Annan arriving today

BY A STAFF REPORTER

Kathmandu, Mar. 11 - Kofi Annan, the UN Secretary General is arriving for a two-day official visit to Nepal tomorrow (Monday) by a special flight.

Annan, a Ghanian, is the seventh Secretary-General of the UN and the first one to be elected from the ranks of the United Nations staff. He began his term as Secretary General on January 1, 1997.

Annan’s priorities as Secretary-General have been to revitalise the United Nations through a comprehensive programme of reform, to strengthen UN’s traditional work in the areas of development and the maintenance of international peace and security and to advocate human rights, rule of law, equality, tolerance and human dignity as enshrined in the UN Charter. One of his main priorities also included restoring public confidence in the Organisation by reaching out to new partners and, in his own words, by ‘bringing the United Nations closer to the people’.

Born in Ghana in 1938, he graduated in Economics from Institut universitaire des hautes etudes internationales in Geneva and received a Master of Science degree in management from MIT as a Sloan Fellow.

Annan joined the United Nations system in 1962. In 1987 -1990 he was Assistant Secretary-General for Human Resources Management andSecurity Coordinator forthe UN System and in 1990 -1992 he was Assistance Secretary-General for Programme Planning,Budget and Finance and Controller. In 1990, following the invasion of Kuwait by Iraq, Annan was asked by the then Secretary-General, as a special assignment, to facilitate the repatriation of more than 900 international staff and the release of Western hostages.

He also led the first UN team negotiating with Iraq on the sale of oil to fund purchases of humanitarian aid.

Before being appointed Secretary-General, he was Assistance Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations and then as Under-Secretary-General . Following the Dayton Peace Agreement that ended the war in Bosnia, Annan also served as Special Representative of the Secretary-General to the former Yugoslavia.

As Secretary-General, Annan’s first major initiative was his plan for reform, "Renewing the United Nations’.

In April, he had issued a Millennium Report, entitled ‘We the Peoples: The Role of the United Nations in the 21st Century’, calling on member states to commit themselves to an action plan for ending poverty and inequality, improving eduation, reducing HIV/AIDS, safeguarding the environment and protecting peoples from deadly conflict and violence.

The Secretary-General is fluent in English, French and several African languages. He is married to Nane Annan, of Sweden, a lawyer who is now an artist. They have three children.

Govt ready for dialogue with Maoists, says Joshi

BY A STAFF REPORTER

Kathmandu, Mar 11: At a time when dialogue with the Maoists seem to be in the offing, human rights activists and leaders of different political parties are dwelling upon the issue as to how the outcome of the expected dialogue would be fruitful.

They are of the view that both the government and the Maoists should sit for peaceful solutions of the problem.

At an interaction programme here today leaders of ruling and opposition parties stressed the need for immediate solutions of the dialogue. However, they said that the government should build an atmosphere to initiate dialogue.

Presiding over the talk programme, Minister for Information and Communications Shiva Raj Joshi stated that the government was always ready to solve the problems and expect co-operation from political parties. The government always ready to sit for dialogue said Minister Joshi adding that they (Maoists) should come with concrete programmes.

Referring to the Deuba Commission report, he said that the government is seriously following it in many respects.

Central Committee member of the Nepali Congress Narahari Acharya noted that the Nepali Congress from the very beginning is clear and it has been striving to tackle the problem in peaceful manner. He pointed out the need to develop consensus among democratic forces at a time when they (Maoist) raise a question upon the basic tenets of the constitution and democracy.

The NC is ready to be responsible for the present situation of anomalies and unrest, however he said other political parties should also initiate the process the peaceful solutions of the problem.

He said that the Maoists themselves are not clear about the demands and the objective of their demands must be clearly stated. The NC, if there requires some amendment in the constitution for the consolidation of democracy is ready to mull over it, he said.

Referring to the CPN-UML’s 27 point demand over the amendment of the constitution, Mr. Acharya said " the CPN- UML as a responsible party should also clear on the issue." The NC is not against the dialogue with the Maoists, he said adding "for that other political parties should also take initiation to tackle the issue."

Jhalanath Khanal, Standing Committee member of the Communist Party of Nepal - United Marxist Leninist (CPN- UML) said that the real atmosphere for dialogue with the Maoists is yet to be made. He stressed that the government should initiate the process of building confidence and on top of that priority for peace is quite essential.

