Wednesday, March 23, 2005

News Clips March 21,23,25


March 25
  • Forces seek tighter control over Indo-Nepal border traffic Times of India, India With Nepalese Maoists and Pakistan's ISI agents increasingly taking advantage of the visa-free regime between India and Nepal to slip into the Indian side, the security force guarding the Indo-Nepalese frontier has proposed introduction of an identification document for border crossings..... there had been "some sort of exodus" of Maoists ...... six Maoists, four of them senior functionaries, had been arrested ...... Pakistani intelligence agents have been using Nepal as "a launching pad" for anti-India activities. Active in Nepal for over 10 years now, they are involved in counterfeit currency, subversion and espionage rackets.
  • Maoist threat still looming large: DGP:- Webindia123 .... some prominent maoist leaders have been taken into custody while trying to sneak into India ..... He added that the Maoists in both Nepal and India are trying to develop a nexus and the Nepalese ultras are coming to India for training. He, however, added that there is no evidence of any joint operation between Maoists of both countries..... The Union government had raised the budgetary allocation for the para-military force by a whopping 30 percent to Rs 946 crore. The enhanced funds will help in fencing the Indo Nepal border and acquiring modern weapons to check infiltration by the Maoists.
  • Nepal draws most fire at UN meet New Kerala, India Nepal has drawn the heaviest fire at the general debate in the annual session of the UN Human Rights Commission (UNHRC) in Geneva, though China, Iran and Myanmar were also criticised over alleged rights violations...... New Zealand said it was dismayed at the recent suspension of civil and political rights in Nepal and the culture of impunity there ...... in the past two years, Nepal has recorded the highest number of new cases of disappearances in the world, as well as torture and extra-judicial executions ...... sign an international accord that would allow the investigation of violations..... rights organisations and NGOs were more aggressive, asking for international intervention in Nepal and the appointment of a special rapporteur
  • Nepal drifting towards China? India planning economic sanction? India Daily The King of Nepal is adamant about maintaining the monarchy without democracy in Nepal...... Desperate and frustrated India is slowly thinking about economic sanctions against Nepal. ..... King Gyanendra may be actually a shrewd politician..... Royal Nepal may drift towards China
  • Another Nepal envoy to India Business Standard Field Marshal Meen Bahadur Rana ..... Chairman of Nepal's State Council Parashu Narayan Chaudhary .... Delhi maintains that nothing short of complete restoration of democratic processes in the Himalayan kingdom will be acceptable ...... The six were Home Minister Purna Bahadur Khadka, Agriculture Minister Homnath Dahal, Land Reform Minister Jog Meher Shrestha, Local Development Minister Yuvraj Gyawali, Information and Communication minister Mohammad Mohsin and Forest Minister Badri Mandal. They are due to appear again before the commission on March 31...... The RCCC has the authority to confiscate property, award jail term and levy fine if the accused is found guilty.
  • Nepal's royal watchdog nabs judge taking bribe New Kerala ... arrested Birendra Kumar Karna ... for allegedly taking Nepali Rs. 20,000 to free two men involved in a robbery three years ago ..... Though Kathmandu's lawyers and judges are yet to comment on his arrest, the judiciary is dogged by allegations of bribery. The charges came out in the open last year after two Supreme Court judges had to resign over a scandal involving an overseas druglord...... The formation of the new commission has triggered fears that it might be used by the new regime to settle political scores...... six former ministers charging them with distributing the NRs. 4 million from the PM's Welfare Fund among party cadre and cronies ...... got a new twist with lawyers questioning the legality of the summons, saying the case is already being heard by the Supreme Court.
  • Nepal: Dealing with a Human Rights Crisis Reuters AlertNet, UK .... latest report, describes the appalling situation, especially since the royal coup of 1 February, offers practical policy recommendations for tackling it by all relevant players, and explains how such measures would contribute to the longer-term conflict resolution effort...... a no-party state that has decimated democracy and kills people at will ..... Using extortion and coercion, the Maoists are imposing a violent authoritarian regime on steadily increasing swathes of the countryside. State forces are engaged in well-documented, systematic violations from extra-judicial executions to illegal detentions, disappearances, and torture..... the international community needs to speak with one voice on human rights ...... restoration of basic freedoms and establishes robust enforcement mechanisms and clearly defined benchmarks, including an effective, on-the-ground UN human rights monitoring mission ...... demand that both the government and the Maoists sign a Human Rights Accord as an initial confidence-building measure toward a resumed peace process ..... Human rights would thus become integrated with efforts to create a wider, coordinated international push for peace, ideally led by a contact group of key powers and the UN, supported by donor nations working on the development and rights tracks....... "Without concrete action on human rights, any return to the pre-coup situation would be little more than a return to the unsatisfactory status quo ante", says Templer. "Nepal's people would be condemned to further erosion of their rights and to the gross violations that feed the brutal insurgency".
