USHA POKHAREL Reading is not new to us. I am sure you know there are two kinds of reading. One is the formal that you do in school to gain knowledge and the other, of course, is recreational, done for entertainment. Recreational reading is also called leisure reading that people do almost every day, whether it’s reading newspapers or magazine or a book. It is a process to release pressure and thus slip into the realm of relaxation. To some people, such reading is kind of a therapy. While for others, it is pure pleasure and a source of entertainment. Recreational reading has a long history, as old as the invention of the text. Yes, that’s a long time. Now, join me as I analyze the terms, synthesize meanings by delving into the ancient history of reading and trace its evolution through the centuries. Let us trace the historical development of recreational reading. I can see a few funny faces with questions written all over, “Why the history? Isn’t reading in itself enough?” Well, you read about history of this king and that country and it is boring but you will be surprised to know that the history of reading is much more interesting. Did you know that the concept of recreational reading dates back to the time when text was invented about 6,000 years ago? You did not, right? I can see a few heads shaking. I know it’s hard to remember, it’s such a long time ago. Anyway, when text gave way to the written representation of oral culture, Aristotle, the world’s first psychologist, understood this fundamental difference and relationship between spoken and written language. He said, “Spoken words are the symbols of mental experience, and written words are the symbols of spoken word”. Submit The evidence of Greek reading recreationally is clearly visible when we take a closer look at the Greek language. Let me tell you something interesting. Did you know that in Greek language there are more than a dozen verbs that signify “to read”, attested from around 500 BC? Again, I can see a few surprised faces. Yes, the first Greek readers read aloud, because Greek culture valued spoken word highly. Hence writing held little interest, except as vocalized reading. In the absence of documents, reading aloud was the form of recreational reading at the time. By the sixth century, the Greeks were reading silently for recreation. Now let us look at the first books. At the beginning of the second century AD, books in the form of rolls were first introduced in Rome. Throughout the history of reading, text representation has evolved from wax tablets, to rolls and then to codex—the book with pages—a Roman invention of the early fifth century. By the 14th century, a shift from recreational reading to normative reading took place in Greece. In the 15th century, Machiavelli, the political genius, describes himself as reading books for entertainment. Now getting on to the early 20th century, George Brandes, a Danish scholar, while talking about recreational reading says, “Reading has power to make us keener and more susceptible to the values of things… Reading for pure amusement is by no means to be despised, so long as it does indeed amuse”. In the 21st century recreational reading is still considered a means to lose oneself in pure luxury or relaxation. By now you must be wondering what exactly recreational reading means. The meaning of recreational reading has gradually evolved as ‘refreshment or comfort of mind, produced by the action of perusing written or printed matter’. Thanks to technology, we don’t have to carry huge tablets to read good books anymore. Oh yes, we do carry tablets but of a different kind: a mobile computer with display, circuitry and battery all in a single unit that fits in the palm of our hand. Guess what, we can read books in those tablets! Now you can smile, and breathe a sigh of relief! 2 Why can’t you copy a simple sentence? Why can’t you read? When will you know the difference between b and d, n and u, w and m? You are impossible. You cannot do anything properly!” Frustrated with the situation, it is but natural for parents to blame teachers and the school for not taking good care of their child. During a parent teacher meeting, you shout, “My child can’t read! S/he works so hard, but it just never gets easier. S/he knows s/he is smart, so why can’t s/he read like other kids?” As usual the teachers have a few things to say about your child but don’t have answers to your question. Instead they will tell you, “Your child has no manners, we punish him/her everyday and still s/he does not put in any effort to learn. S/he does not want to study. S/he does not pay attention in class.” You are angry, disappointed and would give anything to know why your child is the way s/he is. Chances are that your child is dyslexic. I know you are shocked. You have never heard of the word and want to know ‘what exactly is dyslexia?’ Dyslexia is a language-based disorder that blocks the development of oral and written language skills in a perfectly normal child. This makes it difficult for a child to read and interpret words, letters, other symbols, and to spell words, but that doesn’t mean the person is dumb. Plenty of smart and talented people struggle with dyslexia. Now that you understand the term, you are better equipped to understand the reason behind homework time tension at home. At the same time you are now more concerned as to how your child will make it through elementary school, middle school and high school. This is a natural reaction, but remember it’s not just your child who is struggling, it’s you too who are struggling to deal with the new found knowledge regarding your child being dyslexic. I know it is difficult to change gears from the version of your child you expect, to the one you have at hand. I can even understand a parent’s frustration at their past reaction to their child’s inability to read and write like others in his/her class, although s/he is just as intelligent. Often, parents consumed by their child’s deficits in reading, overlook things their children can do well. It is not just parents, teachers, are equally guilty of this. Just because a child can’t physically decode the words and/or write a response to a reading comprehension question, doesn’t mean s/he cannot achieve higher oral comprehension. It is entirely possible they are very creative and can write or narrate beautiful stories or poems. Maybe s/he can draw beautifully and has great listening skills. Letting these children use their strengths will boost their confidence. This in turn will give them something to feel good that they are excelling at something. Life for a child with dyslexia is challenging. Even if s/he has normal intelligence level, they still fail at the normally recognized parameter of intelligence: academic performance. At this point it is important for parents to understand the dynamics and deal with the situation appropriately. You have to understand that your child thinks in wholes: whole words, whole chapters and stories, whole lessons, whole assignments and whole concepts. Dyslexics need to see the whole process, the whole picture and its meaning right at the beginning. That is the reason behind your child’s never ending stock of questions. Without these being answered, your child cannot function properly. They need to see the “forest before the trees.” It’s true with everything they are learning and processing. Dyslexics think in concrete wholes, that is, they work backwards from a conclusion. I am sure you have noticed that your child looks at the last page of the book before even starting to read the book. This is “top/down processing,” also known as “large chunk” processing: they focus on the larger concept or idea and then work their way down to the finer details of the concept or idea. If they look like they are daydreaming, it is entirely possible that they may be learning by listening or are trying to find answers for something that is bothering them. Make a point of not criticizing your child for not paying attention or being lazy. Parents’ negligence of the matter can affect the child in many ways. How? You may ask. Parents need to understand that dyslexia impacts a child’s self-image. While academic problems may make him/her feel ‘dumb’ or ‘stupid’, his/her inability to clearly express one’s feelings, results in the child having trouble conversing. This might make the child feel more isolated, as he/she grows up and fail to make friends. Since a dyslexic child has to deal with inconsistencies everyday, it is but natural for his/her frustrations to lead to anger and temper tantrums. Along with this comes another dangerous complication: depression. The child may not only have negative thoughts about himself/herself, but also about the world around him/her. With so much emotional trauma going on, dyslexic children can often be in difficulty at home and amazingly parents are still the best support available to them. I can see a few confused parents wondering, ‘how can I help my child?’ To make things simple parents can create an ideal environment (devoid of anger, frustrations, irritation and immediate adverse reaction) by providing their children with constant love, support and encouragement. It is important for parents to understand that many people with dyslexia have conquered it to become very successful in their chosen careers. Dyslexia in no way hampers a person’s ability to lead a perfectly normal life. Stop feeling guilty. You did not cause your child to have dyslexia and you could not have prevented it. While you are at it, don’t blame anyone else either. Now realize dyslexia is a fact of life. Read to your child as often and for as long as possible. This will help your child to develop a larger vocabulary, hear words pronounced properly and learn to enjoy books. Talk to your child—just about anything and everything. So much of family life is used up in other activities that don’t involve children, the time for chatting with them can get lost. It is very important to keep in touch with your child’s progress, because dyslexia affects the whole personality, not just schoolwork. Learn to hear what the child is saying and note what is not being said. Learn to pick up on tone of voice indicating possible worries. Ask open questions, like, “How do you feel about that?” or “What do you think of this?” Never underestimate the amount of learning a child does simply by being with you and observing. Keep in mind that informal teaching is very effective. I can see a few parents saying, ‘what about schoolwork?’ Schoolwork is more tiring for children with dyslexia. Of course, help by being close to your child during homework time, but let the child decide what help s/he needs from you. Provide just that amount and not take charge of the homework. Parents need to understand that their children can and will learn to read—that their children have strengths, not just weaknesses. They can inspire confidence and enable their children to look forward to a proud future. 3 Algorithms of shopping fancies SEWA BHATTARAI Many strategies based on consumer behaviour are used to boost sales at supermarkets. You walk into a supermarket with a grocery list full of functional items: rice, dal, napkins. But before long, you find yourself buying all kinds of things you never intended: chocolates, chips and biscuits with cream that you had never seen before that day. You return home laden with twice as many items as you had intended to buy. Your purchases aren’t merely coincidences or whims. In fact, the shelves of supermarkets are carefully designed to attract the attention of customers and maximize sales. “Retail is a vast area with carefully analyzed principles of its own,” says Hemanta Dangal, Operations Manager at Saleways Department Store. Areas in a supermarket are categorized as prime locations, or dead areas, according to the footfall they get. For example, the area just in front of the customers when they enter the store is a prime location that every visitor is bound to see. So, in this area are stored fast moving consumable goods like chocolates and chips. In the dead areas are stored slow-moving items which customers need only once in a while, like soaps, shampoos, etc. When you arrive at the counter and see little knickknacks, you continue to buy even after you have officially finished your shopping.(Pratik Rayamajhi) And it just so happens that the fast-moving items are the ones you don’t necessarily need, and may not even buy unless their attractive display entices you. Bhatbhateni Supermarket and Departmental Store at Pulchowk has a large display box full of chips and nachos that stretches across several counters. “Every customer is bound to look at this box,” says Panu Paudel, Operations Manager at Bhatbhateni Supermarket and Departmental Store. “25-30% of purchases at supermarkets are unplanned, and it’s displays like these that incite such unplanned purchases.” Many shoppers confess to falling for these clever arrangements. Press Giri, 22, is a student who often shops there. There she can buy everything she needs at one place, and she can find items that she cannot find at her corner store. But she also admits that she gets swayed by the items on display and often ends up with more than her original list. The prime area is a location of constant attention and experimentation. In summer, juices and cold drinks may be placed near the entrance, while in winter it is tea, coffees and hot chocolates. Festival offers are also placed near the entrance for the same reason. The sale of items at prime location is unfailingly high. Apart from an item’s location in the store, its visibility on a particular shelf is also of paramount importance. The amount of shelf space occupied by a brand is directly proportional to its sale. Dangal confirms that no visibility means no sales. Brands prefer that their products be placed at eye-level. “Eye-level is that where you don’t have to bend or stretch in any way to get a product,” informs Dangal, “and without a doubt, the items displayed at eye level get more customer interest than items stored elsewhere. This is reflected in the sales.” While the location of products in a store is decided by the supermarkets based on pre-existing retail-store models, individual brands bargain for shelf space and level. They may offer money or discount in exchange for space at eye-level or bulk space at prime location. Paudel related that since people are more likely to buy a single-serve item than a family-sized unit, they often put the smaller unit of the same brand at eye-level. There are many other strategies used to boost sales at supermarkets. Paudel informed that they put new items at prime locations so that customers are attracted to products that they may not have heard of otherwise. Also, little items like chewing gum that line the counter are there because “people buy them just because they see them.” In a sense, when you arrive at the counter and see little knickknacks, you continue to buy even after you have officially finished your shopping. Intangible factors like music and wall colors are also carefully chosen to create the desired ambience. “These factors don’t necessarily increase sales, but they help create a conducive shopping environment,” says Dangal. Saleways has experimented on a range of different music: from Rock to Hip Hop to folk. After they received complaints from customers who didn’t like one genre or another, they have stuck to playing track music. This has created a soothing environment. Sunila Shrestha, Branch Manager of the Pulchowk branch of Bhatbhateni Supermarket and Departmental Store, informed that they continue to experiment with music during special occasions, for example, by playing festival-specific music and songs. She believes this puts customers in a festive mood. A lot of a supermarket’s sales also depend on the guaranteed customer footfalls it gets. Dangal, who has been in retail business for 15 years in Nepal and abroad, is in a position to compare supermarket culture across countries. In countries where supermarkets are the only way of shopping, it is common to have necessities like milk stored at the back of the supermarket. Customers who need milk have no option but to go to the supermarket, cross all the aisles, and reach the dead area. “The logic of putting necessities at the back is that customers can make a round and see other things the store has to offer,” Dangal expounded. In Nepal, we are not in the habit of getting daily necessities like milk from departmental stores, so placing milk at the back serves little purpose. In fact, Dangal informs that hiding necessities in dead areas often does not work, because people come in for a short while, have a glance, and go back disappointed. “A supermarket is a place where you can find everything,” he says, “but because supermarket culture is not so developed in Nepal yet, sometimes people don’t bother to check out the entire store.” Saleways had experimented with keeping essential groceries like rice, beans, etc in a different room. But after customers turned away, they put these items directly to the right of the entrance. Their sales rose by 200%. Since then, their prime location contains a mix of necessities like groceries and fast-moving consumer items like chips and chocolates. “At the end of the day, it’s the customers who decide the display, not the display that decides the customers,” says Dangal. If a store has a certain number of guaranteed footfalls, it can put its products at any inconvenient place and expect customers to find it. But if the number of customers is not guaranteed, it must do all it can to attract new customers by contouring the display to suit their needs. With increasing supermarket culture where people have even begun to prefer supermarkets to corner stores, the day is not far in Nepal too where the display decides the customers and not the other way around. Some common advertising strategies Emotions Many advertisements link their product with some emotion: happiness, fun, relief from fear, beauty, etc. Viewers have been known to connect most easily to these kinds of advertisements. This strategy works on any kind of product. Humor A small section of advertisements use humor to get across to their audience. Humor can be tricky, because what one person finds funny can be offensive to others. Hence, this strategy is best suited for fast moving consumable goods (FMCG) products, where humor is used to create a fun association with the product. Humor is used less often in products that require serious investment or analytical decisions. Information Facts, figures and statistics are likely to communicate to consumers if the products in question are important logical investments, or those that have complicated technical aspects. Statistics are often combined with other approaches, like emotions, to take off their dry edge and make them more relatable. Creating all that glitters Advertisements only present a product, they don’t force consumers to buy anything. It’s up to the consumer to make a wise judgment. Making a product is easy; the difficult part comes next, when you have to sell it. You have to make sure it appeals to your consumers, and that’s where advertising and marketing come in. The way you pitch your product often determines its sales, and the skills of marketing are thus highly in demand today. Harshwardhan Shahani is the Managing Director of the advertising agency V-Chitra, and has been in advertising for more than 25 years. Here are excerpts from an interview about the situation of advertising and marketing in Nepal today, and how a product’s marketing impacts its image and sales. What does marketing mean in today’s world? I don’t think it’s possible to sell anything without marketing today. But in Nepal, the industry is still in its infancy. The market is driven by suppliers, not by buyers. If there’s more supply than demand, then there’s competition to create the best marketing strategies. But today, there’s more demand than supply, so we have more tactical advertisements than strategic ones. What’s strategic advertising? Strategic advertising builds the reputation of a brand over the long term. It doesn’t necessarily spell out the product’s price. But Nepal’s advertisements mostly just give information about the product, basically announcing that the product exists. The demand does the rest. Today, there’s a glut of advertisements about every product, and most fail to make impression. What makes an advertisement good? The idea must be innovative and creative, and it must stand out. For example, if you look at deodorant advertisements, they are all the same, you can hardly tell one brand from another. The same thing was happening with noodles in Nepal once; everyone was offering TVs, fridges and all those things. But we did a campaign for Wai Wai called “Gyan Jyoti” where we offered educational scholarships. That campaign stood out from the media clutter because it was different, and it won a lot of awards. Does star power in advertisements work in Nepal? These days, there’s the trend of using stars in every product which doesn’t make sense. Stars only help the product if their image fits the product. Besides, there’s the question of celebrity culture and its audience in Nepal. Things like in-movie advertising, which work very well in countries with wide audiences, don’t work here. So we’ve thought about product placement in movies but haven’t used it. Advertisements are criticized for their use of stereotypes. What do you say to that? Yes, there’s a huge amount of stereotyping in advertisements. We tend to make generalizations about everything. A lot of times, stereotypes exist because they are true and we see them playing out all around us. So stereotypes work in advertisements. We do try to break free from stereotypes. For example, there are many women-centered ads today that give the message that women can do anything. But unless the company is a very radical one, that’s completely against stereotypes. One or any other is sure to come into play. How we make use of stereotypes is all need-based. That brings us to the moral side of advertisements. Advertisements often reinforce stereotypes, attract people to products that they don’t necessarily need, and promote consumerism. A successful advertisement is that which increases the sales of the product. So yes, advertisements do aid consumerism. But then, that’s what stimulates the economy, too. Without purchases, the economy is stagnant. Even newspapers wouldn’t survive without advertisements. And then again, we don’t force people to buy our products, nor do we encourage consumers to forego necessities and buy products that are outside their budget range. We only present it, that’s what our business is all about. It’s up to the consumer to use their intellect to make a wise judgment. Can consumers use their judgment in the face of such aggressive media promotion that has become our way of life? There are many examples of customers using their discretion. For example, they say good advertising will make a bad product fail faster. If an advertisement makes its impact, more people are likely to try the advertised product, and if it’s bad, they will discard it. So a lot depends on the product’s quality itself. Advertising merely introduces a product; it isn’t responsible for all the sales. 5 The ultimate aim THE WEEK BUREAU Meditation has two sides to it. Insight is one and serenity another. Both these qualities are in our minds. While meditating, we use our breath as a tool – we pay attention to our breathing style and let the mind calm down. There is a certain sense of peace that arises when we meditate. This is also known as samatha. When peace and serenity fade away, suffering takes its place. Why does that happen? Because the peace that comes by samatha meditation alone is still based on attachment because the cause that gives rise to the pain has not yet been addressed and eliminated. So what peace and serenity give us is the base. The base to precede contemplation, investigation, and to analyze the conditioned nature of reality until we naturally become free of attachments, even the attachment of serenity. Serenity is something we create so we can use it to gain further insight into our own reality. But if we cling to this peace, then it will be the reason for pain again. Bijay Rai This mind is free, brilliantly radiant and without problems or issues. The reason why problems arise is because the mind is deluded by conditioned things. When we cultivate a calm mind, we will understand impermanence and change and realize that nothing in this world remains as it is for long. When there is understanding, then we are free. Then it all just becomes a game we are a part of. For this understanding to arise, it is very crucial for the qualities of peace and insight to be cultivated in our mind and hearts. Only theoretically being aware of our delusions and mental defilements won’t do. What is needed is that when these defilements arise, the intellect has to correspond at the very moment, which does not usually happen. Usually, our knowledge and habits are polar opposites. For example, when something undesirable happens, do we react and get into a bad mood, or can we let it go? If we still retain aversion in our hearts, then the practice is not yet perfect. When we reach real practice, then the letting go eventually happens. We truly have to look deep within ourselves in our own hearts if we want to experience the fruit of meditation practice. However, it is very difficult to keep track of all the mind movements and internal happenings. I have been advised by my teacher to become aware of the present moment, both internally and externally. What I now do is this: If any emotion arises, I search for the cause. I try to find the root of the problem and then reach a conclusion. By understanding the actual problem, I’ll be able to better deal with the emotion and cultivate a peaceful mind. Our minds will try to deceive us by pondering over things and not letting go. But practice to be in the moment. Even when you practice, it will be difficult. But with persistence and patience, you will be able to control your mind and reach the ultimate aim of meditation – Peace and Serenity. Expat speaks
Every success has room for improvement SEWA BHATTARAI Dr. Lin Aung is the World Health Organisation (WHO) Representative to Nepal. Hailing from the neighboring country of Myanmar, Dr. Aung’s has been in Nepal for four years now. This is his second stint in Nepal as he was here previously from 2003-2005 as deputy to the then WHO Head of Mission in Nepal. Sewa Bhattarai met up with Dr. Aung in his office at Pulchowk for a conversation about the strides Nepal has made in the health sector where a little about his personal life was also divulged as an added bonus. How do you like working in Nepal? Nepal and Myanmar are very similar in terms of peoples, cultures, ways of working, respect for elders, and a lot of other things. The staple food of Myanmar is similar to Nepal’s, rice with dal and maybe different kinds of spices. Also, there are a lot of Nepali people in Myanmar, and we have a Nepal-Myanmar Friendship Association here. So I feel that I’m not in a strange place. There hasn’t been much cultural shock at all. Dinesh Gole What are WHO’s activities in Nepal? WHO works mainly on disease control, health system strengthening, health policy and strategy development, and environment and health issues. Maternal, child and neo-natal health are some of our priorities. We are also working on primal healthcare and universal health coverage. The Ministry of Health alone cannot accomplish everything, so it’s important to have Health In All Policies (HIAP). We are also helping the Ministry of Health develop new health policies after 2015. What are Nepal’s most critical public health problems right now? Like most developing nations, communicable diseases are a big challenge for Nepal. But at the same time, non-communicable diseases like diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and cancer are rising. So we’re making a two-pronged approach where prevention of diseases is the priority. It’s very costly to treat diseases, especially non-communicable ones. Raising awareness to prevent them is the key. How can the challenge of communicable diseases be addressed? Diseases can spread from one person to another, especially from water. It’s not enough to treat the person because the person is going to go back to the same environment and get infected again. So to improve health, it’s also important to improve infrastructure and environment. The most important key is education, especially of children. We have to work with the education sector because these health changes can be sustainable if children know about them early on. Where is Nepal in terms of achieving its health-related Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)? Nepal has progressed very well on MDG4, which concerns infant mortality, and MDG5 which concerns maternal mortality. The spread of TB and HIV have also reduced. Recently Nepal held a high-level regional meeting on how to sustain health momentum after the MDG deadline of 2015, which is next year. And one of the reasons Nepal was chosen to host it was because of its noted progress in MDGs despite being such a resource-constrained country. But every success always has room to improve, and we mustn’t be complacent if we’re to sustain the improvement. On a personal note, how does someone as busy as you spend your free time? Earlier, I used to spend a lot of time with family. But now my children are grown up. My daughter is studying abroad and my two sons have finished studies and are working in Myanmar. So I spend a lot of time reading online about health, international politics, and global health diplomacy. I try not to spend too much time on Facebook because it’s very time-consuming. I’m also involved in religious pursuits: I pray, go to Buddhist shrines. As a Buddhist, how does it feel to be in Nepal, the birthplace of Lord Buddha? I must say I feel blessed that my duty stations have alternated between India and Nepal, both of which are important for Buddhists. The Buddha was born in Nepal, attained Enlightenment and passed away in India. I’ve visited all these places, and also Swoyambhunath and Boudhanath in Nepal. Besides, I believe all religions have something good to give. So I’ve visited churches, the Sai Baba Temple in India, and the Lotus Temple in India which incorporates all religions. 3 Women and the Beautiful Game NITYA PANDEY The fairer sex has eventually conjured ways to be a part of this magic. As the world watches the Argentinean captain play for his jersey thousands of miles away, somebody from Mugu is christened “the Messi of the Himalayas.” One might wonder who the fortunate boy is to be honored with such a title. And that is right where you are wrong. This is not a boy but a girl! Sunkali, a young lady from one of the remotest parts of Nepal, has displayed a great passion and dedication for the beautiful game which rivals that of her male counterparts. There used to be a time when football was solely a man’s game. Women either remained completely disinterested in this “men’s affair” or would be content putting on short skirts and waving huge pompoms to cheer for their favorite men on the field. Times, however, have changed. Today, women have not just started viewing football with great energy and passion but have also begun to step onto the field themselves that once used to be an all-men’s territory. Top: After she started playing football, Princi Koirala is filled with even more respect for those who participate in international tournaments. Left: Samani Subedi wears a jersey to support her team during the World Cup. She grew up playing football and is still crazy about it. (Photo courtesy: Princi Koirala) And Sunkali is not the only one to join the brigade. “I grew up playing football and am still crazy about it though I don’t play anymore,” says Samani Subedi, a student, who absolutely loves watching the Premier League matches whenever she has free time. She even recalls an incident from her childhood when she and her best friend stopped speaking for eight years just because they had a spat during a match. “We always took football pretty seriously. For us, it was like a matter of life and death.” However, unlike Samani, there are plenty of other women who watch the game only during the World Cup. This is a month-long football fiesta that occurs once every four years. There are colors, carnivals, smiles, tears, and most importantly, football. It is the time when the world becomes a stadium where fans and footballers from across the globe witness histories being created and recreated within the traditionally allotted ninety minutes plus a few minutes of play to yield the win-lose results. “Yes, the World Cup is quite different,” agrees Ranjita Pokharel, a student who is currently supporting the Netherlands. “It’s a bigger platform and there’s a lot more at stake. But if you’re already familiar with the players by watching the club matches and are able to understand their strategies and techniques, it gets even more fascinating.” So what is it about football that has all these women losing their sleep over countries that they don’t have the remotest connection with? Is it the good-looking players? Is it something about the game itself? Or is it simply the coolest phenomenon to be a part of at the moment? “For me, it’s the beauty of the game itself,” shares Samani. “Just look at the way in which the Brazilians and the Croatians exchanged their jerseys after Brazil defeated Croatia. That was pure magnanimity, respect and passion. And that’s football for you,” she says. Ranjita adds that the players’ good looks do matter to some extent but that is not the only reason to stay glued to your television at three in the morning. “I love Robben but I don’t find him handsome. I watch him because he’s a great player,” she says. For many diehard fans in the world, football is not just a game played between twenty two players. It is also not limited to the charm of a particular trophy or achievement. It is a cult, a religion, something to live and fight for. And this spirit of football is felt as much by women as it is by men, irrespective of their gender. But there are still many people who express astonishment at the fact that females can be so enthusiastic about a “male” sport. “Football was something that I lived for while I was in school,” says Bhawana Pokharel, an ex-ANFA player. She was primarily a midfielder but also played as a striker and defender whenever the need arose. She, who is currently studying medicine at Bhairahawa, however, often faces a raised eyebrow or a gasp of surprise whenever she mentions that she used to be a footballer. “I don’t know what it’s like in Kathmandu. But in Bhairahawa, it’s still difficult for most people to believe that I played the game for so many years despite being a girl.” There are plenty of reasons behind people reacting about the matter the way they do. Other than the traditional way of thinking that always regards men as being the more knowledgeable beings when it comes to anything and everything related to sports, it is also the fact that this is the kind of game that demands a lot of stamina and vigor. Sometimes, a tackle may get too rough, leaving a player severely injured. And girls, who, according to the conventional notions, are supposed to be weaker than men attract looks of disbelief when they mention that they like watching or playing football. Princi Koirala, an engineer who also used to be a midfielder in her university, admits that football was not something that came naturally to her. Although she had always loved watching the game from afar, she had not even imagined how difficult it would be to actually play on the field. Initially, she was overwhelmed by the pressure to perform well and the strict discipline that was required for every player to stay in form and maintain the stamina. But gradually, she got used to everything that came as a part of being a footballer. “After getting a taste of what it feels like to be a footballer, I’m filled with even more respect for those who perform in the international tournaments,” says Princi who is supporting Argentina in the ongoing World Cup and is ecstatic that it has made it to the finals. “But I also believe that women can fare equally well in those similar kind of competitions, provided they are given proper opportunities and training.” For those who play the game or have played it at some point in their lives, watching football is almost like living it. Every dribble, every pass, every goal, every card and every whistle holds a lot of meaning for them. Gone are the days when men would chat about goals, referees and players and women would daintily sip sherry under wide brimmed hats. Nowadays, women speak as confidently and analytically about the game as any man. If you check the social networking sites, women are commenting just as enthusiastically about the World Cup as men are. Perhaps the game is too beautiful to stay restricted within the masculine realms and the fairer sex has eventually conjured ways to be a part of this magic, in terms of playing as well as viewing. 