Defence Minister Ram Bahadur Thapa Saturday said that the nature of democracy envisioned by his party (CPN-Maoist) for new Nepal would be fundamentally different and pro-poor.

Defence Minister Ram Bahadur Thapa

“We will refrain from adopting the form of democracy being practiced by countries like the US and India where weak and poor people are subjugated to the vested interest of strong and rich,” media reports quoted Thapa as saying during a programme held in the capital.

Stating that the new democratic framework of new Nepal will enable the people of the same socio-economic status to compete with each other, he further divulged, “the new constitution to be proposed by his party will rule out every vestige of feudalism in the country”.

Minister Thapa also claimed that the CPN (Maoist) is determined to bar the foreign power centers from imposing their clout in new Nepal. nepalnews.com nd Dec 07 08

In a historic occasion, an ultralight aircraft built by Nepali engineering students has conducted a successful test flight, Saturday, in Pokhara.

The group of students of Pulchowk Engineering Campus led by Bikas Parajuli and Ganeshram Sinkeman had built the aircraft, which flew four times – each time for less than a minute as prescribed by the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN).

The aircraft was flown by Russian pilot Alexander Maximov of Avia Club.

The aircraft is fitted with Austrian engine while other parts and technologies used are indigenous.

After the successful flight, Parajuli said, “Seeing it fly, I feel my dreams have come true.”

The students had to run from pillar to post for years to obtain permission from CAAN to conduct test flight.

The builders have said that the aircraft can fly for two hours at the speed of 100 kmph and at the altitude of 6000 feet.

The builders have named their aircraft ‘Danfe.’ nepalnews.com Dec 07 08

A Maoist leader and Minister for Tourism and Civil Aviation Hisila Yami
A Maoist leader and Minister for Tourism and Civil Aviation Hisila Yami has said that the youth wings of her party the Young Communist League (YCL) and that of UML, the Youth Force should be dissolved.

Addressing the Bhedetar festival in Dhankuta, Saturday, Minister Yami said, “Their current activities have led to increased anarchy. It is necessary to dissolve them to maintain peace.”

She said that at a time when youths should have worked together to build nation, they are engaged in clashes.

Referring to the trend of other parties, too, floating the youth wings, she said that none of such wings are necessary that could jeopardize the peace. nepalnews.com Dec 07 08

Girija Prasad Koirala, former prime minister and president of Nepali Congress (NC), has urged for unity among democratic forces in order to what he called as attempt to foil totalitarian aspirations of the Maoists.

Girija Prasad Koirala
Addressing the Jana Jagaran rally in Kanchanpur district of far western Nepal, Saturday, Koirala said that Prime Minister and Maoist chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ was veering towards totalitarianism by speaking against democracy.

He said that the continued violation of past pacts and agreements by the Maoists would lead to their downfall.

He predicted that the Maoists, if they continue in this path, would have to return to either the jungle or India.

“The Maoists are pushing the country towards uncertainty by their rash behavior and violation of agreements,” he said.

Speaking at the program, senior leader of NC, Sher Bahadur Deuba said that the people were getting disappointed by the Maoists. nepalnews.com Dec 06 08

While the coalition partners of the current government are making efforts to bring Nepali Congress (NC) into the army integration special committee to ease the integration process, a senior leader of a party in the coalition government said the party cadres cannot be included into the national army.

K. P. Oli
Speaking in Pokhara Saturday, CPN (UML) leader K. P. Oli said CPN (Maoist) is insisting only on integrating their combatants into Nepal Army while the past agreements aptly stress on integration and rehabilitation of the combatants.

He alleged the Maoists of aiming to seize the state power after politicising the national army force. He raised objections against starting army integration unless the Maoists stop their criminal activities and violence.

Oli also came heavily against Deputy Prime Minister Bam Dev Gautam who had warned of further instability and conflict if the combatants are not integrated into national army. nepalnews.com ia Dec 06 08

Ministry of Health and Population has launched the second phase of its anti-measles campaign from Saturday.

The campaign, which kicks off in all the districts of the eastern, central and western region, except few mountainous districts, targets around 3900 thousand children below the age of nine.

The ministry has set-up 37,000 immunisation centers apart from employing 15000 health workers and 75 thousand volunteers for the purpose.

The first phase of the campaign was launched in September. nepalnews.com nd Dec 6 08

With an aim to help increase the volume of the revenue collection, the Inland Revenue Department (IRD) has introduced leakage control measures at different levels.

