NEPALI FORESTER BAGS WANGARI MAATHAIAWARD Kathmandu, 28 Sept.: Sharmila Shrestha was so happy when it was decided that the first ever Collaborative Partnership on Forests, Wangari Maathai would be awarded to Dr Narayankaji Shrestha -- a pioneer community forestry activist in the country, Ramesh Prashad Bhushal writes in Republica.. She has been working with him for more than two decades and recalls him as a man of passion. “He always used to say that we shouldn´t waste time and only work can make life fulfilling,” said Sharmila. Narayankaji bagged the prestigious award named after Nobel Peace Prize winner Wangari Maathai of Kenya who founded a green revolution through Green Belt Movement Campaign in Kenya. “When I learnt that call for Wangari award was open I consulted with his friends at national and international arena but international ones took the lead and nominated him for the award,” added Sharmila who works for Women Acting Together for Change (WATCH). Narayan who did his PhD in education from Michigan State University in USA in 1987 is one of the pioneer community forestry activists in the country who spent decades to mainstream the community forestry movement at the national and international level. “He was the one who led community forestry in Nepal. He played key role in internationalizing community forestry. So Nepali activist getting international award is a matter of pride for the country and for community forestry movement in Nepal” said Ghanashyam Pandey, former Chairperson of Federation of Community Forest User Groups Nepal (FECOFUN). Shrestha worked as an advisor to FECOFUN in late 90´s. According to Pandey, Shrestha is a very simple person and prefers to keep a low-profile. “He was happy keeping a low profile and worked for the communities, tried to give his best to establish community forestry in Nepal,” added Pandey. Narayankaji worked for several national and international organizations over the last three decades. He started his career as a teacher of Vanasthali Vidhyasharam in Balaju in 1964. "Shrestha´s work captures the spirit of Wangari Maathai," said FAO Assistant Director-General for Forestry, Eduardo Rojas-Briales. "His vision, courage, commitment, intelligence and praxis is recognized through this award." "Dr Shrestha is recognized as one of main architects of the community forestry movement which has contributed significantly to restoring forest resources in the country,” FAO website wrote about him after the award ceremony held Thursday in Rome. He received $ 20,000 at a function organized at FAO headquarters in Rome during the FAO Committee on Forestry and Third World Forestry Week which is underway in Italy. Shrestha had established many grass-roots level organizations that played key role for the development of community forestry in Nepal. He is the founder of New ERA (Research Organization), Natural and Organizational Resources Management Service (NORMS), NEPAN (Nepal Participatory Action Network of I/NGOs), FECOFUN (Federation of Community Forestry Users, Nepal), NFIWUAN (National Federation of Irrigation Water Users´ Association Nepal), HIMAWANTI (Network of Grassroots Women Users of Natural Resources), Mahila Ekata Sangathan (Sex Workers Organization) in Nepal, Global Caucus for Community Based Natural Resources Management and International Network of Forests and Communities. Nnnn ________________________________________ WW’RE NOT STUPID TO RAISE ARMS SAYS CP GAJUREL Kathmandu, 28 Sept.: Allaying concerns raised from various quarters, the newly-formed CPN-Maoist on Thursday said they do not have any immediate plans to launch an armed insurgency. At an interaction held with diplomatic envoys from various countries based in Kathmandu to apprise them of the latest political situation and the party´s position on various issues, CPN-Maoist Vice-chairman CP Gajurel said an armed struggled would be their last resort. Gajurel said they will try to press their 70-point charter of demands, which they submitted recently to Prime Minister Dr Baburam Bhattarai, through peaceful means. “Armed struggle is not the choice. It is the last resort. We are not stupid to raise arms [immediately],” he said, adding, however, that they may do so if peaceful forms of struggle to press their demands were not heeded. Envoys and representatives from 18 various countries including Australia, the European Union, Germany, North Korea, South Korea, Norway, Russia, Israel, Finland, China, Pakistan, India and the US were present at the interaction. Gajurel, whose party recently defected from the UCPN (Maoist), mentioned that they were compelled to raise arms in 1996 after their 40-point demand was not met despite a series of peaceful protests. Arguing that the current government led by Baburam Bhattarai can neither hold elections nor forge a national consensus with other parties, Gajurel said they decided to join hands with the opposition parties, including the Nepali Congress and CPN-UML, to oust Bhattarai from government. “The new national consensus government will announce the date for elections after holding consultations with those parties also that may choose to stay out of the government,” he said, adding that his party would join such a government. He further said that the ruling parties´ stance that all contentious issues including the choice of next prime minister be settled before Bhattarai steps down was unjustifiable. “The name of the prime minister was not announced first in the past. That is not going to happen this time either,” he said, adding: “We will decide who will be the new prime minister when the time is ripe. It is not good to open the umbrella before it actually starts raining.” On a question posed by the envoys present at the interaction, Gajurel said that other opposition parties also supported their 70-point charter of demands, and these were mainly issues related to national sovereignty, including the BIPPA agreement with India and the government´s preparations to hand over to foreign management Tribhuvan International Airport and 14 other airports. The 70-point demand they submitted to Prime Minister Bhattarai was also given to the envoys present. Asked if they had relinquished their demand for a round-table conference to resolve the current political deadlock, Gajurel said they still believed that a round-table comprising all political forces in the country was the only way to resolve the deadlock. “There is still a possibility of holding a round-table conference to resolve the deadlock,” he added. Nnnn