4 How I became the smartest person in the world. How wonderful it would be to know everything, with the world, literally, at your tongue-tip. It is possible; I am a living proof. Or so I would like to think, rather gainfully, as I discover. Unlike what you have been taught at school, a touch of smugness actually pays. My tendency to drop useless facts in the middle of serious conversations has already earned me a solid book: AJ Jacobs’ Know-It-All, aka “One man´s humble quest to become the smartest person in the world." I get the message. But the person who gifted me the book clearly doesn’t. Forever troubled by the huge gaps in his knowledge, Jacobs, the editor at large at Esquire, sets for himself the unenviable task of reading all 32 volumes of Encyclopedia Britannica, coast to coast. That is 33,000 pages, 44 million words! Beset by recurrent pangs of severe knowledge deficit myself, I understand perfectly why Jacobs had to do something so drastic to make amends. It’s not our fault that the less gifted don’t get that we must do what we do. Since I was a little kid, I have always wanted to be a know-it-all. So much easier said than done, I know. But just because it’s difficult, it’s not impossible. There are ways to do it. For instance, whenever I am at some acquaintance’s and getting bored by the Kangress-EE-Malay-Maobadi-jo-aayepani-ustai talk, I make a quick detour to see if there are any books about the house. In this manner, I have over the years gained secret access to books on political science, electronic engineering, gynecology (ah, the in-depth illustrations!), modern physics, organic chemistry, palmistry, manicure, toilet cleaning, you name it. Even when my mind was lost in a welter of facts, even when I didn’t get 90 percent of the material at hand, I have plodded on and on and on. Persistence is another hallmark of genius, I am told. This quest to imbibe all the knowledge in the world can sometimes send you on the verge of insanity (remember the ragged-looking Einstein photo?), but it can also be highly entertaining at other times. Like that time long-long ago when I was idly scanning the shelves of a popular bookshop in Kupondol. Hopping and skipping between the shelves, I arrive at this humongous volume of Kama Sutra, with ‘complete illustrations.’ I look around. No one close by. I am about to plunge right into the vast sacred sea when something else catches my eyes. The red jacket of Andrew Bryant & Michelle Lia Lewis’ The Street Guide To Flirting—which could have been pulled out of a Phantom comics—is at once arresting. I am dumbstruck. I didn’t know flirting was something that could be learnt. You either had the talent or you didn’t. But then I start thinking: Could this really be my manna, god-sent to help me finally overcome my crippling anxiety in talking to the opposite sex? I decide to give it a shot. But it just so happens that the person at the tills is a gharelu middle-aged lady. There was no way in the world I could take the book to her. What would she think of me? Here she was, allowing me in her shop thinking I was a ‘nice’ guy who dutifully read his Carnegie and Dickens, and here I was, shamefully eyeing a guide to flirting. Conscience calls, and for the very first time in my life I decide to do the right thing: stuff the damn book into my inners. The hard-earned guide was an entertaining read, but not much help. It was filled with tips on how to offer girls well-timed compliments and where to take them on first dates. Bakery, I learnt, is the perfect place, the smell of baking bread acting as a strong aphrodisiac. All fine and dandy, but how do I first open my mouth before a girl? And when it’s open, how do I proceed to close it? To be honest, the more I try to ‘broaden my horizon’ the more confused I get. But that is missing the point, you see. According to Friedrich Nietzsche (warning: name dropping is a telltale feature of a know-it-all), “Arrogance on the part of the meritorious is even more offensive to us than the arrogance of those without merit: for merit itself is offensive.” Jesus-Hare-Ram-Christ! Now I know exactly why I don´t know everything! Because then I will be merit-worthy, which is offensive. Thus I will stick to the time-honored ritual of presenting Google searches as proof of infinite personal knowledge. Did you know that lightning strikes earth 6,000 times a minute? Why don’t we harvest it? Imagine all the mega-wattage to light up all our Godavari villages, all free of cost! And had you heard about couvade, which, according to AJ Jacobs, is a Basque custom “wherein the father goes to bed during the birth of his child and stimulates the symptoms of childbirth.” Think about what its adoption could do for the cause of gender equality in Nepal. Homer Simpson, the Archduke of Springfield, says, “Facts are meaningless. You could use facts to prove anything that´s even remotely true.” I just used them to prove that I am the smartest person in the world. Of course, you disagree, you dunce! 5 Infertility: Curse or curable? ROSHANI DHAMALA While most causes of infertility are curable, each one demands its own kind of treatment. Buddha Laxmi, 44, was childless for the first 10 years of her marriage. Married off to a farmer in her early teens, she couldn’t conceive even after taking several medications on various doctors’ advice. Disheartened, she was convinced that no new life could be born of her. But life had something else in store for her. “My husband insisted that I see a doctor for the last time, and thankfully, I agreed,” she grins as she ecstatically explains that three children were born to them – two sons and a daughter, all of whom are doing well in their studies now – after she underwent hormonal therapy for infertility. Infertility – the inability to conceive an offspring or to carry a full-term pregnancy– is a grave problem many couples face worldwide. It is defined by World Health Organization as a condition of couples where the female is unable to conceive after two years of regular trying, where the underlying causes can be infection in either the male or female, or in both. According to one of its reports, one in every four couples in developing countries has been found to be affected by infertility. Dr. Uma Shrivastava counseling a patient at Infertility Center, Bijuli Bazaar. Factors such as psychology, diet, stress level, drug usage, and lifestyle contribute to infertility. (Pratik Rayamajhi) “Infertility is a vast area, and factors affecting it can be more than one,” says Dr. Uma Shrivastava, reproductive endocrinologist at Infertility Center, Bijuli Bazaar Kathmandu. Hormonal causes, leading to problem in release and development of egg or sperm in male or female, or damage to the fallopian tube, cyst or tumor in uterine cavity, infection of pelvic cavity, tuberculosis of uterus, and sexually transmitted diseases are some of the frequently found causes of infertility in men and women. The most common and frequently found cause in Nepal is polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) in women, informs Dr. Shrivastava. This is again an endocrine (hormonal) condition in females, leading to infertility, and accompanied by signs like irregular menstrual cycle, burning hands and feet, intense restlessness, acne and a horde of other symptoms. While most of these causative factors of infertility are curable, each one demands its own kind of treatment, adds Dr. Shrivastava. Of the many means, In Vitro Fertilization (IVF), the process by which an egg is fertilized by sperm outside the body leading, most likely, to the birth of a test-tube baby, is one means that’s growing increasingly popular and accessible in recent times. Dr. Shrivastava, however, explains that IVF is not the sole, let alone sure, answer to the problem. Determining the precise cause of the problem, which can be many, is the right place to begin at while treating infertility, she explains. Diagnosing correctly to find the root cause of infertility, nonetheless, involves a long and meticulous process, explains Dr. Shrivastava, who has been handling and treating such cases for twenty years. Of the many stages, counseling is the first. Many times, factors such as a person’s psychology, diet, stress level, drug usage, and lifestyle are contributing to infertility in the person. These are the factors that can be understood and corrected through right counseling, thereby ruling out the necessity of any serious medication or surgery for cure. But a lot of other people have to go through other advanced stages of diagnosis, and the causes discovered may vary from hormonal to anatomical. Laxmi Chhetri, 38, from Pokhara, was diagnosed for poor ovulation, a hormonal condition that, nevertheless, was cured by a few doses of medication. Laxmi now has one son, whom she gave birth at the age of 36, after spending 13 years of her married life unable to conceive. “Many cases can be cured, and we try that it’s accomplished with minimum invasion, intervention or drug usage,” says Dr. Shrivastava who attends to patients of all age groups starting from the 20s to late 30s and early 40s. Infertility is more than a mere physiological or anatomical condition; it is often laden with serious social and psychological overtones. Apart from social stigma and shame infertility brings to couples, it also seems to eat into their sense of self-worth and meaning in life. For Laxmi, spending 13 childless years was both socially and emotionally taxing. During the year, she frequently faced harsh comments and queries from friends, family, and neighbors, starting right after the third year of her marriage. There are many other women like Laxmi who encounter this expectation of giving birth soon after they get married, and upon failure to do so are tagged sick, infertile, and thus incomplete. Seema Paudyal (name changed) from Syangja, who is now just two years into her marriage, has been visiting the infertility center to understand the cause of her perceived infertility and treat it. Experiences are as many as there are people. “I wasn’t tortured by my family. Yet I always felt a nagging sense of lack from within because of my condition,” Buddha Laxmi shares, recalling the days, and years she spent, unable to conceive or give birth. But now, as she feels enormously blessed to have three children, no amount of hardships and struggles she faced to raise them up appears to have tired her. “I did everything for my children happily and will continue doing so. I’m totally satisfied with my life,” says she who runs a grocery shop at Panauti to support her family. In Buddha Laxmi’s case, her fallopian tube blockage had to be corrected to cure her infertility. But sometimes, the causes for infertility can be as simple as one’s age and lifestyle. According to Dr. Shrivastava, for female the chances of fertility ranges from 30-40% till their late twenties, after which it decreases steeply by 10 to 20 % every passing decade. For men, while age affects less in their sperm production, habits like smoking, drinking and drug use gradually kill their fertility. “‘I already have a child. So how come I can’t procreate now?’ Some men react when they are informed about their infertility,” explains Dr. Shrivastav, adding that unhealthy lifestyle can be one reason behind such infertility at a later stage of life. But not all cases of infertility have been unfailingly cured. The rule of natural selection – according to which there is only 25 percent of success chance – comes in the way of all medical attempts to treat infertility, explains Dr. Shrivastava. “Yet, keeping the hope up is the key while treating infertility,” she adds. And apart from severely complicated cases like tuberculosis and serious infection of the uterus or pelvic cavity, many cases have been found to be successfully cured – some quickly while some in a longer period. It took two years of regular visits to the infertility center for Laxmi before she got pregnant and delivered a healthy child, and everything cost her about two hundred thousand Rupees in total. Costs vary according to the kind of treatment – starting from just five thousand to more than hundred thousand Rupees, depending on the kind and duration of treatment. And while the presently most popular IVF mode of treatment is comparatively expensive, other different kinds of infertility treatments exist that begin from a cheaper range, informs Dr. Shrivastava. For Laxmi, who comes from a peasant family from outside of Kathmandu Valley, the two hundred thousand Rupees probably was a significant amount. “Yet the joy of being a mother is nothing comparable to money,” she shares as she sits patiently waiting for her turn in the lobby of the Infertility Center she has been visiting for the second time in the hope of becoming mother again. And there are many others like her, with similar hopes, giving her company since gone are those days when infertility was a curse. Now there is cure. 5 img Values Matter in International Relations As debate continues whether a military intervention is imminent to deter Syria from using poison weapons in its grisly civil war, the world community seems confused about the outcome of so called limited use of force by America. Civil war in Syria has been going on for about two years with attendant fatalities of more than 100000 deaths and its regional implications are too serious to ignore. While none is sure about the outcome of armed intervention in Syria, which the Obama administration is almost set to launch, should the U.S. Congress gives blessing, experts are busy analyzing the legality of such use of force against the background of lack of UN Security Council authorization. Unsurprisingly though the State Department legal advisors may cite the past precedents, in particular, the Kosovo intervention in 1999, which then was not backed by the resolution of the UN Security Council to justify the proposed military intervention in Syria. Nevertheless, they should not be unaware of the loss of credibility which the armed intervention in Iraq by former president George W. Bush in 2003 brought to the U.S. leadership, when the UN was bypassed. A parallel exists between Iraqi situation of 2003 when its former president Saddam Hussein was accused of possessing Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) and now in Syria where its beleaguered president Bashar al-Assad has been blamed for gassing its own citizens on August 21. Then Iraq was alleged to have violated the international norm by breaching the UN Security Council resolution (687), which had obliged it as one of the UN members to disarm in the wake of 1990-91 Gulf War. U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003 on the suspicion of hiding nuclear, biological and chemical weapons categorized as WMD, was launched even before the UN inspectors team had verified the existence of such horrific weapons and coincidentally American administration under Barack Obama, who is known as a anti-war president based on his previous stands, is moving towards armed intervention in Syria before the UN inspectors have submitted their reports, let alone their confirmation of use of chemical weapons by Assad. How determined is the current U.S. leadership in attacking Syrian military targets is evidenced not only by its decision to move aircraft carriers with Tomahawk cruise missiles to the Mediterranean Sea but also by presidents speech which he gave recently blaming Assad for using chemical weapons. Roger Cohen, an op-ed columnist of the New York Times in his piece Make Assad Pay has quoted Obama who said We have concluded that the Syrian government in fact carried these out. And if that is so, then there need to be international consequences. His Secretary of State John Kerry has repeated the same version emboldening the suspicion that military attack is likely on that ground. Doubtless that there is international taboo against chemical weapons that include harmful gases like sarin, nerve gas etc. because 189 members of the UN have abjured the scourge of such weapons by becoming parties to the 1993 Chemical Weapons Convention. The use of these gases must be condemned and the perpetrators of the same must also be brought to justice , however, in the name of doing justice can we throw the existing architecture of enforcing rule of law that governs inter-state relations into a waste paper basket. Shouldnt we adhere to the UN Charter, the central treaty of modern era is the question asked by international law expert David Kaye, in his Foreign Affairs feature The Legal Consequences of Illegal Wars. If the U.S. as a self-declared worlds policeman, finally decides to launch military intervention in Syria on the ground that it believes president Assad has used chemical weapons against the Syrians, it should, as advised by David Kaye, think coolly about what the legal and institutional consequences of law-breaking might be. Some advocate that the use of force by the U.S. in Syria in absence of UN blessing is justifiable citing the examples of former presidents Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton. They conducted unilateral military campaigns in Libya (1986) and Afghanistan and the Sudan (1998) respectively without seeking international endorsement, which means UN Security Council resolution. But lets not forget that both presidents then defended their action claiming self-defense. A look at the relevant Article of the UN Charter on member states right to use force would be in order. It says States are generally prohibited from using force against other states unless they are acting in individual or collective self-defense or pursuant to an authorization of the UN Security Council. Many are skeptical if the American leadership can invoke this provision in Syrian intervention as there is no direct threat to the security of the Americans. Smart lawyers may advise the president that they can rely on the doctrine of Responsibility to Protect (R2P) to craft an exception to the above UN Charter requirements. But one should not turn a blind eye to the vital point that R2P, even though endorsed from the UN Summit in 2005 (commemoration of 60th anniversary of the UN), would be illegal if not backed by Security Council authorization. A former Australian Foreign Minister and Chancellor of Australian National University, Gareth Evans in his Project-Syndicate essay Diplomacy and Double Standards has argued that R2P is inherently flawed, because the major powers will always be immune from intervention, not only because five (China, France, Russia, UK, and U.S.) of them exercise Security Council veto, but also because of their inherent military strength. Viewed from this perspective the frequent invocation of such controversial principle in managing international affairs puts a small country like Nepal at a greater advantage. In his opinion the U.S. eagerness to punish Assad on his alleged use of prohibitive weapons even without UN sanction and cool response to the military suppression of Muslim Brotherhood supporters in Egypt is akin to Americas espousal of double standards. At a time when the region of Middle East is burning fueled by Shitte-Sunni divide and continuous struggle for regional leadership, it would be unwise to undertake a military campaign in Syria enlisting support from the Coalition of the Willing rather than focus on comprehensive diplomacy. Such diplomacy should aim at resolving the wave of sectarian strife building across the Middle East, which is a bigger threat to world peace according to David Brooks, whose thoughts have appeared in his latest New York Times piece One Great Big War. The present world may be American-led and American-protected as opined by Roger Cohen but values matter a lot in international relations. America should be able to erase the growing perception around the world that some lives are more important than others. Continuing to offer billions of dollars to the military that kills the citizens because the latter oppose their policies in one country and leading the military campaign in another in the same region only because Syria has been alleged to have used banned weapons will always question the credibility of the leadership That the monsoon this year could be affected by El Nino, the warming of the western Pacific Ocean waters affecting weather patterns worldwide, was known well beforehand. Many countries, therefore, have braced up in whatever way
they can. Farmers in Indonesia now have a calendar for early planting dates. Their government is also helping them with techniques and equipment to plant certain crops sooner. In Malaysia, underground and recycled water is being encouraged for use so that the deficit the drought might cause can be dealt with. You may have floods as an immediate image for the Philippines but because of a possible drought due to El Nino’s effects, the Philippine government has even begun cloud seeding and has given farmers drought tolerant varieties of rice. In Thailand, similar efforts are afoot. Bad monsoon Nepal’s immediate neighbour, India, too has embarked on a multi-pronged strategy: the Indian government is preparing to release more rice and wheat from its stocks to keep prices from going through the roof. New Delhi will also provide seed varieties that can cope with dry conditions and fund state governments if need be. So, the question now is: what has the government in Nepal done? As of this writing, the South Asian monsoon was not normal. The Indian Meteorological Department showed that Indian states bordering Nepal were not receiving adequate rainfall. West Bengal, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh in India had seen scattered rain or remained mostly dry. Monsoonal showers in June were the weakest in India’s in its past one-century record. It is, however, too early to say that the monsoon is weak. The region might be lashed by rains and may even be flooded in the coming monsoon months. But what we are talking about here is taking precautions before a below-average rainfall fails farmers. After all, agriculture is still the mainstay of the Nepali economy. And yet, Nepali farmers have not received any caution or advice from authorities; forget about aid like drought-resistant seeds or technology to cope with dry conditions. Like many other sectors, this, too, is where governance is sorely missing. Climate changes But, this is not just about the government in Singha Durbar. Being climate resilient is now a global agenda being persistently pushed by the donor community. Millions of dollars are pouring in to “help climatically vulnerable communities to adapt to such weather anomalies.” This is not to suggest that the forecasted below-average monsoon rainfall this time is climate change the El Nino phenomenon happens regardless and its effects are felt worldwide at varying intervals. But this also does not mean that the money that comes in for climate adaptation should be spent only when there is a global consensus on which weather event is the result of climate change and which is not. The debate will go on. And so will the series of events of weird weather patterns. Scientists have said that under the changing climate, events like El Nino or its reverse, La Nina, will happen more often. The latest report by the Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change said that oceans are becoming more acidic because of a rapid increase in the amount of carbon dioxide gas they suck in from the atmosphere. The carbon concentration in the atmosphere has now reached 400 parts per million, which is already a dangerous level. If it goes further up, scientists say, the world will become more than two degrees warmer from what it was before the industrial period and that could lead to runaway climate change. So, while the world goes nowhere when it comes to cutting carbon emissions and the weather continues to become more and more strange, how to assist vulnerable communities cope with these changes becomes the key question. Issuing timely warnings and providing whatever possible help to them during an El Nino year like this could be a good rehearsal. Good initiatives There have been some success stories during floods. Last year, for instance, huge flood-induced loss of lives and property was avoided in the Karnali basin because of the effective use of mobile phone devices for timely alerts. If that idea is replicated in other river basins as well, damages from floods can be minimised significantly. To do all this at the national level, adaptation plans will have to be made and implemented genuinely. There is no dearth of documents on the planning shelves of the government ministries. Under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, Nepal has already prepared the National Adaptation Program of Action (NAPA), followed by the Local Adaptation Program of Action (LAPA), and now, the National Adaptation Plans. Add to that other donor programmes like the pilot project on climate resilience. From the pages of these voluminous documents, plans and programmes must reach vulnerable communities. If not with cash and technology, they can at least be helped with knowledge and timely warning. The good news is, Nepal has a strong community radio presence and that can be very effective for information dissemination. But has this asset been recognised by all those high-sounding adaptation plans and programmes? If it had, farmers this year would have already had a calendar for different planting dates. Khadka is a BBC journalist based in London 2 The government’s recently announced policies and programmes affirmed the need for waste-to-energy projects in Nepal, especially as Nepal is spending nearly 25 percent of its GDP on petroleum imports. Generating energy from waste is not a new concept here, as Nepal has pioneered its own biogas digester technology, which utilises cow dung to produce cooking gas, and is installed in more than 300,000 rural households. This compares to an installed capacity of 550 megawatts and emission reduction of nearly 1 million tonnes of carbon equivalent each year. Waste-to-energy is a modern phenomenon, with waste related to growth in the economy and thus to be treated as a renewable resource whereby increasing waste continues to generate additional energy. Such modern waste-to-energy projects are in operation in India and China, where these projects are subsidised up front to match the investment cost and/or provided extra incentives on the tariff by the utility to meet renewable energy obligations. In this context, it becomes critical to analyse the socio-economic and environmental implications of generating waste and the economic benefits of taxing and/or incentivising waste generation within that political, environmental and socio-economic framework. Waste management practices In Nepal, the existing Solid Waste Management Act 2011 requires waste to be managed under the 3R principle of Reduce, Reuse and Recycle. Despite the Act, the state of the rivers and roads in and around urban centres, including the Kathmandu Valley, clearly depict the scenario of waste management. Largely, waste collection systems in municipalities and urban centres have tried to integrate traditional informal waste collection practices with formal and (un)scientific systems, due to socio political reasons. This has not led to the optimum utilisation of resources and revenues for proper waste management. The national average solid waste generation is almost 1,630 tonnes per day. Kathmandu generates the highest per capita waste at 0.39 kg/person/day, producing a total daily waste of 300 tonnes per day. The waste from Kathmandu Valley alone can generate nearly 5 megawatts of energy. The total waste from the 58 municipalities could add nearly 30 megawatts to the energy grid in Nepal, not even considering the recently added 41 municipalities. What Nepal needs Many sugar mills are currently generating electricity from their industrial waste, primarily to meet energy demands during loadshedding hours as otherwise, the use of diesel would increase the energy cost by threefold. Besides, this also helps fulfil local environmental regulations. This is also evident with many hotels, schools and security barracks that are replacing fuel wood and Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) with adapted versions of local household biogas technology. The private sector is genuinely interested in investing in waste-to-energy projects but this sub-sector has seen very slow progress due to three factors. First, clear policy provisions inclusion in the national yearly planning strategy is a welcome initiative but it needs to be reflected as part of the renewable energy portfolio in upcoming reviews and papers, research and policies and longer term plans and reforms. Second, the lack of an attempt to introduce and transfer suitable technology and business options/models through pilots and third, a lack of outreach and promotion activities and customised support services for developers, municipalities and waste management entities. Pushing ahead Against a traditional large hydro project, waste-to-energy projects are easy to establish, often around urban centres to the extent that is environmentally possible and therefore, are less time consuming and less costly. The foremost necessity is to strengthen the capacity of local bodies and municipalities to understand the social, financial and environmental parameters of waste as a means for energy generation and thus, facilitate the implementation of such projects through the enhancement of beneficiaries’ participation. Public-private partnership offers opportunities for operational efficiency and cost effectiveness. The role of the private sector will be more important for complex tasks associated with the operation of projects, as municipalities are less experienced in the areas of management and problem solving. The government should subsidise initial pilot projects for the costs to be recovered, albeit partially and to assure better services and quality as the public is generally willing to pay if the level of services is improved, especially for waste collection and electricity tariff. The current mediocre state of in hydro power should not be allowed to continue in the other areas of energy infrastructure development and waste-to-energy projects should be implemented in all its potential to improve energy security and fulfil the country’s wider development objectives. Thapa is Assistant Director of the Alternative Energy Promotion Centre at the Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment 4 News of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s imminent visit to Nepal is being awaited with a great sense of excitement and anticipation. There are several reasons for this visit to be significant. First, it is important from the emotional standpoint. After years of neglect, a big and emerging economic superpower, and our closest next-door neighbour, cares enough to visit Nepal, which in the throes of a political transition. Among others, the visit serves to uphold the principle of reciprocity normally practiced by countries, as it also marks the end of the agonisingly one-sided trend of high-level visits to India from Nepal. Principle of reciprocity The exchange of visits at the highest political level is an important tool for constructive engagement and also for the enhancement of bilateral relations between neighbours and the international community. Such visits are helpful in restoring or maintaining respectability in bilateral relations. If well choreographed and appropriately conducted, there is much to gain. At a personal level, closeness, understanding and mutual admiration may develop between the guest and the host. Important bilateral issues bogged-down at the bureaucratic levels because of lingering misperceptions and misunderstanding can often find a quick way out, thereby providing a new lease on life to existing relations. Of course, in the conduct of foreign policy, the term 'reciprocity' is often seen as being dictated by power. Weaker and less powerful countries can expect, but are not in a position to claim, reciprocity in relations from their big and powerful friends and neighbours. This also applies to high-level visits, as they too are part of the exercise of international relations. For powerful countries, the need to observe reciprocity is driven primarily by strategic and other national interest imperatives. Nonetheless, it becomes almost insufferable when such visits happen to be out-and-out one-way traffic and that too, between the closest of neighbours. In the last three decades, high-level visits from India to Nepal have become a thing of the past. The Indian prime minister and president, meanwhile, have had time to visit other neighbouring countries but Nepal never seemed to find favour in India's travel itinerary. Nepal's requests, it seems, were quietly swept under the rug. Healing the rupture Indian foreign ministry bureaucrats and security sleuths have failed, or felt it unnecessary, to observe even a modicum of the principle of reciprocity normally practiced in the conduct of high-level visits. Such a condescending attitude on the part of the Indian establishment has considerably damaged, particularly the emotional aspect, of Nepal-India relations. Among well-read and informed well-wishers of India in Nepal, this is being construed as India pursuing a discriminatory policy vis-à-vis Nepal, and demonstrating its big brother attitude. This has hurt the Nepali psyche and caused a deep emotional rupture in our bilateral relations. In a way, this may have provided ammunition for anti-Indian elements, both in Nepal and India, to further embitter our relations. In the meantime, no genuine efforts were made from either side to correct growing misperceptions. This was perhaps one of the reasons behind growing radical views in Nepal, particularly against the continued Indian attitude of benign neglect. Frequent exchange of visits at the highest political levels would have helped heal the rupture and toned down India-bashing, if any. To begin with, India and Nepal need to heal that emotional rupture by forging heart-to- heart relations. That is possible only when there is direct engagement and interaction with our leaders at the highest political level from time to time, where the entire gamut of our bilateral relations are examined with an open heart and in an open and informal setting. Allowing bureaucrats and security officials too much operational freedom to handle relations as sensitive as ours was a big mistake on the part of the Indian Congress government in the past. It is good that the new Indian prime minister seems to have understood this imperative quite clearly and has already set in motion his efforts to rectify them. His trips to neighbouring countries, starting from Bhutan and soon to Nepal, are part of his efforts to repair ruptured relationships. As a devout Hindu and a devotee of lord Pashupatinath, some consider that Modi is also on a sacred pilgrimage to offer his prayer and pooja to Pashputinath. This news is just the icing on the cake of his visit. Dealing politically Of course, it is a given that our bilateral relations are extensive and intensive in scope and character. It may not be possible to find a silver bullet to shoot them all down at one go, despite the best of intentions. But once the level of confidence and respectability missing for long is restored and heart-to-heart relations are developed, we may be able to reshape our relations to benefit the people of both countries. Heart-to-heart relations would require that our relations are allowed to move out of narrow and dark bureaucratic alleys into an open atmosphere of cordiality, mutual respect and understanding. Therefore, agendas of the meetings between the two prime ministers must not be laden with much bureaucratic details but informed by larger issues of national interest for both countries. In other words, it is political leaders, not bureaucrats and security agencies, who should be allowed to identify the main agendas for bilateral cooperation and set the tone of meeting for their deliberation. Once the two leaders agree on the main agendas for cooperation and pledge their firm commitment to implementation, other things will automatically fall into place. This is not to say that the opinions of bureaucrats and experts should be disregarded altogether. They can and should offer their expert opinion, when sought and required, but it is political leaders who should be calling the shots. Therefore, Modi's upcoming visit’s main agenda should be on forging heart-to-heart relations between our two countries and two prime ministers, followed, of course, by other important trade, economic and security issues. Thapa is a former chief of protocol at the Ministry of Foreign Affaris A Constructive Approach To Diplomacy:Hira Bahadur Thapa
