Sunday, May 3, 2009
प्रधानमन्त्रीले कोइरालालाई फोन गरे
प्रधानमन्त्रीले कोइरालालाई फोन गरे
काठमाडौं, वैशाख २० (नागरिक)- प्रधानमन्त्री पुष्पकमल दाहालले नेपाली कांग्रेसका सभापति गिरिजाप्रसाद कोइरालालाई आइतबार विहान फोन गरेका छन् । प्रधानमन्त्री दाहाललले कोइरालासमक्ष भेट्न चाहेको बताए । जवाफमा कोइरालाले 'अहिले हैन पछि आउनोस्' भनेका छन् । कोइरालाले प्रधानमन्त्री दाहाललाई बेलुका ४ बजे भेट्न बोलाएका छन् । फोनमा दाहालसँग कुरा गर्दै कोइरालालले सेनापति हटाएर 'संविधानबिपरित काम नगर्न' सुझाव दिएका थिए । उनले सेनापतिबारे एकल निर्णय गर्दा अस्थिरता आउने चेतावनी दिए । प्रधानसेनापति हटाउने विषयमा सहमति कायम गर्न बालुवाटारमा सत्तासाझेदार पाँच दलका शिर्षस्थ नेताको वैठक बस्नुअघि विहान साँढे ९ बजे प्रधानमन्त्री दाहालले कांग्रेस सभापति कोइरालालाई फोन गरेका हुन् ।
source:
Hailstorm claims half-dozen lives
Hailstorm claims half-dozen lives
Five people have been killed when a fierce hailstorm brought down their house in Rautahat, Sunday morning.
Dozens of other houses were damaged when a fierce hailstorm hit a village in Rautahat at about 5.30 am Sunday. The storm lasted for about 15 minutes, reports say.
Likewise, one person got killed in Sarlahi in a separate storm. Damages related to storm have been reported from Dhanusha, Mahottari, Rasuwa, and
Gorkha, among other districts.
A storm has also blown off the roof of a PLA cantonment in Rupandehi.nepalnews.com May 03 09
source:
http://www.nepalnews.com/archive/2009/may/may03/news11.php
Saturday, May 2, 2009
Exchanged kids live reel life
Exchanged kids live reel life
UPENDRA LAMICHHANE BIRGUNJ, May 3: In a script that seems as if it´s straight out of a Bollywood potboiler, two boys have been living an “interchanged” life for the past decade. To add spice to the plot, as if it needed more, one of the boys is a Hindu and his surrogate a Muslim.
Roshan (left) and Sahil.
Upendra LamichhaneExchanged at the maternity ward of the Narayani Sub-regional Hospital, Roshan Chaudhary and Shahil Ansari have long outgrown the nurse´s blunder committed while the newborns were being given a bath on August 28, 1998. The parents have accepted the incident as a divine act, and the grandfathers want to make Shahil and Roshan ritualized friends (mit in Nepali). Shahil, born to Srikanti and Jayaprakash Chaudhary on that fateful day, has already been circumcised and attends Friday prayers at the mosque with his family members, while Roshan, the son of Guddy and Moinuddin Ansari, is a Hanuman devotee who also prays to Goddess Saraswati.The two live five kilometers apart--Shahil at Parsawa, Parsa, and Roshan at Bakauliya, Bara.When Shahil was a mere two-month-old, his grandmother had the first inkling of suspicion among anyone that there was something amiss; so she went with her husband Zaheer to Bakauliya to see Roshan. Her first sight of Roshan confirmed her suspicions. On a reciprocal visit to Parsawa, by Roshan´s grandfather, he also immediately realized that Shahil was his real grandson.The grandfathers first agreed to exchange the toddlers, but motherly love--the love that had developed for the ward under their keep--reigned that day. And the mothers refused to part ways with their kids, insisting that the kids had not been exchanged at birth. “We had even planned to stand them side by side, clad in similar clothes, and ask the mothers to pick out their real sons. But the mothers didn´t comply,” says Hari Chaudhary.But the fact that the kids had been exchanged at birth became starker as the boys grew. Shahil, studying in class one, resembles Jayaprakash, while Roshan, who is in the third grade, looks like Moinuddin; and Roshan´s younger brother looks like Shahil and Shahil´s kid brother resembles Roshan.Like the mothers, the villagers too have been accepting of the kids, now lovingly called Shahil ´Chaudhary´ and Roshan ´Ansari´. The kids attract huge crowds whenever they go to the common market in Jitpur shared by the villages.But for the family members, adjusting themselves to the small things that can crop up has taken some getting used to. During a recent Bakri-Eid day in Jitpur, Jayaprakash saw Shahil and his brother on a bike. “I thought that was my younger son on the bike, but when I rushed home to confirm things, I found him playing at home,” says Jayaprakash.He now no longer doubts that Shahil is his son but he has accepted fate´s irony. “I can do nothing more than pray for Shahil´s well-being. At the same time, nothing can diminish my immense love for Roshan,” Jayaprakash says. Jayaprakash talked about the feelings that he had to deal with on that Bakri-Eid day with his wife, but she suggested that he not to dwell on the matter. “What happened happened. We won´t exchange them again, she said, and I concurred,” Jayaprakash adds.But Moinuddin has yet to see Roshan and is still in denial. “I don´t think they were exchanged at birth, even though the whole village believes otherwise,” Moinuddin says, staring at Shahil, who is playing nearby. He then embraces Shahil and proceeds to dismiss those exchange-claims as rumors.Moinuddin may deny the fact, but his father has long accepted the truth and smiles in acknowledgment when the villagers call Shahil by his nickname “Chaudhary.” The grandfathers have become good buddies and often