guidelines in accepting foreign assistance, but has put the whole country into a track of economic reform process. Now, no other government can afford to shy away from the reforms, if it needs foreign assistance for the country. However, Minister Acharya is very much true to say that "Nepal has but no other option."

Cook hands over hiked pension

By a Post Reporter

LALITPUR, April 21 - British Foreign Secretary Robin Cook today visited the British Gurkha Camp and handed over the first of the increased pension to 15 pensioners.

The new pensions were awarded as per the announcement of the British government on December 23, 1999 which increased the Gurkha pensions and gratuities by atleast 100 percent. The revised pensions and gratuities came into effect from April 1, 2000.

The new pension rates range from Rs 7,043.55 per month for below Corporal to Rs 23,612.80 per month for a Major (Queen’s Gurkha Officer).

According to a press release issued at the programme, the government of Nepal have indicated that they approve of the increase and consider it to be a good deal.

The press release states the British and Nepalese governments have also made it clear that the debate over British Gurkhas pensions is now closed. "Nevertheless, annual reviews to take account of the cost of living increases will continue," the release states.

After receiving pension, however, some of the Gurkhas said they hoped the pension would be increased more. When asked what he thought of the new pension, Deo Bahadur Gurung, one of the pensioners, said he was happy but he hoped it was nearer at par with his British counterpart as the world was getting expensive day by day.

Gurung, 64, used to receive a monthly pension of Rs 8,660 and now with the increase received Rs 20,000 today.

The Death in Service gratuities, however, are same for both the British and the Gurkha servicemen.

Cook also awarded the NATO Medal for Kosovo to Warrant Officer Class 2 Lal Bahadur Shahi at the British Gurkha Camp in Man Bhawan today. The medal is given to army officials who serve in Kosovo for more than a month.

Earlier, talking to reporters Cook had said Gurkhas are excellent ambassadors for Nepal around the world and wherever they are deployed in peacekeeping missions.

To a question on whether Britain was going to increase the number of Gurkhas in the army, Cook had said: "I’m not sure that we are likely to increase the numbers but we very much value the contribution and that contribution will certainly continue." There are 25400 pensioners out of which 19000 are servicemen and rest are widows and children.