MAOIST STANDING COMMITTEE MEET CONTINUES FRIDAY

MAOIST STANDING COMMITTEE MEET RESUMES

Kathmandu, 10 Feb.: Maoist standing committee meet resumes
Friday amid calls at Thursday’s meet for the resignation of
Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai, who is also party second vice-chairman.
Demands for Bhattarai’s resignation by the hard-line First
Vice-chairman Mohan Baidhya resurrected after the premier
told parliament the cabinet Thursday morning put on hold a government decision with assurances not to implement the decision to legalize seizure of people’s assets by Maoists during 10-year insurgency.
The intra-party feud again broke out after a short-lived unity amid new charge Bhattarai was an’ feudal agent’ for taking a decision against poor farmers who had been distributed seized farmland.
The government chief sought to satisfy critics who charged Bhattarai for by-passing party directive saying alternative relief for farmers
would be announced in seven days.
‘Way has been opened for the resolution of farmers’ problems,” Bhattarai told parliament Thursday:
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UML POLITBURO MEET FRIDAY

Kathmandu, 10 Feb.: UML politburo meets Friday to finalize
preparations for a conference of the party national
representatives council later this month.
Party Chairman Jhalanath Khanal is presenting a 34-page
political report for politburo approval for presentation at the
council meeting
Pushing untying the second largest opposition party and the
country’s third force, Khanal proposed making the party the
biggest party.
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SECURE WITHDRAWAL OF MONEY BY FORMER MAOIST FIGHTERS DISCUSSED

Kathmandu, 10 Feb. Thursday’s meeting of the special committee for integration and resettlement of former Maoist fighters decided to form establish a 24-hour hunting line at the body headed ex-officio by the prime minister and issue fresh cheques to fighters who were leaving for he for the first time in five years from camps.
The special committee met Thursday after demands by
opposition it be convened to discuss widespread seizure of
cheques of returnees by commanders at the camps
Bank representatives have been invited by the special committee Fridayto discuss the safe withdrawal of money by authorized persons.
‘The cheque seizures are of serious concern. No unauthorized can claim the cheque,” Bhattarai told parliament where the issue figured
Thursday.
The special committee discussed measures ensure safe
withdrawal of money by former fighters who are entitled to
settlements from Rs 600,000 Rs 800,000.
Although Prime Minister Bhattarai and other top government an party leaders, money snatch was not party policy, other responsible Maoist leaders have confirmed move is party policy to fund compensation of YCL activists.
The paramilitary wing was launched after Maoists joined the
political mainstream six years ago.
The body was mobilized on the streets and was deployed during
parliamentary and assembly elections securing victory for the
Maoists who emerged as the largest political party in the vote.
Retirement of former fighters from five of seven cantonments
have completed, Finance Minister Barshaman Singh Pun said.
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PM BHATTARAI INAUGURATING INTERNATIONAL MEET IN BIHAR 17 FEB.

Kathmandu, 10 Feb.: Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai flies
across the border to Patna, Bihar, 17 February to inaugurate
the “Global Summit on Changing Bihar: Forging Partnership for Development”.
Organizers said preparations for the international conference have been completed.
Bihar, he state across the border, was considered India’s bread
basket until a few years ago; the state had now recorded phenomenal economic growth which is being highlighted at the conference.
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FAR-WEST STRIKE WITHDRAWN
Kathmandu, 10 Feb.: Friday’s strike by the Seti Mukti Morcha
announcing the closure of the far-West has been withdrawn at the request of Prime Minister Bauram Bhattarai
The morcha presented a set of demands to the premier Thursday
evening.
Commerce Minister Lekh Raj Bhatta took the initiative in first calling for the strike.
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STRIKE CLOSES DOWN CHITWAN

Kathmandu, 10 Feb.: A strike brought life to a standstill in
Chitwan Friday.
The strike was killed to protest the death of a man in firing by army security guard at Chitwan National Park.
One tree smuggler was also injured.
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MEDIA GOOGLE

“Everyone of us has made a contribution whether we have stayed in the cantonment or outside. So, the whole timers in the YCL should be treated on par with combatants opting for voluntary retirement.”

