APOLOGETIC PM

Kathmandu, 20 Nov.: Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal Friday didn’t deny this week’s claim of Armed Police Force (APF) IGP Sanat Basnet who dismissed Indian government claims Nepal’s Maoists haven’t imparted military or ideological training to Indian counterparts or Naxals at camps in Nepal.
The IGP said firmly and clearly all four state security agencies investigated the claim to which there was no truth.
The prime minister was clearly attempting to please India whih has taken up the matter with Nepal officially.
He didn’t tell the parliament’s state affairs committee Friday Basnet’s claims were unfounded.
Instead, Nepal said,” I will consult with him why he made such remarks.”
The prime minister didn’t furnish details of the government’s own investigation.
Nepal didn’t say whether the investigations carried out by four state security agencies were government investigations.
Parliament’s international relations and human rights committee Friday separately demanded official government position of the Indian claim/
Foreign Minister Sujata Koirala, saying she was busy. didn’t attend the hearing attended by Foreign Secretary Madan Bhattarai.
The committee said Indian Ambassador Rakes Sood, against
normal diplomatic practice, directly approached the home ministry to probe the incident by-passing the normal channel though the foreign ministry.
Committee members asked the government and foreign ministry
To ensure all diplomatic missions abided by normal diplomatic
processes.
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FORMER CROWN PRINCESS CUTS SHORT DOLAKHA VISIT

Kathmandu, 20 Nov.: Former Crown Princess Himani Saturday cut short her Dolakha visit to return to the capital.
She went to the district Wednesday for a 10-day visit for social service after registering Himani Trust.
A member of the group said the former crow princess was returning hom for persoal reasons.
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TENS OF HUNDREDS TOURISTS STRANDED BELOW EVEREST
Kathmandu, 20 Nov.: Helicopter rides back from Mount Everest after a week on the slopes of the world’s tallest mountain might sound like a trekker’s delight, but for the tourists trapped in the remote region, the extended stay was not on the itinerary. Around 2,000 foreign tourists and their porters have spent the past five days stuck in a tiny village 2,800 metres up the slopes of a hill near Everest due to bad weather, with Nepali Army helicopters, Reuters reports from the Nepali capital

set to begin flying the stranded sightseers to

safety on Friday.

They have been trapped in Lukla, the gateway to Mount Everest, after thick cloud and blustering

winds forced airlines to cancel their flights to and from the remote region, officials said today.

Tens of thousands of trekkers and climbers visit the Solukhumbu region, home to Mount Everest, every year. Many start their trek from windswept Lukla village where a small airstrip is carved into the rugged mountainside.

Weather officials in Kathmandu said the area had seen “low clouds and high winds” in the past three to five days, making flights by fixed-wing small airplanes difficult and risky.

“Flights by private helicopters are inadequate and their fares out of reach of common budget trekkers,” Mahendra Singh Thapa, a senior official from the Trekking Agency Association of Nepal said in a statement. Bikram Neupane, chief of the Himalayan Rescue Association of Nepal said all hikers were safe and not in danger.

“They are unable to get into their return flights to Kathmandu because of bad weather,” Neupane told Reuters.

The autumn season, which extends from September to November, is popular among Western trekkers in Nepal, which gets nearly four per cent of its gross domestic product from tourism.
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WORKER’S OUTFLOW INCREASES
Kathmandu, 20 Nov.: Nepali workers migrating outflow increased marginally in the month of Kartik (mid-October to mid-November) after continuous fall in last three months.

According to Department of Foreign Employment (DoFE), as many as 23,809 Nepalis have joined overseas jobs in Kartik, which is 1.09 per cent more than pervious month.

Around 23,548 Nepalis had left the country for overseas job a month ago in Ashwin. A total of 102,417 Nepalis migrated in first four months of 2010-11, that is 12.12 per cent more than the

target. The government had

targetted to send 90,000 workers in the first four months of the current fiscal year.

Among four dozen host countries, Malaysia tops in hiring 42,454 Nepali workers in the first four months of the current fiscal year followed by Qatar (22,606), Saudi Arabia (18,019), the United Arab Emirates (12,593) and Kuwait (2,301).

Among top five preferred destinations, hiring Nepali workers in Malaysia, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait decreased by 5.29 per cent, 23.79 per cent and 17.78 per centrespectively, while 10.92 per cent and 25.12 per cent rise is in the UAE and Qatar.