  • ICG hue and cry over worsening rights scenario Himalayan Times ICG said the ongoing 61st Commission on Human Rights in Geneva gives “Nepal’s friends their best opportunity to begin to reverse the trends by establishing a strong UN human rights monitoring mission that could form the core of action towards peace.” ..... exert leverage to end the culture of impunity by “preparing to suspend RNA from the UN peacekeeping operations if it does not improve its record.”
  • Nepal: Dealing with a Human Rights Crisis International Crisis Group
  • Nepal has enough arms to fight anti-government guerrillas ... Xinhua, China We are also capable of manufacturing ammunition for small arms including Self-Loading Rifles, M-16 rifle and Infantry Small Arms System ..... Gurung said that the US and Indian governments have not stopped military aid to Nepal completely, but have only kept the subject under review and constant watch. He ruled out the possibilities of buying arms from Nepal's neighboring countries.
  • Army hails rift in rebel ranks in insurgency-ravaged Nepal Japan Today ....gained an edge over warring Maoist guerrillas amid reports of a rift in the rebel ranks .... punished more than 100 soldiers for rights violations ..... 44 soldiers, including senior officers, have been jailed
  • Nepal says it is self-sufficient as far as its military ... Webindia123 "All the rank and file of the Royal Nepal Army dedicate themselves for the safeguard of the country, crown and democracy even at the stake of their lives. Each division has been carrying out the operation independently in their regions. We were self sufficient in small arms and ammunitions since quite long. Therefore, it is not a big deal, and that's why there won't be any problem so far as small arms and ammunitions are concerned" ..... "Army had to stay standby (before emergency) because of the various rallies staged by students and different parties often causing damages and ransacking etc. Now, since the Home Ministry and police force are controlling the situation (after the emergency), we are concentrating on the Maoist issue only" .....
  • Nepal Punishes 108 Soldiers for Rights Abuses ABC News .... those guilty of rights violations were being punished with penalties ranging from warnings to imprisonment...... "Forty-four soldiers have been jailed for up to seven years for abuses like excessive use of force and forcibly collecting donations from the people" ..... 31 soldiers had been dismissed from the service and 12 others demoted. The rest had been warned or lost their annual increment in pay or been denied promotion..... Human rights groups say more than 1,200 people are missing
  • Asia ; India blocks transport of oil to Nepal: Keralanext, India
  • Indian crackdown halts Nepal's petroleum imports Express Newsline
  • Delegates at IT meet apprised of Nepal’s situation: Dhakal Gorkhapatra, Nepal
  • Dhakal seeks to bridge digital divide Gorkhapatra
  • Ex-PM falls sick at Indian envoy's dinner New Kerala, India ...Thapa, 77, had suffered a heart attack .... Thapa, a six-time former prime minister .... has called King Gyanendra's takeover of the government and the imposition of a state of emergency "ill-advised"...... Tulsi Giri, a former prime minister himself and vice-chairman of the new council of ministers, has criticised Thapa's statement in public, saying only history would decide whether the royal move was "ill-advised".
  • Festival of colours turns bleak for Nepal's politicians New Kerala, India the government's strongest critic and four-time prime minister Girija Prasad Koirala continued to be under house arrest ....... deputy prime minister and finance minister Bharat Mohan Adhikari - Nepali Congress spokesman Arjun Narsingh KC and others continue to be under detention along with a large number of student leaders
  • Nepal's Anti-Corruption Panel Questions Government Ministers The ministers have denied any wrongdoing and say they are victims of a ``political vendetta'' ...... Homnath Dahal, one of the officials questioned by the panel, said he will challenge any charges against him in Nepal's Supreme Court ..... An all-party government that includes opposition parties should be formed, Deuba told the BBC...... Nepal depends on international donations that fund 62 percent of its development budget.
