Parties, rights groups condemn arrest of civil society activists

Human rights groups and the political parties including the CPN (Maoist) have flayed the arrest of leading civil society activists from their peaceful sit-in programme in front of the Prime Minister's residence in Baluwatar Monday afternoon.

The CPN (UML), a key ally of the coalition cabinet, in a statement condemned the arrest of some 63 civil society leaders and asked the government to immediately release the arrested persons.

Likewise, Maoist spokesperson Krishna Bahadur Mahara said his party was 'angered' by the mistreatment and arrest of the civil society leaders, who were carrying out sit-in protest peacefully, demanding immediate promulgation of the interim constitution for timely election to constituent assembly.

"Our party strongly denounces such mistreatment and arrest of senior civil society leaders and demands their immediately release," Mahara's statement said, adding, "The government's attempt to silence the voices of the civil society has not only worried those advocating for democracy, peace and progress but it has also made the anti-constituent assembly elements happy."

The Maoist party also urged the government to gear up for promulgation of the interim constitution rather than engaging in such activities.

The Joint Forum for Human Rights and Peace (JFHRP) said the government action in the peaceful sit-in of civil society leaders have reminded of the brutality of erstwhile royal regime. A JFHRP press statement signed by 22 leading rights activists including Dam Nath Dhungana, Padma Ratna Tuladhar, Sindhunath Pyakurel, Gopal Sibakoti 'Chintan' Malla K Sundar and Dr Purna Kanta Adhikari asked the government to immediately release the arrested activists.

Likewise, Federation of Nepalese Journalists (FNJ) said the arrest of the civil society leaders mocked the democratic norms and the spirit of the people's movement in April 2006.

The Citizens Movement for Democracy and Peace, Unity Centre (Masal), Progressive Writers' Association and Rural Rehabilitation Organisation also flayed the arrest of civil society activists and called for their immediately release.

Police arrested 63 civil society leaders including Dr Devendra Raj Pandey, Shyam Shrestha, Dr Sundarmani Dixit, Mahesh Maskey, FNJ president Bishnu Nisthuri and Khagendra Sangraula from outside the PM's residence at around 11:00 am as soon as they started their sit-in.

Meanwhile, the arrested civil society activists who have been kept at the No. 2 Battalion of the Armed Police Force (APF) at Maharajgunj have said they would continue sit-in at the detention centre unless the Home Minister apologised for the police action in the peaceful demonstration.

"We have always been carrying out pressure campaigns and our movement will go on," Dr Pandey told media persons at the APF custody. nepalnews.com mk Jan 01 07

Democracy for Nepal: A Link to Visit

Democracy for Nepal: A Link to Visit

http://demrepubnepal.blogspot.com/

 

Government starts preparations for providing citizenship certificates to 3 million

Government starts preparations for providing citizenship certificates to 3 million

 

The government has started preparations for providing citizenship certificates to nearly three million people across the country.

The government is planning to mobilize 520 teams to distribute citizenship certificates to nearly three million eligible citizens in the next two and half months. Each team will comprise seven members, including a gazetted officer to distribute citizenship certificates.

The mobile teams will distribute certificates on the basis of descent, birth and residence.

Certificates will also be issued on the basis of the citizenship of the mother, as per the recently adopted Citizenship Act 2006.

The Kathmandu Post daily quoted joint secretary at the Ministry of Home Affairs (MoH), Dron Pokhrel as saying that the figure is based in estimates forwarded to the ministry by all 75 District Administration Offices.

The ministry has already placed an order with the Department of Print (DoP) to print three million citizenship cards till January 31. The DoP is using all eight of its offset presses to meet the delivery deadline.

Officials at the MoH said that they are planning to send 50 percent citizenship cards across the country by mid January 2007.

According to Pokhrel, the hologram for the cards will be brought from India.

The new card includes the names and citizenship numbers of both the father and mother and will also give the names of the spouse among other things.

As the ministry steps up procedures and arrangements for citizenship distribution, the Ministry of Finance (MoF) has already disbursed Rs. 60 million to MoH for the purpose.

The government has approved a total budget of Rs. 130 million for the citizenship distribution.

The MoH has arranged to provide life insurance cover of one million rupees each for three months to civil servants going to the field to distributed citizenship.

Curfew imposed in west Nepal town following clashes

Authorities imposed a curfew in a west Nepal border town on Tuesday following clashes between communal groups in which several people were injured and several houses were set on fire, officials said.

