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The Nepal Digest Wednesday 20 April 95: Baishakh 7 2051 BkSm Volume 37 Issue 9
******************************************************************************
* TND Board of Staff *
* ------------------ *
* Editor/Co-ordinator: Rajpal J. Singh a10rjs1@mp.cs.niu.edu *
* SCN Liaison: Rajesh B. Shrestha rshresth@black.clarku.edu *
* Consultant Editor: Padam P. Sharma sharma@plains.nodak.edu *
* TND Archives: Sohan Panta k945184@atlas.kingston.ac.uk *
* Book Reviews Columns: Pratyoush R. Onta ponta@sas.upenn.edu *
* News Correspondent Rajendra P Shrestha rajendra@dartmouth.edu *
* *
* +++++ Food For Thought +++++ *
* *
* "If you don't stand up for something, you will fall for anything" -Dr. MLK *
* "Democracy perishes among the silent crowd" - Sirdar Khalifa *
* *
******************************************************************************
**********************************************************************
Date: Mon, 17 Apr 1995 13:28 EST
From: ATULADHAR@vax.clarku.edu
To: nepal@cs.niu.edu
KATHMANDU POLLUTION UPDATE
============================
[source: ESCAP, VOL.9 NO.1, JAN 1995]
1. Total vehicles registered with Kathmandu Traffic Police in
Bagbazaar till nov 1994 = 83086.
2. Total industries registered with Department of Industry for
Kathmandu valley = 2533. Of these 58 industries
are smoke emitting.
3. Total vehicles tested in Thapathali enginneering campus
till Dec 1994 = 325, of these 204 (2/3 failed).
4. Total vehicles tested for emission by Traffic Police so far:
= 10,184, of these 5567 (56%) failed.
5. Total vehicles tested for emission by BAGMATI ZONE Traffic
Management,= 2882; of these, 1794 (62%) failed.
6. Legal pollution emissionstandards spelled by the Royal
Gazette, part 4, section 44 datedjuly17, 1994:
for petrol vehicles = carbon monoxide percentage less than 3%
for diesel vehicles = density of smoke less than 65 HSU
HSU = Hartridge Smoke Unit
AMULYA' COMMENT: It is surprisingly that some of the toxic parts of
vehicular emissions such as lead (note unleaded in US), nitroous oxide, and
sulfur oxide cmpounds that cause acid rain are not even part of the legal
pollution standards in Nepal yet. Heh, polluters do you want to dump your
leaded gas in Nepal, our legal codes welcome you and your products!!!
compiled by
Amulya Tuladhar
BIODIVERSITY FACT AND FIGURES FOR NEPAL
=========================================
[source: ESCAP, ENVIRONMENTAL NEWSBRIEFING FROM ASIA PACIFIC, VOL 9, NO 1,
JAN'95]
1. nEPAL' share of land area is 0.1% of the world land area but the
share of world's flowwering plants is 2%.
2. For Nepal,
Total species of flowering plants = 6500
Ferns and fern allies = 280
Fungi = 1500
Lichen = 350
Plants found only in Nepal = 250
Medicinal plant species = 700
3 Animals
Mammal species = 175
Bird species = 850
Butterflies = 640
Moths = 140
Dragon flies = 180
Fishes species = 179
4. Trees
Timber species = 10
Fibre species for paper/pulp = 6
Endangered tree species = 50
5. Percent of land protected = 14
8 national parks
3 wildlife reserves
2 conservation areas
1 watershed reserve
1 hunting reserve
6. Current Biodiversity Projects
1. Global Environmental Facility supported
Biodiversity ConservationProject
2. Makalu-Barun Conservation Area
3. Dutch-funded Biodiversity Profile Project
4. WWF-funded Biodiversity conservation Program
5. UNDP-funded Park-People Project
Compiled by
Amulya Tuladhar
Clark University
april 17, 1995
***************************************************************
Date: Sat, 15 Apr 1995 16:51:54 CDT
To: a10rjs1@cs.niu.edu
From: psharma@emh1.tic.bismarck.nd.us (Padam Sharma)
Subject: KURAKANI
Whither Indo-Nepal Relationship?
by
Padam P Sharma, Ph.D.