  • Nepal's Royal anti-graft Commission to grill 21 more people New Kerala, India
  • Probe into Dashain allowance case proceeds Royal Commission fixes ... Gorkhapatra, Nepal ..... on the recommendation of then minister Jogmehar Shrestha, Dilip Rai of Jhapa, Chettra Bahadur Gurung of Parbat, Amir Bikram Rana of Kathmandu and Toran Bahadur Gurung of Syangja had each received Rs. 162,000 .......on the recommendation of then minister Homnath Dahal, Dhruva Wagle of Tanahu, Indramani Adhikari of Kavrepalanchok, ex-MP Bhikhari Mansoor of Sarlahi, Dipak Bahadur Bista of Doti, Chet Raj Bajal of Bhajang, Manav Sejuwal of Jumla and Him Bahadur Shahi of Dailekh had received Rs. 150,000 each ...... Yubaraj Gyawali had recommended Rs. 140,000 each to Ranadwaj Kandangwa of Makwanpur, JB Tuhure of Morang, Maya Gyawali of Gulmi, Dilli Khatiwada of Morang, advocate Rudra Nepal of Kathmandu, Chattra Bahadur Bohara of Sindhupalchok and Dutta Bahadur Rokaya of Dolpa ....... Nepal Telecom Employee Narayahari Aryal Rs. 150,000 on the recommendation of then minister Dr Mohammad Mohasin, advocate Khadga Bahadur Sijapati of Dailekh received Rs. 75,000 on the recommendation of then minister Purna Bahadur Khadka while Ramnarayan Yadav of Morang had received Rs. 125,000 on the recommendation of then minister Badri Mandal ..... Dahal had also recommended Rs. 150,000 each for Chetman Shrestha of Gorkha, Tulasi Prasad Khanal of Paanchthar and Kumar Rai of Bhojpur ..... On the eve of Bada Dashain Festival-2004, the then Deuba government had on the recommendation of then six Ministers released Rs. 3860,000 from the Prime Minister’s relief fund to various individuals.
  • Royal graft panel floats Dashain dole details Himalayan Times
  • Two ex-ministers released on bail Gorkhapatra ....released two ex-ministers - Yubaraj Gyanwali and Jog Mehar Shrestha - on bail ..... Dr. Mohammad Mohsin, Purna Bahadur Khadka, Badri Prasad Mandal and Homnath Dahal – were released Monday after depositing the bail amount..... The six ministers are accused of wrongly distributing the government funds to brokers and affluent individuals to celebrate Dashain. The fund from which they had distributed the money was set up to provide relief assistance to the people affected by natural calamities and others who are poor and needy.
  • Nepal's ex-ministers to contest graft charges New Kerala, India While the Prime Minister's Welfare Fund is meant for victims displaced by the Maoist insurgency and the economically disadvantaged, the six ministers are alleged to have approved the disbursement of about Nepali Rs.4.5 million among party cadre...... They were allowed to go only after posting bonds for double the amount each minister had sanctioned...... Badri Prasad Mandal NRs.2.5 million ...... Deuba's Nepali Congress (Democratic) party called the summons politically motivated. ...... It said the fund is disbursed in accordance with cabinet regulations and was a regular proceeding in the previous democratic governments. Dahal, who had been arrested after the imposition of emergency and was released only recently, called the investigation "extra judicial" and aimed at "political character assassination"......... The testimony of the former ministers will be assessed by the six-member commission, with the verdict expected on April 1........"We will fight a 'guilty' verdict in the Supreme Court," Dahal said. "It is nothing but a ploy to harass political opponents." ...... Since Nepal already has a Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority approved by parliament, the formation of a new monitoring body, headed by the king himself, has been regarded with distrust by the opposition parties, which feel it could be used to carry out a political vendetta. ....... Five major parliamentary parties, which have been waging a joint protest against the royal coup, are expressing fears that the royal commission would be used to rein in protesters and settle scores with political leaders, many of whom are still under detention for criticising the king. ...... Dahal said the accused ministers had made recommendations only and not taken the money themselves....... Legal sources said ousted premier Deuba, too, could be hauled up on the same charge.
