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The Barabigha ground in Janakpur wasturned into a fort with several hundredsecurity personnel deployed to protect theseven party leaders and their supportersduring the joint election meeting of theruling alliance on January 26. Themobilisation of the security agencies hadbecome necessary because of the TeraiBandh called by different Terai outfits tofoil the seven party meeting.

But the failure of the meeting, in terms ofattendance and the poor law and ordersituation, has led to speculations inKathmandu that at least two prominentCongress ministers, Ram Chandra Poudeland KP Sitaula, might lose their posts forhaving provoked the Terai leaders.

(Details on page 2)

Fortified

JANAKPUR MEET AMIDST TIGHT SECURITY: A person passing through a security checkto get to the venue of the meeting in Janakpur on January 26. The Terai bandh call givenby the Terai outfits led to the poor attendance in the meeting.

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2 28 Jan- 3 Feb, 2008 News

The failure ofJanakpur electionmeeting addressedby the leaders ofthe ruling seven-party alliance, andthe clash withMadheshi politicaloutfits that left atleast 70 wounded,has come as arude shock toPrime Minister GPKoirala whoinstantly instructed the Ministry of Peace and Recon-struction, to review the entire situation including the lawand order situation in the country.

An all party meeting held in the evening soon afterthe Janakpur election meeting which took place undera tight security arrangement, however reported back toKoirala that they, “have won the Terai fort and thatelections are very much possible in April.” Notconvinced, Koirala also asked the election commissionto make its own assessment of the situation.

Within the Congress circle, the Janakpur episode hastriggered fresh speculations about the change in thecabinet that might lead to the exit of the two powerfulministers, Ram Chandra Poudel and KP Sitaula.

The poor turnout in the meeting in Janakpur despiteall the state machinery having been geared for it,attack by the Madhesh outfits on those attending themeetings, and explosion near the venue of the publicmeeting addressed by Party leaders Sushil Koirala andDr. Rambaran Yadav in Sunsari, the same day, haveled to doubts if the government will be able to improvethe law and order situation for polls.

A powerful section within the NepaliCongress has warned Prime MinisterGP Koirala that his current policy of‘surrender’ to the Maoists might leadto collapse of democracy anddisintegration of the country.

The group that has dissociateditself from the party’s line of going tothe poll in alliance with the Maoists,launched a parallel meeting onJanuary 26 beginning from Damauliin Tanahun district, followed by Kaskia day later. “Election at any costprovoking Terai and a policy of totalappeasement and surrender to theMaoists will lead us no where. Ourcampaign is to save the country anddemocracy,” said KB Gurung, Party’ssenior General Secretary, at Damauli.

Led by Gurung, other prominent

Keep shut!Do not provoke Terai: PM to Poudel, Sitaula

The PM is alsobelieved to havechided his two mosttrusted Ministers,Poudel and Sitaula,for going to theextent of provokingTerai leaders. “Hehad oxygen pipeinserted in his nose,but was furious withthe two,” aBaluwatar sourcesaid.

“There is no point in inviting Mahantha Thakur fordialogue and your publicly saying that all demands ofMadhesh have been fulfilled,” a source quoted Koirala.This seems to have led to speculations about theirbeing dropped from the cabinet.

The violent resistance in Terai, many think, is also asequel to the Home Minister’s assertion before aparliamentary committee last week, that the governmentwould be using force to conduct polls if Terai leadersfailed to respond positively to its invitation for talks.

The election commission reviewed the wholesituation on January 27 and is going to ask thegovernment to maintain the law and order situation.“Our immediate concern at the moment is to ensuresafety of election officials that we will be dispatching tothe constituencies soon. At the moment, we are notconfident about their safety.” The commission also saidthat at the moment, it has no formal proposal before itto conduct the polls in two phases. Tourism MinisterPrithvi Subba Gurung had said in a public meeting that,“the election can take place in two phases if thesituation so demanded.”

Open challenge“The Prime Minister is playing a dan-

gerous game.”

leaders like Bijay Gachedar, KhumBahadur Khadka, Sharad SinghBhandari and Govinda Raj Joshi planto tour different parts of the countryholding public meetings and interact-ing with the party members. “We arenot Congress dissidents, but we havedefinitely a different approach on howto consolidate democracy and leadthe country to peace and politicalstability,” said Joshi.

Bijay Gachedar said that a blindpursuit of election even after theMaoists have broken their commit-ment inked in the latest 23-pointagreement will only mean that theCongress party has accepted theMaoists diktat. “The Prime Minister isplaying a dangerous game. He isleading the seven party allianceagainst Terai,” Gachedar said,adding, “What happened in Janakpurand Sunsari has amply proved it.”

Sharing the same sentiments,Khadka, Bhandari and Joshi said inKaski on January 27 that the Maoistsand the Young Communist Leaguecadres have time and again violatedthe provisions of the comprehensivepeace agreement as well as the codeof conduct vitiating atmosphere that isrequired for a free and fair poll. “IfCongress continues with the policy ofappeasing the Maoists at the currentscale, it will not take long for thishistorical party to come to an end ofits life; and we are committed not letthat happen,” Khadka said.

The United Nations Missions toNepal (UNMIN) has been granted asix-month extension beginningJanuary 23, but will have to ‘strictlystick to its mandate,’ a senior Ministerhas said.

The extension proposal of thegovernment that was finally endorsedby the UN Security Council last weekin New York makes no change in thejurisdiction and scope as thegovernment had earlier turned downsuggestions - directly and indirectly -that UNMIN be involved in thesecurity sector reforms as well asnegotiation with the Terai, otherethnic and marginalised groups.

“We are going to tell UNMIN that itsticks with the mandate it has got -monitoring supervision of arms andarmies of the Maoists and thegovernment and observing the pollsto the constituent assembly,” theMinister who did not want to benamed said, adding, “our concern willbe conveyed to Mr. Ian Martin on hisarrival here.”

The Minister also said that aprominent European Union countrywas in favour of UNMIN’s role beingenlarged. “Apart from our ownassessment, our immediateneighbours, China and India werealso not in favour of the UNMIN rolebeing enlarged,” the Minister said.

Prime Minister GP Koirala is said tobe unhappy with senior UNMINofficials making public statements in

Stick to the mandateUNMIN granted six-months extension

support of demands of one or theother ethnic groups in a manner thatcould be interpreted as endorsingdemands for creating ‘ethnic states’.“We are committed to take intoaccount the grievances of ethnic andmarginalised groups. But UNMINofficials making such speeches indifferent forums is clearly outside theirmandate, and the government isgoing to clearly tell them to stick totheir specified mandate,” the Ministeradded.

The UNMIN was granted 80-milliondollar budget for its remaining tenurein Nepal. It has got currently 800 oddstaff, less than 40 per cent fromNepal mostly in junior positions.

Pocketing local bodiesThe government is now contemplating immediate revival or forma-

tion of the local bodies which have long ceased to exist.

Soon after the government’sdisbursement of Rs one millioneach to the sitting members of theparliament, it is now contemplatingimmediate revival or formation ofthe local bodies which have longceased to exist. A decision to thiseffect may be taken soon althoughthe move goes totally against thecode of conduct issued by theelection commission.

The nomination or revival of thelocal bodies that will have a plumshare of three major parties -Nepali Congress, CommunistParty of Nepal-Maoists (CPN-M)and the Communist Party of Nepal- United Marxist Leninist (CPN-UML); will not only give totalcontrol of the three parties in thelocal bodies, but they will alsoinfluence voters in favour of thetop three during the elections tothe constituent assembly.

The government move to revivethe local bodies comes in the wakeof wide ranging controversy andcriticism of its decision to distributeRs. one million each from thegovernment coffer to the existingmembers of the interim parlia-ment. The distribution of themoney ostensibly to carrydevelopmental activities in areas

chosen by MPs has also beenchallenged in the Supreme Court.

However, the ministerial committeeheaded by Minister for Local Develop-ment, Dev Gurung, who belongs to theMaoist party, is negotiating with theCPN-UML and the Nepali Congressas they have some difference ofopinion on the way to nominate thesebodies. The UML has been insistingthat the same old committees shouldbe revived with ‘reasonable inclusion’of the Maoist members, but that issomething both the Congress and theMaoists are not happy about.

An official in the ministry of local

development told newsfront thatMaoists are in favour of theleadership and majority control,equally divided among the topthree parties. “The NepaliCongress supports the Maoistformula,” the official said, adding,“The revival could take placeimmediately if the three partiescome to an understanding.” In theelection to the local bodies whichwere last held a decade ago, theCPN-UML had established itscontrol in a majority of them. TheMaoists had not participated in theelection then.

