In the history of human civilization, the good side is peace, friendship and cooperation. Going across time, we have bright and mutually cooperative history on one side and instability, enmity strife and hatred on the other. The two world wars have no doubt proved that war and strife are the greatest impediments in the path of human progress. Since those wars, there has arisen in the minds of men the desire for peace and harmony. League of Nations was established for the peace and security after World War I. There were many peace treaties and pacts. Unfortunately, people did not understand the value of peace, unity and cooperation. It is for this reason that those great statesmen who made the rules and regulation of the League of Nations and other peace treaties could not act in entire conformity to their desire for peace and goodwill. It cannot be said that all the great statesmen did not want peace but even those who wanted peace could not get enough public support. That is why we can say that no peace between one country or nation and another is possible, until and unless the majority of mankind is made to realize the true value of peace, security, cooperation and unity.

It can be shown that the history of man’s progress and civilization is the history of growing cooperation, peace and unity. There were innumerable incidents when man had slipped back into the old animalistic tendency of war and violence, the consequences were ruin and misery. The First and Second World Wars were such great slip-backs in the history of mankind. After these wars, people have felt the necessity for mutual cooperation. The value of the individual and unity of all are now recognized. Tolerance and mutual dependence bring about that unity. Several grades or states of society need to realize this. Peace is thus the foremost factor that will determine the quality of life on our planet. For this reason, the international year of the culture of peace hopes that the various initiatives will a lead to global peace. There is saying in the preamble of UNESCO’s constitution, "Since wars begin in the minds of men, defences of peace must be constructed". The ethical value of this statement lies in the fact that it assumes the need to prevent wars and stresses justice freedom, particularly freedom of speech, the free flow of ideas, equality and solidarity of mankind. The new millennium year of United Nations reminds people of all nations that our highest goal is peace. In order to encourage peace and security throughout the world, it must be applied in all aspects of life, at home, in the work place, the community as well as in national and international spheres. The promotion of peace and goodwill requires the understanding that there are obstacles to the goal of global peace. Men have learnt from the world wars. Several institutions and organisations with the objective of bringing about international peace and security have come into existence

The UN has promoted a strong desire for peace in the hearts of people around the world. The tremendous progress that science and invention made in the last few decades has brought far-flung countries into closer contact. Thus today we have greater facilities than ever before for different races and people to come closer and give to each other the best of their culture and civilization. In this way we can exchange our views and opinions. Thus, we will lose our prejudice and suspicion and pave the way towards universal peace and goodwill.

Since its establishment, UN has journeyed towards the goal of constructing the defences of peace and security in the minds of men where wars begin. At a time when the smoke still rose in the battlefields in Europe, the idea of establishing UN was taking concrete shape in San Francisco in response to global aspirations where the need for a world without war was universally felt. It has remained the world’s principal mechanism for international peace and security and for mobilizing international opinion on global issues.

Now the cause of all misery and distress is when man forgets his superiority over animal. The animal fights because it has no capacity to reason and deliberate. But men have learnt through long centuries of progress and enlightenment that with mutual cooperation and goodwill, it is possible to settle differences.

According to the principles proclaimed in the charter of the United Nations, recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all human beings is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world. The ultimate goal of all UN programmes, especially in the field of freedom, justice, cooperation and peace is to ensure the future of mankind and the safety of human achievements through the strengthening and promotion of peace and security.

The ultimate goal of UN will be fulfilled by the six principal organs of United Nations. They are the General Assembly which is its governing body, the Security Council, Economic and Social Council, the Trusteeship Council, the International Court of Justice and the Secretariat. The five principal organs of UN are located in New York. Only the international court of justice is situated in The Hague, in Netherlands.

Similarly the UN also has various funding agencies, such as UNICEF, UNDP, FAO, UNFPA, UNEP, UNHCR which are financed by voluntary contributions from member states to what are called Extra Budgetary resources. Each agency has its own governing body.

Nepal has been consistently participating in peace keeping operations since 1958. Hence the role played by Nepalese army in UN peacekeeping has been exemplary and widely acclaimed by the world community. The resolution proved invaluable in several crises. It is a matter of pleasure that recently Nepal has been nominated for three years in the United Nations Economic and Social Council. Nepal’s term of office will begin from Jan 1st 2000 and end on Dec 31st of 2003.

By Pragya Karki

You may wonder why only Romeos, and where in the world have the Juliets gone? But I am not talking about the famous playwright William Shakespeare’s great tragedy 'Romeo and Juliet'. Here I am talking about roadside Romeos found in every nook and corner of almost all alleys in Kathmandu.

We encounter uncountable roadside Romeos in our day-to-day life. A single day without their comments (next to impossible) may appear as the eighth wonder. We should prepare ourselves to hear cheap comments, pieces of Hindi filmy songs and dialogues whenever and wherever we see a bunch of rowdy guys. Let me describe them for you: guys in torn and tattered jeans hanging around their waists (looking like it may fall down any moment); vests with rock stars' cut-off heads (sounds harsh), cigarette in between their nicotine-stained fingers and, of course, malicious smile on their faces. One may experience a very tough time if she is alone and has to walk past them. Her greatest desire at that particular moment is to become invisible so as to pass by unnoticed.

We put on our best dress, a perfect smile on our face and in the best of moods go out. As we walk out from our house with a light heart, the glee in us lasts for a while. To our dismay, everything disappears. Why? All because we see those roadside Romeos staring at us ready to spurt out their nasty remarks. "My God! What the hell are they doing here?" We curse them but in our minds (girls are too naive to speak aloud their thoughts) just to avoid sparking a tense reaction. What other option is there but just to ignore it?

