New Crimes, Old Laws

THE Constitution of the Kingdom of Nepal, 1990, guarantees various fundamental rights of the Nepalese citizens. The comprehensive set of rights contained therein also includes the right to criminal justice. Having these rights enshrined in the country’s apex statute is one thing, but having them guaranteed in real, practical terms in the day-to-day life of an average citizen is quite another. The reality in Nepal is such that many of these fundamental rights are trampled routinely. So is the case with a citizen’s right to criminal justice in a fair manner. The reasons for this are not far to seek. Simply put, the criminal justice administration in the country is so inefficient that the rights of a Nepali to criminal justice is often not honoured. The start of a two-day workshop on Reforms in Criminal Justice Administration Tuesday heard most of the speakers including Chief Justice Keshav Prasad Upadhyaya and Inspector General of Police Pradeep SJB Rana, voicing their concerns vis-a-vis inefficiency of criminal justice administration. What emerged unmistakably from their views was that wide-ranging reforms of the criminal justice administration were overdue. The government has formed a task force to make recommendations for reforms in this connection and the two-day workshop was jointly organised by the task force and the Police Headquarters to seek suggestions from public prosecutors, lawyers, human rights activists, police officers, journalists and others. Chief Justice Upadhyaya’s view that the present criminal justice administration based on the Civil Code, which is based on traditional norms and some other laws, was not equal to the task of fulfilling requirements of the present age, was right on the mark. Disparity and lack of clarity in the prevalent laws mean that the new challenges facing the criminal justice administration cannot be dealt with an optimum degree of efficiency. Indeed, the new challenges are many as the emergence of new crimes is affecting the society. Fiscal crime is also on the rise.To effectively keep these crimes in check so that citizens rights are protected, the laws of the land have to be armed with suitable teeth. When legal provisions are silent or inadequately detailed regarding, say, financial frauds, nefarious elements have an easy time defrauding the public institutions and unsuspecting citizens. New laws are clearly needed in many of such areas while old laws need to be amended. The process to reform the criminal justice administration has to begin without much delay. For, any delay would mean the society is burdened with more and more such crimes with each passing day.

Air Safety

A NEWS story has it that six private airline companies—Nepal International Airways, Cosmic Air, Sita Airways, Air Shangri-la, Asian Bird International and Aero-Nepal—have sought the government’s permission to operate in the international sector. Till date, only the national flag carrier, the Royal Nepal Airlines Corporation ( RNAC) is operating in the international routes while only one private company, Necon Air, is operating some flights to a few Indian cities. As far as operating more international flights from Nepal is concerned, RNAC, with its limited resources, has to show its mettle. People involved in the travel and tourism business have always called for more flights in the international sector so as to promote and develop Nepal’s tourism, which is one of the mainstays of our national economy. Since the civil aviation sector is directly linked with tourism, unless and until there are more flights between Kathmandu and other major international destinations, it would be impossible to bring more tourists to Nepal. As such, the government, considering the demands from the travel and tourism sector, had granted licenses to some private airlines to operate in the international routes. However, these companies, except for Necon Air, have yet to start their services. This time round, six companies have come up with their proposals. This proves that Nepal’s civil aviation sector has business and growth potentials. However, if showing interest and getting the coveted license is one aspect, then operating in the international routes to the fullest satisfaction and safety of the travelers is completely another aspect. Hence, the government, before giving the go-ahead signal to any airlines, needs to give due attention to the interested airlines’ ability, infrastructure, human resources as well as technical and financial aspects. Furthermore, as the Nepalese sky is getting congested because of the growing number of airlines operating in Nepal, due attention needs to be paid to ensure total air safety. For, this is the sector where total air safety should and must be the first and foremost consideration while granting license. Similarly, as some companies, which have already obtained the licenses have yet to start their operations, this time, the government should only grant licenses to those who can meet the stringent criteria and have the resources and planes to start operation within the stipulated times.