UPDATE OF UML STANDING COMMITTEE MEET
Kathmandu, 22 Nov.: UML standing committee meet Tuesday will discuss the party policy towards government and the issue of extension of constituent assembly (CA)/parliament tenure after 30 November.
Government has registered an 11th amendment proposal in parliament to amend an interim constitution to extend the tenure by six months after 30 November to complete the delayed peace process and draft a constitution.
NC and UML support is needed for the extension Thursday in parliament.
UML standing committee is also finalizing a policy statement of Chairman Jhalanath Khanal to the 12th central committee beginning Wednesday.
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MORE COMBATANTS OPT FOR INTEGRATION
Kathmandu, 22 Nov.: Reports coming from various cantonments Monday showed that most of the ex-Maoist combatants were willing to go for integration in the national army, The Rising Nepal writes.
According to our Damak correspondent, 106 combatants of Chulachuli, the first division camp of Ilam, opted for integration while only 70 chose voluntary retirement.
No combatant opted for rehabilitation.
Most women and injured combatants filled up forms for voluntary retirement.
Division sources said lobbying started from the establishment to go for integration while the dissenting faction of UCPN-Maoist pressed them to choose retirement.
Of the 69 combatants regrouped on Sunday, 44 chose voluntary retirement and 25 integration.
The division has 1922 combatants.
Our Surkhet correspondent reported that 200 combatants were regrouped in the sixth division camp in Dasharathpur Monday.
Sources said 175 chose voluntary retirement and 53 integration. So far, 400 combatants have filled forms.
Coordinator of the technical team Dipak Prakash Bhatta said that though they had plans regroup 300 combatants daily, several constraints brought the number down.
Our Sindhuli correspondent reported that a total 588 combatants were regrouped by Monday. Of them, 254 chose integration and 106 retirement.
The technical team said it was yet to sort out all forms.
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DORMANT PEACE PROCESS GAINS MOMENTUM
Kathmandu, 22 Nov.: Five years since the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) was signed, the rocky peace process gained momentum only lately as intra and inter party conflicts continued to pose obstacles to it from the initial days, according to The Rising Nepal.
The recent seven-point agreement, signed among the four major political forces, added fresh impetus to the beleaguered peace process with the start of regrouping of the Maoist combatants and the commitment of top Maoist leadership to return the seized properties.
The leaders from different political parties Monday admitted that the peace process failed to move as per the expectation of the people.
Speaking at an interaction in the capital, they, however, noted that it rolled ahead with a positive note in recent days.
UCPN-Maoist secretary CP Gajurel said that there was some positive signed in regard with the implementation of major provisions of CPA.
"The measures the present government has taken to roll peace process ahead are not correct. The peace and constitution writing processes need to go side by side," he said.
He expressed his dissatisfaction over the ongoing integration and rehabilitation process of the combatants.
"Those, who fought for republic by putting their life at risk, are now forced to go for the integration that is not at par with their sacrifice and contribution," claimed Gajurel, adding that if all combatants were included in the integration process, it would have secured a durable peace.
On the return of the seized properties, the hardliner Maoist leader said that the sized lands would not be returned by rendering the people again homeless.
Nepali Congress leader Arjun Narsingh KC said that the crisis of confidence occurred as the agreements made to boost peace and constitution were flouted immediately after they were inked.
KC said that there were positive steps lately in the direction of taking the peace and constitution writing processes to logical conclusion.
He informed that his party would take decision whether to extend the term of Constituent Assembly or not on the basis of works related to peace, constitution and the formation of national consensus government.
CPN-UML chief whip Bhim Acharya said that most of the valuable time since the CPA wasted owing to the mistrust among the parties.
"The parties were ambitious when they promised to complete the peace process within two years," said Acharya.
The UML will decide on the extension of CA’s term on the basis of how the implementation of the seven-point agreement moves, he said
Acharya objected to the ideas to framing federal units based on ethnicity.
"The country might disintegrate if the nation is slashed into federative units on the basis of ethnicity. The federalism should be determined as per the identity and capacity," he said.
He made it clear that the UML would not participate in the game of dividing the nation to 102 ethnic groups.
CPN-UML CP Mainali accused the big parties of ignoring the smaller parties in course of forming the state restructuring commission.
Mainali was against the idea of one Madhes one province.
Meanwhile, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has called for effective implementation of the provisions mentioned in the Comprehensive Peace Accord (CPA).
NHRC has appealed to all the stakeholders to bring the human rights violators of the insurgency period to justice by forming appropriate mechanisms without further delay.
Issuing a press release on the occasion of completion of 5 years of CPA, NHRC has stressed on prompt establishment of Truth and Reconciliation Commission and Commission on Disappearance to bring the culprits involved in serious nature of human rights violations to justice.
Despite the agreements between the political parties to return the captured properties, rehabilitate the displaced and provide compensation for damaged properties, the implementation of the agreement was yet be carried out, the press release stated.
Similarly, political amnesty of people involved in criminal activities and disregard to the recommendations and decisions made by NHRC and courts had left the country to the state of impunity.
The commission has also called on authorities to keep an eye on complete removal of landmines laid during the insurgency as cases of human injuries were still being heard of in different parts of the country.
The commission has appealed to all the concerned parties on the practical implementation of the provisions by learning from the past mistakes.
