Foreign affairs experts and leaders of political parties have emphasised on a timely change in Nepal’s foreign policy that should be in the interest of the country and meet the challenges posed by the changing global scenario.

Speaking at an interaction in the capital on Monday, former secretary general of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), Yadav Kant Silwal, said that foreign policy should change in tune with the current global circumstances.

Silwal was of the view that the cancellation of King’s visit to the 60th UN general assembly was a serious setback in Nepal’s foreign affairs policy, according to newspaper reports.

Former Ambassador to Sri Lanka, Nilambar Acharya, said that the foreign policy adopted by Nepal has been wrong right from the beginning. “Instead of looking at our neighbours through the eyes of suspicion, our foreign policy should be observing them in the light of the potential opportunities that could be realized through them,” Acharya added.

Former representative to UN, Dr Jaya Raj Acharya said Nepal’s heavy dependence on foreign aid, not only for its socio-economic development, but also for its security would be a factor influencing its internal politics and foreign relations.

Former envoy to Japan, Bishnu Hari Nepal, suggested the ruling establishment to be “pro-active” rather than “reactive” to ensure a smooth foreign policy. “The foreign policy should be in the national interest,” he said.

Nepali Congress (NC) central member and the chief of the party foreign department, Sujata Koirala, said foreign policy should address the issues of the grass root level. She also said that Nepal should cash in on its water resources.

NC (Democratic) leader Dr Minendra Rizal said that the current ruling establishment is issuing “lip reply” to its friendly countries.

“Cursing the neighbours and friendly countries will have an adverse impact on the foreign policy,” he added.

The Embassy of India distributed scholarships to 50 Nepalese students undertaking different undergraduate courses in Nepal under the Golden Jubilee Scholarship Scheme.

The government of India launched the scheme in 2002 to commemorate 50 years of Economic Cooperation between India and Nepal.

A press release issued by the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu said, “A monthly stipend of Rs. 3,000/- is given to 10 students each doing MBBS/BE and Rs. 2,000/- per month is given to 30 students doing other courses, including BSc BBS, BBA, bio-technology, humanities and others.”

According to the release, the students were selected on the basis of merit and need and fifty percent of the seats are reserved for students from educationally disadvantaged districts.

Indian Ambassador to Nepal Shiv Shankar Mukherjee gave away certificates of merit to the scholars amidst a function in the capital on Monday.

Apart from the Golden Jubilee Scholarship Scheme, 500 scholarships under the Mahatma Gandhi Scheme (Rs. 500 per month) are given to students of classes XI and XII studying in Nepal, the statement adds.

The Japanese Embassy has granted one mobile clinic van, one mobile X-ray machine and two ultra sound machines to Nepalgunj Medical College (NMC) at Nepalgunj of western Nepal.

A press statement issued by the Embassy of Japan said, “Japanese Ambassador to Nepal, Tsutomu Hiraoka, handed over the mobile clinic van and other medical equipments procured under the Grant Assistance for Grassroots Human Security Projects (GGP) scheme of the Government of Japan, to Nepalgunj Medical College amid a ceremony held at Nepalgunj on Monday.”

Speaking at the function, Japanese Ambassador to Nepal Hiraoka expressed his firm belief that the project signifies the aspiration of the Government of Japan and its people for the promotion of the well being of Nepalese people.

“I believe that the Project will help bring medical care closer to conflict victims as well as to people belonging to poor background or from deprived communities who are not able to travel to hospitals due to remoteness and prevailing conflict situation,” he added.

The statement further said, the Embassy of Japan in Nepal provided financial assistance amounting to USD 86,045, equivalent to approximately NPR 6,079,079 under the GGP scheme in Japan’s fiscal year 2004, to Nepalgunj Medical College, Lord Buddha Educational Academy.

Home Minister Kamal Thapa has pointed out the need of consensus between the King and the political parties to restore peace in the country.

Speaking at the fourth district council meeting of the Salyan District development committee in Salyan district of mid-western Nepal, Home Minister Thapa urged political parties to immediately renounce the street agitation and come to the dialogue to resolve the problems dogging the country as the country is passing through a difficult situation, according to reports.

The royal appointed home minister also said that the February 1 royal takeover was aimed at restoring peace and strengthening democracy in the country.

Thapa also pointed out the need of strengthening relation between the monarchy and the people for strengthening democracy, restoring peace and stability in the country.

Stating that political objectives could not be achieved through violence, Minister Thapa urged the Maoists to abandon such activities immediately.