With the July 20, 2014 deadline approaching fast for concluding a comprehensive agreement to resolve the Iranian nuclear standoff, talks between the concerned parties in Vienna seem more urgent than ever for overcoming the differences that have so far impeded progress. Ever since the 1980s when the UN’s nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), expressed doubts about the peaceful intentions of Tehran’s nuclear programme, the world community has raised alarms over the risks involved in the nuclear programme, which outsiders assume Iran’s leadership is inclined to build nuclear weapons under the guise of a civilian nuclear energy programme. Of all the anxieties shown over the programme, the 2002 IAEA report, questioning the compliance of Iran with international obligations devolved upon it from the Treaty on Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), has prompted Iran and global powers like the U.S. and EU to seriously engage in negotiations to explore a peaceful settlement of the nuclear problem. Negotiations Following critical reports of the IAEA, alleging Iran of failing to meet its international obligations under the NPT, which is to refrain from seeking or building nuclear weapons, the UN Security Council has punished Tehran by imposing severe economic sanctions. Feeling the pressure of biting sanctions, Iranian leaders have demonstrated their willingness to sit for negotiations with the international community, which is at present represented by the five permanent members of the UN Security Council. Under the framework of P-5+Germany, several rounds of talks to resolve the Iranian nuclear impasse have taken place so far, and fortunately an interim agreement on the subject was sealed between that group and Iran almost six months ago. That temporary agreement was possible because of the conciliatory approach taken by the new Iranian president, Hasan Rauhani, who since his coming into power following the last election, has signalled to the U.S. that his country is willing to negotiate in good faith for resolving the nuclear issue. In his widely-quoted opinion piece “Time to Engage”, published by The Washington Post on September 19, 2013, President Hasan Rauhani sounded optimistic. He said, “International politics is no longer a zero-sum game but a multi-dimensional arena where cooperation and competition occur simultaneously. World leaders are expected to lead in treating threats into opportunities.” With such cooperative gestures displayed by the new leader of Iran, the country has been found meeting its obligations arising from an interim nuclear agreement as follows: Elimination of its stockpile of higher levels of enriched uranium. Limitation of the country’s enrichment capability by not installing or starting up additional centrifuges. Refraining from making further advances at its enrichment facilities and heavy water reactor. Permission for new and more frequent inspections. Looking at the above list, one feels that Iran has progressed a lot in assuring the international community that its nuclear programme has civilian purposes only. Nevertheless, the western world has not been fully convinced of Iran’s commitment to match its words with commensurate action. Echoing such scepticism on the part of Iran in fulfilling its commitment to reassure the world community about Iranian true intentions behind the nuclear programme, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has written an article in The Washington Post (June 30, 2014). In the article “Iranian Nuclear Deal Still is Possible but Time is Running Out”, John Kerry has forewarned to the Iranian leaders that they have two hard choices to make. Either the Iranian leaders assure the world that their nuclear programme will be exclusively peaceful or they can squander a historic opportunity to end Iran’s economic and diplomatic isolation and improve the lives of their people. Iran, as claimed by John Kerry, can disprove the presumption that it has been secretly building nuclear weapons and establish the proposition that all its nuclear activities are designed to meet civilian needs. But to do so Iran has to take a number of measures to remove the suspicion among the members of the international community that Iran is not intending to fulfill the civilian nuclear requirements only. In this vein, the American secretary of state has recalled the Geneva Joint Plan of Action (June 24, 2013) concerning the steps that are to be taken to resolve the nuclear imbroglio of Iran. That agreement basically deals with key parts of the Iranian nuclear programme in exchange for temporary relief from some economic sanctions. If implemented in full measure, the above mentioned Joint Plan of Action will constitute a first pause in the country’s nuclear programme in more than a decade. Additionally, the agreement’s implementation will make it virtually impossible for Tehran to build a nuclear weapon without being detected. This scribe has time and again argued through this paper that any resolution of Iran’s nuclear issue depends on the unhindered exercise of the country’s right to use nuclear energy for peaceful purposes. No doubt that the Treaty on Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons provides all of its members the right to peacefully exploit nuclear energy. Peaceful use of nuclear energy by any member of the NPT is linked to simultaneous obligation on the part of the member to comply with the relevant articles of the treaty. Such articles require the treaty members to refrain from using nuclear fuel and related technology from manufacturing atomic bombs. Window of opportunity As Iran’s president has stated that in today’s world both cooperation and competition can go hand in hand, there appears a window of opportunity to resolve the nuclear issue diplomatically. Based on the interim agreement between P-5+Germany and Iran and the subsequent nuclear talks between them since then, we can hope that a constructive approach to diplomacy can produce a comprehensive deal that will stop Iran from building nuclear weapons and lead to the lifting of all UN sanctions as well as multinational and national sanctions imposed on Iran, which will bring prosperity to all. Demand For CDF Increase Raises Eyebrows :Narayan Upadhyay With the national budget to be presented in parliament anytime soon, lawmakers from across the different political parties are making a shrill cry for a whopping raise in the constituency development fund (CDF). As against the earlier fixed CDF of Rs. 1 million, this time the lawmakers are demanding Rs. 50 million for each of the 240 constituencies. This fund, according to reports and sources at the Constituent Assembly, is to be utilised solely by the lawmakers for different development programmes in their respective constituencies as per their discretion. Financial burden The 50-fold increase in the CDF fund would certainly create a new burden on the exchequer. The government, particularly the Ministry of Finance, has so far rejected any increase in the fund. The rejection by the ministry has raised the ire of many ruling coalition lawmakers of the Nepali Congress and UML, compelling them to organise a joint press meet recently to put pressure on the government. The lawmakers' demand clearly brings to the fore two conflicting ideas - one supporting the demand of the lawmakers and another rejecting it. The people who support the idea claim that the lawmakers who represent their constituencies must have their say on the development activities taking place in their own constituency. They say the elected representatives must be allowed to take development programmes such as construction of roads, irrigation, schools, hospitals and other infrastructure, special programmes for the minorities, marginalised and the poor as well as socio-cultural activities in each of the constituencies over a certain period of time so that the ties of the elected representatives with the electorate are further enhanced. The fund, as demanded by the lawmakers, is necessary to carry out these activities as per the promises made by the lawmakers during election time. Without an increase in the funds, the lawmakers who have been representing their constituencies cannot carry out development works in their constituencies. On the other hand, they also cannot remain aloof from the voters who voted them with the hope that the elected lawmakers would work for the constituencies. The people who support the idea of a raised CDF say that such government funds are made available to the lawmakers to carry out development works in their respective constituencies in countries like India, Malaysia, the Philippines, Pakistan and several others. In neighbouring India, where the CDF provision has been in practice since 1993, each lawmaker can select a local development programme for his or her constituency amounting to Rs. 50 million. The same provision was in practice in Nepal from 2001 after the government came up with a special regulation to dole out Rs. 1 million for a lawmaker to carry out development activities based on the recommendation of the local development ministry. But a 50-fold increase in the CDF fund is raising many eyebrows. The ministry of finance has now accepted the demand. But even if the government is forced into doling out the increased funds, it must first implement a strong monitoring and assessment mechanism. Only a monitoring mechanism will ensure whether or not the disbursed funds are being utilised properly in the development works in the constituencies. In the past, many programmes and projects at the local level were found to be implemented on paper only. At the same time, many programmes in the constituencies were held violating the provisions mentioned in the CDF regulations. All these activities raise a big question mark on the integrity of the lawmakers. The lawmakers were accused of utilising the CDF for their personal benefit instead of spending it in development activities. Even if some money was spent on some development programme, they have been found gobbling up a large portion of the fund themselves using fake papers and other unethical methods. The lawmakers have indeed eroded their reputation and overall image following their demand for government dole-outs. The public anger is likely to rise against them sooner, because at present they have the major task of preparing a constitution for a new Nepal, instead of going for raises in their perks, facilities as well as CDF. At a time when the CA has drawn flak for creating unnecessary burdens on the government's financial health, the demand for an increased CDF would not do good for the lawmakers. Also while proposing an increase in the CDF, our lawmakers have not adopted a scientific or justifiable method. For example, in the nation's hill and mountain districts, there are fewer constituencies, but more infrastructure such as roads need to be built there. In many thickly inhabitated Terai districts, the number of election constituencies are more but the necessary infrastructure is already in place. Therefore, the blanket release of Rs. 50 million for each constituency for carrying out development works just does not gel well. Should the government buckle under pressure from the lawmakers who were elected through the first-past-the post method and provide them the funds, this could brew dissatisfaction among the remaining 350 or so lawmakers, who might come up with demands of their own. If this happens, the government will have a huge task tackling the new budgetary challenges. Some justified demands But not all of the demands of our lawmakers are groundless and unjustified. The demand for a raise in accommodation and transportation facilities by the lawmakers, several of whom hail from different parts of the nation, appears largely valid. The demand for the safety and security of the women lawmakers too is sound. The government must address these genuine demands, because a lawmaker must give most of his time and energy to the tasks mainly centred on the preparation of the constitution and thus should not be distracted by things like their personal security, housing and transportation facilities. Trees Of Prosperity:Bhimsen Thapaliya The Chepangs, a tribal minority that lives on wild roots and fruits in the jungle, live so close to the capital, yet their condition is deplorable. This shows that Nepal is still far from becoming a welfare state, unable to take care of its citizens forced to live in inhuman conditions. Many of these tribal people, living in the remote hills of Dhading and Makwanpur districts, have no citizenship papers and lack access to nutritious food and schools. There are families still living in caves and gathering wild roots and berries for survival. The plight of this backward minority has changed little despite the efforts of some government agencies as well as non-government organisations. The life of these people is so deeply rooted in superstitious beliefs that the spoon feed approach of these agencies is having negligent impact. Besides, there are people who try to take advantage of their ignorance, poverty and backwardness. Some clever people exploit their labour by paying wages that barely help make ends meet. Poachers use them to kill rhinos in the Chitwan National Park for a few hundred rupees. The Chepangs belong to the forest, and they have been using the jungle's resources for ages to eke out a living. In order to change the lives of the Chepangs for the better, one has to come up with approaches that are designed to suit the reality of their life in the jungle. Their economic status can be improved only if there is a way to use the natural resources while ensuring forest conservation. By definition, conservation is neither the use of natural resources in a destructive way nor a complete ban on them. One has to devise a middle path that is sustainable. One such method is to the management of leasehold forestry, which has reportedly proved a boon for this community in Makwanpur district. Under this scheme, the government leases out the forests to the local communities for a fixed period of time. The local users use the jungle resources to meet their needs and also take the guardianship to ensure that deforestation does not happen. The Makwanpur model has involved local Chepang farmers to cultivate cash crops in order to boost their income. The farming of bananas, broomsticks and lemon in the area has helped to boost the income of the people. The Chepang people, who were earlier displaced by floods and landslides at different places, are now managing the leasehold forests in areas like Raksirang, Sarikhet, Kalikatar and Bharta. One benefit forest conservation has had is in livestock farming. The poor Chepang farmers have raised their income from livestock, especially goat raising. Bananas, brooms, lemon and pineapple are the cash crops that have helped the people come out of the long cycle of poverty. The leasehold forest scheme has not only improved the livelihood of the Chepang minority but also brought about desirable environmental results. The once denuded lands have turned lush, and the enriched green cover has helped to tame natural calamities like soil erosion, landslides and desertification. Review, Research And Reform:Thaneshwar Bhusal During a roundtable talk organised recently in Kathmandu, vice-chair of the National Planning Commission reiterated the need to review, research and reform our bureaucracy. According to him, the Nepalese bureaucracy severely lacks competency in terms of accepting the private sector as well as spending public money in big projects, mainly in the infrastructure sector. On the one hand, this underlines the extent of our bureaucratic rigidity on the institutional as well as behavioural front. On the other hand, these arguments demand a review of the mandate of the civil service based on scientific research so that appropriate reform measures can be taken in time. Public sector reforms To test the mindset of the existing bureaucrats so as to understand whether they are friendly to the private sector, it is important to go back to our administrative reform initiatives that were envisaged after the political changes in the 1990s. Just as the global public management reform movements at the beginning of the 1990s, the Nepalese public sector reforms in the 1990s were also introducing at least some of the characteristics of new public management, including privatisation, for instance. Other attributes of new public management such as the performance contract were, however, seriously neglected in practice though the provision was well codified in the proceeding legislation. Even two decades after the introduction of the administrative reforms, the lens of looking at the private sector has not changed. Instead, the involvement of the private sector in public sector management is misinterpreted and thereby leading the overall civil service towards corruption. The second line of argument is rather on the competency aspect of the civil servants. As the vice-chair has called for the need to assess the ability of the civil servants to understand and thereby build up the capacity to manage public money in investment ventures, we must reform the current rules and regulations. Without robust reforms in the principles of hiring and firing senior level positions, the government will continue to be working with those people who, in the vice-chair’s words, are unfriendly towards understanding the importance of big investment. If we look at the red books of the National Planning Commission and Ministry of Finance, we see millions of rupees being allocated for research in different sectors. But in reality, the implementation of research projects is rather upsetting. Many of the research projects are implemented as if they were meant to produce a thesis for a Bachelor’s degree. Regardless of good intention whilst allocating budget for research in the public sector, public managers who lead the research projects simply do not seem to have adequate knowledge about research projects. This circumstance drives one to ponder over not only ‘why’ we need research projects, but also ‘how’ they should be implemented. The pragmatic options could of two-fold: either the government should create some senior level positions as researchers and have them in all the sectors, or it could form a separate institution by merging all the research entities. The first option, if managed properly, could result in having specialised researchers in all the ministries. In the long run, these researchers could become sectoral experts, and the government could use them whenever sectoral reform measures are needed. The second option, however, could be difficult to implement, but should it occur, it could strengthen our bureaucracy. The existing institutions of research, for example the Health Research Council, Nepal Agriculture Research Council or the Centre for Policy Analysis, to name but a few, would be the institutions worth amalgamating. Under the jurisdiction of a new research entity, several policy specific units could be established so that sectoral researchers could perform independently. Appropriation of budget to such a new institution would be worth allocating and the outcome could be easily evaluated. Nepal’s administrative reform initiatives are rarely praised for whatever outcome they might have produced. There are many political and administrative reasons why the reforms are ridiculed. Politically, reform programmes appear as a revolution and disappear without any significant implications. Administratively, the implementers often demonstrate great enthusiasm and after sometime, they tend to abandon the reform programmes because (i) they do not get any support both from within and outside the system, (ii) they are discouraged from leading them, (iii) the new government usually displays reluctance in implementing the reform measures of their predecessors. A rather heuristic approach to reform therefore is to institutionalise the reform programmes as soon as possible so as to avoid chances of being abandoned. The sooner the reforms are institutionalised, the more the chances for continuation. One perfect example of this is the Hello Sarkar unit at the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers. It would be a different context to ask how much impact Hello Sarkar has had in the public sector, but the obvious fact is that it has been well institutionalised and therefore continues even after the changes in the government. Power to NPC As the vice-chair is concerned about the reforms, the government should introduce some robust reforms to bring changes in the existing bureaucratic system, working procedures, structure and culture. In achieving this end, initiating reforms such as the Administrative Reform Commission/Committees or projects will not be sufficient. The National Planning Commission should be given the power to recommend the best reform measures. (The author is a pursuing his PhD at the ANZSIG (Institute of Governance and Policy Analysis), University of Canberra, ACT, Australia) Good Planning Is Never Late:Prem Khatry Today the world is moving toward urban life. The pace may differ from place to place, region to region or country to country. Or, one might be a bit more objective and say from level of economy to economy. But the move is certainly towards an urban setting, urban planning and urban culture. By the middle of the century, a large portion of the world population will be fully merged into an urban setting, enjoying the amenities of life. It will take time and concerted effort to put our own city, Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal, in the world urban arena with some important urban features in place. Gradually, other cities that we have named 'metropolitan' will also emerge in the arena. We can also say that we are already there as we have a large portion of the nation's population now inhabiting the city, actively contributing to the growth of the city and its functions. What is lacking though is good planning for the city's future, for the city's march towards a world-class status. Back in the 11th and 12th centuries, the city fathers, the government and people had a clear vision of the city - mahanagara - from the standard that was there. There were streets, lanes, by-lanes, squares, open spaces, religious and cultural spaces and facilities for the city dwellers. People were using pure drinking water, clean air and healthy foodstuffs and a well-managed government. People were satisfied and this was important. Haphazard growth Compared to what was there at a time when resources were limited and so were the amenities, we live in a totally different world. If approached properly, resources can now arrive within a matter of days or even hours, and we are enjoying it through our city fathers and the government. But the main problem in our city now is that we have very haphazard growth without proper planning and implementation of viable as well as important measures to make Kathmandu look better. Internal political and administrative factors as well several external factors are responsible for the lack of proper growth, carrying capacity and sustainability of our cities - Kathmandu being the foremost example of mismanagement. Take the external factor first. Even for a short task like a passport or court-related sojourn, people have to come to Kathmandu from all the 75 districts, or literally from all the 4,000 VDCs. The line never stops - it is an eternal phenomenon. It is said when cities are having an extra number of mouths to feed and their growth is unabated, our villages are emptying gradually and at a faster rate. People migrate to the cities for better opportunities, and this is a universal phenomenon. But the host city has to be aware of this situation and improve its carrying capacity. Kathmandu has been a sure destination of many youths, others as our development has always been lopsided - much less development planning and resources trickle down to the rural, remote and distant lands. This was true yesterday, more so today. The greatest effect of unplanned growth and lack of proper planning in the distribution of facilities has had a direct bearing on the city dwellers' health. At this time of compiling this write-up, one popular FM is informing the listeners that a lot of poisonous green vegetables are arriving and being distributed from the Kalimati vegetable bazaar. This is no new information. The Kathmandu dwellers are consuming poison in the form of vegetables, fruits, water and other consumer goods. That is now a normal scenario with an abnormal impact on health. Now the question is: where do people ultimately end up with a host of malaises? Or is that place safe, either? The answer is: a sure and certain 'No'. Just take a ride on the Ring Road. Start from the Bagmati-Balkhu confluence on the Kirtipur Road where there is one expensive and new hospital. Stay on the road and go to Gongabu, continue to Basundhara, Chabel, Koteshwar and observe carefully. All hospitals, clinics, research centres suffer from dust, noise, air, water and other forms of acute pollution. It looks like the Nepal Medical Council issues license without looking at the location of the service providers. The government does not have a regulation and a corps of supervisors to look after the vulnerable situation caused by the health agencies themselves. We remember how once lack of such staff members in the health services department had caused problems in dealing with the rotten medicines in the stores in the city. It is hard to believe that our doctors play with the health of their patients for the sake of material gain, and the city fathers (now in the absence of elected authorities) tend to ignore the factors that play a role in maintaining or destroying the health of the city dwellers. Will the heaven fall on us if the government encourages the newly started hospitals to go to the edge of the city near the forests, open spaces, clean air and water and away from the dust and noise? Won't these locations add to the life of the sick people and the credibility of the curers? And there are still plenty of such places in the good old Valley of Kathmandu. It is only a matter of looking for your own comfort against the patients' pain and making it more painful for them to bear. In fact, if our hospitals, schools and colleges make a move toward the edges of the valley and breathe, eat and drink pure, life would be different there and here, too. The question is: after all, who will bell the cat? Time-consuming task Finally, city planning is a task - tough and time consuming. And if you don’t begin it on time, you do not go very far. Kathmandu has been a brilliant example of how mismanagement can go to any direction. Whether garbage deposit or water supply, road expansion or road quality, traffic jam or road accident, Kathmandu has always struggled to show its urban face with urban amenities and problem solving mechanisms in place. The city administrators cannot lose time in planning the city better at a time when popularly elected city fathers are still to be born. Land Degradation, A Growing Issue:Ashmita Rawal Serious problems plague the farmers of Nepal. One of them is land degradation, which is the removal of materials from upstream to downstream through weathering, mass wasting and erosion. The main problem with land degradation is that it leads to siltation and sedimentation. The Terai region mainly suffers from degradation of the Siwalik, the weakest and youngest mountain range in terms of geology. The Siwalik is represented by soft, loose and easily erodible soil. Hence the region faces devastating floods and drought. The common types of mass movement in the Siwalik are gully erosion, mud flow, slumping, toppling and rock fall. The Terai has also experienced massive deforestation since the control of malaria there. Except for the protected forests, almost the entire Terai region is cultivated. This has also increased flooding, soil erosion and mass wasting of the soils of the Terai. In the hills, farmers engage in terrace farming due to the sloping landscape. But the farmers are still uneducated and use obsolete methods of farming. Shifting cultivation is one among those methods. In shifting cultivation, farmers grow vegetation on one land, and after harvesting they leave the land and shift to another land, leaving the previous land bare. This leads to soil denudation and gradually degrades the land quality through erosion. In recent years, Nepal’s population has increased manifold. The land is limited, but the population has been increasing geometrically. This has led to land fragmentation. Thus, water penetrates into the land fragments, which exert enormous water pressure, causing huge slumps and mud flows. When many people live in a certain locality, pollution is high. Acid rain, which is caused by pollution, also increases the frequency of sliding as it fast saturates the soft rock. Nepal's land is not classified based on capability. Low quality land is also used for cultivation and grazing although they lead to degradation. The Soil Conservation and Watershed Management (SCWM) Act allows limitations to be placed on land use. But the SCWM act and regulations are difficult to enforce strictly on private land. Land use planning programmes are a must to improve the degraded watershed, to improve land quality and ultimately to improve people's livelihood. Awareness should be raised through extension programmes to the community members by forming user groups, model farmers at the local level to disseminate information and technology and to motivate them to participate in SCWM activities. Different income generating activities like mushroom cultivation, bamboo and plantation should be encouraged on their lands. On degraded lands, management activities based on critical sub-watershed prioritisation, appropriate agricultural practices, such as the Sloping Agricultural Land Technology (SALT) that is cost effective and simple, and leasehold forestry should be introduced to minimise shifting cultivation and improve the livelihood of the people through agro-forestry practices. Improving the terraces, slope correction, grazing management should be practiced to stabilise the degraded land. Gully treatment, torrent control, stream bank protection are to be done under the natural hazard prevention programme. New canals need to be constructed and irrigational facilities drastically improved. This also helps to regulate the runoff and check flooding. Land degradation is an issue which must be seriously looked into. The government should leave no stone unturned to protect our land. Every citizen should look into the problem as a process. The land is our heritage; we should protect and preserve it by using it properly. World With Superpowers:P. Kharel Ukraine’s recent process of disintegration has been received with great concern in the United States and its allies in the European Union. Crimea, with overwhelming popular support, voted for integration with Russia. Other regions, which like Crimea have a strong presence of people of Russian origin, are also asserting their right to self-determination to emulate Crimea. US-EU threats and actual measures of sanctions against Russia and some of its leaders for endorsing the Crimean overture have not made President Vladimir Putin reverse the Crimean merger. Almost 25 years ago, the Soviet Union had broken up. It had generated excessive euphoria in the Western world as it proclaimed the end of the Cold War and the existence of only one superpower, i.e. the United States. The Soviet Union’s disintegration had direct bearings on the world’s first communist country’s satellite states in Eastern Europe that got liberated from communist rule directed from Moscow. For nearly 20 years, there seemed to be only one superpower. The last few years give a different indication. The world is back to a balance of power whereby no single power player monopolises superpower status and falls into the pit of power monopoly to have its way around any which way it chooses. Inevitable Vladimir Putin’s Russia is nowhere near the status the Soviet Union once had. But it is now distinctly a superpower, even if a far second to the United States. The Soviet Union and China did not have the best of relations not long after the 1949 communist takeover in Beijing. In the new millennium, things have shifted and changed dramatically between these two neighbouring powers. The two countries have buried many of their earlier differences and have given concrete demonstrations of willingness to work together for economic gains and their strategic interests vis a vis the “only superpower” and its allies in the EU. Syria serves as a case in point. Sino-Russian rapport is the cause that prevented a Western-led intervention in Syria aimed at toppling President Bashar al-Asaad. France wanted to do a Libya on Syria but backed out early when Washington and London suggested to French President Francois Hollande to withhold the plan of military intervention which they themselves had encouraged earlier. The sudden shift in strategy occurred when Moscow made it explicitly clear that direct outside intervention in that oil rich country would not be welcome. It also delivered sophisticated air defence missiles to Damascus. Beijing discreetly let Washington and Paris know that it was behind Moscow on this. Once the message was put across fine and firmly, the European fronts for the US withheld their preparations for action against Damascus. The pattern of foreign interventions whose sponsors want regime change or secession is to mobilise “civil society” and “human rights” groups. It is by now all too familiar. If this does not work, “threats to national interests” are given out as reasons for intervention. US-led interventions in Iraq and Afghanistan are of this mode. Just as Iraq under Saddam Hussein was attacked on the charge that he was about to unleash weapons of mass destruction, the alleged use of chemical weapons by Assad was the unsubstantiated ruse brewed as justification for French-led military action, with Washington’s full approval even if not visibly a participant in action. The West had persisted with its claim that Saddam Hussein in Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction even when different quarters questioned it seriously. Various public opinion polls in the US and Britain had suggested that interventions be made only with the endorsement of the United Nations. However, the UN was ignored when military interventions were set in motion. Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya are valuable textbooks for the study of international events in the so-called post-Cold War years. Covert support from outside to local groups is a method used so often that it no longer remains a secret. East Timor, Sudan, Sri Lanka, among others, can also be seen in this light. The long dead Arab Spring and its effects are also ample food for thought. Where does Russia figure then? It has emerged as a superpower that enables the world to maintain a degree of balance of power. The Cold War, according to Western scholars and their ilk, ended with the Soviet disintegration. However, arms sales have not declined. The most deadly and largest exports of weapons originate in the West. The United Nations has been ignored by the big powers whenever they cannot draw the required support in the world body for their plans and interventions. Russia’s economic and diplomatic ties with China have developed in the Putin years faster than at any time in the previous four decades, although one is a multiparty polity and the other the oldest existing one-party communist state. China, the world’s most populous nation, has made rapid economic strides unthinkable for it prior to the 1980s. The US-EU block on the one hand, and Sino-Russian rapport and cooperation on the other will make a highly interesting course of study in the ensuing times. Some analysts point to the ups and downs in Sino-Russian history. These are also the analysts who never mention that Afghanistan has a record of always repelling, defeating and eventually evicting all foreign invaders from its soil. Yet, in the last 35 years alone, foreign players have ignored and suffered from indifference to past records. Germany and Italy, during World Wars I and II, were diametrically different from what they are nearly 70 years later when it comes to their relationships with, among others, Britain, France and the US. Counterweight Beijing and Moscow were never so close as in the new millennium. The resources they have and the economic potential and positions they possess make the two UN Security Council veto powers formidable forces, individually and as allies. The US army is stationed in different parts of the world, ostensibly to serve American security interests and world peace. American troops have been stationed in countries like Japan, the Philippines and South Korea since several decades in its relentless march for retaining and expanding influence over other countries and regions. In contrast, the presence of Russian troops beyond the neighbourhood is virtually absent. China’s record is even better on this score. Concerning Syria, Russia's message to the “international community” consisting of basically the West is clear: An effectively counterweight to the US-EU block has emerged firmly and with determination not to be a silent witness to the events of global importance being created and controlled by a monopolist alliance. UML's 9th Convention Leadership Row Overshadows Policy Debate:Nandalal Tiwari Instead of holding debate on what policies the party should take to end the elongated political transition, the ninth national congress of the CPN (UML), the second largest party in the Constituent Assembly (CA), is more focussed on who should be the party's chairman. The mutually belittling remarks against each other by the two rival leaders for the party's top post have not only harmed the overall stature of the party, but also diminished the importance of the convention as if it is meant solely for changing the guard of the party and not the guidance, that is the policy or ideology. Battle for post only Since there is not much debate on ideology and no difference in the policy between Madhav Kumar Nepal and KP Sharma Oli - the two UML leaders who have announced their candidacy for the chairmanship - the convention is going to be meaningful only with respect to who will bag the top post. In this sense, the convention will be of great interest only to the rival factions than to the UML's supporters, well-wishers and common people. Certainly, the national congress of any political party is also a battle for the top post. But along with that, in some parties in Nepal, we also see heated debate on ideology, especially in the communist parties. But the UML has the luxury of pointing at the People's Multiparty Democracy (PMD) as its basic guiding principle or policy. The PMD was formulated more than two decades back by the then general secretary, Madan Bhandari. Since then the political landscape of the country has changed drastically, but the UML has been carrying the same set of ideas inked when the constitutional monarchy was there and multi-party democracy had just been reinstated. It is not that the UML has not come up with any new policies in this convention. Incumbent chairman Jhala Nath Khanal has made it clear in his political report tabled at the convention that the party would adopt a policy of cooperation with the Nepali Congress, the largest party in the CA, until the new constitution is promulgated. He has also declared that the political revolution has been complete and that there is now a need for socio-economic transformation. Given the present situation that demands cooperation among all the political parties for constitution writing, the UML's policy to have a working alliance with the NC is the need of the hour, not any novel policy to end the political transition. He has also given due importance to bringing the political forces outside the CA on board the constitution-writing process. This is something all the parties in the CA have been harping repeatedly. To say that the political revolution has been complete without promulgation of the new constitution is immature. Even if the political revolution means setting up of the republican system, this new system has yet to be institutionalised by the new constitution although practically it has been institutionalised by the interim constitution. Moreover, there is the toughest issue, federalism, to settle. And if this issue that failed the first CA is not resolved in a manner that satisfies all the political and social forces, the republican system could also be questioned. We already have parties which want to reinstate the monarchy, and they have gained more votes in the latest election than before. The most important thing about the UML convention is that it has been successful in putting the democratic process into practice. The party's delegates came through an internal election, not by selection, nomination or hand-picking. As in the eighth convention, an election is likely to be held to elect the chairman and other office bearers of the party. This practice in the UML can be credited for promoting a democratic culture in the country. What the UML has missed is an analysis of its contribution to uplifting the living conditions of the working class people. The party has not assessed any of its policies that influenced state policy in the interest of the class for which it claims to be working. Presently, the UML leadership is of one voice that Nepal is no longer a semi-feudal or semi-colonial state. The party is likely to endorse that the capitalist revolution is over and there is a need to move the country to socialism. But here is a question: if Nepal was a semi-colonial state some 20 years back, how come it is not so now? Has there been an amendment in the treaties such as the 1950 treaty with India and treaties with other countries that may have been unequal? If not, what was the basis to term Nepal a semi-colonial state then and what is the new basis for saying that it is no longer so? Moreover, the UML, especially the delegates to the ninth general convention, should ponder over what real influence the UML has had on the national economic policies in creating better conditions for the proletariat. If they do so, they will find that their party has always supported the NC's economic policies, which means the NC is the sole political party shaping the country's economic policies. The UML should come up with a concrete policy to have a working alliance with the political forces for the sake of the working class. This is a much needed policy for all the parties that call them communists. As the UML claims to be the mainstream and liberal communist party, it should come up with ideas to bring all the communist parties under its umbrella. Economic policies But for that, it should present specific economic policies. For instance, it has presented a specific policy for demarcating the country into seven federal states with mixed identity. Will this bring changes in the lives of the poor people and also contribute to the overall development of the country? This responsibility lies with the UML delegates because they can compel the leaders to do so in the national congress. Dealing With Anger:Nirajan Pudasaini Anger is a normal human emotion. One gets angry when things go against one's expectation. Generally anger is a healthy reaction, but when it goes out of control it turns destructive. Anger causes problems in one’s personal and social relationship. Excessive anger ruins the overall quality of life. That’s why anger control is a must. Dealing properly with anger can prevent one from possible bad consequences. Gautam Buddha once said, “Holding on to anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; you are the one who gets burned.” According to him, anger is a normal thing which we should erase from our mind as soon as possible. The more it resides in our mind, the more self-destruction will occur. Buddhist textbooks suggest eight different ways to curb anger. In a recent football match between Portugal and Germany, Pepe, the Portuguese defender, had to leave the football ground just 37 minutes after the match began as he was given a red card for failing to control his anger and butting German forward Thomas Mueller on the head. Had he controlled his anger, Portugal wouldn’t have had to play with one man down for the rest of the game, and it would probably have changed the final score, too. Because of a single player’s anger, the rest of the squad and all supporters had to suffer as the game ended in a humiliating 4-0 win by Germany. Some people are angry by birth. We can see some babies who are easily angered, touchy and irritable. This type of anger is inherited. The socio-cultural environment is another cause of anger amongst numerous people. The family background plays a major role in building one's emotional and psychological state. The range of anger differs from person to person. The way they deal with it also differs. Some people get angry more quickly than others. Some people show their anger without a thought for others while some hide their anger. Whatever be the type, anger causes only harm. One who hides his anger will face more psychological problems than one who expresses it. If one gets hyper angry frequently, proper counselling is needed in order to restore a calm emotional state. For others, some simple exercises, relaxation techniques and adequate thinking before expressing anger works better in controlling it. According to Thomas Jefferson, America's third president, one should count to ten before speaking when s/he is angry. If very angry, s/he should count to one hundred. The main point here is thinking before doing anything in anger. We should give time for our brain to think before we do something bad in anger. Anger should be expressed once we become calm. It’s better if we express anger in a different way like a smile or a laugh. It is popularly known as laughing therapy. Relaxation skills like yoga, deep breathing exercises or use of calming words make it easy to control anger. “To be angry is to revenge the faults of others on ourselves,” said Alexander Pope. So, we need to learn not to be angry, and in cases where we get angry we shouldn’t let it reside inside ourselves for a long time. We need to learn to control anger. Otherwise it will surely control us. UML’s Ninth Convention Cadres Must Fight Against Neo-feudalism:Ritu Raj Subedi It is a matter open to dispute - whether the ongoing ninth general convention of the Communist Party of Nepal-Unified Marxist Leninist (CPN-UML) is the continuity of the first convention of undivided CPN held in Lalitpur on January 26, 1954. But, what all agree is a marked contrast between the two historic moments. At that time, the country had already seen the light of democracy but the CPN was banned for its alleged involvement in the political adventure of Dr K. I. Singh, who briefly captured Singha Durbar and then fled the country to take shelter in China. The CPN was compelled to hold convention underground to avoid the prying eyes of the security forces. Its main topic of discussion was whether to accept constitutional monarchy or give continuity to republicanism. Many communist leaders were impatient to remove the ban on the CPN so they stood for constitutional monarchy, hoping that the government would stop outlawing their party. The republican line, adopted by Pushpa Lal, fell in minority. But, the government of Tanka Prasad Acharya was simply not ready to lift the ban just because the CPN recognised the constitutional king. It resorted to other manoeuvres to exert pressure on the government. King Tribhuvan had just passed away and Mahendra was declared the new king but the coronation ceremony was yet to take place. The CPN threatened to launch a nationwide satyagraha (civil disobedience) on the day of coronation if the ban was not lifted. This tactic finally worked and the ban was lifted on condition that CPN should carry out its activities peacefully. Even if the CPN succeeded to be legitimate political force in its formative years, the party plunged in perennial struggle of two lines: To support constitutional monarchy or fight for the republican system. This dispute sapped the energy and confidence of CPN for decades until this chapter closed following the abolition of monarchy in 2008. Ideological debate The CPN-UML is holding its ninth convention in a free democratic environment. No sword of Damocles hangs over its head. This is the biggest achievement of the Nepalese communist movement since it started some 65 years ago. The CPN was born in the dark feudal rule of Ranas and therefore its primary goal was to do away with that system. Today the communist parties are saying that feudal production relations were no longer in existence and now their mission is to embark on the economic revolution to create a just, fair and inclusive society. The UML jamboree takes place in the midst of the political and ideological metamorphoses. This is the first time that any party in Nepal organised an intense and broad debate to settle the ideological issue. Such a debate holds potential to energize the party even if, for some, the debate whether the country is in feudal state or has entered a capitalistic phase appears to be hogwash. This debate seeks to strengthen inner-party democracy and provides impetus to maintain order and discipline. However, such an intellectual enterprise is not without the risk of intensifying the factional campaign to grab the leadership mantle as seen in the convention of the largest communist force of the country. It is sad to note that the cut and thrust ofideological debate failed to check the flurry of distasteful invectives that both the sides are trading against each other. The UML big shots boast of forging a consensus on ideology but the dispute as to who is the successor of this ideology remains unresolved. The onus to sort out this vital dispute has fallen on the shoulders of over 2,300 convention representatives. The main thrust of ideological document of the party is that Nepal is no longer a semi-feudal and semi-colonial nation but a capitalistic one and it should embark on the socialistic construction. Madhav Kumar Nepal and KP Sharma Oli, who are now in contest for the post of chairmanship, are claiming themselves to be the true heir to the party’s ideology in different ways. The Nepal faction argues that an individual, whose ideology is endorsed in the party, will also have legitimate right to lead it. His supporters argue that since the party has given thumbs up to the ideology presented by the Thought Group under Nepal, he should be its natural leader as per the tradition of the communist parties. In addition to it, Nepal acolytes insist that he has a clean image, power of persuasion and coordination among the parties on the national stage. He is active, hard-working, honest and popular among the cadres and people, and has a cream team of youths behind him. But, the Oli group offers not a less strong argument in his support. They say it is Oli, who contributed to the enhancement of People’s Multiparty Democracy (PMD), a guiding principle of the party. His documents, presented in the fifth and sixth convention, have played an important role in the ideological evolution of the PMD. He constantly stood by the party’s ideology and checked the party from deviating towards ultra-left and rightist direction. Oli gave a voice to those victimised by the Maoist brutality when the political parties were intimidated and the voice of the civil society was muzzled. Economic vision It is beyond doubt that the UML had played an important role to bring the Nepali Congress to the republican path and UCPN-M to the democratic one, and thereby usher in the era of democratic republic. Despite its on and off opportunistic behaviours, the UML has performed an impressive balancing act in the national politics. However, people have little interest on whether the nation has graduated to capitalism or still is in feudalism. This seems to be a futile intellectual debate for many people hit hard by the high inflation, joblessness and grinding poverty. The abstract discourse holds little appeal for them. Today much fertile land in the country is left barren as hundreds of thousands of Nepalese youths are sweating in the desert for just a little amount of salary. The convention should be able to carve out an economic vision to develop agriculture sector for the creation of employment at home. The party, its leaders and full-time cadres live on the donations from business people, which have in turn contributed to the spiralling of the prices of essential goods and the widespread corruption. The party’s cadres must learn to be self-reliant economically and ethically. Even if feudalism has vanished from the society theoretically, new form of feudalism has crept in the acts and conduct of the communist leaders. Therefore, the enlightened cadres need to wage a relentless struggle inside the party to get rid of the neo-feudalistic mindset deeply entrenched in their political overlords. img The Hague Awaits... A few days ago, the long awaited Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) and Enforced Disappearance Commission Bills were registered at the Legislature Parliament for the formation of a TRC and Enforced Disappearance Commission. Both had been promised by the Comprehensive Peace Accord and the Interim Constitution in order to prosecute and punish war era human rights abusers. They pave the way now for the formation of the much delayed transitional justice mechanism. Since the registration, however, the topic has become a huge issue in both national politics and among the international community including the UN. The action of the government clearly followed much len-den among the major political forces, and it has ignited more dissatisfaction than appeasement among the victims of the decade-long Maoist conflict. Experts have argued that the Bills fail to honour the recent Supreme Court verdict that asked the government to comply fully with international standards in the formation of a transitional justice mechanism. The victims of the conflict have viewed the proposed Bills as an excuse for granting blanket amnesty to those who were involved in serious cases of human rights violation. The Bills, therefore, clearly demonstrate that our political leadership has no real commitment to the establishment of a genuine transitional justice mechanism. Investigations into and prosecutions for grave human rights violations committed by the security forces and by the then Maoist rebels during the conflict era are long overdue. Perpetrators continue to argue for a blanket amnesty under the pretext of achieving national unity and peace. However, how could a transitional justice mechanism formed without ensuring due representation and participation by the conflict victims possibly bring about sustainable peace in our country? Do the people of Nepal not have a right to know the truth about what happened during the armed conflict, which affected them and their country? Should this not be through a genuine truth process, and should every single person not co-operate? Why especially should the Maoists, who were major actor in the conflict always oppose this idea? What should be the ultimate goal of the future TRC? Is it not to establish the truth? Is it not to achieve justice? There are several points that I wish to elaborate on here. Firstly, there is no doubt that establishing the truth about what happened in the ten year long conflict and achieving justice must be at the very centre of the TRC process. It has to be the departure point towards a sustainable peace. It must be able to produce a road map for political and institutional change and, most importantly, must be part and parcel of a new greater democratic debate. It must be able to break the silence that surrounds the suffering of both victims and survivors of past oppression: it must draw from the perpetrators an acknowledgement of their crime and bring them to a court of justice. Reconciliation via the TRC must provide a historic bridge between a divided society of the past, characterized by conflict, untold suffering and injustice, and a society of the future founded on the recognition of human rights, democracy and the peaceful co-existence for all Nepalis. The TRC process must be seen as the first test for the establishment of the rule of law. That raises immense questions. How do the new bills intend to achieve these goals, and are the politicians truly sincere even in hoping that they do so? Secondly, establishing a TRC in a conflict-ridden society is not aimed at revenge but at establishing truth and justice. It demands great political understanding and mutual cooperation. It is, therefore, a great shame that the UCPN (Maoist) top brass is refusing to co-operate. The co-operation of all is essential if truth and justice are to outweigh all other political considerations. How will the new bills on the table ensure this? Are they clear in what they are seeking to achieve? Are we clear ourselves about what we wish the TRC to achieve? Those individuals and leaders who were involved in the abuses, including the Maoists, should co-operate fully and play the role of helpers of the TRC for the sake of justice and a durable peace. The TRC must have jurisdiction to investigate the actions of all individuals who were seriously involved in the human rights abuses. Maoist individuals, leaders of political parties and security force personnel were involved in acts of enforced disappearance, killings and torture, and all must eventually be tried. The TRC must, therefore, be a strong and autonomous body. No one must be spared if we seriously wish to end the ongoing culture of impunity and lawlessness. More than 300 people are recorded as having disappeared at the hand of the Maoists, but the new TRC Bill appears one-sided and ill intended as it blames only the security forces for enforced disappearances. Does this not need an urgent rethink? Thirdly, the TRC must not be seen as a replacement for the criminal justice system. It must not be used to prevent, replace or delay criminal investigations and prosecutions for serious abuses. It is great that some individuals alleged to have been involved in abuses and killings have already been arrested, and the state has recently started to investigate. After all the pressure from the media, conflict victims, pressure groups and the international community, the government is finally taking some action. It is a most welcome step, which should have happened long ago. Recently, the filing of a lawsuit against 13 Maoist cadres accused of murdering Krishna Prasad Adhikari of Phujel, Gorkha, during the armed conflict is a sign of a new beginning for the nation in promoting and protecting human rights especially against the culture of impunity. It is a national shame that the UCPN (Maoist) has announced nationwide protests against the government’s move to lodge cases against the cadres implicated in the murder. This lawsuit is an important beginning. The new TRC process and the criminal justice system must proceed side by side in investigating, prosecuting and punishing all abusers. International human rights norms and practices and the traditions of justice demand this. Fourthly, the consultation and participation of victims in the TRC process are its most essential aspect. The TRC process needs to be victim centered and non-political. At the same time it should respect the right to a remedy and to accountability by way of criminal prosecution. Victims must be granted justice while ensuring that impunity is not promoted. The TRC should not become a tool to victimize further the victims who have already suffered enough. Nor should it be a tool to clear perpetrators of their wrongdoing. It must not become a showpiece in order to cover up abuses that took place in the conflict era. One important question must be asked: do the proposed bills ensure the victim's representation and participation? Did anybody consult the victims as to what they wanted and how they wished to see the perpetrators punished before the Bills were tabled at the house? Do the Bills not need a re-write? Finally, a blanket amnesty can never be allowed where serious abuses of human rights are concerned. This is the international standard and international practice. According to international human rights law, no amnesty is permitted for gross violations of human rights. Nor also are other measures permitted that might block criminal investigation and prosecution for such violations or deprive victims of the right to an effective remedy. In this regard, some articles of the TRC Bill are inconsistent with international law and human rights since they do talk about an amnesty for serious crimes. Such an amnesty would not only violate some core principles of international law but would also weaken any foundation for a genuine and lasting peace and the establishment of the rule of law. The perpetrators must be punished for any serious violation of human rights such as extrajudicial killing, enforced disappearance, rape and torture. In such serious cases, the perpetrators must be punished even though they may have confessed their wrong doings, have asked for mercy, been forgiven by their victims, who in turn have even been compensated. The present provision of the Bills regarding this issue must be revised and made clear. I strongly believe that if the TRC Bill contains fundamental flaws and gaps and does not meet international standards, it must be revised. There is no need to rush. The nation can wait if good can come from further delay. It is time for us to change our culture and our attitude to decisions made in hachuwa when we do not know or cannot anticipate the consequences. The future of peace and prosperity in our country depends very much on the success of the TRC process. We ourselves must be clear what we really wish to achieve through the TRC. We must be clear what TRC represents and what it is there for. I further believe that it is the duty of every citizen to co-operate with the TRC process. It will ultimately be good for all including the perpetrators. The latter, whoever they are and however powerful they may be, must first be punished and their victims’ needs must be addressed and compensated for. These must be the priorities of our future TRC. If we fail to achieve this through our domestic mechanism, the case can, of course, be internationalized. The Hague is not too far from here! Dr Basnet is a Lecturer and Researcher in International Human Rights Law. 2 img On the Semester System The development of any country depends very much on the quality of its education process and system. Education is the foundational norm for society as a whole; it is the vehicle that drives or leads the society towards betterment and fulfilment. The right to education is a universal entitlement that is recognized as the most fundamental of human rights. It promotes individual freedom and empowerment and yields important developmental benefits. Yet, worldwide, millions of children and adults are still deprived of educational opportunities, many as a result of poverty, conflict, discrimination, ineffectual state policies, and, most importantly, excessive politicization such as exists here in Nepal. In our country, there is a huge gap between the slogans and the reality, the saying and the doing, the promising and the providing. Education is imparted through a system, and success depends on what that system is and how it is practiced. There is no doubt that the quality of the education system plays a key role in producing a better and just society. Universities should aim not only to educate young minds and create aware and dynamic citizens, but also to generate new ideas and encourage innovation. Tribhuvan University (TU), one of our oldest universities, has recently decided to adopt the ‘semester’ system from this academic session at its Central Campus in Kirtipur. The semester (two terms per year) system is widely practiced in countries like China, the USA, Japan, Australia, and Bangladesh. One must, though, ask the question: why did TU suddenly decide to change the system from ‘annual’ to semester? No rational justification has been provided yet. What was wrong with the previous annual system of education? The hachuwa decision of the TU has certainly invited strong debate and created doubt and uncertainty in our education system. The semester system is said to keep students on their toes with their progress being regularly and closely monitored. Compared to the annual system, it helps to keep students busy all year round with an even level of burden instead of allowing them to pile up work towards the end of the year. With examinations twice yearly a student’s progress is more regularly evaluated, and his or her performance is not, as at present, judged predominantly by a single end of year examination. It is claimed that TU’s adoption of the semester system is 'in order to bring about a quantum leap in teaching, research and innovation.' Many questions must be asked in this context: can the semester system actually serve this purpose if the structure, policies, infrastructure and resources of the university remain the same? Have we done anything to change or even try to change the syllabus and teaching methods to suit the new system? Have we even given thought to this aspect? Most importantly, why is the system going to be implemented only at the Central Campus in Kirtipur? What kind of education system are we trying to establish in this country? Is it not a complex undertaking to start a dual system of education within one university? Should the system of education not be uniform and equal for all? The success and effectiveness of the newly introduced system will, however, depend on the following points: Firstly, a dynamic curriculum should be the basis and foundational norm of any system of education. The system’s quality and effectiveness very much depends on it. The world has changed so much within the past few decades, but the syllabus taught at TU provides an education that is decades old. Designing the syllabus has never been undertaken in a scientific manner. That would certainly be needed in a semester system, one of whose major objectives is to introduce papers on different topics to increase a student’s knowledge. If we really wish to see a successful implementation of the semester system, the first departure point must be to change and re-design the decades old syllabus making it more dynamic and pragmatic. Have we thought yet about doing that? Secondly, there is no doubt that the semester system is aimed at achieving a quality education. However, developing adequate facilities within the university, such as good classrooms with sufficient space for all, a separate individual office for tutors, and sound library resources subject-wise, would be essential for the effective implementation of the semester system. We may claim to have started a semester system, but the same infrastructure, the same policies, and the same attitudes persist. The existing infrastructure at TU does not match the requirements of the new system. Have the policy makers at TU or at state level really thought about that? How is it that we can happily change policies on any issue without first carrying out detailed research? Finally, education is the means of developing human resources for the advancement of society. The introduction of the semester system may be regarded as a step towards higher quality education, but high quality education depends even more so on the high quality, experience and sincere commitment of the professors and tutors called upon to implement it. Are our professors and tutors familiar with the changes that now face them? The semester system claims to provide opportunities for students to experience continuous learning and assessment/feedback and thus gain a better-paced understanding of their subject. A more continuous engagement between the students and the teachers should, it is claimed, result in more focused class interaction. To achieve this, however, the professors and tutors must be willing to sacrifice more time, show more commitment and be more sincere in their duties. Are they mentally, psychologically and physically ready to accept this change? Are they ready for the change in attitude now demanded? The semester system allows for greater freedom and scope in designing and delivering a range of courses which students can choose from in order to improve the quality of their learning. However, its very success must depend on the quality and the sincere commitment of all those who are involved in implementing it. Doubtless the semester system can serve a great purpose in our country and can enhance the quality of our education. In so doing let us hope that it can put right the long-standing defects and problems in our education system. Are we ready to adopt the right attitude to achieve this? Dr. Basnet is a Columnist Lecturer & Researcher in International Human Rights Law and a Human Rights and Constitutional Law Lawyer in the Supreme Court and Subordinate Court of Nepal. Mr Shrestha is former chief of the Armed Police Forces. 