News Notes (Spotlight Weekly)

Second Phase Of Third Talks Held In A Village

Away from the glaring attention of media, the negotiators of the two sides and facilitators flew to Hapura in Purandhara VDC of Dang district for the second phase of talks on Sunday (August 17) evening. The rebels regard Dang district as the capital of their ënew regime'. The talks was held in a house of local villager. The government negotiators were welcomed by the rebels by putting vermillion tika on their forehead. The government negotiators returned to Nepalgunj after having a brief talks on Sunday evening. The Maoist negotiators and facilitators, however, remained in the village to continue the talks the following day.

Political Parties Nonchalant

The initial reactions by the political parties suggest they are unconvinced about the latest government proposals for political reforms. Nepali Congress (NC) spokesperson Arjun Narsingh KC termed the proposals ëambiguous' whereas president of leftist party Nepal Workers and Peasants Party termed it as being too vague. Subash Nemwang, leader of Unified Marxist Leninist (UML) said, "The government proposal is unclear. It cannot be termed as progressive." Narahari Acharya of NC said, "When the government was not able to touch the 18-point agenda of the political parties, how can it address Maoists' concerns?" Leading dailies report.

12 Year Festival Begins In Godavari

The one-month-long festival of Godavari, which is organized every 12 years begins from Monday (august 18) this year. Hundreds of thousands of devotees throng at Godavari Kunda (pond) where they take holy ablutions. Devotees come from various parts of the country and even from India. This year the festival organizing committee expects one million devotees to pay visit to the pond and take ablutions within one month. Leading dailies report.

No Additional Conditions For WTO Membership

Nepal was promised the full membership of World Trade Organization (WTO) based on the organization's rules and remaining within the limit of facilities offered to Least Developed Countries (LDC), said Dinesh Chandra Pyakurel, secretary at the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies. Pyakurel returned from Geneva where he led the Nepalese delegation in the bilateral and multilateral talks with Nepal's trading partners before the WTO promised it a full membership to be granted at the September ministerial conference in Cancun, Mexico. "Nepal did not have to accept any additional conditions for getting the membership," said Pyakurel. Leading dailies report.

Govt. Talks Team Meets With Koirala

The members of the government talks team met with Nepali Congress President Girija Prasad Koirala on the eve of the crucial third round of peace talks. Koirala is said to have told the team that whatever decisions are reached at the peace talks will have to be endorsed by reinstated parliament. Leading dailies report.

Seventh Phase Of Stir To Start From September

The five parties — Nepali Congress (NC), Unified Marxist Leninist (UML), Nepal Sadbhavana Party (NSP-Anandi Devi), People's Front and Nepal Workers and Peasants Party (NWPP) — have agreed to start the seventh phase of their joint agitation against the political regression from September 4. They added that it would be centralized in Kathmandu and would be decisive. Leading dailies report.

Fifteen Soldiers Die In Landslide

A massive landslide swept away the military posts killing 15 soldiers and injuring five in Ramche VDC of Rasuwa district. The landslide that occurred on Friday night (August 15) swept the military post of the Durga Bux battalion. Among the killed include a major. A big volume of their weapons, too, were swept. The rescue team is searching for them. There were 64 soldiers at the post under the command of the major. Meanwhile, in another incident in nearby Dhaibung VDC, five of a family died when their house was swept away by the landslide. Compiled from reports.

Maoist Taking Third Talks As Make Or Break Situation

The rebels will concentrate wholly on political agenda in the third round of peace talks. Their political agenda, particularly on framing new constitution, will be the focus of their agenda. The Maoist leader Dr. Baburam Bhattarai has said that the rebels want to reach to certain conclusion regarding their political issues, sources said. Meanwhile, talks facilitator Padma Ratna Tuladhar has said that the Maoists have the impression that the King will agree to the understandings reached during the third talks. Leading dailies report.

Cases Against Maoist Leaders Withdrawn

The government has withdrawn cases against three Maoist leaders Dr. Baburam Bhattarai, C.P. Gajurel and Bamdev Chhetri. The cabinet decided to withdraw the cases that were pending in the court of law against these leaders. These leaders were charged of engaging in terrorist and violent acts. The withdrawal of the cases will have to be approved by the appellate court to be effective. Spacetime daily reports.

