CPN-UML general secretary Madhav Kumar Nepal conferring with other leaders and intellectuals on the current problem facing the parliament at Singha Durbar, Sunday.

Their Majesties leave for China today

KATHMANDU, Feb 25 (RSS) -Their Majesties the King and Queen are leaving on a week-long state visit to the People’s Republic of China tomorrow, February 26, at the invitation of Chinese President Jiang Zemin.

Nepal-China relations have been marked by exchange of visits at the highest level ever since the establishment of diplomatic ties in l955.

This will be Their Majesties’ third state visit to the People’s Republic of China.

Their Majesties first paid a state visit to our northern neighbour in December l973 at the invitation of Acting Chairman Tung Pi-wu and Premier Chou En-lai, not long after His Majesty’s accession to the throne.

The next state visit was in September l993 at the friendly invitation of President Jiang Zemin.

It may be recalled that the first state visit paid to China by a head of state of Nepal was by His Late Majesty King Mahendra in 1961.

Apart from the state visits, Their Majesties also paid an official visit to China in September l987 at the friendly invitation of President Li Xian-nian and Madam Lin Jia Mei, and a goodwill visit in June l976.

Their Majesties also paid a week-long visit to China in August of l996 at the friendly invitation of Chinese President Jiang Zemin.

Their Majesties paid a private visit to China in May l978 en route to Japan, and another private visit there in August l979 when Their Majesties were en route to the Sixth Non-aligned Summit Conference in Havana.

His Majesty also visited China in l966 when His Majesty was the then Crown Prince. Visits to China paid by other Nepalese leaders include those by prime minister Tanka Prasad Acharya, prime minister BP Koirala, prime minister Kirtinidhi Bista, Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala, prime minister Man Mohan Adhikari and prime minister Sher Bahadur Deuba.

Similarly, visits paid to Nepal from the Chinese side include those paid by Premier Chou En-lai, Deng Xiaoping, President Li Xiannian, Premier Zhao Ziyang, Premier Li Peng, Chairman Li Ruihuan and the state visit paid by President Jiang Zemin as recently as l996.

As His Majesty the King observed at the end of Their Majesties’ second state visit to China in l993, its objective was to consolidate good relations subsisting between the two countries, and it was an opportunity to review friendship between two friendly countries.

The highlights of the state visit starting tomorrow will be the meetings His Majesty the King will have with President Jiang Zemin. Top Chinese leaders including Premier Zhu Rongji, Vice President Hu Jintao and Chairman Li Peng of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress will have separate audiences with His Majesty.

His Majesty will also attend the Boao Forum for Asia inaugural ceremony at Boao, Hainan province as a guest of honour.

Relations between Nepal and China have been based on panchasheel and Nepal has been a consistent supporter of Beijing’s one China policy regarding Taiwan.

China has played a key role in Nepal’s economic development, including through the construction of infrastructure such as highways and factories, and through the opportunities made available for training Nepalese doctors and engineers at Chinese institutes of higher learning.

The state visit starting tomorrow takes on added importance in view of the changing times characterized by the emergence of China as an economic power house as well as change in the Tibet autonomous region foreshadowed by the proposed improved transport link between Lhasa and Shanghai.

China’s wish to enter the World Trade Organisation and Nepal’s own aspirations towards WTO membership give the two neighbouring countries something still more in common.

Boao Forum set to begin
HM to be Guest of Honour

By Yubaraj Ghimire

BOAO, Hainan Province, China, Feb 25 - The Boao Forum for Asia, the Asian version of the World Economic Forum which takes place annually in Davos, Switzerland, is set to kick off with its formal inauguration here on Monday.

On Tuesday, His Majesty King Birendra is scheduled to visit the Forum as its Guest of Honour. According to the organizers, His Majesty is also scheduled to address the representatives attending the conference from more than two dozen countries of Asia. His Majesty the King and the Queen will then proceed to Beijing as part of their state visit.

The proposed Forum aims to push forward the mutual understanding and cooperation among Asian countries preserving its diversities, but seeking common prosperity.

The 24-country Forum envisages providing a high level dialogue stage for governments, industrial and commercial leaders, experts and scholars from Asia to jointly discuss regional economic development, population and environmental issues. "The Forum will gather and unite Asian countries on a dialogue platform and make the voice of Asia be expressed clear," a BFA press release states.

The Forum is not another extended substitute of Asian regional forums like ASEAN, APEC or SAARC. Organizers say, it is different in the sense that it is the first regional non-governmental and non-political initiative.

