NC MPs register no-confidence motion against Bhattarai
No option but to resign

By A Staff Reporter

For the second time in a month the Nepali Congress party has  set its mind  to remove Prime Minister Bhattarai from office. According to a press statement issued by the party  a no confidence motion against Prime Minister Bhattarai  has been registered in the party’s office yesterday (Tuesday) afternoon. The no confidence motion bears the signature of 69 MPs of the party. With this the Prime Minister may have no option but to resign.

The registration of the motion came with the Nepali Congress president Girija Prasad Koirala sounding a battle cry against Prime Minister Krishna Prasad Koirala At a gathering of the party’s MPs yesterday morning Koirala had accused Bhattarai of breaching the secret agreement of February 25 and said the MPs now could do whatever they liked.

“I have now set you free. You now may do whatever you like,” he had told the gathering of the Congress MPs. Koirala said that according to the secret agreement Bhattarai should have resigned by March 14 (Tuesday). Only a few including Sher Bahadur Deuba and the PM himself and several minister were not present at the meeting.

However, one minister, Minister for Commerce and Parliamentary Affairs Ram Krishna Tamrakar declared at the gathering that he had come after tendering his resignation to the Prime Minister. By the day’s end his resignation was accepted.

Now, the fight between Koirala and Bhattarai has again come out in the open. The final cord between Bhattarai and Koirala had snapped after Bhattarai on Sunday said that he would resign only if a second generation leader would succeed him, citing the reason that both he and Koirala had grown old. Bhattarai had even said that he would step down immediately if it meant a second generation leader succeeds him. He was clearly indicating that Sher Bahadur Deuba should step into the PM’s shoes.

With that statement Prime Minister Krishna Prasad Bhattarai revealed what was in his mind — and why he has been playing a ‘cat and mouse’ game with party president Girija Prasad Koirala. He does not want Koirala to become prime minister again and if he has to go for political exile he wanted to take Koirala with him.

However, Bhattarai knew that Koirala would not accept the proposal. He also knew that no one in the second generation, even Sher Bahadur Deuba, stands any chance against Koirala. So, it could be another ploy of Bhattarai to keep hanging on to the chair.

But Bhattarai’s defiant signal saying ‘I am not going to leave for you’ brought the wrath of Koirala to the fore. Koirala was under intense pressure from his supporters after the so called agreement failed to materialise.

According to reports the cabinet last week finalised the date and schedule of Bhattarai’s week-long visit to France, though Deputy Prime Minister Ram Chandra Poudel denied this. According to another report, Bhattarai’s visit to India is also almost finalised. A source close to Bhattarai said, “ The Prime Minister will visit India as soon as US President Bill Clinton’s visit there ends”.

Although Bhattarai’s proposal of handing over the leadership to the second generation is a good one because the two top leaders have failed to lead the party and the government effectively and efficiently, if the majority support Koirala, then it would be “undemocratic” on the part of Bhattarai and his supporters to stall him.

Now, that a no-confidence motion has been registered in the party, Bhattarai has only two options left before him — either to bow down gracefully or to fight back and almost certainly make a humiliating exit.

With majority of the party’s MPs against him, Bhattarai should quit according to the basic democratic norm. If he chooses to fight back and loses, this will be the end of his political life and he will also lose whatever influence and mettle he has in the party. Even if Bhattarai wins, it will be a pyrrhic victory for him with the possibility of the Nepali Congress not remaining as one party.

New appointments: Bhattarai's last gamble?

By A Staff Reporter

Even as the political impasse within the ruling Nepali Congress is heading towards a nasty showdown between Prime Minister Krishna Prasad Bhattarai and party president Girija Prasad Koirala, many appointments were made in the past fortnight or so.

Observers took such decisions of the government as a last resort to install Bhattarai supporting men in different places.

The question that arises now is, will the newly appointed executives be replaced if the Bhattarai government falls down? Most probably yes. But it is sure such hiring and firing of top level executives in the different government institutions, are sure to affect the performances of the organisations.  In turn this will affect the economy of the nation in a negative manner.

How have the new executives been chosen? If professional people from the different institutions have been picked up, then such a decision cannot be faulted, but if people are appointed in important positions just because they deserve political favours, then this will be wrong.

“You either have to be a cousin of the top level leaders or have spent some time in jail with them, that is enough qualification in most cases,” said a bitter worker in a government corporation. He pointed out that many public sector institutions had been ruined by such political appointees in the last ten years.