ADB Provides Us$ 321 M For Poverty Alleviation

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has agreed to provide loans worth US$ 321 million to Nepal over the next three years. The assistance will be used for the poverty alleviation programs. A meeting of the ADB's board of directors endorsed the Country Strategy and Program Update for 2004-06, a statement issued by the Bank said. The fund, which will be made available US$ 107 per year, will be utilized on sustainable poverty reduction, broad-based economic growth and good governance. Leading dailies report.

Drugs Strike End

The drugs importers have called off their strike after they reached to an understanding with the government officials on Wednesday (August 13). While the government did not relent to their major demand of slashing down the import tariff of 5.5 percent, it met their other demands. According to Paras Mani Baral, president of Nepal Chemists and Druggists Association, the government has assured that it will not raise the tariff any more. While the registration charge for pharmaceutical companies is going to be Rs 50,000 as was before, the charge for registration of new medications has been increased by 40 percent. The inspection fee for the companies in SAARC countries is going to be US$ 1500 and for other countries, it is going to be US$ 2500. Leading dailies report.

Meeting Of Constitutional Council Inconclusive

The meeting of the apex constitutional council on Thursday (August 14) failed to arrive at conclusion regarding the appointment of key heads of constitutional bodies. The council comprises of five members — Prime Minister, Chief Justice, Speaker of House of Representatives, Chairman of National Assembly and Leader of the Opposition. However, at present, only the former three members are in existence. The council has to appoint chief commissioner at the Election Commission, three commissioners at the Commission for Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA), a member of Public Service Commission (PSC) and Auditor General within two weeks as the present office-holders are set to retire by then. Nepal Samacharpatra daily reports.

Security Policy To Safeguard Ancient Temples

The government is planning to bring out a security policy to provide safety to scores of ancient temples in Kathmandu valley. According to Sarbendra Nath Shukla, minister for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, the ministry will consult with the Home and Defense ministry to frame such policy. Minister Shukla emphasized the need of such policy in view of recent fire at the ancient Pratappur temple in Swayambhunath area. A probe team formed to investigate the incident submitted its report to the ministry on Thursday. The report stressed on the need to provide security to the temples and restrict the time when the devotees should be allowed to pay their homage at temples. There are around 5000 temples in Kathmandu valley alone. Leading dailies report.

Intellectual Property Act In The Offing

The government sources have said that the draft of the intellectual property right act is in the final stages. According to Purushottam Ojha, acting secretary at the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies, the government is working to quickly bring out the act in view of Nepal's preparations to accede to the World Trade Organization (WTO). Nepal already has an updated act on copyright but its patents and designs act is an outdated one. Leading dailies report.

Lama Death At The Hand Of Maoist Worker

According to police, Amar Lama, the slain driver of late communist leader Madan Bhandari, had died at the hands of the Maoist workers. The police said that the bullet that Lama took came from the same gun that was used earlier to kill three people in Lalitpur by the Maoists. Lama had been shot to death a few weeks ago in Kirtipur after he was dramatically abducted. Leading dailies report.

Coke, Pepsi To Be Subjected To Test

Amid growing controversy regarding the quality of Coke and Pepsi in India, the Department of Food Technology and Quality Control here has also decided to test samples of those soft drinks. The Central Food Research Laboratory is currently testing 25 samples of the Coke and Pepsi lifted from different parts of the city, said Urmila Joshi, a food officer at the laboratory. The results of the tests will come out within this week, Joshi said. Rajdhani daily reports.

US Senator To Submit Bill For The Sake Of Nepalese Garments

In a letter she recently wrote to the Foreign Ministry, US Senator Dianne Feinstein has said that she would shortly re-introduce the bill that would provide duty free and quota free access to Nepalese readymade garments to the American market. The senator has written that she would present the bill at the Financial Committee within mid-September. Once the committee approves, the bill will then be put forth at the Senate for final approval. Earlier, Feinstein had withdrawn similar bill in May following the Nepal government's decision to deport Tibetan asylum-seekers back to China. Subsequently, Nepal government has assured that it had not changed its earlier policy of handing over Tibetan refugees to the UNHCR. The USA alone consumes 80 percent of Nepalese readymade garment exports. Leading dailies report.