In depth Analysis

Another no confidence motion?

Kathmandu: The congress convention, the Maoist issue and the question of constitutional reforms continue to dominate the political scene in that order.

Of the fifteen hundred some candidates likely to get elected for the Pokhara meet, it is obvious that the Prime Minister’s lobby that predominates the congress election process has ensured a decisive number of votes for Girija babu’s election.

It is thought that even members currently in the Deuba camp will desert him when it comes to the crunch. Curiously,

The Deuba lobby suggests that a similar case could occur in the Girija camp. This makes obvious that a sizeable number are fence sitting.

What is obvious is that the elections have virtually split the congress vertically. Elections are being charged as fraudulent from the very bottom level upwards. The conducts of the leadership in the elections have allegedly been fraught with "groupism and factionalism". Votes have been severely divided and, even in cases where there are supposed to have been "consensus" candidates or "unanimous" elections, it is said that this has been done at the expense of party unity.

It is getting increasingly clear that the congress will not remain the same after Pokhara meet.

One side effect may emerge even before Pokhara. Deuba, wary of his exact strength in the congress parliamentary party, could actually put it to a test in a no confidence motion in parliament. Rumors that signatures are being collected appear to have two purposes. The first, to ensure that additional anomalies does not take place in preparations for Pokhara. The second to test his actual numerical strength.

The Girija lobby, however, scoffs at this possibility and suggest that any such move will be nipped at the very outset. Curiously, similar confidence is very much present also in the Deuba camp.

Regardless of its outcome, if at all, a new motion of confidence is registered in Parliament its significance to the congress convention and the party unity as such can not be undermined. The opposition UML and other parties will have been allowed to play a role effecting the congress convention itself. All Deuba must do is split the congress votes.

Whatever, in the ultimate analysis, observers are aware that the success or failure of any such motions affecting government is not solely at parliamentary initiative and has connotations with sources outside the country and so it is felt that Girija babu may well last move. The skeptic Nepali observer now says that Nepal has lost such political initiatives.

And so attention turns towards the Maoists and its extra-national connections. Yet another curious game is being played here. The Maoists have taken the standard ideological strategy of cosying up to the "State" forces allowing for charges of its proximity with the "reactionary line". It is clear that the strategy is working in the sense that consensus is emerging outside the political process of the current constitutional requirements not fulfilling the demands for constitutional change.

Three distinct groups of opinion can be traced regarding the constitution. The first is the congress which sees no need for reforms. The UML sees reforms taking place from within the constitution and the rest, which appears a growing majority even outside the political process including the Maoists appear to recognize the need for a major constitutional surgery to end the seeming impasse.

Future of SAARC will not be ‘in the hands of Governments’ predicts Sri Lankan FM

Kathmandu: Better late than never, the SAARC process that was in a total slumber has awaken through the kind courtesy of the SAARC Secretariat which coordinated a meeting of the senior officials from the member countries in Colombo recently.

A press release has been issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Government of Sri Lanka on 16th November 2000 following the conclusion of the Meeting of Senior Officials which was held November 13 to 15.

The Meeting, which was inaugurated on 13th November by the Sri Lanka Foreign Minister who is currently Chairperson of the SAARC Council of Ministers, was chaired by Mr. N. Navaratnarajah, Additional Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Sri Lanka. Senior officials from all seven SAARC countries and the secretary-general Nihal Rodrigo participated.

The three-day Meeting covered a wide range of items on the Association’s economic, social, technical and cultural agenda.Interestingly enough, the delegation of Pakistan confirmed that his Government was ready to host the next SAARC Trade Fair in Karachi in March 2001.

On the social issues, Sri Lanka proposed that work on the SAARC Social Charter be moved forward at a meeting to take place in Colombo in February next year. Heads of State at the Tenth SAARC Summit had called for the drafting of the Social Charter to draw up targets on a wide range of issues including empowerment of women; human resources development; health and nutrition; protection of children; and poverty alleviation.

Similarly on the issues regarding women and children, two particularly vulnerable sectors of society have received special attention. Two draft Conventions, respectively on Trafficking of Women and Children for Prostitution and on the Protection of Children had been finalized at the Colombo Summit and were expected to be signed in Kathmandu. However, with the postponement of the Summit last November, South Asian social advocates, women’s groups and others have urged Governments to have the Conventions signed without delay given the nature of the problems affecting children and women. A proposal of the SAARC Secretary-General to sign both Conventions in Kathmandu as early as possible was discussed and it was clarified that this would be considered with the authority of the respective Governments.

