In depth Analysis

Problems mounting for Girija babu!

Kathmandu: Overshadowed by this week's "Armed" bundh of the Maoists', the UMLs Nepal bundh seemed a mellow affair with minimal government intervention aiding its recognized success. Considerable sabre-rattling has comeforth from government, which, particularly in Kathmandu, is likely to result in a curfew type intervention with both Police and agitators taking armed approaches. Kathmandu denizens particularly are used to keeping away from the streets and closing shops when even the minor left declares agitation and Thursday is likely to be no different. The difference being the government response.

The difference will be in the manner that the Maoists' will make their first visible presence in recognized number in Kathmandu that it is announced to be in an armed manner becomes equally potent. It is not for nothing therefore that the government is making prior preparations. It is equally significant that that the Girija government gave so much leeway to help the UML bundh last week succeed.

These pressures on Girija babu add to his woes. His cabinet has not been able to accommodate his support base within the congress. This has already increased rumors of a slide against him within his own party. The UML is likely to take a more adamant position against him after the winter session of parliament. This will be a matter of compulsion governed by the predicted success of the more radical communists, read the Maoists, who are competing for cadre. Movement in the ML camp towards the UML to the point of isolating C.P. Mainali is likely to bring some strength in the UML. The ML, itself, along with the minor Left are already in the agitation phase. And even the RPP threatens a movement in its organizational effort to consolidate the Chand entry at the district levels.

On the policy front, Girija babu's organizational efforts appear as yet to surface perhaps amidst the obsession of grappling with day to day tasks. Not mush new appointments have comeforth as yet. But it is clear that changes are due with regard to administrative reshuffles following which his much declared privatization tasks will perhaps ensue to give him the 'monetary advantage' from which his lobby clearly benefited in the previous phase which was conducted in his regime.

The attraction for privatization of the Girija lobby when explained on these lines is a compulsion for the Prime minister given his organizational base. Outside of alienating the victims of his projected administrative reshuffles, the resource strength he will gain through privatization gives his opponents enough compulsion to increase the pitch of their opposition. This explains the behavior of the Girija government so far. Extra parliamentary opposition from the Maoists' along with the parliamentary opposition of the Left added to the number of opposition members within his own party compose a sizeable challenge for Girija babu to be preoccupied with.

Govt. delegates power to policemen; misuse possible!

Kathmandu : Tomorrows Maoists' sponsored Nepal closure is just knocking at each and every Nepali doors. A sort of panic has gripped the whole nation since last week or so. The government under Girija Prasad Koirala too has contributed its share in making the whole atmosphere more frightening. The government's fresh decision to delegate emergency powers to the Police management at the district levels to contain the possible threat emanating from the Maoists' rebels has raised controversy among the intellectuals.

A section of the academia say that the Police authorities upon assuming this extra power from the local government might misuse the power thus obtained and might go on the rampage against any person or group of persons under the suspicion of Maoists'. "If this happens then it would tantamount to be a Police State", opined one intellectual. In his explanation, the Police in the past have gone on similar rampage but have never been penalized for their misuse of power. Citing the fresh instance of the Police highhandedness at the Khara village, the intellectual said that the policemen who created the ugly scene at the Khara village and caused several innocent killings are yet to be ascertained and brought to book.

" A close study of the fresh report brought by Bureau of democracy, Human Rights and Labor, US Department of State, brings to light the excesses of the Nepal police. It says that at times the police here have used unwarranted lethal force, continues to abuse detainees using torture as punishment to extract confessions and so on and so forth".

This section concludes that when the police can go to this extent with no powers practically, what would happen if they were given such extra ordinary powers?

However, the other section of the literati maintains that the police must be armed under such extraordinary moments only to safeguard the lives and the properties of the civilians.

The freshly delegated power to the police enables the law enforcement agencies in the districts to declare emergency and thus impose curfew orders in a limited area or beyond.

In practice, such powers were being solely under the jurisdiction of the local government and the latter used it at times of grave crisis only.

To recall, Kathmandu had experienced the promulgation of curfew orders during the fall of the erstwhile regime in the 1990s and immediately after the installation of the new democratic era. 

The government appears pretty afraid of the Maoists' Thursday closure and visibly has stepped up its measures to contain the threat on that day by deploying armed policemen in Kathmandu. A small group of police armed personnel's in blue uniforms could be seen anywhere in the capital these days. The inhabitants of the capital who had rarely seen such armed policemen moving around their area in the past say that the scene in itself if more frightening than the possible conflict of the state machinery with those of the insurgents.

However, the mobility of the policemen these days has also consoled a section of the Kathmanduites. They say that at least it gives one the impression that the government is functioning.

Summing it up, the Maoists and the government appear all prepared to face each other on Thursday. The otherwise peace loving people of Nepal who have not seen such armed closures pray the Almighty to take care of the nation.

