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| Wednesday,
August 8, 2001, Chandigarh, India   
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30,000 in
Terai to get Nepali citizenship PM,
Musharraf may meet next month Foreign
Secys meet to decide agenda Suharto’s
son ‘ordered’ judge’s killing Hasina,
Khaleda’s talks with Carter flayed $ 10 m for
Clinton memoirs |
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Mahendra
projected as PM Iran
crisis resolved; Khatami to be sworn in
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30,000 in Terai to get
Nepali citizenship Kathmandu, August 7 Home Minister Khum Bahadur Khadka addressing both Houses of Parliament said: “Genuine Nepali citizens will not be deprived of their rights.” The Supreme Court had last month directed the Nepali Government to revoke 30,000 citizenship certificates given to residents of the Terai region in southern Nepal, bordering the states of Uttaranchal and Uttar Pradesh. Mr Khadka said: “Although the Supreme Court has given its verdict to annul some certificates, Nepali citizenship will be awarded to those citizens after completing due formalities within one month of receiving termination notices.” “Nepali citizens should get citizenship certificates without hassle and the government is also equally aware that non-nationals should not get citizenship.” The move could reopen a controversy regarding a citizenship bill approved in the 18th session of Parliament that was sent to the Supreme Court by the late King Birendra. Mr Khadka’s statements might trigger controversy on the sensitive citizenship issue for Terai residents as critics of the Bill say relaxation of naturalisation provisions would create another “Fiji” in Nepal. The Bill had surfaced in Parliament last week with politicians representing the Terai region saying the court verdict would deprive voters there of citizenship. To protest the court’s decision, Terai-based Nepal Sadbhawana Party, which has been pressing for citizenship certificates for the region’s residents, has been boycotting Parliament since late last week. Earlier, the court had returned the Bill to Birendra saying: “If the proposed Bill was adopted, it will mean the amendment of the Constitution.” Mr Khadka has also ordered a freeze on property of non-citizens who have acquired certificate from the “back door” after the Supreme Court verdict. “Only descendants of male Nepali parents are entitled citizenship by descent,” Khadka said. The Kathmandu Post, a Nepali daily reported that the Home Ministry had already issued a directive to the Chief District Officers of 20 districts not to entertain those citizenship certificates to be revoked by the Supreme Court.
IANS, UNI |
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PM, Musharraf may meet next month Washington, August 7 The next round of talks between Musharraf and Vajpayee may take place in New York between September 23 and 26. Vajpayee is scheduled to address the UN General Assembly on September 25 while the tentative slot for Musharraf’s speech is scheduled for September 24. The renewal of contact between the two leaders could be preceded by an interaction on the sidelines by Foreign Minister Jaswant Singh and his Pakistani counterpart Abdul Sattar. Both Foreign Ministers are likely to arrive in New York before their respective heads of government. The outcome of New York will determine the fate of Vajpayee’s visit to Pakistan. A failed or no meeting in New York may jeopardise the ongoing process. American strategists seem divided about the prospects of success in New York. Stephen Cohen, Director of South Asia Programme at The Brookings Institute, believes that the last summit had made it difficult for both sides to show flexibility. “Even if they manage to meet in New York, any dialogue without agenda would not be worth the effort,” said Cohen while talking to The News. Cohen contends that they need to decide what they want to talk about much before the meeting. Cohen has consistently called for mediation by Washington or a third party to resolve the dragging Kashmir issue. His position is that the two countries cannot bring about a normalisation process. They need an outside helping hand. At the same time, he is not sure if the Bush administration is prepared to play that role, “which of course, would be much opposed by the Indians.” But others disagree. Karl Inderfurth, point person for South Asia in former president Bill Clinton’s administration, continues to parrot the Indian anathema for outside intervention. “I don’t believe that either country would need to rely on the US to do more than support the process that they’re trying to pursue,” Inderfurth was quoted as saying in India Abroad on Monday.
ANI |
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Foreign Secys
meet to
decide agenda Colombo, August 7 A preparatory meeting of the officials of SAARC member-countries got underway today. This would be the first high-level contact between India and Pakistan after the July 15 Agra summit. Indian Foreign Secretary Chokoila Iyer will meet her Pakistani counterpart Inamul Haq during the two-day meeting of the SAARC officials on August 9 and 10. The exact timing of their meeting is being worked out, a senior official said. Ms Iyer would also interact with foreign secretaries of other SAARC countries. A high-power Indian delegation, including Joint Secretary Parvthy Sen Vyas and Director Zille Singh, are attending the preparatory meeting.
