Democracy will not be saved by speeches alone

By a staff reporter

The House of Representatives was almost set on fire on Monday. It was a rare sight to see all the political parties and the MPs with one voice expressing strong disapproval against what they call a conspiracy against democracy and the multi-party system.

The controversy arose after different speakers had censured the political parties and the leaders for the country’s state of affairs at a symposium organised on Saturday by what was previously an obscure group, Rastrabadi Yuba Manch (Nationalist Youth’s Forum).

The opinions expressed at the gathering, which consisted of only about five dozen people, has been taken as brewing of a conspiracy against democracy and an attempt to overthrow the multi-party system.

Those who had spoken at the meeting included Anand Khadka, Dr. Kishore Kumar Gurugharana, former member of the National Planning Commission, Santosh Pant, Mohan Niraula, Mahesh Kumar Upadhyaya, Chhetra Pratap Adhikary (a minister in the panchayat days) and Mahendra Bilas Pandey. The meeting was chaired by one Damodar Lal Shrestha.

The MPs were especially incensed at Niraula’s statement in which he reportedly said if the shootings of the Girija Prasad Koirala and other leaders will improve the present situation, then it should be done and that he was ready to do the deed.

Similarly, Gurugharana hinted that the Nepali Congress and the UML were the two pet animals of the country’s politics.

For almost four and a half hours, long fire brand speeches, one MP after another called those statements, especially that of the shooting of the leaders as condemnable and also against the law. They also demanded for strong action against those who spoke for the killing of the leaders.

Former Prime Minister Surya Bahadur Thapa called it as a situation when the country is being sandwiched between ultra Left and ultra Right elements, and the challenge to kill the Prime Minister was against the spirit of democracy.

However, the eye of the storm was the presence of former prince Dhirendra Shah as the chief guest at the symposium. The presence of Dhirendra, who was stripped of the royal title ten years back and who has been out of the country for most of the last ten years, was taken as a seedling for dreaming to oust democracy. They even demanded for keeping a watch on his movement.

The MPs even questioned about Dhirendra, who they said had spent most of the time abroad with a foreign woman, of not being a nationalist and they also challenged him to come to open politics by contesting in election, instead of conspiring behind closed doors.

Home Minister Govinda Raj Joshi responding to the MPs concern, called the statement of Niraula and Gurugharana not only condemnable but liable to be taken action against. He also said the government is committed to take strong action against those who tried to dent the democracy and the democratic dispensation.

Meanwhile, the parliament’s unified voice and the MPs concern to safeguard democracy is a welcome step. But what is important is that democracy will not be safeguarded with statements, however logical and relevant they may sound, within the parliament.

No political party or MP can deny the failure of the governments to provide the people with the basic needs of life, the rampant corruption, mismanagement and the distortions and deviations seen in the last ten years. Such negative developments have slowly disenchanted the people towards the political parties.

But it does not mean that democracy should be done away with because it is the governments and the leaders that have failed. Killing democracy for the failure of the political parties will be like killing the patient to do away with the disease. We have already seen that an autocratic system like the panchayat does not also work. Again, quelling the dissenting voices instead of looking to cure the cause of dissention will also not help the cause of democracy.

Meanwhile, the strong and harsh reactions against democracy and the leaders should be an eye-opener to the political parties, leaders and the government that what they have been doing has failed to benefit the people, country and democracy and they must correct past mistakes.

ID cards mandatory for travel to India

By a staff reporter

From October 1 Nepalese and Indian air travellers will have to mandatorily carry identification papers to enter into each other’s countries. A pruned list of admissable travel documents will be introduced to tighten the existing system of identification of travellers from both countries.

The identification papers could be passport without visa, citizenship papers or voter identification cards for the Nepalese. The government issued identity documents and accredition cards for journalists will also be taken as admissable documents.

This was agreed after a 3-day meeting of the Home Secretaries of the two countries in Kathmandu last week.

Indian Home Secretary Kamal Pande was in Kathmandu to discuss different security related issues with his Nepalese counterpart Padma Prasad Pokharel. This is the first time in the history relations between Nepal and India that air travellers will have to identify themselves to enter into each others countries.

The step has been taken mainly to control the movement of terrorists, including the Maoists and the anti-Indian ones, and other criminal elements from one country to another. India has been raising the issue of terrorists, mainly from Pakistan, of making a Nepal a launchpad for terrorist activities in India. During the talks, Nepal had also raised the issue of Maoists of finding shelters in India.