  • Nepali anti-graft panel grills 4 ex-ministers Xinhua, China The four former ministers were freed Monday evening after submitting a bail equivalent to the amount they had recommended the cabinet to distribute to their near and dear ones
  • New watchdog summons five ex-ministers for probe New Kerala, India Since Nepal already has a Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority approved by parliament, opposition parties have regarded with distrust the formation of a new monitoring body, headed by the king himself...... They were the first ones to be summoned out of the nearly 600 complaints the commission reportedly received since its inception. The complainants' identity can be kept confidential and the commission can also reward them........ It has been given the right to confiscate the property of an accused found guilty and levy a fine or jail term of six months to anyone it considers has shown contempt or has been trying to obstruct its investigation. ....... The Commission for Investigation of Abuse of Authority had earlier asked the Deuba government for clarifications regarding reports that it had distributed about 4.5 million rupees to its party cadre from the Prime Minister's Assistance Fund before Dashain, Nepal's largest festival. The fund is meant to help the needy and distressed.
  • Govt dissolves high-level peace committee Himalayan Times, Nepal One of the main objectives of the HPC was to develop the peace committee as a resource centre which would provide logistical support to the government during the peace process, rehabilitation of displaced people and reconstruction of damaged public infrastructure countrywide........ The HPC was set up with a ten-year-plan in mind. Other members of the HPC were top leaders of coalition — CPN-UML general secretary Madhav Kumar Nepal, president of Rastriya Prajatantra Party, Pashupati Shumsher Rana, Dr Mohsin and president of the Nepal Sadbhavana Party and minister for Forest and Soil Conservation, Badri Prasad Mandal.
March 23
  • Nepal scribes evade censors with blogs Calcutta Telegraph, India www.blog.com.np Hits have rocketed: from fewer than 13,000 in January to 65,000 in February and more than 80,000 in the first three weeks of March......
  • Nepali reporters take democracy fight to cyberspace Reuters India freenepal.blogspot.com ..... some Internet sites remain blocked, including Maoist sites and news sites www.newslookmag.com and www.nepalipost.com .... "Our government is relatively new to the Internet and they don't have high-tech surveillance capability like in China. I don't think, but I'm not sure, they are even reading us."
  • Nepal king snubs India, Britain Hindustan Times, India Miffed by criticism over his royal coup ...... The royal rebuff to Britain and India was underlined when the king met the US Ambassador to Nepal, James Francis Moriarty, this month but declined to give an appointment to Indian ambassador Shiv Shankar Mukherjee and British envoy Keith George Bloomfield..... Gyanendra has been able to make time for outgoing Pakistani ambassador Zamir Akram, who he met March ..... also met India's Hindu nationalist leader Ashok Singhal .....
  • Nepal: The Royal Regression And The Question Of Democratic ... CounterCurrents.org By Baburam Bhattarai 23 March, 2005 Krishna Sen News Agency
  • Nepal’s tourism hit by wrong reporting Gorkhapatra, Nepal A gap between reality and communication and the negative connotation of the term ‘state of emergency’ in the international community have battered the image of Nepalese tourism..... blamed the political parties, human rights activists and travel advisories issued by different nations for distorting Nepal’s image ..... If the concerned authority had sent the messages including reasons and limitations of the state of emergency, the tourist arrival rate would not have gone down by 43 per cent in April, he added...... “Though the state of emergency has positive impact in tourism sector, we failed to take advantage of the improving situation of peace and order because of the wrong message sent to the world community,” he added. He said that the tourist arrival rate has decreased by 60 per cent in Lukla...... Mahat said the government has to use foreign media to disseminate the correct information.... the domestic passengers have increased by almost twofold
  • TAAN refutes news report Gorkhapatra
  • Asia ; India stops oil supply to Nepal: Keralanext, India In a move reminiscent of India’s 1989 economic blockade of Nepal, India stopped at least 71 oil tankers from bringing petroleum products into Nepal from Indian oil depots ..... An additional 55 tankers headed for the Barauni Supply Depot were returned empty after they were not allowed to proceed to the depot .... other Indian state governments bordering Nepal are also likely to hinder the movement of Nepalese oil tankers on one pretext or another
  • Indian crackdown halts Nepal's petroleum imports Express Newsline
  • NOC team in Patna to ensure smooth oil supply from Barauni Himalayan Times Nepal Oil Corporation .... has stocks to last just another week .... Each of the 140 oil tankers associated with ECEA is paying IRs 2,400 to the Kathmandu-based Indian embassy every three months for plying on Indian roads
  • UNHCR urged to aid Bhutanese refugees in Nepal ReliefWeb (press release), Switzerland The UNHCR announced last year it would gradually phase out its direct involvement in the camps by the end of 2005.... About 100,000 Bhutanese refugees have been living in eastern Nepal for more than 10 years
  • 'Jailed Nepal leaders denied medicare' Rediff, India former Deputy Prime Minister and Nepali Congress Central Committee member Ramchandra Poudyal, who has been in Tanahu Prison .. suffers from chest pain and a toothache ......Nepal People's Front .. chairman Amik Sherchan and vice-chairman Lilamani Pokhrel ..... gall-stone, kidney and nerve problems ........ Girija Prasad Koirala's family members had also complained that the ailing leader was not allowed to see his personal physician or meet family members
  • ‘Political change not to affect Nepal-Japan ties’ Gorkhapatra, Nepal