4 img Drama, democracy and constitution In Nepal, deciding the winner of a musical chair game is very difficult especially on the political front where international powers seemingly conglomerate to watch it. For instance, it took nearly three weeks for the ball to set rolling from Nepali President Ram Baran Yadav’s office to incumbent Head of Nepal Government Khil Raj Regmi’s Singha Darbar haunt, namely on who should call the first meeting of the CA. In the end, constitutional experts and legal advisers close to the President are known to have advised him that Article 69(1) of the Interim Constitution authorized the Nepali Prime Minister (or head of government) to convene the first CA meeting, the most appropriate step. Nepal in 2013 went through a state of political turbulence until the November CA election, which was successfully conducted by Interim Head of Government Khil Raj Regmi and his technocratic team. Their apolitical administration guaranteed by a non-challenged and strictly neutral professional security apparatus to deliver the environment for free and fair elections in Nepal. The success of the election was backed by a pool of well established internationally well known poll observers such as the Carter Center and the EU delegates, which adhered to measurable democratic poll observation tools followed by post-monitoring and evaluation tasks that declared it “impartial, free and fair”. As a result, the Nepali Congress and the CPN-UML, which had focused their campaigns on rural and middle class families using mostly door-to door low cost campaign techniques, made a huge comeback winning by a big margin leaving the Nepali Maoists (divided vertically now) trailing a distant third, while the Rastriya Prajatantra Party, a reformed democratic legacy of the Panchayat era, made new surge as Nepal’s fourth largest party in the proportional category. It is the beginning of 2014 and not everyone is happy even within these various winning parties; some of the biggest grievances are within. The insiders lament it all has to do with the manner in which various candidates were nominated, picked or given tickets. Many chose their nearest kin, family members or business community supporters which did not play well with the majority of long time dedicated party members. As a result, some rifts have resurfaced such as within Nepali Congress where all three top leaders Sushil Koirala, Sher Bahadur Deuba and Ram Chandra Poudel were seen making an individual dash to the PM’s chair in Singha Darbar until this week, when Poudel reluctantly decided to give his support to Koirala for the NC’s parliamentary party leader. NC is the biggest party expected to lead the next government, yet true drama prevails within which also bogs the formation of a future Nepal Government. The UML which is more clever on patching national leadership rifts, and often buries its hatchet within Balkhu headquarters, had also new claimants for the President or Prime Minister’s post until last week, despite the SC’s verdict that the current President and Veep would stay until promulgation of the new constitution. UML’s premise is that a new government cannot get its cooperation and will not form until the two positions, namely President and Vice President of Nepal are replaced with their own candidates, or else the new parliamentarians must come to a majority consensus vote. UML is also desirous to head a new government should NC fail in garnering a consensus government in time (which is a difficult guess given the UML’s demands). For instance, It is an openly known secret that Khadga Prasad Oli, Madhav Kumar Nepal, Jhalnath Khanal and Ishwore Pokhrel were and still are, claimants to be President or Prime Minister, each lobbying hard both nationally and internationally according to reliable top Nepali media sources. As the second largest party in the CA-Parliament, UML has also floated two or three power sharing models vis-a-vis NC and the Maoists hinged on re-electing the President and Vice President, who both represent the Madhesi community, according to their leadership hierarchy. The President and the VP’s terms ended effectively, according to some prominent Balkhu voices with the dissolving of the first CA by Dr. Babu Ram Bhattarai but they somehow managed to hang on in the name of an interim government council formed with subsequent tasking of a CA Poll which, indeed, was held on November 2013. The Madhes parties remain bewildered in this wild card game scenario, opting for the moment to be part of the opposition bench given its collective wait and see stance. The Maoists themselves remain non-committal on power sharing, preferring to stay in the opposition while drafting a new constitution. Pushpa Kumar Dahal has had to bear the brunt of all major losses the Maoists suffered in the recent CA Poll, the major reason being fielding relatively unknown faces in comparison to NC and UML’s well established heavy weight candidates in most urban locations and in the politically sensitive Central, Mid-West and Eastern region. But still the Maoist leadership is committed to helping write a new democratic constitution if it is drafted within a year, something Sushil Koirala from NC has promised the Maoists in exchange for NC heading a new government. The Maoists former brainstorming papers on ethno-federalism now gather dust at Paris Danda. The RPP Nepal, in turn, has indicated its role as a constructive future opposition party, not afraid to speak up its mind on the place of monarchy in a new constitutional framework. Their close relationship with BJP, whereby early poll predictions show it garnering a landslide majority vote in India in the upcoming elections, give strong ground for revival or recognition of a Hindu monarchy in Nepal. BJP is a Hindu nationalist party having middle and rural class support in India and was unhappy with the consequences of Jan Andolan-2 whereby ex-King Gyanendra stepped down to the political parties pressure making way for a Nepali democratic republic. With all these mixed party agendas, what is in store for Nepal’s future Constituent Assembly turned Parliament, the second one after five years? For now, 26 nominated members are yet to named, and it is not clear who they will represent, the ex-bureau-technocratic-army-police lot, the professional bodies such as bankers, industrialists, tourism entrepreneurs, lawyers, engineers, doctors and the like, or else janjatis, women and other under privileged segments of society. Similarly, it is unclear on when an actual government will be formed under NC’s leadership, since geo-political influences are already rife and bearing down heavily on key political players to produce results. It is not even clear on how future constitutional appointments such as ambassadors and heads of various constitutional bodies will be made(before it all used to be political appointments in the majority!) or whether formerly dormant but now revived constitutional bodies such as the CIAA will be allowed to play an effective role in future, as some senior politicians are known to be under its scanner. It is also not certain whether Nepali politics will be the same again, as the future CA-Parliament is already tasked with a heavy challenge by the Nepali media, civil society watch groups, human rights activists and the like to produce a publicly vetted Nepali constitution within one year. One month has already gone by with little or no achievement so far, and the CA-Parliament meeting should have been ideally called within one month of the election results being made public, and a majority government formed soon thereafter. With more than two months gone, it is simply puzzling, even when Khil Raj Regmi and his techno team have repeatedly shown their readiness to hand over the reins of the government to a successor, no single Nepali leader or political party has come forward to claim it! One thing is clear, Nepali politicians in the majority are good at making false promises, seldom fulfilling them. Yet, Khil Raj Regmi as an unseasoned politician with a technocratic blend of ministers and full backing of Nepal’s bureaucracy fulfilled almost every promise he made to the average Nepali. Somehow, the international donor community still believes there is light at the end of Nepal’s democratic tunnel and that development activities will now bear concrete fruit once the new Constitution is written. But the CA must be tasked to fulfil them, integrating some of the donors’ core development action plans submitted to the National Planning Commission, particularly in expanding the energy and hydropower generation sector, tourism and road works, and agricultural regeneration to get the country’s industries and production base moving again. Foreign investment must be opened up more aggressively with long term concessions particularly from the Asian neighbourhood since there is international interest in making Nepal a viable free economic trade zone. As way of encouragement, first and foremost, Non Resident Nepali investors must be given tax incentives and dual citizenship to encourage their service to Nepal, even if it is for short project work so they can develop a confidence in investing in Nepal. One must commend Australian millionaire and die-hard pro-Nepal investment advocate Shesh Ghale and his team heading the current NRNA setup globally, that finally a reliable business plan is taking shape to help Nepal with Non-Resident Nepali financial and technical assistance. Relying solely on Nepali migrant remittances from abroad to offset the Balance of Payment deficits will not benefit Nepali people in the long run. People like Shesh must be given more serious attention by the Nepal Government, especially when it comes to developing Nepali entrepreneurship and business acumen from within. Similarly, Nepal’s newly elected leaders must accept that Nepal has a strong corps of talented, educated, young and energetic professionals who often go abroad to find their first job. Many of them head back to Nepal after a few years, including many bright kids educated here in the United States, but often give up frustrated that they cannot open their own businesses, or find the right professional network, environment or bureaucratic support to channelize their dreams for Nepal. Alternatively, it is time the new CA turned Parliament tap on a collective pool of innovative ideas that will serve as a spring board for Nepali development from such young energetic minds instead of wasting time on inter-party politicking as happened before. It would be helpful if Nepali politicians worked to make the CA-Parliament the hotbed of Nepali democracy and development, not the hot seat of inter-party conspiracies which was the reason why ex-Prime Minister Dr. Babu Ram Bhattarai had to take the extra-ordinary step of dissolving the previous one and calling for fresh CA Polls. When will Nepal’s politicians leave the constitution drafting drama behind, come up with an actual draft and stand up to fulfilling the Nepali people’s development aspirations? The time is NOW. This is an appropriate period of time for Nepal’s politicians to collectively reflect on the people’s visions for peace, development, security and long term economic prosperity and deliver on them just like Khil Raj Regmi did within a short span of one year as a mere Interim Head of Government. 3 img Think Nepali democracy in 2014 Nepal in 2013 witnessed a state of democratic fluctuation. A Constituent Assembly Poll held successfully on November 19, 2013 somewhat strengthened the delivery mechanism for Nepali democracy exhibiting a new centre right tilt based on Nepali voter preferences. But still there were no tell tale signs of government formation or any works planned on a new Constitution of Nepal for early 2014. This is why Nepals international democratic credence is often questioned. As usual Nepali leaders have started talking about inclusive democratic participation but still look outside to solve essentially Nepali problems. Rethinking Nepali democracy in 2014 in a pro-people manner is essential to fulfil the Nepali leadership challenge. The CA Poll 2013 which brought the Nepali Congress and the CPN-UML back to the forefront of Nepali politics, has still left many questions unanswered. The UCPN-Maoists and their rebel faction the CPN-M which dominated Nepali politics for the past half decade is now considered a failed party wasting its energy on a useless ethno-federalism debate, something which they have admitted themselves lately. Democracy based on total consensus is the word that is making the rounds these days in Kathmandu as in other capitals throughout the Asia-Pacific region. India, considered a bastion of democracy, too had an election recently that was truly peaceful and strengthened her international democratic credibility further. China, which is a Communist country, still tolerates democratically stable moderate regimes in its neighbourhood as long as they do not pose problems on the four Ts (Tibet included!). The US and the G-8 Club, on the other hand, have won international plaudits and the hearts and minds of the Nepali people for pushing forward meaningful Nepali democratic endeavours in the form of the CA Poll 2013 bolstered by firm development cooperation commitments. For Nepals newly elected leaders, this is the time to devote energy to the more pressing social and economic problems. Total democratic consensus is necessary in the effort, even the opposition has to be meaningful in its agenda. Coincidentally, the NC as the largest party in the soon to be formed Constituent Assembly, believes such mutual political consensus will help guarantee a new government and engage all in writing a new Constitution of Nepal. Both NC and the UML leaders realize that the future federalism debate must be harbored in the framework of an economically viable model that places utmost respect for Nepali human rights, livelihoods, and development capabilities rather than mere discourse on various imported models. Similarly the constitution must be a Nepali one. If not, the newly elected leaders too will face the public wrath meted out to Nepals Maoist party who had to face a humiliating poll defeat. Professor Amartya Sen the human development advocate once observed, No substantial famine has ever occurred in any independent and democratic country with a relatively free press. Nepals press has been pretty independent since the 1990 Jan Andolan 1 largely supporting democracy. The Nepali media cautions, for democracy to be meaningful, it is essential major parties also respect the minor and opposition parties so that every Nepalis human freedom is enshrined in the universal democratic concept of a government of, for and by the people. Unfortunately, that is not happening always in Nepal. Even India and China, Nepals two immediate Superpower neighbours, have cautioned Nepali leaders to pursue essentially Nepali choices in preserving a people oriented democracy and formulate a constitution that integrates the past with the present to ensure a bright Nepali future. The current argument is not about leadership choices or finding a new Nepali President, it is about all contributing to ensure democratic awakenings aligned to the Nepali peoples development aspirations. Neither is there any argument on whether Nepali Congress or the CPN-UML have the right to claim the Nepal Presidents post or the equally attractive chair in Singha Durbar. The challenge is, as the current Head of the Nepal Government Khil Raj Regmi mentioned in several recent media addresses, to make the triumph of democracy succeed in Nepal absolutely. This is also what Francis Fukuyama predicted on the aftermath of surviving political ideologies after the Cold War in which democracy proved a definite winner. Nepals CA Poll 2013 is another feather in the cap for Fukuyamas arguments. Similarly, on the ideological plane, all seem to be equally democratic in their public voicing. Even Pushpa Kumar Dahal accepts the UCP-M to be a democratic party that must fine tune itself to public expectations in future given its recent poll setback. In fact its senior leader Dr. Babu Ram Bhattarai has openly acknowledged he would never had imposed a State of Emergency after disbanding the former CA in 2012 because his own party leaders and those of other political parties would have never supported such a move. That is being democratic enough. Similarly, Kamal Thapa from the RPP-Nepal, now Nepals fourth largest political party, has adjusted his party line to ensure Nepali democracy first and foremost. All party leaders know equally well that nearly Rs. 50 billion was spent on an expensive CA Poll 2013 to promote a more enabling democratic environment in Nepal for all political parties to participate and function in. While Sushil Koirala as President of the Nepali Congress will ponder in the days ahead on what kind of rule of law will best guarantee the efficient delivery of economic results to the Nepali people in the coming period, the answer is quite clear that it will have to be participatory democratic governance supported by effective locally elected district and village bodies that are gender sensitive. These will then bear on substantive and measurable development results. This time, the Nepali Congress and the CPN-UML owe it to the Nepali people to ensure that the future Nepal Government will be as transparent as the one Khil Raj Regmi currently heads. So, it is time to close the debate on the credibility of the CA Poll 2013, which by all accounts was fair to all and biased against none as the international donor community and the Carter Center have once again reiterated. It gives rise to a new transformational period for Nepali leaders to address the gaps between accountability and governance that plagued earlier NC-UML coalition partnerships that ensued in rising state corruption, development stagnation and exacerbating rural poverty that led to the Nepali civil conflict between 1996-2006. Many in Nepals professional, engineering, academic, business and legal community are of the opinion that drafting a people oriented constitution like the Constitution of Nepal 1990 will definitely help renew international credibility for Nepal. If such a constitution takes reshape, it can serve two purposes. One, it will safeguard Nepali democracy, national interest, security and secularism for generations to come. Two, it will truly embody the broad, inclusive and fair participation of the Nepali people entrusted through various political parties yet help preserve Nepali culture and traditions. Mahatma Gandhi often articulated in India that the spirit of democracy can never be imposed from without, it has to come from within. In Nepal too, efforts will have to be internally generated on a broad based political consensus foregoing all past agreements, external or internal, and thus starting with a clean slate. It is well known, the current challenges to Nepali development are stifling in every front due to the past democratic confusion affecting proper governance forms for Nepal. For instance, there is still need for stronger budgetary allocation for a more universal qualitative education system encouraging enrolment of young girls and women throughout rural Nepal, although the country has been able to accomplish some of its UN based MDGs in the urban locations. Public health is still in a state of disarray with more people facing the brunt of HIV/AIDS due to lack of primary care providers or enough voluntary counselling and testing centers. Yet, AIDS could take its toll on Nepali democracy and development if gone unchecked; there is strong social stigma imposed on those infected and affected. Nepals Himalayan ecological balance and the environment itself is in a weak stage with no new achievements to report except the continued meltdown of Himalayan glaciers in the post Kyoto Protocol era. Nepals best climate experts, much sought after, have either migrated to greener pastures abroad or else joined foreign embassies or international organizations. International labor migration is on the rise despite various reported unfair labor practices in host destinations. One of the greater development nuts to crack is Nepals hydroelectricity potential second only to Brazils. The unstable nature of Nepali power development in contrast to the concerned ministrys internationally attractive, well advertised Nepal hydro-electricity catwalk projects have generated many admirers but no attractive contractual bids even from the Asian neighbourhood; governments change too often. And Nepali leadership itself is in a state of crisis generated by inter-party mistrust among its top leaders, cursed as it were by fatalism and development. No political party in Nepal is openly willing to absorb urban professionals, technocrats, banking experts and civil society leaders as potential party members. There is a mutual distrust between these groups. On the gender plane, Nepal has not been able to produce one single distinct female leader who can handle the reign of government like Angela Merkel in Germany or Indira Gandhi in India which is due to poor advancement of girls and women in Nepali society and gender biased grass-roots participatory development besides the aforementioned educational inaccessibility. Unfortunate as it seems, there was no one-third reserved quota for women in the recent CA Poll. Even the most well educated and articulate female professionals in Nepal have forsaken their promising careers to raise children or else devoted their lives to help their husbands, some of them prominent politicians. This is unfortunate in a society that has, population ratio wise, more female motorcycle riders than elsewhere in Asia, and where even village girls have started donning American jeans made in Thailand and singing Britney Spears as in a small Shangrila village called Namche Bazar. Yet, for Nepal 2013 was a fortunate year since democracy was delivered through the ballot box. But still democracy is a primary advocacy and leverage tool for Nepals quickly expanding educated middle class, not the rural agrarian lot routing for quick change. The 2013 Poll vote helped spearhead new accountability in governance, and protest against any leaders effort to divide Nepalis up ethnically, geographically or on the basis of religion or caste. The CA Poll 2013 was in fact an en masse feeling, a grunt against ethno-federalism and a unanimous approval for Nepali democratic mainstreaming. But as Indias leadership just recently re-congratulated the Nepali leaders and the people for their tremendous achievement in the CA Poll 2013, it also meant for the average Nepali an opportunity to refocus on the word grassroots democracy. Lest one forget, street protests swept leaders in several tides of repeated violence in South Korea, Indonesia, Maldives, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Philippines, Thailand, and Nepal in the past decades. In the Arab Spring last year, regimes shook and tumbled in the Middle East as a new democratic fever swept the Arab world. Yet, somehow Nepali people have been able to resiliently practice their own version(s) of democracy from the Panchayat era to multiparty democracy in the post 1990 period knowing the flame of democracy burns bright elsewhere in Asia. This is why Nepal cannot be compared to Afghanistan or Peru, because the international community recognizes the Nepali people as one of the most active and clever voting populations in the Asia-Pacific democratic theatre. In fact, 2013 was a good year for Nepal governance-wise bringing democratic honesty to the forefront. Khil Raj Regmi and his team of ex-Nepali technocrats proved themselves much beyond the Nepali leadership challenge with a chronicle of successful development stories and people focused activities, including attracting the youth to the national cause. And beware, none of them including Regmi ji are practicing politicians. This is why everyone in the international community seeks continuity and a suitable avatar to the Regmi government only if Regmi ji and his team could continue. Right now, they patiently hold their hands to hand over power to a successor Nepal Government. Nonetheless, 2014 will be a year of serious brainstorming and rethinking on the true meaning of Nepali democracy and how it might bring true economic progress and long term happiness to the people of Nepal. REPUBLICA Generational shift in UML leadership In an interview with this daily last week, chairman of CPN (UML) Jhalanath Khanal had expressed his concern that the scheduled election for the party’s leadership would create a rift in the party which might take considerable time and efforts to heal. “We will have to expend our energy in managing the internal conflict, which will not benefit the party in the long run,” he had told Republica. Though some important leaders might be voted out in this race, Khanal was hopeful that the convention will elect young, vibrant and competent leaders if the election is held. UML has evolved as one of the major parties in the past decades and has played a key role in many of the country’s revolutions. Thus, any new development within the party will have a major impact on the overall political scenario of the country. Therefore, the general public has been closely watching the on-going ninth National Congress of the party which is set to elect a new leadership. Holding an election to choose the leadership is always a democratic practice which would not only make any political outfit vibrant but would also provide opportunities to the younger generation to move up. Despite being the Marxist Leninist party in name, UML has evolved into a democratic force and has remained the most democratic of parties as far as its decision-making process is concerned. Compared to other major parties like Nepali Congress (NC) and UCPN (Maoist), UML has managed to involve the lower level cadres in the party’s decisions through its mechanisms. We have recently seen how the power struggle within UCPN (Maoist) forced the party to conduct the election of its central committee without the participation of the dissenting faction and it has not been able to sort out the differences even now, months after the election. And, despite being a democratic force in theory, NC has hardly been able to practice democracy in the party organization. Even as the party now leads the coalition government, the decision was never taken by its central working committee (CWC), which is yet to take full shape four years after its formation. It has always been leader-centric while taking crucial decisions. In this context, the likely election for the UML leadership would set yet another precedent of democratic practice which other parties need to follow. But this could turn into a missed opportunity if the party fails to address the concerns expressed by chairman Khanal that this election should not create a serious rift between the two candidates—Madhav Kumar Nepal and KP Sharma Oli and their supporters. It might take considerable time to bridge the gap between the two sides after the election, but it should not be the basis for further polarization between them. The power struggle seen during this Congress should come to an end as soon as the election is over. We are not in favor of rifts in any party in the country, as they could have negative impact on the national politics. And, more importantly, this election should be taken as an opportunity for generational transition for which the party representatives should prefer electing youth leaders who can take charge after this leadership’s tenure is over. The political parties, especially UML at this time, should understand that it is high time the generational shift in the leadership should be the main focus to take the party forward in the days ahead. 2 MAHABIR PAUDYAL Constituency Dev Fund Lawmakers have been reviled over their collective demand for Rs 50 million to be spent on their discretion for each electoral constituency. In a country where people have to flow a lot of blood and sweat in the Gulf and the Middle East to sustain livelihood public backlash on such an outlandish demand is just natural. Fifty million rupees is colossal money! Public rage has magnified also because lawmakers themselves have established that development funds are meant to warm their own pockets or to be distributed as largesse to their cadres. With ruling Nepali Congress officially standing in its favor and both CPN-UML and UCPN(Maoist) giving nod to this controversial decision, it is highly likely that the government will increase the parliamentary development fund from current one million, if not to 50 million as has been demanded, in the upcoming budget. This despite clear possibility that distributing equal money in each constituency could widen already wide disparities between developed and underdeveloped districts, and despite fierce media opposition. But that is beside the point. The real issue is what encouraged the lawmakers to push for this issue largely viewed as “blatant loot” of the state coffers. Why they are standing with unrelenting determination to get it even after the civil society, anti-corruption watchdogs, bureaucrats and National Planning Commission have unanimously opposed it? And why ruling parties are more vocal about this scheme? This article will try to answer these questions. Admit it or not, collective hubris of NC and UML over their electoral gains in the CA polls is at the root of this demand. These lawmakers (most of whom are the old faces from the 1990s politics who virtually milked the national coffers dry) have started to take people for granted. The popular mood among NC and UML apparatchiks seems to be: “Since people have voted us to power despite our failings and wrongdoings of the 1990s who are the media to oppose us?” There are good reasons for people to believe that lawmakers are going to pocket good portion, or all, of 50 million. There is a proven track record of development fund being misused. Often such money is spent for local clubs manned by cadres of the respective parties or on projects that do not even exist. With the cases of lawmakers failing to furnish the expenditure details, general perception is that the proposed scheme is only going to be a big drain on national economy. And as the cliché goes perception rather than reality matters in politics. Besides, the elected lawmakers have invested great deal of money (some of them as much as one million rupees) to secure victory in the CA polls. Some are reported to be in big debt. All this has left enough room for people to suspect that 50 million-demand is a coordinated plan of the parties to compensate for those losses. Another suspicion is that they are going to make it a good investment to consolidate their base for the next election (local or national). Neither individual lawmakers nor their parent parties have been able to counter these speculations with convincing arguments. If the lawmakers had pressed for creating a strong mechanism to strictly check possible misuse and offered to prosecute themselves if their complicity in embezzlement was proved before they demanded 50 million, their intention would not have been questioned. Good-intentioned leaders would have told the people: “We want this budget exclusively for constituency development, if we misuse it you can send us to jail.” NC UML silence over their lawmakers’ threat to obstruct budget proceeding if the demand is not met has added credence to public speculation that they are all working in collusion to allocate 50 million to lawmakers so they and their own party cadres, not the people, can reap its benefits. So what should be done? Submit To call all lawmakers chor (thieves), as is the norm in Nepal, would be rather uncivilized. Lawmakers are the legitimate voices of people in a democracy. There is public resentment against them because people have felt betrayed time and again. The only way to discipline them is to rein them in when they commit wrongdoings and award them when they do good. Before deciding on 50-million case or increasing current one million fund, it would be best to test their intention. This scribe has following proposal in mind. Let us propose to form a powerful Commission much like CIAA which will exclusively look into whether the development fund is being spent in the right way, for the right purpose and in the right place. If misuse is suspected anyone can file complaint against the culprits without having to disclose their names. Perhaps we can learn from India. The southern neighbor allocates as much as Rs 50 million (IC) to the elected lawmaker under Local Area Development Scheme. Lawmakers are entitled to spend this money for the development of their respective constituencies. But all spending needs to be transparent, monitored and audited by the government body. If the MP is found misusing it s/he can be blacklisted and cannot file candidacy in the next election. We can add some more conditions. Let us institute a system in which the lawmaker can get the fund only in installments (say Rs 0.5 million after the credible proposal is submitted, one million after ensuring that development work has made a good progress). It should be somehow like paying the lawmakers for the works they have done, not handing them cash in advance. The proposed Commission will visit the field and ask the people if any misuse has been committed and conduct public auditing before recommending Ministry of Finance to release the budget. There should be a strong provision to sentence the lawmakers to jail if they are found to have embezzled the fund. Fifty million rupees can change the face of a constituency if it is properly utilized. It can build a good number of school buildings in villages, construct around 50 drinking water projects and make rural roads. This fund could provide lawmakers with the opportunity to prove their potentials. Thus it would also be worthwhile to make a provision of rewarding those who use the budget for welfare of the people. An honest lawmaker will have no problem in accepting abovementioned conditions. If they don’t, it proves they want to “loot” the state coffers for personal gains. Then we can close this chapter without second thought. If they are not committed to ensuring transparency, accountability and fairness while spending development budget, they do not even deserve one million rupees. Monthly perks and allowances they receive is already about four times the income of a commoner. When state actors to fail to enforce rule of law, protect the most fundamental civil and political rights, provide basic services to the people like functioning education and health system and transportation infrastructure, say Leo E Rose and Subho Basu in Paradise Lost?, their extraction of resources from the state becomes an act of banditry. Nepal has been a perfect case of rulers acting like roving bandits—who collect taxes from people and use them only to serve their interests. The fear among the public is that lawmakers are going to give continuity to this state sponsored banditry in the name of constituency development fund. They need to dispel this doubt forever. If they had done so a decade ago, they would have been much respected by now, if they had thought about it even five years ago, it would have made a lot of difference. 