As regards the technical cooperation it was revealed that South Asian cooperation at the technical level is carried forward largely through an Integrated Programme of Action which includes seven Technical Committees. It was also revealed that member countries will host meetings on varied topics during this year and the next as well.

On the legal and security issues it was held that although bilateral and contentious issues are excluded from the deliberations, as provided for in the SAARC Charter, Senior Officials also looked at legal and security issues which cause concern in the region. Sri Lanka has offered to host a Meeting of Legal Advisers to take up issues relating to the SAARC Conventions, respectively on Terrorism and Drug Trafficking. Senior Officials also recommended the convening of a Conference on Cooperation in Police Matters for the continued sharing of expertise with regard to different areas of police investigations, and investigation of organized crime and drug related crimes.

As regards civil society the Secretary-General briefed the Meeting on the increased interest of civil societies in respect of issues being considered in SAARC. The Hon. Foreign Minister himself commented at the Opening of the Senior Officials’ Meeting that "the future of SAARC, I would say, will not be in the hands of Governments. It will be in the hands of the people. And it is the people, I am confident, who are going to see to it, who are going to ensure, who are going to insist, that SAARC must be kept alive, functional and positive. It will happen, believe me."

Similarly, the meeting also discussed cultural issues. Despite its diversity in terms of languages, cultural and religious traditions, South Asia is heir to a profound common civilization continuum. Heads of State or Government at the Colombo Summit acknowledged that SAARC could draw more deeply from this shared cultural heritage to enhance creative energies in all fields. The Senior Officials noted the proposal of the delegation of Sri Lanka to hold a meeting of the Secretaries of the Ministries of Cultural Affairs to take place in March 2001 in Colombo.

In concluding the Meeting, Chairman Navaratnarajah thanked all delegations for their cooperation in ensuring the success of the Meeting. He recalled that the Secretary-General had indicated that in his consultations in all SAARC capitals in the aftermath of the postponement of the Eleventh Summit, the commitment to regional cooperation in SAARC remains strong at the highest level. The Senior Officials’ Meeting had provided a useful opportunity for an exchange of views, pending the achievement of unanimity on dates for the next Summit, which will take place in Kathmandu.

Academicians, mediamen, diplomats, donors’ criss cross Nepal’s state of ‘governance’

Kathmandu: Nepalese scholars from various discipline, media experts, diplomats including Nepal’s powerful donors, social workers, members of various civic societies and men belonging to the business sector on November 23 afternoon at a Telegraph Weekly/ Friedrich Ebert Stiftung media seminar took stock of the state of "governance" in the country more so after the advent of the new order.

The men of letters finally concluded that all was not well in the country regarding the performance of the successive governments formed after 1990 vis-à-vis providing of a good governance to the people which the leaders of the 1990 popular movement promised prior to the movement.

The Nepalese intelligentsia alleged that the nation’s media too lagged far behind in exhibiting its due role in pressing the government and its agencies in achieving good governance and as a result of which the people at the grass root level could not even feel the advent of a democratic system. A host of intellectuals criticized the media for having toed political lines instead what should have been the otherwise.

A contingent of intellectuals at the seminar scathingly criticized the government in having miserably failed in providing good governance for the benefit of the marginalised section of the society. Some also felt that there had been a total lack of governance in truest sense of the term because of the perennial conflict, splits and never ending power struggle in the ruling party.

While the media men charged the government for the lack of governance in the nation, others saw the shortcomings of the media in playing its due role in this regard.

Members of the donor community, however, suggested that the press and the government must cooperate each other in providing good governance to the people.

Media seminar participants concluded that there had been a need for all the segments of the society in forging a close alliance so that the nation lives up to the expectations of its citizens more so in a democratic society like ours.

The seminar participants unanimously agreed that since good governance was based on a conviction that a system places sovereignty in the hands of the people so it would be more effective if the state invests more on its people channeling public resources to basic education, health care and social services for the elderly and the vulnerable members of the society.