But involvement of present and former leaders of the 24 countries indicates the political importance the birth of this Forum attaches. And with the shadow of Indo-Pakistan conflict hanging over SAARC, and its failure even to hold the annual summit, the Boao Forum nevertheless, could be a hope reborn for greater regional cooperation.

Along with His Majesty King Birendra, Chinese President Jiang Zemin, Malayasian Prime Minister Mohammad Mahathir, Former Japanese Prime Minister Nakasone Yasuhiro, former Philippines President Fidel V Ramos, former Pakistan president Farooq Leghari and former Prime Minister of Australia Bob Hawke are among the dignitaries attending the conference.

India’s former Prime Minister I K Gujaral did not show up at the venue despite prior announcement that he would be one of the former leaders attending the birth of the Forum. It is not yet known how India has officially reacted to the Boao Forum coming up. Bangladesh, Pakistan and India have their representatives attending the two-day conference from the South Asia region. Kirtinidhi Bista, former Prime Minister of Nepal is one of the senior leaders participating in the conference.

Former ASEAN Secretary general and pro-tem Chairman Tan Sri Dato Ajit Singh said the establishment of the forum was mooted first in September 1998 by some ex-statesmen of the region. It later got support from many more countries including China and from private enterprise.

Singh said Forum will be open to business companies globally which operate or have interest in Asia. "It will be private sector driven. The membership will not be by countries, but by companies," he said.

Hainan, the permanent venue of the Boao forum is the rapidly growing industrial province of China which registered a remarkable eight percent Gross Domestic Product growth this year over the previous and has been a potential centre for major investment by multinational companies.

White Paper raises more questions

By Damakant Jayshi

KATHMANDU, Feb 25 - With the nation’s Prime Minister on the firing line and the Parliament not able to conduct regular business due to the Lauda Air jet controversy, the Royal Nepal Airlines Corporation (RNAC) today attempted to clear the clouds surrounding the lease deal by publishing a White Paper. But, the so-called White Paper has raised more questions than it attempted to answer.

Reacting to the document, Lialamani Pokhrel, leftist lawmaker and member of the Public Accounts Committee that had asked for the freezing of the deal before the Lauda jet landed, told The Kathmandu Post that there was nothing new in the paper. "We just need three answers from the government," said Pokhrel, adding, "Under which financial regulations, government’s or RNAC’s, was the plane brought; why were 1,005,000 US dollars each of bank guarantee and one month’s advance were sent when the agreement had not asked for it; and, under which law had the Cabinet over-rided the CIAA directives that barred leasing of an aircraft without tenders."

Pokhrel added that the "anti-law, anti-government orders, anti-Parliament and anti-CIAA deal" was allowed as Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala was "involved in the deal".

To begin with, the White Paper is conspicuously silent as to why one of the most basic specifications of the about-to-be-leased wide-body aircraft was violated - the aircraft had to be less than 10 years old, according to RNAC’s own regulations. The Boeing 767-300 ER jet was, however, 12 years and eight months old at the time of signing of the agreement in September last year. Nowhere in the paper is this crucial fact mentioned.

In fact, when RNAC first published its tender, the age of the aircraft was fixed at not more than five years. In the subsequent tenders (the third and the fourth ones) the limit was raised to 10 years. This naturally raised eyebrows. The players in the aviation circle feel that the specifications were altered to suit the interests of ICTC, a large trading house of Kathmandu, which represented Lauda Air.

Defending the controversial deal that has already claimed the heads of the Executive Chairman of RNAC Hari Bhakta Shrestha and Minister for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation Tarinee Datt Chataut, the document says that there are no specific government or RNAC laws, rules and regulations on leasing of an aircraft. It does however mentions that all the 19 deals clinched since 1994 (including that of Lauda Air) were done through negotiations.

However, it terms the directives of the CIAA as "suggestions," giving the government and the corporation a wide area for manoeuvre. It was precisely because of the absence of any specific rules and regulations that resulted in so many scandals in the past that the CIAA asked the government and the RNAC to abide by the tender process and not to go for direct negotiations. And the RNAC, through the White Paper, takes refuge in this very loophole that the CIAA’s four-point directive attempted to plug.

Another controversy surrounding the aircraft was its timing. By RNAC’s own declared plans, the actual schedule for the aircraft will be effective from March 1, a full four moths after the aircraft landed at the Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA) on December 1. This raises a very important question: whether RNAC needed the fourth aircraft in the first place.

