All-party government taking a final shape

By Ghanashyam Ojha

KATHMANDU, Sept 28:All political parties are to persuade Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba to postpone the November elections and form an all-party interim government to give a peaceful way out to the current political crisis, at an all-party meet to be held at the office of the Prime Minister Deuba, at Singha Durbar tomorrow, a high level source told The Sunday Post.

"The parties have finally decided to postpone the upcoming November polls for six months to one year and initiate peaceful dialogue with the underground Maoist outfit," the source said.

Following the unanimous decision of all the political parties, UML General Secretary Madhav Kumar Nepal and the party leader K P Oli held a separate meeting with Prime Minister Deuba at his Baluwatar residence, at 5:00 pm today.

Narayan Man Bijukchhe, president of the Nepal Workers’ and Peasants’ Party (NWPP), who also attended the meeting said that Prime Minister Deuba listened to the UML leaders and responded positively.

"The UML leaders asked the Prime Minister to bring the Maoists to the negotiating table for a peaceful dialogue," Bijukchhe said. "Deuba then asserted that he would talk to all political parties and come out with a decision."

Meanwhile, PM Deuba also today held a two-hour long meeting with his legal consultants about the constitutional provisions regarding the postponement of the election, the source claimed.

The source revealed that the Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP), CPN-UML and Nepal Sadbhavana Party (NSP) have decided to work with the Deuba-led government for which Surya Bahadur Thapa, president of RPP, Madhav Kumar Nepal, general secretary of UML and Girija Prasad Koirala, president of Nepali Congress have already decided in their Friday’s meeting.

The Nepali Congress and other fringe left parties will be supporting the all-party government, though they will remain out of the government, the source said.

The UML Standing Committee meeting held today, immediately after the duo met the Prime Minister, also decided to find a constitutional way out to postpone the upcoming November election. Jhala Nath Khanal, a member of the UML Standing Committee today evening told The Sunday Post that the meeting took this decision in the wake of the political developments.

"The meeting also decided to bring about a consensus among all the political parties to seek a peaceful resolution of the current crisis," Khanal said.

However, the source claimed that Koirala is still in favour of the House revival and bringing the party to its previous position of power. "It is a strategy of Koirala to unify the party," the source said.

As per the constitutional provisions on the postponement of the already declared polls, the parties are thinking of a precedent set in 1995 when the then Prime Minister dissolved the parliament and declared the election date which was on ‘Haribodhini Ekadashi’. The King then, on the recommendation of Koirala, and advice from the judges of the Supreme Court, postponed the election date.

The leaders are to talk to the Prime Minister Deuba about this precedent and persuade the Prime Minister to postpone elections slated for November 13.

The source claimed that the internal consensus has already been worked out between the Prime Minister and the political parties.

The formation of the all-party government and the postponement of November polls are to be decided before October 5, the source claimed.

EC finally decides to hold polls in six phases
Polls to begin on Nov 13 and end on Jan 10

By Damaru Lal Bhandari

KATHMANDU, Sept 28:After months of dillydallying, the Election Commission (EC) has finally come out with the detailed schedule of the parliamentary elections, deciding to hold the polls in six phases, beginning November 13.

The staggered polls would commence on November 13 and will be held in six phases with the concluding voting on January 10, the EC announced on Saturday.

According to the schedule, 15 districts, including Kathmandu, will go to polls in the first phase on November 13 while the second and third phases will be held in 14 and 13 districts on November 25 and December 7 respectively. Similarly, the fourth, fifth and the last phases will be held in 10, 12 and 11 districts on December 18, December 29 and January 10 respectively.

The EC also made public the detailed schedule of filing the nomination papers to withdrawing the nominations.

The filing of nomination for the first phase of polls begins on October 5, according to the EC, while the nomination dates for other phases have also been finalised.

Minister for Home and Local Development Khum Bahadur Khadka has expressed the view that the government wanted

Agreement on West Seti a ‘silverlining’
Few issues still remain unresolved

By Surendra Phuyal

KATHMANDU, Sept 28:That the Power Trading Corporation (PTC) of India and the Snowy Mountain Engineering Corporation (SMEC) West Seti Limited have finally agreed to go ahead with negotiations has been welcomed here as a positive step towards developing the 750 megawatts project.

