CONSTITUTION COMMITTE MEET DISPERSES WTHOUT TAKING UP AGENDAD

CONSTITUTION COMMITTEE DISPERSES WITHOUT TKING UP AGENDA


Kathmandu, 7 Feb.: Tuesday’s meeting of the main constitution drafting committee dispersed without take up its agenda.
Differences on themes to be included in a 28 May 28 constitution have to be settled by Sunday.
The third deadline will again be missed.
Opposition has protested and s demanding correction of a government and Maoist decision to legalize seizureso fpeople’s ssets by Maoist parallel governments during a 10-year insurgency.
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INDUSTRY YET TO WAKE UO TO CHINESE TOURIST POTENTIAL

Kathmandu, 7 Feb. With the whopping increase in the arrival of Chinese tourists, tourism entrepreneurs are well placed to take advantage of their higher spending behavior despite some difficulties involved in dealing with them, Republica reports.

Government data shows that the number of Chinese tourists entering Nepal during 2011 shot up by 77.6 percent over the previous year, to around 50,000.

However, tourism entrepreneurs are still not fully aware of this lucrative segment of tourists, who are emerging as some of the highest spending visitors.

Travel operators handling Chinese tourist groups said that the number of free independent travelers (FITs) was also on the rise. “Till last year the Chinese were only traveling in groups but these days we are getting a significant number of individual tourists through online booking,” Kishore Pandey, chief executive officer of Sathi Travels, said, adding that Chinese tourists had different behavior in terms of food habit and other activities.

Pandey, who is also former president of the Restaurant and Bar Association of Nepal (REBAN), said that the major difference between Chinese and other tourists was eating habits.

“They don´t spend on liquor but stick with Chinese tea; however, they don´t hesitate to order many verities at one sitting as they enjoy eating smaller quantities,” he said, adding, they generally eat at Chinese restaurants and travel in booked packages.

The food-specific nature of the Chinese has also led to more Chinese restaurants opening to cater to them.

According to REBAN President Tejendra Nath Shrestha, more than a dozen new Chinese restaurants opened in the capital alone during the recently concluded Nepal Tourism Year 2011, and these targeted the rising number of tourists from the northern neighbor.

However, problems also cropped up along with opportunities in the soaring number of Chinese tourists.

The limited number of Chinese-speaking guides is one example.

Former president of Nepal Association of Tour and Travel Agents (NATTA) Ram Kaji Koney said it was very difficult to find Chinese speaking guides. “Tour guides for Chinese tourists are charging up to US$ 5 more per tourist over the normal charge,” said Koney, who runs Fewa Travels.

Since a majority of these visitors come in package tours, the only places they can hang out are shopping centers.

Travel agents said that the Chinese were spending 30 percent of their travel budget on shopping, which mainly includes buying souvenirs such as pashmina shawls, hand-knotted carpets and handicrafts.

Tour officials said the Chinese were spending the bulk of their budget on food and shopping. Laxman Chand, a tour manager, said that pashmina, thanka paintings and Buddhas were top of the shopping list for most Chinese. “High-end Chinese tourists are also buying wooden-framed souvenior clocks and other wooden objects,” Chand said.

Chinese tourists account for over 40 percent of the total pashmina sales to foreign tourists in Nepal, or around Rs 400 million. Pushpa Man Shrestha, president of Nepal Pashmina Industries Association, said that the figures suggest the high potential for the sale of these exportable items to the Chinese.

According to travel agents, their particular choice of food and accommodation at five star hotels has also made them some of the highest-spending visitors. “They are spending in the range of US $70 to 100 per day per person,” Pandey said.

Average daily spending per head by foreign visitors in Nepal was US $ 43 in 2010, according to a report from the central bank.

Amir K.Pradhananga, sales and marketing director at The Everest Hotel, said that Chinese visitors accounted for 20 percent of their total occupancy in the month of January.

