A group of people vandalised the Everest Nursing Home at Baneshwor in the capital on Wednesday morning alleging that a patient died of ‘doctors’ negligence’.
Home Minister Krishna Sitaula, who is also the co-coordinator of the Government-Maoists Peace Talk committee, talking to journalists after the meeting of the All Party Talk Facilitation and Advisory Committee at the Peace Secretariat, Tuesday, May 23 06. nepalnews.com/rh
‘Police firing tear gas at protesters who were vandalizing the Everest…
The relatives of Tula Ram Gautam, who died while undergoing treatment at the Nursing Home, claimed that he died due to the negligence of the doctors and the staffers of the Nursing Home.
Late Gautam had been admitted to the Nursing Home at 4:30 a.m. this morning.
Over hundred people including his relatives vandalised the hospital. The protestors also burnt tyres on the road in front of the Nursing Home, chanted slogans and demanded action against the ‘guilty doctors’.
Traffic movement of Baneshwor and other parts has been disrupted due to the protest at the centre of the city.
The Nursing Home is referring patients to other hospitals due to the insecure environment. Police is providing security to the hospital. An eyewitness informed Nepalnews over telephone at 12:00 noon that a large number of people are still protesting outside the Nursing Home.
Three protestors were injured when police baton charged to control the mob.
A meeting is underway between the family members of Gautam and the Hospital administration at the District Administration Office to settle the dispute.
In similar incident, a mob vandalized Lumbini Zonal Hospital (LZH) and two dozen other private clinics and set ablaze an ambulance, alleging that a patient was reportedly killed due to the doctor’s negligence.
According to local reports Maoists were actively engaged in the vandalism. 15 policemen and a doctor were injured in the incident.
The Kantipur daily quoted Saroj Thapa, a Maoist guerilla as saying that 20 of their men were deployed during the protest in Butwal. No family member of the deceased Sapkota was present during the protest.
The LZH remained closed following the incident. The private clinics also remained closed.
Reporters Without Borders on Tuesday welcomed a Supreme Court ruling on 18 May suppressing article 8 of the 1992 National Broadcasting Act and article 15 (1) of the 1991 Publications and Newspapers Act as incompatible with a constitutional provision guaranteeing press freedom.
The first article gave the government the right to cancel the licenses of radio and TV stations that broadcast news. The second allowed the government to restrict or censor coverage of sensitive issues.
“The court’s decision is a step forward for freedom of expression in Nepal,” Reporters Without Borders said.
Acting upon a writ petition filed by Freedom Forum, an NGO, a special bench of Justices comprising Anup Raj Sharma, Balaram KC and Tahir Ali Ansari, gave the verdict.
The international media watchdog also urged the parliamentarians to press on with their plans to decriminalize press offences.
The Supreme Court issued its ruling in response to a petition by the Freedom Forum, an NGO.
The Lumbini Zonal Hospital (LZH) and more than a dozen private clinics around the hospital remained closed on Wednesday after a mob vandalized them on Tuesday.
The mob claimed that a patient was killed due to a doctor’s negligence. Dr Shree Krishna Giri, who was seriously beaten by the agitators, has been lifted to Kathmandu Model hospital in the capital for treatment. He received injuries in his head and neck. He is out of danger.
The mob had also destroyed four houses of local residents, set ablaze an ambulance and damaged over two dozen private clinics.
Alleging doctors’ negligence behind the death of Deepak Sapkota of Jamuni of Bardiya, the mob, mostly comprising local youths, street children and Maoists resorted to vandalism, according to local media reports.
Dr LD Bhatta and Dr Shreekrishna Giri, who were on duty at the OPD section, had immediately attended Sapkota.
According to LZH sources, Sapkota, who was brought to the hospital in serious condition at around 11 a.m., succumbed to his injuries while undergoing treatment. He was admitted in the emergency ward of the hospital. He was seriously injured in a motorcycle accident.
Later in the evening, the mob also burnt down an ambulance belonging to Rotary Club at Media Chowk. The mob also looted medicines and cash from Jyoti Medical at around 7 p.m.
Following Sapkota’s death, irate youths who broke into LZH also mercilessly beat up surgeon Giri while he was attending another patient at the emergency ward.
Fifteen policemen including police inspector Bamdev Gautam were injured when protestors clashed with police at different places.
