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OCTOBER 3, 2004 18 Scarecrows By John Narayan Parajuli VOL. I, NO. 24 The rule of law is in danger. Some of COVER CONCEPT: SUBROTO BHUMIK the worst abusers are those who www.nation.com.np COVER DESIGN: RAJ SHRESTHA created the law and those appointed to uphold it. 26 An Earned Right By John Narayan Parajuli As the debate on providing British citizenship to Gurkhas gathers momentum, the Blair government is undecided about what to do 28 Unprepared By Indra Adhikari The Kathmandu Valley has a history of major earthquakes; another one is inevitable. Action now could save tens of thousands of lives and billions in property damage when the next maha bhukampa strikes.
BUSINESS 32 As Oil Prices Boil By Bipul Narayan COVER STORY Subsidizing oil is neither the most efficient nor the most equitable way to 20 Price Of Peace spend scarce government resources By Satish Jung Shahi and Aditya Adhikari Statements from the government, the Maoists, the parties and peaceniks are conflicting and confusing. Whats clear is that the clock is ticking for Prime ARTS & SOCIETY Minister Deuba, and neither peace nor elections seem any closer. 34 Utter Neglect By Ajit Baral COLUMNS PROFILE The only museum dedicated to the history of modern Nepali art is a 11 Delhi Runs And 42 The Good Doctor dismal failure. It needs a new location, Strong Men By Dhriti Bhatta an adequate budget and conscientious management. By Saubhagya Shah One of the top orthope- dic surgeons, Dr. Chakra DEPARTMENTS Raj Pandey, yearns to treat top athletes 6 LETTERS
30 Ersatz Nostalgia 10 PICTURE OF THE WEEK By Pratyoush Onta 14 CAPSULES SPORTS 16 BIZ BUZZ 50 The Marathon Men 17 MILESTONE 38 Don't Drink By Sudesh Shrestha 44 CITY PAGE The Water Nepals best chance for By Ian Bairn international distinc- 49 WEEK IN PICTURES tion is distance 52 SNAPSHOTS running. The discipline needs little specialized training and no 56 KHULA MANCH: KEDAR SHARMA 40 High On Cloud expensive facilities. 57 BOOKS: THE INVENTION OF INDIA Number 9 58 LAST WORD By Kunal Lama
5 Letters
Both parties to the conflict rule through the barrel of a gun
JAGANNATH LAMICHHANE
Press in peril the autocrats to usher in science upset PRESS IN PERIL RELAYS HOW FAR RONAST? Maybe because it contrasts the security forces and the Maoists have sharply with the present scientific lead- gone to muzzle the press (Last Word, Sep- ers who stifle independent opinion to tember 26). Both parties to the conflict rule pander Lysenkoism in the name of sci- through the barrel of a gun, and the un- ence. Only these neo-Lysenkos are armed public can only watch helplessly. graced by the title of scientist. Those My thanks to the press for going a long who toil in the lab to keep alive a sem- way in protecting civil liberties. It has won blance of research are never recognized. a lot of public trust in the bargain. This was admitted at a seminar by a VIP from RONAST, who said he had aban- JAGANNATH LAMICHHANE doned his rightful place in the lab for TRIBHUVAN UNIVERSITY, KIRTIPUR the post that offered him better perks. So my flat no about scientists in Nepal Science and RONAST was for the leadership, and I am sorry I FEEL IN PART HAPPY THAT MY for any misunderstanding. views in your Khula Manch (August 22) Reveling in distributing the taxpayers provoked a response from the slumber- money as awards and grants at a very large ing (white?) mammoth that is overhead, the RONAST letter rues my RONAST, transmitted in the name of Young Scientist Award, as if it was given Dinesh Bhuju (Letters, September 12). to silence me. Claiming credit for the 25 Although Chandra Shumsher brought or so physics students that are finding electricity, established the first college, opportunities for higher studies in the abolished slavery and burning of wid- United States every year, RONAST turns ows, etc., I never said that his was a a blind eye to the many who roam the golden era. Why does praise of Gahendra streets of Kathmandu in search of a live- Shumshers courage in standing up to lihood. Had Abdus Salams public offer
6 OCTOBER 3, 2004 | nation weekly of a high-tech center for Nepal been ac- Peace(by John Narayan Parajuli, Sep- cepted, we would be way ahead in the tember 19). Parajulis intentions are not
fields like IT, biotech, materials, etc. clear in the article and the DPR feels Nation Weekly, The Media House, Tripureshor, It is praiseworthy that a numerical record that the contributor has unjustly tried to Kathmandu, Nepal (Regd. 165/059-060). Tel: 2111102, 4229825, 4261831, 4263098 of my publications is maintained. I plod on tarnish the image of the Army. EDITOR: Akhilesh Upadhyay for personal entertainment and am not as He has accused that the Army is [email protected] prolific an author as RONASTs stalwarts. against peaceful solutions. One must not CONTRIBUTING EDITOR: Suman Pradhan COPY EDITOR: John Child But, I am most likely the first Nepali whose forget that the terrorists have raised arms SENIOR STAFF WRITERS: Sushma Joshi, Satish Jung Shahi, Tiku Gauchan papers were accepted by the prestigious jour- against the state and the people, and that STAFF WRITER: John Narayan Parajuli nal Physical Review in 1980. My paper ac- they are responsible for the current chaos PHOTOJOURNALISTS: Sagar Shrestha, Das Bahadur Maharjan DESIGNER: Raj Kumar Shrestha cepted by the same journal in 1982 was the in the country. The Royal Nepal Army, EDITORIAL ASSISTANTS: Indra Adhikari, Yashas Vaidya
first from Nepal. Einsteins relativity was like any other army in the world, is just a AD & CIRCULATION DIRECTOR: Krishna Shrestha based on the electromagnetic wave equation, tool of the government and is used as OPERATING MANAGER: Ashish Bhattarai ASSISTANT MARKETING MANAGER: Rameshwor Ghimire whose version in conducting medium has per the situation. The Army, along with [email protected] SUBSCRIPTION OFFICER: Akshaya Shrestha been known for long. A general solution I other security forces, is shedding its own [email protected] found admits faster than light propagation. A blood to bring peace by forcing the ASST. SUBSCRIPTION OFFICER: Jeshna Karmacharya DISTRIBUTION: Angiras Manandhar committee of experts thought it worthwhile bloodthirsty armed terrorists to move MARKETING CONSULTANT: Kreepa Shrestha
to publish my results in the International towards the mainstream. CREATIVE DIRECTOR: Nripendra Karmacharya Journal of Modern Physics in 1998, another The soldiers are sacrificing their lives PUBLISHER: The Mirror Media Pvt. Ltd in its Letters the same year, then a third time for the preservation of democracy and the AD ENQUIRIES: Tel. 4229825, 4261831, 4263098 in 2000. RONAST does not tire of ridicul- fundamental freedom of the citizens, like COLOR SEPARATION: ScanPro, Pulchowk, 5548861, 5552335 ing my efforts as a challenge to the genius of Rokka and Parajuli, of the country. There- PRINTING: Variety Printing Press, 4278869 DISTRIBUTION: R.B. News, 4232784, 4244679 Einstein, mocking me to make discoveries fore the efforts to bring Army into such Nation Weekly is published every Monday by The Mirror Media Pvt. Ltd. like his. controversies through a well reputed and All Rights Reserved. The reproduction of the contents of this publication, in whole or in part, is strictly prohibited without the An outstanding scientific contribution balanced weekly like yours surprises us. prior consent of the publisher.
is something that furthers the current We ask Parajuli if he has done any home- Vol. I, No. 24. For the week September 27-October 3, 2004, released on September 27 knowledge or some application that greatly work to verify what he heard from his CONTACT improves the quality of life. Countries ghost friend, quote in Thapas govern- neck to neck with us 30 years ago forged ment unquote, and Hari Rokkas base- www.nation.com.np way ahead by using science. Where does less imagination with no supportive facts. our umpteen-fold increased scientific Secondly, in the article, Rokka has manpower hide when the riversides are been quoted as saying that the Armys We prefer to receive letters via e-mail, without turned into garbage dumpsor does this accounts have not been audited since attachments. Writers should disclose any connection portend the science policy that RONAST 1999 by the auditor generals office. The or relationship with the subject of their comments. All letters must include an address and daytime and is busy formulating for two decades? auditing by the auditor generals office evening phone numbers. We reserve the right to edit Crying hoarse about the vast water re- is a continuous process and it never letters for clarity and space. sources, the experts remain oblivious to the ceases. From the first month of the cur- E-mail: [email protected] Fax: 4216281 parched throats of the majority, supplying rent financial year, the auditing of the Mail: Nation Weekly drinking water full of germs and pollutants previous fiscal year automatically begins. The Media House, GPO 8975, EPC 5620 to the fortunate few, and producing the most For Rokkas information, the auditor Tripureshor, Kathmandu, Nepal. expensive electricity. Almost the whole generals office had finished the audit- SUBSCRIPTION country faces famine conditions. ing of the fiscal year 2059/60 in Puosh E-mail: [email protected] RONAST finds glory in its history 2060 and the auditing of 2060/61 fiscal Nation Weekly, The Media House, GPO 8975 EPC 5620, Tripureshor, Kathmandu, Nepal of strikes, lockouts, defilement of its year, which finished on Ashad 2061, has Tel: 2111102, 4229825, 4261831, 4263098 own CEO, etc., to paint a rosy picture. just started from this Bhadra only. Fax: 4216281 Yet this bastion of Nepali science gets The Army, as stated earlier, is fight- swayed to the breaking point by the little ing to preserve the fundamental rights wind that I have made. of the citizens of our country and re- spects the freedom of expression too. But UDAYARAJ KHANAL this freedom should not be misused to DEPARTMENT OF PHYSICS unjustly tarnish the upright image of the TRIBHUVAN UNIVERSITY Army. We request that facts are verified and steps taken to prevent such unsub- subscription Army reservations stantiated reports appearing in your es- THE DIRECTORATE OF PUBLIC teemed magazine again. [email protected] Relations (DPR) of the Royal Nepal Army expresses strong reservations on BRIGADIER GENERAL RAJENDRA THAPA 2111102 certain portions of the article Elusive DIRECTOR, DRP, ROYAL NEPAL ARMY nation weekly | OCTOBER 3, 2004 7
Picture of the Week
JOINING HANDS FOR PEACE: Hundreds kept a candle-lit vigil at Mandala, Maitighar, to mourn the deaths of more than 10,000 people in the nine years of conflict
nation weekly/Sagar Shrestha Guest Column Delhi Runs And Strong Men
Deuba did not sign away national sovereignty or get robbed of his shirt or soul in New Delhi, as some had feared
BY SAUBHAGYA SHAH concluded the Gandak River Project treaty with India. Both of these deals have since become exemplars of unequal treaties in the Nepali he nation is finally beginning to let off a collective sigh of relief as psyche: Most of the hydroelectric power and irrigation benefits of the Tno new untoward fate has befallen our motherland as a result of joint projects accrue to India, while Nepal is left with all of the human Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deubas recent visit to New Delhi. As displacement, land submersion, ecological degradation and the atten- if the Valleys resident political pundits had discerned a sinister omen, all dant economic ruin. kinds of dire consequences were being predicted about Deubas Delhi After the demise of the Partyless Panchayat system we had two more jaunt. From the way the warnings were being sounded, one would have strong prime ministers. After taking over as the morally and politically been excused for believing that our unsuspecting prime minister was powerful interim prime minister in 1990, Krishna Prasad Bhattarai flew to walking into a den of thieves to be robbed of his shirt and soul rather than Delhi to sign new accords and understandings that some observers have paying a routine visit to a close neighbor. While in Delhi, Deubas going say are more detrimental to Nepals interests than the one by the last to sign away national sovereignty: The alarm bells started ringing. The Rana prime minister in 1950. A year later in 1991, the newly elected shrill ones insinuated that the prime minister was going to sell the re- Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala, with a commanding majority in the maining Nepali rivers and other national resources to India while the Parliament, made the same run to Delhi to ink the controversial Tanakpur politically savvy analysts vouched that the visit was meant to pave the Hydro Project Agreement which has since become a document of shame way for Indian takeover of Nepali security. The amazing thing behind the for many. whole hysteria was that it was not only the usual suspectsthe knee- What can explain this paradoxical correlation between strong prime jerk nationalists and habitual India baitersbut also those for whom ministers and such cheap sellouts at the negotiating table in New enduring Indian goodwill, fair play and enlightened avuncular guidance is Delhi? In contrast, weak prime ministers, such as the Marichman a cornerstone of political faith. Singhs of yore, have proved far less costly in this respect. The absence Pray, what was the reason for such a heightened sense of apprehen- of a bottom line and a consensus-driven national foreign policy to- sion among the citizenry? The Nepali penchant for self infantalization wards India among the various political parties and forces in Nepal is at simply knows no bounds. Some experts noticed that Deuba had not the root of this paradox. Nepal is perhaps the only country in the world done sufficient homework for the trip. As a result, it was argued, he was where the various parties and constituencies have their own autono- bound to be hoodwinked by the ever-so-clever Indian babudom. Deuba mous foreign relations with their most important neighbor, relations was certainly not going to Delhi to sit for a college admission exam before which compete with and subvert the national foreign policy agenda. Dr. Manmohan, the Oxfordian. Nor are deals between states primarily This state of affairs has given rise to a market situation characterized by determined by the amount of diligent homework. They are the outcomes a single foreign buyer and competing local sellers. It is only natural that of the relative bargaining strength of the two sides. And this strength is when the hawkers are trying to outbid each other and undercut their not only size or might, it is more a reflection of how coherently and domestic rivals, the sole buyer will ask for bargains that can only be met unitedly the national position is articulated. But more of this later. The by a strong party. Kathmandu critics should therefore not only cry second concern was that being an appointed prime minister without the wolf when our prime ministers fly south, they should also beware when support of all the political parties, Deuba would be too weak to stand up other political luminaries make the same pilgrimageoften mixing busi- to various Indian shenanigans and pressures at the negotiating table. ness of a serious nature with health checkups or family visitsto ham- SPIN DOCTOR: Duranty Even a cursory glance back at the last six decades would have shown mer out the finer details of this unique bilateral relationship away from us that all of these misgivings were more or less misguided, if not outright the glare of the not-so-inquisitive media. conceited. Strength is a relative term, but such prime ministerial When all is said and done, despite the jumbo size of his retinue, strengthwhether democratic or otherwise seems to have mat- Deubas present visit proved to be less onerous on the nation than the tered very little in securing fair and honorable treaties with India. In the ones by his illustrious predecessors. In fact, it was much better than the DICTATOR: Stalin last sixty years, perhaps no other Nepali premier was more powerful than Mahakali River Project he brokered as the prime minister of a powerful Mohan Shumsher Rana, the scion of an autocratic dynasty. The Treaty coalition involving all the major political parties in 1996. If the only thing of Peace and Friendship, the absolute ruler signed in 1950 with India, is Deuba did was sample the famed Indian hospitality, taste the exotic fare still viewed by many as a deal which put serious fetters and constraints of biryani and tandoori, and contribute to our age-old goodwill over a on Nepals independent options. The revolutionary government that was dessert of succulent rasgoola, it is still a first step in the right direction for formed after the defeat of the Rana regime was no less powerful: One of our strong men. the first deals the new prime minister, Matrika Prasad Koirala, made with When King Gyanendra does the Delhi round next month, he will India was the agreement regarding the Koshi River. Eight years later in hopefully take it upon himself to rectify the legacy of the 1965 security 1960, the first elected prime minister, Bisheshwor Prasad Koirala, whose treaty his father concluded with India. All that has done so far is to breed Nepali Congress had absolute majority in the short-lived Parliament, insecurity for the Nepali people. nation weekly | OCTOBER 3, 2004 11
Capsules