Massive security deployment during the 7-party election meeting atJanakpur on January 26.

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Newsbrief

Not enoughPrime Minister GP

Koirala’s daughter SujataKoirala is not happy with hermere inclusion in the cabinetas a minister withoutportfolio. Apparently, shewants her role and statusclearly defined. According tothe Baluwatar sources, Sujata has not only beenconsulting party leaders andher followers who havebeen telling her that beingde facto heir apparent tothe PM is not enough, andthat she should be officiallyrecognised as the de jurePM.

She is also said to haveasked the PM to give in writing that she would be representing him indifferent ministries during his absence or even otherwise. In fact, shehas already been summoning government secretaries of differentministries with instruction that she should be consulted on major policyissues, something that has not gone down well with the ministersconcerned.

Gift of wheelsA fleet of 1200 vehicles has come as India’s gift to Nepal govern-

ment on the occasion of its 59th republic day. The vehicles are meantto equip the government of Nepal, mainly its security agencies, toeffectively monitor the election process as well as polling.

The delivery of vehicles, promised long ago, had been kept inabeyance following postponement of the polls scheduled in November.The delivery now is also being seen as India’s confidence that electionwill take place in April as scheduled. Incidentally, the delivery alsocomes as the good-will gesture of Ambassador SS Mukherjee who isto

leave the country on completion of his extended tenure a week later.It was not without significance that Ambassador Mukherjee handed

over the vehicles to Home Minister, KP Sitaula, the man India hasbeen promoting and protecting despite all his failures to maintain lawand order situation in the country. India’s recognition and Sujata’ssilence over her earlier consistent campaign for the Home Minister’sresignation must have made Sitaula’s life a bit more comfortable now.

Double speakThe Communist Party of

Nepal-Maoists is at it again.As Kathmandu burned andyouths thronged the streetsto protest against the pricehike of petroleum products,the Maoist tried to disowntheir hand in it.

Information andCommunication Minister KBMahara said his partyministers were not involvedin the decision and they hadnot been consulted. Maharaalmost replicated MadhavNepal during Deubagovernment’s time when he said Ishwar Pokhrel, UML nominee in thecabinet in charge of civil supplies did not consult the party on the

price hike of petroleum products then.Pokhrel could not counter Madhav Nepal publicly given the party

discipline and suffered a lot in the process politically. But Mahara’srecent claim which apparently is not true, was aimed at bailing his ownparty and cajoling the Maoist cadres who came out on the streetagainst the price hike. And that perhaps worked.

Bush cheers up MaoistsAt long last, US President George Bush has tried to make Nepali

Maoists happy. In a recent message that he delivered, he appealed tothe government of Nepal and the Maoists to work for the success ofthe constituent assembly a success.

Bush laid no pre-condition nor issued any warning to the Maoists.He did not ask them to behave, and the undertone of the messagewas quite positive. The Bush comment has come after unpublicisedmeetings that Ambassador Nancy Powell had with Maoist MinistersPampha Bhushal and then with KB Mahara.

The latest appeal from the president came as a ritual when Nepal’sAmbassador Suresh Chalise presented his credentials last week inWashington DC .

Since the Communist Party ofNepal-Maoists (CPN-M) gear up forelections and its top leaders plan tomingle with the masses, the party hasasked the government to enhancetheir security arrangements.

A Home Ministry source toldNewsfront that despite Maoist ChiefPrachanda’s public outburst againstthe Army Chief, Nepal Armypersonnel remain the party’sfavourite to provide security cover tothe Maoist leaders during election.“Although the security requirementsare being reviewed in the tensesituation, the government however,failed to meet the demand for multi-layer security umbrella forPrachanda,” he added.

The Party had demanded that atleast 100 security personnel bedrawn from the Nepal Army and thepolice deployed around the clock forPrachanda. The demand was madein the context of Prachanda andanother top leader Ram BahadurThapa a.k.a Badal publicly claimingthat top Maoist leaders would betargeted during elections.

The government which is yet toreceive any concrete evidence thatsubstantiate such claims, hashowever decided to provide additionalsecurity which would be led by aDeputy Superintendent of Police withimmediate effect. There would be noexception made for his security byattaching personnel of the Nepal

Maoists wantmore security

Army. So far, army personnel are givenonly to the government and stateheads, besides ministers and judges ofthe Supreme Court.

However, the election commissionhas had a few rounds of discussionswith the government on securityarrangements to ensure protection ofthe contestants and leaders ofdifferent political parties. GivenMaoists’ fear that their leaders mightbe targeted during the electioneering,area chiefs of Armed Police Force andthe Civil Police will also be asked tocoordinate with the security arrange-ments whenever leaders visit theirrespective districts.

A cabinet rank minister said that thelaw and order situation is indeedworrisome, and any attack on anyleader would create an adverse impact

on election conduct. “That is whyfrom Madhav Nepal to Sushil Koirala,more and more people have nowbeen telling the government to buildconsensus among the seven partiesfor deployment of the Nepal armyduring the election.”

Army had been deployed in all thethree parliamentary elections in thepast, but now it is confined to thebarrack, along with Maoist combat-ants, with the United Nations Missionto Nepal (UNMIN) having been giventhe role to monitor their movement.On condition of anonymity, theminister said that if Maoist leader hadno problem in seeking army person-nel as security guards, “They shouldhave no objection to their beingdeployed for the protection of allleaders and the electorate.”

Indo-Nepal meetended on a bitter note

The Indo-Nepal joint officialmeeting held in New Delhi last weekended without conclusion after theNepali side declined to endorse theIndian view that the bilateral

border principle was violated bythe Nepali side.

The bilateral meeting at the JointSecretary level had taken place inDelhi last week in which India notedwith concern the ‘incursion’ of theIndian side by Young CommunistLeague (YCL) - affiliated with theNepal Communist Party-Maoists(NCP-M), which is now a majorconstituent of the government.

A 14-member Nepali delegationled by Suresh Pradhan, a JointSecretary in the Foreign Ministry,simply refused to sign on the finalminute prepared by the Indian sideas the routine bilateral meeting wasnot meant to discuss this issue.Cleverly enough, the Indian side hadchosen not to put on record themarch by some political activists fromIndia crossing over to the Nepali sideand hoisting Indian flag a few daysafter the YCL tried to march to theother side. The YCL move wasaimed at protesting against the‘encroachment’ of a part of Susta

area by India.According to a Nepali official,

Pradhan spoke to Foreign MinisterSahana Pradhan after the Indian sideinsisted that the YCL ‘incursion’ mustbe put on record. But the JointSecretary followed the Minister’sinstruction that he may avoid puttinghis signature on the minute.

The bilateral security meeting dealtmainly with cross border crimes,exchange of information and the needto increase vigilance at the border.According to a member of thedelegation, Nepali side also soughtIndia’s cooperation in curbing activitiesof certain ‘armed groups’ based inIndia which were creating trouble inNepal. The special cooperation wassought in the context of all prepara-tions being made in Nepal for theupcoming elections to the constituent

assembly.While the three day meeting ended

on January 23 on a positive note, withIndia willing to curb cross bordercrimes and intensifying andmodernising the informationgathering at the border, its ‘approachon the final day was in contrary to theearlier spirit’, an official said. “If theagenda of the discussion hadincluded such cases of incursion, wewould have discussed it threadbare.The way they tried to put thepressure on was in bad taste,” theofficial added.

The Nepali side also denied that itsought resumption of the supply ofarms to the Nepal army whichremains suspended since the Royaltakeover in February 2005. “In fact,we had decided not to raise theissue,” said a delegate.

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Editor & Publisher : Yubaraj GhimireExecutive Editor : Sushma AmatyaNews Coordinator : Manoj DahalDesign: Sunil Khadgi, Kishor Raj Panta & Ramkrishna RanaAddress : PO Box: 8830, Lazimpat, Kathmandu, NepalTel : 4443888, Fax : 4421147 (Edt.), 4411912 (Mkt.)Email: newsfront@bhrikuti.com, marketing@bhrikuti.com (Mkt.)Printed by: Express Color Press, Buddhanagar, Tel.: 4781810, Distribution: Kasthamandap, Tel.: 2010821

28 Jan- 3 Feb, 20084 Editorial

LettersSelling children’s mis-ery?

The story on street kids last weekshows the miserable state of thechildren who are supposedly thefuture of our country. There aremore than five hundredorganisations working for children inNepal, and there are thousands ofchildren out there on the streets ofKathmandu and elsewhere in thecountry.