But this may also be the first step towards regulating the border between the two countries.

Recently, a survey has said that 85 per cent of Nepalese want the land border between Nepal and India be regulated to monitor the influx of Indian nationals into Nepal, which it says is having an adverse effect among other things on the employment and also the demographic situation of the country.

India visit should be fruitful, not controversial

By Dhana Thapa

India is one factor, Nepalese politicians can never underplay, nor overlook. Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala, during the run-up to the Third General Election held last year, might have said it as an electoral ploy, but he must be regretting the words he uttered about not going to India till the Kalapani issue was resolved.

In the heat of the moment, Koirala received a lot of publicity for mouthing those brave words and even the most vocal communist, was silenced by the tough stance of Koirala. Kalapani, otherwise, was the club of the communists, with which they beat the Nepali Congress and also their own drums.

However much water has flown in the Mahakali river since then and Koirala has gone on to become the Prime Minister of the nation for the fourth time. Yet, the Kalapani issue is where it was before, it has not been washed away.

Now this same issue has become like a hot potato for PM Koirala. The time has come for him to make the customary visit to neighbouring India and the Indian government has already announced a tentative date. The critics of Koirala and also opposition leaders meanwhile are having a whale of a time reminding the promise the Prime Minister made to the people regarding his India visit.

The first blame goes to Koirala, who should not have made such a remark, even if it was during campaigning times and it was almost mandatory for political leaders to make big noises. A leader of Koirala’s stature, who had the probability of leading the nation, should not have been that irresponsible in what he said, specially knowing that he was speaking of powerful India, which has a unique political, social and economic relation with Nepal.

More than making threatening noises against this big neighbour, which now is a nuclear power and which has one of the biggest armies in the world, it would be in the best interest of Nepal, if leaders could cajole their Indian counterparts to cooperate more. With the right policies and sound agreements, Nepal can benefit a lot from India, be it in bilateral trade, economic cooperation, controlling terrorism or even just for India to leave alone Nepal in other matters.

Therefore, this is not the time to grind to a halt the India visit by bringing up what Koirala said in the past. It is time to look forward and see how the visit can bring benefits for Nepal, vis a vis India.

Meanwhile the Prime Minister must not be either defensive or on the other hand too willing to prove that he can still push around India. Both won’t benefit anybody. It is instead time to start homework on what issues should be discussed with Indian leaders and how sensitive topics like Kalapani can be resolved, without kicking up much of a furore. If Koirala has not developed that much political maturity even after being the Prime Minister for the fourth time, then he has no business to make tall claims and portray himself as an able leader of the country.

Is IGP Kharel going or staying?

By a staff reporter

There was a time when the media was all praise for IGP Achyut Krishna Kharel, who was portrayed as a "super cop". The then Home Minister Bam Dev Gautam was painted as the "villain" who for vested interests sacked the former football hero. But fortunes have turned for Kharel, who is now seen as an IGP, who has not been able to lead the police force and who has totally failed in the face of the Maoist onslought.

At the moment, IGP Kharel is on an official tour to London, UK, but still the scathing attacks against him have not scaled down. The latest allegation is that he along with a cousin of his, Madhav Sharma, have made huge profits while buying .22 rifles for the Nepal Police.

There are also rumours everyday of how Kharel is going to be either retired or be sent as an Ambassador to Myanmar. Meanwhile, reports describe how he was humiliated by the wife of a policeman killed by the Maoists. And there are many other accusations, which should not have come against a man, who is leading a force, that should have been fully professional and above controversy.

The surprising thing is, both the government and also IGP Kharel himself have not uttered even a word denying different allegations against him, nor in making efforts to quell different speculations. This easy-going attitude will not do the nation any good, specially when it is going through such a tension filled period as far as peace and security is concerned.

If Kharel is staying, let him stay with confidence, if he is going, send him off packing fast. One man’s future should not be allowed to affect the whole law and order scenario of the nation.

Miss Nepal 2000, who?

By a staff reporter

Today, when the 11-member panel of judges go about choosing Miss Nepal 2000, they are not necessarily looking for the most beautiful girl but the a good mix of looks, brain, talent and personality.

It is the aim of the organizers of Miss Nepal 2000 beauty pageant to bring out from the participants something from within — confidence, talent, personality and above all beauty with a purpose, points out the Hidden Treasure (the organiser) press release.

Miss Nepal 2000, who ?