visit their grandsons. “I recently met Shahil in Jitpur and gave him some sweets,” Hari says. “He stared at me for a while, not recognizing me, but then ate the sweets,” Hari adds.To foster friendship between the families and make it easier for them to live with the fact, the grandfathers have also decided to make the grandsons ritualized friends. “We are awaiting an auspicious occasion to ritualize their friendship,” Hari says.Jayaprakash wants to meet Moinuddin, for the sake of the kids. “I want to meet him and discuss the futures of the duo,” Jayaprakash says.The kids are small now and do not understand how things really are, but it can become complicated later. Even so, the efforts made by the understanding families should make things easier and make this divine intervention work.
Published on 2009-05-03 00:00:01
source:
http://www.myrepublica.com/portal/?action=news_details&news_id=4591
UPENDRA LAMICHHANE BIRGUNJ, May 3: In a script that seems as if it´s straight out of a Bollywood potboiler, two boys have been living an “interchanged” life for the past decade. To add spice to the plot, as if it needed more, one of the boys is a Hindu and his surrogate a Muslim.
Roshan (left) and Sahil.
Upendra LamichhaneExchanged at the maternity ward of the Narayani Sub-regional Hospital, Roshan Chaudhary and Shahil Ansari have long outgrown the nurse´s blunder committed while the newborns were being given a bath on August 28, 1998. The parents have accepted the incident as a divine act, and the grandfathers want to make Shahil and Roshan ritualized friends (mit in Nepali). Shahil, born to Srikanti and Jayaprakash Chaudhary on that fateful day, has already been circumcised and attends Friday prayers at the mosque with his family members, while Roshan, the son of Guddy and Moinuddin Ansari, is a Hanuman devotee who also prays to Goddess Saraswati.The two live five kilometers apart--Shahil at Parsawa, Parsa, and Roshan at Bakauliya, Bara.When Shahil was a mere two-month-old, his grandmother had the first inkling of suspicion among anyone that there was something amiss; so she went with her husband Zaheer to Bakauliya to see Roshan. Her first sight of Roshan confirmed her suspicions. On a reciprocal visit to Parsawa, by Roshan´s grandfather, he also immediately realized that Shahil was his real grandson.The grandfathers first agreed to exchange the toddlers, but motherly love--the love that had developed for the ward under their keep--reigned that day. And the mothers refused to part ways with their kids, insisting that the kids had not been exchanged at birth. “We had even planned to stand them side by side, clad in similar clothes, and ask the mothers to pick out their real sons. But the mothers didn´t comply,” says Hari Chaudhary.But the fact that the kids had been exchanged at birth became starker as the boys grew. Shahil, studying in class one, resembles Jayaprakash, while Roshan, who is in the third grade, looks like Moinuddin; and Roshan´s younger brother looks like Shahil and Shahil´s kid brother resembles Roshan.Like the mothers, the villagers too have been accepting of the kids, now lovingly called Shahil ´Chaudhary´ and Roshan ´Ansari´. The kids attract huge crowds whenever they go to the common market in Jitpur shared by the villages.But for the family members, adjusting themselves to the small things that can crop up has taken some getting used to. During a recent Bakri-Eid day in Jitpur, Jayaprakash saw Shahil and his brother on a bike. “I thought that was my younger son on the bike, but when I rushed home to confirm things, I found him playing at home,” says Jayaprakash.He now no longer doubts that Shahil is his son but he has accepted fate´s irony. “I can do nothing more than pray for Shahil´s well-being. At the same time, nothing can diminish my immense love for Roshan,” Jayaprakash says. Jayaprakash talked about the feelings that he had to deal with on that Bakri-Eid day with his wife, but she suggested that he not to dwell on the matter. “What happened happened. We won´t exchange them again, she said, and I concurred,” Jayaprakash adds.But Moinuddin has yet to see Roshan and is still in denial. “I don´t think they were exchanged at birth, even though the whole village believes otherwise,” Moinuddin says, staring at Shahil, who is playing nearby. He then embraces Shahil and proceeds to dismiss those exchange-claims as rumors.Moinuddin may deny the fact, but his father has long accepted the truth and smiles in acknowledgment when the villagers call Shahil by his nickname “Chaudhary.” The grandfathers have become good buddies and often visit their grandsons. “I recently met Shahil in Jitpur and gave him some sweets,” Hari says. “He stared at me for a while, not recognizing me, but then ate the sweets,” Hari adds.To foster friendship between the families and make it easier for them to live with the fact, the grandfathers have also decided to make the grandsons ritualized friends. “We are awaiting an auspicious occasion to ritualize their friendship,” Hari says.Jayaprakash wants to meet Moinuddin, for the sake of the kids. “I want to meet him and discuss the futures of the duo,” Jayaprakash says.The kids are small now and do not understand how things really are, but it can become complicated later. Even so, the efforts made by the understanding families should make things easier and make this divine intervention work.