3 BHOJ RAJ POUDEL CPN-UML Chairman Jhalanath Khanal had recently visited China. No one knew the purpose of his visit (I doubt even he did). Back from China, he has presented a paper in the general convention of the party, which is in the verge of choosing new leadership. The paper does not make clear the future direction of the party. This lack of clarity might be intentional. But what is very clear is that Khanal was very impressed by Chinese hospitality. The top level CPN-UML political leaders including Khanal must be aware of the concerns of neighboring countries. Nepal’s development should not be a byproduct of China and India’s strategic interests. There is a lot to gain from both the neighbors but there should be internal homework and strategically designed policies in place for development. China and India both are interested in giving financial support to develop certain infrastructures. That would be helpful for Nepal to grow but this alone will not lead the country towards prosperity. The paper presented in the general convention also has a faulty analysis about the geopolitics, global economic framework and capitalism. It is marred by misinterpretation. The major flaw is about the development and market-driven economy. Yes, capitalistic system has many flaws. But stating that it is coming to the end is foolish. There is a tendency of calling capitalistic system as “Western Capitalism”. Well, the idea started from the West but countries have been able to prosper with that system. Khanal thinks that there should be a lesson learnt from China as it is opening up. President Xi Jinping has been repeatedly saying that more power will be given to the market and policies have been reformed accordingly. China is able to implement right policies at the right time with right pace in order to achieve economic growth. This hasn’t been possible in other countries. There are clear examples of failure in many parts of the world even though they adopted capitalistic system. But that was mainly due to failure of proper implementation of programs at the right time. Submit Nepal will definitely benefit from the rise of China. But what would be India’s reaction to that? China has a clear ‘non-intervention’ policy but still huge presence of China through financial support and infrastructure development in Nepal can concern India. The Indian policy in Nepal is not even a ‘foreign policy’. It is merely a security issue handled by intelligence agency, which does not care much about development issues and human conditions. It would not be exaggeration to say that Nepal is one of the countries in the world led by worst leaders. These leaders lack confidence in what they want to do. They have inferiority complex with Indians. Worse, they think nationalism is the only way to gain people’s support. Leaders like Shinzo Abe in Japan and Narendra Modi in India are the worst examples to follow. Their nationalistic appeal will not be sustainable in the long term. Japan’s recent change in its constitution related to weapons and defense is not something Asians want. CPN-UML leaders should know that if they are thinking of nationalism for their political career, it will not help, especially in Nepal, which is sandwiched between two giants. History tells us that using nationalism for political career is done only by coward leaders. In the domestic context, most of the communist parties and their leaders use ‘nationalism’ for their career. But the irony is that the same leaders curry favor from Indian intelligence agency to meet their petty personal interests. This is clearly shown in the paper Khanal presented in the party convention. The main reason of being intentionally unclear about the message is his Indian fear. He probably remembers that he was the only Prime Minister not invited by either of the neighboring countries for state visit during his tenure. In relation to India, the new leadership of Modi is not desirable even though he achieved a landslide victory in the election. He believes in superstition and his ideas are not guided by scientific reasoning. Last week, inaugurating around 25 kilometers long new railway line in Katra, Jammu, he said that this railway connection would bring devotees closer to Maa Vaishno Devi. So if the Prime Minister of India builds transport system to bring Hindu devotees closer to their god and goddesses, what about people of other faiths? It is doubtful that this development model will lead India towards a more tolerant and prosperous society. Nepal’s geo-position is claimed to have strategic importance. There is a discussion going on that Nepal can be a ‘vibrant-bridge’ between China and India, which was basically floated by former King Gyanendra Shah. It was later picked up by former Prime Minister Pushpakamal Dahal. But China and India haven’t shown any interest in using Nepal as a bridge to get closer. If Nepal’s political leaders think that they get enough respect and attention from China and India, they are deceiving themselves. Therefore, Nepal should have its own development policies that can be implemented within certain time in order to have economic prosperity. But that does not seem to be happening in the foreseeable future since there is no political leadership with a clear vision of development. Their thoughts are guided by what they see just in front of them. Sheer inability to see strategic direction of the current situation is the main problem of most of the leaders, clearly reflected in the convention paper of CPN-UML. By the end of April Uprising in 2006, people cheered up not for what they had in hand but for seemingly better future—equal political-social rights and economic prosperity. The end of feudal social arrangement, loud voices from different ethnic groups and political leaders’ fresh commitment to deliver as per people’s expectation had ignited a light of hope. Unfortunately, almost nothing has been done since then. There is not even a sign of drafting a new constitution, forget economic prosperity and social-political advancement. So, what’s wrong with us? Who should be held accountable for this failure and waste of eight years? I am afraid it is leaders like Khanal who deceive themselves with myopic vision. 3 SEEMA PANDEY Federalism threat The contentious issues hindering the constitution-drafting process are yet to arrive and the prospect of the draft constitution within a year looks slim. Federalism brings the fear of geo-security of a state along with it, given that Nepal has recently witnessed the events in Ukraine. Crimea’s vote for joining Russia must have instilled reasonable fear in Nepal regarding territorial integrity. Our neighbour China has been known for its non-interference principle. However, the geo-economics dynamism and growing cooperation between China and Russia has perhaps made China react softer in the context of Russia’s military intervention. China abstained from voting the UN resolution affirming commitment to the sovereignty, political independence, unity and territorial integrity of Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders. Its soft position on Russia’s illegal intervention raises plenty of doubts. Only last year China and Russia had allied together against the intervention on Syria, following the alleged use of chemical weapons by Assad regime. It is clear that Russia now stands in contradiction to its previous position over Syria. China tried its best to demonstrate itself as practitioner of the core Chinese principle of non-intervention by vetoing in support, like in Syria. But it chose to abstain in Crimea. This abstention is controversial because an emerging world power like China should stand with firmness and clarity in such matters. Unlike the US and the EU who continue to call the referendum illegal and have been imposing sanctions on selected Russian and Ukrainian companies, China has not practiced any such sanctions. Western sanctions imply rejection and criticism for breaching a state’s territorial integrity and also a warning to respect states’ sovereignty and integrity. Through sanctions, it is necessary to send a message that borders are not merely a suggestion, but a solid fact, and that the boundaries shouldn’t be crossed. Chinese firmness on voting against Russia might have been more understandable, given that China is clearly against separatist movement due to its multi-ethnicities in certain regions including Tibet. A vote against Russia instead of abstention may have raised China’s image as a firm and an ethical follower of its principle of non-intervention. It was not as firm as it was during the resolution of non-intervention on Syria. Abstention perhaps points towards China’s cautious but subtle support to Russia. Submit However, it is more alarming to see India’s reaction to Crimea secession. The government of India was the first major country to recognize the annexation of Crimea and was in the list that abstained on the resolution supporting the territorial integrity of Ukraine. It justified its decision by saying that it was the choice of Crimeans. All this creates a massive geostrategic security concern for Nepal. Russia, a close neighbor to India, has once again exemplified the use of ethnic lines and self-determination as a tool to expand territorial power, not that India has not practiced something similar in Sikkim. Given this scenario, it may not be absurd to worry about Nepal’s security in relation to its sovereignty and territorial integrity. Future may provide India such opportunities or they may be created where three of the BRIC states (India, China and Russia) may hold a similar position in term of Nepal’s secession for one or the other reason. Russia would not clearly support Nepal’s territorial integrity over the self-determination of the people as it may not have a moral to do so and China may not stand firm with a strong opposition to such decisions. But it will certainly create enormous security dilemma for Nepal. Given that there are far too many things common between the Madheshi people and the northern India (Bihar) like geographical contiguity, language, culture, religion and identity symbols, future threats of national disintegration seem to be overwhelmingly present in the popular debates. Such contentious debates will make federalism issue even more complicated. The Crimean case proves that external threat of military intervention and internal threat of secession, due to unconsolidated and non-integrated identities, still undermines state’s security. Nepal may not be different and might have to face similar future as of Ukraine. Moreover, considering that the Madhesh region is the most productive region of Nepal, secession of this particular territory could make Nepal handicapped and so weak that it is obliged to surrender. So the threat is not only over losing a piece of territory but also of existence. National integration is the most alarming need of Nepal after witnessing Russia, India and China’s reaction to Crimea secession. Secession takes place due to lack of ethnic integration, discrimination, lack of identity narratives embedded in the history, remorse and absence of a symbol that unites its people. It is a challenging job in a multi-cultural state like Nepal to consolidate its nations. Nepal is the oldest state with defined borders (more or less) in the South Asian region (suggesting that most of states in the region were formed after WWII following decolonization) and the logic and validity of its oldest existence is owing to the efforts of the Shah rulers. It is globally noticeable that states were formed of both will and force and all the oldest states of the world have more or less similar pattern of formation. As for a state to exist in the current form, it needs to provide historical narratives to prove the legitimacy of its existence. In other words, the history of struggle to exist as a separate entity gives a moral and legal component to the legitimacy of any states. Most of the oldest states in the world therefore tend to preserve their history and memories. Most often such states have a monarch as a symbol of its history. Some examples of the oldest states of the world like United Kingdom, Spain, Netherlands and other have been preserving their monarchs as a symbol of history along with a tribute for the struggle they made to form the very state. Symbolic or ceremonial monarch could serve as legitimacy for the Nepali state and could be the very thread that all cultures and ethnicities can relate to. Provided that Shahs were the symbol and a historical narrative for existence and sustenance of Nepal, a symbolic monarch can become the most persuasive symbol and a legitimate reason for them to be unified under one state system amidst the cultural diversity. All of the oldest states of the world have preserved monarchs symbolically. Thus it will be immoral and unethical to reject the history. 4 Serious initiation necessary With the much-awaited visit of Indian foreign minister and prime minister to Nepal being worked out, the government officials here are expecting a major cooperation between the two countries in the hydropower sector which would benefit the both. The Indian envoy to Nepal, Ranjit Rae, has already begun his homework to facilitate the visit by meeting concerned government officials in which he has assured of a major economic package. The booming economy of our close neighbor India has become one of the most important topics of discussions lately as we believe that Nepal could benefit a lot from it. Due to its strategic location too, Nepal has no other option than to find ways to further its cooperation with the southern neighbor and begin charting the course to build a prosperous Nepal. And, development of one key sector that could benefit both Nepal and India is the hydropower sector, as Nepal has immense potential but has not been able to harness it. Along with the economic growth, India will need a huge amount of energy in the immediate future and Nepal has the capacity to fulfill that need. Therefore, any cooperation between the two countries in the hydropower development would be beneficial to both the countries. Good news is that cooperation in the hydropower sector has already begun, as few Indian companies have already received the licenses to survey and build different hydropower projects. However, due to the lack of Power Trade Agreement (PTA) between the two countries, the investors are yet to be assured of the outcome. Hence, the government officials, while talking to this daily, have put the signing of PTA high on the agenda for the Indian dignitaries’ visits. PTA would not only open Nepal’s energy market to the southern neighbor but also attract investment from multi-national companies. Thus, the government officials here expect that the visit of Indian foreign minister Sushma Swaraj in the third week of July and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s likely visit in August would help create an environment to move further ahead in the much-needed cooperation in the hydropower sector. And the signing of PTA would be a good beginning. The government has even included PTA with India in its policies and programs for the upcoming fiscal year. Those in the know believe that PTA would not only pave the way for power trading, but also assure and encourage investors who are still hesitant to invest due to lack of market assurance. Though Nepal sent a proposal for PTA in 2010, India remained silent. However, India has recently forwarded a proposal saying that it is ready for ‘energy cooperation’, according to government officials. Dhalkebar-Mujaffarpur transmission line is already under construction while another cross-border transmission line linking Bardaghat of Nepal to Gorakhpur of India is currently under study. And the Indian ambassador Rae is known to have told our energy minister that India wants to speed up the works on Pancheshwar Multi Purpose Project by establishing a joint project implementation office in Kanchanpur. These are some of the positive indications coming from the Indian side which could actually kick off the much-needed cooperation in the hydropower sector. One thing is sure. Signing of PTA could boost the much-needed confidence between the two countries, as both sides need to work out the details by guaranteeing a mutual benefit. The upcoming visits of the Indian dignitaries are definitely a good opportunity to begin this cooperation in earnest. 6 Load-shedding or the rolling electricity blackouts that have been in place over the last few years could come to an end with a single stroke of the “Delete” key. For that, we’ll need to take a deep breath, believe in ourselves and strike the “Delete” key with conviction. Load-shedding in Nepal could come to an end if Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) stops doing two things: First, it must stop planning for load-shedding; and second it must “Delete” or stop publishing the load-shedding schedule. This wouldn’t immediately bring demand and supply into balance—after all, the current load-shedding is because of insufficient supply. NEA would still need to resort to load-shedding to bring supply and demand into balance. It would have to continue resorting to load-shedding, except it would have to do it randomly across circles, rather than using a pre-determined rolling weekly load-shedding schedule for each circle. If NEA were to actually stop publishing the load-shedding schedule and start to randomly enforce rolling blackout, there is a real risk that a large number of people may gather outside NEA offices around the country in protest. People could pelt stones, barricade NEA offices, even burn it down, in which case there will be no NEA left at all, no electricity supply at all and, therefore, no blackouts to contend with. But the Nepali people are smarter than that. Having lived through a long and violent uprising in the expectation of a better future only to be denied one, they now realize that pointing the gun at each other, or resorting to gunda-gardi (hooliganism) may not always get you what you want. Rather than barricade NEA offices, protest or cause mayhem, the Nepali people will instead groan, moan, curse under their breath and get on with their lives. The cleverer ones will find a way to coax donors into supporting even more conferences on improving electricity supply. Life will go on. And that is the point at which load-shedding will begin to disappear and the space for innovative distributed solutions that isn’t reliant solely on NEA will open up. Every country goes through shortages and surpluses in electricity markets much like the fluctuations of a business cycle. Nepal is no exception. But different countries have different ways of responding to an imbalance between demand and supply in electricity market. In the United States, for example, electricity markets went through a period of sustained shortages in the mid-to-late nineties. This was followed by an equally long and sustained period of surpluses. There are several competitive power markets in the United States. In those markets, shortages were expressed through power prices which routinely exceeded $10,000 per mega-watt hour (or NPR 1,000/unit). Generators demanded this price and buyers paid it. Attracted by these prices many new generators flooded into the market. Within a few years there was excess generation capacity. Electricity prices slumped and generators were unable to recover their costs. US electricity markets responded to the slump, this time with bankruptcies and closures. Many energy companies went broke, others were forced to merge and several billions of dollars of investments sank. There was plenty of heartache, plenty of finger pointing but at the end, the markets had adjusted demand and supply. Life went on. Submit Like in the US, a period of shortages in generation as Nepal is experiencing is not abnormal. The question is how we respond to it. US has robust competitive markets, at least in some of the key states. Shortages and surpluses are expressed through changes in prices, which provide the incentives to correct the imbalance. On the other hand, Nepal’s response to power shortages was a weekly schedule of load-shedding that said when power would go off and for how long. The purpose of the analogy is not to contrast the market and institutional framework of Nepal against that of the US. That would be irrelevant. The point of the comparison is to illustrate the real tragedy of Nepal’s load shedding. The second worst thing that NEA did was incorrectly judge demand and supply a few years ago. For that it can be forgiven. But the absolute worst thing it ever did—for which it cannot be forgiven—was to have a system of announced rolling power cuts, the weekly load-shedding schedule. The tragedy in Nepal’s power crisis is not that we have electricity shortages. The real tragedy with Nepal’s current power crisis is how we responded to those shortages. The load shedding schedule forced consumers to respond. Armed with the weekly schedule, people began to reorient their lives. Batteries and inverters, most of them of poor quality, sold briskly. People woke up at odd hours to iron their clothes. Children were taught by their parents to switch off their computers, stop reading and instead to go to sleep early or loiter in the neighborhood with their friends. With the load-shedding schedule, Nepal didn’t respond to the electricity crisis, it simply forced everyone to adapt to it. It snubbed Nepal’s psyche and killed her hopes of a recovery or if not that, set it back several decades. Nepal’s ongoing electricity crisis may have cost it several percentage points in its economic growth. But that’s not where it should hurt. Even a flood or an unexpected calamity can cause a large economic loss. The question is how we respond to a crisis and build the basis of a recovery. The easy convenience of a load-shedding schedule has paralyzed our chances for a recovery. People have adjusted. They are willing to wake up at three am to iron their shirts. Businesses have learned to adjust. Hotels are prepared to tell their guests, “Sorry, the air conditioner won’t work because there is no electricity.” There is no urgency for improvement—just a decline to adjustment. With 18 hours of power cuts, an improvement to 16 hours in the next few years will still seem like a good thing—but is it really? NEA’s forecast that there will be a surplus supply of electricity by 2017-2018 is in part a direct bias of the load-shedding schedule. The reason there could be a surplus is because there is hardly any demand growth. And the reason there is no demand growth is because everyone—people and industries—have adjusted to life with the load shedding schedule. If you have learned to live with 18 hours of power cuts, nobody can quite imagine what they would do with 24 hours of continuous reliable power supply. If you can’t imagine it, you certainly won’t demand it. Rather than the load shedding itself, it is the use of the load-shedding schedule as the response strategy that has killed Nepal’s long-terms prospects for improvement. In this crisis, the government has missed an opportunity to allow for some fresh out of the box thinking on Nepal’s energy issue. It has continued to promote the same tired-out solutions: more plants, bigger plants, longer transmission lines and deeper grid extension. Nepal needs a broader portfolio of smarter energy use, distributed solutions, micro-gri This year, the UN has declared ‘Island Biodiversity’ as the theme for celebrating International Day for Biological Diversity. The world’s islands are home to about 600 million people – 10 per cent of the world’s population. These islands are also home to some unique species of plants and animals that are found nowhere else in the world. For example, the kangaroo is found only in Australia, the flightless kiwi bird is found only in New Zealand, and the now extinct dodo – another flightless bird – was found only in Mauritius. Australia, New Zealand and Mauritius are all island countries.
‘Islands’ – the word generally conjures images of areas of land surrounded by water. For conservationists, islands take on another meaning when pockets of pristine land areas rich in biodiversity exist amidst intensive areas of human settlements, agriculture or industrialization. These ‘islands’ are generally home to numerous species of plants, birds, insects and animals. At a larger scale, many of these ecologically significant islands have been set aside as areas to protect plants and wildlife. Animals, particularly large animals, must move, and thus require large areas of habitat for their survival. Often, when animals travel outside their ‘islands’ of protected areas, they enter human settlements and destroy crops, livestock, and even human life, resulting in what conservationists term ‘human-wildlife conflicts’. Humans generally respond to such wildlife intrusions by exterminating them through various means – a process termed as ‘retaliatory killing.’ One of the methods by which the habitat of large animals can be increased is by connecting protected areas through wildlife ‘corridors’. These corridors can be instrumental in connecting fragmented habitat islands and thereby facilitating wildlife movement. Corridors also promote interbreeding, which results in genetic diversity within the wildlife population. The Kanchenjunga Landscape is one of seven landscape initiatives in the Hindu Kush Himalayas where the ecosystem approach is being used with a focus on connecting islands of protected areas through conservation corridors. This initiative is a trans-boundary program involving the governments of Bhutan, India, and Nepal. The program aims to develop connectivity between the 20 isolated protected areas in the landscape through a network of conservation corridors extending from eastern Nepal, through the states of Sikkim and northern West Bengal in India, to western Bhutan. These corridors will facilitate the movement of species, such as the endangered snow leopard at the higher elevations, and Bengal tiger and Asian elephant at the lower elevations. The Kanchenjunga Landscape is part of the Eastern Himalaya ‘Biodiversity Hotspot’ where there is high level of biodiversity, much of which is facing severe threats from humans. The landscape hosts a significantly high number of plants and is home to at least six species of endangered animals including the snow leopard, Himalayan musk deer, Bengal tiger, Asian elephant, and one-horned rhino, among others. The trademark plant species of the landscape is the rhododendron – at least 45 species of which are found in the landscape. The landscape is also home to approximately seven million women and men, some of whom belong to distinct ethnic groups, such as the Lepchas and the Walungs. Despite the ecological significance of the Kanchenjunga Landscape, there is much we need to know about the biodiversity and socio-economy of the region. During a recent review process for understanding the state of knowledge on biodiversity in the landscape, about 850 published and unpublished documents were recorded. The first recorded study in the landscape was conducted more than 170 years ago on the Lepchas of Sikkim by Archibald Campbell, the British political agent to Sikkim and Darjeeling in the East India Company. This was followed by the work of the notable British naturalist Joseph Dalton Hooker, who published an account of his botanical expedition in the Kanchenjunga region in two volumes of The Himalayan Journals in 1854. Subsequently, research interest in the Kanchenjunga landscape increased significantly only three decades later in the 1980s. Much of the information gathered in the area was focused on animals and plants, with the red panda being the most researched animal species in the landscape. Over 80 per cent of the research has been conducted in the Indian portion of the Kanchenjunga Landscape, only 9 per cent has been conducted in Nepal and just 4 per cent took place in the Bhutan portion of the landscape. Why is it important to know about the biodiversity in the Kanchenjunga Landscape? There are an estimated 8.7 million species of organisms in the world. Among these, only 1.2 million species have been identified till date – representing only 14 per cent of the total biodiversity in the world. Accordingly, we have probably identified only a third of the total number of species in the Kanchenjunga Landscape. Much of the gaps in our knowledge exist in relation to species other than plants and animals, i.e. on fish, amphibians, insects, fungi, and bacteria. Not much has been done to know the status of these relatively neglected life forms. Knowledge about biodiversity is crucial to understanding their roles in the ecosystem and therefore for their effective management. Biodiversity is a natural capital that provides a number of ecosystem services in the Kanchenjunga Landscape, including providing food, timber, fiber and medicines – all things we depend on. It is also an important source of income for many local people living in the landscape. Therefore, gaining in-depth knowledge on biodiversity and associated ecosystem functions is extremely important for the well-being of the communities within the Kanchenjunga Landscape, as well as for the global community. 