________________________________________________________________
Nepali Prime Minister Man Mohan Adhikari just completed his visit
to India. Despite Nepal's repeated requests to renegotiate the
1950 Indo-Nepal treaty, India has shown little eagerness to
initiate the process. Prime Minister Adhikari received a lip-
service to change some wordings here and there. As it happens
every time, this bilateral visit ended with the rhetoric, "We
stress the need to consolidate the very cordial and friendly
relationship that exists between Nepal and India."
I recently read a book by Stephen Covey titled, "The 7 Habits of
Highly Effective People." Stephen Covey charts human growth and
relationship into stages of dependence, independence and
interdependence. While reading this book again and again, I began
to wonder if these principals of maturity could be applied to
evaluate the relationships between India and Nepal. Here is my
analysis of Nepali perspective in Steven Covey's words........
_________________________________________________________________
Nepal and India: A sibling love-hate relationship
A newly independent India helped Nepal achieve its own internal
independence from the hereditary Rana regime in 1950. During the
formative years, Nepal was totally dependent on India. India
nurtured our leaders and our national development programs.
Indians came to teach us in Nepal; we went to schools in India.
In a democratic and national growth scale, Nepal is a new born
baby while India is an adolescent bully in the neighborhood.
After forty-plus years of development, Nepal is still highly
dependent on India. As a landlocked nation, we are physically
trapped by India for trade and transit. As a majority Hindu
culture, we share the same religious fervor and ethnic mythos.
Through movies, TV, and popular music, we are culturally blown
out by India. We have inter-marital relationships with Indians.
We go to pilgrimage in India; Indians come to Nepal.
Above all, Nepal's financial life-line is linked with India.
Indian capitalists run our markets and industries; Indian
retailers distribute the goods and services. Indian laborers
build our buildings and roads, plant and harvest our crops, and
pull our rickshaws to the market. They cut our hair, and sew our
clothes. Millions of Nepalis travel and stay in India to work in
security and domestic services. If 20 million Nepalis live in
Nepal, about 10 million live in India.
Nepal's exercise of independence from India
King Mahendra elevated the concept of independent Nepal by
replacing the Indian style multi-party democratic system with top-
down autocracy. Nepal's Panchayati Raj experiment with political
independence was only symbolical and at best sanctimonious. To
minimize Indian dependence, Nepal started beseeching
international donors and perpetuated the dependency. With time,
the nationalistic rhetoric of the ruling right and the "Indian
hegemony" language of the emerging left grew at the cost of
Nepal's emotional bank account with India.
This "anti-India" national psyche is a natural reaction to
dependence -- to having Indians control us, define us, and
manipulate us. On the maturity continuum, Nepal is behaving like
an angry child and speaking the language of you -- it is your
fault. You did not give us separate transit treaty; you cheated
us on hydro-power development projects; you are responsible for
the under-development in Nepal.
A serious problem with reactive socio-political culture is that
it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. The political language
focuses on blaming and accusing attitudes and perpetuates
feelings of victimization. We blame our natural setting and
calamities, and even the God for our situation. For the last two
decades, we have started blaming the Indian influx for our ills.
The nationalistic paradigms put independence from India into a
pedestal and label communication and cooperation with India as a
political sin.
Scripts of past Indo-Nepal negotiations
To compensate for the lack of adult character, India borrows
strength from its size and approaches its neighborly
relationships in a bully-style win/lose script. Indian
government speaks the language of I - I should get these little
countries to agree on my terms. In the disguise of bilateral
negotiation, India makes its weak neighbors blink by its strength
of power and occasional small favors. As long as India does not
grow up to understand an interdependent reality of South Asia, it
will continue to commit juvenile crimes in the neighborhood.
Nepal has conducted its negotiations with India on either
lose/win or win/lose approach. Nepal's Congress Party used a
lose/win script. The congress leaders were usually quick to
please or appease India. Perhaps they were easily intimidated by
larger than life Indian leaders. Such a lose/win script is seen
as capitulation - giving in or giving up. India drafted the 1950
Indo-Nepal treaty, and Nepali Congress gave too much in
subsequent bilateral negotiations. Take for example the Tanakpur
issue, the Girija government was so considerate of Indian desires
that it did not have the courage of conviction to express and
actualize Nepal's own interests.
