Gastroenteritis kills 8 in Jajarkot

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JAJARKOT, May 31 - At least eight people, among them three children, died this week in an outbreak of gastroenteritis in Korbang and Daha Village Development Committees (VDCs) according to the Chief District Officer (CDO).

CDO Rishikesh Niraula said Sete Damai, Kaldari Damai, Amrita Shahi and three children - Hari Bahadur Shai, 9, Bir Bahadur Shahi, 4, and Bir Bahadur Sarki, 13, were among those killed in the epidemic.

Korbang VDC Chairman Surendra Bahadur Shahi said that two more people succumbed to gastroenteritis in ward Nos- 3 and 4 of another remote Daha VDC this week. Names of the people killed in the epidemic could not be known.

And seven others seriously affected by the outbreak are undergoing treatment at a local health centre in neighbouring Garkhakot VDC.

Dr. Bhim Singh Tinkari at the district hospital said a medical team had been sent to the gastroenteritis affected area with adequate medical supplies.

More than a dozen people were killed during the same season last year in the Daha and Korbang VDCs due to the gastroenteritis epidemic.

Dr. Tinkari said people from these remote villages are highly susceptible to gastroenteritis because of contaminated water and unhygienic food.

Supreme Court quashes Auditor General’s writ

By Pramod Poudel

KATHMANDU, May 31 - The Supreme Court (SC) quashed a writ petition Thursday enabling the Commission for Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) to investigate Attorney General Badri Bahadur Karki regarding the decision he made in a smuggling case involving Sunil Maskey.

Attorney General (AG) Karki had filed a writ petition on February 20 in the SC demanding that the court block the CIAA interference over a decision he had taken on the Maskey’s case on September 4, 1998. After CIAA asked AG seven questions regarding the case, he opted to file a writ rather than replying to the constitutional body.

Karki then decided not to prosecute Maskey who was held on charges of trying to smuggle Rs 12.1 million in 500 rupee denomination (Indian currency) notes to Singapore, and had even ordered that the confiscated amount be returned to Maskey.

The order was passed by a special bench comprised of Chief Justice Keshav Prasad Upadhyay and Justices Laxman Prasad Aryal, Kedar Nath Upadhyay, Krishna Jung Rayamajhi and Govinda Bahadur Shrestha.

Chief Justice Upadhyaya passing out the order at a crowded court room, said that Articles 110 and 98 (3) of the Constitution have clearly spelt out the jurisdiction of the two Constitutional heads. "No person can seek impunity for action punishable by law," said Upadhyaya.

Chief Justice said that AG’s deed does not fall outside CIAA’s purview. "It can not be said that AG need not answer CIAA’s queries."

During the hearing Karki and his lawyers had argued that the Constitution has given the AG the right to make the final decision as to whether or not to initiate proceedings in any case on behalf of the government in any court or judicial authority. They argued that the law has not given anybody the power to raise any question against AG’s such power.

Lawyers from AG’s side argued that CIAA should not have challenged the AG’s decision as it would bring out a confrontation between two important constitutional organs.

CIAA had asked AG on what basis he refused the prosecution against Maskey who tried to smuggle the money to Singapore and returned the confiscated money despite the provision of the Ministry of Finance which prohibits the Indian currency (IC) to be carried to any country besides India.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has banned export of such 500 denomination notes even as it still remains a legal tender in India. Such currency held is generally sent to NRB which then sends to RBI and obtains its equivalent.

The other question CIAA asked was on what ground was it defined that the 500 IC denomination could not be treated as foreign exchange when the Nepal Rastra Bank had exchanged such confiscated currency with the RBI.

"On what legal basis did the AG accepted that Maskey was taking the currency to India when the money was actually confiscated while he was heading for Singapore?" CIAA had asked AG.

Karki’s argument was that such currency did not fall under Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB)’s Regulations and did not come under the definition of foreign currency in the Nepal Rajpatra (Gazette) of 1985 and 1990. Karki had argued that he had withdrawn the case as prior to July 16, 2001 when there was no restriction to transporting such currency. Only the budget announcement of fiscal year 2000/2001 had banned such flow of currency.

Police intervene on language rally

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KATHMANDU, May 31 - A peaceful demonstration to protest ethnic discrimination turned violent when protesters pelted stones at the police and police resorted to lathi charge to break up the protest.

Thursday was being marked as the "Black Day" to protest the Supreme Court’s verdict two years ago against the use of Newari and Maithali as next official languages after Nepali. Nobody was seriously injured or arrested by police.