“In the past, the number of Chinese tourists was limited mostly to months like January, May and October. In January, altogether 6,631 Chinese visited Nepal, up by over 107 percent compared to the same month last year. However, these days they have started coming round the year,” he added.
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OVER 100,000 TO GET SUSPENDED NATURALIZED
CITIZENSHIP IN TARAI________________________________________
Kathmandu, 7, Feb : The government has directed all the district administration offices to give citizenship certificate to the children of those who acquired citizenship certificates by birth, in a move to address a demand of the ruling
Madhesi parties, Gani Ansari reports in Republica.

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MoHA) recently issued a circular to all the district administration offices and regional administration offices to issue the children of over an estimated 100,000 people who had acquired citizenship by birth following an amendment to the existing citizenship certificate law in 2006.

According to the circular, a copy of which is with Republica, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Home Affairs Bijaya Kumar Gachchhadar decided to issue the circular on January 8 and it was communicated to all the five regional administration offices and 75 district administration offices two days later. The circular had not come to public notice to date.

The circular aims at meeting one of the clauses in the four-point agreement signed between the UCPN (Maoist) and the United Democratic Madhesi Front (UDMF) in August, which related to resolving citizenship problems.

The circular undersigned by Section Officer Madhav Dhungana requires the district administration offices to issue citizenship certificates on the basis of birth as per the Article 8 of the Interim Constitution, Clause 4 (iii) of the Nepal Citizenship Act 2006 and the Nepal Citizenship Rules 2006.

These provisions had been ineffective following two years of the enforcement of the citizenship act -- the law says that the provisions will apply for two years from the commencement of the act.

Though the home ministry circular activated the legal provision, it is likely to invite political controversy as the decision was taken without consulting other political parties. Former home minister and CPN-UML leader Bhim Rawal said Gachchhadar had once held a meeting of political parties to discuss how the provisions should be activated but the meeting had ended with an agreement to hold further discussion on the matter.

“At a recent meeting with the home minister, we had suggested to him that he should make decision on the matter taking our suggestions into consideration and we had also assured him that we would come up with feedbacks in the next meeting," Rawal told Republica, taking the circular with surprise.

"How can a minister make decision on such a sensitive issue unilaterally?,” he exclaimed and said he was unaware about the circular until he spoke to Republica.

Gachchhadar, in recent meeting of ruling Madhesi parties, briefed Madhesi leaders about his move to address the citizenship problem after the latter inquired about the progress in the implementation of the four-point agreement.
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PM HARPS ON NATIONALGOVT UNDER HIM AMID CALLS FOR HIS RESIGNATION