ISI's new mission: Madrassas in Nepal

By A Staff Reporter

Amid growing clamour that the Pakistani intelligence agency and also Muslim fundamentalists are increasing their activities here in Nepal, it has been learnt from a reliable source that there are plans to build a “Madrassa” in the Terai belt of Eastern Nepal.

A little over a year back, a columnist who was considered a staunch anti-Indian writer, had also pointed out that many mosques were being built in the Lumbini area. This piece of information, along with the insinuation that Muslims were trying to swamp the Siddharthnagar area, was published in an English language weekly published from Kathmandu.

Now there are reports that a company called Pantech, which has its headquarters in Lahore in Pakistan, is trying to buy a bungalow in Rajbiraj and turn it into a Madrassad. Indian authorities claim that Pantech Group is actually a company that works as an ISI front.

The source also says that this group is trying to buy the sick Ganapati Cotton Mills in Biratnagar, which belongs to a Nepali, Mrs. Chandra Kala Rana. The mill has been lying closed for the last two years, said the source.

The Indians fear that as the mill is situated in the Nepal-India border area, it may be used for nefarious purposes. This group is also trying to buy 300 ropanis of land in that area, it is said.

Deuba should not be PM now

By A Staff Reporter

After Prime Minister Krishna Prasad Bhattarai openly said that he would leave office only to the younger generation, he clearly had Sher Bahadur Deuba in his mind. It is also true that Deuba is the only one who stands above the rest of the second generation leaders. Deuba, too, immediately welcomed Bhattarai’s proposal saying such a move would be good for the party, democracy and the country.

With his latest political stroke Bhattarai has now openly ganged up with Deuba against Koirala.

Meanwhile, on whether Deuba will succeed Bhattarai, this prospect seems very difficult unless Koirala clears the path for this on his own will. And this does not seem likely at the moment. Also, other leaders like DPM Ram Chandra Poudel, Khum Bahadur Khadka, another influential leader and Sushil Koirala don’t want to see Deuba gaining a lead over them.

With Koirala doggedly in pursuit of becoming the Prime Minister once again and with the majority of the MPs with him, many of them supporting Koirala because of their personal loyalty, sidelining Koirala will be very difficult. Again if Koirala has to choose a second generation leader to take over Deuba will not be the choice.

Thus, it might be better for Deuba to wait for the two leaders tire themselves, rather than hurry to grab the post and make enemies with many top level leaders.

Psychological approach to deal with pain

By A Staff Reporter

Bernhard Trenkle of Milton Erickson Society, Germany, delivering speech at the Fourth Nepal-German International Medical Conference.

The Fourth Nepal-German International Medical Conference, organized jointly by German-based organizations Forderkreis - Hilfe fur Nepal and Milton Erickson Society in collaboration with Maryknoll Nepal/Asha Deep, kicked off in Kathmandu on Tuesday.

As suggested by the theme of the conference: “Pain, Hypnosis, Orthopedics, Ayurveda and Rehabilitation,” it is targeted at discussing  various aspects of psychological approach to deal with patients of pain and orthopedics.

The four-day long conference is the forum for doctors from around the world where they will present their paper in a cross-section of topics related to pain, hypnosis, Ayurveda and rehabilitation. It is participated   by more than 174 delegates comprising of 121 German, 12 Austrian, 6 Swiss, 4 American, 28 Nepalese and others.

The conference was inaugurated by chief guest Dr. Nirmal Pandey, Member, National Planning Commission, by lighting traditional Panas.

During the inaugural ceremony, addressing the gathering, Dr. Klaus Barth, Ambassador of Federal Republic of Germany to Nepal, lauded the role played by German organizations and the local organizing committee for conducting the conference. “The organizers have dedicated this venture for the benefit of those who are suffering from chronic pain and orthopaedic problems,” he said.

Delivering the welcome speech, Dr. Dhruba M Shrestha, co-chairman of the organizing committee, highlighted on the need of discussing the methods of mass hypnosis, hypnotherapy which are useful in carrying out treatment of patients of chronic pain.

The understanding of illness or pain is complex  and the treatment aims to be more individual than standardized, he said and added that medical therapy is often a combination of various methods to increase efficacy. As such, these things should be discussed time and again to enhance knowledge, he further added.

 Dr. B. N. Rana, Chairman of the organizing committee, said that the benefits from the conference will be provided to two humanitarian projects — Maryknoll/Aasha Deep, a mental rehabilitation project and the Senior Citizen Home, Godavari, Lalitpur.