  • Sexually Exploited Women In Conflict Scoop.co.nz (press release), New Zealand "Women have to suffer torture if they are not ready for physical contact with commanders or guerillas"....... "Thousands of women were forced to join the insurgency and exploited sexually"....... "I was beaten, raped, forced to go with them. Three men raped me"....... "Women's bodies have become a battleground over which opposing forces struggle"....... "Presently my husband is no more and I was sexually exploited"...... "I am homeless, where can I get help to take care of my unborn child"? ....... reaffirmed gender paradigms ....... thousands of women and girls of all ages were subjected to widespread and systematic sexual violence ....... Baburam Bhattarai has also stated that 50 per cent cadres at the lower level, 30 per cent soldiers and 10 per cent members of the central committee of the party are women. ....... women had to carry guns and satisfy sexual appetites of the insurgents...... Killing of male members of the family by both parties (the Maoist and the police) is another way of women being victimized ...... "Recent history has seen sexual violence and rape being used deliberately and strategically as weapons of war. If you see in Rwanda, Somalia Peru and Congo, HIV/AIDS has been called a weapon of war. Women who are already pregnant are forced to miscarry through violent attacks. Women are kidnapped and used as sexual slaves to service them and they are purposefully infected with HIV/AIDS. Even the areas of the country where civil rights were suspended and where the security forces found they could act with impunity, and took advantage of the situation to rape. The gender perspective argues that men and women have diverse experiences in conflict and peacetime, due to the heterosexual hierarchical hegemony....... marital rape to pre-natal sex selection in favour of male babies, female infanticide, sexual abuse, female genital mutilation, sexual harassment, and sexual exploitation, including trafficking and forced prostitution ....... a climate of impunity persists ...... by both enemy and "friendly" forces, including: Mass rape, military sexual slavery, forced prostitution, forced "marriages" and forced pregnancies. Multiple rapes, sexual assault, resurgence of female genital mutilation ..... The program for Demobilization, Disarmament and Reintegration must emphasize the protection of women's rights as an integral part. We should know that in the context of war, rape and other forms of sexual violence are considered war crimes. Women always express fear that the war would not end and that they would experience future attacks and abuse...... support effective and culturally appropriate psychosocial programs for those who suffered sexual violence and should ensure that women are included in all aspects of planning for peace, demobilization, reintegration and rebuilding and support local organizations working to promote women's full participation and rights ...... For women who survive conflict, widowhood and the loss of family support, for these women, peace brings no peace..... the lack of safe spaces for women to recover and defend themselves ...... Physical consequences which range from contraction of sexually transmitted diseases, unwanted pregnancies and the damage of reproductive organ there are also the psychosocial consequences which if not addressed could prove even more damaging. ....... Pre-birth: Sex-selective abortion, Physical, sexual and psychological abuse, prostitution and pornography. Incest; sexual abuse in the workplace; rape; sexual harassment; forced prostitution and pornography; trafficking in women; partner violence; marital rape; partner homicide; forced pregnancy among others...... War has displaced 35 million people worldwide; 70 percent of these refugees and displaced persons are women
  • Kamala Sarup: Security Of Life Scoop.co.nz (press release) ''My children and I fled to Kathmandu. I don't ever want to go back to our village. We are too scared.'' .... Conflict traumatize children for years..... Survival has become a daily challenge as people flee violence risking their lives and losing their livelihoods in the process...... "The humanized security approach to human security recognizes that states can be both sources of violence, and central to the ability to control violence".Security analyst Peter, from International University in New Jersey says. "Security is best achieved through development, not through the use of force". ...... Increasing crime is linked to breakdown in social cohesion, difficulties in finding employment, hunger, increased migration, drugs and drug trafficking ....... One fact that is key to the spread of violence is the availability of small arms and light weapons ....... Development strategies which emphasize the foundations of good governance therefore offer the best chance for sustainable human development under peaceful conditions ...... We should emphasize the importance of peace and democracy as a key concept. ....... all human rights are universal, indivisible, interdependent and interrelated....... Warring parties require assistance not only in negotiating peace agreements but also in sustaining and consolidating the peace. There are three main components of peace building: strengthening political institutions, reforming internal and external security arrangements, and revitalizing the economy and the nation's social fabric ....... Threats to individual security come not only in the form of direct violence killing, war, attack, assault, abuse, rape but also in the form of structural violence denial of basic human needs, exploitation, marginalisation, suppression, and structural violations of human rights....... conflict, crime and repression - should be given equal attention in the human security agenda ...... economic security, financial security, food security, health security, environmental security, personal security, gender security, community security and political security ...... The challenge is to go beyond, to see: how do we deal with the root the conflict?