What are such organisations aredoing for the kids for whom fundspour in from all over the world? Weall know now that such organisationsare here, just to make money byselling poverty and misery. Had thisbeen untrue, there would not be somany street children out there, freezingto death. Where does the money go?Not to the children surely, although alltheir reports may justify every paisa!How about every organisation pickingup two or three of such children and useall their skills to keep them off streets?That way, there will be no such lostsouls wandering the streets.

ä Pratima SubediKalanki, Kathmandu

Ugly and foolish way ofdemonstrating

Raman Grandon has shown thepossibility of rafting and kayakingtourism in Nepal in newsfront last week.Tourism is the prime sector to enrich theeconomy of Nepal. But our governmentdoesn’t seem to recognise this. Bandhs,protests and hooliganism are destroyingtourism in Nepal.

For instance, I saw a number ofterrified tourists last week when

ParalysedKathmandu literally choked in poisonous smokes of rubber tyres

as youths and students descended on the streets to protestagainst the hike in the petroleum price. Anarchy and violencereined supreme in rest of the country. Robbery, abduction andmurders were reported from Siraha, Mugu, Kapilvastu and Jhapa.Home Minister KP Sitaula had to be rescued by his securitypersonnel as his own followers found it difficult to digest when hesaid such events were not uncommon when the country wasmoving towards constituent assembly polls.

The GP Koirala government rolled back the price in absolutepanic, but the government agencies made no effort to counter orresist the vandalism that protestors indulged in. UN and embassyvehicles as well as the media vehicles were targeted by the mob.Worse, the press representatives were assaulted. Prime MinisterKoirala who has mostly remained ineffective ostensibly for reasonsof health ever since he elevated his daughter as the cabinet rankminister, only reacted to the whole situation by withdrawing theprice hike, but he is unmoved by the killing of his party’s threeleaders by Maoists in Siraha, or that of the manager of theAgriculture Development Bank there.

In Khotang, three police posts were over-run while in Kapilvastu,a Madheshi Janadhikar Forum leader was shot and wounded.Dhanusha is witnessing communal tension. Yet, like Sitaula, Koiralahas little concern and time to improve the law and order. People’ssecurity is secondary to him. Prolonging his days in chair without anyaccountability is all that Koirala seems to be indulging in now.

The series of events, especially the abduction and murder ofthree Congress activists by the YCL goes against the 23-pointagreement that the seven parties in the government signed onDecember 23. In a reiteration of what was already stated in theComprehensive Peace Agreement signed way back in November2006, the 23-point agreement had pledged that there would be noprotest and attack on political groups. All this was done in order tocreate an atmosphere for free and fair polls for the April 10 election.

The government’s failure to ensure that, with mounting attackon diplomats and the media, and silence of the three major parties- UML, Congress and the Maoists, show that they only want to gofor a mock election only. A state of terror and anarchy eithersponsored by the state, or encouraged by its indifference will onlygo in the interest of three parties if polls take place now.

Their major concern at the moment seems to formulate a wayto ensure the top three pockets, all or most of the 335 seats theyhold in the interim parliament, when the CA polls take place underthese circumstances. The Koirala government must understandthat it is obliged to create an atmosphere for a free and fairelection that will be representative of the people’s will and mood.Any other type of election that seems be the government’s prioritynow, will not be acceptable.

Responsibility does not only lie with the leaders of our countries or with thosewho have been appointed or elected to do a particular job. It lies with each of usindividually. Peace, for example, starts within each one of us. When we haveinner peace, we can be at peace with those around us.

- HH The Dalai Lama

Point to Ponder

Saint Bernadette of LourdesBernadette Soubirous, born 7th Jan 1844,

had 18 visions of the ‘blessed lady’ in a grottoin the outskirts of Lourdes. On February 11th1858, Bernadette had her first vision of ‘abeautiful lady’. She describes how initially shewas bewildered, but after a while she feltovercome with great peace. The visions ofBernadette created remarkable interest andspeculation within the village of Lourdes.However, although some believed they werewitnessing a miraculous occurrence, others inthe town were both critical and suspicious.

However, under cross examination sheretained a childlike innocence and also animplacable faith in the veracity of the experi-

ences she had witnessed.Despite frequent and intenseexamination they wereunable to find flaws in hertales. She didn’t seek toexaggerate or materiallyprofit from her experiences.

On the ninth apparition,Bernadette was asked by thelady to drink from the spring.Yet, Bernadette could not see any spring(there was none at the time), therefore shebegan digging with her bare hands in a muddypatch and drank a few drops of muddy water;the lady also asked her to eat some loosegrass. To the onlookers this appeared to be a

Spiritual Cornerpatiently meet many well wishers, skeptics,disbelievers and the curious. Many report howBernadette was always very patient, kind andtolerant of the many uninvited visitors. For thenext 13 years Bernadette lived the simple lifeof a nun, eschewing the fame and attentionthat would have accompanied any worldly life.

Following the events of the apparitions apapal investigation was founded. After longdeliberation and careful examination of theevidence it was declared that the visions of theVirgin Mary really did occur at the Grotto ofLourdes. She received beatification in 1925and canonisation in 1933 under Pope Pius XI,not so much for the content of her visions, butrather for her simplicity and holiness of her life.

disgusting act. Many returned indismay, proclaiming it was a fraudafter all.

However, in the following dayswater started to flow from thespring where Bernadette hadbeen digging. From this waterflowed a spring in which peoplestarted to have miraculous healingexperiences, and this remains one

of the great attractions of Lourdes to thisday.

The miracles of Lourdes had became asignificant national event, attracting theattention of many people from all over thecountry. For a couple of years she had to

students were protesting against thepetroleum price hike. Why do we havesuch barbaric protesting methods? Canwe not express our rights moreintelligently, keeping our concern forother citizens alive? Have we nowbecome a nation of fools who do notunderstand the drastic implications ofprotesting in such an ugly manner, onthe tourists, on the environment and ourfellow citizens health and peace ofmind? If educated youths start behavinglike that, what hope do we have for ourfuture?

ä Kailash UpretyMaitidevi, Kathmandu

True impact of fake cur-rency

Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala’sassociation with fake currency hasopened a Pandora’s Box. Should hehave exposed his botched history to a

TV program? India has taken thisissue seriously. The numbers ofarticles, editorials and news stories onIndian newspapers shows howseriously India is treating this issue.

It was truly immature on the part ofthe PM, who should have knownbetter than to commit such foolhardi-ness. Now, will he have to go ask theIndian government asking forgivenessfor his crime? He might have to payheavily for his heroic statement on theTV. I, as a citizen of this country donot know whether to laugh at our PMor pity him.

ä Srijana SharmaKaushaltar, Bhaktapur

Responsible who?Who is responsible for the thefts of

bikes from the parking places allotted bythe municipality? The parking authoritiescharge money for each parking; butwhen a bike gets stolen, they say theyare not responsible for it. On top of thatwhen you park they tell you not to putthe handle lock. I think the municipalityauthorities and the parking contractorsneed to work out a system to addressthis problem soon.

ä Kiran RanaDillibazar, Kathmandu

Readers, your reac-tions, criticisms,comments, sugges-tions are most wel-come. Please ad-dress it to:

newsfront@bhrikuti.com

28 Jan-3 Feb, 20085Debating development

In a message that signals a clearshift in the US policy towards NepaliMaoists, President Bush hasappealed to the government and theMaoists to work together to ensurethat that the election is held by mid-April. At last, he must have hadreasons to believe that the entry ofthe Maoists to the peace process wasnot a mere tactical move as the UShad all along been saying; and thattheir oft repeated commitment todemocracy is as genuine as that ofthe seven parties ruling the country atpresent.

There have been some clearlyvisible indicators that the USdiplomacy in Kathmandu alreadyconfirms to the latest approach ofPresident Bush. The quiet meeting ofAmbassador Nancy J Powell with theMaoist ministers cannot be taken asdevelopments in isolation. Not longago, Patrick Leahy, a prominentRepublican senator had askedMaoists to be part of the politicalprocess and earn confidence of theworld so that they could be taken offthe terrorist list by all including theUS.

This at least seems to have had asomber effect on Bush. Also, the USembassy in Kathmandu was moregenerous in granting visa to theMaoist leaders to the US in recentdays, and there are already positivesignals that it would facilitatePrachanda and Baburam Bhattarai'strip to the DC when they go theWorld Bank head office, as they havea standing invitation to brief the bankabout their economic and pro-reformagenda.

