PM to visit Maoist hit dists to oversee programmes

By a Post Reporter

KATHMANDU, June 12 - Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala today said that he would go to the Maoist-hit districts to implement the programmes announced in the budget two weeks ago. "I will go to insurgency affected districts myself to implement all the programmes that were announced for in package for each district," said Koirala at the Kathmandu district partyworkers meet. "These programmes will be implemented after all party consensus. I will go immediately after the on-going session comes to an end." The budget has made provision for "basket funding", under which the "remote" and "terrorism-hit" districts will be identified and the fund would be utilised to carry out all the development programmes of the districts.

Koirala also said that law to strengthen the Commission for Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) will soon be brought in the parliament soon.

General Secretary Sushil Koirala said that the India Today report has embroiled a lot of people in Nepal "without much investigation". "This has come from a responsible position but without investigation. They should have been able to give some concrete evidences to support their claims," said Koirala.

"There are people in India who want to destabilise democracy in Nepal. How such a report came must be investigated," said Koirala.

A "secret report" prepared by the Indian Intelligence and revealed last week has implicated a number of politicians including Sushil Koirala. The others being implicated are NC central committee members Khum Bahadur Khadka, Bijaya Gachchedar and Nona Koirala, CPN-ML’s Bam Dev Gautam and RK Mainali and RPP’s Surya Bahadur Thapa.

Indicating to the recently opened "Contact Office" by former prime minister Sher Bahadur Deuba, Koirala said, "Opening a contact office is not a bad thing in itself, but the office should not give way for conflicts within the party."

The partyworker’s meet was organised by the recently formed ad hoc committee which was formed after dissolving the committee headed by Prakash Man Singh.

The decision to dissolve 13 of its district working committees has since come under fire from its own partyworkers.

NC party sopeksman Narahari Acharya said that the decision to dissolve the district committees including Kathmandu was "in accordance with the party constitution."

Uncertainty over jet deal

By a Post Reporter

KATHMANDU, June 12 - The state flag-carrier Royal Nepal Airlines Corporation (RNAC) once again is faced with uncertainty with possibility of the latest deal to lease a jetliner taking a sour turn.

After weeks of controversies, RNAC had struck a deal with Ansett Worldwide Aviation Service on leasing a 7-year-old Boeing 767-300ER passenger jet to fly on its regular services.

Ansett has signed a Memorandum of Understating with RNAC on the lease deal agreeing that the maintenance part will be taken care by Royal Brunei International (RBI).

"Ansett has informed us that since they could not agree on terms with RBI it was looking into other similar facilities and if this was not agreeable then it could back out of the deal," RNAC’s Executive Chairman Hari Bhakta Shrestha said today.

RNAC has responded to the message by saying that Ansett needs to stick to the terms in the MoU if not it would be forced to freeze the deal.

"We have told them that they can’t change what has already been agreed on the MoU and they need to negotiate with RBI," Shrestha said.

The present Boeing 757 jet leased by RNAC from China South West Airlines (CSWA) flies back on June 27 and the Ansett jet is supposed to begin services a day after that.

RNAC had opted for Ansett after its deal with another company had failed.

Babcock and Brown (B&B), an Irish aircraft agent, had backed out of the aircraft supplying deal RNAC had granted it only weeks ago forcing RNAC to deal with the second lowest bidder.

RNAC then negotiated with Ansett Worldwide, the holding company of Ansett Airlines of Australia. Ansett and Babcock and Brown were among the top-most bidders in the global tender called by RNAC earlier this year to supply a wide-body Boeing B767-300ER jet. The aircraft is to be leased for 18 months.

Shrestha said that RNAC has two options now. It could cancel the deal and begin from the very beginning calling a global tender or reconsider Ansett’s proposal and find if the other facilities it recommends are as good or better than the one at Brunei.

Shrestha was summoned by the parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC) along with other officials of the Ministry of Civil Aviation and RNAC to furnish details on the activities of the airline including the short and long term leases of passenger jets to fly on its international routes.

Ansett’s bid at first was rejected on charges that it was tampered. But was later included following forensic test. Ansett had submitted two bids of US$ 4,100 per flight hour for a eight year-old B767, and US$ 4,300 per flight hour for another aircraft that is four years old. Babcock and Brown bid was for a nine year-old aircraft at US$ 3,576 per flight hour.

Ansett later dropped its earlier price while negotiating with RNAC officials.

Irate students disrupt exam

By a Post Reporter

KATHMANDU, June 12 - Students of Amrit Science College (ASCOL) today prevented other students from taking the Bachelors and Masters level examinations in their college demanding that Tribhuvan University hold the examination elsewhere.

The students who were denied entry to sit for their exams in ASCOL later went to other campuses and tore answer sheets of other examinees to protest the move, eyewitnesses said. Students from Shanker Dev Campus and a number of other private examinees were to sit for their exams in ASCOL.

Executives of the ASCOL’s Free Student Union, who have locked up the Campus since Friday, have been demanding that the University stop holding examinations in their college, saying that it hampers the regular classes.