The protest was against the SC’s decision on June 1, 1999, when a divisional bench of Judges Top Bahadur Singh and Krishna Jung Rayamajhi decided Newari in Kathmandu Metropolitan City and Maithali in Dhanusha District Development Committee and Rajbiraj Municipality could not be used in addition to Nepali in official documents

The rally was organised by Linguistic Rights Action Committee.

According to the eyewitnesses, a truck load of riot police stopped the rally, took away the participants’ banners and lathi charged at the beginning of the demonstration at Basantapur.

In the short rally, a certain group within the demonstrators were shouting slogans against the Prime Minister and the system as well, which were not included in the organisers’ program, according to the police.

The linguistic activists later joined the concluding program at Basantapur, and on their way tot he venue this same group attacked the police once again at the New Road side.

Addressing the mass at the concluding function, Amaresh Narayan Jha, the co-ordinator of the organising body, said that the demonstrators were irritated and terrified by uncalled - for intervention by the police.

"We have been marking the day as a ‘Black Day’ but from today, we will remember this day as a ‘Day of Suppression’ too," he said.

Chairman of Nepal Nationality Liberation Movement Sitaram Tamang said that the nationalities would come up with bigger protest in future if the suppression against such peaceful rallies continues. "An element entered the peaceful rally and pelted stones at the police, which in turn incited the policemen to charge at the demonstrators," he claimed.

Similarly, K B Gurung of All Nepal Nationalities Conference said that the issue of language discrimination not only concerns Newars and Maithalis, but it has also become an issue of concern for over half of the total population, who speak Nepali as a second language.

Malla K Sunder, coordinator of Nepalbhasa Action Committee, said that the police force provoked the peaceful mass rally and deprived the people from their right of organizing rallies.

Meanwhile, a press release signed by fourteen linguistic and ethnic groups have condemned the police intervention calling it "undemocratic and communal" on the part of the government.

RSS adds from Siraha: Sixteen people have been taken into custody following a police crackdown on a rally taken out against linguistic exploitation today.

The rally taken out at the call of the Language Action Committee Siraha had demanded that the Supreme Court reverse its decision of Jestha 18, 2056 and that schooling should be provided in mother tongues.

Lauda ‘blackmailing’ RNAC

By Damakant Jayshi

KATHMANDU, May 31 – After months of shaking up Nepal’s politics, the Lauda Air scandal is going from suspicious to bad and now to worse.

On Thursday, the Austrian-owned airline threatened to stay out of Nepal if RNAC, the national flag carrier, failed to fork up US 1.005 million dollars as advance payment for the month of June. Unconfirmed reports said that the Lauda jet had already left for Vienna (Austria) from Bangkok without even waiting for the RNAC management’s response.

Highly placed sources within RNAC sources told The Kathmandu Post today that the new move by Lauda Air is tantamount to "blackmail" of the national flag carrier. "It just proves that they had none of the pressurization problems they claimed earlier this week," an official said on condition of anonymity.

The letter from Lauda Air has blamed the RNAC for the default in payment. It has called the Chairman of RNAC Rajesh Raj Dali for renegotiations of the deal between 4th and 6th June in either Vienna, Bangkok or New Delhi, said the sources. Dali could not be reached for his comments despite several attempts.

Earlier this week, Lauda Air officials claimed that the Boeing B-767 jet leased from the airline by RNAC had developed technical snags – namely pressurization and thrust reverser problems. As such, they refused to carry out RNAC’s scheduled flights and ultimately flew to Bangkok to "fix the problem."

But nearly two days after flying to Bangkok, Lauda officials today faxed a letter to RNAC headquarters asking for the advance payment for the month of June. The implied message, according to a senior RNAC official is no advance no aircraft.

Lakpa wants to climb Everest 10 more times

By Binaj Gurubacharya

KATHMANDU, May 31 - Watching Lakpa Sherpa graciously walk on six-inch heel shoes and long black dress, it would be hard to say that this woman has climbed Everest twice.

But on the mountain, this 27-year-old lady is as good or even better than her male counterparts carrying 30kg load racing up the snowy slopes of the world’s highest mountain.

Though she now has two successful Everest climbs under her belt, she is not ready call it quits and is planning to return to the mountain again next year. "I am still young and I want to climb at least 10 times," Lakpa said.

Last week, she scaled the peak from the Tibetan side in the north to become the first Nepali woman to climb from both sides of the mountain and one of the only few women in the world with that feat in their credit.

Last Spring, she was part of a four-woman team to Everest and the only member to scale Everest. Thus she became the second Nepali woman to reach the summit, but the first one to return alive from the mountain. Pasang Lhamhu, the first Nepali woman to scale Everest, died on her way down from the peak in 1993.