The appeal by Bush also comes inthe wake of revelations by PrimeMinister GP Koirala that he wasinvolved in counterfeiting of the Indiancurrency notes and was tempted toget into gold and uranium smuggling,apart from his involvement in thehijacking of an

aircraft during his years in exile.That confession will hardly make GPKoirala's democratic credentials morepreferable to the US, that that ofPrachanda. Moreover, US hasreasons to hope that Koirala can stilldeliver, as his failure will be real

miscalculation of the US in Nepal. Inthat sense, Koirala's failure to leadthe transition to democracy will alsobe seen as failure by the US to alarge extent. After all, time is runningout not only for Koirala, who is 84 andailing, but also for Bush who shall bedemitting his office as president inless than a year from now.

It was Bush, who initially sup-ported the royal takeover inFebruary 2005, and then went to theother extreme since his publiccriticism of the king through the thenAmbassador James Moriarty in July.That still appears like the basis of thecurrent US policy towards Nepal.The noticeable shift in favour of theMaoists is based on calculation thatelection will not be possible withoutMaoists remaining an ally of Koirala.However, Bush’s latest statementthat he gave when Nepali Ambassa-dor Suresh Chalise presented hiscredentials, ignores other gloomy

developments in the country andabsence of an atmosphere for freeand fair poll.

The major skips of the presidentsinclude: rampant and willful

persecution of the political oppo-nents by the state and their selectivevictimisation on the basis of a politicalcommission like the one headed byKrishnajung Rayamajhi; addedcontrol of judiciary by the executiveand legislature; blatant misuse ofgovernment fund to manipulateelectoral outcome in favour of thethree major ruling parties, includingthe Maoists; and the appropriation ofthe authority and jurisdiction of theyet to be elected constituentassembly by the current parliament.These are not mere issues ordimensions of Nepal's internalpolitics, but democracy can not bemeaningfully restored without theirbeing addressed.

In the past, the categorical positionthat the US took on election was that,a conducive atmosphere andimproved law and order situation arethe basic pre-conditions. Even formerPresident Jimmy Carter laid some

pre-conditions such as: improved lawand order, ending parallel policing bythe Young Communist League (YCL),and Maoists returning the propertythey confiscated during the years ofconflict to the rightful owners. Nothingwill make Nepalis happier if theappeal of the president does its magicon the Maoist leaders and changestheir behaviour.

The US has, in the past two yearsor so, mainly gone along with India onNepal's peace process and supportedMaoists entry into it with some riders.The US continued to put the Maoistson their terrorist list, and untilMoriarty's time, avoided meeting withthe Maoist ministers. It quite ofteninsisted that Maoists must hand-overits members responsible for the killingof two American guards. It has alsoopenly commented on the YCLatrocities.

Moriarty even challengedPrachanda to furnish him with theproof to substantiate his publiclymade allegations that the CIA wasout to carry assassinations of thesome political leaders in Nepal. It willbe a welcome move on the part ofthe US to support Nepal's democraticand electoral process. But theelection in Nepal should not besomething like that happened in Iraqlast year or in India's Kashmir, Punjabor Assam in the 80s. While the firsthappened under the shadow offoreign army, the ones in India hardlyrepresented the popular will of themajority. Moreover, the authority ofthe state in Nepal has almostcollapsed while that of India's centrewas intact when its provinces ravagedby insurgency led violence had goneto the polls.

Nevertheless, it will be a realopportunity for the Maoists to listen toBush and create an atmosphere forthe polls. Winning the Americanpresident's hope, if not trust at thismoment, would be the real recogni-tion of the Maoists as neo-democrats.The modified message of theAmerican president in gist is: 'youhave all the opportunities to berecognised as democrats world wide.In that case, you do not have to run,and you do not have to hide'. ä

Welcome,Mr. President

There have beensome clearlyvisible indicatorsthat the US diplo-macy inKathmandu al-ready confirmsto the latestapproach ofPresident Bush.

Moriarty even chal-lenged Prachanda

to furnish him withthe proof to sub-

stantiate his pub-licly made allega-tions that the CIA

was out to carryassassinations ofthe some leaders.

ä Yubaraj Ghimire

It was Bush, who ini-tially supported theroyal takeover in Feb-ruary 2005, and thenwent to the other ex-treme since his publiccriticism of the king.

28 Jan-3 Feb, 20086 Debating Development

ä Binod P. Bista

Kathmandu wasvirtually under seizefor two days last

week. The reason was simple. Nepalistudents, affiliated with all governingparties in the government, staged acity wide ‘bandh’ in protest against thefuel price hike announced by thegovernment of Nepal a couple ofdays ago. As a member of a civilisedsociety every country’s citizen has aright to stage protest on decisions oractions of government and its bodiesthat attempt to violate citizen’s rights.

In this particular case, though theprice rise on diesel, cooking gas andkerosene is attributed to the soaringoil prices in the international market,perhaps the timing of the decision hasmore to do with the problem than thedecision itself. Nepali parliament hadconveniently passed a bill giving everymember a sum of one million rupees,supposedly for development, justthree months ahead of constituentassembly elections. Everyone washarshly critical of that decision,considered illegal by most.

Although it is difficult to exactlypinpoint the part of the right that wasviolated by the government’s decisionto raise fuel price, its impact is feltmostly by the city dwellers as Nepal’svillages are so poor that they canhardly afford to buy kerosene andcooking gas (most use firewood).Lacking roads, the need for diesel iseven scarce. One can argue that thehigh price of diesel would haveaffected the commuters and perhapsthe prices of goods in the market.

EXERCISING Cooking gas is found to be moreoften used by the three wheelers,which claim to be free from pollutionand safe (not to mention of thedanger of explosion), that argumentbeing readily accepted by the cityauthorities responsible for the safetyand welfare of the Kathmanduites.Notwithstanding these facts, let usgive the benefit of doubt to theprotestors of Kathmandu that theirrights had indeed been violated.

Burning tyres on all major roads,streets, alley ways, and blockingtraffic with the help of boulders, treetrunks, metal scraps reflected more ofa riot torn city than a peaceful protestorganised by a student body. Someseem to be pleased to see anenergised civil society of Nepal takingdeep root in the process of transfor-mation. Others simply brush it offsaying that this behavior andcondition has to do with transition.

Considering the exhortations ofsome of the enlightened civil societyleaders in the past that “Governmentof Nepal has no right to put a ban onany portion of road/street aseverything belongs to the people sothey have a right to stage protestwherever they want,” the studentorganisations seem to have taken itjust too well.

Such a behavior is not uncommonin developing countries. The onlydifference between Nepal and othersin the region such as Bangladesh,India, Pakistan is that the oppositionparties organise such rallies andprotests there, whereas the student

body affiliated with the governingparties did it in Nepal. The govern-ments in other countries ensure thatthe fundamental rights of majority arewell protected. In Nepal, everyperson has to find his way even if itmeans walking the entire day andremain safe from violence eruptingfrom unsuspecting places. At therecent bandh, it was reported thatseveral journalists were manhandled,media’s vehicles vandalised, windowsof ambulance as well as those ofprivate cars were smashed.

Could this be a simple snag in theexercise of human rights by the youthof Nepal? This question needs to beanswered by the Nepali civil societyleaders and their counterparts whoare tirelessly engaged in helpingNepalis build a new Nepal.

Someone recently commented thatthe elections per se do not necessar-ily reflect functional democraciesthough it is the necessary first steptoward democracy. Similarly, Nepalneeds to inculcate a culture ofpeaceful demonstration, rallies andprotests that alone can secure therights of the affected in the long run.

Trampling on the rights of othersthrough uncivil means by mostassociations with direct/indirectsupport from ruling political partieshas placed Nepal into an intractablespiral of protests and counterprotests. It is now incumbent on thecivil society leaders to steer thecountry out of this jam as thegovernment has remained virtuallynon-existent in these days of protestsand riots taking place regularly.

human rightsNepal needs to inculcate a culture ofpeaceful demonstrations, rallies and pro-tests that alone can secure the rights ofthe affected in the long run.

ä Roop Joshi

From the lofty ramparts of hisfort, five hundred years ago, ManSingh Tomar looked down uponthe city. It was a city he hadvanquished. From the loftyramparts of this fort, Jahangiragain looked down at the city. Itwas a city he had conquered.From the lofty ramparts of thesame fort, the Maratha rulerslooked down at the city. From thelofty ramparts of this very fort, thecurrent maharajah looks down athis city. It is a city of which he isnow a part.

In democratic India, there lies aplace; where the maharajah, stilladdressed as such by his peoplethough he has no semblance ofofficial royalty, is revered by hispeople; where his actions, thoughhe is Hindu, can stop Hindu-Muslim riots; where the peopleknow that he will always be there -a symbol of unity, someone withwhom they can identify, someonewho will always listen to theirtroubles. And he is himself is aMember of Parliament and aCongress stalwart.

