LONG LIVE THE KING THE TELEGRAPH WEEKLY

In-depth Analysis
Hijack drama speaks ill of Nepal

Kathmandu: The security situation in the country has as also in the region has most glaringly come forth in this week's Indian Airlines hijack in this week's Indian airlines hijack drams. Firstly, it involves four countries of the region, Nepal, India, Pakistan and Afghanistan. Secondly, it has most successfully underscored the total absence of trust and communication between two of the major actors of the region, India and Pakistan. Thirdly, it has very amply demonstrated the effects of the utter lack of contact between the largest country in the region, India, and Afghanistan, which is largely ruled by the Talibans. Fourthly, and perhaps most importantly for Nepal which maintains cordial ties with both India and Pakistan, it underscores the need for vigilance and effective policies to maintain, if not even promote, the productive ties that Nepal has with both India and Pakistan.

An international airport under renovation in Kathmandu has been said to have security lapses that allowed an Indian airliner plane to be hijacked by, as Indian authorities would have it, four Pakistanis and one Nepali. This news item of the Indian origination has been corroborated by none less than Indian Foreign minister Jaswant Singh who has also confirmed the Indian media 'scoop' that the hijackers boarded the IC 814 from PIA flight. The Indian media also insists that this was made possible by the Indian airline staff in Kathmandu.

It is to every Nepalese concern that the response from the crucial Nepali side has been less than commendatory. Firstly, the Prime minister, understandably perhaps, very promptly "apologizes" for any lapse on part of Nepal on the incident.. While a commission has most promptly been formed to look into the lapses and the TIA authorities have been fairly quick to point out the "six hours" difference between the PIA and Indian airline flight, Nepali authorities in their silence in responding to what amounts to Indian allegation appear to have very willingly accepted responsibility for the lapses that caused the hijack.

Nepalese authorities could very well have impounded the passenger list and made it public in order to make more transparent Indian media reports of anomalies in the passenger list. It is another matter now that the concerned Indian airline staffs who have been incidentally denying the report of anomalies have been rounded up and taken to Delhi for interrogation. It may not be improper here to suggest that it should have been the Nepali authorities doing the interrogation in order for Nepal to verify the alleged security lapses.

Yet another factor that comes to mind is in the lack of prompt response on information about the passenger who boarded the Indian airline intransit. As yet, indeed, the identification of the hijackers remains incomplete.(The only information is from the Zee TV which one has to accept).

For Nepal particularly, the inundation of Indian media reports regarding the hijack should stun the Nepali information sector which should be equally aware of the effects of the hijack on landlocked and mountainous Nepal's strategically crucial civil aviation industry.

Whether the Nepali apology for security lapses is to be tantamount to responsibility as the Indian media and officialdom appear to have made out becomes a very crucial question for the health of the industry. The suspension of all flights of Indian origin to Nepal for the moment may benefit the Royal Nepal no doubt. But the precarious manner in which the security situation has been projected does not bode well for a country that seems to be suffering more from adequate promptness in providing the public at large with pertinent information on Nepali performance.

That the Pakistani version the incident has yet to permeate the mass media in Nepal may speak well of the prowess of the Indian media which has an interest all its own in scoring over its Pakistani rivals. But for Nepal, to have been allowed to be made an actor in this rivalry in such a manner bodes ill.

 Proposal sent for regulating Nepal-India  border says Dr. Mahat

Kathmandu: The otherwise shy looking Nepali media men Monday afternoon pounded the Nepalese foreign minister with volley of questions allowing the minister little time to respond the queries.

The hurriedly summoned press conference at the Nepalese foreign ministry definitely gave an impression to the invited journos that Minister Mahat too had felt the need to retort to the continued Zee TV's "disinformation onslaught" aimed at maligning this Himalayan Kingdom not only in the region but else where as well.

"The damage has been done by the Indian dis-information campaign", admitted the Foreign minister.

Talking to the pressmen Dr. Mahat however, said that it should be the Nepalese media here who should correct the damage that has already been done.

Dr. Mahat summarily rejected the Zee TVs self styled theory that security systems at the Tribhuvan International Airport was almost non-existent. "Our security system is not that bad what has been given to understand by the Indian media to the outside world", explained Dr. Mahat.

To a query of a local journalist the Minister beamingly told the press men that talks with India for the "regulation" of the Nepal-India border has already been initiated.

The Foreign minister indirectly hinted that he too was not happy with the prompt apology, which Premier Bhattarai asked from his Indian counterpart for the "security lapses" in Nepal that caused the Indian airliner to be hijacked.