Govt. lags behind, UML usurps initiative against corrupts

Kathmandu : A trying period for Prime minister Girija Prasad Koirala indeed. Poor Koirala has become the target of so many seen and unseen enemies.

His home front is equally challenging for him. Apart from these internal challenges, a host of other threats have surrounded him demanding their solutions.

The fresh one, apart from the Thursdays's Maoists' armed closure, being the UML created uproar inside the Parliament demanding the outright expulsion of minister Aftab Alam, too has added to the agony of the Prime minister in the recent days.

The UML this time has caught the nerve of Koirala. In effect, the Maoists ransacked minister Alam's house in Rautahat last week to which the former has accepted the responsibility. However, minister Alam created scenes in his village and out of retaliation used sate machinery to take revenge from the all-powerful UML local leaders.

Since then the UML bigwigs in Kathmandu have stalled the entire proceedings of the Lower House. It appears that the current session of the Parliament will be prorogued any time from now only to avert this crisis.

Yet another issue has boggled the minds of Prime Minister Koirala, it appears. The issue being the current campaign initiated by the UML leaders to expose the declared corrupts and various cases related to corruption.

When the appropriate authorities lag behind in initiating such campaigns, naturally others find it more opportune to take up the matter. It is here that the UML has outmaneuvered the congress state machinery.

The UML wallahs have vowed to expose the notorious corrupts in a week's time and have been on the move to Gherao various state owned corporations where corruption cases abundantly exists.

While the national population has hailed this UML move, yet there is a section of non-partisan political pundits who ask who will then point out to the corrupts in the UML camp? To recall, during the nine months rule of the UML in the past, a few ministers were reported to have amassed wealth to astronomical tunes. The process got a further boost when yet another time the UML went in power and some of its ministers were found indulged in corrupt practices.

It would have been nice and an act of patriotism if the UML leaders too voluntarily declared their earnings which they amassed after stepping into the power structure. The million dollar question is that who will initiate similar campaigns to expose the corrupts in the UML if any? The congress? The RPP? The NSP men? Perhaps none simply because all these political parties at one time or the other were in government and had committed some foul acts.

What if the government fails?

Kathmandu : How the government will cope the Maoists' formidable threat on Thursday if the latter goes on the rampage? Will the establishment be able to thwart the designs of the insurgents and many more such questions are being asked, talked and discussed in and among the national population. Be it a diplomatic reception, or even a private party, the queries remain the same. Undoubtedly, the nation for the first time is confronting such a challenge of the Himalayan order.

The most serious question that is being whispered among the intellectuals is that what next if the state machinery fails to contain the Maoists' threat? They also ask what would happen to the law and order arrangement in the country or in a section of the troubled part of the state if the police even with the fresh delegated powers find it difficult to face the Maoists challenge.

Some constitutional experts do not rule out the chances of the promulgation of the emergency rule in the entire country or in a part of the state if the conflict between the state machinery and the rebels slips from the hands of the Koirala government.

In such events, experts opine, the constitution now in force has provisions that allows the constitutional monarch to declare a state of emergency provided such requests come from the proper government channels.

Article number 115 of the Chapter 18 of the 1990 constitution deals with such provisions. If HM feels that the nation is undergoing through an unprecedented threat to its territorial integrity and sovereignty or sees threats to internal security in a part or whole of the nation, He can thus invoke this article which would be applicable to the entire nation or to a threat prone part of the Nepalese territory only whatever may be the case. ( Unofficial translation-editor).

The state of emergency thus promulgated by the King will remain in force for six months provided the two thirds of the lower house parliamentarians endorse the declaration.

Articles such as 15, 16, 17, 22 and 23, which deal with the universal rights of the citizens, could even be made ineffective during the entire period of the emergency.

However, the government's preparedness seen at the moment assures that things will not deteriorate to that extent which might prompt His Majesty to step in to the scene in order to arrest the aggravated situation.

Sacking of Bhattarai-Deuba men will boomerang!

GP : Is that possible KP ?

Kathmandu : The UML is on the move against the present government; the Maoists' have already exhibited their clear preference to Bhattarai over Koirala; minor left parties too have been toeing the same confrontationist  posture against the establishment; RPP has also joined the ranks of Koirala opposition, all these put together emerges a political scenario that would be pretty difficult for Girija babu to cope with in the impending days.

Fortunately as it stands, the above mentioned threats come from distinct and visible quarters and thus its possible solution could be well devised by Prime minister Koirala time permitting.

However, the biggest ever fulmination is yet to come that will in all likelihood destabilize Koirala's Prime ministership.

The opposition to Koirala which is very much kicking and alive inside his own party is just waiting for the moment when the Prime minister summarily sacks the personalities who had been awarded lucrative posts by the former Prime minister Krishna Prasad Bhattarai.

