NEWS NOTES (Spotlight Weelky)

Major Quake ‘Overdue’ In The Himalayas

Nations in the Himalayan region are at a risk of a massive earthquake that could devastate large urban areas in Nepal, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Bhutan, a study published in the renowned American scientific journal, Science, said. The study claimed that an earthquake of between 8.1 and 8.3 Richter scale in magnitude is "overdue along the 2010-kilometer seismically active front of the Himalaya mountains." Such an earthquake could affect up to 50 million people in the densely populated region. Authored by geologists Roger Bilham and Peter Molnar of the University of Colorado, and Vinod K. Gaur of the Indian Institute of Astrophysics at Bangalore, the study said a massive earthquake would occur "very soon," which in geologic terms means anytime between now and the next 50 years, the Associated Press reported. Compiled from reports Aug. 26.

`Deuba May Step Down If Talks Fail’

A human rights activist has quoted Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba as saying that he would step down if he failed to resolve the Maoist insurgency through talks. Addressing a function organized here Thursday, Padma Ratna Tuladhar disclosed for the first time what he said was Mr. Deuba’s statement. Saying that he had met both the Maoist leaders and the prime minister, Tuladhar said both sides were eager for talks but necessary conditions were yet to be fulfilled. He also quoted Maoist chairman, Comrade Prachanda, as saying that the Maoists were firm to set up a republican state in Nepal. "We are ready to perish but will not surrender," he quoted Mr. Prachanda as saying." Himalaya Times Aug. 24.

`Nepal, India Can Resolve Issues Through Talks’

Indian Ambassador to Nepal, Deb Mukherjee, has said minor problems arising between Nepal and India can be resolved easily through mutual discussions. Talking to reporters here Thursday in the aftermath of the visit to Nepal by Indian Foreign and Defense Minister Jaswant Singh, Ambassador Mukherjee said Mr. Singh’s visit further consolidated the relations between the two countries. Ambassador Mukherjee said India had temporarily halted construction of the Rasiywawal-Khura-Lautan bund near Indo-Nepal border taking into consideration the feeling on the Nepalese side. He said the Bhutanese refugee problem should be solved through discussions between Nepal and Bhutan. Responding to a query, the Indian envoy said as the Maoist insurgency was very much an internal affair it should be resolved internally. Compiled from reports Aug. 24.

Ease Terms Of WTO Accession: Acharya

Minister of Agriculture and Cooperatives and leader of the Nepalese delegation to the SAARC commerce ministers’ meeting in New Delhi, Mahesh Acharya, has said there is a need for easing the process of accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO) by the Least Developed Countries (LDCs). The minister said a fast-track approach with simple procedures should be adopted and the terms should be consistent with the stage of development of LDCs. Minister Acharya expressed the view that the commitments laid out by WTO should not be higher than those undertaken by other LDC members. He emphasized the need for full implementation of the existing provisions of the Uruguay Round of agreements to integrate countries like Nepal in the world trading system, ensuring that trade benefits are equitably distributed. Compiled from reports Aug. 24.

Campaign Against Human Trafficking Launched

Global March against Child Labor (GMCL), an international NGO, has launched a worldwide movement against the trafficking of women and children from Kathmandu beginning Thursday. The march was launched on the International Day of Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition (August 23). Millions of children in the world are still being trafficked for sex trade, forced labour, domestic servitude, forced beggary, illegal adoption, criminal activities, to become camel jockeys, soldiers and for other forms of exploitation, said the organization. With conservative estimates placing the number of trafficked humans at 700,000 each year, the issue is hardly just a matter of historical reflection. Children are the main source of their lucrative business for traffickers. Human trafficking is the third biggest illegal trade in the world after drugs and arms that makes annual profit up to between $ 5 billion, studies said. Chairperson of the GMCL, Kailash Satyarthi, said the campaign would be launched over the next year in more than 140 countries. Compiled from reports Aug. 24.

‘We Haven’t Done Anything To Disturb Talks’

Former member of parliament and coordinator for the talks with the government on behalf of the Maoists, Krishna Bahadur Mahara, has said his party has not done anything that could disturb the talks. In an interview to a weekly close to the underground party, Mahara said his party had not made haste by agreeing for talks. "We have readied ourselves for talks as per the people’s wish," he said. Responding to the government’s proposal of keeping all the procedures of proposed talks secret, Mahara said it would not be appropriate to do so. "There may be a need to keep certain issues secret during the period of talks but we should also honor the right of the people to be informed," he said. Janadesh Aug. 21.

Dr. Rawal Seeks To Reassure Depositors

Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB), the country’s central bank, has urged depositors not to panic, saying that the commercial banks have a huge fluid fund at their disposal. NRB Governor Dr. Tilak Rawal, said commercial banks have a liquidity of Rs 46 billion and that the central bank and commercial banks could easily supply up to Rs 60 billion. The commercial banks have a total deposit of Rs 157 billion out of which Rs 105 billion has been issued as loans. The banking system is in order and the only problem was investing the funds available, he said. Brushing aside fears that the government could order a freeze or ceiling of property as has been done in the case of land, Dr. Rawal said the bank did not have any plans to make changes in the monetary policies right now. RSS news agency reports.

`Further Fragmenting Of Land Won’t Help’

An authority on Nepal’s economic history, Mahesh Chandra Regmi, has said by fragmenting the land further the country cannot produce surplus food. "I am not in favor of distributing land to landless laborers and dalits. Moreover, where do we have land to distribute?" asked Regmi. The government should focus on creating more job opportunities in the non-agriculture sector, say by opening up huge factories. The problem, according to Regmi who authored the book ‘Land Ownership in Nepal’ (1976), lies in lack of clear rules to determine ownership over the land. As landlords and tenants do not have clear authority, arable land has remained barren. Regmi said the country could not resolve economic issues unless it resolved political issues. The implementation of `revolutionary’ land reforms is not possible unless there is a conducive political situation. "If the government is going to reduce the ceiling of land, it should nationalize land acquired in this way and set up huge agricultural farms. Such land should be leased to tenants on condition that they would pay up to 25 percent of their income from the farms," said Regmi. He added that such a system was in practice in the Philippines and Pakistan. Regmi emphasized the need to develop a production system that could cater to the needs of the market rather than a subsistence economy. Budhabar Aug. 22.

Oli’s Cassettes Released

Former Prime Minister K. P. Bhattarai, accompanied by Minister for Culture Bal Bahadur K.C., graced a function organized in the capital Sunday to make public the CD album and cassette produced by Music Nepal carrying the songs of Komal Oli, a noted folk singer. Releasing the cassettes entitled ‘Malmalkiri’, Bhattarai said folk music kept alive Nepal’s rich cultural tradition. Minister K. C. announced that the government was planning to set up a museum to preserve Nepali folk music. Oli kept the audience spellbound by singing a couple of songs from her album. A famous ‘dohori geet’ (duet) singer, Oli recalled her journey in the field of folk music. Born in mid-western district of Dang, Oli is associated with Radio Nepal.