The fort looms over the citycasting its protective shadow.Reputed to be one of the mostinvincible forts of India, it stands

rock solid – a symbol ofpermanence, of continu-ity, of a glorious historyand irrefutable values, allpersonified by its rulers.The fort houses a Sikhgurudwara, displaysHindu palace architec-ture, was modified byMuslim influence and isguarded by a giganticJain sculpture. Thisamalgam of religionsspeaks of historicalchanges of power, butmore importantly, it is atestimony to the religioustolerance displayed by therulers.

From this same fort,Maharani Lakshmi Baigoaded her stallion tojump off the ramparts toher death below toescape British captors.Her courage is atestimony to the stirringsof Indian nationalism andto women’s equality.

The city owes much toits maharajahs. Itsindustrial development,irrigation projects andeducation infrastructurewere initiated by the thenmaharajah in the closing

years of the 19th century. The legacyof the present maharajah’s father,whose political footsteps he follows,reminds all of what the father did forhis city as well as for his country. AMP from his city in national parliamentfor 30 years, thrice a minister withvarious portfolios, he is credited, interalia, with the modernisation of India’srailway system.

The city itself now has a literacyrate of 70%, 10% higher than thenational average. It boasts at least 42institutions of secondary and highereducation. It is prominent for itshealth care facilities with leadinghospitals and pharmaceuticalcompanies. It is a modern city withwell developed transportationinfrastructure connecting it to the restof the country by train, air and roads.

The above discourse on the fort isnot just a romantic reflection on daysgone by. Obviously, this fort repre-sents monarchy. It represents thebedrock of strength on which one canbuild upon. It represents stability andcontinuity – of culture, values and away of life in a shifting world. Further,the positive impact of some of therecent rulers of the city personified bythis fort is also quite apparent. AfterIndian independence, the princelystates ruled by the maharajasseceded to the Indian Union. It wasan inevitable evolution to secure the

The Fort – a symbol of unityhuge land mass of India as a singleunited modern country. There wasreason and logic to this develop-ment.

So when we debate the issue ofmonarchy in present-day Nepal,there are lessons to be learnt.There is one, and only one, criterionfor the validity of the Nepalimonarchy – it must remain, if itserves the interest of Nepal. Does itprovide value-added to thesovereignty of Nepal? Does it helpwith Nepal’s standing in thecommunity of 21st century nationsas a united political entity? In spiteof premature announcements ofthe death of the Nepali monarchy, itis time we look at the institution andjudge for ourselves whether itserves a purpose for Nepal and itspeople. When the winter blizzard iscoming, let us ensure that we donot throw away our coats no matterhow old and tattered they may be.Those old coats might be just be theones to keep away frostbites.

It is now up to the Nepali peopleto decide whether their monarchyis useful to their country. It is up tothe people, not up to a triumvirateof unelected politicians. If themajority of Nepalis want a republic,so be it – that is democracy inaction. But let the choice be that ofthe people. ä

It is time we look at theinstitution and judge forourselves whether it servesa purpose for Nepal and itspeople.

Bhas

wor O

jha

Interview 28 Jan- 3 Feb, 2008 7

Tsoknyi Rinpoche, 42 years old,was born in Gorkha district of Nepal.He is the abbot of Ngesdon Osel Lingmonastery in Kathmandu and ofGechak Gompa in Tibet. He is thehead of the Drukpa heritage project,which works to preserve the literatureof the Kagyu lineage. He has beenoffering teachings in Nepal, India,Britain, Hong Kong, Malaysia,Denmark and the US. His father wasthe renowned Dzogchen master, lateKyabje Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche.Tsoknyi Rinpoche is known interna-tionally for his open attitude and styleof teaching that is full of humour.Extracts from his conversation withSushma Amatya:

Who were your teachers andwhen did you start teaching?

I was recognised as Rinpoche atthe age of eight. From the age of 13to 24, I studied in India. Along with myfather, I had other teachers likeKyabje Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche,Adhi Rinpoche of Nangchen, NyoshulKhen Rinpoche and KhamtrulRinpoche, who brought me up.

At the age of 24, when I was inBodhgaya, some people asked me toteach and from there I started. Ithappened naturally. I teach five hoursa day. I think teaching is the bestpractice. You have to prepare,meditate, you have to understandstudents’ questions, and you have tohave the meditation mood to teach.

Why is humour important inteaching?

I don’t try it intentionally; I think it’sthe way I teach. Humour is a part ofhuman nature. It comes naturally tome. And it is useful at this age andday when people have such a shortattention span.

Is it difficult to teach modernpeople?

No. I think I’m prepared to teachmodern people because their mindsare quite open. They receiveBuddhist teachings easily. If I use theold methods, they don’t work so wellin this century.

What is your inspiration?I want to share Buddha’ teachings,

which is peace, wisdom andcompassion. These are verynecessary for humanity where a lot ofpeople are suffering because ofignorance and selfishness. Theteachings help draw out negativitiesfrom our minds. The fact that thingsare always changing helps us keepour perspective on the right track. Ifwe think everything around us is solidand permanent, it leads to suffering.

Changes you have seen in yourstudents?

Most of them were very unhappywhen they came to me. I think manyseekers see some kind of Dharmabut no path. They want to practice

some path and when they receive thistraditional path, they become happyand peaceful. The changes areamazing to see. All their anxiety,distrust, inability to love changes intopeace and happiness.

Are there drop outs?Some. In the beginning all are

enthusiastic but as you progress youhave a certain system you need tofollow and they feel they are beingtied down and so they remain asbeginners. They don’t want to go allthe way.

Differences between Nepali andwestern students?

The basic human nature is thesame in everyone. The five poisonslike attachment, jealousy, anger,ignorance, pride are the same – fromthe president of US to a coolie here.But cultural differences are vast.Family situations, psychologicalpatterns are different. For example,we have a lot of problem with motherin law, they don’t. We have a lot oflove inside out family but we don’thave as much freedom. They have alot of freedom but not enoughwarmth, love. When someone caresfor you, you lose some of yourfreedom. They want the freedom andalso love.

There are different ways toaddress those problems using thesame message but the approach isdifferent. It’s like using the same clothbut with different designs. I try andunderstand my students’ roots andspeak in their language. I do havepeople in the west who advise mehow to address the cultural andpsychological aspects.

Do you accept everybody whoseeks your teaching?

I never reject. In Dharma youcannot reject, unless there are somecritical problems. I try but sometimesit is very hard.

How do you deal with attachmentfrom female students?

I’m married already and that is abarrier and so I don’t have suchproblems. I have heard of suchproblems and am quite aware of itand create my own barrier. Studentslove you but you don’t know whatthey are thinking sometimes; but ifyou have your point of view clear, thatis not a problem.

Are you hopeful that Buddhistteaching will flourish in thismaterialistic world?

I divide Buddha’s teaching into twoparts – one is psychological and theother one is for serious practitionersseeking enlightenment. The first part

is for people who want to make theirlives better. By following the teach-ings, they become more peaceful,kind, tolerant; it helps your bloodpressure go down, your healthimproves and life improves. This partof teaching is successful. But the realteaching that is renouncing the worldand becoming completely free fromthe five poisons – that takes time.That part of teaching will shrink more.But I think if Buddhism can contributesomething to the world in whateverform, then why not.

Obviously less people are seekingenlightenment?

That is true. More people areseeking spirituality to improve theircurrent lives. A businessman will notgive up his business but practicingdharma will improve his business. Ifanything will help improve their lives,people will take it. There is a lot inBuddhism that will help their mindsand emotions and so I think peoplewill take it. There is less and lessdogmatism in people today. Most ofthem will not reject anything that isgood for them just because it’sHinduism, Islam or Buddhism.

How does one find a balancebetween spiritual life and worldlylife?

You have to organise your life, findsome time for spiritual practice – maybe one or two hours a day. At the endof the year, there is some achieve-ment and then slowly you can put ittogether. Or you can go for a retreat,a seminar and then practice it athome. To be engaged from morningtill night completely in materialisticpursuit creates a lot of imbalance.There is a saying in Tibet that if youwant to go to toilet, you have to builda toilet first. There should be somepreparation in your life.

What one piece of advice wouldyou give to serious practitioners?

You have to lead your life verysimply. You have to be rich in mind,not so much materially. When youengage so much in material life, itdoes not give you enough time. Timeis important. If you have a simple lifestyle, the time you have can be usedfor practice. But sadly for manypeople, the issue boils down tomoney and they don’t have any time.First thing would be to fix your basiclivelihood. But if you are lucky, andhave family support, then go for thedharma.

Is fatalistic approach an obstacleto dharma?