have been arrested by police in paign. Each year over 5,000 Dharan, a day after the Supreme children die of measles in Nepal. Court acquitted him on April 23, newspaper reports said. The local SC orders police in Dharan had informed the The Supreme Court ordered the police headquarters and the Judi- offices of the prime minister and cial Council Secretariat in the Cabinet, the Home Minis- Kathmandu separately about try, the Defense Ministry, the Robinsons detention at the time. Army, the Nepal Police and the The police say that Robinson is not Armed Police to make public the in their custody. whereabouts of 14 people. The 14 were said to have been taken CENTER-STAGE: Amrit Gurung, accompanied by a few members of Nepathya, Maoist abduction into custody by the security sings for peace on the International Day of Peace on September 21 The Maoists abducted over 600 forces on suspicion of being Koirala summon Mandal and Minister students and teachers from two Maoists from different parts of The Supreme Court ordered Mohammed Mohsin, a royal secondary schools of Putali Ba- the country on different dates. Nepali Congress President Girija nominee to the committee. zaar, the headquarters of Syangja. Amnesty International in its re- Prasad Koirala to be present in the The two schools were Kalika cent report said that Nepal had court within a week to explain in On death row Higher Secondary School and the highest rate of cases of dis- writing his public comments A Nepali, Indra Bahadur Panchakanya Secondary School. appearances in the world. Ac- about the court. Justice Bhairab Tamang, is facing a death sen- Reports quoted the Maoists as cording to Amnesty, more than Prasad Lamsal issued the order to tence in Indonesia, according to saying that the abducted students 600 cases of disappearances by Koirala. Seven lawyers represent- Amnesty International. The and teachers would be released the state have been reported. ing ProPublic, a public advocacy group has appealed to Indone- after a week of militia training. group, had filed a writ against sian President Megawati The abductees were taken to- Maoist reply Koirala for making remarks Sukarnoputri and Attorney wards neighboring Parbat. The Maoist supremo against the apex court that General Muhammad Abdul Prachanda responded to Prime amounted to contempt of court. Rachman to withdraw the ex- Anti-measles drive Minister Deuba's call for peace Koiralas disparaging remarks ecution order issued to 10 con- The first phase of the national talks with a list of questions. about the court came after it victs, including Tamang. measles prevention drive aimed at The questions ranged from quashed petitions filed by the Tamang and the others who are children between nine months whether the government former prime minister and ordered on death row face imminent ex- and 15 years of age began in 35 would be able to get the politi- him to answer the CIAAs sum- ecution after their appeal for districts of the Eastern and Cen- cal parties on board for fruitful mons. presidential clemency was re- tral Regions. Over 40,000 immu- talks to the issue of constituent jected in June, Amnesty said. nization posts and about 8,000 assembly. He also questioned Deubas call trained volunteers are involved in whether the government had Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Jobs abroad the campaign. The campaign will any control over the Army. In a Deuba officially called on the The number of Nepali workers be completed in three phases. The related development, the Su- Maoists for peace talks follow- going abroad for jobs, which had World Health Organization and preme Court asked the govern- ing the first meeting of the come to a complete halt after the UNICEF will provide $6.2 mil- ment to clarify why the CPN- high-level Peace Committee, September 1 riots, has risen lion, while the government will Maoist had been banned as a headed by the prime minister sharply. The Department of La- bear Rs. 7 million for the cam- political unit. himself. Deuba said that talks bor and Employment Promo- with the Maoists would be held tion has been providing prelimi- discreetly and with proper prepa- nary approval to 700 to 900 job Photo competition Bogatis winning ration. The government formed seekers daily, which is about the epali sports photogra- photograph the high-level committee in same number as prior to Septem- pher Mukunda Bogati August to support the Peace ber 1. The department issued fi- Nbagged first prize in an Secretariat. The government nal approval for 3,354 Nepalis international photo competition believes that the secretariat will to work abroad in the last 10 organized by Asea Brown Boveri, go a long way towards institu- days. The manpower agencies an energy company in Switzer- tionalizing peace initiatives. have resumed work after the land. The theme of this years Other members of the commit- government decided to provide competitionResponsibility, Re- tee are CPN-UML General them with compensation. spect and Determination. Among Secretary Madhav Kumar 700 photographs from 45 coun- Nepal, RPP Chairman Robinson case tries, Bogati took the top prize of Pashupati Shumsher Rana, The British drug peddler Gordon $1,500 for the best photograph in NSP Chairman Badri Prasad William Robinson was believed to all categories.
14 OCTOBER 3, 2004 | nation weekly Protests again owns 35 ropanis of land and a lage. Two villagers were killed by Fund management The four agitating political parties number of buildings at prime lo- the dacoits; both of them shot The Ministry of Health handed began another season of their pro- cations in various parts of the coun- dead. The deceased are Najib Miya over management of the Global test against regression. Demon- try, plus a 12.5 percent share of Dhobi of Lahorthokari-1 and Fund to the United Nations. A strations of the four partiesthe the Soaltee Crown Plaza. The gov- Bahadur Miya Jolaha of memorandum of understanding Nepali Congress, the People's ernment had asked the ICAO Lahorthokari-2. The injured are to this effect was signed in the last Front Nepal, the Nepal Peasants consultants to assess the proper- at the Narayani Sub-regional week of August. According to the and Workers Party, and the Nepal ties of the RNAC as part of its Hospital Birgunj. The dacoits agreement the United Nations Sadbhavana Party-ADcon- plan to privatize the ailing corpo- made off with cash and jewels will oversee the management of verged into a rally in Ratna Park, ration. The valuation, however, worth more than Rs. 500,000, the fund and of Nepal's overall chanted anti-government slogans does not include the credit and Nepal Samacharpatra reported. HIV/AIDS strategy for the next and marched past Bagbazaar, monetary worth of traffic rights two years. The move comes after Putalisadak, Bhadrakali, Shahid from RNACs bilateral air service NEA in court the government was unable to Gate and Bhotahiti. The four agi- agreements with several countries. The Nepal Electricity Authority find a management support tating parties announced new is to file a case against the contrac- agency for the operation of the rounds of agitation after almost Coffee in Parbat tor of the Kali Gandaki A project, grant. Nepal has so far received two months of lull during the Highlands Coffee Company, a Impregilo Spa, at the International $53,000 from the fund as a first monsoon. Nepali venture, is exporting cof- Chamber of Commerce Court, installment. fee produced in Parbat to Japan according to Kantipur. The NEA Border vigil and the Netherlands. Coffee has decided to move to court, as Kharel bail Nepali and Indian security offi- worth Rs. 175,000 was exported efforts to seek settlement through The Special Court set a bail of cials have agreed to tighten secu- to these countries last year, and mutual understanding failed, the Rs. 10.5 million for former IGP rity along the border. Reports said coffee worth Rs. 200,000 was ex- daily quoted an NEA official as Achyut Krishna Kharel. It had the security officials of Nepal and ported in first five months of this saying. The contractor had de- earlier remanded the former po- the Indian state of Bihar have year. With the increase in the ex- manded $4.5 million from the lice top brass to judicial custody. agreed in principle to step up their ports, farmers have been attracted NEA and a pledge that the NEA He was taken into custody on vigil along the border from towards the cash crop. Presently would not withdraw any amount the request of the Commission Janakpur to Mechi. Security forces 35 families in the district are in- from contractor's deposit in Banca for Investigation of Abuse of from both sides have started secu- volved in coffee farming. Intesa, an Italian bank, for there Authority to complete his inter- rity checks. The meeting between to be an out-of-court settlement. rogation. The CIAA had filed a the Nepali security officials and Dacoit encounter Negotiations failed after the gov- case against Kharel on charges DIG of Bihar Police Ram Prabesh Two villagers were killed and three ernment tried to withdraw the de- of amassing wealth dispropor- Singh decided to keep security injured in Lahorthokari VDC of posit. Two months ago, Impregilo tionate to his income during his forces on both sides of the border Parsa in an encounter with In- Spa filed a case against the NEA at service as police chief. He was on a state of alert. During the meet- dian dacoits, reports said. The vil- the international court demand- reported to have absconded after ing both countries decided to ex- lagers had retaliated when about ing the amount of project con- the case was filed last month, but change intelligence on Maoists 50 of the robbers raided the vil- struction. later appeared before the court. activities. Top Maoist leaders have been arrested in Bihar in recent days.
RNAC valuation A team of consultants from the International Civil Aviation Or- ganization has valued Royal Nepal Airlines Corporations total assets at Rs. 4.56 billion. The valuation comes as a surprise, as a similar study done by a task force, under the coordination of former Chief Secretary Damodar Gautam, had assessed RNACs property at Rs. 8 billion. The team evaluated RNACs 14 ropanis of land at New Road at Rs. 1.4 billion and two Boeing-757s owned by the national flag carrier at Rs. 1.13 bil- SOCIAL INNOVATORS: Lucky Chhetri (left) and Bir Bahadur Ghale, elected as Fellows by Ashoka, an organization that lion, Kantipur reported. RNAC supports entrepreneurs whose ideas bring about far reaching changes in the society. Chhetri is working to empower women in rural areas through education while Ghale works on micro-hydro power projects in high-altitude communities. nation weekly | OCTOBER 3, 2004 15 Biz Buzz
NTB AND RNAC PROMOTE TOURISM economic growth remained unchanged from Morang Industry Organization. The Federa- Nepal participated in the international travel that of the previous year mainly due to the tion of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and fair that concluded on September 19 in Kuala continuation of the internal conflict and the Industry promotes the forum of young entre- Lumpur, Malaysia. The fair is the number one attendant negative impact on manufacturing, preneurs, established last year, to bolster consumer travel show in Malaysia. The Nepal transport and tourism. The expected figures of young entrepreneurs. The forum is also the Tourism Board and Royal Nepal Airlines jointly growth for different sectors in FY2005 are as youth wing of federation; it encourages young participated in the fair to promote Nepal as a follows: an increase of 3.7 percent for agricul- entrepreneurs and works for the socio-eco- tourist destination. The Malaysian Association ture, 3.8 percent for services and 3.3 percent nomic development of the country. for industries. The report said inflation for the FY2005 would stand at 5.5 percent. GOOD LIVING! Global Exposition and Manpower Services, STC TO EXPORT HONEY Management Events and VoxPop Production The Salt Trading Corporation is all set to export are jointly organizing the second Good Living honey and is encouraging the production of Expo from October 13 to 17 at the Birendra honey in the country. STC has extended its International Convention Centre. The expo will services to the agricultural sector, and it is start- exhibit furniture, furnishing, housing, interiors, ing a honey business with the objective of pro- cosmetics and new items produced by local viding benefits to farmers engaged in beekeep- and multinational companies. Management ing. STC will set the standards and quantity of Events is also organizing the Bada Dashain honey and will sign agreements with farmers Festival at the same time. associations. SPICE GETS MOBILE LICENSE DIRECT AIR LINKS TO KOREA The Nepal Telecommunications Authority issued Nepal and South Korea have signed an air ser- a license to Spice Nepal to operate cellular vice agreement for direct air links between the mobile services in the country. Until now Nepal of Tour & Travel Agents organizes the event two countries. According to the agreement, both Telecom was the only license holder for mobile every year to promote Malaysia and other des- countries have access to multiple designations, services in the country. Spice Nepal must start tinations as well as to sell tourism packages. and the agreement allows four passenger flights operations within nine months and deliver ser- More than 85,000 visitors visited this years and three cargo flights per week between the vices to 10 municipalities in the country to fulfill fair, the 18th, and more than 15,000 visited two countries. Lava Kumar Devkota, secretary the terms of its license. the Nepali stall. The fair was held in an 11,500 at the ministry of civil aviation, and Park Sang- square meter area comprising four halls with Hoon, ambassador of the Republic of Korea to PSA APPOINTED FOR 633 booths. The national tourism organiza- Nepal, signed the agreement at the ministry on UNITED AIRLINES tion, state tourism boards, airlines, hotels, re- behalf of their respective countries. President Tours and Travels was appointed as sorts, theme parks, tour operators, travel agen- the Passenger Service Agent (PSA) for United cies, cruises and other travel related compa- KRUNZ ALOOZ AND PEPSI Airlines, a leading U.S. airline that flies to many nies exhibited and sold their products and Fast Foods Nepal has launched a combo offer destinations around the world. This is the first services. of a Phuchche Pepsi free with the purchase of time that United has had a PSA in Nepal. Presi- a pack 35g Krunch Alooz. This combo is priced dent Tours and Travels will develop an MARTIN AIR TO RESUME FLIGHTS at Rs. 22. online reservation system for Martin Air will resume flights to Kathmandu start- United in Nepal. ing October 3. Martin Air flies directly from NYEF OPENS BRANCH Amsterdam to Kathmandu during tourist sea- IN BIRATNAGAR sons. The resumption of the flights for the fall The Nepalese Young Entrepreneurs Forum will hopefully send a positive signal opened a branch office in Biratnagar to the international community that in cooperation with the Nepal is still a preferred destination. ECONOMIC FIGURES FROM ADB Nepals economic growth is projected to be 3.7% in the fiscal year 2004-05 according to an Asian De- velopment Bank report. Earlier, the figure had been put at around 5 percent. The report said that the
16 OCTOBER 3, 2004 | nation weekly Milestone Peace Mark
Puskar Shah, a 34-year-old cyclist, reached his 62nd country, the tiny South African na- tion of Mauritania, on his one man-mission to spread the message of world peace and love. Shah set out on the world cycle tour in Were committed 1998 and has covered over 100,000 kilo- meters, riding across Asia, Australia, North to you and South America, and Africa. Last week, he arrived in Mauritania from Morocco. Here at Nation Weekly the very same care and attention that Born in 1970 in Makaibari, Dolakha, Shah go into our magazine go into customer service. This means that if saw his father, an Indian Gurkha soldier, killed during an attack by the separatist BODO youre a Nation Weekly subscriber, your complete satisfaction rebels in Assam. During the 1990 Jana is guaranteed. Its our top priority. Andolan, Shah was arrested numerous times and even received a gunshot wound. Shah began his journey with just Rs. 100 given to him by his mother. But as word of his one- We’re always n When you have man mission spread, help came from different here to help…. suggestions quarters. He has been using the donations to or comments - especially about ways in which we can improve subscription purchase airline tickets to cross the seas and n When you have a service - we welcome them. oceans. question about your subscription, such as Shah has taken his message of love and undelivered issues, duplicate n When you want peace to 22 Asian, 14 Caribbean, four South invoices, your subscription uninteruupted delivery - American, six Central American, two North expiration date, or anything else guaranteed American and many African countries. It please dont hesitate to get in please be sure to renew your hasnt been an easy ride though. Bandits touch. Be sure to include your subscription early. We'll notify you in looted his goods in the Barbados, and his Full Name and Address when advance, so you needn't miss a bike and belongings were stolen in New you contact us. single issue. Zealand, where Sir Edmond Hillary came to his aid. Hillary helped him get a new bike and other supplies for his journey. Actress Sharmila Malla has helped Puskar raise funds from business communities. Other known fig- Write or telephone: ures like former Speaker Daman Nath E-mail: [email protected] Dhungana have coordinated efforts to form Telephone: 2111102, 4229825, 4261831 a national support group for this lone cyclists Fax: 4216281 journey. Mailing Address: Nation Weekly Puskar still wants to cover 85 more coun- GPO Box 8975 EPC 5620 tries. He expects to complete his one-man Media House peace mission in 2009. After that he wants Tripureshwor to scale Everest and write a book. RISK-FREE Kathmandu, Nepal tely GUARANTEEomple re not c cel If you a an can d you c d satisfie tion an ubscrip d your s ll refun ve a fu recie ailed ny unm on a . issues
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nation weekly | OCTOBER 3, 2004 17 Rule of Law SCARECROWS
The rule of law is in danger. Some of the worst abusers the judiciary and suggested that the court are those who created the law and those appointed to be shifted to the palace. Koiralas verbal salvos against the court show how little uphold it. regard he has for the law and the institu- tion of the judiciary, which he himself advocacy group, but some of them seem helped to build after the restoration of BY JOHN NARAYAN PARAJULI to care very little about the law. Some democracy in 1990. Any person who NOTHER SEASON OF RATNA- even take to bullying; what better shows claims to be a democrat and believes in park-centered protests has dawned. their sense of impunity, he asks, refer- the rule of law, says former Foreign Min- AAs in the past, there will be plenty ring to the recent vilification of the Su- ister Bhek Bahadur Thapa, is at odds with of talk about democracy, the rule of law preme Court by Nepali Congress Presi- himself if he questions the decisions taken and the peoples sovereignty. Despite dent Girija Prasad Koirala. by the [judicial] institutions. Speeches the high rhetoric, it is worth asking When the Supreme Court quashed the and statements of leaders have immedi- whether our political leaders really care writ application filed by Koirala on Sep- ate and lasting effects on the perception about the rule of law. tember 15 against the decision of the CIAA of the people who see them as role mod- I dont want to generalize, says to summon him for an inquiry, Koirala els. And when role models give the wrong Kedar Khadka of ProPublic, a public- turned his back on the court, condemned impression, it has a significant effect.