Khanal, who is also the co-ordinator the Maoists Problem Solving Committee formed by the UML, underlined the need to accord top priority to social and economic development in the country.

MP Hridayash Tripathy, termed the Maoists problem as the outcome of anomalies in the social and economic sector. "It is not easy to expect that the Maoists would sit for the dialogue so easily," he said the government should create that environment.

MP Lila Mani Pokhrel underlined the need to tackle the problem in a peaceful manner.

Leader of the CPN-ML Devi Prasad Ojha accused the government of undermining the issue. "The government has failed to win the confidence of political parties. Even if the dialogue would take place, the possibility of solutions is very thin," he added.

In the interaction programme Sudip Pathak, a human right activist also stressed the need build atmosphere for peaceful solutions of the problem.

Surprise check conducted

BY A STAFF REPORTER

Kathmandu, Mar. 11: Minister of State for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation Mahadev Gurung and security inspectors of Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) today conducted a surprise check of the flight operation and air worthiness of five different airlines and licenses of the pilots at Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA).

According to Binod Kumar Gautam, Deputy Director of CAAN, the airlines were found alert about the flight safety but most of them were not updating the flight and operation manuals.

Gautam informed that an aircraft of Yeti Airlines was not found updating the basic weight, whereas the net weight of the aircraft, including passengers and cargo, of Necon Air was found 49 kilograms overweight than the weight mentioned in the document.

In this connection, CAAN issued a directive to Necon Air to remove one of its pilots. The pilot was also told to contact CAAN for necessary investigation.

After the inspection, Minister of State Gurung told the air companies to correct their mistakes. Gurung also directed CAAN to take a strong legal action against the airlines that do not follow the flight safety and operation manuals properly.

He further said that such inspection would be conducted time and again even in the future to ensure flight safety.

On the occasion, Medini Prasad Sharma, Director General of CAAN, informed that flight inspection activities have been carried out regularly to ensure air safety.

Sharma further said that CAAN is committed to improving the status of flight safety.

Refugee verification
A test case without third party

BY NAVIN SINGH KHADKA

Kathmandu, Mar. 11: A sense of sneaking suspicion has different Bhutanese refugees’ groups in the country demanding a third party involvement in the refugee-verification slated to begin anytime now in one of the seven camps hosting them in eastern Jhapa and Morang Districts.

Just when Nepal and Bhutan are preparing for the identification, Bhutanese refugees’ human rights and political groupings in the country are particularly naming United Nation’s High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to monitor the verification process.

The organisations of around 100,000 refugees’ have voiced such a need to carry out the verification process in line with international standard and to uphold the refugees’ human rights.

For these Nepali-speaking Bhutanese whose patience is running out having stayed in the refugee camps for the last ten years, it is logical trying to play safe. More so, when their dreams to return home have shattered many a time in the past thanks to the dilly-dallying and time buying move of the Dragon Kingdom.

But, for their demand of involving a third party, at this particular point of time, the refugees have had to take no for an answer. Here is why. The general provisions of the Statute of the office of UNHCR do nowhere speak about getting involved in the verification of the refugee.

All that Chapter I of the statute says is that "the High Commissioner for Refugees in the world body can assist governments and private organisations (subject to the approval of the governments concerned) to facilitate the voluntary repatriation of such refugees, or their assimilation within new national communities."

Knowledgeable sources, however, are confident that the UNHCR can be a third party to the verification of refugees but only if the two concerned nations – one that created the refugees and the other that is hosting them – agree to do so.

It is this condition that drowns out the refugees’ voice to involve a third party in the refugee verification. For, Nepal and Bhutan, during the 10th ministerial level talks on the refugee issue last year, had decided to begin the verification process in one of the camps with a joint verification team consisting of five members from each side.

At the end of the day, the two Himalayan Kingdoms had agreed not to involve any third party in the verification process. Understandably, the country had to "entertain" the idea to take Bhutan into confidence. After all, it was after good ten years of dodging the Druk Yul had agreed to, at least, start the field verification. Something was better than nothing.