The Panchayati government negotiated with the same win/lose
script as India minus the strength. When two determined,
stubborn, ego-invested individuals (Rajib Gandhi and King
Birendra, for example) interact in this script, we get a
lose/lose result. When India closed the boarder recently
(1989?), the decision makers in Kathmandu had their vehicle fuel
and toilet paper air-lifted while the general public suffered
from a severely acute shortage of necessities. Panchayati
government's arrogance to assert itself only exasperated Nepal's
problem of fundamental dependence, and we lost face.
Egotistic unilateral decisions bring grave consequences
When we pick one end of a stick, we also pick the other end.
Purchase of arms from China and now Sweden (?) are one sided
foolish overtures. The slogan by leftist splinter groups that
"Nepal should immediately abrogate the unequal 1950 treaty with
India," and the floating ideas of issuing visas to Indians in
Nepal are other lose/lose propositions. Neither we can
manage such grandiose schemes nor do we know the effect of
such reactive decisions. How would India react? What happens
to ten million Nepalis in India? We have not analyzed how this
will play with our citizens in Terai. Unilateral expressions of
hollowed independence could lead us to the path of destruction
as Hutus versus Tutsies, or close at home -- the Tamils versus
the Sinhalese.
Nepal is one of the poorest countries in the world, and it has to
beg month to month for its survival as a nation. Begging to
countries other than India is not a manifestation of
independence. Until we as a new nation can say deeply and
honestly, "Nepal is what Nepal is today because of the choices
Nepal made yesterday", Nepal can not say, "We choose otherwise".
Beggars can not be choosers.
Nepal has to look at its own mirror and grow up
Nepal's dependence problem is a personal maturity issue that has
little to do with Indian demeanor. To develop an independent
character, Nepal has to stop blaming India for its miseries. The
negative energy generated by this anti-Indian obsession decreases
our ability to realize that most results we want depend on
cooperation with India. We need new methods to influence Indian
behavior than by constantly trying to use old ineffective
internal and international gimmicks to "shape up" India.
Both India and Nepal have to grow up and understand synergistic
benefits of mutual interdependence. Nepal has to give up its
childish histrionics by maturing democratically and emotionally
at an accelerated rate. Adolescent India also needs to grow up
and build its character and trust with its neighbors. As mature
adults, both countries need to operate from the paradigm of
interdependence and win/win relationships.
Geopolitical reality of South Asia demands interdependent
relationships
The concept of an interdependent relationship with India is very
hard to understand and accept. However, dependent Nepal's hollow
independent thinking is against the nature of interdependent
geopolitical reality of South Asia. To achieve complete
independence (physical, emotional, mental, and financial) from
India is like trying to turn our rivers towards the Himalayas.
In the words of Mahatma Gandhi, "Indians can not take away our
self-respect if we do not give it to them." As an Alcoholic
Anonymous, it is time for us to pray, "Lord Pashupatinath and
Buddha! Give us the courage to change the things which can and
ought to be changed, the serenity to accept the things which
cannot be changed, and the wisdom to know the difference".
Nepalis need to do something we are very good at, smile. With a
genuine smile, we need to peacefully accept our problems with
India and learn to live with them, even though we don't like
them. By choosing to empower Indian government's behavior to
control us, Nepal has clouded its vision of independence. The
vision of an independent Nepal should be "To increase the
standard of living and the quality of life for Nepalis wherever
they live in this planet Earth".
_______________________________________________________________
This article is being submitted for publication to other
newsletters. General comments or discussions on this draft
should be directed to Nepal Digest at NEPAL@cs.niu.edu. Any
personal suggestions on how to improve this article, or if you
want to throw soil or dispatch flowers towards me, please use
following E-mail addresses.
***** Happy New Year 2052 *****
Padam Sharma
Email (Home): psharma@emh1.tic.bismarck.nd.us
Email (Office): sharma@plains.nodak.edu
******************************************************************
Date: Sun, 16 Apr 1995 00:05:27 EDT
To: The Nepal digest Editor <nepal-request@cs.niu.edu>
From: "Pramod K. Mishra" <pkm@acpub.duke.edu>
Subject: Sanskrit is Dead; Long Live Sanskrit
Dear Editor,
Why should Dev Bhasha, the language of the gods, should still
continue to be the language of much worship among us, defecating
and nose-blowing mortals? We have no gods; we have only their
ghosts. Why shouldn't we bury Sanskrit, therefore, in the graves
of libraries and the minds of some memory-buff pandits? What is
dead is dead; why should we fight among ourselves over whether
Sanskrit should be revived or not? And now, Mr. Padma Ratna
Tuladhar, one of the firebrand intellectuals of Kathmandu Valley,
has resigned his post because the government promoted Sanskrit.