Lakpa was part of an international cleaning team led by a Japanese climber, Ken Noguchi.

When she did make it to the summit, there were at least three dozen climbers either on the summit or on their way up or down from the summit from both the Nepali and Tibetan side of the mountain.

"We had to wait in queue to get a chance to step on the summit. It was crowded and climbers were all cramped on this little space," she said.

There were over one hundred climbers who scaled the peak between Tuesday and Friday last week taking advantage of the much awaited break in weather conditions.

Weather conditions had remained bad this month until the skies cleared up just enough for the climbers to make their push to the summit.

She was the only female member in the team but says she did better than her male counterparts.

"Even the men who have climbed twice or thrice were complaining of headache and other problems but I had not problems like altitude sickness or tiredness ... there are no differences between men or women when it comes to climbing and I was climbing carrying 30kg load," Lakpa said.

On the way to the summit, she was climbing without any flash light and depending on the light carried by two other climbers ahead of her. At one point she almost tripped on the body of a climber who had died in a previous climb. "I got startled and just sat down next to the body," she said.

On the sad notes, she said people in other expeditions were calling her names. Some "foreign" climbers called her "rubbish girl" because she was part of a cleaning team. "I did not mind these comments," she said.

Falling pasmina exports worry investors

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KATHMANDU, May 31 - The plunging export of pasmina products, in recent months, has yet again raised serious questions over the sustainability of the pasmina industry, one of the most lucrative export oriented industry, which, in a short span of time had spurted impressively to become the third largest exportable item.

Among others, the slumping quality of pasmina products, which has deteriorated heavily in recent months mainly due to widespread use of low quality imported pasmina yarn, is the cause of plunge in demand in the international market.

Puspa Shrestha, Managing Director of Nepal Pasmina Industry also blamed that the deteriorating quality and excessive production of the pasmina products are some of the main causes for shrinking pasmina export seen in recent months.

"Some exporters are engaged in exporting various products of ordinary wool in the name of pasmina products, which has greatly eroded the fame of Nepali pasmina in the western market," he said.

Dependency of Nepalese pasmina industries on the Chinese yarn and continuing import of low quality pasmina yarn, particularly form the bordering Chinese city of Khasa, is the major reason that has deteriorated the quality of pasmina products.

"Lack of scientific mechanism to test the purity of the pasmina is the major drawback of the Nepalese Pasmina industry," said Krishna Prasad Acharya, Managing Director of the Pashupati Indrayani Pasmina Industry.

Historic Census leaves out key aspects on women

By Subas Risal

KATHMANDU, May 31 – Women hold up half the sky, Chairman Mao once said. And so they do, even in Nepal where various studies have found that Nepali women contribute substantially to household income, be it in the villages or the towns.

But in the ongoing Census 2001, women’s economic contribution to the nation has been left out of the question forms conspicuously. Not only that, many other aspects of female existence in Nepal, things like "discrimination, violence," etc, have also been left out, raising the ire of women’s rights activists.

But to the credit of the Census officials, they have at least added one important criteria on women for the first time. Census officials are now asking each and every woman what property they own in their name. Do they own any land, cattle, and jewellery? The data will help to provide a clear picture of women’s economic status, Census officials say.

But women’s rights activists would have been more than happy had the same questionnaire also asked about the economic activity of women. Mere inclusion of property section in on-going Census 2001 won’t be sufficient to portray the real situation of womenfolk, they argue.

Sapana Pradhan Malla, a leading women’s rights advocate says that merely taking stock of women’s property will not suffice to depict the situation of women in the country. "Property is just one of the many aspects to portray the existing status of women in the country. Sadly, there are many other aspects which are left out in this particular Census," she says.

"Since there is nothing regarding the women’s contribution to the household economy in this Census, it won’t be able to portray the real status of the women and the concept of gender equality will remain wanting," adds Malla.

Advocates like Malla are right in many aspects. Despite occupying half of the country, and playing a key role in the economic life of the nation, Nepal’s patriarchal society often forgets the contribution made by women.

Even the female Census supervisors who are more acquainted with the questionnaire expressed concern over missing out of some important aspects.

"Issue like domestic violence, which is prevalent in Nepali society and a major form of discrimination against women has not found the space in this Census," said one female supervisor on the condition of anonymity.

However, Krishna Prasad Shrestha, Deputy Director of Central Bureau of Statistics said that CBS has tried its level best to acquire more information about women’s status. "We have tried to incorporate the suggestions in this Census given by different organizations related to women’s rights," said Shrestha.