Meanwhile, in a press release received here this evening, All Nepal National Free Students’ Union (ANNFSU) has also accused Tribhuvan University for leaking today’s question paper.

It has claimed that TU leaked the question paper for Bachelor of Business Studies (2nd Year’s) Accounting for Financial and Planning. They have also demanded that TU re-hold the exam.

Meanwhile, in another press release issued today, Shanker Dev Campus Free Students’ Union has called on all its supporters to boycott all examinations at all levels starting tomorrow flaying today’s incident.

Talking with The Kathmandu Post later today, TU Vice-Chancellor Navin Prakash Jung Shah said that the (disrupted) exams will be held again. He, however, denied reports that the question papers had been leaked.

Conflicting laws to be amended

By a Post Reporter

KATHMANDU, June 12 - Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Local Development Ram Chandra Poudel said today that the government has already initiated to amending laws that conflicts with the Local Self Governance Act.

Speaking during question and answer hour at the House of Representatives, the Lower House of Parliament, Poudel said a meeting headed by the prime minister had decided to initiate the process.

"All the ministries have been notified about amending the existing laws that conflict with the Local Self Governance Act. All those amendment proposals sent by these ministries would be unified and reviewed after that," Poudel said.

Lawmakers of the main opposition CPN-UML accused the government of showing indifference towards making changes in the existing laws which should have been done when the Act was adopted about two years ago.

The opposition lawmakers also raised the issue about the process that was used when the Act was adopted in parliament in September 1998.

"The Bill was adopted through proper process by first discussing it in the parliamentary committee and then forwarded to the House," Poudel said.

DPM Poudel was the Speaker of the House of Representatives when this controversial law was endorsed amid chaos and physical brawl between the treasury and the opposition.

CPN-UML had filed a proposal seeking to impeach Poudel for his alleged partisan role as the Speaker.

Trouble had begun when the Bill hit snag at the parliamentary committee and had to be adopted through voting. Traditionally these parliamentary committees that represent most political parties reach consensus among the members before sending the Bill to the House. Bills are then passed without much hassle after that.

At that time, the Nepali Congress (NC) was in power and had aligned with CPN-ML, a breakway group of CPN-UML, to form the government. CPN-ML had wanted the Bill to be pushed through the House.

On the day the Bill was to be presented, CPN-UML lawmakers had gheraoed the Speaker. Amid the slogan and chaos, the Bill was presented by the Minister for Local Development who was a member of the CPN-ML. The Bill was declared passed by Poudel.

CPN-UML lawmakers had reacted violently by abusing government ministers, breaking desks and exchanging blows with the treasury side.

Ballot paper recount begins tomorrow

By a Post Reporter

LALITPUR, June 12 - After a two-day limbo, the Special Court, Patan, today decided to resume counting ballot papers for Constituency-1 in Nuwakot from 9 a.m. Wednesday.

The Special Court had given orders on June 8 to recount the votes after RPP vice-chairman Prakash Chandra Lohani filed a petition at the Appellate Court. Dr Lohani lost last year’s parliamentary election by just 15 votes. The winner from the Constituency Rajendra Prakash Lohani from CPN-UML had secured 11,786 votes.

Lohani filed a petition on June 28 last year seeking recounting. In his petition, Lohani claimed election officers counted the votes repeatedly giving his rival an inflated result.

During today’s recounting, one ballot paper cast for RPP was found in the lot of ballots cast for CPN-UML.

Between devil and deep sea: A tale of the displaced

By Meena Kaini

KATHMANDU, June 12 - For a city that has over the years grown increasingly tolerant to dissension, sit-ins at Bhadrakali are not an unusual sight. Every second week you have an odd human rights worker, labour union activist or disgruntled party worker camping at the city centre demanding that he be heard.

A man displaced from his home district due to Maoist violence and police harassment at Bhadrakali. kathmandu.

The current batch of protestors, however, are an arresting sight and their plight has moved even the most hide-bound city dwellers. This group is much larger and they have walked all the way from the Mid West and Far West -- fleeing their homesteads amid onslaught of the Maoist insurgency -- to beg for a safe shelter.

"Our girls are getting raped when they go to the jungle (back home)," says Sabitri Shahi, 25, while her three-month-old daughter is sleeping nearby on the cement platform. For the past one week, she has been living with 216 others in the congested tents women share with menfolk. "But nobody knows whether they (the culprits) are Maoists or police," laments Shahi, clearly caught in a Maoist-police crossfire.

Mother of two, Sabitri has battled enormous hardships to be here and she’s determined not to go back to her native village of Dadimadhi in Dailekh which, she says, is too dangerous to lead a normal life. "I will not go back to my village unless the law and order situation is fully restored," she says. "They (politicians and lawmakers) should also live in the villages." She is indicating at the exodus of her village’s elite group that has moved to either the district headquarters, Terai or to Kathmandu, a typical phenomenon observed in the insurgency-hit district in the last few years.

Her husband, a peasant, decided to leave the family behind in the relative safety of Lamki, Kailali before heading for India to work as a migrant worker. "It was the growing clashes between Maoists and police that drove him away," says Shahi who has left behind her first child - a one and a half year old daughter - in Lamki with her grand mother. Her husband’s whereabouts are still unknown.