  • Amid war, Nepal's Maoists build road to win hearts Reuters AlertNet, UK A steady stream of women and girls plod up from the riverbed, each balancing a heavy stone on her head. Above them, teams of workmen chip away at a rockface with pick-axes....... They are building what Nepal's Maoist rebels are calling "Martyrs' Road," a 90 km (55 mile) dirt road winding through the Himalayan foothills deep in rebel territory...... A "historic" case of revolutionary development, undertaken by a rebel movement even as they fight a bitter civil war? Or a sinister example of forced labour on a massive scale? ..... None of the people working on this road are paid or even fed. Some are Maoist cadres who have "volunteered" their labour. Many are locals who are simply expected to contribute to the cause....... "The government calls us terrorists but we want to prove we are capable of mobilising hundreds of thousands of people in a cause that benefits them," said a leading regional official, using his party name Comrade Surya, or Sun...... Comrade Surya said the rebels were making history by being the first to undertake large-scale development while still fighting a war. This he credited to rebel leader Prachanda ..... "We are proud we have created a new thinking while implementing Marxism-Leninism-Maoism in Nepal," he said, his two bodyguards close by, red cloth stuffed in their rifle barrels to keep out the dust...... "This new ideology that we have developed we call 'Prachanda Path'." ..... As he spoke, a blast rang out through the valley, explosives doing what pick-axes could not. ....... This is the Maoist heartland of Nepal, the desperately poor Himalayan foothills of the mid-west, a region the army scarcely dares to penetrate. There are hardly any roads here, just trails snaking through pine and rhododendrum forests. ...... In just nine years the rebels have gone from a small band of unarmed militants to a force that runs much of Nepal's countryside....... An army helicopter buzzes far overhead, scanning this "enemy" road, a calculated insult to the fading power of Nepal's state. Shortly after construction began last November, there was a lone raid. Since then the army has left the Maoist labour teams alone....... The rebel authorities in Rolpa district have asked every family to contribute one person's labour for 10 days to help build the road. So far, 60,000 people have taken part .....At the end of a hard day's work, dozens sit by the roadside to watch a three-hour video about the "People's War". Before they finally return to their villages, they will also be treated to a cultural programme and political discussions. ...... It could take three years to reach the road's final destination at Thawang, a small village the rebels consider their symbolic capital..... Many, though, are scared the army could one day mount a major attack, and some have fled. .... Others are unhappy to be treated as forced labour...... "People are scared," said the keeper of a barely stocked local shop. "People are forced to work. They cannot say no. They cannot oppose the Maoists." There is a suffocating atmosphere in the small villages of Triveni and Nuwagaon. Fear fills the air over the uncompromising rebels whose rule is law. As the day drew on, a child shouted noisily. "Keep quiet," his mother scolded. "Otherwise the Maoists will come and take you away."
  • Fight `head-on with king' Bangkok Post Import of petroleum products by Nepal has come to a halt after oil tankers from here were stopped in Bihar ..... Authorities in the Indian state have taken drivers of 16 tankers belonging to Nepal Oil Corp. (NOC), Nepal's state-owned distributor of fuel, to court over non-payment of road tax..... The Bihar police have filed a case against them in the Bhagalpur district court ..... The depot currently has supplies for only two days ....... Nepalese authorities are blaming the Bihar government for the snag. According to them, the tankers carry permits issued by the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu exempting them from taxes. .....However, the embassy said the permits only authorised the vehicles to ply in India for three months. They did not exempt them from prevailing state tolls such as road taxes.