Reports have it that Bhattarai has sent intimations to his hangers-on to remain in their posts and face any retaliatory action from the Koirala quarters.

This means that yet another fierce conflict and upheaval awaits the congress party if Prime Minister sacks all the Bhattarai-men.

To add insult to injury, Sher Bahadur Deuba too has reportedly hinted his men in corporations or at the Planning commission to remain there and bravely face Koirala possible actions.

The confidence seen in Bhattarai and his declared supporter Deuba apparently hints at the fact that it is the numerical strength of 43 congress MPs who sided with them this round of parliamentary party leader elections which keeps them both in a comfortable position and mood.

Unconfirmed reports have it that the number 43 have swollen to the tune of fifty plus which in itself is a matter that will keep perhaps Koirala's fingers crossed.

Understandably, those MPs who felt cheated by Koirala and were not awarded ministerial berths despite their support to the latter while ousting Bhattarai could have contributed to this swollen strength of Deuba.

As if it were not enough, Prakash Koirala, Congress MP and nephew of Prime minister Koirala, too has felt neglected and time permitting might throw his entire weight against his own uncle should such an occasion arise in due course of time.

Prakash Koirala, son of B.P.Koirala, is considered to be a die-hard nationalist whose blunt interviews more often than not advocates the preservation of Nepal's genuine national interests which is taken otherwise by a section of his own party men.

Mountain Madness team To scale Everest

Kathmandu : Mountain Madness, an American Mountaineering Expedition team, under the leadership of Ms. Christine Boskoff (32) proceeded towards the Everest base camp, March 31 last month, in their bid to scale the Everest.

The team has altogether eight persons. The team comprises of 2 Americans, 4 Canadians, 4 Pakistanis and 1 Austrian nationals.

Ms. Boskoff has already scaled three mountains whose altitudes were above eight thousand meters. However, this venture would be her first one.

Peter Habbler (58) is one in the expedition team who has the distinction of having scaled the Everest without Oxygen in the past. Nazir Sabbur, a Pakistani national, is also considered to be a potential climber who would perhaps scale the Everest this time.

This expedition also includes eleven noted Nepali mountaineers, we are told.

Ms. Killi Sherpa is leading the Nepali team. Ms. Sherpa has already scaled mountains in the altitudes of eight thousand meters or so in the past.

Colombo hosts world tourism week

Kathmandu: Sri Lanka has been selected as the host country for the World Tourism Organization week which is scheduled to be held from 4-11 June this June.

Besides hosting the gathering of some of the world's most reputed travel personalities this event includes a series of meetings, workshops and technical seminars as well. In addition it will provide an ideal opportunity to display the infrastructure facilities recently set in place to ensure that visitors have best possible services available to make their stay in the Island nation a new experience.

The program is scheduled to commence with registration of the workshop participants on 4 June. The workshop on sustainable tourism indicators will be conducted at the Eden Hotel in Beruwela. From 4-6, this would provide the delegates with the opportunity of experiencing the luxury afforded to them in Sri Lankan resort Hotels.

Meeting of the WTO commission for South Asia and the WTO commission for S-east Asia and Pacific will be held on 7 June at Bandaranaike memorial International Hall, BMICH, in Colombo.

A technical seminar on the instruments of sustainable development is scheduled on 8 June at the same Hall. The findings of the workshop will be presented to the executive council members and other delegates at the seminar venue. The 63rd session of the council of the WTO will be held on 9-10 June at the BMICH. The meeting of the board of management of the WTO business council and WTO leadership forum will be conducted 9-10 June with break-out session.

Keep people at center says Annan

UNITED NATIONS, 3 April 2000 – Urging world leaders to make globalization work for people in every nation, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan today offered his 21st Century action plan, a detailed report that sets the agenda for the United Nations Millennium Summit scheduled this September.

 The plan calls on all Member States to commit themselves to ending poverty and inequality, improving education, increasing security, reducing HIV/AIDS, and protecting the environment.

“We must put people at the centre of everything we do,” said Mr. Annan. “No calling is more noble, and no responsibility greater, than that of enabling men, women and children, in cities and villages around the world, to make their lives better. Only when that begins to happen will we know that globalization is indeed becoming inclusive, allowing everyone to share its opportunities.”

The Secretary-General’s report will  be considered  by  a    special Millennium   Summit  on 6-8 September 2000, a rare meeting of Heads of State and Government from around the world, scheduled on the eve of the first UN General Assembly of the new millennium. The report, “We the Peoples: The Role of the United Nations in the 21st Century,” is the most comprehensive presentation of the UN’s mission in its fifty-five year history,  containing   numerous specific goals and programme initiatives Mr. Annan will ask world leaders to consider.

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