For this year’s pageant there are twenty contestants in the fray. Undergoing a 5-week training session at the Eshani Club, Kalimati, under the watchful eyes of choreographer and trainer Rachana Gurung Sharma, all of them seem a likely winner. But then only one can wear the coveted crown, and by late evening today there would have already been a new beauty queen crowned at Birendra International Convention Centre.

A pre-judging session on July 9 was held at the Club Himalaya, Nagarkot, out of which the top ten will be declared on the final pageant day. Radisson Hotel, Lazimpat, one of the sponsors of the beauty pageant, hosted a luncheon July 6 where Miss Personality was judged. Besides the top three titles, other titles for grabs are Miss Talent, Miss Photogenic, Miss Personality and Miss Best Dress Titles (in which ten boutiques are participating this year).

Cycling for conservation campaign

By a staff reporter

In their bid to demonstrate how an ordinary people can make a difference for the conservation of environment, two Swiss youths Stefan Tittmann and Tanja Risle has started bicycle journey from Switzerland to Hong Kong. During their journey they will raise funds for World Wildlife Fund (WWF)’s Living Planet Campaign, said a WWF press release.

The Swiss traveling couple are now in Kathmandu and will at their journey’s end have traveled 10,000 kilometers by bicycle raising a grand total of US $ 30,000 to ensure that the people leave a living planet behind, the press release said. They raise on an average one cent per person every kilometer they cycle for WWF.

The Living Planet Campaign aims at preserving representative treasures of nature known as WWF’s Global 2000 eco-regions, saving endangered species, and changing patterns of resource consumption particularly how we exploit the world’s fresh waters, forests, seas and energy such as coal, oil and gas that fuel climate change, it is said.

At a programme hosted by WWF Nepal Programme at Hotel Ambassador on Friday, Stefan and Tanja said that they had dreamed of making such a journey three years back and worked hard to raise enough money to realize their dream. It was the launch of the Living Planet Campaign in 1998 that inspired them to use their dream towards fund raising for a worthy cause.

"The cycle is an environment friendly mode of transport with which we can interact directly with the natural elements and with people. It is a journey also that has helped us understand how religion and the environment are connected as we have witnessed the Catholic, Muslim, Jewish, Buddhist and Hindu cultures," they said.

"Conservation is everyone’s responsibility and we have a role to play in conserving our natural treasures," said WWF Nepal Programme’s Country Representative Dr. Chandra P. Gurung.

Politically created garbage problem

By a staff reporter

As the heaps of garbage dumped at every nook and corner of Kathmandu city begin to increase resulting from the unavailability of a dumping site, local residents as well as tourism entrepreneurs have begun to express concern. However, the government and the Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) remains clueless on where to dump the 400 tones of garbage that the residents of the Valley discharge every day.

Sore to the eyes: Piles of uncollected garbage are nuisance as well as breeding ground for many diseases .

Though littering of garbage in the main streets and corners of the city has been a perennial problem for the residents of the historic city of the Valley, the present part of the controversy started when local residents of Syuchatar VDC refused to let the government dump garbage in their VDC. After that the government came up with the idea of dumping garbage along the 8-kilometer Guheswari-Gokarneshwor section of the Bagmati River.

Officials at the Ministry of Local Development proposed a link road along the river bank after it gets filled with garbage. According to their plan, they will cover the garbage with plastic sheets from all sides to ensure that the river water does not get polluted due to the liquid flowing out of the solid waste. They also planned to build a separate drainage line alongside the river to rid the pollution.

However, Environment Conservation Committee of the Parliament has decided against this. The meeting of the Committee held on last Saturday has decided to ask the government not to execute this plan on the grounds that such a plan will pollute the already deteriorating Bagmati river. This left the government with no option.

"We are clueless. We don’t see any immediate measure to manage the solid waste of the Valley," said Uday Raj Soti, Secretary at the Ministry of Local Development while reacting to the decision passed by the Environment Conservation Committee of the Parliament. "There is virtually no land in the Valley at this point where we can take the garbage."

In the meantime, many local people have started to remove garbage from their residential area to throw it away along other parts of Bagmati and Bishnumati rivers. On Tuesday morning, residents at Asan area, one of the oldest markets in town, decided to throw away their part of garbage at Bishnumati River.

"We need immediate action to remove these garbage," demanded a local resident. "We know that this will pollute our river, but the government and the Kathmandu Metropolitan City should understand that it is already polluted," he said while talking with this scribe.