Some people blame it all on karma,on pre-programming but that is notright. You have to think both of cause

and conditions. 50 percent might bekarma but you can change the other50 percent. If it was all karma thenthere would be no point in doinganything. Karma is your own creationand you can change it yourself.Karma can change. If you plant a riceseed, you will get a rice sapling butthe conditions too are important likefertile soil and right weather condi-tions. It all is interdependent.

Please explain interdependency.When you make tea, you have to

put so many things together to createtea. Similarly, you are a combinationof cause and conditions, interdepen-dent things. Buddha says it is possibleto attain enlightenment based oncause and conditions. In Nepal now,life is very difficult. If you want tochange it, you have to look at theinterdependent conditions. Takethings out that have negative impactand bring in those things that createhappy conditions. In a family, if fatheris happy, mother is happy and thenthe children are happy. If one parentis not happy, the whole familybecomes unhappy. It is all interlinked.

You may be a good person, yourfamily is good but some misunder-standing arises and the whole familyis on fire. You are the same but thereis so much anger around you. Theproblem there is not you but thedelusions. Then, comes the investiga-tion part when you should startexamining why, how, where; and youcome to a realisation that it was all amisunderstanding. Without this, if youallow the situation to go unchecked,you might end up burning everything.

How is ‘samsara’ and ‘nirvana’ thesame?

In reality it is the same but from adeluded viewpoint it is not same. If acup is covered by mud and I say, it isthe same cup but it does not convinceyou. If you take the mud of ignoranceout, you see the cup. But the cupremains the cup. It is all in our mindhow we see it. Purify our delusion,then, there is no suffering.

You lead many retreats. Why isretreat important?

Retreat is very important toBuddhist practice because once youknow what you are doing, you needto work with that knowledge and notleave it only on the intellectual level.You have to put it into practice. Onceyou have a map, you need to setaside time to do that and you need aplace that is conducive to practice.First you learn from a good teacher,and then you develop that learningand understanding in retreat. Theexperience of retreat is of greatvalue. ä

Karma canchange

Karma is your own creation and you can change it yourself.

28 Jan-3 Feb, 20088 Opinion

ä Uday Pariyar

As Kathmandu isrecovering from thedamaging impacts ofthe violent strikes on 22 – 23January against petroleum pricehike, nobody can tell exactly howlong the newfound calm will last. TheTsunami could hit Kathmandu anyday, any moment. It is advisable thatKathmandu residents and visitorsremain highly alert all the time.

Watch out! Avoid being caught upin the middle of violent protestors,and police carrying sticks, watercanons and tear gas. Indeed, smokeand soot from burning tyres as wellas tear gas are known to be toxic. Butmost importantly, one has to ensurehe/she does not become anothermartyr. Achieving the status of amartyr is no longer valued becausewe have far too many who apparentlydied for the common good. We arecertainly not interested to turn Nepalinto a martyr land.

Energy has now become one of thedominating issues across the globebecause the economies depend on it.Every country needs energy indifferent volumes as per the size of itseconomy. For instance, faster growingeconomies such as China and Indiaare getting increasingly hungry forenergy. The energy issues often drivethe types of relationships betweennations and civilisations.

Arguably, the US attacked Iraq foroil, not really for planting western-styledemocracy in the Middle East. Manybelieve more international conflict infuture will be fuelled by energy needs.The policy of the super power ondifferent nations is largely dependanton how much the country contributesto the US energy demands. Althoughits rhetoric is to spread democracy andliberalism across the world, it does notcare about the lack of them in somecountries from where oil flowssmoothly.

While the nations wage war oneach other for energy, Nepali peopleare waging war against theirgovernment for the same cause.The violent protests in Kathmanduand other places in January were, inmany ways, analogous to Jana

Andolan II. Those who saw thestrikes in places like Gongabu wouldnot disagree with the assumption.The people from the same politicalparties called the strikes. Manycommon people also joined inspontaneously. The government wasultimately forced to give in before theprotestors.

The Kathmandu City Officeclaimed that it had to use the biggestvolume of water to clean up streets,compared to other protests in thepast. Perhaps, it would be moreappropriate to call it Tel Andolan(movement for oil). Though themovement is now over, it is likely tocome back because the governmenthas not yet found a durable solutionto the problem. And it is highly unlikelyto work towards it. It is hard toimagine how it will pay its increasingIOC debts without another price hike.

It is common knowledge that the oilissue, despite its urgency, is not thetop priority for the Koirala govern-ment now. It has no time to see howmany hours people spend queuing in

front of petrol pumps to get a fewlitres of fuel. It has to make a lastdesperate push to hold elections tothe Constituent Assembly in April thisyear. Third postponement of electionswould eliminate any remaininglegitimacy of the government andinterim parliament. That wouldseriously erode public confidence onthe ruling parties.

So, elections are a do-or-die issuefor the parties. Already seriousdoubts are being raised about thepossibility of April elections. There aremany issues to be addressed in avery short period to ensure free andfair elections. Tel Andolan helped fuelscepticism about holding elections ontime. If the government is unable tomaintain peace in the capital town,how could anyone trust it to restoreorder in the increasingly troubledSouth and hold credible electionswithin a few months?

It would not take a genius to guessthat violent strikes were likely to followthe announcement of yet another hikein the prices of petroleum products in a

very short period. Why did thegovernment advisers, ministers andothers in power fail to predict and act?Why did nobody attempt to formulateways to avoid the escalation? Mostimportantly, why did not the partiescontrol their own students and otherwings to do things differently?

This exposes gross incompetenceon the part of the government andthe parties. Similarly, those callingthe strikes were mostly students andother organisations linked to theruling parties. Why did they chooseto take to the streets and inflame thesituation, instead of talking directly totheir leaders in power concerningthe issues?

Do they not have any access totheir main party leadership? What isthe nature of relations between theparties and their wing organisations?Or were the parties playing thedouble game? The sincerity andintegrity of the parties in power are inquestion. It is hard for commonpeople to see the games involved.Whatever the motives, the govern-

ment and the parties must haverealised that the strikes werecounterproductive.

The government should not lingeron issues like this. There should beserious discussions and debatesinvolving the prominent economistsand others on how to solve theproblem once and for all. The agreedshort-term and long-term strategiesshould be developed to meet theenergy needs over at least anotherfive years. A proper policy shouldguide the import and distribution ofpetroleum products.

This is one of the relatively non-controversial and easier areas for thegovernment to deliver. And it couldperhaps start by properly investigat-ing the ills and evils inside Nepal OilCorporation (NOC). If NOC provesuseless, private companies should beallowed to bring in and distributepetroleum goods. Government canfocus only on the policy issues. Itprobably has far more important jobsto do instead of distributing fuel.

ud.pariyar@gmail.com

ä Birat Singh

It is heartening to read a wellcomposed novel about threegenerations of Sherpa women inthe highlands of Nepal, set in the1930s. The author, foreign-born,has used her experience of over30 years of living in Nepal,married to a Nepali, to produce anexcellent read. Set in the “harshtough land (of the Sherpas innorthern Nepal) where only thefittest survived,” this story aboutwomen – interspersed with keeninsights into the human conditionespecially that of women – hasmany messages relevant to thepresent.

Nima Tsering, the beautiful

woman from Helmu, dealing with herSolokhumbu husband’s unfaithful-ness; her daughter, Ang Maya, livingwith the fruits of her illicit affair withthe respected monk from Tibet, RinziSonam; Ang Maya’s daughter,Diksung’s naïve relations with a Ranaaristocrat and how she saves herself.With exotic names in an exotic setting,vivid descriptions of Buddhist rites andfestivals, this story takes the reader tothe past. It also allows the reader tosee how much, or how little, thingshave changed in the last 70 plusyears.

The concept of ‘sonam’ (merit) iswoven throughout the story. Thereis constant harkening for the needto collect enough merit in life, tooutweigh our misdeeds so that we

are not chained to the wheel of lifeforever. Two of the most profoundthemes in this book crop up whenNima tells Ang Maya that “…mar-riage is a family thing; love hasoften nothing at all to do withmarriage;” and when a poor coupleexpecting a son’s birth is disap-pointed by a baby girl referred to bythe author as “a child who withinminutes of her birth had a changedstatus – from wanted to unwanted– because she was a girl.”

Guilt, supposedly the original sin,begins the story with the monk RinziSonam contemplating his one lapseinto carnal passion. Yet, his superior,the abbot releases him of anyresponsibility dismissing him with thewords, “Oh come come. You are not

Timeless lessonsthe first who has erred after takingthe cloth…We must learn toaccept these things and notbecome so attached and chainedby them. It is Leh, my son. What iswritten cannot be erased.” RinziSonam is the ‘chosen one’ tosucceed the abbot and thatremains his destiny.

