PRESIDENT HOLDS CONSULTATIONS WITH LEADERS OF THE BIG THREE PARTIES

PRESIDENT HOLDS CONSULTATIONS WITH LEADERS OF BIG THREE PARTIES
Kathmandu, 15 Feb.: Top leaders of UCPN (Maoist) leading the government and two main opposition leaders of NC and UML held consultations with President Dr. Ram Baran Yadav Wednesday.
Maoist Chairman Prachanda, NC President Sushil Koirala and UML Chairman
Jhalanath Khanal held a dialogue with the president on the delayed peace and constitution drafting processes and formation of a national consensus government.
The ceremonial head of state earlier held separate meetings with Prime Minister
Baburam Bhattarai and Speaker Subash Nemwang.
Twice in two days, Premier Bhattarai said he’ll lead a consensus government amid demands for his resignation his own party and claimed ywo delayed pricesses will be completed in one month within Falgun.
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ADAMANT MINISTER SAYS HE WON’T RESIGN
Kathmandu, 15 Feb.: Minister for Information and Communications Jaya Prakash Gupta told the cabinet on Tuesday that he would not "apologize under any circumstances" for his recent remarks on territorial integrity of the country, Republica reports.

"I will not apologize for what I said even if parliament remains obstructed for a year," a source quoted Gupta as saying at the cabinet meeting.

Gupta took time in the cabinet meeting to respond to criticisms in parliament for his remarks that Tarai would disintegrate from the state within two/three months if the problems in Tarai were not addressed. Lawmakers from the opposition party have also demanded his resignation for his remarks.

Speaking in the cabinet, Gupta also took strong exception to the concerns expressed by President Dr Ram Baran Yadav to Prime Minister Dr Baburam Bhattarai over his remarks. "The remarks I made related to a political problem," the source quoted Gupta as saying, "I am concerned over whether a ceremonial president can discuss such an issue with the prime minister."

Gupta also took strong exception to the prime minister´s press advisor Ram Rijan Yadav making public the president´s concerns over his remarks.

At the meeting, the prime minister told Gupta that he met the president to discuss the peace process and constitution writing and Gupta´s remarks cropped up during the meeting.
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CITIZENSHIP ROW BLOWN OUT OF PROPORTION
Kathmandu, 15 Feb : A circular issued by Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister Bijaya Kumar Gachchhadar to District Administration Offices (DAOs) across the country to provide citizenship certificates by descent to the children of those acquiring citizenship by birth has lately triggered a debate, and at times led to accusations among political parties, Kosh Raj Koirala writes in
Republica.

The controversy surrounding the circular reached a high after the issue was taken to the Supreme Court and chief district officers (CDOs) in most districts refused to implement the circular, arguing that it was ´unconstitutional´ and also ran counter to existing laws related to citizenship.

But facts on the ground suggest that a genuine citizenship problem, which needs to addressed sooner rather than later, has been blown out of proportion.

The government formed after the success of the people´s movement in April 2006 had brought in an amendment to the Citizenship Act to address the problem relating to citizenship mostly in the Tarai districts. As per the amendment, any person born in Nepal before April 13, 1990 and residing within the territory of Nepal since then was made eligible to receive a citizenship certificate by birth.

But this was devised as a special, one-time provision since the Constitution of the Kingdom of Nepal, 1990 did not have any provision for issuing citizenship certificates on the basis of birth.

According to the Home Ministry, altogether 170,042 people had received citizenship by birth under this provision, which was also included in the Interim Constitution and was valid for two years starting November 26, 2006. But neither the Interim Constitution nor the citizenship act that provides citizenship by descent envisioned the problem that would be posed by the children of such parents who were born before the parents acquired their citizenship.

As per Article 3 (I) of the Citizenship Act, 2006, only a person whose father or mother was a citizen of Nepal at the time of his/her birth is eligible for citizenship by descent.

To resolve this problem, Home Minister Gachchhadar had taken a proposal to the cabinet to provide citizenship by descent to the children of those who received citizenship by birth under the 2006 special provision. Since his proposal was not endorsed by the cabinet, Minister Gachchhadar took a ministerial-level decision to send a circular to the district administration offices, bypassing the bureaucratic channels within the ministry.

The bureaucrats say their argument is not that such children should be denied Nepali citizenship. "Since the parents have already acquired citizenship certificates there is no question of denying citizenship to their bona-fide children. But existing legal provisions do not say anything about providing citizenship certificates to such children," said a senior bureaucrat at the Home Ministry.

And the problem, they argue, can be resolved through a simple amendment to the Citizenship Certificate Act, if not to the Interim Constitution itself.