While the agitators had introduced themselves as Maoist activists, the local Maoist leaders have refuted their involvement in the incident. But Kantipur daily quoted Saroj Thapa, a Maoist guerilla as saying that 20 of their men were deployed during the protest in Butwal.
No family member of the deceased Sapkota was present during the protest.
Meanwhile, condemning the attack on Dr Giri and vandalism on the hospital, the Nepal Medical Association (NMA) demanded strong action against the guilty.
The medical workers in the Kathmandu Model Hospital, in protest of the vandalism, decided to work with black bands on Wednesday and demanded immediate investigation into the incident and action against the culprits.
Home Minister Krishna Sitaula, who is also the co-coordinator of the Government-Maoists Peace Talk committee, talking to journalists after the meeting of the All Party Talk Facilitation and Advisory Committee at the Peace The Everest Nursing Home — a private sector medical facility in Kathmandu– has admitted its mistake in the death of Tula Ram Gautam and agreed to provide compensation of Rs. 250,000 to the victim’s family.
The management has said that he died due to shortage of oxygen in the hospital.
Meanwhile, at least three people were injured during clashes that erupted after the death of Gautam.
A group of people vandalised the Everest Nursing Home alleging that Gautam died of ‘doctors’ negligence’.
Late Gautam had been admitted to the Nursing Home at 4:30 a.m. this morning.
Over hundred people including his relatives vandalised the hospital. The protestors also burnt tyres on the road in front of the Nursing Home, chanted slogans and demanded action against the ‘guilty doctors’.
All windowpanes of the Nursing Home were shattered in the incident. All sick people admitted at the hospital were transferred to other hospitals following the clashes.
Police used tear gas shells to disperse the gathering. Police misbehaved with journalists including photojournalist of Nepalnews.com Kumar Shrestha, who were there to cover the incident.
In similar incident, a mob vandalized Lumbini Zonal Hospital (LZH) and two-dozen other private clinics and set ablaze an ambulance, alleging that a patient was reportedly killed due to the doctor’s negligence.
The LZH and private clinics remains closed following the incident.
Radio Sagarmatha, Nepal’s first independent radio station and the first community radio of South Asia entered its 10th year on Tuesday.
The FM station based in Pulchowk, Kathmandu, which used to run information-based programs two hours a day in the beginning now broadcasts news and entertainment programs 18 hours a day. Areas of its 90 programs a week range from current affairs and education to entertainment.
A press statement issued by Radio Sagarmatha on the occasion of its 10th anniversary said the radio station is dedicated to fulfill the need of the listeners of information, education and healthy entertainment through responsible radio journalism.
It also called on the House of Representatives, the government, political parties and the civil society to take initiatives from their sides to ensure independence to radio stations.
The FM station had become a target of the previous royal regime for running news-based programs when news was banned in FM radios after the February 1, 2005 royal takeover.
Radio Sagarmatha 102.4 MHZ is the only radio station in Nepal that runs programs in Nepali and national languages.
The southern industrial town of Birgunj remained closed on Wednesday in protest of the proclamation of the reinstated House of Representatives to turn Nepal into a secular state by deleting references to the country as a Hindu kingdom.
Thousands of Hindu activists marched in the streets of Birgunj today denouncing the HoR proclamation and demanding that Nepal be declared a Hindu nation once again.
Until last Thursday, Nepal used to be the only Hindu kingdom in the world. Along with clipping powers of the king and bringing the army under the purview of the parliament, the seven party alliance declared Nepal as a secular state.
Jurists and lawyers have already raised questions regarding the legal and constitutional status of the proclamation.
Ethnic communities and Buddhist and Christian population in the country have welcomed the HoR proclamation saying that it will end what they call all sorts of discrimination in the name of religion.
Over 80 percent of the country’s 27 million population is Hindu, according to the central bureau of statistics.
The Federation of Nepalese Journalists (FNJ), the umbrella organization of journalists in Nepal, has urged the government to take immediate steps to ensure press freedom and professional rights of journalists.
In a letter sent to the newly appointed minister of state for Information and Communications, Dilendra Prasad Badu, FNJ president Bishnu Nisthuri said that even as democratic system has been restored in the country after the successful people’s movement, there are challenges to be tackled with in terms of making the Nepalese press independent and professional.
“Although democracy and the movement for press freedom has succeeded to a large extent, the important responsibility and challenges to make Nepali Press independent and disciplined are still ahead,” Nisthuri said in the letter sent to the ministry.