Thapa also made it clear that the government will provide security and equal opportunity as common citizens of the country, if those gone out of track willingly renounce violence.

At the same program, Minister for local development Tanka Dhakal said that the government is committed for the local development as it reflects the overall development of the country.

Home minister Thapa and local development minister Dhakal also received information about the security situation in Rukum, Rolpa and Salyan districts, hot belts of the Maoists.

Police continued to use force to disrupt the protest of visually-impaired persons, demanding employment, in Kathmandu on the third consecutive day on Tuesday.

More than 90 visually-impaired persons were arrested and several others were injured when police intervened a protest rally organised by Nepal Visually-impaired Persons’ Group at Maitighar this afternoon.

Hundreds of visually-impaired persons had participated in the rally that began from Tripurshwor. Participants said police ruthlessly manhandled the protesters.

They were on their way to Singha Durbar to submit their training certificates to the Ministry of Labour. They also chanted slogans against the use of force by the police.

The arrested persons have been kept at the Ward Police at Singha Durbar.

Dozens of visually-impaired persons were arrested and many of them were beaten up by the police during protest rallies on Sunday and Monday in Kathmandu.

The group has been demanding that the government offer jobs to 500 visually-impaired persons at the earliest and provide a monthly ‘unemployment allowance’ of Rs 2,000 to others.

The Computer Association of Nepal (CAN) has informed that preparations are in full swing for the 12th CAN Info-Tech (2006) that will be held from March 23 to 28 at the Birendra International Convention Centre in Kathmandu.

CAN, the organiser of the mega IT event, informed that 110 different companies including four Indian companies working in the different fields of information and communication technology are participating in the exhibition.

Talking to Nepalnews, coordinator of the Info-Tech, CN Upadhaya, informed that the latest information and communication technology, hardware and newly developed software will be the main features of the exhibition.

He further said that the Info-Tech is aimed at promoting information and communication technology and disseminating information about the latest developments in the IT sector.

According to the information given by the CAN, SchoolNet-Japan is organising a two-day winter camp for schoolteachers to give information about the use of IT in the education sector. 100 teachers teaching at 10+2 will participate in the camp.

According to CAN, around 300 thousand visitors are expected during the Info-Tech. Over 230 thousand people had visited last year’s exhibition.

Nepalese Microsoft office system and Nepali computer software Nepalinux along with exhibition of teli-centres of rural areas and Nepali Pavilion will be some of the attractions of the exhibition,” a press statement issued by CAN said.

Altogether 38 experts including 17 foreigners of 10 countries will present working papers on the conference.

Discussions will be held in the topics including infrastructures for IT, development of software, e-commerce, bio-informatics, e-governance, the statement added.

The annual IT fair scheduled for January 25-30 in Kathmandu was postponed due to the political situation of the country.

The association has been organising the IT event annually since last the 12 years.

President of Nepali Congress-Democratic (NC-D) and former Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba will be paying a visit to the United States of America in the third week of March.

This is the first foreign visit of Deuba after he was released from ten-month-long detention as per the Supreme Court order last month.

According to NC (D) officials, Deuba is visiting the US at the invitation of the Columbia University and the Nepali community in the US.

Spokesman of the NC (D), Dr Minendra Rijal, told Nepalnews that Deuba will be attending a seminar on Nepal at the University as a chief guest on March 22.

Nepali experts and Nepal’s permanent representative to the United Nations, Madhu Raman Acharya, will be presenting papers in the seminar.

Deuba will also try to garner support for the ongoing agitation of the seven political parties during his visit to the US, party sources said.

Detailed information regarding Deuba’s visit is yet to be known.

Sources said the former premier will also apprise the senior US officials about the roadmap of the seven political parties for the restoration of democracy in Nepal.

The USA has criticized the 12-point pact between the seven political parties and Maoists and has been saying that reconciliation between the King and the political parties is the only way out of the present political impasse in the country.

Tourism entrepreneurs and experts have welcomed launching of ‘New Tourism Brand’ by Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) but were quite critical of the Board’s ambitious plan to attract additional 300,000 tourists in a year.

Talking to Nepalnews Tuesday, tourism entrepreneur Karma Shakya said the branding was appropriate and timely. He said that despite the deepening conflict, the branding would help expand the tourism industry.

Time has come that the NTB and tourism entrepreneurs should seek alternatives of mountain tourism in Nepal, Shakya said. Trekking, bungy jumping, boating, rafting, bird watching, are a few to name the immense potentiality of Nepal’s adventure tourism, he added.