March 21
  • Nepal's Maoists take heart from king's power grab Reuters India, India This is the Maoist heartland of mid-western Nepal, where the narrow mountain trails buzz with rebel activity...... In public at least, the Maoists have taken it all in their stride..... "After the king's move it has become easier... Before, the political parties were creating all sorts of confusion. But now they are not there. Our fight is now head-on with the king and we think we can win it." ... Throughout Maoist-controlled areas, banners proclaim the start of a strategic offensive, the final phase of the "People's War"......Nepal's Maoists also hope to raise an insurrection from within the cities themselves....... Militarily, the rebels are almost impossible to dislodge from their remote rural strongholds. But they lack the firepower to challenge Nepal's army directly or take a district capital for more than a few hours....... Neither the king nor the Maoists seem ready for talks or for compromise at the moment ...... Both seem to think the military tide is running in their favour, and are playing for a stronger hand .... The first is whether the army can foil the rebels' call for a countrywide blockade for 11 days from April 2...... The second is whether the Maoists can win a significant military victory before rains come in June
  • Nepal may sign arms pact with Beijing Times of India, India ....the RNA has stocks of ammunition to last only a few months and badly needs to replenish supplies ... most of the weapons it uses is Indian, including the Insas rifles carried by its infantry
  • Nepal wants China's help for hydropower New Kerala "China is not one of Nepal's biggest donors like Germany or Japan but it has consistently regarded Nepal as a sovereign independent country," Bista said ..... the two countries had not yet identified the districts or the rivers where joint venture projects could be set up .......India's National Hydroelectric Power Corp (NHPC), which has an understanding with Nepal to jointly start a 300 MW project on the Karnali, put off a visit to Kathmandu last month in the wake of the royal coup.......India also has indirect involvement in the 750 MW West Seti Hydroelectric Project being developed by Australian SMEC West Seti Hydroelectric Corp Ltd. The different state electricity boards of India are negotiating with the developer to buy power...... USAID has been instrumental in leveraging several hundred million dollars of private and other donor investments in hydropower development like the 60 MW, $138 million Khimti Khola Project and the 144 MW, $250 million Kaligandaki A Project......Of the $ 98 million required for the 36 MW Bhote Koshi Project, a majority of the equity investment is being provided by Americans, representing the single largest American investment in Nepal.
  • Nepal's note to missions over meetings with political leaders Press Trust of India .....upset over foreign diplomats meetings pro-democracy leaders, the Royal government in Nepal has sent a note to foreign missions, including India, asking them to abide by the provisions of the Vienna convention..... American Ambassador to Nepal James Moriarty tried to meet former Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba while he was under house arrest...... Tulasi Giri recently expressed displeasure over the activities of the foreign diplomats, saying even he was not invited by some diplomatic chiefs, who host dinner parties for the leaders of political parties ......"Nepalese people would not die if foreign donors stopped assistance", said Vice Chairman of the Cabinet Kirtinidhi Bista said
  • Nepal could soon end state of emergency Kansas City Star "We are trying to lift the state of emergency as soon as we can," said Kirtinidhi Bista ...... refused to say when .....131 anti-monarch protesters were arrested ..... Several journalists have been arrested for articles critical of the monarch in the past two months.
  • Nepal opposition activists 'held' BBC News, UK two former ministers were amongst those detained
  • Nepal army claims success in operation against rebels Hi Pakistan The troops found and destroyed at least two bomb-making factories and several of the Maoist rebels’ bases .....hundreds of troops combed mountainous remote in Nepal’s remote western region, believed to be a rebel stronghold.
  • Parliamentarians for restoration of democracy in Nepal Deepika Members in Lok Sabha, cutting across party line, today urged the Government to exert its influence for restoration of multi-party democracy in Nepal
  • Chinese FM to visit Nepal from March 31 Gorkhapatra, Nepal March 31st to April 1st .....China’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations from 1993-95, and China’s Ambassador to the United States from 1998-2001
  • Pandey in Doha Gorkhapatra
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