Djibouti — an African country — added in list of host country in Kartik hiring one Nepali worker.

In other destinations, South Korea hired 57 Nepalis under Employment Permit System (EPS) but not a single worker reached Japan under Japan International Training Cooperation Organisation (JITCO). Japan hired 28 Nepalis in individual contract.

War-ravaged Afghanistan hired 49 Nepali during the period.

Women’s preferred destination Lebanon and Israel hired eight and 57 Nepali workers despite ban. Israel has been prohibited for Nepali women to enter into the country in caregiver job since April 2009.

Nepal had banned Lebanon in 2009 following 15 suicides from Nepali domestic helps. The ban is still effective.

Gulf countries, Bahrain and Oman have emerged as new markets for Nepali overseas job aspirants. Those destinations have hired 411 and 365 Nepalis respectively. As many as 1,600 and 822 Nepalis have reached in those countries respectively.

Around 508 Nepali women joined overseas jobs mainly in gulf countries in the month of Kartik. Kuwait and the UAE hired 190 and 135 Nepali women respectively.
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MAOISTS SNUB UNMIN

Kathmandu, 20 Nov.0: Despite objection from political parties and NMIN, the UCPN (Maoist) is going to let its combatants above the rank of battalion commander participate in its plenum slated to start from Sunday, Kiran Chapagain/Kosh Raj Koirala write in Republica. .

Spokesperson of the People´s Liberation Army (PLA) Chandra Prakash Khanal told Republica that a meeting of the party late Friday evening decided to let the combatants attend the much-awaited, largest-ever gathering of the party.

"We informed the parties and UNMIN on Friday that some 400-450 combatants above the rank of battalion commander are participating in the plenum," said Khanal, known as Baldev within the party, "We have informed them why their participation in the plenum is necessary."

According to Khanal, Maoist Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal on Friday told Nepali Congress and CPN-UML leaders that the combatants will attend the plenum. The parties have protested the combatants´ participation in a political program like the plenum because such a move will complicate their proposed integration and rehabilitation.

Similarly UNMIN, in a letter to Maoist Chairman Dahal on Thursday, objected to the combatants´ participation in the plenum, saying such a move would breach the Comprehensive Peace Agreement and the Agreement on the Monitoring of the Management of Arms and Armies.

But the Maoists have argued that the participation will enable the combatants to better understand their integration and rehabilitation and facilitate their management.

Earlier in the afternoon, a standing committee meeting of the UCPN (Maoist) had taken up the PLA participation issue and decided to talk to UNMIN and to the parties about it. "They will be participating in the plenum in such a way that their participation will not breach the spirit of the constitution and understanding among the parties," Maoist Spokesperson Dinanath Sharma told journalists after the standing committee meeting.

Amidst political controversy over the PLA´s participation, Republica talked to PLA Spokesperson Khanal about the issue.

Excerpts:

What do you say to the parties´ and UNMIN´s objection to PLA participation in the plenum?

UNMIN has not categorically said that we cannot take the combatants to the plenum. The participation of the PLA won´t violate the CPA and AMMAA. There is no new logic in it. It has been clearly mentioned in the AMMAA that combatants would be released after fulfilling certain criteria. And those criteria have not been fulfilled yet.

Just a part of that process has been accomplished so far. The constitution, army integration and government formation should go together. The integration process cannot move ahead alone. Only if there is a package agreement on all these three issues will integration move smoothly.

A Special Committee meeting held on September 17 had decided that the Maoist combatants had been brought under the Special Committee. Since the process has already begun, is it good for Maoist combatants to participate in the plenum?

Not as many members of the PLA as reported will take part in the plenum. In fact, they are not going there to obstruct the current process but to facilitate it. This will help bring great benefit. We have our own complexities. This will help to balance things within our party. We have our own calculations. We have to integrate them. We have to separate them from the party. If the peace process moves in a right direction, this will be the last time for the PLA to participate in a formal function of the party. The PLA will also give its suggestions to the party. This is why we think that PLA should take part in the plenum. Since the PLA men have not come fully under the Special Committee we feel that it is good for them to participate in the plenum.

You said you have your own compulsions for taking the PLA to the extended plenum. What are the compulsions?

There are no compulsions as such. There will be big discussions on army integration during the extended plenum. There will be discussions on modality of integration, number of combatants to be integrated and whether to demand formation of a separate force for the PLA. These things cannot be settled without PLA participation. We will prepare the modality and our position on army
integration.
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