The author prefaces her bookwith a touching poem and theeternal Buddham SharanamGacchami. The lessons from thisbook are timeless. This beautifulromance by Greta Rana willhopefully also be translated into amovie. After all, it has alreadyundergone its third edition with itsGerman translation published inMunich in 1999. ä

BOOK REVIEW

“…Marriage is afamily thing; lovehas often nothingat all to do withmarriage.”

by Greta Rana, PilgrimsPublishing, 2006, 546 pages

Tel Andolan

Bhas

wor O

jha

From the region 28 Jan- 3 Feb, 20089

Polarised vote in Obama sweepThe electoral victory of Barack Obama in

South Carolina has revealed a Democraticelectorate divided by race, gender and age.

Mr Obama swept the black vote, whichmakes up more than half of those voting inthis Democratic primary, although only 28%of the state’s population.

Hillary Clinton maintained her strengths,especially among women and older voters,that have been evident in previous primaryelections. And former Senator John Edwards,running as a southerner from South Carolina,had a relatively strong showing, and didparticularly well among white men.

Racial divideMr Obama’s victory was based on his

overwhelming support among the blackcommunity, which voted 80% in his favour,while less than one-quarter of whiteDemocrats backed his presidential bid.

In South Carolina, African-Americansmade up 53% of Democratic primary voters.

In contrast, Senator Clinton and JohnEdwards split the white vote, with eachgaining just under 40%.

Mrs Clinton’s slender margin of victoryover Mr Edwards was provided by the 18%of blacks who voted for her. Only 2% of theblack vote went to Mr Edwards.

Among black voters, Mrs Clinton hadmore appeal to older voters and women,but the effect was not as marked as amongwhite voters. And in another measure ofracial polarisation, the quarter of voters whosaid they thought the country was not readyfor a black president gave Mrs Clinton amajority of votes, while 77% of those whobelieved the country was definitely ready fora black president voted for Mr Obama.

Age divideThere was clear evidence of a genera-

tional divide, with Mr Obama winning 70%of the votes of those between 25 and 29,but only 51% of those between 50 and 65.

Mrs Clinton, in fact, won more votes -

40% - among retired people over 65 than MrObama.

And among older white voters, over 60, MrObama only received 15% of the vote.

In contrast, Mr Obama ran most stronglyamong new voters who had never voted before.

Gender splitAmong white voters, women and men voted

quite differently.John Edwards had a lead among male

voters, by 43% to 29% for Mrs Clinton, with 27%of white men voting for Mr Obama.

However, among white women, Hillary Clintonwas ahead, with 44% of their votes, compared to34% for Mr Edwards and 22% for Mr Obama.

Mrs Clinton also did equally well amongmarried women and unmarried women. In thepast, she has sometimes received more votersfrom single women.

ElectabilityAs in past primaries, Mr Obama appealed

more strongly to those who were concerned

about the Iraq war than those who were mostworried about the economy, but the effect wasless marked than in previous contests.

More than half of Democratic voters thoughtthe economy was the most important issue,while only 19% cited the Iraq war, third behindhealth care.

And among black voters, who are muchpoorer than whites in South Carolina, theeconomy was clearly the most important issue.

However, Mrs Clinton got a higher percent-age of the vote among those who thoughtnational economic conditions were poor thanamong those who thought that they were good.

Mr Obama got the strongest support amongvoters who wanted an immediate troop withdrawalfrom Iraq, while Mr Edwards won strongestsupport among those who wanted the troops tostay, suggesting that he was also benefiting from across-over vote among Republicans who werealso eligible to vote in this primary.

Perceptions about the candidates’ relativestrengths and weaknesses played a bigger rolein the election.

Mr Obama was overwhelmingly judgedthe candidate who could most bring aboutchange, and three out of four voters whothought that was the most important qualityin a candidate voted for him.

Mrs Clinton was equally the strong choiceof those who believed that experience wasthe most important quality for a candidate.

Mr Edwards, who has been running on apopulist platform, gained the most supportamong those who wanted a candidate whocares about ordinary people.

But interestingly, among those who saidthat electability was most important, opinionsplit more evenly between Mr Obama (40%)and Mrs Clinton (36%).

The analysis is based on exit pollsconducted during the election, with asample size of 1,905.

Looking to the futureIn 10 days, nearly half of the US

electorate will have a chance to vote ontheir choice of presidential candidates in 22states in Super Tuesday on 5 February.

Mr Obama’s strong showing in SouthCarolina certainly gives him momentum, buthe will have to appeal to white as well asblack voters to win the big states such asNew York, California and Illinois.

And to win in November, he will also haveto reach out to moderates and indepen-dents in the electorate - who only gave him46% of the vote in South Carolina.

Mr Obama also has to overcome whatappears to be a reluctance of older whitevoters to support a black candidate.

Mrs Clinton faces a different task. She needsto re-energise her white working-class base,which was squeezed from both sides in SouthCarolina by Mr Edwards and Mr Obama.

And she needs to broaden her appeal tovoters who go to church regularly. MrsClinton ran much more strongly among non-church goers, while Mr Obama got the votersof two-thirds of the most frequent attendees.

(BBC)

from within the system, saying all personneldealing with sensitive material had beencarefully monitored.

Despite fears raised by US media andpoliticians, the official said the US administrationhad not shown any recent concern about thesafety of Pakistan?s nuclear weapons. He alsosaid any foreign intervention over the issuewould be disastrous for the intruder.

(BBC)

Pakistan has raised the state of alert aroundits nuclear facilities amid concerns they could betargeted by Islamist militants.

But a senior Pakistan military official said therehad been no specific threat to the sites, andinsisted that safeguards in place were fool proof.

The official was speaking in a rare pressbriefing on the issue.

It followed Western media reports warningthat Pakistan’s nuclear weapons could fall intothe wrong hands. The Pakistani authoritieshave been angered by Western media reportsspeculating that the country?s nuclear arsenalcould fall into the hands of al-Qaeda militants.

The senior military official briefing foreignjournalists said that the weapons were protectedby an elaborate command and control system,and multiple levels of security.

He acknowledged that Islamic militants hadbegun to attack army personnel in recentmonths, and that nuclear sites may also becomea target. He said the state of alert aroundnuclear facilities had increased, but there hadbeen no specific threats against them.

The official said there was no way theTaleban or al-Qaeda could take over Pakistan?sestimated 50 nuclear warheads.

And he dismissed the possibility of collusion

Pakistan nuclearsites on alertEx-dictator Suharto dies

Former dictatorSuharto, the armygeneral who crushedIndonesia’s Communistmovement and pushedaside the country’sfounding father to usherin 32 years of brutal rule,has died.

The 86-year-old’sreign saw up to a millionpolitical opponents killed.

Dozens of doctors onSuharto’s medical teamhad been rushed to thePertamina Hospital inJakarta after his blood pressure fellsuddenly. Suharto had slipped out ofconsciousness for the first time in more thanthree weeks of treatment, doctors said.

Suharto had been in intensive care with lung,heart and kidney failure since he was admittedto the hospital on January 4. Over the pastweek his doctors had spoken of a recovery.

Suharto, who led a regime widelyregarded as one of the 20th century’s mostbrutal and corrupt, has lived a reclusive lifein a comfortable villa in central Jakarta for

the past decade.He had been in and

out of the hospitalseveral times for heartproblems and internalbleeding since beingtoppled by a pro-democracy uprisingduring the 1997-1998Asian financial crisis.

Historians say up to800,000 allegedCommunistsympathisers werekilled during Suharto’srise to power from

1965 to 1968.His troops killed another 300,000 in

military operations against independencemovements in Papua, Aceh and East Timor.

Suharto’s poor health has kept him fromfacing trial and no-one has been punishedfor the killings.

Corruption watchdog TransparencyInternational said Suharto and his familyamassed billions in stolen state funds,allegations the family is fighting in court.

(The Press Association)

Democratic presidential candidate Senator BarackObama and his wife Michelle arrive on stage athis South Carolina primary night rally inColumbia, South Carolina, January 26, 2008.

Democratic presidential candidate Senator HillaryClinton holds five month-old Jaren Chisholm inthe air during a visit to a Shoney’s Restaurant inColumbia, South Carolina January 26, 2008.

28 Jan- 3 Feb, 200810 Perspective

ä Acharya MahayogiSridhar Rana Rinpoche

In the Abhidharma we find thepsychic power or psi phenomenadivided into five categories. These arecalled Abhigyas which mean highknowledge or higher knowing or highercognitions. Abhi means special/higherand Gya means knowing.