Few days before, I went to the Hindu sacred temple, Pashupatinath, which lies by the side of our holy (I think I chose the wrong word rather say unholy) river Bagmati. I went there with my friend (all females) to pray to god for the peace of our minds. But all in vain! There again... how could we run away from our daily rendezvous. Instead of peace in our minds, we came across a midst of those despicable Romeos. What next? Same old thing, experience their freedom of speech. Poor girls (we) unwillingly took it in from one ear and let it pass from the other (the only way to deal with it). We could not flee from it. Even in places like temples, forget about other public places, we cannot escape these louts. I think a long list can be framed if I start mentioning the harassment we confront in crowded places.

In a dramatic movement of events, the General Secretary of the Maoists, Comrade Prachanda last Saturday telephoned Tuladhar from an unknown destination requesting him to arrange dialogue with the government and, for that purpose, he has even diluted the only remaining one point agenda as a precondition for the dialogue. Considering the country’s ground realities that have become increasing slippery, and thus, made the country more vulnerable, it is hard to understand whether it is a facade for tactical gain or an approach towards genuine reconciliation. .

It is the same Maoist lot that earlier refused to come to dialogue with the present government because they thought that the Koirala government lacked the credibility necessary to discuss issues of broad-based national interest. They thus demanded to talk only with the all party meeting. The government was very much at the receiving end. In the mean time, the all-party political deliberation on the initiative of the speaker of the Lower House of the parliament continued its effort to arrive at a national consensus in dealing with the Maoist problem. The Maoists on their part, unilaterally declared cease-fire for Dashain, the nation’s greatest festival.

Despite being obsessive about the use of army to quell Maoists, Girija Prasad Koirala, though always serious in composure, never did serious homework to that end, so much so that he had the Defence portfolio all for himself disabling the functioning of National Defence Council that decides on the use of army. His statements after being the prime minister for the fourth time are all contradictory and speak volumes about his confusion and lack of clarity in dealing with the Maoist problem. No wonder what he spoke and what the previous home minister explained were, at times, diametrically opposite views of the government indicating their state of blissful confusion, a state that became paradise for Maoist activities to grow. This state of confusion was further intensified by the power struggle of two undeclared parties, Nepali Congress (Bhattarai) and Nepali Congress (Koirala), inside the ruling Nepali Congress. In a precarious situation like this, the confusion reached its climax when it came to deciding who actually was the real boss of Royal Nepal Army in its command and control structure. The Maoists heavily capitalized on this confusion in consolidating their position. The Deuba committee too became very handy for this purpose.

In a situation like this, Girija Prasad Koirala’s gusto oozed out and he thus expressed: ‘what is the use of my being the prime minister if those displaced by the Maoists cannot get back home even for Tika’. And, this was very much in line with his adventure of slightly over seven months that began on March 20 when he snatched away the government from his long-time friend Krishna Prasad Bhattarai on the ground of deteriorating law and order situation. Within few months of this confidence building but hollow expression, the Maoists swung into action. The September 25 Dunai incident in Dolpa and three days later at Bhorletar of Lamjung, thus, saw the looting of over fifty million rupees and the killing of twenty two policemen. It was clear by now that Maoists were desperately trying to establish political legitimacy. Prachanda’s statement the next day clearly underscored this point in his appeal to all and every one ‘to search for a political solution to the present situation arising out of fascist policies of the Koirala government.’

The drama inside Nepali Congress became all the more hilarious. Koirala’s arch rival and the only surviving-founding member of Nepali congress, as Bhattarai is today, demanded his resignation saying, " the situation of the country has deteriorated ten times more than that during my tenure." Deuba joined the chorus with a softer tone and spoke of moral responsibility. In the mean time, Koirala’s trusted lieutenant, the Finance Minister upon arrival in Oct 2 after attending a meeting abroad, was appointed as Defence Minister as well, signalling the deployment of army in dealing with the Maoists. The three members National Defence Council consisting of Prime Minister, Defence Minister and Commander-in-Chief, till Acharya’s appointment had only two members as Koirala held the Defence portfolio as well. Thus, he was perhaps incapable of recommending to the constitutional monarch the use of the army to combat Maoists.

It is not clear why the army has remained a silent spectator all this time. What is it doing now by way of expressing its willingness, in assisting the local authorities in maintaining law and order. Rendering the type of service that it is providing now does not call for a meeting of the National Security Council. Up to an acceptable point, army’s involvement at the local level comes very much under the jurisdiction of the law and order maintaining apparatus. The question emerges: when should the army be deployed in a full-fledged way? This is what the nation is debating at present. Nepali Congress welcomes the debate while the main opposition UML deplores it along with other parties. If the government accepts the Maoist movement not as terrorism but a political problem that Maoist have been insisting on, then the ball game will be different. The full-fledged use of army becomes counter productive. I, for one, strongly believe that this problem is more incisive than seen at the periphery requiring political deliberations to bring Maoists back inside the political boundary that can be set in line within the broader national interest of the country.

The debate for constitutional amendment seems to be gaining ground though the dimension of such change is quite blurred. However, it is in the right direction. Deuba says he talked with a senior Maoist leader in Kathmandu, so says the main opposition leader about his party’s contact at the local level. Dunai and Bhorletar happened within a week adding to the numbers who have died. Billions worth of property has been destroyed, hundreds of hours of deliberations done and so many changes and experiments have been made. This was the day when Maoists crossed the political boundary to reach the jungle and declared their people’s war after Deuba did not bother even to look into their forty-point demand, many of which were simple in nature. Now the buzzword is dialogue. To this end, Deuba has been publicly airing government’s failures in dealing with the Maoists. But he himself is unaware about the right way to deal with them. This is how the country is reeling under layers of confusion one after another like garbage created because of greed and incompetence, for which they are responsible.