The radio Nepal broadcasts news in Sanskrit and nobody
understands what it says, except recognizing that the mumbo-jumbo
is Sanskrit (I doubt if every Nepali recognizes even that).
Moreover, the government has planned (if this is true) to make
Sanskrit compulsory in schools.
Why should one of the contributors of TND even after failing
in Sanskrit want to promote it? If we analyze this tendency a
little more critically, we might come to an understanding of this
hullabaloo over this beautiful but dead language. Please don't
get me wrong. I never failed in Sanskrit from childhood to all four
year of college. In fact, (at the risk of self-advertisement and
"self-promotion") I must say that I always got highest marks in Sanskrit,
once or twice shamefully much higher than even distinction. So, I'd like
to make Sanskrit not only compulsory, but the language of daily speech
and conduct the same way the Israelis have done with Hebrew--eat, shit,
make love, everything in Sanskrit. Hebrew, the language of the Jewish people,
had lain dead for centuries before the government of Israel made it the
official language and the language of instruction and daily
transactions. If I could, I'd make every child breathe the richas of the
Vedas and drink the shlokas of the Gita. And instead of speaking these
corrupted languages of us nose-blowing mortals, I would have a
mortal achieve the status of the immortal gods by talking
Sanskrit, a language in which one would hardly know how to
perform not-so-holy bodily functions and only know how to do
yajna and worship and prayer and all other heavenly duties.
But Nepal is not Israel; nor Nepalis the Jews. In fact, all
Nepalis are not even the resplendent descendants of the rishis of
the Vedas, the Upanishdas, and the Puranas, nor have their
languages descended from Dev Bhasha, Sanskrit. Many Nepalis have
evolved from the depths of the oceans, their ancestors such slimy
creatures as the fish and such ungainly animals as the
chimpanzee, if you believe in Darwin. Otherwise, how can you explain the
kind of discrimination Nepalis of many tribes and castes have suffered in
Nepal? That's why, even though I did well in Sanskrit and love
it, I have no illusion about its potential discriminatory power
and therefore I have serious objections about promoting this
beautiful but dead language in any form until two conditions are
met. 1. Removal of caste system from Nepali Hinduism, and 2. End
of discrimination against and promotion and full revival of all
the other languages of Nepal, particularly those which are not
the tributaries of either Hindi or Nepali and which exist only
within the borders of Nepal, such as the tribal languages.
I have already briefly mentioned in one of my postings about
how Sanskrit and its institutional structure are at present
inextricably allied with the power structure of the upper castes
in Nepal. At the risk of boring some of the readers, I'll rehash
my point. Sanskrit, as it has existed, has been, in spite of its
linguistic and literary richness, the language of the Brahmans
and their beneficiaries, including this writer. Making Sanskrit
a compulsory subject will only make the privileged more
privileged and it would be at the expense of the rest of the
population who either racially or castewise do not find their
interests allied with Sanskrit. For the promotion of Sanskrit
means employment and officialdom to those who study it and who
are part of the Brahmanic ideology?
For example, at this point in Nepal, there is Balmiki Campus
in Kathmandu, which is a strong institution and which was enough
to produce enough teachers and priests to meet the needs of the
caste Hindus in Nepal. Besides, most Sanskrit teachers and
priests got, and many still get, their Sanskrit degrees in India,
where there are numerous exclusive Sanskrit universities and
Vidyapiths for this purpose and where Sanskrit is taught at every
college. But the parochial planners of Nepal founded the
Mahendra Sanskrit University in Dang; that, too, quite recently,
thus increasing many times more the production of Sanskrit
graduates (Shastries or B.As., Acharyas or M.As., and Madhyamas).
Now, where do you find employment for these many graduates in
Nepal? Some would definitely join college teaching in Sanskrit;
others would, by virtue of their Sanskritized Nepali, join Nepal
Civil Service; only the unambitious few would join the ranks of
priesthood. A large number would still remain unemployed with
their degrees in hand. But if Sanskrit is made compulsory or
some other methods are used, more employment opportunities would
open up.