Firstly, the Riddhi-Siddhis: These aremanifestations in the outside world andare different from the other Abhigyas.Riddhi-Siddhis imply controlling powerover the subjective and the objectiveand it manifests by controlling bothmind and matter, whereas the otherfour Abhigyas are related only with thesubjective power of the mind. As this isa bigger topic we shall go into details ofthe Riddhi-Siddhis after we finishstudying the other four Abhigyas first.

The second Abhigya (Abhiyya inPali) is known as Dibya Srota Dhatu,i.e. divine ear element. It is said thatwith a concentrated mind applied toDibya Srota Dhatu, the purified hearingwhich surpasses human hearing isattained. And one can hear sounds ofhumans or Devas, whether far or near.The ability to hear sounds far awaybeyond normal human range within thehuman world or to even hear thesounds and voices etc. of Devas invarious Deva Lokas and Brahma Lokasis what is meant by the Abhigya DibyaSrota Dhatu.

This is the hearing capacity of theDevas that is why it is called DibyaSrota Dhatu. It is made possible bygood karmas and a mind freed fromlower mental impurities throughpractices of Samatha etc. With this

pure and extended Dibya Srota, theYogavachara is able to hear soundswhether produced on earth or in thevarious Deva realms of existence.There are various exercises given invarious texts (Theravadin/

Sarvastivadin/Mahayana) which aremore or less the same, for theproperly trained yogi with a pure mindto produce Dibya Srota if it does notappear spontaneously.

The third Abhigya is calledParachitta Vijanana. It meansknowing the mind of others. Havingattained the Abhigya the yogi canknow whether the mind of otherperson is with passion/emotionaldefilements, or free from passion. Hecan know whether other person’smind is filled with hatred/anger or freefrom hatred; whether the person’smind is filled with Moha (delusion) orfree from delusion; whether the otherperson has achieved the correctSamadhis (Samyak Samadhi) orMithya Samadhis, concentrated ornot concentrated, emancipated(Mukta) or not Mukta etc. It is not onlytelepathy or mind reading though itwould automatically be included withinit. But it is more about the capacity toknow the state of mind of anotherperson as the above explanationmakes it clear.

This Abhigya cannot be gained bythose who do not already have DibyaSrota Dhatu. This Abhigya can alsobe called Dibya Chakshu, i.e. divineeyes, or like the eyes of the Devas ofvarious Devalokas.

(To be continued)(Sridhar Rinpoche is a Vajrayana

Master)

This is thehearing capac-

ity of theDevas that is

why it is calledDibya SrotaDhatu. It is

made possibleby good

karmas and amind freedfrom lower

mental impuri-ties throughpractices of

Samatha etc.

Marshland Flowers

Attaining divineears and eyesIt is made possible by good karmas and a mind freed from lowermental impurities through practices of Samatha etc.

28 Jan-3 Feb, 2008 11Art & Society

ä Yuyutsu RD Sharma

Of late, the dust andsmoke in the streetsof Kathmandu hasearned more namethan its clean

Himalayan air. The polity continues toroll its chariots on flames of theburning tyres and helplessness of itscivilians, as if there’s no other optionleft to sort out strategies to develop-ment and good governance.

Violence seems to make apermanent home in the corridors ofnational polity and a slightestprovocation can send the life on thestreets into a chaos. No matter whatits cost in terms of human loss orfinancial crisis may be, the dragons ofanarchy continue to rock this once aHimalayan haven.

The streets of Thamel, the hub ofcountry’s major industry, appearsdark from the soot. Couldn’t thegovernment have sorted out a timelystrategy to quell the smoke in thestreets? Is dust and smoke theultimate fate of people of Nepal?

The colors of a nation’s democratic

'Pagla Badal' (crazy cloud) isAnupama Dahal's latest gift to theworld. As she began meditating inher journey to the world ofspiritualism, many thoughts came inher mind. "Pagla Badal' which waslaunched during a special ceremonyat Gurukul on January 26 was anexpression of those thoughts inrhythm. Sridhar Guru’s wife, NeeruRana released the album in theceremony organised by ByomaKusuma Dharma Sangha.

A nationset-up are crucial to its people. Themajor players of the polity have todiscover the colors hidden in thedreams of the people’s lives and thelandscape. This alone could be amajor achievement for any politicalparty to come to prominence in thenational life that they so desperatelyseem to lust for, with all fair or viciousmeans.

The colors of the most vibrantnation of the world have to come outin the streets and squares of thenation’s democracy. That’s whyprobably where the role of an artist ora writer becomes crucial.

Only a writer or an artist canunleash the true colors of a nation’srainbow. It’s in the blind streets ofsmoke he/she visualises theshimmering daggers of snow thatcontinue to gawk helplessly from thevalley’s rim. The colors of therhododendrons of people’s destiniesablaze in the sunny scenario, that’swhat our politicians and policymakers need to dream of often.

This might sound fancy talk tosome, a proverbial poet’s talk. But

there are nations in the world likeIreland that take immense pride inproducing poets and writers. Just likeother industrial nations who takepride in manufacturing hi-profileconsumer goods, electronic gadgets,or even nuclear weapons.

That’s where I find Ireland andNepal similar. Both counties in thepast have taken immense pride inproducing poets and writers.Especially Nepal is a country born outof the breath of poet/ translator likeBhaubhakta Acharya. No ruler, nomatter how powerful, could haveformed a nation without the poetgiving it its tongue. Now once againthere is a need for this nation to findits true colors and ultimate destiny.

Could any political party or leaderdiscover the withering flowers ofthis turbulent nation withoutappreciating the spectrum of its lostcolors? The question a poet flingsat the makers of its destiny. Maybethere’s someone listening, a humblehuman being, someone with aBuddha face holding Gandhi’shelpless, feeble cane.

(writer@yuyutsu.de)

gone astray

Violence seems to make apermanent home in the corridorsof national polity…

Songs offreeclouds

The album, as Dahal put it,tries to include the essence ofBuddhism in it. Dahal said that incourse of her meditation, herthoughts wandered in creation ofsongs not only in Nepali, but alsoHindi, Rajasthani, Sanskrit andEnglish language as well. "Freeclouds do not follow anydirectives. Those who do notunderstand it, call it mad,” andthus the album is based on thistheme.

"Free cloudsdo not

follow anydirectives.Those whodo not un-

derstand it,call it mad,”

FIREFRONT

28 Jan-3 Feb, 200812 ObituaryCDO Regd No 93/063/64 Kathmandu, Central Region Postal Regd. No 46/063/64

A LIGHTSanchita Sinha Roy, 44, a

painter and writer passed away on26 Jan 08 in New Delhi after aprolonged illness. She was not onlya gifted artist, a wonderful teacher

moves onbut an extraordinary person with alarge heart that welcomed everyoneshe met with unconditional love. Forreasons unknown, despite all theriches she was endowed with in hermind and heart, and her outstandingtalent; she suffered a lot physicallyand materially and lady luck alwaysseemed to elude her.

We used to joke saying thatperhaps her paintings would startselling well only after she leaves theworld, as it has happened in the livesof some world renowned artists. Littledid we know death was soon to stepin and take her away from us. In spiteof the hardships that life threw at her,

she maintained an unflinching positiveattitude and her courage almost tillthe very end; and we admire herdeeply for her resilience, patienceand power to tolerate humanweaknesses around her. She was likethat as a teenager when I met her

two decades ago. Her qualities wereenduring and consistent all throughthe years that followed when wemanaged to keep in touch acrosslong distances and gaps of time.

She has taken away with her a

meaningful presence that embracedeverybody that came in touch with it.Her life always overflowed with giving,caring, sharing and cheering upothers around her. Her joyful laughterand sophisticated sense of humourcould brighten up morose moods inno time. Although blessed with asharp intelligence, she never showedit off, but it was there for us to sparwith, when we wanted to.

Her friends and fans range from allwalks of life and all whom I know whomet her have gained somethingprecious, something indescribablefrom her; and that something will nowenrich our lives, for death has thepower to drive home the truth in asecond, that years of associationoften does not. For us who were veryclose to her, Sanchita was a specialbeing who came down to earth towork out her leftover karma throughintense physical suffering. She now isfree of the burden and we pray thatshe goes to light up some otherrealms that deserves her truly. ä

(Sanchita contributed herpaintings and writing to

newsfront for some time.Newsfront offers its heartfelt

condolences to her family andfriends.)

One of Sanchita’s favouritepaintings titled, ‘Death’.

we admire herdeeply for herresilience, pa-tience and powerto tolerate humanweaknessesaround her.