(YCL Chairman Ganesh Man Pun, Republica, 10 Feb.)
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MAOISTS DIVIDED







Kathmandu, 10 Feb :
Differences over whether to continue with the present government or not resurfaced in the main ruling UCPN-Maoist on Thursday as the dissent faction argued in the party Standing Committee that it was useless to lead the government by scrapping the Cabinet decision to legalise the land deal transactions
made by the party during the armed conflict, The Rising Nepal reports..
"The Cabinet decision is against the party spirit and it is equal to giving in before the landlords. That we should give up the government has been proved right again by the decision," Maoist Secretary CP Gajurel said talking with the reporters after the SC meeting that was held after the cabinet decision.
The meeting was held at Maoist chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’s residence at Lazimpat.
The majority establishment, however, gave a nod to Prime Minister Dr Baburam Bhattarai to ‘suspend’ the earlier Cabinet decisions in order to resume the proceedings of the Parliament which had been obstructed by the opposition parties for the last two weeks.
"Com. Kiran and some other leaders disagreed with the decision to suspend the Cabinet decision by making some alternative ways to address the problem of the farmers. They, however, agreed to resume the House," Maoist spokesperson Dina Nath Sharma, who is also Education Minister, said after the meeting.
Sharma said that the party would resolve the differences by holding another SC meeting on Friday.
Prime Minister Dr Bhattarai had on Wednesday given words to the opposition parties like Nepali Congress and CPN-UML that he would address their concerns through a Cabinet meeting decision. He had issued the assurance at a major three party meet held at Gokarna Forest Resort.
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STATE RESTRUCTURING DISCUSSED AT NC
Kathmandu, 10 Feb.: The Nepali Congress (NC) formally started internal discussions about the modality of state restructuring Thursday, The Rising Nepal reports from Lalitpur.
A joint meeting of leaders and experts stressed that the ethnic-based state restructuring would be harmful for the nation.
The meeting held at the party central office at Sanepa also discussed the repot of the State Restructuring Commission (SRC) and its recommendation of 11 federal states.
After the meeting, NC vice-president Ram Chandra Poudel said that the NC would never accept the SRC report as it was submitted, and added, "The NC wants minimum states on the basis of power and identity."
He said that the new

federal system would be identified on the basis of economic capability, geographical situation and identity of communities.
NC leader Nabindra Raj Joshi said that the party started the discussion on the SRC report and stressed that the NC would not accept the identity-based federal system.
The NC started consultation with experts to identify the modality of state restructuring.
During the meeting, experts Surya Lal Amatya and economist Prithviraj Ligal explained to the leaders about the negative and positive aspects of SRC report.
NC leader Laxman Ghimire said that the meeting was trying to identify the modality of the state restructuring for the new constitution.
He informed that the party would take a decision after consultation of leaders and experts.
Meanwhile, NC office bearers’ meeting held at the parliamentary party office also decided to end the obstruction of parliament.
The meeting also welcomed the government’s decision of withdrawing an earlier decision related to legalizing the documents of the Maoists from the period of insurgency.