Hoping for timely decision on the FNJ concept paper from the government side, Nisthuri further said, “In this context, we would like to present the concept that the federation has prepared about the situation of independent Nepali press which faced direct attack from the autocratic regime in the past, immediate reformation that is to be made and restructuring of media sector in the future to you and to Nepal Government through you.”
The FNJ concept paper presented to the government calls for immediate annulment of all draconian laws introduced by the erstwhile royal regime, release of two detained journalists, Tej Narayan Sapkota and Hom Prasad Basyal, investigation into the largesse of the previous government, reinstatement of journalists expelled from government medias for supporting the democratic movement and implementation of ‘working journalists’ regulations’, among others.
The full text of the FNJ concept paper presented to the government is as follows:
Immediate annulment and action to be taken
1. All kinds of orders, policies, circular etc that is imposed after February 1, 2005 should be immediately annulled.
2. At this duration, so called one door advertisement policy and the expenditure through government’s fund should be made public which was dispersed in the name of Dashain allowance, to assist autocratic regime and various mechanisms to divide media sector.
3. Programs that were produced to advocate autocracy by misusing government media should be annulled. The misuse of government media and illegal expenditure from government fund should be investigated and action should be taken against the guilty.
4. All press pass and press representative certificate that was issued during autocratic regime should be investigated and all the press pass and press representative certificate distributed to vigilantes, security personnel and non-journalists should be seized. And while issuing new cards, latest updated record of the journalist should be made its basis.
5. Records of the illegal economic distribution that was disbursed after Royal coup against press and freedom of expression should be made public and it should be recovered from those who disbursed and received it.
6. The license granted to the army to start the transmission of FM station should be immediately rescinded.
About welfare of journalists and their security
7. Journalists Tej Narayan Sapkota (Nakhu) and Hom Prasad Basyal (Butwal) who are still in jail should be immediately released.
8. Journalists who were sacked from government and private media due to conscience after the Royal coup of February 1, 2005 should be re-established, compensation of the period they were deprived of their job, the services that was reduced during this period should be re-established as before and compensation to the injured during the movement and also to those who were detained for longer period.
9. Working Journalist Act 2051 and regulation 2053 should be immediately implemented and the provisions that are against the welfare of journalists be annulled and amended. The full compliance of such acts/regulations should be made primary condition for the registration or renewal and for acquiring government advertisement and other benefits. Committees according to such acts/regulations should be formed and reformed.
10. There should not be discrimination in acquiring information and dissemination for FM radios and the access to information to the journalists working there should be as equal to the journalists working at other media.
11. All the displaced journalists should be re-established.
12. Journalists who were murdered by state and rebels and to those who lost their lives due to armed conflict and various other attacks should be properly respected, compensation to the family of the victim, arrangement for their survival and proper education for the children should be provided.
13. Telephone disruption of journalists should be immediately cancelled.
About preservation and promotion of media
14. Press Council’s biased classification of newspapers should be annulled and should be re-classified and council report should be rewritten.
15. The increment in postal charge should be taken back and convenient transportation of newspapers and press materials should be managed.
16. Equal distribution of advertisement policy should be implemented. The price of public welfare advertisements should be increased. Publication rights of all information and advertisement of outside the capital should be given to local newspapers and electronic media. The limitation of grant should be increased in the publication and transmission of advertisements calling for tenders through local media.
17. Hording Boards that was displayed for the purpose of publicity and advertising should be removed immediately and message or advertisements should be published or broadcasted through public media.
18. New management should be initiated in a transparent way to provide special relief and promotion to the journalists for pro democracy and economically poor journalists.
19. All closed website should opened immediately. Online journalism should be recognized as mainstream journalism.
20. The renewal fees of FM radios should be deducted. There should be discount on the renewal of radio license considering their role for democratic movement and the obstructions that they faced.
Policy Matters
21. High-level media commission should be set up to conceptualize restructuring of Nepalese media and its reformation including timely revision of laws and policies related to media and reformation on government information dissemination system. Federation is always prepared for the discussion regarding nature of commission and jurisdiction.
22. For professional operation of government media, government publication media and news agency should be freed from government autonomy and should be made public and electronic media should be made completely autonomous. The federation is ready for detailed discussion with its concept.
23. Law relating to right to information should be passed immediately.
Strengthening of Federation
24. All the budget that was blocked after February one by the then government including journalists relief fund, conflict victim journalist welfare fund should be immediately opened.
