News Notes (Spotlight Weekly)

Koirala Ready To Accept Deuba As PM If House Is Restored

Nepali Congress (NC) president Girija Prasad Koirala has said his party would accept the leadership of Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba is the latter is able to convince the King to restore the House of Representatives. “I am ready to accept Deuba as PM if he is able to restore the House,” Sudan Bahadur Karki, joint secretary of Morang district Congress quoted Koirala as saying. This remark has come amid reports that the Unified Marxist Leninist (UML) was making efforts to reach a written agreement among all the political parties to maintain the Prime Ministership of Deuba once the House is revived. Meanwhile, in a separate development PM Deuba, speaking in Biratnagar, has said that it is not possible to revive the House of Representatives. Inaugurating the new additional buildings of the Kosi Zonal Hospital, PM Deuba said that the government would soon announce the poll schedules. Leading dailies report.

Maoists Abduct Three Senior Officials

The Maoists have abducted three senior government officials from Sandhikharka of Arghakhanchi district including the acting Chief District Officer (CDO) Birendra Nath Sharma, Local Development Officer (LDO) Sudarshan Dhakal and inspector of National Investigation Department Hem Bahadur Karki. Sharma and Karki were abducted by a group of Maoists as they were strolling around the market area. LDO Dhakal was abducted from their residences. Following massive Maoist attack in Sandhikharka two and a half years ago, the police office and army barracks had been relocated to hilltop – which is half an hour away from the district headquarters leaving the latter loosely guarded. Nepal Samacharpatra daily reports.

14 Indian Gurkha Soldiers Released

Fourteen Nepalis employed in the Indian Army’s Gorkha regiment, abducted by Maoists from Motipur of Kailali last Friday, were released unharmed on Sunday (January 16). The soldiers belong to the º Gurkha Regiment in Darchula of Pithauragadh in Uttaranchal State of India. The Maoists abducted them from a temporary check-post in Bhalka of Baliya VDC, which was opened by the Maoists themselves, on the Atariya-Chisapani section of Mahendra highway. Local human rights activists swung into action for the soldiers’ release as soon as the news of their kidnapping spread. At the initiative of Sarvangin Bikas Kendra Dhangadhi and INSEC’s Dhangadi regional office, the Maoists’ Kailali district in-charge Akhanda handed over the soldiers to human rights organizations and journalists at the Janata school in Kailali. The abducted soldiers said they were not tortured. Hawaldar Ratna Bahadur Bista said they asked the Maoists why they were being abducted and were told that they were being detained for some enquiries. The soldiers were on their way to their villages for holidays. Meanwhile, Indian ambassador to Nepal Shiva Shankar Mukherjee, said that India has taken seriously the issue of Maoists’ abduction of Indian soldiers. While talking to newsmen at a press conference at the Indian consulate general’s office in Birgunj, on Sunday, he said, “This step of Maoists has complicated the problem, which our two countries have been facing.” However, he did not answer a question on whether India will take sterner steps against the Maoists. He said the Maoist insurgency is rather terrorist than political. The Himalayan Times daily reports.

Upper Karnali Pact This Month

Nepal and India could reach an agreement on the construction of 300 MW-strong Upper Karnali hydropower project later this month. According to sources at the Ministry of Water Resources, the agreement looks likely since Indian side did not raise objection on any point included in the draft proposal sent by Nepal. The project is to be constructed under joint venture between Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) and National Hydro Power Corporation (NHPC) of India. NEA will put in 30 percent of the total investment. The construction site is located in Dailekh district. Kantipur daily reports.

Coordination Committee Discusses With Security Chiefs

The multiparty democratic coordination committee headed by the prime minister which comprises all the top leaders of the ruling parties as members held talks with the chiefs of security organs on Friday and Saturday (January 14 and 15). They met with the chief of the Armed Police Force (APF) Sahadev Thapa on Friday and the chief of the Royal Nepalese Army (RNA) General Pyara Jung Thapa and chief of the Nepal Police Shyam Bhakta Thapa on Saturday. The meeting held at PM’s residence at Baluwatar was taken part by the UML general secretary Madhav Kumar Nepal, president of Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP) Pashupati SJB Rana, president of Nepal Sadbhavana Party (NSP) Badri Prasad Mandal, government spokesperson and Information Minister Dr. Mohamad Mohasin and Deputy Prime Minister Bharat Mohan Adhikary. The meeting was held in the wake of the passing of the deadline for talks with the Maoists and at a time when a section of the government has been pushing for proceeding with the fresh elections. The chiefs of the security organs are reported to have apprised the committee of the security situation on the ground and whether they can provide security in the even of polls. Compiled from reports.