I must make it very clear here, however, that I have all
sympathy for these unemployed graduates, and it's not their fault
that they obtained Sanskrit education. If not they, some others
in their place would have gotten their degrees as long as the
University existed. The fault squarely lies on the shoulders of
the planners of Nepal's education, who founded the Sanskrit
University, instead of opening more universities that taught more
practical skills. But now what can you do? As some one once
said, the toothpaste is out of the tube, it's awfully hard to get
it back in. As a practical measure, therefore, you have to find
employment for these people.
How does Sanskrit directly relate to caste? Well, it's
simple enough. Anyone can make a survey of the student and
faculty of both Balmiki Campus and the Sanskrit University. I'd
hazard this guess that more than ninety percent (one can safely
raise the percentage to 99.9, but I won't do that) of their
students come from the upper caste Hindus, particularly Brahmans.
The tribal people, both from the hills or the plains, don't study
Sanskrit, because they don't identify with it nor have their
languages (except for the Tharus and Rajbanshis) descended from
Sanskrit. Moreover, they think that Sanskrit is a language of
Hindu rituals which only the Brahmans are allowed to perform;
they have nothing to do with it. And if some wanted to study,
they have to pay for it, while the children of the Brahmans are
lodged, boarded, and taught freely in some places in Nepal.
This, they think, is a blatant discrimination against them.
If the caste system were to go away like getting rid of some
plague, things would be a little easier for Sanskrit's promotion.
But only a little, for Nepal is different from India.
Nepal, as King Prithvi said, is a garden of four castes and
thirty-colors. Why only four castes but thirty-six Varnas? In
the standard Hindu version, there are four Varnas (Brahman,
Kshatriya, Vaishya, and Shudra), and within each of them we can
say that many castes exist. But in Nepal, the ethnic reality was
different, or at least King Prithvi had the ability to see it
differently. These thirty-six colors could be said the numerous
tribes of Nepal, who had their own distinct traditions and
languages. These thirty-six flowers don't want to give off the
Sanskrit scent; they want to retain and spread their own scent,
while joining the garden. (Have you heard a native Nepali
speaker making fun of the accent of a non-Nepali speaker,
implying that the person who doesn't speak Nepali as naturally as
a native speaker has something wrong with him, is somehow
inferior as a citizen of the kingdom? But Nepali is a necessary
evil; there must be a language that functions as a lingua franka,
and in Nepal, only Nepali performs that function. In spite of
Nepali language's national status, in spite of its widespread use
as a medium language, time has come that other languages are
brought in the Public Service Commision and Nepali's overemphasis
reduced. By promoting Sanskrit, we will only aggravate this
insult to and discrimination against those whose mother language is not
Nepali or Sanskrit-related language. Besides, many may think that
Sanskrit enriches Nepali. I for one have very little desire to let the
verbosity of Sanskrit vocabulary come and deaden the Nepali language.
While reading a preface to a Nepali novel recently published by the
Royal Nepal Academy, I felt pity for the preface writer's Nepali
prose, which more than expounding its profound ideas seemed to take pleasure
in the incomprehensibility of its arcane and dead Sanskrit vocabulary. God
forbid such tendencies and God save the Nepali language from such
deadening effects!).
Everyone would agree that Sanskrit is no longer spoken as a
living language; only some of its lines are chanted on specific
occasions at the houses of upper caste Hindu families. Have you
ever heard or seen a Brahman priest going to the house of an
untouchable to perform the rites? I haven't, but if you have let
me know. Anyway, no matter how much or how loud one reads the
news in Sanskrit from Radio Nepal, nobody (except for Sanskrit
scholars who would listen to it just for curiosity and a sense of
satisfaction) is going to understand it. Isn't understanding
news a major function of broadcasting it?
Now one can of course broadcast news in Sanskrit, but first
of all, news in all other languages will have to come from Radio
Nepal. If you broadcast news in Limbu, Gurung, Thakali,
Rajbanshi, Rai and other languages, people speaking these
languages as their mother tongue will have a feeling that they
belong to the same garden which is called Nepal. Besides, they
will understand the news and know in their own languages which
Nepali politician made what speech and who went where and how
many people died of starvation and disease. Broadcasting news in
Sanskrit provides none of these functions; it only fulfills some
people's nostalgia and enhances their sense of cultural and political
dominance.