What’s more, since both the nations have agreed to begin the verification in one of the seven camps, this can surely be a test case. Now is the time to gauge what Bhutan really has up its sleeves. A confirmatory trial whether the Dragon Kingdom is indeed out to solve the protracted refugee crisis it created forcibly evicting its southern population.

And, if the outcome does not satisfy either side, the verification mechanism – applied in the first camp – would not necessarily be blanketed on all the refugee camps.

On the neck of the 10th bilateral talks last year, Bhutanese Foreign Minister Jigme Y. Thinley had said that the Bhutanese side, during the verification, would accept all valid documents the refugees would produce to prove their Bhutanese citizenship.

That said, whether or not Bhutan would go back on is something the first ever refugee-identification process will show. And that will also be a litmus test whether the verification would actually need the involvement of a third party.

Bhutanese officials arrive in Jhapa

BY OUR CORRESPONDENT

Jhapa, Mar. 11: A 12-member team of Bhutanese officials arrived here this evening to initiate the verification process of Bhutanese refugees at one of the seven camps hosting the refugees in Jhapa and Morang Districts.

According to officials at the Immigration Office at Kakarvitta, the Bhutanese team is led by Dr. Sonam Tenzing, Director at the Home Ministry of Bhutan.

The Bhutanese team will be holding talks with its Nepali counterpart in Jhapa tomorrow to discuss the criterion to verify the refugees and to make the selection of the camp. The Nepalese side is led by Joint Secretary at Home Ministry Usha Nepal.

The 10th ministerial level talks between Nepal and Bhutan last December had decided to begin the verification of Bhutanese refugees in Nepal from one of the seven camps in eastern Nepal.

The joint verification team consists of five members each from Nepal and Bhutan. Around 100,000 Bhutanese refugees have been languishing in the UNHCR-managed camps in eastern Nepal since early 1990’s.

Maskey, the man behind our robot

BY KISHOR K. C.

Kathmandu, Mar. 11: Lokeshwar Maskey of Bauddha has become successful in designing a robot named "Baruichi-2". Maskey, 32, said that he would exhibit his new invention soon. Not only the Nepalese scientists but also those from Japan and other countries have started showing keen interest in his invention.

"The robot is not inferior in any respect from the other robots made so far in the world," says Maskey, who studied only upto Class 11 in science.

He has been recognised by the Royal Nepal Academy for Science and Technology (RONAST) as the first Nepali to invent the robot. The Baruichi-2 can be fully operated with the help of two computers. He has used ‘programme able I.O. card’ to operate it.

"This robot can be used for academic and industrial purposes. It can also be used to carry goods and for monitoring activities and can be operated from a room," he said.

Regarding the cost of the robot, he said that more than Rs. 800,000 has been spent. He also informed that 75 per cent of the equipment are Nepalese, Indian and Taiwanese and the remaining 25 per cent are Japanese.

According to him, he will try to use the robot for industrial purposes. He said he has spent most of his time in designing and constructing the robot. He also gives his time to run two supermarkets at Bouddha and Jawalakhel.

Having been impressed by his genius, RONAST has given him a research job and he has undergone training in various countries of the world.

"I am grateful to RONAST for providing me the opportunity. But since I have to give much time to RONAST, I made up my mind to work in my lab."

He further expressed his commitment to dedicate himself to scientific research during the rest of his life. He said he has been taking ideas from various books to invent the innovative robot.

Responding to a question as to why he did not participate in the recently concluded Robocon Contest-2001 in Japan, he said that he did not want to go for competition in haste.

He has shown interest in science and technology since his school days. He won a prize by making a ‘remote controlled truck’ when he was an eighth grader in Pashupati Mitra Secondary School, Chabahil.

Life-member of Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), he said that the government has to bring out programmes to encourage scientific genius.

When asked about the interest of some countries, including Japan, to take him away, he did not want to speak.

Dr. Dinesh Bhuju, senior science media person at RONAST, expresses happiness over the innovative creativity of Lokeshwar. "Lokeshwar is a genius. At a time when even a needle is not being made in Nepal, he has proved his talent by making a robot," Dr. Bhuju said.

RONAST has a documentary of a robot made by Maskey a decade ago.

Dr. Bhuju also informed that RONAST would promote the activities of Maskey through the Science Study Centre to be developed under it. "RONAST has also plans to encourage such geniuses."