Published on 2009-05-03 00:00:01
source:
http://www.myrepublica.com/portal/?action=news_details&news_id=4591
Friday, May 1, 2009
War by other means
War by other means The army has shown it is better at masking its fears than the Maoists CK LAL FROM ISSUE #449 (01 MAY 2009 - 07 MAY 2009) | TABLE OF CONTENTS  SUBSCRIBE NT  PRINT  REFER  WRITE TO EDITOR  SHAREThe Maoists didn't emerge victorious from the devastating war against the state, but the security forces lost it the moment the Seven Party Alliance signed the 12-point understanding with Maoists in November 2005 in New Delhi. The little goodwill the army had in urban areas was also squandered when soldiers became Gyanendra storm troopers after the 1 February 2005 takeover. But Girija Prasad Koirala forgot and forgave when he promoted an accused human rights violator to the post of Chief of Army Staff (CoAS). But many in Kathmandu still find it difficult to accept that one of the loudest critics of the democratic parties, who once wrote op-eds under the pseudonym Ajay P Nath, has suddenly become the chief proponent of constitutional supremacy, freedom of the press and parliamentary democracy. Ambitious individuals are pragmatic in their careers. When the 240-year old Shah dynasty passed into history, an army as old as the kingdom earned its republican spurs by literally doing nothing. Behind the scenes deals were never disclosed, but was security of tenure for the incumbent army chief a part of the bargain? Then the guerrilla chieftain and prime minister, Pushpa Kamal Dahal, should have nothing to complain about. The trouble is he also has to placate his deputy commander, Defence Minister Ram Bahadur Thapa, who needs to be seen to be doing something to bring a former foe under direct control of the party high command. Behind all the talk of civilian control versus constitutional supremacy, a lingering antipathy between warriors of opposite camps is what lies at the core of the current Maoist-military row. The generals haven't yet recovered from the trauma of their failure, and the Maoists find it hard to accept that power flows out of the ballot box. Both sides in the war of words are caught in the vortex of their own vitriolic rhetoric. Unlike in the past, however, the army has shown that it is better at masking its fears than Maoist commanders. "All war is deception," said a great military strategist of 500 BC. The Maoists haven't publicly abandoned what they call 'The People's War'. The Nepal Army still finds it difficult to submit itself unequivocally to civilian control of the Maoist party. The country is still in a state of war for all intents and purposes. The military knows what it's doing, and so do the Maoists. The rest of us are merely guessing or reacting. Under the pressure of Chinese and Indians, Dahal wants to let the mandate of UNMIN lapse when it comes to an end on 23 July 2009. With that deadline in mind, he recently assured visiting British Under Secretary of State for Defence and Minister for Veterans, Kevan Jones, recently that the government's special committee for supervision, integration and rehabilitation of the combatants would complete its work by mid-July. But the prime minister knows that the schedule can't be met when the incumbent army chief is allergic to the very word 'integration'. So the CoAS had to go to make way for a more amenable general. When the general waiting in the wings realised he may be bypassed by a colleague on the verge of superannuation, news of an impending coup was carefully planted in the friendly media to spur anti-Maoist forces into action. Mission complete, rumours of a 'soft coup' were strongly denied. It was a publicity coup, meticulously planned and brilliantly executed. Clearly, the army has a better corps of propaganda consultants these days than it did during the war years. For the Maoists, too, it's a 'heads I win, tails you lose' proposition. If Dahal can manage to sack the CoAS, he will be feted as a brilliant tactician. If the Maoists are forced to backtrack, they can always turn the episode into a publicity stunt: "Look, we tried our best. But other parties are prisoners of the past." The UML too has little to lose, as always, it will be on the side of the winner when the game ends. The victim will be the NC. When a political party has to hold the coat-tails of a military chief to establish its credentials, there is something wrong somewhere. source: http://www.nepalitimes.com.np/issue/2009/05/2/StateOfTheState/15899 |
Delhi dallying
Delhi dallying
PRASHANT JHAThe army row gives us a glimpse of India's concerns, its power and limits. The Maoists have been relatively successful in portraying the opposition to sacking General Katawal as India-inspired. They are convinced Delhi's suggestions and warnings constitute an unacceptable interference in Nepal's internal affairs. The Maoists then tell their support base that they have not been able to effect any change because of the power exercised by "expansionists and feudal collaborationists".