Water resources officials and experts here see the development as a ‘silverlining’; if West Seti begins to export power to India, other potential bigger projects in the West such as 6,000-plus MW Mahakali-Pancheshwor and 10,800 MW Karnali Chisapani could follow suit. The two parties entered into a memorandum understanding in the Indian capital, New Delhi, Thursday.

When completed, the reservoir-type project is expected to bring some relief to not just the state coffers, but also to the backwater hill districts of the Far West. If everything goes according to plan, the Australian developer will sign the Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) "within a couple of months".

Bill Bultitude, Managing Director of the SMEC West Seti told The Sunday Post that his company has submitted a price of US cents 5.12 Cents (Indian Rs 2.45), and that negotiations are on with the PTC to decide on the actual price of the electricity. The Indian side is said to be negotiating to buy "part of the West Seti power" in Indian currency.

But here is a point to ponder: the price of US cents 5.12 for a unit of peak-time power is cheaper than what the state-owned Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) has been doling out to the private developers of 36 MW Bhote Koshi and 60 MW Khimti hydro projects.

The NEA signed the PPAs with the developers of the two run-of-river-type projects at about US cents 6 for a unit of electricity a few years ago. The price has now climbed up along with the rising inflation.

"Well, 5. 12 cents would be a good price for a unit of average energy," said Dr Janak Lal Karmacharya, Managing Director of the NEA. "But that (the price) is comparatively lower for peak-time energy."

Now that the SMEC has already submitted 5.12 cents, and that further negotiations are going on, experts here speculate that the price is bound to go down to 5 cents or even less, say experts. And that the

Relatives of HIV/AIDS patients fare worse

By Tashi Dolma Thinley

KATHMANDU, Sept 28:Even with the current global awareness for the issue, people living with HIV and AIDS are not only fighting the disease but also making an extra effort to fight the societal norms and ostracism.

In Nepal, it is often difficult to discern whether the stigma is due to the disease itself or due to the social and cultural norms of the Nepali society.

"Unheard Voices," a Panos South Asia publication, is a book of testimonies of people struggling to deal with the reality that someone they love, live with or someone nearby, is HIV positive or is a drug user. The book is a compilation of stories of despair, of frustration and of anger. It brings out the bitter truth of the disease and the conceited notions imbedded in the Nepalese psyche of social and cultural value systems.

The book deals with the cruel and unfeeling side of humanity and points out the stark nature of a self-centred society. For most people it is almost impossible to empathise with people living with HIV and AIDS. The disease is a culmination of hardships, pain, stigmatisation and ostracism, and nothing but only hope can help them survive. But here we have in society, people who are parents, spouses, relatives and children of people living with HIV and AIDS and all are paying a huge price. Young Sandhya married at a young age only to realise that her husband was a drug addict, who later became HIV positive. She did not know then, that worse days were ahead. Not only did her in-laws shun both of them, but even her parents cut her off from parental love and support.

Sandhya in the book says, "Earlier my parent’s would give me sacks of rice if we needed, but today when I really need them as we have no income, they don’t care. Things have changed for me".

Here it is apparent that parents wash off their hands regarding their daughter whose marriage they themselves have arranged, it is all the more difficult to imagine how they’d treat a defiant daughter marrying a person of her own choice.

Sapana 30, from an affluent family, had a love marriage. Love died with time and peer pressure eventually led her husband to drugs that paved the way for HIV. He became a changed man, abusive and ill mannered, he would hurt her physically and verbally. He had no income, as he was sick most of the time. She is hurt and angry but is more hurt by the way, her parents evade her. Her brothers shoo her away altogether.

Sapna narrates, "They had already told me that I eloped on my own will and that I should now manage my own affairs." So painful and disadvantaged is her life today that she questions, "What is the point of living life this way. He nearly died sometime ago, if he had, at least I would not have to hear people calling me a drug addicts wife". And the conceited societal norms do not stop there, it dictates social behaviour too. While the parents shun daughters because their in-law is HIV positive, the in-laws take good care of the HIV positive son-in-law.

There are even cases of parents who would get their sons married off to the girl before anyone knows that he is an HIV positive. There are cases of families falling into depression and stories of suicide. Suffering, the book says, is not limited to people living with HIV and AIDS.