Welcoming the sea of intellectuals and a galaxy of diplomats, the chief editor of the Telegraph weekly, N.P.Upadhyaya, said that good governance aims towards universality in its support of democracy, basic human rights and participatory forms of governance and that this support is based on the conviction that diversity can only be truly manifested through the mechanisms of democratic institutions which enable people to freely express their views and participate in political processes. Mr. Upadhyaya, however, maintained that in the absence of proper knowledge of the topic the Nepali media neither could contribute in this regard nor could press the government in providing good governance to the people.

The FNJ President, Suresh Acharya, lashed out at the government and said that in Nepal the term good governance meant continuation in power for longer period.

Later SAARC Secretary General Nihal Rodrigo inaugurated the seminar by lighting the traditional oil fed lamp.

Dr. Alfred Diebold, the FES chief in Nepal, hoped that such media seminars educate the people and the government on how to achieve and provide good governance. He also said that the topic of the seminar was timely and relevant in the Nepalese context.

Dr. Sushil Raj Pandey said that the media over the years had become more informative and educative as well. He however, appealed the media to remain more attentive towards the burgeoning issues that have plagued the nation of late. Dr. Pandey expressed his view that the role of the media remained crucial in jolting the various agencies including the government in fulfilling the rising expectations of the people.

The chief guest of the seminar, SAARC Secretary General Nihal Rodrigo said that "in promoting good governance, the Press also performs a valuable function in serving as a baro-meter for those in Government to judge the mood of the people. The real influence of the Press will depend on the extent that its reporting and comment are considered credible and accurate".

In his opinion "no newspaper, no analyst, no political thinker, no government spokesman can be absolutely dispassionate and completely objective. The people will decide. Views expressed as editorial policy or Government policy will eventually be judged by the people – respectively as voters or as readers".

Highlighting the role of the government in this regard, Ambassador Rodrigo said that though a number of actors are involved in this process although it is certainly true that Governments bear the prime responsibility for governance.

Concluding his remarks, the chief guest winded up by saying that, "Governance in today’s complex society involves the exercise of political, economic and administrative authority and its management. It includes a multiparty of sectors – the state, the private sector, civil society, the press, on which the citizen must rely. Good governance would require contributions by all. The contribution of the press is particularly significant in that it covers all these sectors and as I said before becomes a sort of script-writer. The responsibility that rests on the press is therefore all the greater".

Thus the opening ceremony concluded.

Presenting his paper at the first session of the seminar, Professor Ram Kumar Dahal scathingly criticised the Nepali press which had become, according to Dr. Dahal, a JHOLE PATRAKAR that is a journalist having totally affiliated to a political party and disseminating that party’s manifesto.( The full text of Dahal’s paper will appear in the coming weeks).

Dr. Richard Vokes, the Asian Development Bank Nepal office chief, chaired Dr. Dahal’s session. Dr. Vokes from the chair made it clear that accountability and transparency constituted two key elements in the delivery of good governance. According to him a good government is that which provides good governance to its citizens. Dr. Vokes by way of reference hinted that in a democracy the government must not own and dictate media organizations and personnels. The ADB chief, however, maintained that the donor community in Nepal could help train the Nepali media men so that they could use the gained expertise in unearthing irregularities in government and elsewhere.

Senior analyst and journalist, Shrish Rana in his paper said that "although both the media and the government sector today are not hesitant in echoing the need for good governance, the continued absence of the developed mechanisms for such in both the media and government could surely not be without reasons. It is the reasons that one must set out to discover". (See the full text of Rana’s paper in second page of this issue itself).

Dr. Sushil Pandey in his remarks from the chair urged all to contribute from their respective quarters to consolidate the system so that ultimately the people at the grass root level benefit from the changes brought about by 1990 movement.

During the two sessions, participants practically grilled the paper presenters with volley of questions.

Thus the one-day media seminar came to an end.

Piano concert by Douglas Weeks

Kathmandu: A live charity Piano concert is being organized by the Embassy of the United States December 3 next week in cooperation with the AWON, Active Women of Nepal, and the Hyatt Regency Hotel.

All proceeds generated from the program will be donated to the Agro-Forestry basic health and cooperatives/Nepal( ABC/Nepal) and the Women Rehabilitation Center,WOREC to help their efforts to combat women and child trafficking, it is learnt from the main organizers.