Hearing on Lauda begins

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KATHMANDU, May 31 - The hearing on the controversial Lauda Air jet deal began in Patan Appellate Court today after the statement from the six accused was over.

Government lawyer Dinesh Hari Adhikari, representing the CIAA said that RNAC’s Board had only demanded foreign currency for the jet lease and not approval for the agreement from the Cabinet. He added that the agreement between the two parties had to be approved by the governments’ approval.

"This way the agreement is very insecure" said Adhikari. He added that RNAC former Chairman Hari Bhakta Shrestha who is himself a LLM graduate in Aviation Law going ahead without following any norms to bring the jet proves his malafide intention.

Adhikari said that the deal with Ansett was cancelled as the jet was seven years old when the limitation set was five years old but now Lauda jet that is more than 12 years was brought as against all norms.

Adhikari even alleged Board member Tirthalal Shrestha who went to London to negotiate with Inland Aviation being baseless. "The company had maintained that conditions set by it should be met. Why did he go there if it was not possible to meet the condition that was already sent here to RNAC," queried Adhikari.

Other government lawyers Dron Raj Regmi and Narayan Poudel representing CIAA today in the hearing questioned why the former Chairman Shrestha went ahead with the Lauda Air jet negotiation on 27 September 2000 when they were informed of the renewal of the lease agreement with the China South West Airlines (CSWA) just a day earlier.

"Shrestha had gone to negotiate for the third aircraft. There should not have been any further proceedings in Vienna after the renewal here with CSWA," stressed Regmi. "The negotiated for the Lauda Air as the fourth jet as against the law."

"How can it be justified by the Board that the fourth jet was necessary just two days before Lauda jet arrived?" inquired another government lawyer Surya Koirala who is also Joint-Secretary at CIAA.

Koirala said that the jet’s serial number didn’t match with that mentioned in the ICTC’s seal offer. He even dwelt on it was all a pre-planned game to lease the Lauda jet at any cost which was more than 12 years old.

Left parties boycott ISDP meet

MUSIKOT, Rukum, May 31 (PR)- District level leaders of the opposition parties, including the CPN-UML, boycotted an all-party meet, called by the Chief District Officer (CDO) to discuss the development programmes to be implemented under the Integrated Security and Development Package (ISDP) on Thursday.

The ISDP, backed by Royal Nepal Army (RNA), is being executed in this Maoist insurgency hit district of the mid-western region. In addition, the government has also already decided to mobilise the army in six other insurgency affected hill districts including Rolpa, Jajarkot, Kalikot, Salyan, Pyuthan and Gorkha. The RNA has already moved in at Gorkha to execute the ISDP.

As the Rukum district co-ordinator of the ISDP’s Monitoring and Inspection Committee, CDO Netra Prasad Neupane had called the meeting to discuss various development and security issues in the district.

"We decided to boycott the first meeting because we are still unclear about all ISDP aspects," said Sher Bahadur KC, the UML Rukum District Committee Secretary. He added that his party would not participate in the Monitoring and Inspection Committee’s meet unless the party becomes clear about the ISDP.

Following the main opposition’s stand the Rastriya Prajatantra Party and CPN-ML, a breakaway of the UML, also decided to boycott the meet, citing their scepticism over the ISDP issue.

CDO Neupane said that despite the opposition boycott, the Monitoring and Inspection Committee’s first meeting was held under his chairmanship, attended by the ruling Nepali Congress district leaders and government officers.

After the meeting, CDO Neupane told The Kathmandu Post that they discuss the development and security related issues in the district, which is one of the worst insurgency hit districts in the region.

Maoists confirm attack on Press

By Seema A. Adhikari

KATHMANDU, May 31 - The underground Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) Thursday claimed responsibility over the blast that destroyed Jaya Guru Ganesh Offset press belonging to Shree Chandeshwori Publication at Balaju on Wednesday evening.

A press statement issued late in the evening signed by Prabha Kiran, a Kathamndu based Maoist representative denied having taken any money except damaging pornographic materials published by the press. "We have no rules to attack the press and places of publicity but the Chandeshwori Press was heedlessly publishing pornographic materials, we were helpless," the statement added.

"We have no knowledge of publishing Ashlil (pornographic) materials for which the Maoists attacked us," Krishna Prasad Gautam, the publisher and president of the press said.

The first ever attack on the press remained a mystery till it was claimed today. The staff present during the attack had been unable to identify the culprits but had earlier said that the gang members had threatened and intimidated them saying that they were Maoists.