18 OCTOBER 3, 2004 | nation weekly Political leaders give the impression that they are above the law, says senior advocate Janak Bhandari. This is setting nw/SS a bad example. Worse, leaders are also setting a precedent of bad interpretation. Some leaders have totally mixed up the concept of civil disobedience and gross violation of law out of contempt, says Jogendra Ghimere, a lawyer and col- umnist with Nation Weekly. Civil dis- obedience is taking of the law into ones own hands temporarily, in order to de- clare what the law should be. It is a dec- laration that there is incongruence be- tween the law and humane values, writes Professor Howard Zinn in his book On the War. Leader of the Nepal Majdoor Kissan party Narayan Man Bijuchhe COURT BATTLE: Koirala Rohit tried to blur the line when he sug- showed little regard for gested that those who oppose this gov- the apex court in his latest outbrust ernment neednt be bothered by the laws this government implements. Rohit was defending Koirala during Robinson affair. But however bad that a protest rally in Ratnapark last week turns out to be, abuse of law by politi- over Koiralas tryst with the law. But cians is much worse. while some leaders want to personalize Leaders in every government since the matter, there is a consensus in the 1990 have done more to undermine the society that Koiralas badmouthing of the law than uphold it. When the Special Supreme Court was a mistake. Law pro- Court convicted former minister and the fessors and legal experts lament the ten- prime ministers close associate dency among the leaders to disparage Chiranjivi Wagle, the police under Home people and institutions when decisions Minster Purna Bahadur Khadka, a close dont go their way. You cant just vilify friend of Wagles, displayed little inter- the court if it doesnt decide in your fa- est in implementing the verdict of the vor, says Professor Bharat Bahadur court, allege critics. The police cited red Karki, professor of law at Nepal Law tape for the lack of action. When the Campus. The law doesnt give that kind Kathmandu District Court asked the of leeway to individuals, whoever they police to put Wagle behind bars, the gov- FREE FOR NOW: The Supreme are. But in recent days a series of events Court freed Wagle until it decided ernment said that Wagle had fled. A few has undermined the law and the institu- on his application for bail days later Wagle turned up dramatically tion of the judiciary. heads. They say the prestige of the court, at the Supreme Court to appeal the Spe- The Robinson scandal tarnished the once defiled, would be hard to restore. cial Court verdict. Individuals take un- Supreme Courts prestige. This is the How will those who vilify the court due advantage of the loopholes in the most damaging incident in the [Su- today restore the lost respect of the court law, says Professor Karki, referring to preme] courts history, says Ghimire. tomorrow when they come to power? Wagle episode. This incident will definitely erode asks one legal expert, preferring anonym- As the controversies and abuses con- peoples faith in the apex court, says Pro- ity. Despite the controversy, the Su- tinue, they will gradually erode peoples fessor Karki. Critics of the apex court preme Court is still vital. faith in the state and make the rule of say it has failed to display foresight. They The Supreme Court must play an law a straw manas Shakespeare notes say the court must sort out irregularities expedient role when the country is go- in Measure for Measure about the and inconsistencies within the judiciary ing through a period of crisis, says extent of lawlessness in Vienna. He says to be able to command continuous re- Karki. The Supreme Court is the last that laws are like scarecrows. They are spect from public. An incident like the remaining feature of the post-1990 initially installed to scare the birds. Robinson saga gives anarchists and de- democratic system that is fully func- Once the birds realize that the scare- tractors ammunition. Apologists say the tional. Many believe it can play a lead crow is a harmless doll, they build their wrong actions of some judges should not role in solving the current political cri- nests on it. What was true about Vienna be generalized to defame the whole ju- sis, if only it displays foresight. Before 500 years ago may also be true about dicial system that the Supreme Court that, the first task is to sort out the Nepal today. nation weekly | OCTOBER 3, 2004 19 nw/Sagar Shrestha
PRICE OF Truth is the first casaulty as opposing parties wage a PEACEPEACE propaganda war
20 OCTOBER 3, 2004 | nation weekly Cover Story
Statements from the government, the
Maoists, the parties nw/SS and peaceniks are conflicting and con- fusing. Whats clear is that the clock is tick- ing for Prime Minis- ter Deuba, and nei- ther peace nor elec- FACILITATORS FOR PEACE: Rights activists have called both parties tions seem any closer. to the conflict to lay down arms
ronment for talks. The statement asked entered into the stage of strategic of- BY SATISH JUNG SHAHI the government to answer six questions, fence: The Maoists now feel they are AND ADITYA ADHIKARI not so different from those the four par- equal in power to the state. ties protesting on the streets are asking Independent analysts say the claim is ashain is just around (see Box). demagoguery and that the state has much the corner, and talks Our party believes it is important to greater military power. The demagogu- of peace have make public the masters of the old re- ery aside, as recently as last month the peaked. As the gime who are behind the curtains for Maoist leadership went on record to say country held vigil talks, keeping in mind the current mis- that they want to hold talks directly with on the International trust and suspicion, said Prachanda. He the Kings representatives and not the DDay of Peace, Sep- claimed recently that the conflict has government in office. This led many to tember 21, Prime Minister Sher wonder if the Maoists were finally show- Bahadur Deuba went on record once ing their true dual character. again to state his governments commit- THE MAOIST The Nepali Congress president, ment to a lasting peace and fruitful peace Girija Prasad Koirala, contributed his bit talks. But this time, he said, the talks QUESTIONS to the peace process and the ensuing con- would take place secretly, far from 1. Is the government in a position to return fusion when he claimed that he had met media glare, unlike the two previous to the status quo before October 4 or other- the underground Maoist leaders recently rounds. wise correct regression? and that they had been asked by the King You will not even know when the 2. Is the government in a position to involve to join hands with the Palace. The talks [with the Maoists] will take place, the political parties in fruitful peace talks Maoists, Koirala said, rebuffed the call. he told the media after the meeting of against the desires of the Palace and Army If these stories are any indication, the high-level Peace Committee, com- generals? there seem to be countless parallel prising the leaders of the four parties in 3. Is the government in a position to punish peace parleys going on; its hard to de- the government, called the Maoists for those who have conducted political killings? cide which holds substance. Prime peace talks. A day later, the Cabinet en- Can the government punish the killers of UML Minister Deuba defends his govern- dorsed the invitation. cadre Hem Narayan Yadav, whose party is in ment vigorously, saying his is a legiti- Despite the formal nature of the call the present government? mate government since the four parties and the attendant fanfare, what the prime 4. Is the government willing to discuss con- in power held a clear majority in the minister said is what he has been saying stituent assembly and actually grant sover- dissolved Parliament, the closest thing since King Gyanendra appointed him eignty to the people? to a popular mandate. He says he has on June 2. And he has gotten the same 5. Is the government open to bringing in an the mandate to broker a lasting peace, a reply from the Maoists each time. international human rights group for talks claim that doesnt go down well with Maoist supremo Prachanda issued a rather than begging India for arms? everybody. statement Friday evening, saying that his 6. Is the government able to perform at least The increasing military budget and party was ready for negotiations if the one gesture to prove that it holds control plans to expand the Royal Nepal Army government creates a conducive envi- over the Army? have led many to question Deubas com- nation weekly | OCTOBER 3, 2004 21 SOLIDARITY: People showed up at gatherings (here at Maitighar and Boudhanath, below) marking the International Day of Peace to voice their calls for peace nw/SS nw/SS
is a general feeling that all par- of peace talks. Tuladhar himself has been nw/SS ties, including those in the charged of making one too many public government, those outside and statements on what the Maoists want, the Maoists, have used the even when he has hardly had any official peace card for their own ben- contact with the Maoist leadership. efit, and most Nepalis are con- Nowhere is the game more evident fused as to which way the peace than on the streets of Ratna Park. Pro- process will go and whether tests against regression are fueled by talks will take place at all. charges from Nepali Congress Presi- Truth is always the casualty dent Koirala that the Palace and the in a propaganda war. Even I Maoists are joining hands to sideline am confused [with the current the political parties. With the apex developments], says rights court giving the go ahead to the CIAA activist Padma Ratna Tuladhar, to investigate corruption charges facilitator for the previous two against him, Koirala has even gone pub- mitment to peace, despite security offi- rounds of peace talks. There are seri- lic in accusing government bodies of cials argument that military strength is ous charges that all parties are fighting giving in to the Army and the Palace to key in pressuring the Maoists into talks. for the credit for resolving the Maoist push his party into the government. Disagreement on the issue aside, there issue and are playing games in the name Thats demagoguery, but the
22 OCTOBER 3, 2004 | nation weekly Cover Story
PROPOGANDA: Maoists often answer. It either means the invite journalists (here at Jagdanda, Makwnapur) to their government was in the process aadhar chetras to show their of doing something con- presence through the media crete, or had done nothing concrete, or that it would be asked to formalize the con- crete agenda, which is still in the works. Tuladhar is convinced that the government is merely stalling. The announcement [of the high-level Peace Com- mittee] to take institutional initiative for talks only proves that nothing concrete has ac- tually taken place, he says. The responsibility of the government does not only end by calling the Maoists for talks. They must also come up with concrete, well re- searched proposals. Editor of the left-leaning Mulyankan monthly Shyam Shrestha says the government call for talks is just a drama and that it hasnt done enough home- work to make the upcoming peace talks, if they happen at all, any different from the pre- vious two rounds. It certainly didnt sound like talks were uppermost on Prime Minister Deubas mind when he returned from a five- day India visit on September 12. While his carrot and stick approach to the Maoists wasnt unexpected, it was still undip- governments lack of progress and lack formation on the peace talks, or the lomatic of the prime minister to trump of specificity about the talks make the timeline for one. All they said was that up his stick card before giving the car- prime ministers statements look they were looking forward to concrete rot a clear chance. equally hollow. discussions. The modalities will be dis- The prime minister declared he None of the government ministers cussed soon and will be made public at was ready to take a hard stand against we talked to would give us concrete in- the right time, was the most common the Maoistsa move many believe he won support for in meetings with se- nior Indian officials. But left-leaning PIECE OF PEACE THIS WEEK intellectuals like Tuladhar and Shrestha think the government has taken a September 21: Prime Minis- September 23: The Ministe- ment offer in an interview to wrong direction. They suggest that the ter Sher Bahadur Deuba asks rial Cabinet endorses the invi- Communications Corner; government should instead go for such media and rights activists to tation to the Maoists for talks; Maoist supremo Prachanda confidence-building measures as re- pressure the Maoists for peace the CPN-UML says the terror- repeats Maharas line later in moving the terrorist tag and the talks. ist tag and Interpol red corner the evening but says he is Interpol red corner notices slapped on September 22: The high-level notice should be scraped. ready for talks if the govern- the Maoists, as was done during the Peace Committee invites September 24: Maoist ment creates a conducive en- previous talks. Maoists for peace talks; Deuba spokesman Krishna Bahadur vironment and answers the six The move, they believe, could be a says talks will be held secretly. Mahara declines the govern- questions he has asked. key step towards what Prachanda de- nation weekly | OCTOBER 3, 2004 23 scribed as a conducive environment to Ceasefire Timeline sit for talks. The Maoists sat for talks last time only after the government assured them Talks 1 Council on November 21, a 22-point code of conduct, of their security in writing, says 2001, to be led by including a clause restricting Tuladhar. The CPN-UML agrees; their Prime Minister Sher g Baburam Bhattarai. the Army to within 5 kilome- standing committee on September 23 Bahadur Deuba declares Maoists launch attacks in ters from its barracks. The asked the government to take the terror- ceasefire on July 23, 2001, Surkhet, Dang, Syangja and government agrees to release ist tag off the Maoists and repeated their four days after his appoint- Salleri, including on Royal Maoist central committee call for a unilateral ceasefire to create a ment replacing mentor- Nepal Army barracks. King members Bamdev Chettri, positive environment for talks. turned-foe Girija Prasad Gyanendra declares a Mumaram Khanal and Last week hundreds of people gath- Koirala. State of Emergency on No- Rabindra Shrestha. Another ered at Maitighar, Basantapur Durbar Talks 1, Round 1: Five g vember 26, 2001, and the central member, Krishna Dhoj Square and Boudhanath to express their government talk-team mem- Army is deployed to tame Khadka, and his wife, Rekha solidarity with the Nepalis affected by the bers led by Chiranjibi Wagle the Maoists. Sharma, are also released conflict and to mourn for the 10,000 and three Maoists led by from Gorkha. deaths in the peoples war. A gathering
Krishna Bahadur Mahara g Prime Minister Surya of rights activists in Nepalgunj marking meet at Godavari Village Re- Talks 2 Bahadur Thapa is appointed the International Day of Peace made an