25. Assistance that was provided post February 1 should be continued and additional assistance, payment of budget blocked by local body and land should be provided for the construction of district offices of the federation.
26. The construction of the central office building of the Federation should be immediately started for the preservation and welfare of working journalist, capacity building and institutional strengthening of the Federation and for the development of media village as it was envisaged.
Members of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) have decided on a to set up direct air links and relaxing visa restrictions to promote tourism within the region, according to reports.
In a 12-point agenda adopted at the conclusion of a 10-day conference of tourism ministers of SAARC nations in the Bangladeshi capital, Dhaka, on Tuesday, the members also decided upon separate immigration counters at airports for citizens of SAARC countries, besides providing special facilities to its students and pilgrims, according to reports.
They also agreed on increasing cooperation for development of human resources for the ever-expanding tourism sector in South Asia, Bangladesh’s official news agency BSS reported.
The SAARC ministers also emphasised on the need for more government-private participation in the tourism sector besides raising its budget allocation.
The collective experience of the tourism industries of the SAARC states would be harnessed for attracting more international tourists, especially during the World Cup cricket to be held in 2011 in the region, they said.
Finance Minister Dr Ram Saran Mahat has said that the government is preparing to slash the expenditures of the Royal Palace and the expenses in unproductive areas will be checked.
Speaking during the Q&A session of the House of Representatives Wednesday Finance Minister Mahat said, “The [unnecessary] expenditure of the Royal Palace and unproductive sectors will be stopped while no financial liabilities will be created, including in the defense sector.”
“The expenditures of the Royal Palace will surely be reduced after a review. It will not remain as it is at present,” the Finance Minister told the MPs who sought his clarification on unnecessary government overheads. He, however, did not mention by what percentage the budget of the Palace would be slashed.
The previous government had allocated nearly Rs. 680 million for the Royal Palace for the current fiscal year while hefty amounts of money were channeled, apart from the regular budget, to the Palace and royal family members and relatives under different heading.
The Finance Minister assured that no new recruitments would be made in the Nepali Army but the government would take care of the rightful benefits of the armed forces. He said the government has already made public the current state of the national economy and its commitment, through the economic White Paper, to recover it from further downturn.
The seven parties have publicly committed to reduce defense expenditure and the budget of the Royal Palace.
Dr Mahat also said the government has already started process to check unnecessary expenditures in unproductive areas and informed that the Finance Ministry has issued circulars to concerned government bodies to this effect.
Amid criticism by the rights groups regarding its neutrality, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on Wednesday said it has submitted draft of the proposed ceasefire agreement and Human Rights Accord to the Nepal government and also sent a copy to the coordinator of the Maoist negotiation team, Krishna Bahadur Mahara.
Addressing a press meet at the NHRC on Wednesday, member of the Commission, Sudip Pathak, said the draft has been handed over to the coordinator of the government negotiation team, Home Minister Krishna Sitaula and a copy of the same has been sent to the Maoist leader, Mahara. “We hope to meet Mahara and members of the Maoist negotiation team in person pretty soon and explain them about our proposal,” he said.
Pathak, who heads a task force formed at the Commission to facilitate the peace process, said the ceasefire agreement drafted by the NHRC stresses on withdrawal of all forms of armed activities, purchase of new military equipment, halt military recruitment by both the government and Maoists and remove landmines laid down by both the sides within 60 days.
The NHRC has also urged the government to scrap the controversial anti-terrorism law, TADO, within 15 days. Similarly, the Commission has also urged both the government and the Maoists to make public whereabouts of people under their custody within 30 days (of signing of the agreement).
Similarly, the Human Rights Accord, prepared by the NHRC some two years ago, has urged both the parties to respect the right to life, dignity, liberty and security, liberty of movement, right to speech and peaceful assembly and right to work of individual citizen. The Commission has also urged both the parties to guarantee right to food, health, education and right of children and women during the period of ceasefire.
Pathak asked both the parties to remain committed for result-oriented talks and work towards permanent restoration of peace in the country.
However, the NHRC members refused to comment on the call by over 30 rights groups for their resignation. In a statement issued on Tuesday, the rights groups said they had had opposed the appointment process of the NHRC members last year as it was against the “Paris Principles” and alleged that the present NHRC leadership of working against the human rights movement and the people’s movement at the behest of the erstwhile autocratic regime.