According to media reports, the department has come up with the concept of Intensive Integrated Investigation (III) to detect the revenue leakages on government agencies situated at Tribhuwan International Airport (TIA).

It is learnt that the IRD has commenced investigation in areas including contracts for parking, hotel business and shops located inside the premises of TIA.

The reports further state that the IRD, in its preliminary investigation, found that those firms not registered with the Value Added Tax (VAT) net were collecting VAT and some shops were refraining from issuing bills.

The basic aim of IRD is to control leakages by booking those who are bent on evading tax. nepalnews.com nd Dec 6 08

The government of Bhutan is very serious regarding finding an amicable solution to the Bhutanese refugee crisis and has formed a high-level team comprising of government ministers for this, a senior Bhutanese minister said Friday.

Dr Pema Gyamtsho, Minister for Agriculture of the Royal government of Bhutan told Nepalnews.com that the protracted crisis has been an “embarrassment” for the Himalayan Kingdom “as much as any other party concerned”, and hoped that the new-round of talks that is soon going to start between Bhutan and Nepal on the issue will bear fruit.

Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal had met with his Bhutanese counterpart at the sidelines of SAARC summit in Sri Lankan capital Colombo right after assuming office and thereafter at the BIMSTEC meeting in Thailand. On both these occasions, Bhutanese Prime Minister reportedly pledged Bhutan’s commitment to resolving this problem by agreeing to resume the stalled talks.

Minister Gyamtsho, however, said that political stability in Nepal was necessary for the talks to become successful, adding that frequent changes in the government in Nepal in the past was the main reason the high-level talks between the two countries couldn’t make any headway.

“We should understand that it is not always Bhutan to blame for failure of the talks,” he added.

The Bhutanese minister even went so far as saying that the Nepalese media has been biased in its coverage of the Bhutanese refugee crisis till now, always reporting one-side of the story, hence portraying Bhutan in a very negative light.

According to him, Bhutan wants to see the refugee problem resolved as much as Nepal or any other parties involved, but the “negative coverage” [by the Nepalese media] has become a major hindrance to realize this goal.

“This negative coverage should stop if Nepal wants to see the problem resolved,” Dr Gyamtsho said, “the Nepalese press should try to administer positive energy into the whole process so as to derive positive results.”

He, however, refused to comment on the third country resettlement program that has clearly divided the Bhutanese refugee community languishing in refugee camps in eastern Nepal where they had arrived more than 17 years back after being forced to flee from their homes in Bhutan.

Some 1,00,000 Bhutanese still reside in makeshift huts built inside these UN managed refugee camps, even though hundreds of them have been leaving Nepal for U.S.A, Australia and other European countries every day as part of the third country resettlement program. However, Bhutanese refugee leaders have been opposed to the idea of third country resettlement, insisting that the only solution lies in the “respectful return” of the Bhutanese refugees.

Minister Gyamtsho is currently in Kathmandu to attend the 25th Anniversary celebration of the International Center for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD). nepalnews.com ananda gurung Dec 06 08

Nepali Congress Vice president Ram Chandra Poudel
Vice president of Nepali Congress Ram Chandra Poudel, a staunch critic of the Maoists, said his party opts for cooperation and coordination among parties instead of political polarisation while writing new constitution.

Speaking in Panchthar Saturday, Poudel said his party’s campaign was for putting pressure on Maoists to save democratic values and implementing peace deals in the country and not for political polarization.

Alleging CPN-Maoist of operating with insurgency hangover, Poudel claimed the Maoists are in their mission to establish a totalitarian political system in Nepal.

In another context, Poudel said politically indoctrinated Maoist combatants will never do any work for nationality and national sovereignty. nepalnews.com ia Dec 06 08

Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal on Friday made it clear that ‘Maoists are no fascists’, while talking about desperate attempts to portray them as one.

Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal
PM Dahal said that the Maoists are intent on ensuring the people’s ‘right to information’ to expose such attempts.

He further said that the Maoists have defined a state ‘controlled and directed’ by the people as ‘21st century communism’, adding that in this kind of state system the people have the right to know all kinds of decision the state makes.

“This also shows that we are no fascists or despots,” he said talking at an interaction program organized by National Information Commission.

“We want to see the people exercise their right to information,” he said adding, “a despotic regime always attacks the people’s right to information first, which we experienced during [ex-king] Gyanendra’s direct rule.” nepalnews.com Dec 06 08