sort on August 30, 2001. g Prime Minister Lokendra on June 4, 2003 after appeal to both the government and the Rights activists Damanath Bahadur Chand declares a Lokendra Bahadur Chand re- Maoists to call for a ceasefire starting Dhungana and Padma Ratna ceasefire on January 29, signed on May 30, 2003 for Dashain. Tuladhar act as facilitators. 2003, about 72 hours after failing to garner support from The government should be feeling Other government team Maoists assassinate Armed political parties. Prime Minis- the time pressure too. The King, while members are Bijay Kumar Police Force IGP Krishna ter Thapa expresses commit- appointing Deuba as prime minister, Gachchhedar, Chakra Mohan Shrestha. ment to continue the talks, gave him a clear mandate to hold elec-
Prasad Bastola, Mahesh g Talks 2, Round 1: Six and the Maoists remain posi- tions by April 2005 and broker a last- Acharya and Narhari government talk team mem- tive. ing peace with the Maoists. He, how-
Acharya. Top Bahadur bers led by Badri Mandal and g Talks 2, Round 3: The ever, gave no hint where his priority Rayamajhi and Agni Sapkota five Maoists led by Baburam government and the lay. Elections in Kashmir, which Prime are the two others in the Bhattarai meet at the Hotel Maoists meet for three Minister Deuba frequently cites, are a Maoist team. Shanker on April 27, 2003. days, beginning at the Ho- poor example to emulate. Even in the
g Talks 1, Round 2: The gov- The facilitators are tel Sneha in Nepalgunj on best of times, Nepal just doesnt have ernment and the Maoists Damanath Dhungana, August 15, 2003 and then the overwhelming state resources that meet for two days at Tiger Tops Karna Dhoj Adhikari, Padma at a private house in India commands, and the Kashmir Jungle Resort in Bardia, start- Ratna Tuladhar and Hapure, Dang. The new problem is far from over despite the ing September 14, 2001. Shailendra Kumar Upadhya. government talks-team elections. The Maoists say they want an Other members of the gov- comprises Prakash So the government alternately goes hot interim government, constitu- ernment team are Anuradha Chandra Lohani and Kamal and cold over elections and peace talks. ent assembly, a new constitu- Koirala, Dr. Upendra Thapa only. The govern- Last week, its spokesman Mohammed tion and steps to institute a Devkota, Kamal Prasad ment presents a paper to Mohsin once again resorted to the usual republic. Chaulagain, Narayan Singh address issues raised by rhetoric, Nepalis are getting killed. There
g Talks 1, Round 3: The Pun and Rameshnath the Maoists and says it is should be no reservations or conditions government and the Maoists Pandey. The Maoists are ready even to rewrite the on the main agenda of peace. There should meet at Godavari Village Re- Dev Gurung, Krishna Constitution. The Maoists now be only war of ideologies, not might. sort on November 13, Bahadur Mahara, Matrika stick to their demand for a He appealed to the media to pressure the 2001. The government de- Yadav and Ram Bahadur constituent assembly. The Maoists to sit for peace talks. activates public security Thapa, alias Badal. Narayan government insists the talks Minister Mohsins words and the regulations and releases 68 Singh Pun is said to have will resume, but the Maoists governments formal call to talks may just be Maoists. The Maoists de- brokered the peace talks say there is no need for fur- the carrot to match the stick of the prime mand list boils down to con- with the help of D. R. ther talks. ministers tough talk and increased military stituent assembly, which is Lamichhane and Dr. About 19 Maoists are killed in aid. But even the prime minister knows that rejected by major political Birendra Jhapali. Doramba, Ramechhap by the the stick alone wont achieve his goals by
parties. g Talks 2, Round 2: The Army as the talks are taking April. The carrot just might. He will have to
g Maoist boss Prachanda government and the Maoists place. show that substantive talks can be held de-
calls off negotiations and meet for talks at the Hotel g Maoist supremo Prachanda spite the rhetoric and propaganda that now sets up a 37-member Joint Shanker on May 9, 2003. pulls out of the talks on Au- dominate the issue. Much the same applies Revolutionary Peoples Both sides speak publicly of gust 27, 2004. to the Maoists as well.
24 OCTOBER 3, 2004 | nation weekly
Gurkhas AN EARNED RIGHT
As the debate on providing British citizenship to Gurkhas a petition in its newspaper calling on the British government to reconsider its po- gathers momentum, the Blair government is under pres- sition and to give fair rights to soldiers sure. Even though it acknowledges that the Gurkhas have prepared to serve Britain with honor. Ap- parently under intense pressure from the made a strong case, the British government seems unde- public, the media and the opposition, cided about what to do. Prime Minister Tony Blair was forced to take up the issue. This has raised the level BY JOHN NARAYAN PARAJULI Commonwealth countries are eligible for of optimism among the retirees. British citizenship after only four years of They are especially pleased that on N SEPTEMBER 1 MORE THAN service, but we are denied it even after 15 September 15 Prime Minister Blair re- 400 retired Gurkhas took to the to 25 years of service, says Prem Bahadur sponded to questions from the leader of Ostreets in Liverpool. The reason: Bega, an ex-Gurkha. This is gross injus- the opposition, Charles Kennedy, at the They were demanding the right to a Brit- tice. Bega served with the 3rd Royal House of Commons with an ish passport, which even the British say Gorkha Regiment before his retirement acknowledgement that the Gurkhas had is long overdue. The Gurkhas, based in 1999 after 15 years of service. made a strong case for British citizenship. mainly in Kentthe majority live in The British public also agrees about He said then that his government would Folkestone and Hythedemonstrated the injustice of the situation. As the cam- make the decision soon. This is an issue outside the Home Office Immigration paign gathers momentum, the British gov- we are looking into now, we are examin- Nationality Directorate in Liverpool, ernment is now hard pressed to make a ing it very carefully, said Blair, and I where applications for British citizen- decision quickly on an issue it has avoided hope that within the next few weeks well ship are processed. for almost seven years. Finally the govern- be able to make an announcement on it. It is very difficult when we have no ment announced a review of the policy Retired Gurkhas in Britain and Nepal status as citizens, said Tikendradal early this month. According to Daily Ex- have welcomed the remarks. Dewan, chairman of the Brigade of press newspaper, public support in favor It is positive news, says vice presi- Gurkhas Welfare Society, addressing the of the Gurkhas is growing. The papers dent of the Gorkha Army Ex-Service- demonstration. If we leave the country office has been overwhelmed by thousands men Organization, Krishna Rai. We have to visit family in Nepal, we are afraid of phone calls from readers who, accord- been fighting for the right to British citi- that we will be denied re-entry to the ing to the paper, have voiced their support. U.K. Dewan, a retired Gurkha, is spear- The Daily Express has strongly supported heading the campaign for the right to citi- the Gurkhas campaign for citizenship. In zenship for Gurkhas at par with citizens early September the Daily Express ran from Commonwealth countries. He has a poll as a part of the campaign. had some initial success. Gurkhas who It asked readers whether fought loyally for the British Empire Gurkhas should be offered might win their latest battle: The Brit- citizenship. Among the ish public and politicians seem to real- more than 16,000 votes ize the basic fairness of the request. Sup- polled, 99% of the respon- port has come from many quarters. dents agreed. The The support is growing too. Charles Gurkhas, who have fought Kennedy, the leader of the Liberal Demo- so loyally and bravely for crats, the opposition party in Britain, and Britain, shouldnt have to his party members have stood firmly be- take to the streets fighting hind the Gurkhas. Gurkhas soldiers who for British citizenship, have fought for Britain should not have to the paper said. fight for citizenship as well, said Kennedy, The Daily Express commenting on the demonstration. The sums up the argument of Gurkhas should be granted British citi- the Gurkhas: If they are zenship as a right of service. In another good enough to die for development on September 22 council- Britain, they should be ors of Warwickshire County voted unani- good enough to be given mously in favor of granting residential sta- a British passport. The tus to former Gurkhas. Citizens from Express has also launched SPOTLIGHT: Issues concerning British Gurkhas have always made news back home 26 OCTOBER 3, 2004 | nation weekly zenship for long time now, among other tribution of the Gurkhas to the British ish withdrawal from Hong Kong, Gurkha issues of equal treatment. The organi- Empire for over almost 200 years. regiments have been re-organized. Most zation claims that it has more than 18,000 The Gurkhas have been an integral part of them are now based in the U.K. The retired Gurkhas as members, out of the of the British armed forces since 1815, Royal Gurkha Rifles, the Brigade Training estimated 26,000. Rai is hopeful that the when they helped suppress the Sepoy Team and the Band of Brigade of Gurkhas Labour government in Britain will rec- Mutiny in India. About 3,600 are still serv- are based at the Sir John Moore Barracks, ognize and honor the sacrifice and con- ing in Britain and overseas. After the Brit- Shornecliffe, Folkestone. Many retired Gurkhas have been recently
Certificate of hired as bus drivers after there registration of a was a shortage of bus drivers British citizen in Wales. Time and again they have come to our aid, the Ex- press said. They have never deserted us when we needed them, but now we are betray- ing them. That feeling is common among retired Gurkhas here in Nepal. They use us when they need us and dismiss us when they dont need us, says Prem Bahadur Bega. Gurkhas who were there when Britain needed mer- cenaries to fight are still there when they need low- paid drivers in Wales. But when it comes to granting citizenship, the British gov- CALL FOR JUSTICE: Prem Bahadur Bega, an ex-Gurkha, calls the ernment seems to be reluc- denial of British citizenship a gross injustice tant rather than eager to honor the contribution of the Gurkhas. We simply have to exam- ine what other consequences there may be of agreeing to the Gurkhas case, Blair said. That consideration has been going on for years already. The decision on 550 Gurkhas pass- port applications has been gathering dust at the British Home office. Out of more than 26,000 retirees, only a small num- ber of them have been able to settle in the Britain. The figure is estimated at 650-700. There are many retirees who aspire to live in Britain, but the policies of the British government make that dif- ficult. Thats why they are demanding the right to a British passport in return for their contribution. We have been serving the British empire like its citizens, says D. B. Bomjon, a retired lance corporal of the British Army, and we are entitled to all the benefits of citizens. The Gurkhas have already earned the right to own a
nw/SS British passport and the British govern- ment may do well to recognize it sooner rather than later. nation weekly | OCTOBER 3, 2004 27 Disaster Management UNPREPARED
The Kathmandu Valley has a history of major earth- 60,000-90,000 people would be se- verely injured and another 60,000 quakes; another one is inevitable. Action now could save would be left homeless by a quake of tens of thousands of lives and billions in property dam- the same magnitude today. The study estimates that almost all water supplies age when the next maha bhukampa strikes. and 40 percent of the electricity would be cut off. Sixty percent of the tele- phone lines would stop working, and BY INDRA ADHIKARI The old city of Kathmandu, where most of the houses were built by tradi- 60 percent of the bridges in the Valley AST YEAR, ALMOST 70 YEARS tional methods, is likely to suffer the would be unusable. More than 90 per- after Nepals last great earthquake, heaviest damage in case of a big quake. cent of the houses would be damaged Lthe government announced a new In the 1934 earthquake, estimated at 8.4 beyond repaired, the JICA report building code to lower the risk of earth- on the Richter scale, about 5,000 people warns. quake damage. Since then, only one mu- lost their lives, over 25,000 were injured Surya Prasad Acharya, an engineer nicipality in the country, Lalitpur, has and about 60,000 houses were damaged. with the NSET, says the tightly packed made it mandatory that new buildings In each of the three great earthquakes construction in the city will cause more include earthquake-resistant features ac- (measuring more than 8 on the Richter casualties because falling buildings will cording to the code. Kathmandu, where scale) of the 19th and 20th centuries, a few cause other buildings to fall in turn. the earthquake took a heavy toll in 1934 thousand people lost their lives, and a Hospitals and clinics will be damaged is yet to adopt the law. few thousand houses were destroyed in too, because only a few of them were President of the National Society for Kathmandu. designed to resist earthquakes. With Earthquake Technology, the NSET, A study done by the Japanese Inter- many private healthcare facilities un- Shiva B. Pradhananga says that the national Cooperative Agency four years available, the NSET warns, the 7,500 Kathmandu Valley is especially vulner- ago extrapolated from those figures and government hospital beds, almost full able. Traditional construction methods the population growth over the last 200 even in ordinary times, would be com- using unskilled laborers, poor mainte- years. The predictions: More than pletely overwhelmed in case of a big nance of houses, rapidly increasing 40,000 people would lose their lives, quake. population and unplanned urbanization has increased the risk. According to Pradhananga, more than 60 percent of HISTORY SPEAKS: The Pachpana the houses in the Valley are poorly built. Jyale durbar and other buildings of the Bhaktapur durbar square in Most of them will not survive the next ruins after the 1934 earthquake big quake. The soft sediments of the Kathmandu Valley are part of the prob- lem, say B. Jaisi, Wei-Xin Ren, Zhou- Hong Zong and Prem Nath Maskey in their book Dynamic and Seismic Per- formance of Old Multi-Tiered Temples in Nepal. The amount of damage in an earthquake is strongly in- fluenced by the nature of the soil. The Valley floor is a prehistoric lakebed, and most of the ground is sand, gravel and mud washed into that lake over the last millennia. During a major earthquake these soft, unstable sediments change to a semi-liquid state, and the ground literally becomes soft. The effect in- creases earthquake damage, especially to traditional brick buildings, accord- ing to researches.