What they forget is that they would still be in the jungles fighting an unwinnable war if not for India's mediation. If Nepal's political class had succeeded in mounting a solely domestic opposition to the royal regime, if the parties and Maoists had not needed India to act as 'facilitator' for the 12 point-agreement, if they had not rushed to Delhi to instrumentally use India to advance their own partisan interests, and if they had tried to be more self-reliant, they could have told the Indians to keep away.
The reality is that this peace process is essentially a compact between India (which acted as a guarantor of the 12-point deal and later got the army on board), the Maoists (who promised to accept multiparty democracy) and NC (which agreed to dump the monarchy). And now, the Maoists suddenly remember that domestic political decisions are none of India's business.
You cannot be selective about a foreign role. If they used Delhi at some point, when Delhi feels its interests are at stake, it will get involved. All politicians are aware of this reality so whipping up a frenzy about the Indian role without tackling the fundamentals of national politics and economy is hypocritical, futile and opportunistic.
The real question is why did the Indians assert themselves this time around? Since November 2005, India's role has been critical but low-key. There have only been three occasions when Delhi stepped in visibly.
When the Maoists walked out of government in September 2007, Shyam Saran rushed in as the PM's special envoy to push all parties to go for polls. When the second Madhes movement threatened to derail the April polls, a meeting was held at the Indian ambassador's residence between Madhesi leaders and government representatives, preparing the basis for the eight-point deal. This had the unfortunate consequence of reinforcing the image of Madhesi leaders as Indian puppets, but passed a powerful message to the palace (which saw that movement as the last hope to prevent elections) about where India stood.
This is the third time. Delhi feels that the balance of power on which the peace process rests will collapse if the Maoists sack Katawal and appoint a more pliable chief. The institutional structure would be shaken and the party would dictate terms to the army. They see it as a sub-plot of the larger Maoist plan to back away from the commitment to multiparty democracy.
And there is an underlying China dimension. Beijing is quite happy with the Maoists for having delivered on its promise to stifle Tibetan dissent. China feels that the top echelons of the Nepal Army are dominated by officers close to India and the US. It has already backed the integration process and would be happy to see Maoist commanders occupy strategic positions in the NA.
India wants 'controlled stability' in Nepal to protect its security interests. But not only does lasting stability look elusive, even the control and influence they exert would get steadily diluted if the Maoists take over the army. The aim of co-opting and 'taming' the Maoists would fall flat.
However, Lainchaur did go overboard in passing the message. The nature of the present envoy has not helped either. A senior NC leader, considered to be close to India, said: "Rakesh Sood lacks the patience and clarity of Shyam Saran, or the warmth and empathy of Shiv Mukherjee. His inter-personal skills are weak and no one trusts him."
What is clear is that this episode has harmed ties between India and the Maoist-led government. There will not be an immediate reaction if the Maoists go ahead, but a policy review when a new Indian government comes in is certain.
And don't be surprised if sections in the Indian establishment who have criticised the 12-point agreement, and who prefer to play the 90s game of breeding instability as a way to keep Nepali political actors in check, gain ascendance.
source: http://www.nepalitimes.com.np/issue/2009/05/2/PlainSpeaking/15898
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