Nepal To Look Into Third Country Option On Refugee Issue

Thanks to continued delay in their repatriation, the Nepalese government is initiating efforts to allow the Bhutanese refugees to leave for third country – just like it allows the Tibetan refugees. The Foreign Ministry is said to be engaged in exercise to formulate a policy in this regard. “We have been compelled to choose this option because of the dilly dallying policy of Bhutanese government,” said Madhu Raman Acharya, foreign secretary. For the last one year, the process of refugee repatriation has remained in suspended animation as the Bhutanese authorities have stayed away from the dialogue process on one or the other reason. Kantipur daily reports.

Sharma Is New CJ

The newly appointed Chief Justice Hari Prasad Sharma has said that all his efforts would be focused at activating the constitution. He, however, complained that the political parties escaped their duties by bringing political disputes at the court. “The judiciary alone cannot work. Not all disputes are to be settled by the court,” he said. Meanwhile, a fresh petition has been filed at the Supreme Court urging the latter to review its earlier decision (of endorsing the government’s move to dissolve the House of Representatives). The petitioner claims that the justification of the earlier court decision is no more since the government was unable to hold the polls within six months of dissolving the parliament. Kantipur daily reports.

HURON Comes Down Hard Against Maoist Atrocities

A family in Kunchok of Sindhupalchowk district has been forced to spend the last four nights in the field after the Maoists stormed into their house, laced it with explosives, locked it and threatened them of grave consequences if they entered their house. The ‘crime’ of the Lal Bahadur Giri’s household was that his sons were in the army and police. After making the field trip, the Chairman of Human Rights Organization of Nepal (HURON) Sudeep Pathak has threatened to internationalize the incident of ‘merciless abuse’ of human rights if the Maoists did not correct it immediately. “This is the first time that the Maoists have put bomb in the house of commoner,” he told the reporters in Kathmandu on Thursday (January 13). Having to spend the nights outside in the chilly winter, the 60-year-old wife of Giri and his 7-year-old grandson were suffering from cold and cough. Meanwhile, Kantipur daily reports that the Maoists have opened their house and allowed the Giri family to move in on Thursday afternoon amid pressures from the rights activists and journalists. Lal Bahadur Giri, however, has left for Kathmandu fearing his life. Compiled from reports.

EU Extends GSP For Nepalese Apparels

The European Union (EU) has extended the Generalized System of Preference (GSP) to Nepalese textiles and apparels for two more years till 2006. The EU has been providing LDCs including Nepal with quota-free and tariff-less access on all imports including textiles and apparels since 2001 under the Everything But Arms (EBA) initiatives. Besides, Nepal will also continue to enjoy derogation from the EU GSP Rules of Origin for apparels allowing it greater flexibility in choosing raw materials. After the offering of this facility, EU’s share of garment exports from Nepal had grown substantially in the last couple of years. Currently, EU absorbs around 17 percent of Nepalese apparel exports. In the wake of expiry of Multi Fiber Agreement (MFA), Nepalese apparel exporters were apprehensive of the unfolding situation vis-à-vis American market – which absorbs 80 percent of their exports. With the extension of GSP along with derogation facility, the EU market might now be of more value for market diversification and sustainability. Compiled from reports.

Amnesty Asks Prachanda To Stop Killings, Abductions

Amnesty International (AI) in a recent open letter to Maoist leader Prachanda has expressed concern over the increasing abduction and killing of civilians and mass abduction of children and has urged him to guarantee the safety of all civilians under Maoist control and release them “immediately and unconditionally.” The letter urged the Maoists to “refrain from abducting children for any purpose, including for political education.” It called on them to uphold the “commitment” made by Baburam Bhattarai and Prachanda in March last year and April 2003 respectively to abide by fundamental human rights standards and the Geneva Convention. It listed a series of killings, abductions and torture reportedly committed by the Maoists and urged them to investigate the reports of human rights abuses committed by their cadres and act against the rights abusers. Compiled from reports.

Koirala Angry Over Humiliation

Nepali Congress (NC) president Girija Prasad Koirala has alleged the security personnel of humiliating him. He has protested the unwarranted search of helicopter in which he was flying by the Royal Nepalese Army on January 12. According to reports, the Air Dynasty chopper was ordered to land in army helipad after it flew Koirala back from Chitwan. Then the security personnel searched it using sniffer dogs. Meanwhile, RNA spokesperson Brigadier General Deepak Gurung has dismissed Koirala’s accusations saying that the search was in tune with the latest circular by civil aviation authorities. “Our security personnel ordered the chopper to land. But when they came to know that Koirala was in it, they returned without searching it,” Gurung said. Compiled from reports.