With accusations of failing to do any homework as to how and where the leased jet would be utilized before the agreement was signed and the absence of a thorough route-analysis market survey before and after, the fears that the fourth aircraft was brought not purely on market considerations has gained credence. Despite the mounting accusations, the Corporation is yet to silence its critics.

The acceptance by RNAC that it plans to press the leased jet to full use from March 1 also questions its own assertions, made in the White Paper itself, that the jet was hired through direct negotiations because of time constraints.

When the questions were raised with present RNAC executive chairman Rajesh Raj Dali, the airline’s boss reiterated what his predecessor had been arguing since leasing the Lauda Air jet – that the four tenders and a sealed offer were issued to meet the conditions set forth by the CIAA.

As for the marketing strategy, Chairman Dali said that study reports were yet to be seen by him. However, he added that study was completed without disclosing when it was done. "If the new routes and the frequency of the existing flights increase as per our plans, we will have 1500 flight hours per month, a hike by over 400 hours," revealed Dali.

India cannot go anti-Nepal: Muni

By Satish Jung Shahi

KATHMANDU, Feb 25 - Nepal-India relations could attain newer heights if both the countries adopt policies of "constructive engagement and co-operation" such as the Mahakali Treaty and formation of Border Management Committees, said an Indian foreign affairs expert today.

At a talk programme held in the capital titled "Nepal-India Relations: A Futuristic View," Professor S. D. Muni, an international affairs expert, also said that India as a state will not never become anti-Nepal even if some individual Indians may want so.

"There is a mindset, like that of (senior BJP leader K R) Malkani in India, and even among the bureaucratic circles that sometimes clouds Indian policy package (on Nepal). But even if some Indian wants to be anti-Nepal, India as a state will not be able to do so," said Muni, who has also served as an Indian Ambassador to Laos. He was speaking at a programme organised by Nepal Centre for Contemporary Studies.

"Even when Rajiv Gandhi resorted to the blockade upon Nepal (in the late 1980s), the Army Chief and Shankaracharya among many others in India had protested," Muni added. "There are powerful constituencies that want to build a interdependable relation between the two countries."

Muni is a Professor of Asian Studies at School of International Studies at New Delhi’s Jawaharlal Nehru University. He is considered India’s foremost Nepal expert, and has published numerous books on foreign policy.

Prof. Muni further cautioned both the nations to avoid the mistakes of the past and draw the necessary lessons to avoid trouble in the future. "Nepal and India would not achieve any objective if they put past and present into the future," he said.

On reviewing the 1950 Nepal-India Peace and Friendship Treaty, Muni said that Nepal should first gather political consensus amongst its leaders.

India, he said, was presently on a path to globalisation, which has taken precedence over the liberal policies towards smaller neighbours championed by former Indian Prime Minister Nehru. In this new context, Nepal has to persuade the other side (India) that what she thinks is good for her is not conflicting to the other side (India), Muni implied.

He also said that a stable democracy in Nepal was in India’s interest. "The political system has to deliver goods to the people," he said.

Speaking on the occasion, Lok Raj Baral, Professor of Political Science at Tribhuvan University and a former Nepali Ambassador to India, said that Nepal-India relations now should be "based on objectivity."

"Nepal maintaining a political balance between India and China is now a classical approach," Prof. Baral said.

Royal visit to consolidate Nepal-China ties

KATHMANDU, Feb. 25 (RSS) - His Majesty King Birendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev has said that His Majesty’s forthcoming state visit to the People’s Republic of China will contribute to the further consolidation of the traditional ties of friendship between Nepal and China.

"I am looking forward to meeting His Excellency President Jiang Zemin and discussing with him the strategies of setting up a good-neighborly partnership between the two countries in the new century," the King said in a recent interview given to Xinhua before his China visit scheduled from February 26 to March 4.

President Jiang Zemin and King Birendra agreed to set up a good-neighborly partnership between Nepal and China in the 21st century during President Jiang’s state visit to Nepal in December 1996.

King Birendra said that Nepal and China, as close and good neighbors, share a common border of over 1,400 kilometers and the friendship between them dates back centuries.

"I am happy to note that they are based on the principles of equality, mutual respect and good neighborliness," the King said.

"We must ensure that our traditional bonds of friendship always remain firm and steadfast, as we move with the times," the King added.