The officials say the circular sent to the DAOs on January 10 contradicts the provision in the Interim Constitution and in Article 3 (i) of Nepal Citizenship Act, 2006. "A bureaucrat at the level of CDO cannot take a decision on the basis of a circular that goes against existing provisions in the Act. The best thing the government can do to resolve the matter is to bring an amendment to the Citizenship Act with a provision for issuing citizenship certificates to such children," the official said.

However, Jitendra Dev, who is spokesperson of the Madhesi People´s Rights Forum (Democratic), the home minister´s party, said the circular was issued after holding consultations with the Maoists and NC leader Krishna Prasad Sitaula, who served as home minister when the Citizenship Act was amended.

"The circular was issued as they [NC and Maoist leaders] suggested that there was no need to bring any amendment in the Interim Constitution or in the Act. I believe this is a problem created by the bureaucrats," he claimed.

Dev argued that once the problem concerning the children of those acquiring citizenship through birth is settled, the problem of citizenship certificates in Nepal will be resolved once and for all.

"I, as a Madhesi leader, propose that no citizenship should be issued on the basis of birth once the current problem is resolved," he said, adding, "It would be a great achievement for the country to resolve the problem of citizenship that has been persisting for so long."
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MAOIST CHIEF WHIP GURUNG DEMANDS CONSENSUS GOVT. TO REPLACE BHATTARAI GOVT.
Kathmandu, Feb. 15.: Maoist leader Dev Prasad Gurung on Tuesday claimed that the anti-money laundering and extradition treaty and legal assistance bills introduced by the government in the legislature-parliament would not be approved at any cost, The Rising Nepal reports.
Speaking at an interaction programme organised by the Reporters’ Club Nepal, he said that the proposed bills would not be passed as the party had already made a decision not to ratify them.
Commenting on the recent remarks made by Minister JP Gupta, Gurung said that the minister had no right to stay in power unless he made an apology for his statement.
He said that the national consensus government was the basis for mutual trust among political parties but the process of forming a consensus government was still lingering due to unwillingness of Nepali Congress (NC).
"This government can not continue as

a national consensus government unless the faulty decisions of the past and the basis of formation of the government are reviewed," he stressed.
On integration of combatants, Gurung asserted that the integration process could pace up without any hindrance if agreement was forged for ranking of the combatants.
CPN-UML secretary, Shankar Pokhrel said that Prime Minister Dr. Baburam Bhattarai should resign from his post and make room to forge new agreement as his government had failed to deliver on promises.
He said that NC was in a state of confusion whether to continue with the current government or form a new one and that CPN-UML was ready to join hands with NC if it was in favour of changing the government.
Dr. Minendra Rijal of NC said that there was no room for trusting Prime Minister Dr. Baburam Bhattarai on the matters of speeding the peace process.
He said that the internal disputes among Maoist leaders had obstructed the peace and constitution writing processes and that it was high time for Nepali people to know whether they would for once settle their differences for the sake of the country.
"Prime Minister Bhattarai should clarify whether he is in favour of peace and constitution or people’s revolution," said Rijal adding that the country would not achieve significant outcomes with Maoist leaders taking command of the state affairs.
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MY STATEMENT MISINTERPRETED SAYS MINISTER GUPTA
Kathmandu, 15 Feb.: Minister for Information and Communications Jay Prakash Gupta Tuesday claimed that journalists took his statement wrongly, The Rising Nepal reports.
Talking with the Gorkhapatra daily, Gupta said that during the press meet of 7 February in his office, journalists present their misinterpreted the word regime as state. "Regime is not state," he said.
Stating that the Madhesi people were disappointed as the political parties failed to implement the agreement made between the government and Madhesi parties, Gupta warned if their disappointment was not addressed then the Madheis would revolt again.
Claiming that the doctors shouldn’t be called anti-sugar by the businessmen just because they suggest diabetes patients to avoid the consumption of sugar, he urged people not to misunderstand his intention.
Gupta made it clear that, "During the time of people’s war, though the Maoists were not connected with Kathmandu, the state was not divided."
He claimed that with the eight-point agreement, Madhesi leaders participated in the election of Constitution Assembly and the relation of the uprising Madhesis were connected with the state power.
If the Madhesi issues were not addressed within May 27th, then the Madhesis would lose their confidence over the (state) power, said Gupta.
He claimed that no new development work was started in Madhes and those which were started were being halted by the obstruction of the constitutional bodies.
"The inclusive bill is being prolonged by the Public Service Commission; the court refused the en-masse entry of Madhesis in Nepal Army and national parks are not allowing operation of the postal road and East-West railway," he added.
He further added that though millions of rupees were released in the name of Maoist martyrs, the families of Madhesi martyrs had received no relief.
He said that the SRC rejected the demand of One Madhesh, One Province, proposed the weakest form of the federal structure, rejected the population-based representation, did not recognise the language of Madhes and the demand of the inclusive representation.
He said that they could not accept the new constitution if it rejected their demands.
"We burnt the constitution in the past and no one will prevent us from doing so again," he said.
He also expressed his dissatisfaction that his remarks became tools to the opposition parties to encircle the government.
"The president understood it going beyond the fact and the Prime Minister presented it going beyond the reality," he said.
He said that the issues raised by different regions and groups should be addressed wisely by making some compromises.
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PROJECT PROFILE BEING PLANNED BY INVESTMENT BAORD
Kathmandu, 15 Feb.: The Investment Board is working on a sectorwise project
profile plan with economic benefit to cost, investors’ tracking system, and communication strategies to lure investment to the country, The Himalayan Times reports.