UNI |
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Suharto’s son
‘ordered’ judge’s killing Jakarta, August 7 The police have linked the millionaire fugitive Hutomo Mandala Putra, or “Tommy’’ Suharto, to a spate of fatal bombings in the country and the murder two weeks ago of the chief judge who last year sentenced him to 18 months in jail for graft. “The suspects said that it was Tommy who gave the order. They said he gave them 100 million Rupiah ($ 10,800) and firearms to carry it out,’’ Jakarta police spokesman Anton Bahrul Alam said. Two gunman on motorcycle shot Supreme Court judge Syaifuddin Kartasasmita in broad daylight in the capital Jakarta last month, sending chills through a judicial system better known for settling cases with bribes than bullets. The police said two men had been arrested today hours after finding explosives and documents linking Tommy Suharto to a spate of bombings which have rocked the troubled nation for months. Former playboy Tommy has been on the run since November, making the police subject to widespread ridicule for their failure to capture one of the country’s best known figures. Police showed copies of a photograph they said was used by the Suharto’s son for a fake I.D. card and which showed him wearing a beard and bearing the name “Ibrahim.’’ The accusations came as a homemade bomb exploded in Surabaya, Indonesia’s second largest city, killing a woman as she was buying foodstuff from a street vendor outside her home.
Reuters |
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Hasina, Khaleda’s talks with
Carter flayed Dhaka, August 7 During his visit Ms Sheikh Hasina, President of the Awami League, and her party colleagues, and Ms Khaleda Zia, Chairperson of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), along with party leaders, met Mr Carter separately at a local hotel. After these meetings, the Awami League and BNP leaders spoke to the media. Ms Hasina pledged to extend support to the caretaker government in creating a conducive atmosphere for holding polls. Ms Zia reiterated her earlier demand to “cleanse” the administration of Awami League elements as a precondition for smooth conduct of poll. Mr Carter at a press conference before his departure said the political parties had pledged to a) allow local poll observers in polling centres b) accept the result of the poll c) to desist from resorting to terror tactics during the poll d) not boycott parliament in future and e) shun programmes of shutdown in future. This has drawn criticism from the 11-party alliance, a combine of the Left parties. |
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$ 10 m for Clinton memoirs New York, August 7 Announcing the deal for the book, Sonny Mehta, president and editor-in-chief of Alfred A. Knopf, said in a statement that the book would be “a thorough and candid telling of his life, with a primary focus on the White House years.” The deal breaks the record of $ 8.5 million that Pope John Paul II got for worldwide rights for his book and exceeds $ 8 million paid by Simon and Schuster to his wife Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton for her memoirs. Robert Gottlieb, who has worked with Katharine Graham, Toni Morrison, Robert Caro and Barbara
Tuchman, would work with Mr Clinton as his editor, the publishers said. “I am very pleased to be associated with the distinguished publishing house of Alfred A. Knopf. I look forward to working with Sonny Mehta, Bob Gottlieb, and the rest of their extraordinary team, as I begin writing my memoirs,” Mr Clinton said in a statement. It was not clear how much Mr Clinton disclosed about plans for his memoirs including whether he would discuss Monica Lewinsky or Whitewater investigations, The New York Times said. But Mr Clinton’s presidency was a proven hit with readers, from paper back editions of independent counsel Kenneth W. Starr’s report on the Whitewater investigation to a long roster of best sellers, including books by Joe Klein, Michael
Isikoff, Bob Woodward, George Stephanopoulos and James B. Stewart, the Times noted.
PTI |
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Khmer ex-leaders’ trial cleared Phnom Penh, August 7 “We will send this decision to the Parliament, the Prime Minister and the king,” constitutional council president Bin Chhin said. Council approval was critical given it had rejected similar legislation last January due to a legal technicality, despite the Bill being passed by Parliament. The revised legislation, which removes a reference to the death penalty, was passed almost unanimously by the National Assembly and Senate in July. Mr Bin Chhin said Article 3 of the legislation which referred to the death penalty was now correct. “After long and tough discussions we the Constitutional Council members have decided that Article 3 of the law has conformed to the Constitution.” The legislation will be checked by the United Nations and an agreement is still to be reached on contributions for the trial from member-countries. Western diplomats said this was expected to be signed in a memorandum of understanding, possibly in September.
AFP |
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Mahendra projected
as PM Suva, August 7 Party spokesperson Jokapeci Koroi, responding to a letter that has been circulating around threatening bloodshed if Labour wins, said the party would never bow to threats. The general election is to be held in Fiji late this month. The police is investigating a letter that says: “A vote for Mr Chaudhry is a vote for bloodshed.” An army spokesman, Lt Col Ned Taito, warned the people on Monday to refrain from such actions. He said the army would solidly back the President, who has said the people’s verdict will be upheld. IANS |
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Iran crisis
resolved; Khatami to be sworn in Tehran, August 7 “The ceremony will take place on Wednesday following a decision by the Expediency Council (EC) on Monday,” Karubi told reform-majority Parliament during a weekly session broadcast live on radio. Today’s announcement comes after the Council, the nation’s top arbitration body, met overnight in emergency session. It was seeking to settle a dispute that had effectively blocked the investiture of Khatami initially slated for Sunday but postponed by orders of Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
AFP |
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