The performer, Mr. Douglas Weeks is a Babcock Professor of Piano at Converse College in Spartanburg, South Carolina and coordinator of Piano studies at the Brevard Music Festival in Brevard, North Carolina during summers.

A native of Dayton, Ohio, Weeks holds several degrees among them include the Bachelor of Music degree from Illionois State University and the Master of Music degree with a Performer’s certificate from the Indiana University and the Doctor of Music degree from Florida State varsity.

The performance from the great charmer will include European Classics ( Bach, Beethoven and Chopin); American Classics ( Gershwin and Joplin) and popular tunes including peculiar sounds of music.

A Harakiri of political sort awaits Deuba?

Kathmandu : The congress elections at the primary levels have almost concluded. The congressmen who have emerged victorious in these elections are supposed to elect their favored candidate as party president during the much-publicised Pokhara convention scheduled for next January.

Looking at the declared results of the primary elections what could be fairly said that Prime Minister Koirala and his coterie have managed the results in such a manner that their opposition can neither accept nor reject.

The losing side that is Deuba and his associates can not accept it simply because the men who have come out with flying colors from his camp is far less to challenge the opposite camp at time of the Pokhara meet. This camp has already dubbed the elections as a fraudulent one for their mental satisfaction only presumably.

Similarly, the loosing camp can not reject the Pokhara convention summarily for this group has participated in the elections and has accepted the defeat. It is this participation that has clearly benefited the Koirala side for obvious reasons.

The final analysis is that the Deuba lobby is the real looser this round of elections which would have its greatest ever impact on its ever decreasing strength in the party structure and elsewhere as well.

Independent sources in the congress say that the election results have come in a manner that favors Deuba to the extent of 20 to 25 percent of the total and the rest goes to his main rival-Koirala.

This leaves Deuba with no room for late maneuvering at time of the Pokhara meet or even if there is room he would have to work very hard to woo the Koirala voters to bring to his side.

"A congress voter from the Koirala camp or for that matter from the Deuba lobby could be bought but money is in both the sides", commented a congressite who prefers to remain unanimous. However, he hastens to add that so far as money is concerned it is naturally with the Koirala camp and the worst could happen for Deuba if the same trick is applied by his opposition to buy Deuba supporters.

"If that happens and if the Koirala lobby thinks on those lines, then predictably Deuba would be left in the cold ice from where he will have to challenge Koirala in Pokhara", added the same source.

However, the Deuba lobby is hoping against hope that by time of the Pokhara meet some of the Koirala voters could be seduced and the election results could be made upside down.

This is just hoping against hope. What is advisable for the losing side is to try hard to keep the numerical strength intact till the time of the elections.

Rumors have it that Koirala has already won the Pokhara battle leaving Deuba to ponder over the cause of his Himalayan debacle.

Not yet everything has finished. Deuba has some tricks under his sleeve and that being the strong rumor that he is finalising the no confidence motion against his rival.

But here again Deuba has problem. What would happen to his political career if Koirala faces the motion and emerges victorious? What would be left then for the engineer of the motion: Harakiri of the Japanese sort albeit on political lines.

Will Gujaral’s presence make a difference?

Kathmandu: The first meeting of the newly established "Citizens’ Commission for South Asia" is taking place in Nepal next week.

The South Asian Citizens’ Commission houses a number of top brains of this region who one way or the other had served their respective governments in the past.

The Commission is headed by former Indian Prime Minister Inder Kumar Gujaral.

The meeting of the South Asian independent scholars is taking place at a time when the people of the region appear pretty worried over the fate of the SAARC process itself more so after the abrupt suspension of the eleventh SAARC Summit which was to be held around this time in Kathmandu last year.

The Kathmandu meeting of the Citizens’ Commission for South Asia is expected to energize the whole process of the Regional Cooperation and would presumably urge the SAARC member countries to revive the movement in the larger interest of the people of the region.

Local intellectuals believe that the presence of Inder Kumar Gujaral in the Commission will have its own sort of impact in convincing his own government to exhibit little bit of flexibility regarding the convening of the abruptly suspended Kathmandu SAARC Summit.

The meeting will continue for two days and the FES is funding the whole affair.

Expectedly, the meeting will conclude urging all the member countries to remain true to their commitment to the SAARC movement.

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