To recall, Dr. Mahat had tried his best for the timely convening of the now postponed SAARC summit, while his Prime minister had assured Indian Premier Bajpayee that "he too wished the Summit" be postponed.

This time again, not very surprisingly, the Nepalese foreign minister has slightly differed with his own party Prime minister regarding the so-called lapses in the security system of the country.

The Foreign minister however, was grilled by a section of the press for his talks with the notorious Indian media in Hindi language. The minister had no reply when he was told that when Indian foreign minister wished to avoid Hindi during his conversation with Indian nationals then why he preferred to talk in an alien language. Understandably, the minister had no answer to this ticklish question.

The pressmen also asked the Foreign minister as to why the Indian media men were allowed to approach even to the bedrooms of the Nepalese politicians while the same treatment was denied to the Nepalese journalists. Here again the minister had no answer.

Zee channel terror in Nepal

Kathmandu : The Indian media is very selective. Its dynamism is simply incomparable.The Indian press first plans whom to damage and accordingly they execute their plans.

For those Nepali intellectuals who understand the working style of the Indian newspapers including the electronic media perhaps the manner Zee Television projected Nepal, and her people must have not come as a surprise at all. This they could see in the "active days" of the Monarchy and later during the 1989 India imposed economic blockade.

When a personality clash occurred in between Premier Rajiv Gandhi and King Birendra, the Indian media left no stone unturned to project Nepali monarch as the villain. During the economic blockade the Indian media toeing the South Block line dis informed the whole world propagating the message that for all what had happened in between Nepal and India, the former was to be blamed.

To recall, during the 1990 popular movement the Indian propaganda machinery created havoc for the restoration of democratic order here. However, this media never wishes to see towards Bhutan and never suggests Chandra Shekhar to summarily enter Bhutan and make lectures of the sort what he had made here in January 5, 1990.

The hard works of Ambassador K.V.Rajan with which he in these recent years contributed to the enhancement and the consolidation of Nepal-India ties has begun sliding, to say the least. The Zee factor could be cited for causing this slide.

The excessively biased Indian media, particularly the Zee TV, this time projected Nepal as the worst destination for the incoming tourists. Those who were forced to watch the Zee news channel out of sympathy towards the hijacked passengers of the Delhi bound Indian airliner concluded that such sort of journalism could only be practiced in India and no where else in the world.

The tragedy with the Nepalese people is that it is this disgustingly biased Indian media men have a direct approach to Nepal's Prime minister(s), ministers and the so-called leaders currently manning the system and the government. However, there is no reciprocity in Delhi for Nepalese media men. It is unimaginable even.

The fault lies not with media friends stationed in Kathmandu.

The excessive damage that has already been caused for Nepal internationally through the Zee news, ,however, the one item that Zee telecast for all and sundry was simply marvelous.

Monday afternoon, Zee invited the former Indian Intelligence Chief, some one called Bhagat? - who expressly told the viewers that "Nepalese bureaucrats had been supplying secret information to us" and that "they have helped us in the past which have facilitated our personals to nab the culprits well being in their territories". He was perhaps hinting at the Baneshwar episode where the Indian police personals had come to nab Babloo-India 's most wanted criminal allegedly. Or even he might have hinted the killers of MP Mirza Beg.

Perhaps this should explain the kind of "cordial relations" that our bureaucrats and other state machinery's have developed with their counterparts in India.

However, the intelligence official did not divulge as to what the Nepalese officials used to get in "lieu" of supplying "secret" information to his unit in Delhi.

All in all, the Zee channel not only damaged Nepal's prestige abroad but also created a terror in Kathmandu.

Polish poster exhibition to be held

Kathmandu: The Nepal-Poland Friendship Association is all set to organize a poster exhibition depicting Polish culture and tradition, it is learnt from NPFA sources here.

The Kathmandu based NPFA has decided to organize this event to let the Nepalese people understand the various facets of the Polish nation through the medium of the paper posters.

It is also learnt that the NPFA has become more active after a series of verbal campaign started against the society in the recent years. The Friendship Association in essence served the Polish cause for well over two decades or so and that too in the absence of any Polish diplomatic representation in Kathmandu.

The impending poster exhibition will in all likelihood contribute to the enhancement of Nepal-Poland bilateral ties, which at the moment remains cordial.

The exhibition will be held next year in January 2000, say Friendship society sources.
However, the personality to inaugurate the exhibition, say NPFA sources, is yet to be confirmed.

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