2 img The Demise of Judiciary Five weeks ago the Judicial Council (JC) recommended eight names for positions in the Supreme Court. It had taken three years to arrive at this point, and immediately a huge row erupted over its choice. Its recommendations for justices’ posts in the Supreme Court were highly controversial and raised great concern among legal professionals, the Nepal Bar Association (NBA) and others associated with the justice sector over the future independence of the judiciary. The recommendations were instantly criticized because they included some justices with 'tainted' reputations of corruption, immorality and bad conduct in their professional history. Despite such huge controversy over the recommendations and seemingly weeks of wrangling among the political parties and others, the Parliamentary Hearing Special Committee (PHSC) went ahead just a few days ago and endorsed all eight nominees for Supreme Court service. Today everybody is demanding to know what the point is of having a Parliamentary Hearing if it simply goes ahead and endorses individuals for public service even though they are known to be incompetent, immoral and lacking in professional ethics? The JC has, of course, been heavily criticized for, in the first place, by making recommendations for judges´ appointments that were not based on the competence of the individuals but rather on political exchanges (len-den), money, muscles, favoritism and nepotism. The controversial appointments give rise to a fresh debate about whether such an institution as the JC and the constitutional provision of the Parliamentary Hearing have any relevance or pragmatic outcome in our context. The appointment of controversial judges brings into question the accountability of the JC itself and the relevance of a mandatory constitutional provision called a ‘Parliamentary Hearing’. Judges’ appointments in Nepal have always been controversial. There has been an absence of transparency, and appointments have often been based on personal preference and political connection. Over the course of its 60 years’ history, the country’s judiciary appears somewhat as a politicized organ, but never before has it been so politically and socially controversial. The JC’s recent recommendations for judicial appointment and the PHSC’s subsequent endorsement amount to perhaps the most controversial episode in our country’s judicial history. How can such an unholy, unconstitutional and immoral practice do other than to jeopardize the system of justice in our country? How can such controversial judges, appointed not on the basis of merit but of political allotment (bhagbanda), dispense fair justice? Whose interest are they going to serve throughout their tenure? It is not as though this matter is happening for the first time. It has happened many times, and it has affected the appointment of judges at every court of law. The time has arrived for us all to think seriously about the following questions. Why are there no rules or, if they exist, why does no one wish to follow them? Why do we see the same thing repeated again and again in this country? Where are the professional ethics of all concerned? Is it not time to undertake a critical assessment of all stakeholders, including the judges, the JC and the PHSC, the system for their appointment and their moral conduct in post? Should the judiciary not be independent of politics and of any outside interference? How can we establish fair and impartial justice if the Apex Court itself is headed by individuals who, in the eyes of the public, are already recognized as being controversial, immoral, corrupt and incompetent? The recent gross failure of the PHSC to respect the expectations of the wider public gives off a number of very negative messages, as follows: Firstly, an independent judiciary is the backbone of any democratic state, but in our context the pillar of independence would seem to have been destroyed. Powerful stakeholders in the country have hijacked the judiciary, and the norms and values of this vital dispenser of justice are seriously under threat. The judiciary has been forced into a very vulnerable situation, subject now to an external power. How judges are appointed - their capability, professional ethics, merit and integrity - is crucial for ensuring judicial independence. Can our judiciary still maintain its autonomy? And can it still dispense justice fairly? Secondly, this recent unfortunate episode must be viewed as a great tragedy for our justice system. It reveals only too clearly excessive political and external interference with the judiciary and with our system of justice. Consequently public trust in the nation’s justice system is greatly diminished, and all citizens must ask what kind of justice they can expect in the future? Thirdly, this appointment of judges in the Apex Court has raised very serious questions about the effectiveness of the ‘Parliamentary Hearing’. This process is supposed to 'increase public trust in the authorities and the institutions that they represent, and citizens are given an opportunity to evaluate the willingness, effectiveness and ability of their representatives to accommodate public voices. Conducting a Hearing is an effective means of potentially earning the trust of a public often wary of politicians' credibility’. Did the PHSC on this occasion serve its purpose? The answer clearly has to be a big ‘No’: the purpose served would appear to be that of the leaders of the so-called political parties and of those hidden powers that wish to use the judiciary to serve their sick desire to legalize and legitimize their own vested interests. It is argued that the PHSC attracted an unrepresentative sample of society, mainly powerful stakeholders with an economic or political interest in the outcome. Many are therefore asking today: Why do we need such a 'karmakandi natak' (ceremonial) hearing if it does not have any effect - especially if it fails to serve the interest of the people? Someone out there must answer this to the people. Finally, the JC, established under Article 113 of the Interim Constitution of 2007, is a body responsible for making recommendations for the appointment and transfer of judges as well as for any disciplinary action needed against them and for their dismissal. Has this constitutional body ever fulfilled its constitutional duty? The answer is again a huge No! By recommending so many controversial individuals for appointment as judges in the Apex Court, it has made a mockery of the institution itself, its purpose and its mandate. The JC has misused its constitutional authority. Is this not the time to restructure, rethink and redefine its function, its roles and its responsibilities? Shouldn’t this institution be made more accountable to the people? Isn’t it a time, in fact, for a reform of every justice sector institution? The time is certainly ripe for a wider debate around the following questions. What is the meaning of judicial independence, and what are its proper limits? How is judicial independence best protected, and by whom? What are the roles of lawyers, politicians, civil society and the media in maintaining the autonomy of the judiciary? Why do we keep repeating the same old mistakes again and again? Firstly, if we wish the judiciary to become a vibrant institution for the prompt and impartial delivery of justice, those who are appointed as judges must be seen to be fully competent, moral and clean for the role. The JC, which makes the appointments, must be headed and staffed by clean, qualified and non-political individuals. Clearing up the mess within the JC itself would be the first essential step towards reforming our justice system. Secondly, the JC and all courts of law must be free from political lobbying and allotment (bhagbanda). Thirdly, both judges and lawyers must maintain their integrity and morality and comply with their professional ethics. Our country is again facing constitutional upheaval, political crisis and even greater uncertainty. It is imperative that we rapidly re-establish the supremacy of the constitution, the rule of law, the separation of powers and the full impartiality of our judicial system. Democratic principles require that all government actions are open to scrutiny by the courts of law. Those courts in turn must redefine their functions, attitudes and operating procedures to re-establish their credibility and to win back public confidence. Let us hope that the principles and values of justice will not perish in this part of the world. 4 World Environment Day Special: The Himalayas - Upstream but Downwind The Hindu Kush Himalayan (HKH) region has received much attention as the source of rivers that supply water to 1.3 billion people downstream. It has received far less attention for its role as the recipient of the air pollution originating in the plains. Across northern South Asia during the dry season, individual plumes from hundreds of millions of cooking fires, tens of millions of diesel vehicles, generators and pump sets, as well as tens of thousands of brick kilns merge together into one thick brown haze layer that extends across international borders from Pakistani Punjab to Bangladesh, penetrating deep into Himalayan valleys. A major constituent of this haze is black carbon. Black carbon is a carcinogen and has major impacts on people’s health. It is also a ‘short-lived climate pollutant’ (SLCP) – an air pollutant that has significant impacts on local and regional climate. Unlike the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide (CO2), which, once emitted, stays in the atmosphere for centuries impacting global climate, SLCPs have atmospheric lifetimes of days to months. The good news is that shutting down the sources of SLCPs reduces their climate impact within days to months. Their short lifetime also means that they do not have time to mix uniformly around the globe, and that their greatest impact is near their sources. The bad news is that the HKH region is near a major source region for black carbon: the Indo-Gangetic Plains, where more than half a billion people live along the Indus, Ganges, and Brahmaputra rivers and their tributaries. While globally black carbon has the second biggest impact on climate after CO2, its impact in northern South Asia is much bigger than its global average. Black carbon contributes to the melting of Himalayan glaciers and snowfields, warms the atmosphere at higher elevations and cools it at lower elevations, affecting atmospheric circulation patterns. It also reduces visibility to the point where snowy peaks are no longer visible from places whose livelihoods depend on selling mountain views to tourists. In addition, it contributes to changes in monsoon clouds and in the timing and intensity of rainfall, with potentially significant impacts on droughts, floods, landslides, hydropower, agriculture and drinking water availability. While air pollution is severe in some of the larger cities in the plains, such as Delhi, Agra, and Dhaka, it can be as bad or worse in smaller cities within the HKH region, such as Kathmandu, Nepal. The mountains surrounding the Kathmandu Valley, and the airflow they create, confine its local emissions within the valley from early evening until late morning. Field studies during the first half of 2013 found concentrations of air pollutants several times above WHO’s and Nepal’s own air quality standards for extended periods of time. Emissions within the Kathmandu Valley are not the only source of its air pollution problem. There are also inputs from cooking fires, agricultural fires, and forest fires in the surrounding valleys and mountains, and more importantly, an inflow of air pollution up the Bagmati Valley from the south. While sewage from mountain cities flows down the rivers into the plains and across borders, a reverse flow of air pollution comes back up the mountain valleys. There are around 120 brick kilns within the Kathmandu Valley, less than 800 in all of Nepal, mostly in southern Nepal, but almost 23,000 in the two neighbouring Indian states of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar alone. Air pollution crosses borders daily. Shutting down all of Nepal’s brick kilns will not stop the pollution arriving from the ones south of the border. Bhutan has no brick kilns. It imports its bricks as well as black carbon from brick kilns. Creating effective air pollution policies to reduce people’s exposure to high levels of air pollution and to reduce its impacts on climate requires detailed scientific understanding of the links between sources and impacts, as well as regionally coordinated science-based policies. What fraction of the black carbon arriving on Yala Glacier in Langtang is from nearby households, from Kathmandu, from the Nepali Terai, or from India or beyond? Effective policy making at the local and national levels requires detailed maps of emissions sources, atmospheric modeling systems that simulate the fate of emitted pollutants, connecting sources to impacts, as well as a network of measurement stations that provide real-time data to the public and policy makers and inputs to atmospheric models. It also requires free flow of data across borders, and regionally coordinated responses to high air pollution episodes. Ultimately, cleaning up air pollution in northern South Asia and reducing its impacts on the HKH region requires a strong push towards cleaner, less polluting technologies, including clean cooking, clean brick production and clean transportation. 3 img Understanding health care and hospital system in Kathmandu In December 2013, I decided to undertake a three-week medical elective at two very different hospitals in Kathmandu. The first hospital I volunteered at was the Civil Service Hospital at New Baneshwor. This is a government-financed hospital built by the Chinese government as a gift to the government of Nepal. It is well regarded for its speciality in the haematology field. Importantly, government officials including existing government service workers, pensioners and retirees receive 50 per cent concession for hospital charges. The second hospital I volunteered at was the Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital (TUTH) at Maharajganj. The TUTH is regarded as the best and biggest hospital in Nepal for many reasons. First, being the largest capacity hospital in the country, all kinds of disease patterns present and when people have a diagnostic dilemma, they come to this hospital because it focuses on rare diagnoses. Second, it places a big focus on academia and research and third, it also has provisions for the very poor (living below US$1 a day). As I set out on my medical elective, the main goal was to gain an appreciation and understanding of the health care and hospital system in Nepal and contrast it to Australia. This article discusses some of the major differences I observed and experienced within the health care and hospital system and other related areas. Lack of a strong primary health care system I found the absence of a strong primary health care (PHC) provision in Nepal. Primary preventative care and self-management are not considered as important and therefore, do not have a strong influence in Nepal. The concept of general practice does not contribute to a large proportion of outpatient care. Instead, the system is structured on Outpatient Departments (OPD) within hospitals where patients can have short consults with doctors according to the medical speciality such as respiratory OPD, OBGYN OPD etc. and if further medical care is required, they self admit to the hospital. The process for OPD consults is one of a ticketing system whereby patients purchase a Rs 25 ticket before consultation with the doctor. The nature of the consults are incredibly short, lasting between 5-10mins and done in the presence of 2-3 other doctors who are consulting different patients at the same time. Therefore, there is a lack of consideration for privacy and confidentiality in these circumstances. The consulting process is hectic and overcrowded as up to 1500 patients are consulted every day (TUTH). Given the time frame and ratio of patients to consult, the provision of patient focus, holistic care and efficiency are most likely overlooked. Medical care provision The second major difference noted was the provision of medical care according to affordability. As there is no health system in Nepal that provides universal coverage for medical care, the patients health is based mainly on out of pocket expenses; therefore, the type of care received by patients in hospitals is based on fee they can afford. For example, the TUTH has up to 7,000 beds available. For those who can afford to pay Rs 600 a night are placed in a different ward and those who cannot are placed in a central area with 10 beds, open to public access. Amongst these poorer group of patients, some cannot even afford hospital care and are therefore placed in a separate area beneath a sign that reads too poor to pay for medical care (direct translation) so that the staff understand their financial situation before providing them with economically appropriate medical care. Furthermore, diagnostic tests ordered by doctors are also based on patients income. If a patient can afford high-level medical care, expensive tests with definitive diagnosis outcomes are recommended, however, for those that cannot, only small-scale tests are ordered and ultimately pose a diagnostic problem for the medical team. The very poor cannot afford even the most basic tests, and so appropriate parameters are put in place by the hospital to separate these patients into a scheme that receives free care by the hospital. Interestingly, the parameters to decipher these situations are very subjective and judgemental i.e. if a patient can afford a mobile phone, they can afford medical care, or judging by the clothes they wear. Patient education and management The third major difference noted was less focus on patient education and self-management. The Nepali population has a very different perspective and attitude about health and wellbeing in general compared to Australians and this is the prime reason for this discrepancy, which needs to be addressed. Nepali people often endure ill health until they reach severe circumstances and require hospital assistance. Their general attitude is that illness may be temporary and will get resolved in time without medical assistance. Alongside this attitudinal difference, a lot of patients cannot afford medical care or find it a nuisance to visit the doctor or the hospital, particularly if it interferes with their ability to make a living or responsibility to care for family. An example of this is a 38-week pregnant woman who refused to be admitted to the obstetrics ward despite being told by the doctor that she would give birth that day after a physical examination. Her main concern was that she had not been in pain and she needed to be home to look after her husband and family. The doctor proceeded to call her husband to explain the situation because many women dont tell their husbands about the consult and if pregnancy complications ensue, the husband makes complaints to the hospital. The focus of the patient education should not only be for patient awareness but also for medico-legal purposes to overcome social and societal issues. In contrast, people in Australia deem it a right to have access to health care and place it as a priority to get general check-ups and medical care when they are ill. Although this is still an issue in the rural areas of Australia, this problem is minimal relative to the general Nepali population. Therefore, Nepali people require better patient education about what constitutes ill health, when it is important to visit a doctor and why its important to have frequent general check-ups to better manage their health and avoid acute illness in the future. Priorities Nepals health care and hospital system would benefit from a stronger primary health care system, which focuses on health education, awareness and preventative care alongside self-management of patients. This will help people manage their health within the community and reduce the pressure placed in secondary care within a hospital setting when patients are admitted severely ill and at the end spectrum of their disease state. It will also reduce hospital costs for patients and save the health cost for the countrys economy. Furthermore, family and friends of patients also need to be better educated alongside the patient about how to self manage their health at home and how to prevent illness to encourage them to seek health assistance in a timely manner. Other areas of improvement that may be beneficial to improve the patients journey in the health care system includes strengthening doctor patient relationships, emphasis on holistic medical care and focus on mental health. Doctors are highly revered people in the community and patients respect them to the point that they will do anything a doctor advises even if it is beyond their wishes. This is because patients have an inherent belief that the doctor always knows best and often leave the most important decisions about their own health in the hands of someone else. Therefore, better communication between the doctor and patient regarding patient values, finances, personal, cultural and religious beliefs are important to include in the decision making process for their health. Additionally, the focus of medicine in Nepal is one of a diagnostic or quick fix rather than a holistic model of care. This model focuses on the patients medical problem and aims to fix it rather than looking at the disease in the context of the persons life. This is where the doctor-patient relationship is important to understand the barriers for providing the best medical care and quality of life for that particular patient. Finally, there is little emphasis on mental health problems in Nepal. Most hospitals dont have a separate mental health ward, but a joint ward with around 10 beds. Interestingly, the most common causes of mental illness in Nepal include cases of Schizophrenia and depression; mainly post traumatic stress disorder. Although there is low prevalence of mental health conditions in Australia and there is a proper system to look after, on the contrary in Nepal, a large majority of the population goes undiagnosed because there is no screening system, little provision within the health care system and even less support for them within the community once diagnosed. Summary Overall, despite the need to improve parts of Nepals health care and hospital system, there are so many positives I observed during my elective. I was mainly impressed by the efficiency of a hospital system in a developing country. The hospital system is able to cater for so many patients without an abundance of resources or financial support. The hospital operational system was very efficient and there was a good working relationship between the medical officers, doctors, nurses and other staff. I was inspired by the ability of doctors to cater to a wide variety of patients in Nepal from different social, cultural, religious and economical backgrounds. The calibre of the staff was also very impressive in their level of expertise, knowledge and teaching. Furthermore, the staff were incredibly friendly and taught me like I was a student of their own. Having had the opportunity to undertake my medical elective in Kathmandu, I have benefited in understanding the differences between hospital system structure and function between developing and developed countries. These experiences and perspectives I gained will help me enormously in my clinical studies in Australia. The proliferation of international and national non-governmental organizations began with the ushering in of democracy in 1990. Obviously, the priority was all round development, particularly education and health sectors. Now, the Social Welfare Council (SWC) has the responsibility of promoting, facilitating, coordinating, monitoring and evaluating the I/NGOs conducting their works in the country. However, as per a preliminary report of the National Vigilance Centre, there is lack of strict regulation and monitoring of the I/NGOs that have suddenly grown in the country. This is a matter of serious concern as in many cases the SWC has no knowledge where and how the I/NGOs are functioning. The SWC is seen to be an institution that is not doing its task. This might have to do with the existing SWC policies, structure and working procedures which have hindered its role as a regulatory body. Any activity taking place in the country as regards the non-governmental organizations must be in the knowledge of the SWC, but that is not the case. The problem with many I/NGOs is the amount of funds they channelize without the SWC being aware of it which shows how the I/NGOs have taken benefit of the loopholes of the rules and regulations that govern them. It is even reported that there are I/NGOs operating in the country which have bypassed the mandatory registration with the SWC. They have been illegally operating in the country, but no action has been mooted against them. The I/NGOs have capitalized on the weak SWC intervention to channelize big amounts without the knowledge of the government itself. Moreover, the transaction of foreign currency that comes in the name of the non-governmental organizations ought to be spent in Nepal, instead of its conversion into Nepali rupees. The registration of the I/NGOs and their projects ensure that they do not indulge in activities against the interests of Nepal. The unbridled activities of the I/NGOs which bypass the SWC to utilize the funds made available through bilateral and multilateral agreements with state agencies should be controlled, as there is every probability of the country not gaining much from their presence. The Social Welfare Council has to be strengthened so that it is able to strictly monitor and evaluate the I/NGOs working in the country, and bar any of them if found to be working against the agreement with the SWC. It is agreed that the I/NGOs make important contributions through their works in various sectors, but without strict monitoring some of them would not be playing according to the rules and may prove detrimental to the country’s interests itself. There should be one window policy for the funds entering the country through various agreements, and the I/NGOs should not have open access to them. The urgent need is for a stronger SWC that can keep a check on the I/NGOs in the country so that they work as per the proposals of projects that they have submitted. But, for this to materialize, the SWC should be granted the authority to act accordingly. Some respite Acquiring a passport is an arduous task taking an awfully long time for the common man. People queue at the Department of Passport (DoP) premises since early in the morning and many of them coming from outside the capital city even camp outside the office. A lot of time is wasted to procure passports for there are a lot of hassles involved. In order to facilitate the passport seekers the DoP has started opening nine counters from eight in the morning. This should provide some respite to those seeking passports and save their valuable time as there is a rush of people seeking passports in order to work as migrant workers in foreign countries. The opening of the nine counters would be helpful to some extent to ensure smooth and prompt services. This would hopefully help in managing the crowd of passport seekers who had to queue for hours, and they would no longer be required to stay in long queues. This would assist in some measure to provide passports in a simple and efficient manner. In fact, making passports available to the seekers in their home district should be the practice. 2 Story Picture Nepal is one of the poorest countries with a per capita income of around $1,300. It ranks near the bottom in human development index, with illiteracy rate high. Food security is a problem, and acute power shortage is stifling the economy. These measures indicate the level of poverty. The way to get out of such abject poverty is through economic growth. The natural question then is: what factors lead to high economic growth? Economists agree that the availability of natural resources, amount of physical capital (machineries, plants), human capital, technology and institutions determine growth. A country that has more of these resources grows faster than others. However, there is debate about the relative importance of these factors. Some argue that political and economic institutions are the critical determinants of economic growth, as Daron Acemoglu and James Robinson do in their book Why Nations Fail. They backup their argument with results from empirical analysis, which shows that good institutions trump geography and trade. Such a finding has much relevance in Nepal’s case and experience. A landlocked country, Nepal does not have access to the sea. It is not endowed with many natural resources, besides abundance of fresh water. More than a century of autocratic Rana rule, denied education to people limiting the spread of knowledge. These factors partly explain Nepal’s lack of development over the years. However, the other factor that is equally, if not, more important is the role of institutions—weak or non-existing conducive for growth. In broad terms, institutions are defined as the rules of the game in a society. These include set of laws and regulations, government bureaucracy, property rights, societal norms, traditions as well as habits and beliefs. Good institutions promote economic growth by providing security of property, creating incentives for people to engage in productive economic activities and by letting the market allocate resources efficiently through the price signals. Bureaucratic hassle, red tape and demand for bribes have adverse impact on growth. Starting a business requires approval from several government branches or departments in Nepal. Unnecessary layers of bureaucracy, cumbersome procedures as well as demand for bribes raise the cost of doing business and creates less business-friendly atmosphere. Weak or selective law enforcement is another problem. Everyone should abide by the same set of laws, rules and regulations. Having worked in the U.S.A. for over a decade and read about work habits in other developed countries, I have to admit that the Nepalese work habits and attitudes are holding us back. In the West, people value work—whether it is white-collar (skilled job) or blue-collar (unskilled) work. They are hard-working and honest people who value and appreciate work. That is not universally true in our case. Some of us are shy about doing low-skilled jobs. This could be a cultural thing. In his highly acclaimed book Fatalism and Development in Nepal, Dor Bahadur Bista makes an excellent point about our attitude towards work, and belief in fate rather than on work. Bista points out that a good job is viewed as one that requires minimal or no actual effort yet pays a good salary. People who hold such jobs are looked up to and respected in society. This point is relevant these days when record numbers of youths are going overseas for employment. Many do jobs in foreign countries that they would not do in Nepal. They probably get better pay there. But if they worked as hard here, they could likely make as much. Yet many still prefer to work overseas. Disregard for time and poor time management are other examples of weak institutions. In our culture we do not value time; although such attitude is slowly changing. Time is a resource. We often hear references to “Nepali time”—meaning it is OK to be late. Most people are not serious about being on time for work or appointments. Since good institutions are necessary for economic growth and development, what can be done to strengthen the weak institutions and create them where such institutions are lacking? A good place to start is schools. Children can be and should be taught about values like honesty, punctuality, ethical behavior, and respect for authority as well as hard work in school. Education also strengthens institutions through the spread of ideas and knowledge. When people gain knowledge they become more receptive to new ideas. The adherence to the caste system and the belief in fate are not as strong as in the past, because people are exposed to the outside world and to new ideas. Anti graft bodies like the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority should be independent and free from government meddling. People should demand cleaner and more efficient bureaucracy and put pressure on the government to improve services. Overlapping and conflicting laws or regulations should be streamlined to create a hassle free and customer friendly atmosphere. Bringing about these changes is hard, much easier said than done but that does not mean we should not try. Khadka is an economist at Institute for Integrated Development Studies (IIDS) 3 Have a safe journey! This is a very popular phrase worldwide. Yes, when someone sets out on a journey parents, elders, well-wishers and others wish for a safe and comfortable journey. However, it carries a deep meaning in our context where travelling has always become a deadly affair. In the modern society, one cannot be confined to one place and needs to move to other places for various reasons .Therefore, the means of transportation play a significant role. Although many parts of the country are connected through air links, it is too expensive for the common people. Thus, road link is the only option left for the majority of the populace for their mobility. Almost every day there is one or more news of road accidents in one or another part of the country. However, the nature and cause of accidents may vary. Yet, human error is attributed for most of the accidents. So far in 2014, there have been a number of accidents in various parts of the country in which many persons have lost their precious lives. Field investigations reveal the main cause was reckless driving. Take the bus accidents that occurred on January 1, February 6 and April 30. In the first case, a bus heading to Rukum from Kathmandu veered off the road and fell 100 meters into a river in Salyan district. Eight persons lost their lives and 36 others suffered injuries. The February 6 accident that occurred in Chidipani, Palpa killed 14 persons. Whereas, on April 30, a passenger bus en-route from Sandhikhark to Butwal collided with a truck taking the lives of at least 18 passengers and injuring more than two dozen others. The first two accidents happened after the drivers dozed off, while the third accident occurred while overtaking. According to a Nepal Police statistics, every year around 1500 people are killed in road accidents in the country. Likewise Nepal Health Research Council states that road accidents are the fourth leading cause of death. The traffic police accredits a number of factors including negligence on the part of drivers, reckless, speed driving, drunk –driving, overloading, and overtaking, for the frequent road accidents. A number of studies show young driver and riders are more prone to road accidents. Actually, driving is considered a much neglected job in our country. When people fail to find other jobs they take up driving. A person who is at the wheel always carries several precious life while driving. Slight negligence on the part of driver endangers the lives of many people. Unfortunately, neither the commuters nor drivers themselves take the things seriously unless some untoward incident takes place 4 epal should brand itself as an inexpensive destination to encourage mass tourism: Lama Hari Man Lama is the Executive Chairman of Incentive Tours and Travels, which is the GSA of Malaysia-based long-haul, low-cost carrier AirAsia X. Involved in the tourism business with his Incentive Group of Companies for the last 18 years, Lama is a very dynamic personality with a strong vision to drive his business forward and ensure growth. In an interview with Nepalnews.com, he said Nepali migrant workers heading to Malaysia have benefitted a lot in terms of cost and connectivity since AirAsia X started conducting five weekly flights between Kuala Lumpur and Kathmandu. Also a travel writer with a book titled Divine Destination to his name (the book is about his pilgrimage to Holy Mt Kailash and Lake Mansarovar in Tibet), he said Nepals tourism sector has a huge prospect with a lot of untapped potential. 