Sources said that the meeting also analyzed the ongoing peace and constitution drafting processes.
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ARMY TOLD TO BEGIN INTEGRATION
Kathmandu, 10 Feb.: The government on Thursday
sent a letter to the Nepal Army to start preparations for
the integration of Maoist combatants into the national
army, The Kathmandu Post reports.
The Defence Ministry dispatched a formal instruction along with the minutes of the Special Committee decision to the Army Headquarters. The despatch was delayed due to an ambiguity in the letter sent to the Defence Ministry by the PM’s Office on Sunday. The minutes were prepared on the basis of the seven-point deal signed in November last year. “We included the minutes of the special committee’s decision along with the letter of the Prime Minister’s Office and asked Nepal Army to start preparations for the army integration process,” a source at the Defence Ministry said. The Army had been waiting for an official letter to make preparations to form a new directorate to integrate 6,500 former Maoist combatants.
“We had so far only received verbal instructions from the prime minister. With the official instruction in hand, we will now officially start the process,” said an Army General. The Nepali Congress and the CPN-UML had issued an ultimatum to the government to start the process within February 12. NC leader Ram Saran Mahat said the parties will now discuss ways to reduce the number of combatants opting for integration to the maximum limit of 6,500. Over 9,000 combatants have opted for integration.
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REMITTANCE FLOW, WORKERS’ WOES REMAIN
Kathmandu, 10 Feb.:Ramesh Mahat of Panchthar who returned to Nepal a few days ago is planning to go to Kuwait again. He says it is his compulsion as he found no work back home.
Mahat, who went to the Gulf country through an “irregular channel” earlier, said
he is following the legal processes this time around, Roshan Sedhai writes in The Kathmandu Post..
Like Mahat, many other Nepalis are forced to leave for the Gulf or the Middle East through various illegal means in lack of employment opportunities at home.
According to the Department of Foreign Employment, around 2,000 people at present are seeking permission to go abroad every day.
Official government data show around 2.2 million people—7.30 percent of the total population—are working in various countries. However, the actual number is said to be much higher than that. A majority of these workers are between the age of 20 and 23.
The contribution of remittance to the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is said to be above 20 percent, as no exact figures are available. According to the National Migration Survey Report, Nepal received Rs 260 billion—19 percent of the GDP—in 2011.
Despite remittance being one of the major sources of the country’s income, issues related to migrant workers largely go unnoticed.
With the growth of foreign employment as a prominent industry, dishonest agents, pre-departure orientations, proper training for workers, legal hassles, the trend of going through illegal means, laws that are not women-friendly, high interest rates that individuals have to pay to money lenders and problems in bringing back home bodies of the dead are seen as major challenges facing the sector.
Many Nepali migrant workers do not take pre-departure training and orientation classes though it is mandatory in foreign employment laws.
The Foreign Employment Promotion Board says around 500 people visited the office to acquire information this year. The board’s executive director Sthaneshwor Devkota said the lack of information on the working conditions and the laws of the destination countries expose the workers to various risks.
An official at the Department of Foreign Employment Board said a large number of workers and recruiting agencies buy fake orientation and training certificates.
“Migrant workers are always in a rush. They do not follow the due processes and expose themselves to risks. People get permission from the board without proper documents by paying brokers or officials,” said one official, seeking anonymity.
More than 100 personal brokers and brokers attached with various manpower agencies are active at the DoFE. These brokers, who have good relations with officials, are often found assisting people in acquiring fake documents.
Manisha Shrestha also just returned from Kuwait. She was literally sold by a broker for one household via the Indian route with illegal documents. The employer used to mistreat her and would not give her enough food to eat.
“I was barred from talking with other workers in the house. I used to eat inside the toilet. They used to beat me up time and again,” Shrestha, who hails from Chitwan, said. Luckily, she fled to the embassy with the help of a friend and saved herself.
A recent report of the Amnesty International (AI) claims that 30 percent of the total migrant workers are women. It is also estimated that 80 percent of undocumented workers are females. However, national records show that the number is around 10 percent.
The major question here, however, is why and how undocumented women manage to fly overseas.
If the AI report is anything to go by, legal provisions for women migrant workers are not as friendly as they are to men. Moreover, there are no legal agreements with countries where the demand for female workers is high. Nepal recently signed an agreement with four Gulf States—Kuwait, UAE, Saudi and Qatar—to send women for domestic jobs. However, those agreements have not made a big difference in the situation of the womenfolk.
The trend of using “irregular channels” bars most of the migrant women from seeking legal help when in trouble.
A study commissioned by the Ministry of Labour and Transport management and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) reported that 40 to 50 percent of the total migrant workers went abroad through irregular channels. These workers are more likely to suffer more.
Nepal does not have embassies in many countries to help its citizens during difficult times. It has signed Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) with only five countries. The government must begin the process to sign bilateral agreements with all countries where workers fly to, irrespective of the number of the workers.
The AI report says that workers pay as high as 60 percent interest per annum for the money they borrow to go abroad. The government has to come up with encouraging and financially viable incentives to the workers.
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