While the littering of garbage in streets have negative impact on the health of the local residents here, many people believe it will hamper tourism industry, which is one of the major foreign currency earner for the country. Explore Nepal Group, a business organization, has also raised concern over the growing problem of solid waste management in the Valley. In a press release issued by the Group, it has demanded for immediate action to solve the problem.

While the city is getting polluted and people are eagerly looking towards the government and the KMC for its immediate solution, officials of the KMC have said that this problem can never be solved because of political reasons. "Acquiring 200 ropanis of land for solid waste disposal is no problem for the government as well as to the KMC," said an official at the KMC asking for anonymity and added, "but because of many political reasons it is an impossible task for us."

Khimti helps to lift loadshedding

By a staff reporter

Khimti I Hydropower Project, an undertaking of Himal Power Limited, has started commercial operation from yesterday (Tuesday) midnight, the same date it’s management had declared to commence the operation when they obtained financing for the Project four years back in June 1996.

Himal Power Limited also reached at a 20-year contract with Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) to supply 350 GWh per year, said a press release issued on Tuesday.

"Despite facing huge challenges concerning the quality of rock and the challenges of the environment, the project has been completed on the targeted date," it said.

The Khimti hydel project (60 MW) is the first private sector power project in Nepal to be completed. It is funded by equity provided by Statkraft SF and ABB and Kvaener from Norway, Butwal Power Company and number of Nepali counterparts. Loans were provided by Asian Development Bank, International Finance Corporation, Eksportfinans and the Norwegian Agency for Development and Cooperation (NORAD).

With the operation of this project and other two projects, namely Puwakhola (6.2 MW) and Modikbola (14 MW) hydro power projects, the NEA on Monday announced to lift load shedding in the country starting from June 10, 2000.

Soaltee ties up with LSG Sky Chefs

By a staff reporter

Soaltee Crowne Plaza, Nepal’s premier hotel and one of Asia’s finest, has signed an agreement with the world renowned flight catering company LSG Sky Chefs, a subsidiary of Lufthansa German Airlines, for serting up a modern state of the art flight-catering unit in Kathmandu. Under the agreement, LSG shall provide all technical expertise and know-how for the establishment and operation of the flight catering facility.

Bass Hotels & Resorts, owners of the Inter Continental, Crowne Plaza, Holiday Inn, Park Royal and Holiday Inn Express brands, are operationally managing Soaltee Crowne Plaza. Bass hotels and Resorts, the hotel business of Bass PLC of the United Kingdom owns, operates and franchises more than 2700 hotels with 450,000 guest rooms in over 90 countries and territories.

The present flight catering operations of Soaltee Crowne Plaza already commands an 85% market share of the total flight catering business ex-Kathmandu. It currently caters to almost 2000 meals per day serving several international airlines including the nation’s flag carrier, Royal Nepal Airlines Corporation.

Soaltee Crowne Plaza’s selection of LSG Sky Chefs over all other international air caterers, is based on the latter’s worldwide reputation of maintaining the highest quality and standards in airline catering. It is expected that with this tie-up, flight catering services of international quality and standards shall be available in Nepal.

The facility — the first of its kind in Nepal — is to be set up in close proximity to the Tribhuvan International Airport and shall have state of the art production facilities and services. LSG is committed to provide all technical inputs in the facility planning of the unit including the selection of equipment, layout of the work areas, hygiene control, quality control and other allied services.

Another increase in Gurkha pension

By a staff reporter

As part of the generous British Gurkhas pensions settlement agreed by United Kingdom government ministers in December last year, it was announced that this award would be revised annually in line with the cost of living increase in Nepal. the revision would apply to the Gurkha Retirement Pension, the Gurkha Service Pension, the Gurkha Disability Pension and Gurkha Resettlement Grants, and take effect from 1 April 2000.

The 11.9% increase, an excellent result for British Gurkha pensioners, was recommended by an independent team from the United Kingdom which visited Nepal earlier this year. The visiting team alone was responsible for this increase. A press release of the British Embassy here in Kathmandu informed that.

All rates are held with Pension Paying Offices and Area Welfare Centres. But, as an example, the rate of an ordinary family pension at the enhanced rates payable to those in the rank band fo below Corporal with 15 year’s service has increased to NCRs 7881.72 per month from the previous rate of NCRs 7043.55.

It is anticipated that pensioners paid at the Pension Paying Offices will have the new rates and arrears due available from 20 August 2000. Banking pensioners will have their accounts credited at the end of August 2000 and payments from Area Welfare Centres will be made at the end of August/beginning of September.