28 OCTOBER 3, 2004 | nation weekly A report from NGO Geohazards says, The Richter Scale The seismic record of the [Himalayan] Average Number region, which extends back to 1255 A.D., Description Richter Magnitude Earthquake Effects Per Year suggests that earthquakes of this [1934s] Micro Less than 2.0 Microearthquakes cannot be felt. About 8,000 per day size occur approximately every 75 years, Very Minor 2.0-2.9 People generally cannot feel these, indicating that a devastating earthquake but instruments record them. About 1,000 per day is inevitable in the long term. NSET Minor 3.0-3.9 People feel magnitude 3 quakes, but records show that earthquakes measur- they rarely cause damage. 49,000 (estimated) ing from 4 to 6 on the Richter scale oc- Light 4.0-4.9 Noticeable rattling and shaking, but cur every two or three years, and earth- significant damage is unlikely. 6,200 (estimated) quakes measuring up to 7.5 occur every Moderate 5.0-5.9 Major damage to poorly constructed six years. It has been 70 years since Nepal buildings over small regions is possible. saw a major quake. Well-designed buildings suffer slight damage Much like the Himalayan region, Ja- at most. 800 pan is also quake-prone because of the Strong 6.0-6.9 Minor damage caused to many buildings, tectonic plate underneath, which moves and some buildings are destroyed. 120 at regular intervals. A recent 7.4 Richter Major 7.0-7.9 Serious damage to many buildings. 18 near Tokyo caused only 14 injuries. Cali- Great 8.0 or greater Major damage occurs over a wide area. 1 fornia in the United States is also a (Adapted from U.S. Geological Survey documents.) quake-prone region but suffers only modest damages during earthquakes. Geohazards says that a schoolchild in Kathmandu is 400 times more likely to be killed by an earthquake than a schoolchild in Kobe, Japan. The differ- ence is proper planning and prepara- tion. The construction of earthquake-re- sistant schools in Thechho and Jhonchhe and awareness campaigns by the NSET and municipality authorities in Dharan, Tanahu, Banepa and Kathmandu are good, but very small, beginnings. A major public awareness campaign and implementation of the new building code throughout the Val- ley are urgent and long-overdue steps, B Rai PRECAUTION: Building a house that suggest experts. can resist earthquakes adds only about 10 percent to the normal cost According to Acharya, building a house that can resist earth- quakes adds only about 10 percent to the normal cost. There are no complicated formulas; no specially qualified or experienced laborers are required: A little training is enough. Simple techniques more overlap of the iron rods in beams and poles, stronger corners and lay- ing bricks a bit differ- entlyare enough. Every year of delay in imple- menting the building code means more unsafe build- ings now and greater ca- QUAKE DAMAGE: A study estimates that 60 percent of the bridges in the Valley would be sualties later. unusable in the case of a magnitude 8 quake nation weekly | OCTOBER 3, 2004 29 Opinion ERSATZ NOSTALGIANOSTALGIA nw/SS I have begun to wonder how, despite all their read- ing and at times beautiful mastery of the English language, our young journalists produce such pedestrian writing about Nepal
BY PRATYOUSH ONTA
MUST SAY THAT I WAS FIRST amused by the effort Ajit I Baral makes to not mention the Martin Chautari discussion forum in his article Guff Addas in the last issue of this magazine. Upon first reading, I thought maybe the omission could be justified because the writer was only in- terested in guff addas located in chiya pasals. However, reading the piece a second time made me realize that was not the case. After all, he talks about addas in chiya pasals, around bookshops, one that meets in Trichandra College and another in Kirtipur. Certainly that kind of portfolio CHAUTARI: A forum in which participants are expected could have easily included Martin to sit on chakatis and participate vigorously Chautari, recently described by Abhi Subedi as a forum in which participants one or more occasions. Many of these the readers. When readers are expected to sit on chakatis and partici- same individuals and others he mentions of this newsmagazine know about the pate vigorously. After my second read- including his fellow Pokharelis, existence of Chautari (after all Nation ing, I began to worry about the new gen- Sarubhakta and Usha Sherchan, have Weekly carries notices about Chautari eration of Nepali writers and journalists also participated in Chautari discus- discussions every week), they will cer- who are full of enthusiasm, but I am sions. When non-Nepali nationals, in- tainly wonder when one omits any dis- afraid, full of ersatz nostalgia, a dangerous cluding the Darjeeling-based writer cussion about this particular adda. combination. Indra Bahadur Rai and the Calcutta- Had this been a simple case of a I do not want to speculate on why based social scientist Ranabir Samaddar writer being bent on insulting the in- the writer omitted Chautari in his ar- (a fiery communist of the 1970s), telligence of Nation Weeklys readers, ticle. He is certainly aware of its exist- made presentations and participated at this omission wouldnt have deserved a ence. After all he has participated in many Chautari, they have lamented the ab- mention here. But it is suggestive of a discussions at Chautari over the past sence of such addas in their own home- larger lacuna in English-language jour- three or four years and has been the main towns. This has also been the experi- nalism in Nepal, and that is why I am presenter on at least one occasion. ence of some Nepalis from other parts worried. A write-up that cannot men- Many of the people mentioned in the of Nepal, and some of them have been tion a case of homegrown success while articleLok Raj Baral, CK Lal, Suresh inspired to initiate such addas after hav- pretending to describe the changing Dhakal, Chaintanya Mishra, Govinda ing seen Chautari at work. urbanscape of a particular theme is not Bartaman, Khagendra Sangroula, Krishna I worry about journalism that is based journalism. It also raises questions about Khanal, Krishna Hachhethu, Hari on denial. Surely, the public work of a the process of editorial value addition to Sharma and Abhi Subedihave been the journalist or a writer is judged by the an inadequate copy submitted by in- main presenters at Martin Chautari on social landscape he makes visible to house or outside writers.
30 OCTOBER 3, 2004 | nation weekly nw/SS ing about a variety of career options coming to Chautari week after week? Anyone writing about Chautari need not have talked to any of Chautaris or- ganizers but could have interviewed some of the young participants and asked them what prompts them to come to Thapathali, week after week. Answers to these simple questions would reveal the reasons for the success and longevity of a single adda in Nepal and contribute to a real debate about adda culture in our society. Such analysis is basic journalism, nothing more. I have picked up on the guff adda ar- ticle because it is representative of a new tendency among young journalists writ- ing in English in Nepal today. Simply put, in an attempt to be chic, their writings Chautaris record speaks for itself. account for the decay in the culture of are replete with ersatz nostalgia about far- Started in October 1991 as an informal dis- addas elsewhere. Therein the article off places and fascination with globally cussion forum regarding development is- quotes columnist CK Lal pliantly regard- visible people. They also contain non-il- sues (among its founders are Bikash Pandey ing how the disintegration of the Soviet luminating quotes from heavyweights, as and the late Martin Hoftun), it has become Union and the march of globalization is if these lines can make up for the lack of the longest-existing forum of its kind in responsible for the death of high lefty ide- thorough research. I have begun to won- Nepal at the moment. Initially its addas alism and the dying culture of addas else- der how, despite all their reading and at were scheduled two times a month, now where. Lal should have been challenged times beautiful mastery of the English lan- 16 scheduled discussions take place each to explain how precisely in that same era guage, these journalists produce such pe- month. As demand has grown, it is not the Chautari adda was born and grew tre- destrian quality writing about Nepal. unusual for Chautari to hold one or more mendously and how Chautari brought the Can our young journalists and additional unscheduled discussions each likes of Lal and Khagendra Sangroula to- writers who talk about Paris and month. Despite banda-induced cancella- gether in the same room in the mid- and America to lament about conditions tions, it managed to hold 195 such discus- late-1990s. What idealism informed such at home conceive of their worlds al- sions during the last fiscal year. an ternatively? Can The list of those discussions also encounter? Anyone Can our young they evaluate home- demonstrates the variety of themes that who knows a bit grown contexts and Chautari has brought into the discussion about the history of journalists and writers institutions with arena. Moreover many discussions held democratic and who talk about Paris historical depth, at Chautari have given birth to research progressive intel- the only kind of agendas, friendships between partici- lectual camps in and America to lament journalism that pants and much more. Since the article Nepal would have matters in the long laments about the closed nature of noted that such an en- about conditions at run? Can they dem- other addas in town, one should also take counter was no small home conceive of their onstrate to us that note of Chautaris ability to attract a con- achievement then. they are interested tinuous group of new and young Nepalis As a former con- worlds alternatively? in Nepal de- to participate in multi-dimensional con- vener and (at scribed in words versations, a point emphasized by jour- present) a member that are the prod- nalist Raghu Mainali on September 14 of the executive committee of Martin ucts of good research, diligence and when Chautari held an open session in Chautari, I do not seek praise for the fair analysis? Can they show to us that which it invited critical comments and work we have done. I seek critical beyond name-dropping, their wide suggestions from one and all about its appraisal. Critical appraisal means, reading contributes to our under- work. If Chautari adda has entered its 14th among other things, asking simple but standing of a complex Nepal? year at a time when such addas have dis- probing questions: How did Chautari Finally, can they drop their ersatz appeared from some of the more intel- thrive in an era in which many of the nostalgia for a revolutionary Calcutta lectually sexy metros of the world, then other addas in Kathmandu died? Why thick with smoke and the smell of rum it is doing something right. has it been able to attract an average of and Parisian pubs and coffeehouses and There is a passage in the article that 30 people in each of its sessions? Why ask if Thapathali has lessons for Calcutta refers to milestones in world history to are new young people who are think- and Paris? nation weekly | OCTOBER 3, 2004 31 Business
ASAS OILOIL PRICESPRICES BOIL BOIL
The cost of keeping oil prices at the current level could be as high as Rs. 1.5 billion a month or Rs. 18 billion a yearalmost half of the governments total development spending. Subsidizing oil is neither the most efficient nor the most equitable way of spending scarce government resources.
of other essential products such as medi- BY BIPUL NARAYAN cines, food, clothes and housing. If any- HE GOVERNMENTS DECI- thing, petroleum prices have been less sion to hike prices of petroleum pressured than other prices because of Tproducts has again invited a din the massive support provided by the of protests from the usual quarters government. Last year, the government RISING PRICES: Petroleum prices political parties, student organizations, spent Rs. 2 billion to subsidize the pe-
nw/SS have risen twice within a month and transport and consumer associa- troleum products while hardly any gov- tions. On the face of it, it is quite inex- ernment subsidy was provided to other Even after the latest hike, the govern- plicable that petroleum prices should commodities. Petroleum prices, thus, ment is still incurring a cost of almost hold such a prominent place in public rose by 0.3% while prices of medicines, Rs. 500 million every month to keep oil imagination. education, vegetable and fruits, construc- prices low. Yes, petroleum prices have risen tion materials and clothes were up 3.5%, Why, then, is the public up in arms sharply in recent years but so have prices 4.8%, 7.2%, 19.5% and 6.7%, respectively. against the recent hike in prices of pe-
32 OCTOBER 3, 2004 | nation weekly nw/SS B Rai B
INFLAMMABLE: Petroleum prices are an issue exploited regularly for political gains
troleum products? There are two main ment to completely disassociate itself reasons for this. from the price fixing process. This could First, a government owned mo- be done in the short term by replacing nopolythe Nepal Oil Corporation, the the current administered pricing system NOCdistributes petroleum products. with a mechanism that would automati- Price hikes are, thus, looked upon as po- cally reflect changes in international litical decisions, not economic ones. prices. Such a mechanism could use a Common people perceive government publicly declared formula to fix prices, insensitivity to their plight in a decision increasing the confidence of the com- to raise prices while opposition parties mon people in the process. This would see a potential political opportunity to be consistent with the governments lib- be exploited for political gains. This also eralization policy, which has consciously explains why governments are loath to sought to link domestic prices to world increase prices until forced into it and prices through trade liberalization. In why political parties adopt contradictory the medium term, the government stances depending upon whether they are should open up the petroleum sector for in the opposition or in the government. the private businesses so that prices are Second, there is a lack set competitively. of transparency in the way Setting up a transparent mechanism petroleum prices are for setting oil prices will be crucial be- fixed in Nepal. When the cause the current level of government government hikes oil subsidy for petroleum products is un- prices, people are unsure sustainable. Crude oil prices, which have whether it is to fill up the risen to $48 a barrel from about $28 last pockets of high-ranking year, are expected to go up to as much as officials or because of the $65 a barrel until they bring on a global pressure of international recession that finally slows demand. The prices. Their distrust of cost of keeping oil prices at the current the government and the level could be as high as Rs. 1.5 billion a NOC is further com- month or Rs. 18 billion a yearalmost pounded by the fact that half of the governments total develop- petroleum prices, which ment spending. are hiked up when inter- Spending such huge amounts of national prices go up, sel- money on subsidizing oil is neither the dom come down with in- most efficient nor the most equitable way
B Rai ternational prices. of spending scarce government resources. The way out of the cur- The country would be benefited more rent messwhere the through government investment in edu- government is not only cation, infrastructure and agriculture losing money but also in- rather than in petroleum products, which viting the ire of all con- mainly benefit the urban minority at the cernedis for the govern- cost of the rural majority. B Rai B nation weekly | OCTOBER 3, 2004 33 Arts & Society
UtterUtter NeglectNeglect
The only museum dedicated to the history of modern Nepali art is a dismal failure. It needs a new location, an adequate budget and conscientious management.