"They first pulled out the phone-line, threatened the staff with dire consequences should they move about an inch," Shiva Sapkota, marketing officer who was present during the explosion said.

The miscreants poured kerosene and set fire over the steel cabinet, tables, chairs, sofas and frame used in publishing paper and the published books of class nine of Janak Educational Materials. The time bomb was placed beneath the paper-cutting machine, which exploded after ten minutes, the office staff claimed.

The local people at Balaju said they suddenly heard the big bang and afterwards they saw the group of people talking to heels from the spot. The police said the bang was loud enough to be heard at regional police outpost at Balaju half-a- kilometre away.

Cash amounting to 2,80,000 was taken away by the gang before they destroyed the property worth millions of rupees, the press owners claimed. In total property worth Rs 1.2 million was destroyed during the attack, claim the owners.

The incident that left the press burning turned more mysterious and confusing police found huge pile of books authored by Prachanda, police source said. The police are further investigating the incident, sources close to police said.

The press publishes different kinds of weeklies, tabloids and magazines like Saptahik Jansaata, Sandhyakalin, Praybhatkalin, Pratiyogita Manch, Ranga Manch and Satya Katha.

Meanwhile, the Federation of Nepali Journalists, in a press release, said today that it seriously condemned those anti-social elements behind the attack on press. The federation also strongly called on the government to arrest the culprits and take action against them immediately.

Prevent smoking among women: WHO

KATHMANDU, May 31(PR)- The World Health Organisation (WHO) urged countries to prevent tobacco epidemic among women and girls, a WHO press statement issued here by the UNDP/Nepal said today.

According to the statement released by WHO on the occasion of he Anti-Smoking Day.

The WHO statement further adds, "Women and the tobacco epidemic-challenges for the 21st century." Pregnant women are more vulnerable and have higher risk of miscarriages and giving birth to low-weight babies, who are easily prone to infection, the statement says.

More than 60 per cent of men are smokers in Asia, which means millions of women and children in the region suffer from second-hand smoking, the UNDP/Nepal quoted WHO as saying.

"Second-hand smoking is an important issue," the statement quoted Dr Gro Harlem Brundland, WHO Director-General, as saying.

Increasing use of tobacco is becoming a global trend as aggressive market and its promotion moves from developed countries to developing countries. The tobacco companies are using misleading labels such as "mild" or "light", says the release.

Economic measures such as tax increase, more gender-specific research as well as the economic and social effects of tobacco in general, the dissemination of health information to women and girls are some of the measures cited in the release to check such a trend.

Environmentalists smell foul on old vehicle ban review

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KATHMANDU, May 31 - The government’s latest move to postpone the deadline of phasing out vehicles older than 20 years from Kathmandu Valley has caught the attention of environmentalists. The activists fear that the government might give in to the pressure mounted by various transport entrepreneurs and exporters who have been protesting against the government announcement to ban the old commercial vehicles from mid-November this year.

The government recently formed a working committee, through a cabinet decision, to re-study the decision made by the same Nepali Congress cabinet on August 29, 1999. The committee comprises of Secretaries from Ministries of Finance, Home, Labor and Transport Management, Industries, Law and from Ministry of Population and Environment and is coordinated by a member of the National Planning Commission who looks after environmental issues. The committee has been directed to submit its report within three months.

"Something is really fishy that the government has decided to postpone the date of phasing out the old vehicles," says Bharat Basnet, Managing Director of The Explore Nepal Pvt Ltd, a company campaigning for cleaner environment. "We fear that the government might stall the decision itself under pressure from entrepreneurs and businessmen."

"The present action proves that the government’s previous decision to phase out public vehicles more than 20 years old was taken without proper study," he adds.

However the government officials say that it is wrong to look at the move in just one aspect, as there were many things to be taken care of before the actual implementation of the decision. The government’s latest move follows protests from the transport entrepreneurs who have been demanding reversing of the Gazette announcement.

"The vehicle entrepreneurs have put forward logical demands such as the age of a vehicle should not be the only criteria for phasing out and that they need some sort of subsidies from the government," says Poshan Nepal, Secretary at the Ministry of Labor and Transport Management. "The transport entrepreneurs have also pointed out that there is going to be replacement problem after so many vehicles are banned at once, so the committee is to look at all the aspects and prepare a report," adds Nepal.

When pointed out that the environmentalist have already started pointing a finger at the decision, Nepal says, "There is nothing to be concerned about. The government has taken the decision in a good spirit, and there is still much time left before the deadline."