POSITIONS ON MAJOR PARTIES ON FEDERAL STRUCTURE Kathmandu, 28 April: The main opposition Nepali Congress Friday presented a proposal for restructuring the country into seven provinces, The Rising Nepal reports. At a meeting of three major parties and United Democratic Madhesi Front Friday, NC leaders proposed the seven provinces as per the agreement the parties made at Hattiban earlier to settle for 6-7 states. NC proposed Mechi, Koshi, Solukhumbu and Okhaldhunga in eastern part of Nepal as one province and Saptari, Parsa, Udayapur, Sindhuli and Makanwapur, with areas falling in inner Terai, as another. Nawalparasi, Bardiya and all districts falling in the Terai belt except Chitwan, NC said, should be one province, while districts of Bagmati zone and hilly areas of Janakpur zone, Chitwan and Makawanpur as another. NC has proposed to merge hilly regions of Rapti, Bheri and Karnali into one state, while putting all districts of Seti and Mahakali zones into another. Proposing no change in 75 districts, NC said the respective states would have the right to name the provinces. "We proposed seven provinces as per the earlier agreement of the parties to reflect a balanced population pressure, proximity, identity and capacity," said Arjun Narsingh KC. Leader KC said that Maoists gave continuity to their war-era party agenda by advocating for 15 states, and added, officially though, the party presented a proposal for 10 provinces. The government’s ally UDMF vehemently opposed the NC proposal regarding the number and structure of the states saying that the proposal was against Madhes sentiments, said Hridayesh Tripati, UDMF leader. The UDMF stood for One Madhes-One Province, Minister for Physical Planning and Works Tripathi said that Maoist’s 10-state proposal was intended to seek consensus among the parties regarding the number of states. As the Central Committee meeting of the CPN-UML was underway during NC presented proposal regarding the numbers and structure of states in new federal Nepal, UML leaders said that they would come up with their own proposal and give responses to the NC’s proposal at the next meeting. Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs Bijaya Kumar Gachchhadar said that discussions on separate documents would be made by Saturday after UML’s proposal. "We are ready to accept any proposal presented by any party which respects the sentiments of Madesi, indigenous and Muslim communities," he said. NC leader Ram Chandra Paudel said that the NC proposal was not against the Madhesi sentiments as it had emphasised the welfare of the Madhesi people. Meanwhile, leaders of NC Friday urged UCPN-Maoist chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ to be flexible on his party’s proposal for 10 federal provinces. NC leaders, in a meeting with Prachanda at his Lazimpat residence, also discussed the contentious issues of the constitution writing. During the meeting, leaders of both parties agreed to move forward seriously on constitution writing process. They also showed readiness to settle the disputed issues in the constitution writing process by forging consensus. According to Prachanda’s aide Shiva Khakurel, NC vice-president Ram Chandra Paudel urged the Maoist chairman to adopt flexibility on the proposed 10 federal states. Similarly, Prachanda said backtracking from the proposal was not easy as other parties would think and reminded the NC leaders of the steps taken by the Maoists to push forward the army integration process. Former Prime Minister Prachanda sought flexibility from NC and CPN-UML leaders on the issue of state-restructuring. Dahal said that his party had sacrificed in the army integration process and stressed that it was the turn of NC and UML to be flexible now. NC general secretary Krishna Prasad Sitaula said that Prachanda also underscored the need for federalizing the country based on identity and capability as far as it was possible. He said that the NC leaders urged Prachanda for flexibility in the issues of state restructuring and number of provinces UML POSITION : The Central Committee meeting of CPN-UML on Friday decided to reject the proposal for 10 provinces as floated by UCPN-Maoist at the meeting of key political parties on Thursday. It also decided the party would not accept more than seven states even if they were divided on the basis of identity and capacity. During the meeting called immediately after the UCPN-Maoist proposed 10 provinces for state structuring, prominent UML leaders notified the central members that the party would not accept any proposal that suggests the number of states more than 7. UML chairman Jhalanath Khanal and leaders Madhav Kumar Nepal and KP Oli laid their ideas about the matter.The meeting was postponed after leaders went to a joint meeting of Maoists, Nepali Congress, UML and Samyukta Loktantrik Madhesi Morcha (SLMM) was called in the afternoon. At the meeting, speakers also said the party would go for a 205-member parliament by rejecting the proposal for 385 members of parliament. They also said the lower house members should be directly elected. According to Bhanu Bhakta Dhakal, a central member, party representatives could be sent to the upper house, not the lower house. At the meeting, leaders expressed their voices against the ethnic provinces. MADESHBADI STAND The United Democratic Madhesi Front (UDMF) Friday decided to go against proposal for provinces made by the main ruling partner UCPN-Maoist. Earlier on Thursday, the Maoists tabled a new proposal with a total of 10 provinces, including two provinces in Madhes. The meeting of UDMF held at Singha Durbar decided to demand merger of the two separate provinces into one in Mades by amending the report of the state restructuring high-level commission. After the meeting, UDMF leader and co-chairman of Nepal Sadbhavana Party Laxman Lal Karna said the meeting decided to implement the demand of one Madesh-one Province. "We decided to demand One Madhes-One Province by making minor amendment to the SRC report," he said. General secretary of Madhesi Janaadhikar Forum-Loktantrik Jitendra Dev said the leaders of UDMF protested the Maoist proposal saying that it was unveiled with the intent to split Madhes. "We have no reservation over the number of federal states. But, we cannot agree on making two provinces in Madhes," he further said. Deputy Prime Minister Bijaya Kumar Gachchhadar, Minister for Information and Communications Raj Kishor Yadav, chairman of Tarai-Madhes Loktantrik Party Mahantha Thakur, chairman of Tarai-Madhes Loktantrik Party, Nepal, Mahendra Yadav and other leaders of UDMF were present at the meeting. The UDMF will make its official stance public on the state restructuring after the next meeting, which will be held very soon. Menwhile, Minister for Information and Communications, Raj Kishore Yadav has said that a base has been seen that the Madhesh-centric parties would agree on the UCPN (Maoist) proposal on federal states. Addressing a party workers gathering of Madhesi Janadhikar Forum ( Republic) in Banke on Friday, he said that a possibility was high that the Madhesh-based parties would accept the Maoists’ proposal on 10 federal states with some amendments. He expressed his confidence that the peace process would conclude soon since the army integration, the major part of the peace process, was near to a conclusion. Minister Yadav, who is also the Acting Chairman of MJF (Republic), claimed that the new constitution would be ‘inclusive one’ and address the voices of the backward communities. At the programme presided over party’s district Chairman Kapil Dev Gupta, party’s central secretary Sandhya Dev, central member Abdul Juabbar and Minister of State for Agriculture, Om Prakash Yadav said the Madhesi-based parties would not comprise on the Madhes issues while federating the country. nnnn