The selection of the paintings in the mu- BY AJIT BARAL seum is inadequate. More importantly, the he National Association of Fine works of some of the artists like Tej Arts was established in 1965 Bahadur Chitrakar and Chandraman Tto promote Nepali art. One of Singh Maskey are missing entirely. the first things it did after its establish- Bajuman Chitrkars visit to Britain ment was to open the Birendra Art Mu- in 1850 helped bring British academic seum. The idea was good; almost every naturalism to Nepal. The Rana rulers, country has at least one art museum dedi- who were enamored by the British style cated to its national art history. India has of painting, encouraged Nepali artists to the Indian Modern Art Museum. In the paint in the same style. The Ranas were museum there are paintings by Raja Ravi the only patrons of art in the country Verma; artists from the Bengal School then, and the style found widespread of Art, Jamini Roy, Amrita Shergil, currency. The influence of British aca- Rabindranath Tagore and the Progres- demic naturalism remained strong until sive Artists Group neatly displayed in a 1950, when artists like Maskey, Chitrakar chronological order. The paintings tell and Manohar Man Singh Pun tried to the story of Indian modern art. paint a little differently. These artists Nepals equivalent, the Birendra Art were the bridge between British aca- Museum, fails to tell the same story. It demic naturalism and Nepali modern- seems the paintings in the museum were ism. The museum could have thus started procured without a plan. Senior artist by procuring the works of these artists, Madan Chitrakar says, NAFA is being and it could have added the works of art- run by people with no sense of history. ists who helped define the contour of All photos B Rai B photos All
34 OCTOBER 3, 2004 | nation weekly Nepali modern art later. But it seems NAFA members didnt know what to do with the museum. NAFA appointed a committee to select paintings for the museum. But it never fixed any criteria [for selec- tion], says art critic Mukesh Malla. That explains the glaring omissions of artists and bad selection of paintings. At present there is no committee at all; the head of NAFA has been procuring paintings at his own discretion for sev- eral years. There is criticism about his choices. Many below-par paintings have found their way into the museum, Malla says. What will foreigners think of our art after seeing the paintings in the museum? Even overlooking the poor selec- tion and glaring omissions, the museums state of neglect is enough to discourage visitors. Water seeps into the hall, and the air is damp. There are daubs of yellow paint all over the white walls. The paintings are displayed on stretcher boards. The lighting is awful and distracts the viewer. The carpet is filthy. The windows are broken, and pi- geons enter and perch on the frames, which are rough and poorly made. Can- vases have yellowed; worse, many paint- ings have started to peel. If this neglect continues, the few important paintings in the collection, like those of Bal Krishna Sama, will be damaged beyond repair in a few years. Sunita Bhandari, who is in charge of the gallery, says she can do very little. The museum hardly gets anything for its up- keep, she says. NAFA has a budget of Rs. 300,000. With this amount NAFA has to organize art activities like the National Art Exhibition as well as pay its opera- tional expenses. But if this building, never intended to be a museum, cant be main- tained, then the museum has to be moved. Bhandari suggests that the museum could be taken to the Royal Nepal Acad- emy and that the offices of the academy could be shifted to the NAFA building. Thats a good suggestion, though un- likely to bring cheers at the academy. The academy has a huge building, which would make a museum worthy of Nepals fine art. It could also be devel- oped into a center for promotion of the arts, just what NAFA was intended to do. nation weekly | OCTOBER 3, 2004 35 tmt new ad
Guest Column Dont Drink The Water
The Maoists are not Nepals biggest problem, not even close
natural disasters came to during the same period. Estimates of deaths BY IAN BAIRN and displaced families from the disasters were also similar to those ts human nature to misestimate risks. Almost everyone worries about caused by the insurrection. We can put an end to our self-induced flying in an airplane, statistically a very, very safe thing to do; most of disaster; Mother Nature will be with us forever. I The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization says that con- us dont think twice about riding in a car or on a motorcycle, even though its 100 times more dangerous than flying. Our perception of the tinuing deforestation costs Nepal Rs. 11 billion per year, five times the Maoist problem suffers from the same mis-estimation. average cost of a year of the insurrection. The gross depletion of our When asked why the Maoist problem is so terrible, most people natural resources is a much bigger drain on the nations wealth than the point to the deaths, a ghastly 10,000-plus in eight and a half years. Maoists. But what else kills Nepalis? According to CWIN, 99,000 children die Then how about the Maoists damage to the economy? Its hard each year in Nepal from diarrhea, pneumonia, smallpox, malaria and to estimate, but the cost surely amounts to billions. So does the malnutrition. Why arent we spending billions to prevent these easily damage caused by smuggling, a lucrative business with alleged ties averted deaths? Where is the concern and support from Big Brother to top political figures. The Nepal Textiles Industries Association says to the south and Uncle Sam (who seems to be everywhere) for this that textile smuggling from India and China costs their industry Rs. 6 huge problem? billion per year, and has almost driven them out of existence. Eighty Besides dead children, we have tuberculosis. The Britain-Nepal Medi- percent of imported fabrics, the association says, evade customs, cal Trust says that 16,500 Nepalis die each year from the disease. costing the nation a fortune, destroying an industry and putting people Thats three times the casualty rate of the worst year of the insurrection, out of work. Thats one example of a vast problem, far, far worse than and TB goes on and on. A study a few years ago by the Ministry of Health the Maoists. estimated that 12 women died each day from preventable complica- Perhaps you are willing to grant all that, but still feel the Maoists are tions of pregnancy. Do the math: It comes to 4,380 women dead each our number-one problem. Dont they prevent anything productive being year just because they lacked medical care of even the most basic sort. done about all those other problems? Yes and no. Its certainly harder to The situation certainly hasnt gotten any better since the study. Its an get services into Maoist-controlled regions now, but there wasnt much of enormous problem, but an easy one to underestimate, since theres no an effort before the insurrection, when it would have been much easier. shock and outrage, no media coverage. The real reason nothing got done was mismanagement and greed. Offi- The cost of the insurrection seems staggering too. The government cials responsible for helping the nation instead helped themselves to, estimated the total cost of the deaths, destruction and damaged economy estimates say, 50 to 75 percent of the money. Much of the rest was at Rs. 18 billion, through the end of 2003. As huge a sum as that is, its wasted. Thats a terrible problem, one that is far harder to resolve than roughly what the property losses due to floods, landslides and other the insurrection. So lets clean up corruption. Thats what the police and courts are for, right? Sorry. The lack of ethics, responsibility and honesty in the whole legal system makes it almost impossible. The culture of impu- nity and absence of rule of law on the part of the good guys is a much, much bigger problem than the Maoist bad guys. The Maoist problem is easier to solve, less costly and less deadly than any of these other problems. We are preoccu- pied with the Maobadi samasaya for the wrong reason: Its spectacular, like an airplane crash. But the real danger is everyday, on the highways and in the inexorable toll taken by poor education, MISPLACED PRIORITIES: The no health care, slow development and Maoist insurgency terrible governance. Drinking the water has overshad- is more dangerous than the insurgency owed the sorry state of our in most villages in Nepal. And that, of education and course, is why we have a Maoist prob- health sectors Giri lem in the first place.
38 OCTOBER 3, 2004 | nation weekly
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A flying leap could leave you sky-high time keeping her balance that she had to claw her way back to her bucket seat, leaving a line of mauled and good-naturedly bemused passengers in her wake!). Goodness me, no: I could have just sat on a BY KUNAL LAMA bench and looked around to see that, in spite of just 252 mm of rain in hether Nepal is a failed, failing or flailing (my preferred, more August (24 mm less than last year; on an average, the Kathmandu accurate coinage) state, one thing it is for sure: stunningly Valley receives over 1,500 mm of rain annually), thanks to the mon- W soon, even my garden had changed and was growing very well indeed. beautiful. On a recent trip to Pokhara, as the Beechcraft flew over, through and under dramatic cloud formations, the country below Spreading particularly prolifically was the water hyacinth (Eichhornia was emerald. Mountains, hillsides, valleys, plains, all in that eye-sooth- crassipes). Discarded dismissively by a friend a few months ago, the ing, vibrant, amazingly alive green. The monsoon had done its magic, hyacinth was now marching out of the confines of an evidently inadequate transforming the grey-brown-scape into a land that we can be thankful terracotta bowl. Royal intervention was immediately required, but how to be living in. (Sometimes, though, flying over can be fun-and easier!) could I let the multi-lakh Harley Davidson roar its way through my small The monsoon this year has been quite different. Spells of intense garden? It would surely destroy my delicate bed of ajuga (Ajuga reptans) rainfall interspersed between periods of scorching sun and sticky humid- forming an effective groundcover around small shrubs of azalea (Azalea ity. The Department of Hydrology and Meteorology (DHMhere we go hybrida), hydrangea (Hydrangea macrophylla), the uniquely-named Yes- again) has termed monsoon 2004 weak. It has, however, had its terday-Today-Tomorrow (Brunfelsia calycina) and an ungainly-and-strug- usual effects: East Nepal got thoroughly soaked, resulting in landslides, gling sapling of flowering cherry (Prunus cerasoides). Ajuga is as prolific as floods and losses of lives, whereas in the West, paradoxically, droughts the hyacinth, but on dry land, and it shoots up short stems studded with have caused severe damages to crops and the livelihood of its people. cheerful purple blossoms in the spring. Must say the hydrangea bushes To have learned that I neednt have paid 4,040 rupees (Mother of God! look a bit the worse for wear, but they should come back to form soon. For a flight which lasts 20 minutes one-way, a glass of water to rehydrate On a north-facing brick wall a-jangle with ugly overhanging corrugated my drained budget and a lovely Ms. Rai or Gurungsensational in disco iron sheets, a spectacular display of intertwined morning glory (Ipomoea hederacea) and nasturtium (Tropaeolum majus) climbing over 10 feet have been wow- ing my envious friends. A closer friend, given to experimenting with psychoactive and hal- lucinogenic substances, has asked me to har- vest the morning glory seeds. If you want to have visions of Mr. G. P. Koirala getting out of his SUV and walking the hundred or so meters to the dilapidated domestic terminal, all you have to do is grind up the seeds, mix them up with milk in a form of shake and gulp it down. The active substancesbelonging to the Ly- sergic acid amide groupin the seed dis- solve deliciously in the fat content of the milk. This could get addictive! Better stick with nas- turtium flowers in your salads and pickle its plump green seed heads in brine as a substi- tute for the enormously pricey capers from Spain. Gardening note: I've just bedded out cock- scomb (Celosia argentea), marigold (Tagetes patula), chrysanthemum (Chrysanthemum morifolium) and salvia (Salvia leucantha) in a heels and tight long skirtin attendance, but is she going to be of any variety of colors except red. The first two are annuals, prefer well-drained use when we have to jump out of the aircraft hanging on to our bottom soil, full sunlight and should flower through December. The latter two are emergency floatation seat if we are lucky enough to be over Begnas or perennials. Just make sure that you divide the chrysanthemums every few Phewa??? I have seen similarly attired airhostesses wobbling up or years, discarding the woody center. Chopping back the salvias after flow- down suspended stepladders and through the narrow aisles inside, ering ensures they bloom again and again. gingerly balancing a tray full of cotton wool and sweets. Once, on a flight The beauty of the monsoon is soon to leave us. Dare we hope that to Meghauli, when the aircraft was being buffeted by strong winds, a it will be replaced by the bounty of the autumn? Or are we to stock up on dutiful attendant, checking to see if the seat belts were on, had such a LSD and suchlike?
40 OCTOBER 3, 2004 | nation weekly DESIGNING LUXURY Furniture l Flooring l Accessories
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Price ranging from Nrs 3500 onwards Showroom location: Basundhara opp. to Jialing Bike showroom. For further information contact: 4356913, 9851021346 Interior Design By Suban Rajbhandari Profile The Good Doctor fter the exasperating traffic at A Chabahil and the overwhelming rush of patients inside the Medicare National Hospital and Research Centre, its a relief to be in Dr. Chakra Raj Pandeys quiet office. Dr. Pandey, however, is anything but quiet. He has a natural gift for gab: Hes deliberate, articulate and engaging. The managing
42 OCTOBER 3, 2004 | nation weekly director of the Department of Orthopedics and Traumatology dated with whats going on internationally, says Pandey. at Medicare has already achieved what others of his age can There is always a sea of knowledge to take in. In 2003 only imagine. In his seven-year career he has pioneered mod- he was one of four international doctors who were ern orthopedic surgery in Nepal. Knee, hip and even spine awarded a scholarship by the AAOS, the American Acad- replacement surgeries are rare in the country, but Pandey, in emy for Orthopedic Surgeons. his late 30s, has done them all. Dr. Pandey is dedicated to his specialty; he says it is be- The doctor talks of a 65-year-old man who is suffering cause he is a perfectionist. He re- from a rare case of cancer. Eleven major operations marks, I dont think Im flexible had already been perfomed on the cancer pa- enough to manage too many tient: One half of his lungs had been removed things at a time. Its basically and half of his leg amputated at a hospital in about specializing in one thing Mumbai. The last time he flew to India, the and being the best at it. Un- 65-year-old received the worst news of his life- like many doctors, Pandey time: Nothing more could be done, and he had dedicates all his time to a no more than a few months to live. Eight months single hospital and keeps no later he is still alive. Dr. Pandey did a hip re- outside office. He has been placement surgery on him. This was one of at Medicare for two years; the toughest sur- earlier, he was with B&B geries I have un- Hospital for five and a half dertaken, says Dr. years. Pandey. It was I have this philoso- risky throughout, phy, he says. Doctors and one small mistake should wait for patients, would have ended every- not patients for doctors. thing. The difficulty and I dont take my patients challenge motivated the doc- for granted. What I am tor, as they have all his life. today is partly because The son of a farmer of them, and by work- from a remote village in ing at too many places Sindhupalanchowk, I would do no justice Pandey left home as a child to them. That atti- to complete his S.L.C. in Kathmandu. He tude and his deter- says living in his uncles home in the city was mination to excel always a struggle. There was a total mismatch, he have made him one says. He wanted to do his best academically, but didnt of the leading sur- get the proper environment, the proper nutrition; not geons in the enough of everything. The difficulty motivated rather than country. discouraged him. He couldnt afford higher education; the Even so, Dr. challenge to earn a good scholarship along with his in- Pandey is unfulfilled. Why? stinctive urge for knowledge spurred him on. He finished The career he really wantsa sports medi- sixth among all students in his S.L.C. examinations and later cine practicedoesnt yet exist in Nepal. During my resi- became the first Nepali to be chosen for an MBBS scholar- dency program in Turkey I felt a certain pull towards sports ship in Turkey. medicine, and I took up special courses on this subject, In Turkey, he drove himself hard, excelled again and re- says Pandey. In 2002, he received a traveling fellowship to ceived another scholarship for a five-year-long orthopedic study sports medicine and arthroscopic surgery in the residency. I actually wanted to be a cardiologist, he says. United States. He also had a chance to practice sports medi- But because I hurt my knee once during my MBBS program, cine. curiosity led me into becoming an orthopedic surgeon. During his medical residency program in Turkey, Pandey Pandeys intellectual curiosity and willingness to take on dif- accompanied the Turkish national youth basketball team to ficult tasks won him his medical degree and orthopedic spe- Germany as their sports doctor. Nothing similar has come his cialty. way in Nepal, but he is optimistic: I know sports medicine The same things drive him still. His office in the isnt still big in Nepal, but if organizations like the National orthopedics department at Medicare is filled with Sports Council come up with the initiative we can form a shelves of well-ordered books. A personal computer in team of sports doctors and give our players the same treatment one corner gives Pandey access to medical websites. they get only after paying millions of rupees abroad. With his The doctor tries to keep abreast with the latest devel- track record, dont bet against his achieving his sports medi- opments in his field through meets abroad. In every cine dream. After all, he says, its only about having the vi- workshop you learn something different. You are up- sion. nation weekly | OCTOBER 3, 2004 43 CITY ThisWeek EVENTS Batsayana ART In Town EXHIBITIONS This September marked the 19th anniversary of Siddhartha Art Gallerys establishments. To celebrate its commitment to arts, the gallery is exhibiting the paintings by one of Nepals foremost art- ists, Durga Baral. Over the years, Durga Baral has reached much fame as a cartoonist and is known by his nom de plume Batsayana. Over the years, Barals paintings have been valued for their sublime exploration of the socio economic and political situation in Nepal. This time his exhibition titled The Faces of Time and the Colors of Sensibility focuses on the civil war that has gripped Nepal for the last nine years. He seeks to sensitize the viewers to the human tragedy that is tak- CHANGA CHAIT ing place in Nepal. Even though there Dashain is just around the cor- age-old culture of kite flying. is no political pos- ner. Keeping up with the Also enjoy the food festivals, turing in this exhi- Dashain festival, Club Himalaya fun games, music, dance party, bition, it is indeed is organizing the Chang Chait and much more. Venue: At the critical of our pa- 2061 for the second consecu- Club Himalaya, Windy Hills, thetic inability to tive year. A kite flying competi- Nagarkot. Dates: September end the violence tion among Nepals top corpo- 25, October 2 and October 16 and the suffering. rate houses, financial institu- (finals). For information: Starting October 1. tions, travel/tourism industry, 4410432. export/trading companies and Cine Club multinational companies, Masquerade Night Movie: Taxi 3 (2002). Direc- occasion of the 25th World Changa Chait will be conducted Raizz International is organiz- tor: Gerard Krawczyk. Star- Tourism Day. Also featuring through three stages. After two ing a Masquerade Night. The ring: Samy Naceri. At the Al- documentary movies, art preliminary rounds, the final event will feature models liance Francaise, and culture shows, interac- match will be held between the from Cybernepal, Nepali pop Tripureshwore. Date: October tion programs and photo- winners from the previous artists, DJs Alex and Rupesh, 3. Time: 2 p.m. For informa- exhibitions. Venue: Tourist rounds. In the final match the and juggling and flamming tion: 4241163. Service Centre, three winners with the highest bartenders. At Club Platinum, Bhrikutimandap, points will be awarded. Hotel Yak & Yeti. Date: Sat- Tourism Products Kathmandu. Date: Septem- Csportsmanship among cor- urday, October 2. Time: 8 p.m. Exhibition of new tourism ber 24-27. For information: porate bodies and also revive our Entry: Rs. 350 per person. products in Nepal on the 4269768.