Similarly, Bernhard Trenkle, Organizing Chairman from Milton Erickson Society of Germany, discussed about the Ericksonian Approach in caring the chronic pain. He is also presenting a paper on “Hypnosis and Ericksonian Utilisation for the Rehabilitation of Paralyzed Patients” during the meeting.

 Prof. L. M. Singh highlighted on the benefits from Ayurveda. Delivering his speech, he said that Ayurveda is the traditional system of medicine practised in the Indian sub-continent. But it is getting popular not only in this region, but also in the western developed countries.

The increasing interest in Ayurveda could be because of the lure of the exotic, rising cost of the modern health care or disenchantment with the present medical system to meet the human needs, he pointed out.

An evening of arty delights

By A Staff Reporter

Maura Moynihan

Laura Friedensohn

An evening of art, music and poetry was presented by Infinity International, 9th March at the Siddhartha Art Gallery.

The chief guest of the occasion was Dr. Sue Vokes. The evening featured Maura Moynihan’s book launch, Masterji and Other Stories, her CD Yoga Hotel and an exhibition of her paintings. Another highlight of the evening was the installation and dance by Laura Friedensohn; followed by poetry reading by Abi Subedi, Manjul, Bijendra Rana and Maura Moynihan.

Laura studied Tibetan Buddhist iconography and spent seven years studying oriental painting at Diana Kan painting workshop in New York. She studied Newari painting for a year with Lok Chitrakar in Kathmandu. She is inspired by Buddha’s wisdom and compassion in her work.

Her present work is influenced by the mountainous region, Dolpo-pa in Nepal. Laura says of her favorite colour, ochre, “I use ochres in my work; creating mountains from mountains. Ochres are natural gifts of the earth collected from a sacred place.”

Maura wrote most of the songs in the CD Yoga Hotel about Kathmandu. The title track was written while doing an evening Kora at Boudhanath Stupa. Green Cards and Blue Jeans was composed in Thamel and the inspiration for Chakra Chant came from visits to Pashupatinath. Maura is presently working on a new album of songs written in recent months while living in the heart of Kathmandu.

That day Baber Mahal Revisited provided the perfect  ambience for a cool evening of poetry, dance and music to remember.

Book Review
Mountain tourism and development

Book: Tourism as Development Case Studies from the Himalaya. (First Edition, published in 2000). Edited by: Dr. Pitamber Sharma. Published  Jointly by: Himal Books, Nepal and STUDIENverlag of Innsbruck, Austria. No. of Pages: 195.  Price: Not mentioned. 

Tourism has become one of the most important features in the development agendas for most of the countries. As the Hindu Kush Himalaya region contains  immense natural beauty with a high level of cultural and biological diversity, tourists around the world are attracted to the countries in this region.

Since the largest section of this region lies in Nepal, tourists visiting  this country are mostly attracted by the Himalayan range. Though a considerable portion of Nepal’s income is attributed to tourism,   it is also considered as a development intervention.  

The increasing concern with sustainable development in recent years has brought the issue of environment, as well as the economic, social and cultural development of destinations to the centre stage of the tourism-development debate. This has added a critical dimension to the perception of tourism in the Himalayan region.

The presented book titled: “Tourism as Development (Case Studies from the Himalaya)” elucidates the essential inter-relationship of tourism development and presents the need to take an integrated and inter-sectorial approach to mountain tourism in the region. The book, in fact, is a compilation of five of the case studies that was carried out by International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD). Dr. Sharma has revised, edited and updated the case studies and also provided an introduction to and a comparative synthesis of the studies. 

Though the case studies presented in the book represent various types of tourism, it is not only about tourism. It tried to present an in-depth study of various aspects of tourism including trekking, mountaineering, pleasures and sightseeing, wilderness and culture, resort tourism and pilgrimage tourism at different ecological belts in the Himalaya. As the title of the book suggests, it is an attempt to look at the complex interface of tourism and development, although the relationship may not be as apparent in all cases.

The chief message of the book is that tourism, in order to be sustainable in the mountains, has to contribute to the environmental, economic and socio-cultural development of tourist areas or else it has no meaning and relevance. The recommendations made in this book prefer the concept of long-term development, while paying equal attention to the ecology, social and cultural frameworks.

The book is divided into seven chapters. The first chapter presents a brief sketch of the global and regional tourism scenario in the Hindu Kush Himalaya. The second section looks at mountains and their implications for tourism. The third section discusses notions of susceptibility, carrying capacity and local development, which run through the case studies presented in its subsequent chapters.