People from surrounding mountainous areas clashed with local people in Nepalgunj, a border town 500 kilometers (310 miles) west of Katmandu, forcing authorities to impose the curfew, government administrative official Krishna Acharya said.

Acharya said the situation was tense and police had been mobilized, but had not been able to control the situation.

राजदूत नियुक्तीमा एमालेको पनि गुनासो

यस हप्ता सातदलीय सरकारले १४ वटा मित्र राष्ट्रहरूमा राजदूत नियुक्त गर्ने निर्णय गरेपछि शुरू भएको विवाद अझै साम्य भएको छैन।

अनि अन्तरिम सरकारमा जान आतुर देखिएको नेकपा माओवादीले जस्तै सातदलीय गठबन्धनको एउटा महत्वपूर्ण साझेदार नेकपा एमालेले पनि सरकारले सो निर्णय आफ्नो सहमति बेगर लिएको बताएको छ।

बिहिबार नै उक्त पार्टीको स्थायी समितिको बैठकपछि एकजना स्थायी समिति सदस्य र बैठकको सभापतित्व गरेका नेता अमृतकुमार बोहराले ति दुवै सरकारी निर्णय एमालेको सहमति विना नै लिइएको थियो।

उनले भने- " हाम्रो सहमति भैदिएको भए यि निर्णयहरू फिर्ता गर भनेर हामीले भन्ने नै थिएनौं। सरकारले पनि नियुक्तीका कुराहरू फिर्ता गर्नुपर्यो र माओवादीपक्षले पनि बन्दको कार्यक्रम फिर्ता लिनुपर्यो।"

माओवादी असन्तोष

सातदलीय सरकारले १४ वटा मुलुकहरूमा राजदूतहरू नियुक्त गर्ने निर्णयको विरोधमा देशभरका शहरी क्षेत्रमा बलेका टायरका धुंवा विलाउन नपाउंदै बिहिबार माओवादीले त्यस निर्णयको बारे आफ्नो पार्टीसंग कुनै छलफल नभएको गुनासो दोहोर्याएको छ।

बिहिबार आयोजीत एउटा पत्रकार सम्मेलनमा बोल्दै माओवादी प्रवक्ता कृष्ण बहादुर महराले भने-"हामीलाई थाहा छ हाम्रा अध्यक्ष र प्रधानमन्त्रीकोबीचमा यसबारेमा कुनै पनि कुरा भएको छैन।"

पत्रकार सम्मेलनको आयोजना बुधबार सम्पन्न माओवादी केन्द्रीय समितिको बैठकका निर्णयहरू सार्वजनिक गर्न गरिएको थियो।

त्यस बैठकले द्वन्द्वको अवस्थाबाट शान्तिपूर्ण प्रजातान्त्रीक प्रकृयामा अवतरण गर्ने नयां रणनीतिहरू पारित गरेको बताइएको छ।

राजदूत र मानवअधिकार आयोगमा भएको नियुक्ती सम्बन्धमा यता अर्को चाखलाग्दो खुलासा सरकारको एउटा महत्वपूर्ण साझेदार रहेको नेकपा एमालेले गरेको छ।

यता माओवादीहरूले भने निर्णय नसच्याइएमा केहिदिनपछि देशव्यापी बन्द गर्ने र जनआन्दोलन तीन गरिने भन्ने धम्की त्यागीसकेको छैनन्।

एमालेले चाहिं उच्चस्तरिय प्रतिनिधिमण्डल नै सरकार र माओवादीका शिर्ष नेताहरूसंग भेट्न खटाउने निर्णय समेत गरेको छ।

विश्लेषकहरू भन्छन् त्यसले सातदल भित्रै अनि सातदल र माओवादीबीच पुन: समाधानमुखी सम्वाद प्रकृया शुरू गर्ने अपेक्षा गर्न सकिन्छ।

from: http://www.bbc.co.uk/nepali/news/story/2006/12/printable/061221_uml_envoys.shtml

भेटघाट

बिहिबार नै नेपालका लागि राष्ट्रसंघीय विशेषदूत इयन मार्टिनले प्रधानमन्त्री गिरिजाप्रसाद कोइरालासंग भेट गरेका छन्।

भेटका पूर्ण विवरणहरू प्राप्त भएका छैनन् तर सुत्रहरूका अनुसार भेटका क्रममा मार्टिनले यस हप्ता भएका उग्र घटनाक्रमहरूप्रति चिन्ता व्यक्त थिए।

Bishwanath Upadhaya new NHRC chairman

The government on the recommendation of the Constitutional Council (CC) on Monday appointed former chief justice of the Supreme Court Bishwa Nath Upadhyay as chairman of the National Human Rights Commission.