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44 OCTOBER 3, 2004 | nation weekly For insertions: 2111102 or [email protected] City Page
This week at Martin dinner, a can of beer or soft drink Chautari ONGOING Longest Happy Hour and a good time. Live music by SEPTEMBER 28 Hotel Yak and Yeti introduces the Abhaya & The Steam Injuns play- MANGALBARE San Miguel longest happy hours . Buy any ing blues, jazz & more. Also drop DISCUSSION Oktober Fest drink and get a second one free. your visiting cards or BBQ coupons Topic: Village Tourism in Nepal. The season to eat, drink and Add an array of sumptuous exotic for the lucky draw. Every Friday. Pundit: Shreekanta Khatiwada. dance is here. This San Miguel snacks to the mix, and you will see 7p.m. onwards. For information: Time: 5 p.m. Oktober Fest brings you why the happy hours have be- 4479488. SEPTEMBER 30 bratwurst, frankfurter, chicken and come happier. Venue: MEDIA DISCUSSION steak barbeque, smoke ham The Piano Lounge Bar. Fusion Night Topic: Gender Discrimination in carving and much more. This Time: 12-7:30 p.m. at Rox Nepali TV Programs. Pundit: along with unlimited beer and ex- The rhythmic and Deepa Gautam, Chief Program traordinary live music at the Rock @ Belle harmonic tunes Producer, NTV. Time: 3 p.m. poolside to make your body spin. Momo of both eastern For information: 4256239. At the Hotel Yak & Yeti. Date: Steel Wheels, a rock n and western in- September 24 - October 3. For roll band, at the Belle struments will be Films @ Lazimpat information: 4248999. Momo, Durbar Marg. a treat for your Café Gallery Also enjoy the delicious senses. Enjoy the OCTOBER 5 Belle Combo meal. Ev- sensational tune Love Actually ery Friday. 6:30 p.m. of Sarangi played The directorial debut by Richard onwards. For informa- by Bharat Nepali, Curtis, screenwriter of Four tion: 4230890. blended with the Weddings and a Funeral, western instru- Notting Hill, and Bridget Sekuwa Saanjh ments played by The Cloud Walk- Joness Diary is a romantic com- Enjoy the Sekuwa Saanjh at The ers. Every Wednesday. At the Rox edy that boasts a jaw dropping line Dwarikas Hotel. Price: Rs. 555 Bar. Time: 6 p.m. onwards. For in- up of a A- list British and Holly- plus tax per person; includes BBQ formation: 4491234. wood talent, including Hugh Grant and Colin Firth. Love Actually is a delightful mess, which inter weaves 15 stories of SHOWING AT love and heartbreak and is unpre- JAINEPAL CINEMA tentious about what iscute, fluffy and utterly charming. Time: FOR INFORMATION: 4442220 7 p.m. For information: 4428549.
TROY
nation weekly | OCTOBER 3, 2004 45
Yeti Airlines
Proposed Revised Flight Schedule (Covering remote sectors) Effective from 16 SEP - 31 DEC'04
From To Flight No. Days of Dep. Arr. Rupee Dollar Remarks Operation Time Time Tariff Tariff One way One way
Kathmandu Lukla YA 111 Daily 0700 0735 1665 91 DHC-6/300 Lukla YA 101 Daily 0705 0740 1665 91 DHC-6/300 Lukla YA103 Daily 0710 0745 1665 91 DHC-6/300 Lukla YA 105 Daily 0715 0750 1665 91 DHC-6/300 Lukla YA107 Daily 0840 0915 1665 91 DHC-6/300 Lukla YA113 Daily 0845 0920 1665 91 DHC-6/300 Lukla YA109 Daily 0850 0925 1665 91 DHC-6/300 Lukla YA 115 Daily 0855 0930 1665 91 DHC-6/300 Lukla YA117 Daily 1020 1055 1665 91 DHC-6/300 Lukla YA119 1,2,4,5,6,7 1025 1100 1665 91 DHC-6/300 Taplejung YA 901 3 1025 1135 2695 164 DHC-6/300 Phaplu YA181 1,3,5 1030 1105 1480 85 DHC-6/300 Rumjatar YA 221 2,4,7 1030 1105 1245 61 DHC-6/300 Manang YA 601 6 1030 1130 2995 122 DHC-6/300 Meghauly YA171 Daily 1130 1200 1340 79 DHC-6/300 Bharatpur YA 173 Daily 1200 1225 1160 61 DHC-6/300 Bharatpur YA 175 Daily 1400 1425 1160 61 DHC-6/300 Simara YA 141 Daily 1330 1355 970 55 DHC-6/300 Simara YA 143 Daily 1500 1525 970 55 DHC-6/300 Kathmandu Kathmandu YA 301 Daily 0700 0800 4800 109 SAAB 340B Kathmandu YA 302 Daily 0705 0805 4800 109 SAAB 340B Kathmandu YA 303 Daily 0820 0920 4800 109 SAAB 340B Biratnagar YA 151 Daily 0945 1025 2585 85 SAAB 340B Biratnagar YA 153 Daily 1430 1510 2585 85 SAAB 340B Biratnagar YA 155 Daily 1640 1720 2585 85 SAAB 340B Pokhara YA 131 Daily 0815 0840 1710 67 SAAB 340B Pokhara YA 137 Daily 0955 1020 1710 67 SAAB 340B Pokhara YA 135 Daily 1415 1440 1710 67 SAAB 340B Bhairahawa YA 163 Daily 1555 1630 2220 79 SAAB 340B Bhadrapur YA 121 Daily 1135 1225 2950 109 SAAB 340B Nepalgunj YA 177 Daily 1155 1250 3500 109 SAAB 340B Biratnagar Kathmandu YA 152 Daily 1050 1130 2585 85 SAAB 340B Biratnagar Kathmandu YA 154 Daily 1535 1615 2585 85 SAAB 340B Biratnagar Kathmandu YA 156 Daily 1745 1825 2585 85 SAAB 340B Pokhara Kathmandu YA 132 Daily 0905 0930 1710 67 SAAB 340B Pokhara Kathmandu YA 138 Daily 1045 1110 1710 67 SAAB 340B Pokhara Kathmandu YA 136 Daily 1505 1530 1710 67 SAAB 340B Bhairahawa Kathmandu YA 164 Daily 1655 1730 2220 79 SAAB 340B Bhadrapur Kathmandu YA 122 Daily 1250 1340 2950 109 SAAB 340B Nepalgunj Kathmandu YA 178 Daily 1315 1405 3500 109 SAAB 340B Lukla Kathmandu YA 112 Daily 0750 0825 1665 91 DHC-6/300 Kathmandu YA 102 Daily 0755 0830 1665 91 DHC-6/300 Kathmandu YA 104 Daily 0800 0835 1665 91 DHC-6/300 Kathmandu YA 106 Daily 0805 0840 1665 91 DHC-6/300 Kathmandu YA 108 Daily 0930 1005 1665 91 DHC-6/300 Kathmandu YA 114 Daily 0935 1010 1665 91 DHC-6/300 Kathmandu YA 110 Daily 0940 1020 1665 91 DHC-6/300 Kathmandu YA 116 Daily 0945 1025 1665 91 DHC-6/300 Kathmandu YA 118 Daily 1110 1145 1665 91 DHC-6/300 Kathmandu YA 120 1,2,4,5,6,7 1115 1150 1665 91 DHC-6/300 Phaplu Kathmandu YA182 1,3,5 1120 1155 1480 85 DHC-6/300 Meghauly Kathmandu YA172 Daily 1120 1155 1340 79 DHC-6/300 Rumjatar Kathmandu YA 222 2,4,7 1250 1325 1245 79 DHC-6/300 Manang Kathmandu YA 602 6 1145 1245 2995 122 DHC-6/300 Taplejung Kathmandu YA 902 3 1150 1300 2695 164 DHC-6/300 Bharatpur Kathmandu YA 174 Daily 1240 1305 1160 61 DHC-6/300 Kathmandu YA 176 Daily 1440 1505 1160 61 DHC-6/300 Simara Kathmandu YA142 Daily 1410 1435 970 55 DHC-6/300 Kathmandu YA144 Daily 1540 1605 970 55 DHC-6/300 n Subject to change without prior notice. Monday 1, Tuesday 2, Wednesday 3, Thursday 4, Friday 5, Saturday 6, Sunday 7 n Subject to CAAN Approval
CORPORATE OFFICE RESERVATIONS TRIBHUVAN OUTSTATION'S TELEPHONE NUMBERS Lazimpat, Kathmandu 4421215 (Hunt. Line) AIRPORT OFFICE BIRATNAGAR 021-536612/536613 (City sales office) BHAIRAHWA 071-527527 (City sales office) Ph. No. 4411912 (Hunt. Line) Fax: 977-1-4420766 4493901, 4493428 021-523838 (Airport) 071-527528 (Airport) Fax: 977-1-4420766 Email: [email protected] POKHARA 061-530016 (City sales office) BHADRAPUR 023-522232 (City sales office) 061-532217 (Airport) 023-522242 NEPALGUNJ 081-526556/526557 (City sales office) 081-550637 (Airport) W O R L D C L A S S GUARANTEE
Manufactured by Himalayan Spring Water Inc. Chalnakhel, Kathmandu Tel: 2052347, 2052349 2030204 Week In Pictures 3 2 1 nw/SS nw/SS nw/SS
1. NO COMMENTS: Former police chief Achyut Krishna Kharel being taken into 4 judicial custody after he appeared before the Special Court 2. HONOR: Journalist Pannalal Gupta receives Gopal Das Patrakarita Pruskar from Prime Minister Deuba for his contribution to field of journalism 3. CELEBRITY NUN: Anni Choying at a concert at the Dream Garden, Keshar Mahal, to raise funds for the Arya Tara school 4. HERE WE GO AGAIN: The four agitating parties begin another round of Ratna Park-centered protest programs 5,6. CANDLE-LIGHT VIGIL: Hundreds gather at the Mandala at Maitighar to light candles to mourn those who have died in the eight-and-a-half-year long conflict 7. FESTIVE SEASON BEGINS: Devotees observing Rishi Panchhami near Pachali Bhairav 8. DAY OF PEACE: A gathering at Basantapur organized by Himsha Birodh Abhiyan, the Campaign Against Violence B Rai nw/SS
5 nw/SS 6 8 7 B Rai nw/SS
nation weekly | OCTOBER 3, 2004 49 Sports
time SAF Games gold-medallist. I used to run for two to three hours regularly Marathon Men and increase it before major competi- tions. His record of 2:15:03 set at the Nepals best chance for international distinction is third SAF Games in Calcutta remains distance running. The discipline needs little specialized unchallenged. Athletics experts say that with ad- training and no expensive facilities, just as legendary vanced training, he could have had a po- marathon man Baikuntha Manadhar says. dium finish at the Asian Games. The performance of Nepals own self-effac- At 5,000 meters, Kenyan runners ing distance runner Rajendra Bhandari BY SUDESH SHRESTHA hold 48 of the 100 best times ever, fol- in Athens suggests he could be a top ow should we feel for the Nepali lowed by Morocco with 23 and Ethio- runner too. His timing of 14:04.89 in athletes who were in Athens last pia with 18. They have a quality that the 5,000 meters heats may be off the Hmonth? Happy for their once- stems from severe hardship that they final qualifying mark in Athens, but this in-a-lifetime moment or sorry that they are exposed to since their childhood, soldier from Tanahun has potential to were so far behind while confronting the explains Prakash Pradhan, who holds a climb up the ladder. In Athens Bhandari very best in the world? The results were Ph.D. in sports science. Much like clipped over 30 seconds off his silver- the same during Nepals previous eight Nepal, these resource-poor African na- medal winning time of 14:42.63 at the appearances at the Olympic Games, start- tions have no roads. Theres no alterna- ninth SAF Games. Noushad Khan of ing at Tokyo in 1964. It was the same tive to walking and running. And with Pakistan won the gold there with drama of listless despairexcept that this some help, they become world-beat- 14:39.47. time we had a protagonist in the ers, he adds. Thats [Bhandaris time in Athens] taekwondo star Sangina Baidya. The fact While Olympic medals may be be- better than any of the winning times in that she had fought her way to a place yond our reach in the immediate future, the SAF Games yet, confirms athletics among the top 16 to qualify for the event Pradhan believes Nepali distance run- coach Pushpa Raj Ojha. If we pay proper raised the hopes of a nation. ners have realistic chances to excel at the attention, he can be a medal prospect at Member-secretary Kishore Bahadur Asian level. Baikuntha Manandhar, the Asian Games, Ojha adds. At 27, age Singh, who attended the Olympic Nepals marathon man, shares his views. is definitely on Bhandaris side, and he Games in Athens as chef de mission of I never went through advanced training will work hard for the 2006 Doha Asiad. the Nepali contingent, understands how when I was running, recalls the three- The only worries are over officials to add official gloss to the Olym- frivolous attitude toward players. pic lament. Its been more of a KING OF MARATHON: I never Hopes for a good showing were learning experience, says Singh. went through advanced training sunk less by strong opponents Even the most fervently patriotic than by infighting among offi- Nepalis have no illusions that cials, Bhandari says, recalling the Nepals Olympic dreams will be incident at the Kathmandu airport fulfilled any time soon. Theres a before flying for Athens. He and reason. An Olympic medal is such three other athletes were left a sought-after commodity that de- stranded there with no sport of- veloped nations hardly leave any- ficials in sight for hours. The in- thing to chance. They will test ev- fighting comes because the ery conceivable methodcut- nations sports authorities are di- ting-edge technology and, in some vided into two factionsa mo- cases, even drugsin order to rale-sapping situation that no one win. appears to have the political will The competition is demanding. to end. Olympic disciplines like swim- The officials should now ming and most athletic events are work to create the right environ- now well beyond the reach of poor ment for players to cast off the countries. That doesnt mean there unpleasant experience, Bhandari is no room for individual talents, says, and to work on the right and those talents have their best prescriptions for better perfor- shot at middle- and long-distance mances. Sports enthusiasts agree running. Despite their lack of re- and hope the guardians of sources, Kenya, Ethiopia and Mo- countrys sports will pay more rocco continue to produce top- attention to the athletes needs notch runners, for example. and less to power games.
