TASKFORCE TO PREPARE SUGGESTIONS TO SORT OUT DIFFERENCES ON CONSTITUTONAL MATTERS

TASK FORCES FORMED TO PREPARE DETAILED REPORT
ON WAYS TO TACKLE DIFFERENCES ON 22 ISSUES TO BE INCORPORATED IN A BASIC LAW
Kathmandu, 14 June: A five-member task force with top party leaders as members was formed Tuesday under leadership of Laxman Lal Kama to prepare a report on differences on major issues like federal structure , election process and other subjects to prepare a first draft of a proposed report in less than three months.
The task force will present its report based on discussions between political party leaders and experts and present its report with suggestions to a Prachanda-led sub-committee that was formed to discuss 78 contentious to be incorporated in a proposed constitution to institutionalize a declared republic.
The Prachanda sub-committee formed the task force at its meeting Tuesday.
The task force will prepare a report on 22 issues on which differences still remain/
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FURTHER DETAILS OF GOVT., NC MEET
Kathmandu, 14June: Deputy Ministers Bharat Mohan Adhikari of UML and Krishna Bahadur Mahara sought support Tuesday of the main opposition NC for presenting an annual budget on time mid-July in a meeting with President Sushil Koirala.
Koirala lend conditional support for the request saying his party will support the budget presentation only if the peace process is concluded.
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NEW PLAN FOR HARMONY BETWEEN BHUTANESE REFUGEES AND NEIGHBOURS
Kathmandu, 14 June: Nearly 20 years after the arrival of Bhutanese refugees in Nepal and four years since the beginning of the resettlement programme, the Nepal government and the UNHCR have finally begun preparations for a programme targeting both the refugees and host communities. The government will play a leading role in the programme that will ultimately result in the dismantling of refugee camps, and possibly assimilating remaining refugees locally, John Narayan Parajuli writes in The Kathmandu Post.

The UNHCR and the National Refugee Coordination Unit (NUCRA) at the Ministry of Home Affairs have begun ground work for a substantive Community-Based Development Programme (CBDP) that would address the needs of both the refugees and the host communities—creating more social cohesion among the two communities. This programme is being developed in consultation with all stakeholders, including donors, line agencies of Nepal government, refugees and the host communities. Some 235,000 locals in the refugee hosting area and the refugees will benefit from the programme, said UNHCR’s Durable Solution Officer Nicole Epting.

“The baton is being passed from the humanitarian to development community,” said UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator Robert Piper, addressing the inaugural session of a three-day workshop on Monday.

The workshop aims at ironing out the operational framework, priority sectors and funding mechanism for the CBDP Between February and May this year, UN Country Team (UNCT), and other stakeholders led by the Chief District Officer of Jhapa and Morang districts that host the refugees conducted several rounds of Joint Needs Assessment (JNA) with the participation of refugee and host communities.

“If everything goes as planned, the programme could be implemented in less than a year’s time,” said UNHCR’s Country Representative Stephane Jaquemet. Though the programme is still at a draft stage and its framework and funding sources have not been worked out, it is clear that the government will have to play a leading role— incorporating the humanitarian and development nature of the programme into its national and local level planning. The government may also contribute by making budgetary allocations for the implementation of the new programme—a fact indicated by the US ambassador’s remark.

“We will look into the results of the Joint Needs Assessment and determine what warrants our support,” said the US Ambassador to Nepal, Scott H DeLisi. “But not all of these needs can be met by the donors.”

Assuring that the government will do its part, Home Secretary Leela Mani Paudyal said the government will ensure that the identified projects will be reflected in the national and local level planning. But he also urged the donor community to make generous contribution towards that end.

With the end of the refugee problem in sight—with less than 10,000 population by the middle of 2015, according to current UNHCR projection—the international community wants to phase out the humanitarian operation and phase in development operation.

Already 46,000 refugees have been resettled in third countries, a majority of them in the United States—leaving a population of 67,000 in the camps that is declining at the rate of about 15,000 annually.
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ID CARD MIST FOR NETSURFING
Kathmandu, 14 June: Cybercafé goers from now onwards will have to present their identity cards compulsorily before surfing the internet. The new guidelines formulated by Nepal Telecommunication Authority (NTA) also require cybercafes to keep a log book to maintain record of internet users, Samiksha Koirala writes in Republica.
Customers using internet at cybercafés or information centers will have to present their ID card, driving license or citizenship as an identification document.

Cybercafé operators will have to maintain secrecy of the log book and furnish it to the security personnel as and when required. The regulator has asked cafes to implement the instructions within three months.

NTA has also prepared an agreement between internet café operators and customers enlisting restrictions and preconditions to be followed by both the parties. The guidelines require cybercafé operators to clearly mention the bandwidth and the number of computers sharing it. As a pre-condition, the regulator has asked cybercafés to get themselves registered with department of industry or district administration office.

Similarly, NTA has also instructed ISPs to provide 24 hours service to all users and in case of disruptions because of maintenance work or other technical reasons, inform the customers at least three days in advance.

“The company will have to bear the cost of maintenance and waive the tariff of the period during which the service is not available,” the guidelines further states.

The President of Internet Service Providers´ Association of Nepal (ISPAN), Binay Bohra said that they had already received the guidelines and were positive on its implementation. He said that most of the concerns of NTA were justifiable but maintained that some guidelines on commercial issues were unwarranted.

“The ISPs are operating in a competitive business and are committed to deliver better service,” he added.
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