King Birendra expressed belief that increasing visits of high-ranking officials between the countries will help to enhance friendship and cooperation in all fields.

Stating that China has been a consistent partner in Nepal’s development endeavors, King Birendra felt grateful to the aid and support extended by the Chinese government for its economic development in the past decades and hoped that such cooperation will be further strengthened in the new century.

"In order to give further impetus to Nepal-China relations as we move into the 21st century, both the governments and the private sectors of our countries should, I feel, focus on economic cooperation to the mutual benefit of our peoples," the King said.

Since the establishment of the diplomatic relations between Nepal and China in 1955, King Birendra has paid nine visits to China. Having witnessed the great changes in China during the past five decades, especially since China took an open-door and reform policy in 1978, the King expressed heartfelt admiration for what China has achieved.

"I have been able to see for myself the impressive economic progress your country has made over the years and the current policy adopted by China has been instrumental in improving the quality of lives of its people," the King said. During his stay in China, King Birendra will also go to Shanghai and Hainan province to see projects of agriculture, information technology and urban development.

"We have been observing the remarkable socio-economic transformation taking place in China, and Nepal hopes to learn from China’s experience, especially in the fields of human resource and infrastructure development along with applied science and technology," the King concluded.

Mystery disease toll crosses 35

Post Report

BIRTAMOD, Feb 25 – Thirty-five persons have died and dozens have been taken seriously ill due to attack by unidentified ailment since last fortnight in the north Bengal town of Siliguri, according to Siliguri City Corporation.

However, several non-government organisations active in the city claim the death toll has reached 59, including four in the nearby state of Sikkim. The epidemic has created panic and confusion in this north Bengal City, a business hub that attracts Bhutanese and Bangladeshis, in addition to Nepali businessmen and travellers. The panic has extended even to this eastern district of Jhapa, where people are getting increasingly apprehensive of travelling to Siliguri, the northeastern business hub of India. Siliguri lies only 38 kms east of Kakarbhitta, the eastern entry point to Nepal.

The symptoms of this unidentified disease include high fever, respiratory problems and headache.

"The usual rush and hectic traffic has declined here and many shops remain closed," said a Siliguri resident Kalu Ghimire over telephone. The panic was fuelled by the shocking death of the famous cardiologist A. K. Maity, who died in a Kolkata hospital after being rushed there when he developed symptoms of the mysterious disease. Seven nurses have also succumbed to the disease so far.

District Public Health (DPH) sources here, however, have assured that there are no indications to believe that the epidemic will make its entry into Nepal. "We are ready to adopt all necessary measures to combat any possible threat of the disease," said DPH assistant, Rajendra Choudhary.

Meanwhile, attempts to diagnose the disease are being made frantically in Siliguri. For this purpose, a team of experts belonging to The World Health Organisation, National Institute of Virology and the Delhi-based Indian Institute of Communicable Diseases are busy analysing collected samples. "The process may take another three to four days for the experts to arrive at a conclusion," said the Siliguri-based orthopedic surgeon Dr K.C. Mohapal, talking to The Kathmandu Post.

Student elections end peacefully

Post Report

KATHMANDU, Feb 25 - The nation-wide election for the Free Students Union (FSU) in all the government and private colleges affiliated to Tribhuvan University and Mahendra Sanskrit University ended peacefully except for a few minor incidence of disputes.

The election was held under tight security but there were few clash in some colleges between Nepali Congress associated Nepal Students Union (NSU) and All Nepal National Free Students Union (ANNFSU), one affiliated to the CPN-UML and the other to the CPN-ML.

Election was withheld at Patan multiple Campus after about 2500 votes was cast, as disputes arose between various students’ organisations.

Various colleges in the valley were seen overflowing with students from early morning. The vote counting continued late into the evening.

Of the available election results by late evening, NSU panel was declared elected in Mahalaxmi Campus, Lubu. In Gramin Adarsha Campus, Balaju, NSU candidate was elected as the president while other post was taken by ANNFSU (CPN-ML associated)

Those colleges in hold of the NSU include Ayurved Campus at Naradevi, Pashupati Multiple Campus, Lalitkala Campus, Balmiki Campus and Sanepa Nursing Campus.

Campus Chief of Mahendra Ratna Campus said that of the total 4553 the students cast 2070 votes and the counting would begin in the evening. Commenting on the election Campus Chief added, "Though the students leaders expressed their commitments to work towards improving the quality of the education, their concerns were largely political."