Shakya further said that the branding would help to build passion of tourism among the travelers of Nepal, adding, the inculcated passion for adventure in Nepal, proclaimed to one of the top travel destination in the world, would never be erased from the hearts from visitors. Visiting Nepal once would not be enough for them, he stressed.

President of Nepal Mountaineering Federation (NMF) Tek Chandra Pokhrel said the flagging tourism industry thanks to political instability in the country would get revived to some extent by the branding. He, however, criticized the NTB for the delay of branding Nepal. “But, unless political stability is maintained in the country, we may not be able to meet our expectation,” Pokhrel added.

He said that the new branding should be able to convince the visitors that political turmoil in Nepal has not affected the tourists visiting here.

Tek Bahadur Dangi, Chief Executive Officer of the NTB said the brand would be instrumental in increasing the number of tourists to Nepal up by 300,000.

“Prior to this campaign, we were solely dependant on individual overseas tour operators to promote Nepal, but we will now all be working together in a concerted, focused and centralized effort to penetrate the new segment of consumer market that also has great potential,” Dangi added.

The NTB recently launched the ‘New Tourism Brand’ with the slogan ‘Naturally Nepal, Once Is Not Enough’ incorporating the entire spectrum of tourism products/services, which provides leeway to Nepal to promote and market its tourism products in a complete package. The brand will be adopted by all travel trade sectors and other concerned agencies that market Nepal nationally or internationally.

The NTB will be investing around Rs 100 million in tourism promotional campaigns through this brand. It was developed by Indian social infrastructure agency Alchemy, which has plans to reinvent Nepal’s diversity, modernity and cultural heritage.

At least two Maoist insurgents were killed in an encounter with the security forces at Khayarmara Jungle in the southern district of Mahottari on Tuesday.

The Maoists clashed with the security forces patrolling the area at around 9:30 a.m. in Khayarmara Jungle, reports quoting local security sources said.

One gun, six socket bombs and bullets were recovered from the Maoists. There were no reports of casualty on the security side, reports added.

The Maoists are yet to confirm the losses on their side.

The United Nations in Nepal marked this year’s International Women’s Day on Tuesday, with a reminder of the plight of Nepali women caught up in the decade-long Maoist conflict.

Stressing the necessity to increase protection for women, UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator, Matthew Kahane, expressed deep concern over the deteriorating conditions for women throughout the country. “In the past few weeks, women have been beaten to death, shot at, blown up by landmines and abducted across the country,” a press statement issued by the UN Information Centre quoted Kahane as saying.

“Today, the UN calls on combatants in Nepal to avoid, at all costs, targeting civilian women directly or accidentally, and to fully respect their obligations under international humanitarian law,” he said. “The UN also urges both parties to the conflict to unequivocally hold to account any soldier found to have sexually abused women or girls,” he added.

The statement further said women in Nepal not only bear the burden of caring for their families when men engage in the fighting or are forced to flee, they are also more vulnerable to abuse and exploitation during warfare. Kahane said, “War is mostly driven by men, yet too often women are the primary victims; not because women are vulnerable per se but because the circumstance of conflict makes them vulnerable”.

Conflict has intensified since the end of the Maoist unilateral ceasefire two months ago, and women have once again found themselves in the firing line. At the same time, the maternal mortality rate in Nepal is already among the highest in the world, yet pregnant women have been prevented from reaching health centers due to shutdowns and curfews or because roads and bridges have been destroyed. Complications during childbirth have ended in tragedy when ambulances have been forced to turn back as a result of roadblocks and explosive devices placed on roads.

Increasingly, Nepali women find themselves widowed by the war or left behind by sons or husbands who have fled to escape forced recruitment or harassment by combatants. As heads of households they must provide for their families, playing new roles that, in many cases, they were neither educated nor prepared for.

“The courage and tenacity that Nepali women are displaying is admirable, but it is also true that the economic and emotional distress they face to ensure the survival of their families increases their risks of physical and mental health problems,” said the UN representative.

Sexual violence and exploitation are also more likely to occur and be overlooked in wartime when women find themselves alone, temporarily displaced within Nepal or as refugees abroad. “Sparing women and girls from rape and sexual slavery is not just about human rights, but also about human decency and dignity. The targeting of women and girls with sexual and other violence destroys people’s capacities to create a communal life, replacing normal social interaction with distrust and fear, prolonging conflict and delaying reconciliation and recovery” Kahane added.