Of the 241 who made it to the capital after the 28-day walk from Kailali, only two dozen had been to Kathmandu before.

Currently, a total of 217 people are living in the congested tents at Bhadrakali where they cook their food in a common kitchen. The rest have either taken shelter with their relatives or political leaders of their respective home districts living in the capital. There are 48 women, including a blind man, in the group.

The hopes of early breakthrough are gradually being replaced by despair as their food stock gets increasingly depleted. And no help comes their way.

During their month-long walk, they were at least helped by the locals along the way. "I have around Rs 60,000 at the moment that was donated by people on our way to Kathmandu," says Anil Yogi, chairman of Forum for People affected by Insurgency, the organization that is looking after all the protestors.

A group of 50 persons goes out daily seeking assistance. "In the past six days around Rs 35,000 has been collected here in Kathmandu. The money is spent on food and medicines."

According to Yogi, three persons are running high temperature and some have diarrhoea. "They have been admitted at Bir Hospital."

Give the people a chance and everybody at Bhadrakali has a tale to tell.

Ganesh Chiluwal, chairman of Nepal Maobadi Pidit Sangh (Association of Maoist Insurgency Affected) says that more than 60,000 people have been displaced from various districts due to deteriorating state of law and order in the region.

They have been displaced from their homes largely because of the government’s actions to suppress the insurgency, says the Association. "We are in a fix either way. Neither can we go with the Maoists to take part in People’s War nor can we defend them," says Bhakta Bahadur Malla, a RPP member from Kalikot. "On top of that the police are perpetually suspecting that we are spying for Maoists."

The protestors are from Achchham, Bajura, Bardia, Dailekh, Dolpa, Doti, Humla, Jumla, Kailali, Kalikot, Mugu, Rolpa, Salyan and Surkhet.

Until now, only six members of parliament, including former Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba, have been to Bhadrakali to show their concern for these people. According to Yogi, Deuba, who heads the High Level Consensus Seeking Commission, has assured them that the problem would be solved by dialogue.

All other MPs are from the opposition parties. Chandra Bahadur Shahi of Mugu, Nara Bahadur Hamal of Dailekh, Bir Bahadur Lama of Makwanpur and Prakash Jwala from Salyan -- all CPN-UML legislators and Chitra Bahadur KC of National People’s Front in Baglung.

National Concerns Society yesterday urged "the people of the capital to send back the lawmakers to their respective districts." "They do not live in the districts at all. How would they have any idea about the ordeals of the people?" said Dirgha Raj Shahi, Nepali Congress district committee member from Dailekh. "Once they go back to the districts and know about the intensity of the problem only then they will be sincere about resolving the problem."

Gopal Siwakoti "Chintan" of Inhured International said that the problem of internal refugees could most probably escalate given the superficial handling of the problem by the government.

Pieces of torn answer papers lie scattered in front of the People's Campus at Paknajol. Students of the BBS level at Shankar Dev Campus, who could not sit for the examination at Amrit Science College exam centre, distrubed the examination going on at various other centres in Kathmandu on Monday.

Show cause notice to KMC

KATHMANDU, June 12 (PR)- The Supreme Court today issued a show cause notice to Kathmandu Metropolitan Corporation (KMC), asking it to furnish details about its decision to lease the Gongabu-based New Bus Park to a private company.

The notice was issued today by a single bench apex court of Justice Harischandra Upadhyay.

In a controversial move, KMC board last month decided to lease the bus park to Lhotse Multi Purpose Company Private Limited for a period of 45 years.

The Court’s notice came three days after eight people, including Advocate of KMC-21 Jamuna Nakarmi, filed a writ petition demanding that the Court nullify the controversial move.

In the notice, the Court has asked KMC to furnish details as to whether or not KMC has the right to lease the bus park to a private company, whether or not KMC sought the government’s permission before taking the decision, and whether or not KMC has taken the impact of such a decision on the general public into account.

Spread over 161-ropanis of land in KMC-29, the Gongabu bus park was constructed with Japanese assistance in early 1990s.

Former land revenue chief released on bail

KATHMANDU, June 12 (PR)- The Commission for Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) today released a land reforms department official charged with illegally transferring land belonging to SOS Village of Pokhara to private individuals.

CIAA, the constitutional anti-corruption body, today released Ram Prasad Shrestha, former chief of the Kaski District Revenue Department, after his family members deposited their personnel assets equalling the bail of Rs 15.65 million rupees as fixed by the commission.

Shrestha was taken into custody and taken to jail at Dillibazaar on late last month after he failed to come up with the bail amount. Shrestha is accused of illegally transferring about 20 ropanies of land worth Rs. 30 million rupees by abusing his authority to at least nine people.

He is said to have done so with the aid of government advocate at the Pokhara Appellate Court Pushpa Raj Koirala. Koirala happens to be related to all nine of the land recipients that included his father.

The worldwide children’s welfare organization had built buildings about 23 years ago on the land donated by Pokhara Town Planning Implementation Committee Office and has been using it since then for its purpose of helping orphans and helpless children providing food, shelter and education.