“The meeting chaired by Prime Minister Dr Baburam Bhattarai today discussed on possible

incentives — on the basis of employment generation, size of the investment and region where

it will be based — to attract investments in commercially viable projects,” said chief executive of the Investment Board Radhesh Pant.

“We are preparing a transparent framework for incentives to make the country more lucrative for investors,” he said, adding that the modules will be ready by the end of the current fiscal year.

The country is observing the fiscal year 2012-13 as Nepal Investment Year with an aim to attract

Rs 600 billion foreign investment that could propel a double-digit economic growth.

Apart from the economic benefit to cost module, the board is also preparing an investor tracking system — from before investment to after investment — to create a database that will help analyse the issues and problems and continuously support investors, said Pant, who has a long experience regarding investments.

“We are also preparing a communication strategy that will help local communities be aware of the benefits of the projects in their locality,” he said, adding that it will help them better understand advantages of the projects in their locality before the project starts.

The Prime Minister, during the meeting, opined that the country needs investment — both domestic and foreign — to create employment and boost the current sluggish economic growth.

“There are enormous opportunities in Nepal as it is one of the richest countries in terms of natural resources which remain unexploited.”

The government formed the Investment Board to capitalise on the opportunities and create a conducive environment for investment.

The board is chaired by the Prime Minister and three ministers — finance, industry and forest — are its members along with the vice chairman of

the National Planning Commission, governor of the central bank and the chief secretary.
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INCLUSION BILL HAS MADESHSI BIAS
Kathmandu, 15 Feb.: Despite criticism from the opposition parties and bureaucrats, a Cabinet meeting today decided to table the bill on inclusion before the Parliament, giving top priority to the Madhesi communities in government services. The bill, which increases reservation to 48 per cent from existing 45 per cent, gives top priority to Madhesi
Castes, Prakash .Acharya writes in The Himalayan Times.

“The government has decided to table the bill before the House at the earliest,” said Minister for Physical Planning and Works Hridayesh Tripathi after today’s Cabinet meeting.

According to the copy of the bill received by the The Himalayan Times, 33 per cent reservation for women will be shared among the women of Madhesi and other backward groups. Inclusive quotas will not be transferred to open competition even if any of the candidates under the reservation fails to pass the exam. In such a condition, the quotas for reservation will increase gradually.

The government had introduced 45 per cent reservation for backward and underprivileged groups four years ago.

Opposition parties and bureaucrats said the bill did not justify the increase of reservation from 45 to 48 per cent or giving priority to Madhesi high castes in government services. “Different castes and women from Madhesi communities have been given top priority by ignoring other socially, economically and regionally backward groups. It is against the spirit of reservation and inclusion,” said a government secretary on condition of anonymity.

The bureaucrat said the prime minister supported the bill to appease the Unified Democratic Madhesi Front to prolong his stay in the government. UDMF ministers had been threatening to pull the plug on the government if the bill on inclusion was not brought as per their demands.

Today’s Cabinet decision is part of a four-point agreement reached between the Unified CPN-Maoist and UDMF on August 28, which paved the way to elect Baburam Bhattarai as prime minister with the support of the UDMF.

One of the four points states the government would bring the bill on inclusion to include the Madhesi communities in the government services.

Bill is is against the spirit of inclusion, as it cuts quotas for women of other regions and backward groups to include the women of Madhes based castes, said a joint secretary. “Although the bill has increased the quotas for Madhesi castes, it has not given priority to Madhesi backward groups. “The bill is intended to provide chance to Madhesi upper castes,” he added.
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