The final section introduces the salient issues that each case study raises in the context of mountain tourism and development. The book is believed to enhance the knowledge and the understanding of the concept of interdependency in tourism.

—      Reviewed By NB

Fanta: No more a bottle of fun

By A Staff Reporter

a razor blade inside the sealed bottle of Fanta. Whose negligence is it ?

As the temperature begins to rise in the Kathmandu Valley, many people have started to quench their thirst by drinking varieties of cold drinks found in the market. But, do they know how hygienic those drinks are?

Even  drinks from the most quality-conscious company may fail to be a healthy drink. Quality analysts of those companies may fail to detect even a visible contamination in their products.

That is what this scribe confirmed when he happened to buy a soft drink called Fanta from a cold store near Tri-Chandra College, Ranipokhari, last week.

Kathmanduites have seen many incidents of contamination in the sealed packed foods and drinks they consume. But the recent incident beats them all. The sealed bottle of Fanta offered by the shopkeeper was found to contain a razor blade in it (See Photo).

Fanta is a renowned brand the world over for soft drinks. It is bottled in Nepal by Bottlers Nepal Limited under the license provided by the CocaCola Company. The rusted razor in the Fanta bottle brings another similar incident that took place  a week back. A boy swallowed a whistle placed in the candy while eating it. It  caused a severe throat injury to the little boy. The whistle was placed as a “free gift” to attract the children. The government has decided to take action against the manufacturer of those sweet products.

“This is unimaginable,” said Dr. Surendra Bhakta Pradhanang, executive member of the Consumers’ Right Conservation Forum. “Whether it is intentional  or not, the guilty must be punished in such cases,” Dr. Pradhanang, said and added, “we can file a case against Bottlers Nepal Limited if they are proved guilty.”

Earlier, no bill and regulations for the protection of consumers existed here. Now, both the bill and regulations are in effect and such companies can be penalized, he informed. 

But the authorities at the Bottlers Nepal Ltd. refuse to see the obvious. “We have almost eight workers who scrutinize the bottles when they are cleaned, filled with the dirnks and sealed,” said Digambar Amatya, External Affairs Manager at the Bottlers Nepal Ltd.

“This may be an act of sabotage against our company by rivals,” he added.

Consumers say that such shocking mistakes must be rectified immediately, irrespective of the reason. The authorities must take action and ensure that quality controllers are doing their jobs.

“The company involved should also develop mechanisms to check such irregularities for the sake of their customers’ health as well as for their own prestige in the market,” they say.

IMF slams NC infighting

By A Staff Reporter

The majority government of the Nepali Congress missed a golden opportunity to manage the government machinery, control corruption and improve the economy because of the feud within the party.

This is the conclusion of the board of directors of the International Monetary Fund. The report is based on the report of a delegation of the IMF which had visited Nepal in November.

The IMF has also cautioned that the Maoist insurgency movement may escalate further because the economy has failed to take off.

According to a news report, the IMF, in its findings, has severely criticised the government. That is why the government has not disclosed this to the public, the news report says. It is also said that the IMF has also sent a 52-point suggestion to the government.

Round table meet on penal reforms

By A Staff Reporter

As a part of a programme to promote penal reform in South Asia, Penal Reform International (PRI) and the British Embassy will run a two day round table meeting on Prisons and Penal Reform at the Himalaya Hotel, Kathmandu from 18-19 March 2000.

The Chief Guest at the meeting will be the Rt. Hon Minister of Home, Purna Bahadur Khadka and the meeting will be attended by representatives from the Home Ministry, the Prison Department, the Police, Judiciary, the Supreme Court, Nepal Bar Association and NGOs and Civil Society Groups.

A team of local consultants and representatives from PRI met the Chairman of the Parliamentary Human Rights Committee, the Cabinet Secretary, a number of MPs and representatives from NGOs and civil society groups at a reception hosted by the British Ambassador on 12 March.

Prior to the round table meeting, the PRI team will also visit prisons in Biratnagar, Birgunj, Rabiraj, Bhimphedi, Ghorahi and Tulsipur from 13-17 March 2000. The aim of this tour will be to gain first hand knowledge of priosn conditions in Nepal and to follow up on the training programme or prison conditions in Nepal and to follow up on the training programme for prison conditions in Nepal and to follow up on the training programme for Prison personnel that took place in Kathmandu in November 1997.

The British Government has provided programme funding of US$32,000 for this intiiative.