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We are in the heart of Kathmandu city to conquer your hearts.
Mt. Makalu Building, Dharmapath, New Road GPO Box: 10607, Tel: 4232488 Email: [email protected] Snapshots BY DHRITI BHATTA New Challenge
Movie director TULSI GHIMIRE is taking time out from his busy schedule. He is now a brand ambassa- dor for Mayos Noodles. The TV program Mayos Super Challenge is his new venture. I wanted to come out with an informative program that would tell the audience about our history, civilization and above all ourselves, says Nepals most successful movie director. His idea got an instant green light from the makers of Mayos. The only hitch: The NTV quiz show only caters to the recipients of the Golden Coupon found inside the Mayos packs. Fourteen episodes of the pro- gram, the first of which went on air on Septem- ber 18, have already been confirmed. Catch his program on Saturdays on NTV at 8:40 p.m. nw/SS
DIFFERENCE MAKER
MEERA BHATTARAI is a rare breed: a woman entrepreneur in Nepal who has achieved international recognition. She recently won the SCHWAB Outstanding Social Entrepreneur Award-2005, given out by the Swiss SCHWAB Foundation that honors outstanding social entrepreneurs around the world whose work has significantly im-
B Rai B proved peoples lives. Established in 1984, her organizationthe Association of Craft Producers, the ACPworks with 1,000 produc- ers from 17 districts; 90 percent of them are women. Their products include ceramics, baskets, toys, wool products and furniture. Her goal: To make Nepali women independent by providing them with job opportunities. Already 70 percent of ACP's sales are to the interna- tional market. Her model is one definitely worth emulating. Nepali Touch ANI CHOYING DOLMA is an internationally reputed singer with a Nepali touch. Her five albums with Tibetan
chants and mantras and Nepali songs have been highly Rai B acclaimed. The Tibetan-Nepali has made several international tours to Europe and the United States. Last week, she was homeat the Gar- den of Dreams in Keshar Mahal for a concert titled after her latest album, Moments of Bliss. It was a total sellout. From local Nepalis to expats, you could see everyone swaying to Choying's euphonic voice. Next up is a tour to Germany scheduled for later this year. She'll mesmerize them there, too.
52 OCTOBER 3, 2004 | nation weekly Jobs
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omething happened last week, something not Sgenerally seen in our country, caught up in conflict. Common people, people from the middle class, gathered to make their voices heard against the growing culture of violence. First on Monday, September 20, hundreds gathered at Maitighar to light candles to B Rai mourn the more than 10,000 who have lost their lives
in the eight and a half years of conflict. A ing railings, burning tires. Then when Yes. I believe some of it had to do with day later at Basantapur they protested the others moved into the opposition they the medium we usedemails, SMS, use of violence for political ends. The did the same. Soon if anybody wanted telephone calls and some radio and tele- gatherings organized by the Himsha something addressed, the thing to do was vision stations as well. We felt we Birodh Abhiyan, the Campaign Against to resort to violence. What happened on needed to get our message to the urban Violence, a loose coalition of civil soci- September 1 [the riots that followed the middle class. Most people in ety groups, were the first of their kind. killing of 12 Nepalis in Iraq] is indica- Kathmandu havent felt the brunt of the Using e-mail, SMS, phone calls, radio tive of this. Violence is just not limited violence that has wracked the rest of and television, organizers were able to to just the security forces and the Army. the country. The closest theyve come spread the word within a day or two. to witnessing the conflict is, probably, They were able to tap into a segment of Your movement doesnt have a the closure of educational institutions. the population that generally stays away public face. Was that intentional? There is a message for us from the Ho- from politicsprofessionals and the Yes. We wanted to avoid the traditional locaust. Its about a German pastor. apolitical crowd among the citys school focus on protests: Who is doing it, rather When the Nazis came for the Jews, the and college-goers. Yashas Vaidya talked than what is it. communists, the trade unionists, and to writer and filmmaker Kedar Catholics, he didnt speak up because Sharma, one of the many people be- If middle-class he didnt belong to any of these groups. hind the campaign. In the end when they came for him Nepalis dont speak there was nobody to speak up for him. How did the program come about? out for other Nepalis If middle-class Nepalis dont speak out We wanted to do something on the In- for the sorrows faced by other Nepalis ternational Day of Peace on September today, then there will today, then there will be no one left to 21. We didnt want take out a rally to dis- be no one left to speak for them. rupt traffic and normal lives. We wanted to do something that was thoughtful. speak for them You have chosen the theme of anti- Soon more people came aboard, people violence and maintain that your mes- doing event management, those in the sage will be strictly apolitical. Thats media and so on. Everybody contrib- So this obviously is a movement fine, but doesnt it all boil down to poli- uted. All this came about within a week. of a different kind tics, as two failed peace processes Its an experiment. When just a rumor of a prove? What is your message? banda by an unknown, underground group Our movement is apolitical, but the We wanted to protest against the culture is enough to have a disturbing impact, we roots of problem and probably the solu- of violence that is slowly taking root in wanted to see if similar calls for peace from tion are political. our society. We believe that violence an unknown group would work. They did. shouldnt become routine. We wanted The gathering at Basantapur was huge and Do you think there is a realistic chance to make sure that violence doesnt take had many professionalseditors, writers, that a movement such as yours will root in a society that is normally as tol- intellectuals and artists. And, more impor- bring peace to the country? erant and peaceful as ours. tantly, the common Nepalis from differ- Maybe. Theres an apt line from a Lata ent walks of life came. Mangeskar song that comes to my mind: How did the culture of Mere batan ke logo, jara bharalo aakhomai violence come about? You were able to mobilize a segment pani, countrymen, fill your eyes with I personally think that the UML while of the population not too involved in tears. One Nepali must feel the hurt of in the opposition started thisuproot- the political process. another.
56 OCTOBER 3, 2004 | nation weekly Books
Tharoor also amply highlights the Nehrus Legacy personal characteristics of Nehru, who believed in democracy and was able to connect, despite his aristocratic roots, Shashi Tharoors very readable book about Jawarhalal to the masses so easily that a threat of resignation was all that was needed if any- Nehru is about democracy and secularism, Nehrus one opposed him. At the same time, the abiding legacies, and also about socialism and thing that he feared most was autocracy. Thus he wrote anonymous articles nonalignment, now nearly forgotten warning Indians of the dangers of giving dictatorial temptations to Jawaharlal biggest contributions would come after Nehru. He never craved a dynasty and BY SOHAM DHAKAL independence. was not too keen about grooming his any in India think that Nehru Tharoor summarizes Nehrus contri- daughter for politics. Tharoor concedes was too soft on Nepal. As bution to India as four major pillars: that the greatest irony of his legacy was Mrecently as 2000, BJP leader K. that the Jawaharlal who had warned of Democracy, secularism, socialist econom- R. Malkani said Nehru lost a major op- ics and nonalignment. Its the legacy of a the temptations of dictatorship should portunity when King Tribhuvan offered democratic secular India that he gives most produce a daughter who would, albeit Nepal to Nehru. Nehru may or may not importance to. Even though Nehru was briefly and unsuccessfully, suspend have been soft while dealing with Nepal, successful in promoting a democratic In- Indias democracy. In this Tharoor but its inconceivable to think that he dia, his shortcomings lay in his economic provides one of the most valuable les- would have acted in any way to diminish assumptions. According to Tharoor, this sons that any young democracy can re- his stature in the international arena. Ac- partly stemmed from the fact that Nehru alize; even though some may associate cording to Shashi Tharoor, Nehrus for- was instinctively suspicious of ev- democracy with inefficiency, corrup- eign policy positions were self-justifying tion and mediocrity and tyranny and emanations of his intellect; to link them dictatorship might enjoy some support, to direct benefits to the Indian people especially from those who are them- was beneath him. However, his life did selves untouched by it, democracy revolve around serving the Indian masses, provides everyone, including the vic- and, without much opposition, he held tims, the means of redemption through influence in practically every matter of the the ballot box. newly independent India. It is therefore Shashi Tharoors Nehru: The In- fitting to include The Invention of India vention of India is, as he declares in the in the title of the book. preface, not a scholarly work, as it is Nehru grew up a privileged child, based on no new research into previously born into a family that had close ties with undiscovered archives. It is rather a the colonials. He graduated from Trin- reinterpretationboth of an extraor- ity College, Cambridge, and entered dinary life and career and of the inher- politics within a few years of returning itance it left behind for every Indian. to India. Tharoor touches on all the ma- Tharoor is therefore free to remove jor events in the life of Nehru including any dry narrative and present Nehrus the defining Amritsar massacre, which story both delectably and analytically. Nehru was sent to investigate. Upon It is difficult to capture all aspects of finding out that the expatriates had raised a man like Jawaharlal Nehru (and a quarter of a million pounds for Dyer, ia there have been many books on him), vention of Ind who had carried out the massacre, he Nehru: The In but what Tharoor is able to accomplish roor understood how brutal and immoral by Shashi Tha is to make him accessible to everyone, ardcover) imperialism was and how it had eaten Penguin Books (H including audiences outside of India. into the souls of the British upper PAGES: 282 However, the pains he has taken in re- 2 classes. As Nehrus involvement in the PRICE: Rs. 46 iterating some of the things that should National Congress increased, so did his be understood by Indians show how closeness to Mahatma Gandhi and con- ery foreign business: The British East far removed Nehru is becoming from sequently his rise within the party. India Company had come to India to modern India. Tharoors conclusion Tharoor also gives a superb analysis of trade but later became the rulers. This, illustrates this fact: the consensus the relationship between Nehru and his coupled with Gandhis ideas about eco- [Nehru] constructed has frayed; de- family, especially through the tumultu- nomic self-sufficiency, led to protec- mocracy endures, secularism is be- ous times spent in prison. Even with all tionism. Tharoor is honest about criti- sieged, nonalignment is all but forgot- the hardship that Nehru endured, his cizing Nehrus follies. ten and socialism barely clings on. nation weekly | OCTOBER 3, 2004 57 Last Word Ordinary Virtues
Where, to the eyes of the ordinary people, the fore seemed to have galvanized a large ur- situation seems to offer no al-ternative, where it ban population. The message: After eight seems that one must bow to circumstances, the and a half years of needless violence, hero fights the odds and, through some extraor- Nepalis desire peace and the desire is over- dinary deed, manages to bend destiny to his own whelming. The constituency demanding ends that both the Maoists and the state imme- Facing the Extreme, diately put down their guns is growing. Tzvetan Todorov They want concrete actions; not smokescreen statements that have jammed Todorovs classic work is about the our airwaves and flooded our newspapers human capacity for moral life amid ex- since the ceasefire collapsed last August. treme pressurelife inside Nazi concen- Its hard to decide whether the tration camps and Soviet gulags. Through ceasefire is any closer now than it was in his painstaking research, Todorov ques- June when Deuba took office amid great tions the conventional wisdom that
moral life dies in extreme circumstances. nw/SS He instead constructs gestures of dig- nity, compassion and solidarity that tri- umphed over the prevailing hopeless- ness inside the camps. In a world that was devoid of grand heroes, little acts of ordinary virtues were quietly heroic; they held enormous political symbol- ism and moral significance for posterity. We saw something similar happen We’re endlessly efficient 365 days... on the streets of Kathmandu last week. The ordinary virtues were abundantly evident. And we cant help document- ing them. Like in Todorovs heroes in- Shangri-la Inter Continental side the camps, we saw ordinary vir- Freight (p.) Ltd. Logistics (p.)Ltd. tues in scores of school kids who had
Thamel, Bhagwan Bahal, GPO Box:11829, Kathmandu, Nepal gathered to mourn the deaths of 10,000 Phone: 4424456, 4410901, 4423671, 4412601, Fax: 00977-1-4414858 faceless Nepalis killed in the so-called E-mail:[email protected], [email protected] website: www.shangri-lafreight.com, www.visitnepal.com/shangfreight peoples war. It was a spontaneous ges- ture that relied on word-of-mouth friends called friends, one colleague told expectations that peace would finally be another. Many of those who held the restored. Four months on, all one sees is candle-lit vigil at the Mandala in that everyones busy talking up peace, Maitighar on Monday were not the typi- blaming the other party for the impasse. cal government-hating crowd you have The net result: Nothing happens on the come to associate with protests at Ratna ground. In the long run, it doesnt mat- Park that have continued for the past year. ter what you say; people will begin to Most were urban middleclass kids, who see you for who you are. Do the warring wanted to show solidarity to the pains of parties really care about the people? Nepalis outside Kathmandu, who have To Todorov, caring is one of the prime seen it all for years (see Khula Munch, ordinary virtues of a hero. And we take page 56). heart from the fact that scores of Next day, a much larger crowd gath- Kathmandu residents showed last week ered in Basantapur. If the first gathering that they care. They are our heroes. had a large number of high school stu- dents, this one was pretty mixedwrit- ers, intellectuals, journalists, civil society representatives and common Nepalis. The modest gathering at Maitighar the day be- Akhilesh Upadhyay, Editor
58 OCTOBER 3, 2004 | nation weekly cover.pm6 2 9/25/04, 6:50 AM cover.pm6 1 9/25/04, 6:50 AM