SPECIAL COMITTEE SECRETARIAT TO PREPARE PLAN FOR RE-CLASSIFICATIN OF FIGHTERS

SECRETARIAT OF SPECIAL COMMITTEE PLAN

Kathmandu, 10 Sept. A special committee chaired by Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai Sunday asked a secretariat under it to prepare a plan for integration and resettlement of 19,000 former Maoists.
The secretariat will begin work today Monday.
Bhattarai asked for the plan after opposition from other parties to a government proposal re-classification.
nnnn
BIHAR GOVT. POSITIVE ON TRIPARTITE PACT
Kathmandu, 19 Sept.:- Bihar state government of India is positive on the Chinese proposition of holding tripartite agreement among India, China and Nepal to develop hydropower sector of Nepal, a Bihar government official said, Mahesh Acharya reports in The Kathmandu Post from New Delhi.
We have no reservation whatsoever on joining forces with China for hydropower development in Nepal, said Bihar Energy Minister Bijendra Prasad Yadav. He, however, said that the central government should make call the shot to make the deal happen.
“If the central government asked for our opinion then our suggestion will be in favour of the proposition.”
According to Yadav, the Chinese government officials had kept the same proposition before Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar during the latter's visit to China. The issue was discussed by the Bihar government, but the official talks with the central government has not taken place as of yet, he said.
If the tripartite agreement on this regard is to take place, the Bihar energy minister said, the model of the pact should guarantee a maximum benefit to Nepal.
“It is our wish to see development in Nepal. If Nepal could harness its hydropower potential then the country could find a good market in Bihar as well as other Indian states,” he said.
Bihar still needs 2500 MW electricity to meet its current energy need.
Nnnn

INTERVIEW

According to Ai Ping, the Vice Minister at the International Department of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC), China is working to develop good relations with its neighbouring countries in an attempt to build ties with them. Among them, Nepal, being its immediate neighbour to the south, he says Nepal’s stability and prosperity is not only beneficial to its own people but also the cooperation between China and South Asia. In conversation with The Kathmandu Post’s Akhilesh Upadhyay and Kantipur’s Sudheer Sharma at the International Department of the Central Committee of the CPC in Beijing, Ping spoke of the possibilities of Nepal as a transit hub between China and the larger sub-continent, developing friendships in the South Asian region and how such cooperation can be mutually favourable to both China and Nepal.
What are China’s major concerns in Nepal?
One of the important factors that have constituted the strong foundation for the China-Nepal relations is that we firmly support each other on the issues regarding each other’s core concerns. To take the Tibet issue for example, it is not only a matter concerning China’s sovereign and territorial integrity but also the internal security of Nepal, as well as the common security and strategic interests of the two countries. We appreciate efforts made by all Nepal governments who have been upholding the one-China policy and firmly support China on such issues as Taiwan and Tibet. We hope Nepal would keep its firm support on that as it always does.
China has tried to develop relationship with Nepal’s major political parties. What will be the nature of the engagement?
The Communist Party of China (CPC) has now party-to-party relationship with all major parties in Nepal, including the Unified Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist), the Communist Party of Nepal (CPN-UML), the Nepali Congress and Madhesi parties. With all major parties, the foundation of our engagement isn’t similar in ideologies and the party-to-party relationship is aimed to help increase the mutual understanding and trust, deepen the traditional friendship between the two peoples and promote the sound and stable development of China-Nepal relations. Last month, the CPC delegation led by H.E. Mr. Zhou Yongkang, member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau and secretary of the political and Legal Affairs Commission of the CPC Central Committee visited Nepal and met the major party leader. This has served a lot to promote the bilateral relations between China and Nepal. The CPC, according to the four principles for the CPC to develop relations with other parties in the world, namely, independence, equality, mutual respect and non-interference in other parties’ internal affairs, is willing to maintain and strengthen the party-to-party relations with all the major parties in Nepal to promote the friendship and cooperation between our two sides.
China has developed relationships with South Asian countries. How do you characterize China’s South Asia policy?
China’s developing of good relations with the South Asia countries is part of its general policy towards the surrounding countries of building friendship and partnership with its neighbours. As the neighbour to South Asia, China attaches great importance to and is willing to go on developing the friendship and cooperation with all the South Asian countries to achieve the peaceful co-existence and common development as good neighbors, good friends and good partners.
Where does Nepal fit into the larger South Asia policy? How do you assess the possibility of developing Nepal as a transit hub between China and the larger Indian subcontinent?
We hope to maintain good relationship with all of South Asia including Nepal. One fact is that both Nepal’s neighbouring countries, China and India, are now developing fast, and Nepal would take advantage of this to facilitate its own economic and social development. We believe that Nepal’s stability and prosperity is not only beneficial to its own people but also the cooperation between China and South Asia. As neighbour, China pays great attention to the mutually beneficial cooperation with Nepal in various fields and is willing to continue to help Nepal towards the economic and social development.
What are China’s focus areas on its Nepal policy?
China and Nepal are enjoying time-honoured friendship since ancient times. Since the establishment of China-Nepal diplomatic ties in 1955, we have had good relations and sound cooperation with each other in the political, economic, security, people-to-people fields and so on, have always supported firmly each other on the issues regarding the respective core concerns and maintained close coordination in the regional and global affairs. China wishes to carry the good China-Nepal relations which cover wide-ranging areas forward.
What could be other Investment areas?
China and Nepal have substantial cooperation in the economic, industrial, agricultural, infrastructure fields and so on. Nepal is rich in its natural resources such as the hydropower, and China has the technology and capitals. Therefore, there will be great cooperation opportunities in this field between us. Chinese government supports its able enterprises to invest and participate in the hydropower and other infrastructure development in Nepal. Besides, Nepal’s rich tourist attractions such as Lumbini and Pokhara have increasingly drawn interest of Chinese tourists and we hope more Chinese tourists go there.
What could be possible areas of expansion in Nepal-China relationship?
China has become an important investor outside the country. The Chinese government encourages more investments by Chinese companies in Nepal and welcomes the increasing of cooperation between our companies particularly those in private sectors to help create more jobs and promote the local economic and social development in Nepal.
nnnn