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DONORS WON’T FINANCE MAOIST RETIREMENT PACKAGE
Kathmandu, 22 Nov.: With rehabilitation package attracting no combatants during the ongoing regrouping process so far, the scope for donor support in the integration and rehabilitation process is also becoming limited. On Monday, a senior diplomat who coordinates donors’ effort to support the process ruled out any possibility of supporting the voluntary retirement option, John Narayan Parajuli writes in The Kathmandu Post.
“It’s a pity that they haven’t been able to sell the rehabilitation package better to the combatants,” said Swiss Ambassador to Nepal Thomas Gass. “We can’t make large scale payments for voluntary retirement option.”
But Gass also said that the donors were open to financing small cash payments within rehabilitation option. He was referring to the provision of monthly allowance for combatants in the rehabilitation package.
The rehabilitation package prepared by the Special Committee Secretariat offers to provide a monthly allowance of Rs 10,000 to combatants, among other things, in the package worth between Rs 600,000 and 900,000. The package includes over 60 options ranging from foreign employment to vocational training .
From very early on, donors had informed government officials of their aversion to fund large cash payouts, but Maoist leaders were hopeful of persuading the western countries. Last Wednesday, Norwegian Ambassador Alf Arne-Ramslien hosted a dinner for donors and Finance Minister Barshaman Pun to discuss possibilities. During the informal meeting, donors reiterated their position on making cash payments. Donors cite international experiences that, they say, show cash payments alone are ineffective as a form of rehabilitation and hence their reluctance to support an option they fear would not be transparent.
On November 5, Maoist Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal told reporters that some western countries had given him assurances that they would reconsider their position. He did not specifically say which countries.
A senior diplomat involved in discussions to support the process said that he was not aware of “anyone changing their position” to support voluntary retirement payments. But he said there was willingness to support different components of rehabilitation that could include cash stipends. “There is much greater openness to assist on the training components of the rehabilitation option. My guess is this could also include support for cash stipends, for those attending training programmes.”
Some donors say that more combatants could have been drawn towards rehabilitation if it was pitched differently or that more time was spent in structuring the package. But they still feel that some of those who have opted for integration may end up choosing rehabilitation if they do not meet the integration criteria.
Those opting for integration will still be eligible for rehabilitation and voluntary retirement should they change their mind or fail to meet the standards for integration, according to a Special Committee Secretariat official. An official from the donor grou p said the lack of proper awareness about rehabilitation programmes was visible at the cantonment sites. “There is a lack of trust and combatants are not willing to wait, he said.
Feel rehab not ‘marketed’ well
Open to small cash payments
The figure as of Monday
Integration Voluntary Retirement Rehabilitation Total
1st Division 220 160 0 380
2nd Division 329 186 0 515
3rd Division 449 372 0 821
4th Division 558 65 0 623
5th Division 133 131 0 264
6th Division 175 225 0 400
7th Division 165 89 0 254
Grand total 2029 1228 0 3257
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NRB MULLS ACTION AGAINST BANKS FAILING TO INSURE DEPOSITS
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Kathmandu, 22 Nov.: Amid commercial banks’ cold response to the central bank’s directive on deposit insurance, the Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) is coming up with some strict measures against those failing get their deposits insured, Bibek Subedi writes in The Kathmandu Post..
The central bank has issued a directive for commercial banks to get their individual deposits up to Rs 200,000 insured with the Deposit and Credit Guarantee Corporation (DCGC) after implementing the provision in B, C and C class FIs last fiscal year.
As of now, only four commercial banks—Mega, Civil, Citizens and Machhapuchhre—have got their deposits insured. Nabil Bank, Standard Chartered Bank and Nepal Investment Bank are in the process to insure their deposits, according to DCGC.
Among the measures being considered by the central bank include first issuing warnings and second, forbidding them to work in the areas of foreign exchange. “The next stage of punishment may be a ban on buying and selling government securities,” said a senior NRB official.
NRB Spokesperson Bhasker Mani Gnawali said the central bank will start taking action against banks if they fail to comply with the NRB directive on deposit insurance by mid-December. “For now, we have not issued any timeline considering that banks are responsible institutions and that they will comply with the NRB directive without forcing us to take action against them,” said Gnawali, who is also the chairman of DCGC.
The need for insuring deposits was realised after BFIs started landing in trouble as a result of bad corporate governance and other reasons. The process of putting in place the deposit insurance provision was initiated after Nepal Development Bank went to liquidation, putting public deposits worth millions of rupees at risk.
Although the government has decided to implement the provision on individual deposits up to Rs 500,000, the central bank has executed it on deposits up to Rs 200,000. The central bank says it will increase the limit gradually.
Bankers have been complaining that the insurance premium rate is too high. They have also questioned DCGC’s capacity. “We, however, will comply with the NRB directive,” said NIC Bank CEO Sashin Joshi.
DCGC has fixed the annual premium rate at 20 paisa per Rs 100. As per the Deposit insurance Bylaw-2010, the premium will not be refunded to member BFIs and those failing to maintain their capital adequacy ratio will have to pay an additional 10 paisa premium on half yearly basis.
However, it has been realised that DCGC’s capacity should be enhanced so as to make it able to handle large deposit insurance. That’s why DCGC is also gearing up to increase its paid-up capital. The department’s capital base currently stands at Rs 480 million and an additional Rs 500 million will be injected soon.
DCGC is scheduled to call a special general meeting on Dec 9 to make the announcement of the additional capital injection. By the end of this fiscal year, it plans to inject an additional Rs 20 million by issuing bonus shares and increase its paid-up capital to Rs 1 billion. The department plans to increase the figure to Rs 2 billion by the end of the fiscal year 2012-13.
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