NEWS NOTES (Spotlight Weelky)

PM Reiterates Support For US

Despite serious concerns raised by the left opposition members, Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba reiterated his government's commitment against terrorism. Replying to queries from lawmakers in the House of Representatives Tuesday, Premier Deuba said the government would provide full support to the US government in its campaign against terrorism. Nepal is part of the global coalition against terrorism, he declared. Premier Deuba's response came after 10 left parties accused the government of deviating from Nepal's traditional foreign policy by offering Nepalese airspace and refueling facilities to the United States in its planned attacks against Afghanistan. Compiled from reports Sep. 26.

Maoists Are Terrorists: Ranabhat

A senior government official has described Maoist activities as purely terrorist in nature. Addressing an interaction program organized in Lalitpur by the Samata Samaj Sunday, House of Representatives Speaker Taranath Ranabhat said if the Maoists were a political force, they would not have been engaged in destroying the very foundation of development. He warned that the country could take a critical turn if the Maoists did not behave seriously. Gorkhapatra Oct. 1.

Nepal Wins Travel Award

Amid widespread gloom in the aftermath of the terrorist attacks in the United States last month, Nepal's travel trade industry got good news in the form of a prestigious award. Nepal has been voted second in the top country category out of the 180 countries in the Wanderlust Travel Award 2001. The award is based on a survey carried out by Wanderlust Publications, a UK-based prestigious travel magazine, in which nearly 1,600 Wanderlust readers submitted responses. The survey was based on travels from January 2000 and the respondents had visited 180 countries, 557 cities, traveled with 342 airlines and used over 500 tour operators. "Nepal has been a traveler's favorite for a long time and still fascinates visitors," said the magazine in its September 2001 issue. In the readers' survey, Nepal scored 96.1 per cent while New Zealand topped the list by securing 97.1 percent. Compiled from reports Sep. 28.

Pro-Maoist Farmers Issue Ultimatum

All Nepal Farmers' Organization (Revolutionary), a front organization of the underground Maoist party, has submitted a 27-point demand to Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba Wednesday, saying it would launch an armed struggle if its demands were not met by one month. The demands include establishing tillers' ownership of land, fixing upper and lower ceilings on land holdings, promoting collective farming, modernizing agriculture and controlling import of agro-products. According to Chitra Bahadur Shrestha, general secretary of the organization, Deuba said he viewed the delay in talks between the government and Maoist rebels seriously. He also expressed dissatisfaction over the Maoists' activities. "We have advised him (Mr. Deuba) to directly take part in the talks in order to find a political solution," said Shrestha. Kantipur Sep. 27.

Khadka Welcomes Singh's Statement

A day after Indian Foreign and Defense Minister Jaswant Singh denounced Maoists in Nepal as terrorists and offered the Nepalese government New Delhi's cooperation, a senior Nepalese official has welcomed the Indian decision. In an interview with AFP news agency Wednesday, Home Minister Khum Bahadur Khadka welcomed Mr. Singh's statement, saying it would help in curbing cross-border terrorism and other criminal activities. Nepal and India share a more than 1,750-km common, open border. In an interview with the official Doordarshan television, Singh said India supported Nepal's King and the government of Sher Bahadur Deuba in their fight against the Maoist rebels. Space Time Sep. 27.

India To Impose Anti-Dumping Duty

The Commerce Department of the Indian government has recommended imposition of provisional anti-dumping duty on acrylic yarn imported from Nepal, The Economic Times, a leading Indian business daily, reported Wednesday. Acrylic yarn manufactured by all companies from Nepal would be subject to a higher duty of $0.84 per kg (as against the levy on shipments from Reliance Spinning Mills, an Indian company, of $0.64 per kg).The department took the decision after complaints from four Indian companies saying that the market share of imports from Nepal had increased from 8.36 percent in 1998-99 to 27.37 percent in 2000-01. The directorate of anti-dumping and allied duties of the Indian government claimed that acrylic yarn exported to India from Nepal was being sold below its normal value and that Indian industries had suffered material injury. Compiled from reports Sep. 28.

Govt. Not Serious About Peace Talks: Prachanda

Chairman of the underground CPN (Maoist), Comrade Prachanda has alleged that the government is not serious about peace talks. "We are not holding any peace talks with the government. It's being manifested in the form of political struggle to institutionalize the victory achieved by the people in the battlefront," said the underground leader. The talks between our party and the government are taking place at a very critical situation. If the government doesn't take it lightly, the then country will move toward an interim government, election to the constituent assembly and the process will ultimately institutionalize the republic. If anybody is dreaming of ignoring the seriousness of the issue and protect oneself with the help of army personnel only it might not be more than a terrible nightmare, he warned. Prachanda said efforts to link his party with the Indian rulers were nothing but propaganda. "In fact, we want to develop good neighborly relations with China and strengthen and balance our relations with India by scrapping all the unequal treaties of the past," he added. Jana Disha, Sep. 24.