A cabinet meeting held at the prime minister's residence at Baluwatar this afternoon also appointed four others as commissioners of the national human rights watchdog. 

Upadhyaya had previously served as the coordinator of the constitution drafting committee for the 1990 Constitution.

The other members of the commission are: Udaya Nepali, Gauri Pradhan, Tulsi Bhattarai and Meena Pathak.

According to sources, more recommendations would be made that will include individuals from women, janajatis and madhesi communities.

सात दल, माओवादीद्वारा अन्तरिम संविधानलाई पूर्णता

हप्तौंको बैठक र छलफलपछि सत्तारूढ सात दलीय गठवन्धन र नेकपा माओवादीका शीर्ष नेताहरूले अन्तरिम संविधानलाई पूर्णता दिएका छन्।

आठ दलका नेताहरूले सो संविधान देशको मूल कानूनको रूपमा रहने र त्यसले राजालाई अधिकार र सम्पत्तीविहीन तुल्याएको जनाएका छन्।

उनीहरुका अनुसार, सो दस्तावेजले सम्पूर्ण शासन अधिकार प्रधानमन्त्रीलाई दिएको छ।

संवैधानिक प्रावधान

अन्तिम रूप दिइएको भनिएको अन्तरिम संविधानकाबारे जानकारी दिंदै नेकपा एमालेका नेता भरतमोहन अधिकारीले भने, "शासन, प्रशासन सम्वन्धि काममा अब राजाको कुनै अधिकार हुने छैन, त्यस्तो जिम्मेवारी प्रधानमन्त्रीको हुनेछ भन्ने कुरा सो संविधानमा लेखिएकोछ।"

सो संविधानलाई अन्तिम रूप दिन शुक्रबार दिउँसो शुरू भएको शीर्ष नेताहरूको बैठक शनिबार बिहानसम्म चलेको थियो।

बैठकका अर्का सहभागी नेपाली काङ्ग्रेसका नेता अर्जुननरसिं केसी ले भने, "राजाको परम्परागत सम्पत्तीलाई राष्ट्रियकरण गर्ने र स्व. राजा बिरेन्द्रको र उनको परिवारको सम्पत्तीलाई कोषको रूपमा विकसित गर्ने निर्णय पनि संविधानमा पारिएको छ।"

अन्तरिम संविधानबारे दल तथा माओवादहरूबीच निर्माण भएको सहमतिलाई गत महिना दुवै पक्षबीच भएको विस्तृत शान्ति सम्झौतापछिको दोस्रो महत्वपूर्ण खुड्कीलो मानिएको छ।

सो दस्तावेजमा दुवै पक्षले सही गरेको भएतापनि हतियार तथा सैन्य व्यवस्थापनपछि मात्रै त्यो लागु हुने बताइएको छ।

हतियार तथा सैन्य व्यवस्थापनबारे सम्झौतामा पुगेका दल र माओवादीले सो कामको अनुगमन गर्न सहमत भएको राष्ट्रसंघीय अनुगमनकर्ताहरूको नेपाल आगमनको प्रतिक्षा गरिरहेका छन्।

God king pays tax for first time

Full Story: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/6161181.stm

 

King Gyanendra of Nepal and his son, Crown Prince Paras, have been forced to pay tax - for the first time in the history of the monarchy.

Officials at Kathmandu's international airport say the king and the prince were charged customs duties on imported goods this week.

The king, revered as a Hindu god by many followers, had his powers stripped away by the government this year.

He was forced to surrender absolute power after weeks of street protests.

Previous constitutions have exempted the king from paying tax. But in May, parliament removed the exemption.

'According to law'

"The customs office at the Tribhuvan International Airport charged a total of 130,893 rupees ($1,817 dollars) as duty and tax to release 50 torches and a hunting trophy," Lok Darshan Regmi, the head of the airport customs department said, the AFP news agency reports.