Men, Marriage & Mentality
Perceptions of single Nepali women in US

By Smriti Dhungel Gyawali

PHOENIX, Arizona, Sept 28:Kanchana Adhikary, 25, drives her newly bought Silver Jetta as she hums her favorite music "Kabhi Kabhi", on her way to work at Motorola Corporation. Her designation, Electrical Engineer, for the past two years.

Now living an independent life in her apartment she adds, "When I was in Nepal I always dreamt of leading an independent life, I guess sometimes dreams do come true. Coming here has not only made me independent but has changed my outlook, it has made me aggressive in decision-making and in believing that women are just as equal as men in every way, no matter how the tradition in Nepal tends to make you feel lesser than them."

Like Kanchana, there are thousands of young and single Nepali women who come to the United States for higher education. A few years in America changes their perceptions on traditions, marriage, and men, perceptions that used to bewilder them while making major decisions of life.

According to Nepal Rastra Bank reports, based on research from foreign currency transactions, the number of those going abroad was 5,002 in 1995/96, which stood at 12,000 as of December 2001. Each year, about 1,400 Nepalese leave on student visas to pursue higher studies abroad and statistics show 38 percent are females.

The ANA (Association of Nepalese in the Americas) reports that registration for the Annual Convention in July, showed that 40 percent of the students enrolled were females.

Surprisingly, when questioned on their perceptions towards marriage and men, the young and outgoing Nepali students had a lot to say.

Yukta Regmi, 17, from Tennessee said, "I would love to marry a Nepali guy but what I see is that Nepali guys think very low of women unlike American men, and I don’t know how they will treat us."

Manisha Gautam, 19, from Virginia had something very interesting as she openly spoke out, "I think marrying a Nepali guy here is okay but marrying in Nepal is not in my list, as most traditions there are too extreme and it is very tough living with rigid traditions."

Adds Kanchana, "I don’t mind living in Nepal after marriage provided my husband’s family are understanding, give me enough space, and respect me; but if they are dominating with the "do-this-do-that" attitude, no way would I want to stick up with them, I would rather live independent."

Talking about social pressure from parents to marry in own castes, these women had different views. "I have an American boyfriend and I have been living with him for the last two years. I dared to open up to my parents about this," recalls Nishal Pradhan, 23, from Washington DC. "But It was amazing how coolly they took the whole thing. They even came to America to meet him which was a huge relief to me."

For others like Priya (Identity not disclosed) it was a different story. "My parents insist that I marry a Newari guy, but I don’t know how to tell them that I am already engaged to an American," she said. "It would break their hearts. It is sad as they are still looking for a husband for me."

Karishma Upadhyay, 24, from Minneapolis, adds, "Of course there is parental pressure towards marriage but I would at least want to get to know the Nepali Guy from my caste, that my parents choose for me, before I come up with a definite answer. I think the time factor to know any guy is important."

The role of the husband was another issue that most girls wanted to stress on. Suruchi Jyoti, 25, from Boston, came flat out with. "In this aspect, I am glad that I am westernised. It is only fair that a "male spouse" should contribute to the household duties as well, since "women spouses" are nowadays contributing to the household earnings, whether it be in Nepal or the US".

Adds Sweta Lamichhane, 18, from Maryland, "Despite having been brought up in the US, there is this pressure to marry a Nepali. I want to marry a Nepali guy but one who has been born and brought up here too as there would be a better understanding."

Young single women studying abroad all have their personal perceptions that they are entitled too. According to most young women, the changes in their perception have made them better and more competent, whether the "in the name of culture" rules favour them or not.

Army chief visits Maoist-hit districts

KATHMANDU, Sept 28 (PR) - Nepalese Chief of Army Staff General Pyar Jung Thapa today visited the Maoist-hit districts in west Nepal and acquired information about the security operation in the area.

Meanwhile, a team of security officials led by Defense Secretary Madan Kumar Aryal left on Saturday for the United Kingdom to discuss co-operation on defence matters.

News sources said the UK government has invited the officials for a "final discussion" on the proposed military assistance and training to the Royal Nepal Army (RNA).

Uparathi Rukmangat Katuwal, assistant coordinator of the National Security Council is among the other team members, accompanying Aryal.

14th Asian Games begins today

KATHMANDU, Sept 28 (PR) -Almost 10 thousand athletes have converged in the South Korean city of Busan for the 14th Asian Games which begins Sunday.

Sportspersons from 44 countries will vye for 420 Gold Medals available in the games.