Kathmandu, 7 Feb.: Prime Minister Dr Baburam Bhattarai Monday claimed that he would be leading a national consensus government within a few days, Sangam, Tiwari wrtes in The Rising Nepal from Gorkha.
The Prime Minister made this claim while inaugurating the 55th anniversary of Janata Secondary School here at appeal.
It was Dr Bhattarai’s 49th visit to his home district since the CA election almost four years ago. In his election speech, Dr Bhattarai had pledged to visit his constituency every month.
Saying that that people had great expectations from his government, the Prime Minister asserted that the present government would take the shape of a national consensus government soon and deliver the new constitution within the stipulated timeframe, May 28.
He said the present government would continue until the peace and constitution building processes concluded.
He warned that formation of another government at this critical juncture would simply make a mess of the ongoing peace and constitution writing processes.
The Prime Minister said that the new constitution would provide relief to the poor people as the new constitution would uphold people’s aspirations.
He instructed all the government employees to act as per the action plan for maintaining good governance. He said the action plan had already been sent to all the district administrations
Referring to the conclusion of regrouping and the beginning of distribution of cheques to the combatants opting for retirement, he said that work toward integration would start soon. He said the Nepal Army would start the process of selection of those opting for army integration within a few days.
He said initiatives were taken to form Commission on Disappearances and Truth and Reconciliation Commission in order to make the status of the disappeared people known and create a conducive environment for reconciliation of all involved in the conflict.
Saying that more than two hundred disputed issues regarding the new constitution were narrowed down to less than a dozen, he said the remaining disputes over federal structure, form of governance, judiciary and electoral system would be resolved within a couple of weeks.
The Prime Minster also inaugurated the golden jubilee ceremony of Palungtar-based Bhawani Higher Secondary School and Liglig Youth Club.
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CHGEQUE INCIDENT INTERNAL PATRY MATTER SLAIMS MAOIST LEADER
Kathmandu, 7 Feb.: Maoist PLA chief Nanda Kishor Pun ‘Pasang’ Monday clarified that the party had no policy of grabbing cheques distributed to from the combatants opting for voluntary retirement.
Terming reported incidents of cheque grabbing by the commanders as an internal matter of the Maoist party, Pasang urged the other parties to not interfere in the Maoists’ internal affairs by making the issue a public debate, The Rising Nepal wrtes.
"Instead of facilitating the peace process, the Nepali Congress and the CPN-UML are trying to make a mountain out of a molehill whenever there are minor
problems in our party," Pasang
said speaking at the Reporter’s Club.
He warned such activities on the part of the opposition parties would simply have negative impact on the peace process. "Because of NC’s strategy to entrap the Maoists, the country has a lot of problems."
Arguing that the conclusion of the Monday meeting between NC and UML would not help the peace process, he urged them to focus on peace and constitution writing
instead of obstructing the proceedings of the Parliament.
The PLA chief claimed that the peace process would be concluded by mid-March if there was political agreement to this end. He said farewell to those combatants opting for voluntary retirement would complete within mid-Feb.
Saying that there could be two brigades general with the number of 6,500 soldiers, Pasang argued for his party’s stand that the PLA should be given one major general and two brigades general posts in the directorate to be formed under the national army.
"Every thing related to army integration will be over within 15 days once the parties make consensus on rank harmonization, number and trainings."
He pointed out at the need to arrange for some relief package to the wounded PLA fighters and those who were disqualified as the 7-point agreement singed on Nov 1 last year was silent about them.
He said appreciation letter should be given to the retiring combatants either by the President or the Prime Minister as that would help the peace process to move forward.
"National consensus government is the need of the hour. Had the NC joined the Prachanda-led government, the peace process would have concluded long ago."
Arguing that any exercise to form another government would put the peace and constitution writing under shadow again, he said that the present government should be given a form of the
national consensus government.
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CHINESE CULTURAL TOUPE IN TOWN

Kathmandu, 7 Feb. : On the occasion of Chinese New Year 2012, the year of the dragon, a spring festival gala was organized here Monday, The Rising Nepal writes.
Addressing the programme, Vice President Paramananda Jha said that cultural exchanges between Nepal and China would further enhance the relationship between the two countries.
He said that the cordial and multi-faceted relationship along with high level visits of the officials of both the countries from time to time had helped strengthen the ties of the two countries.
"Confucius, the prime philosophical figure of China and Lord Buddha, who was born in Nepal, have provided spiritual guidance to the people not only within the two countries but to the entire world."
Minister for Education Dinanath Sharma said that such programmes would help further deepen the cultural ties of the two countries.
He said that the number of Nepali students studying Chinese language had significantly increased in the recent years with over
200 schools having Chinese language as part of their course curriculum in lower level.
"The cultural and linguistic ties would act as a bridge to societies of both countries to perceive each other better than ever," said Sharma.
Expressing his best wishes to all on the occasion of the Chinese New Year 2012 and the lantern festival, Chinese Ambassador to Nepal Yang Houlan hoped that the programme would help exchange warm relationships of the two neighbouring countries.
He said that the establishment of Confucius Institute at Kathmandu University in 2007 had played a key role in promoting and transmitting the Chinese culture and language in Nepal.
"I strongly believe that the decision to mark the year 2012 as Nepal-China Friendly exchange year would also prosper and deepen the relation of the two countries," he said.
The crew of Hubei University of Economics and Business demonstrated various Chinese dances and songs along with mesmerizing display of acrobatic and martial arts skills, among others in the programme.
The programme was organized by the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China together with Confucius Institute, Kathmandu and the World Cultural Net.
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