"Palace officials took away the parcel after paying the amount Wednesday. We imposed the tax according to the law," Mr Regmi said.

It is not clear why the king wanted so many torches.

The BBC's Charles Haviland in Kathmandu says the tax payment is the latest in a series of humiliating blows for the king.

His extensive lands are to be nationalised. Parliament has also taken on the right to decide who succeeds to the throne if the monarchy survives.

King Gyanendra seized power in a royal coup in 2005, saying that the civilian government was failing to deal with the Maoist insurgency.

But the Maoists and a seven-party opposition grouping formed an alliance to end his rule.

A constituent assembly is due to be established next year that will decide on whether the monarchy should be abolished.

Nepal cabinet to be named once rebel arms sealed: PM

Nepal's Maoists will only be included in an interim government after their arms are locked in stores under U.N. supervision, Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala said on Monday.

Last month, the government and Maoist guerrillas signed a landmark peace deal declaring an end to a decade-old conflict in which more than 13,000 people died.

The deal envisaged the Maoists joining an interim cabinet and confining their fighters to camps, as well as locking arms in containers monitored by the United Nations.

But uncertainty over the storage of weapons and jockeying between the rebels and the political parties meant a December 1 deadline for the Maoists to join the interim government was missed.

"The interim government will be formed after the arms management. There will also be an interim parliament then," the 85-year-old Koirala said on Nepal Television.

The United Nations has said that up to 35 monitors are likely to begin work this month but that the full monitoring mission would take more time. It has not given a specific timeframe.

Koirala said elections for a special assembly to map the impoverished Himalayan nation's political future, draft a constitution and decide the fate of the monarchy would be held in June 2007.

But the Maoists said linking the interim cabinet to the completion of the U.N. monitoring mission -- especially when the global body had not set a specific timeframe -- could delay not only the formation of the new government, but also the elections.

"This is against the agreement and understanding between us and the government," Maoist leader Dev Gurung, a rebel negotiator, said.

"The delay will only help those forces that want to sabotage the planned elections for the constituent assembly by mid-June. If the election is not held on time the situation will be very serious," he added, without elaborating.

Narayan Wagle, editor of the widely read daily, Kantipur, said the wrangling was unlikely to derail the peace process, which began in May.

"The Maoists are basically pressing the government to speed up the election process," he said. "There is an anti-king wave now and the Maoists want to cash in on this. They don't want elections to be delayed."

King Gyanendra was forced to cede absolute power in April after mass protests, organized by the political parties but supported by the rebels.

Under the peace deal, the state's army will also be confined to barracks and an equal number of its arms stored.

"The exact number of our arms to be stored will be known only after the U.N. verifies the Maoist weapons," army spokesman Ananta Bahadur Thebe told reporters.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/nepal_dc

PM Koirala meets UML general secy., NC (D) president

Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala held discussions with General Secretary of CPN-UML Madhav Kumar Nepal and President of Nepali Congress (Democratic) Sher Bahadur Deuba about current political situation of the country.
According to reports, both the meetings basically concentrated on the issues of finalizing the interim constitution and meetings of top leaders of the eight political parties slated for Wednesday, among others.

The Prime Minister and UML general secretary Nepal discussed about the issues that are yet to be settled in the interim constitution.
According to radio reports, PM Koirala refused the suggestion of UML General Secy. to be the head of the state during interim period, adding there is no hurry to doing so.
The ruling seven party alliance and the Maoists are yet to find consensus in issues like head of the state in transitional phase and procedures of the elections of the constituent assembly, among others.
The talks teams of both the government and Maoists submitted the draft of the interim constitution to top leaders of the eight political parties to find consensus in some key issues.
The meeting of the top leaders of the political parties was fixed for 2 p.m. on Wednesday after the meeting between PM Koirala and UML general secretary Nepal.

Similarly, the meeting between PM Koirala and NC (D) President Deuba concentrated on the issue of promulgating the interim constitution and Maoist arms management.
Deuba said that it would be difficult to promulgate the interim constitution before arms management.
Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala on Sunday said that interim constitution cannot be promulgated before the completion of arms management.

Similarly, the meeting between PM Koirala and NC (D) President Deuba concentrated on the issue of promulgating the interim constitution and Maoist arms management.
Deuba said that it would be difficult to promulgate the interim constitution before arms management.
Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala on Sunday said that interim constitution cannot be promulgated before the completion of arms management.