1. It has been almost two years that AirAsia X has been operating in the Kathmandu sector. Please tell us what about your experience so far and future prospects? AirAsia X conducted its maiden flight from Kuala Lumpur to Kathmandu with an Airbus A330-300 in July 2012. Starting from twice weekly flights, the low-cost carrier currently operates five weekly flights between the two cities and have plans to operate additional flights in the near future. So in a short duration of time, we have experienced steady growth in passengers movement, making us one of the major international airline companies operating in Kathmandu route. And since Nepal has strong tourism potential and has a rapidly expanding aviation market, we expect the number of the passengers to grow significantly in the coming days. 2. What are your USPs (unique selling propositions)? And what is your marketing strategy? AirAsias innovative low fare is both its USP and biggest marketing strategy. But just because we are low cost airline doesnt mean we compromise in service. We are a low-cost airline, but provide quality service as well as world-class comfort and safety for travelers who opt for our airlines. Besides this we have several USPs to our name. AirAsia X specializes in connecting major Asian destinations at a very low-cost. This is why the budget airline based in Malaysia is also called Asias largest low-cost carrier. With its medium and long-haul operations, AirAsia X connects Nepal to over 78 destinations in 21 countries including China, Korea, Japan, Brunei and Australia. AirAsias vast network allows more convenient connections for Nepali travelers at very low cost. 3. Many international airlines operating in the country aim at Nepali migrant workers to increase their market share. Malaysia being one of the major labour importing countries from Nepal, should we presume AirAsia X is also here chiefly to cater to migrant workers? With an estimated 500,000 Nepali currently involved in various jobs, Malaysia is one of the top destinations for Nepali migrant workers. The entry of AirAsia X has, for one, ended the monopoly of Nepal Airlines on the profitable Kathmandu-Kuala Lumpur sector and has increased travel demand between the two nations. Consequently, Nepali migrant workers heading to Malaysia or who are already there have benefited a lot in terms of cost and connectivity since AirAsia X started conducting five weekly flights between Kulal Lumpur and Kathmandu. We foresee increased labour traffic between the two countries in the coming days and due to this reason robust growth in seat demand. However, we cater both to migrant workers and tourists. When we started operating in the country two years ago, almost 95 percent of our passengers from here were migrant workers. Now 35 to 40 percent of our total outbound passengers are tourists and 60 to 65 percent are migrant workers. Moreover, during peak season tourist occupancy can sometimes go up to 60 percent. So what is the logic behind putting so much emphasis on tourists? We think that targeting migrant workers only will not be sustainable for international airlines operating in Nepal in the long run, although labor traffic still accounts for around 80 percent of seat demand in most of the international airlines. Therefore, we have to bring in more tourists into Nepal not only to increase our business, but to rid ourselves from the folly of relying only on migrant workers to ensure steady growth of passengers in the coming years 4. So tell us how can budget airlines like AirAsia X contribute towards increasing the prospects of Nepals tourism sector? From the very begining we have been focusing our attention to bring in more tourists into Nepal through our extensive international connection. But in the meantime we want to also support and give quality and affordable service to Nepali migrant workers, who are currently our main customers in Nepal. Although we should be no 1 international airlines that take Nepali migrant workers to Malaysia, we want to also introduce and promote Nepal as a top holiday destination in all the countries Air Asia and Air Asia X flies to. But before answering how can budget airlines help in attracting more tourists into the country and thereby contribute in growth and development of Nepals tourism sector, we have to understand the concept of budget airlines. It is a known fact that the majority of tourists coming into Nepal are budget travelers. This is because Nepal doesnt have the kind of excellent tourism infrastructure as well as products and services to bring in luxurious, high-end travelers. So looking at both the local situation and international tourism trend (hit hard by global economic crisis), Nepal needs to focus more on budget travelers to increase the number of tourists coming into the country and help in development of tourism sector and ensure the economic impetus it can give. Nepal is already blessed with natural beauty, scenic countryside and rich historical and cultural heritages. Now if we can only promote and brand Nepal as a low-cost tourist destination, we can encourage mass tourism that will not only give the much needed boost to the countrys tourism sector, but also contribute towards the economic growth of the country. This is where the concept of budget airlines can help. Given the economic recession the world over, it is but natural that tourists will avoid expensive destinations and tourism packages. In this situation if Nepal can portray itself as an inexpensive destination through budget airlines like AirAsia X then that can result in a much-awaited tourism boom in the country which will create more jobs, help businesses and increase the living standard of ordinary Nepali people. However, I still say we have not been able to attract as much tourists as we can because we have been lagging far behind in tourism promotion and branding. 5. As a leading tourism entrepreneur with considerable experience in the travel trade business, tell us about the tourism sector in the country and how can a robust aviation sector help in its growth? If the government invests in the development aviation sector, it will ultimately help in the development of tourism in the country and vice versa. However, aviation alone cannot boost tourism. This can only be done by increasing the capacity of hotels, by investing in vital infrastructures like roads, transportation system, conserving our nature, rich biodiversity and wildlife, and preserving our world heritage sites. Or maybe even by promoting Nepal as an adventure sports destination. Civil aviation needs to focus on upgrading the international airports as well as domestic airports across Nepal. Tribhuvan International Airports management should be improved in order to increase the quality of air service infrastructures, ground handling and other airport facilities. Improvements in these fronts will go a long way in increasing tourism traffic in Nepal. Being a landlocked country, international airlines are the only means through which Nepal is connected to the wider world. In fact, the national as well as international airlines operating in Nepal have been instrumental in the development and growth of the countrys tourism sector and promoting Nepal as a destination internationally. Therefore, they have made significant contribution not only towards the development of tourism sector , but in the overall economy of the country. As a result, there is great prospect for international airline companies in Nepal. 6. It is said that the national carrier should be strong for the development of tourism and aviation sector in any country? Do you agree with this viewpoint? Yes, our national carrier should definitely be strong , competent and as better as any world-class airlines. The role of a national carrier is crucial for development of tourism sector in any country and an engine for economic growth. Sadly, Nepal Airlines Corporations international flight operation is disappointing with over 90 percent of international aviation market of the country in the hands of international operators. This is mainly due to the fact that our national carrier has massively cut down its international operation from 21 destinations back only a decade ago to a mere five international destinations today. 7. So what should be done to save the national carrier? NAC should immediately purchase more aircraft to improve its connectivity and fly directly to worlds leading destinations.It should come up with good business strategy to continue to grow.This will have long-term advantages for the both the aviation and tourism sector of the country. Wherever there is competition, there will be more business. It isnt that if Nepal Airlines becomes better, other international airline companies will lose business or vice versa. And I dont think that AirAsia X or other international airlines will lose market share if the national carrier becomes stronger. I dont agree with such a notion competition will only enhance the market and help it grow. Similarly, the quality of air service infrastructure in Nepal needs to be improved gradually and operational difficulties that exists should be done away with. The government should also think about the kind of support and incentives it can give to international airline operating in Nepal during the off season and give a serious thought to building an alternate international airport in the country to ease the pressure on TIA. One of the reasons Nepal is not getting as much tourists as it should be is because Kathmandu is not a transit point or a stopover for any international airlines, but the last destination. If we can really turn TIA into a regional hub by giving more traffic rights to international airlines then that will help in promoting Nepal and lead to growth in tourism. 8. Since majority of your outbound passengers are Nepali migrant workers, does AirAsia X have any CSR programmes that is chiefly meant for their welfare? Both Incentive Tours and Travels AirAisa are committed to causes that support people and strengthen communities in need. Therefore, we are supporting orphanages in Bhaktapur as well as providing logistic support to organisations working in educations projects in rural areas. But if you talk about our corporate social responsibility policy chiefly meant for migrant workers, then the concept of budget airlines itself is a very good incentive for our workers abroad. Instead of paying high amount to go to Malaysia, they have to pay less on airfares if they opt for AirAsia X. Plus, we regularly throw promo fares to help frequent flyers fly cheap. At the same time,we also have some innovative CSR programmes in the pipeline to support migrant workers, but we dont want to promote ourselves in the name of CSR. Nepal’s foreign policy of non-alignment, neutrality and forging an equidistant relationship with both neighbours has definitely helped Nepal stand as a sovereign and independent state. The discourse of Nepal as ‘a yam between two boulders’ was a view necessitated by an international context dominated by a realist worldview. However, there has since been a shift in worldview from realism to institutionalism and constructivism.
Since the end of World War II, cooperation has become the new agenda for the modern era. The focus is now on mechanisms for discussions and cooperation. The United Nations has provided a forum for states to come into formal contact with each other. Belief in institutionalism and cooperation is exemplified by the European Union once rival states that struggled for a balance of power amidst security dilemmas now stand as an example high level regional cooperation. In Europe, economic cooperation has triumphed over animosity. The EU has shown that competition can be gradually converted to cooperation. Changing definitions The concept of national security, therefore, has gradually shifted to a much broader definition. Primarily in the Third World, security threats to the state apparatus appear to be frequently internal than external, especially given that many decolonised nations were formed containing substantial linguistic, cultural or ethnic minorities with few ties to the state. Internal underdevelopment and exclusion can be major factors for state disintegration. It is evident that the security strategy of states now requires an internal response ie, through development and social inclusion. Nepal’s multi-ethnic and multi-lingual nature, along with a highly unstable political system and ranking among the poorest states in the world pose a major threat to its security, rather than any potential external military threat. Therefore, Nepal urgently needs to focus on aspects of development by calculating the maximum benefits it can extract from its two giant neighbouring economies. Nepal possesses great potential to become a bridge between these two nations, given its geostrategic position. An example perhaps can be taken from the landlocked state of Mongolia, which has reaped benefits as a transit state between Russia and China. Landlocked to land-linking Nepal’s landlocked nature certainly impedes its competitiveness but a good foreign policy will take advantage of the geostrategic position and strategise the nation’s growth amid such challenges. Much rhetoric has come from political actors in favour of tri-lateral cooperation, from king Birendra to Baburam Bhattarai and Jhala Nath Khanal. Indeed, Nepal must capitalise on its status as a ‘land-linking’ nation and move beyond the victim mindset of seeing itself as ‘landlocked’. Nepal’s geography means that its trade diversification option with countries besides India and China depend on transit through India, making it difficult and less competitive. Nevertheless, it is fortunate to be located between two giant economies surging ahead rapidly with an average growth rate of 7 percent for the last few decades. Focusing carefully and strategically on Nepal’s two neighbours for a more productive relationship is therefore key to its development. Diversification of relations was relevant during king Mahendra’s time. However, now, it is essential for Nepal to embrace its geographic reality and use it for a strategic and objective end instead of upholding a victim-mindset of being a landlocked state. A transit state In spite of Nepal’s core foreign policy, allegedly based on maintaining an equidistant relationship with India and China, the practice remains arguable. Deep cultural ties and commonalities between India and Nepal have made maintaining equidistance more difficult to operationalise. Nepal’s relation with India is marked by a special relationship through the 1950 India-Nepal Treaty of Peace and Friendship, which accords special status to India. India and China, despite some strained relations due to unresolved territorial disputes, have been brought together through the unprecedented economic growth of their domestic spheres. Their mutual economic interest and need has transformed them into a substantial trading partners China overtook the United States to become India’s biggest trading partner in 2008. The growing trade between these two giant economics in the absence of a permanent and feasible trade corridor seems to have necessitated adopting Nepal as a transit partner. However, transport remains a major impediment to Sino-India bilateral trade as there is no efficient overland route to connect their geographies. The pass, Nathu-la, which was blocked after the 1962 Sino-India War but re-opened in 2006, is the only current operational trade route. However, standing at above 4,400 metres, the pass is snowy, risky, costly, and far from India’s major industrial hubs. Thus, Nepal holds great potential to become an efficient trade corridor. Lhasa will soon be connected to mainland China by rail ie, the Lhasa-Shigatse rail link is expected to be completed by 2014. The Shigatse-Tatopani-Kathmandu-Birgunj link would be all of 815 km between India and China while at present, the trade between western China and India requires over 5,000km of rail/road plus sea transport. There are 27 routes for mutual trade and six immigration points between Indian and Nepal. On the other hand, Nepal and China’s Tibet Autonomous Region have a 1,414 kilometre-long border shared by seven counties Tingkey, Tingri, Naylam, Kyirong, Saga, Drongpa and Purang and bounding 14 of Nepal’s districts Taplejung, Sankhu-wasbha, Solukhumbu, Dolakha, Sindhupalchowk, Rasuwa, Manang, Mustang, Dopla, Mugu, Humla, Bajhang and Darchula. At present, only the 393 km Birgunj-Kathmandu-Kodari highway serves as a link between India and China that goes through Nepal. Another highway route via Rasuwagadi-Kerun is under construction and hasn’t yet been used for trade purposes. The shortest potential transit routes between India and China other than the Raxaul-Trishuli-Rasuwa, as proposed by the Division of Roads in 2005, are Janakpur-Dolakha-Lambanagar; Mohana-Dhangadi-Atari-Baitadi-Darchula-Tinker; and Rani-Hile-Kimathanka. The corridors will have more access to the economic centres of Ahmadabad and Mumbai in India than the Tibet-Sikkim transit corridor. These corridors could be pivotal in linking Central Asia, South-west China and South East Asia. According to the Ministry of Physical Planning and Works, priority has been given to the North-South connection, such as Birgunj-Galchi-Dhunnche-Rasuwagadi, Biratnagar-Kimathanka, Bhittamod-Lamabagar, Bhenighat-Larkey, Bhairahawa-Jomsom-Korala, Nepalgunj-Surkhet-Hilsa and Mahendranagar-Darchula-Tinka. The Birgunj-Safrubesi corridor has been completed and the Rasuwa-Safrubesi corridor (part of the Birgunj-Safrubesi corridor) has also been recently completed with the assistance of the Chinese government. However, as Nepal’s north, being less developed than the south, requires a stronger focus on infrastructure and connectivity. Moreover, the land-linking project has great potential to usher in development through tourism, transit, taxes, customs and duties, trade, cooperation with both neighbours and cultural proximity among India-China-Nepal. To reap the benefits of being a transit state, Nepal needs to begin constructing its own domestic infrastructure like highways, renovating border cities, communication development, transportation, warehouses for storage and strengthening internal and border administration. Pandey holds a Masters in International Relations and Political Science from Universidade Fernando Pessoa, Portugal 2 The elements of theatrical presentations are often considered pivotal in engaging and wooing audiences artistically. The directorial ability to connect and transition between scenes, the aesthetics and relevance of the stagecraft and attires, the artists’ ability to do justice to the characters they portray and the aura generated through well-designed lights and music are quintessential. But prior to these, the overall purpose and existence of any theatrical presentation depends upon the story, the plot or the concept, all of which are often used synonymously. Depending upon the creator, the underlying theme of a play can be generated and nurtured in different ways. Portraying noted historical events, fictional creations, issues revolving around the impact of social practices are theatrical reflections that have become generic to Nepali audiences. However, among these, the influence of politics has been omnipresent in most theatrical content. On stage Ashesh Malla’s rendition of the modern Mahabharata in Sakuni Pasaharu clearly outlines the internal vulnerability within political forces where power, money and prestige have a centripetal pull. Derived from the eponymous epic religious saga and reengineered through Malla’s own perception of Nepali politics, the play tries to justify the cliché: ‘politics is a dirty game’. Other noted plays like Raktabheej and Bhikchyaam Dehi, both written and directed by Ashesh Malla, also revolve around the undying love for power, its abuse and political and policy level corruptions. The locally adopted and stylised version of Akira Kurosawa’s Rashomon perfomed at Mandala Theatre has in fact opened doors for interpretations of all kinds. Although there were no direct political linkages, fleeting gestures, mimicked voices and unabashed accusations characterised Sunil Pokhrel’s blatant strike against power players. Also, the play’s scheduled staging during a time when the entire nation was glued to the news reports related to truth and reconciliation added another dimension for interpretation. Similarly, the amount of absurdity and madness witnessed in Coma A political sex, left many audiences scratching their heads. The extreme possibilities of chaos that can evolve in a country lacking a governing constitution was perceived as the subliminal inclinations in Kumar Nagarkoti’s writing. The diversity found in the background and identity of the characters established onstage hinted at parties’ dubious acceleration towards multi-identity federalism. Going beyond the national political turmoil, Coma also comically portrays the darker side of Nepal’s extended neighbour diplomacy. Sometime back, when director Bijya Bishfot staged Ooni Mareka Chhainan, a play based on the true story of a Maoist journalist beaten to death by security forces, the political tint in the content itself had made the presentation prominent. This poignant tale succeeded even in moving a stoic political figure like Mohan Baidya, and even made him shed a few tears, to the amusement of the audiences. Inspiring elements Right from the ancient era to the modern day, Nepali theatre and art have captured and expressed the influences of different political setups in society. Legendary playwright Bal Krishna Sama’s Amarsingh and Chunda Nath Bhattarai’s Prithvi Narayan Shah, were noted dramas that reflected the state of affairs back then. The indispensable attachment of politics to Nepali history has inspired as well as compelled many artists to go after political concerns. The Rana regime, the periodic rise and fall of the monarchy and political transformations though movements are some areas that theatre has directly or indirectly touched upon. Moving on, the 10 year Maoist insurgency induced playwrights to pen many tragic tales from all over the country. Banki Pristha, a widely applauded play staged at Sarwanam, showed the aggravation and pathos of ordinary citizens trapped in between the wars of two opposing forces. Meanwhile, when we try to correlate politics with theatrical works, we must not overlook the significance of street dramas. Realising the need for awareness among the rural population in remote areas of the country, street presentations effectively conveyed a message of transformation and revolution. Yugin Gantabya, Hami Basanta Khojirahechhau and Prashna ra Prashnaharu were renowned street plays which consistently highlighted dissatisfaction towards the ruling regime and the citizens’ dormant desire for radical change. Another reason why theatre artists seek out politics is to vent their frustration towards political parties. For instance, Gaijatra, a weeklong celebration of humorous acts has been popular among the general audience from the start. Precisely through comical and satirical punch lines, these theatrical works try to uncover the inefficiencies, hidden personal agendas and authority abuse present in politics. Consequences and challenges Being a vibrant form of art, the imprint of theatre performances is often deep. To expose the dark and revolutionary aspect of politics is both courageous and sensible. However, when looking into it from the art’s perspective, excessive inclination towards politics might make the exercise irrelevant, going by the dynamically evolving preferences of the audience. Too much overt explanations and expressions of politics in theatres can dilute artistic freedom and the mystical power of storytelling. Scratching old wounds or portraying the neverending power-sharing debacle might not be the expectation of present day audiences, especially when theatre performances are being looked upon as a close substitute for celluloid entertainment. Hence, theatre artists need to understand the theory of diminishing returns before bombarding audiences with direct political presentations in theatres. Sunil Pokhrel’s Rashomon can be taken as a fine example where the director succeeded in maintaining the artistic aspect, along with embedding subliminal political content in the play. On the other hand, the exponential growth of theatre can attract direct intervention from various political forces. The ability of theatres to transmit messages in a loud and clear manner can lure political parties to use theatrical works as a propaganda and communication tool. This could give birth to proscenium dramas based on manifestos rather than scripts. Therefore, to protect theatres from politics and to present politics through theatre can be equally challenging for theatre artists in the future. Paudel is a theatre artist at Sarwanam Theatre and an MBA student at Ace Institute of Management 5 Essentially, corruption inflicts two levels of damage to the private sector. At the individual firm level, it raises the cost of doing business and introduces uncertainty, reputational risks and vulnerability to extortion. Corruption also makes access to capital markets more expensive, depresses company valuations and corrodes staff morale. At the environment level, corruption undermines fair competition, leads to lost business opportunities and nurtures corrupt bureaucracies. Definitely, corruption is bad for business; but can we make business bad for corruption? There are two explanations related to corruption and the private sector. The first is related to supply and demand. If politicians and public officials constitute the demand side of corrupt transactions then the private sector represents the supply side. An effective approach to anti-corruption is to have both demand and supply side interventions. Unfortunately, policymakers and civil society members fail to note the role of the private sector in fighting corruption. If everybody refuses to pay bribes, government officials cannot demand kickbacks and, consequently, there cannot be corrupt transactions. The second explanation includes identifying whether the private sector is a victim or a perpetrator of corruption. The supply side argument assumes the private sector to be a perpetrator. However, it can also be a victim. One needs to differentiate between victim and perpetrator, for the private sector will cooperate and engage in anti-corruption activities only when they are victims. Therefore, the private sector can be a problem as well as a solution. On a global level Irrespective of these arguments, private sector corruption has become a big agenda for debate and discussion at the global level. Corruption has become so pervasive that it is no longer confined to a single nation, territory or society; it has become a global problem. National governments are becoming weaker in dealing with corruption problems emanating from the operation of multinational and transnational companies. To address this global problem, we need global instruments. The introduction of the UN Convention against Corruption (UNCAC) is designed to address this issue. Controlling private sector corruption is one of UNCAC’s tasks. The role of the private sector is mentioned in all fours aspects of an anti-corruption drive prevention, criminalisation and law enforcement, asset recovery and international cooperation. The Government of Nepal ratified UNCAC in February 2011. To meet UNCAC obligations, the government, in July 2012, drafted an anti-corruption strategy and action plans. Among 15 objectives in the Strategic Plan Document, Objective Number 8 is related to controlling private sector corruption. This is in line with UNCAC obligations. Realising the immense role of the private sector in combating corruption, in June 2004, UN Global Compact the world’s largest corporate sustainability initiative also included a 10th principle an anti-corruption principle which reads: “Businesses should work against corruption in all its forms, including extortion and bribery.” Slow awakening Though, at the beginning, private sector business communities were not very receptive to the 10th principle, there is now a growing realisation that the private sector can and should work to combat corruption, given the growing number of corporate scandals. In the corporate world, even the failure to install adequate anti-corruption mechanisms can become a crime. There are proactive innovations taking place in the corporate world. Microsoft now extends its anti-corruption policy to its supply chain management, implying that it refuses to deal with any company that have not installed anti-corruption measures. The awakening of the private sector for anti-corruption in Nepal came after the revelation of massive bank defaults by private sector firms in early 2000. The Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) is reportedly flooded with fraud complaints from the banking and cooperative sectors. Now, corporate fraud runs not in the millions but in the billions. Nepal’s public procurement and construction sector, where the private sector is one party to the transaction, is synonymous with deceit, bribery and corruption. Tender bidding for public contracts is more a problem of security than a matter of financial transactions. In spite of so much need and obligation to fight private sector corruption, there is total confusion resulting from the CIAA’s constitutional mandate. The Interim Constitution mandates the CIAA to investigate and prosecute corruption crimes only in the public sector. Even the judiciary and Army are excluded from its purview. The law is silent over the mandate of the CIAA and there is confusion over whether the CIAA can or cannot take anti-corruption action against the private sector. Take the case of illicit enrichment, which is applicable only to public officials. The second confusion rests with defining private sector corruption. There can be private to private sector corruption as well. A procurement officer in Company A may be working in collusion with a sales agent from Company B. How would you treat sales commission paid to the sales agent as an incentive or a bribe? How would you handle issues like insider trading, misreporting of company performance, conflict of interest, syndicate and cartelling? Definitely, there are sector specific regulatory laws but these laws were never formulated from the perspective of anti-corruption. The laws are not only inadequate and ambiguous, in many cases but often do not exist at all. Take the provisions related to management disciplinary actions in Nepal’s labour law. As per Article 51, various acts like the embezzlement of enterprise transactions, bribery and leaking of company secrecy are culpable acts. However, the maximum penalty a management can impose is to fire the employee. This is quiet lenient compared to penalty provisions in the public sector. Not just bribery Definitely, extortion or chandaa atanka, is a nagging issue faced by the private sector in Nepal. In the wake of the last Constituent Assembly elections, National Business Initiative (NBI) a private sector business NGO specialising in corporate social responsibility drafted a Business Code of Conduct wherein corruption control is listed as part of ethical business. The code forbids businesspeople from giving “any kind of donation, presents or services/facilities to any political person or party with an intention of gain in the future.” Similarly, it promises “not to bribe, give gifts, donations, presents directly or indirectly for earning business and financial advantage.” The business community has also pledged to make transparent any legitimate donations and contributions made to philanthropic organisations. It is interesting to note of a paradoxical situation. While the NBI was busy drafting an ethical business code, the CPN-Maoist party was reported busy categorising Nepal’s business community into various grades like A, B, C and D so that their cadres can raise donations in conformity with their business grade. The issue of private sector corruption has to be looked at not just from the narrow perspective of business bribery. One needs to go beyond and see the problem from a broader perspective, like conflict of interest and ‘revolving door’ policy. In order to restrict a revolving door policy, the government is proposing a ban on the employment of retired senior civil servants in policymaking positions in the private sector for at least three years. Without the commitment and cooperation of the private sector, this policy cannot be implemented. Manandhar is a freelance consultant with an interest in corruption and governance issues 7 Today is World Refugee Day and my thoughts turn to 11 year-old Suman Tamang who several weeks ago embarked upon a journey that will undoubtedly change his life forever. Suman is a refugee from Bhutan who recently left Nepal for Toronto, Canada along with his parents and younger brother. Leaving Kathmandu with a few personal belongings, Suman also carried the notoriety of being the 90,000th refugee from Bhutan to be resettled to a third country. The Tamang family will face many unknowns as they begin a new life in faraway Canada and I am moved by the courage of their decision to leave their home even if that home for the last 22 years was a refugee camp. Resettlement so far After generously hosting refugees for 15 years, Nepal’s policymakers also took a courageous and far-reaching decision back in 2007 when they opened the door to resettlement of refugees from Bhutan. At the time, some 108,000 refugees from Bhutan were accommodated some may say ‘warehoused’ in seven refugee camps in eastern Nepal with few prospects for a lasting solution. The government’s decision to support resettlement became a catalyst for international support, which dramatically turned around a once protracted, seemingly dead-end situation. Eight countries Australia, Canada, Denmark, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, the UK and the US responded to Nepal’s overture and by late 2007, resettlement was under way. Today, five refugee camps have been closed and less than 27,000 refugees remain in two camps. The majority of the remaining refugees over 23,000 have expressed an interest in resettlement and their files are in various stages of review by UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the resettlement countries. The commitment of resettlement countries remains strong and so, departures are expected to continue into the future. Meanwhile, another 3,900 refugees have not expressed an interest in resettlement some may harbour hopes of return to Bhutan while others may wish to remain in Nepal where for some, their lives have become intertwined with Nepalis. Today, we know of over 1,600 refugee men and women who have married Nepalis and almost 2,000 children have been born of these ‘mixed marriages’. New challenges ahead The resettlement of refugees from Bhutan has been generally lauded as a success story, though this is not without some unanticipated consequences. Earlier this week, a news report described former refugee camps and the surrounding communities as ‘ghost towns’, underscoring what happens when refugees and their earning and spending power leave the area. The flip side of that coin, however, is that remittances are also flowing back to Nepal from refugees who have been resettled. As the refugee camp population steadily declines, UNHCR and a small group of dedicated partners are working to maintain basic services in the camps. Economies of scale have been lost in recent years and most sectors are struggling to keep up standards. Education is a case in point. The latest scores for the School Leaving Certificate (SLC) exams have declined once again only one in 10 eligible refugee students passed. No surprise, when you consider that last year almost 60 percent of the refugee teachers (223) and nearly a third of the student body departed on resettlement. There are no quick fixes for such disruption and high turnover in the classroom but business as usual is not the answer. Today, all stakeholders with an interest in solutions for refugees from Bhutan are confronted with new and complex challenges, which simply did not exist several years ago. The good news is that the commitment and support of government, donors, resettlement countries and UN and NGO partners remains strong. All stakeholders, however, need to be ready to embrace new approaches and to take new decisions. While the decision taken in 2007 to launch resettlement has not been a panacea for all refugee problems, it certainly paved the way for refugees like young Suman Tamang and his family to open a new chapter in their lives. That is an important and encouraging lesson to consider as we look at the challenges ahead. Sanders is UNHCR Representative in Nepal |