The resources that go into promoting Sanskrit should instead
be devoted to the promotion of the tribal languages, which are
not only linguistically and anthropologically endangered but
whose promotion would enhance national solidarity in an age of
democracy and create equality. Besides, Sanskrit will survive
even if you dismantle Balmiki Campus and Mahendra Sanskrit
University (not that I advocate this), because there are many
institutions in India which teach and promote Sanskrit. But what
about the tribal languages? I doubt if Newari is spoken anywhere
else in the world except in Nepal; I doubt Rajbanshi is spoken
anywhere in the world except in Morang and Jhapa districts of
Nepal. The same more or less could be said of Thakali, Rai,
Limbu, Magar, Gurung and other tribal languages. Once the last
speaker of these languages die for lack of encouragement, even
the linguists wouldn't be able to preserve them, for these are
not Dev Bhasa (God's languages) and there is no Panini among our
linguists in Nepal, who can create Maheshwar Sutra. On the other
hand, Sanskrit is taught extensively not only in India but in
many other major countries.
I personally love Sanskrit; I have deep feelings for it; I
want my children to learn it (I know that they'll never learn it;
they'll instead learn English and dance to the tune of pop, wrap,
and rock 'n' roll). Kalidasa, Magh, Bhavabhuti, Dandin,
Banbhatta, Vishnu Sharma, Bhas I love them all. I feel good when I chant
"Upma Kalidasasya, Bharverthagauravam, Dandinah padlaalityam, Maghesanti
trogunah." I marvel even at the crooked-minded authors' of smritis, and
admire the composers of the Vedas and the Upnishdas and the epics. But
that doesn't mean that I don't see the potential damage meaningless promotion
of Sanskrit could do to the languages and cultures of those who
have been discriminated for centuries.
It is not to say that Sanskrit should not be taught as an
optional subject in colleges. It should be taught as it has been
taught. There will always be people who will study it, but all
caste-related discriminatory practices must be removed even if
it is taught as an optional subject. On the other hand, waging a
campaign to promote it is trying to play the old flute and,
instead of loosening the grip, it is to intensify the clutch of
the upper castes ideologies over the rest of the people in Nepal.
This is only to say that by doing so, by becoming madly in love
with even without understanding it, fanatically promoting
Sanskrit in a democratic Nepal, we'll only weaken Nepal's
sovereignty and national solidarity and independence.
Only by sincerely strengthening the various languages and cultures,
only by empowering the various people who speak these languages and
thereby giving them a sense of belonging will Nepal's future be
safe and guaranteed. Importing rocket launchers and going to
Delhi to revise the treaty are at best temporary solutions, at
worst mere gimmick. The policy makers should go to the people,
to the Terai, to the hills and revise the national contract with
them and include them in it. The treaty with Delhi will have no
problem; it'll soon be revised. By promoting Sanskrit without
doing anything with the self-destructive caste system and not
sincerely promoting other languages and empowering non-Nepali
speaking people, the Nepali policy makers are harming the
interests of all Nepalis. And some Nepalis, even though we fail in
Sanskrit, think that through its promotion, we'll somehow
automatically become pandits and purse-wala, which may not be entirely
untrue.
****************************************************************
Date: Sat, 15 Apr 1995 16:52:11 EDT
To: nepal-request@cs.niu.edu
From: "Heather C. Stewart" <hstewart@moose.uvm.edu>
Subject: TND request
Dear editor,
Could you please send me the Research Report on Nepali Women by Elaine
Schroeder? It is from sometime before December, 1994. It was submitted
by Amulya Tuladhar.
Also, I have been reading the TND a lot lately, and I am planning on
going to Nepal this summer... Could you please send me the TND on a
regular basis?
My name is Heather Stewart and I am a student at UVM. My e-mail address
is: hstewart@moose.uvm.edu
Thank you very much,
Heather
%%%%%Editor's Note: Please forward the appropriate pieces to our %%%%%
%%%%% friend Heather - thank you. %%%%%
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
****************************************************************
Date: Thu, 13 Apr 1995 11:18:52 EDT
From: ST941806@PIP.CC.BRANDEIS.EDU
Subject: TND
I WAS READING TND and
was taken aback by your top ten on throwing stones on HIllary Clinction
the fact that some pepole in KTM decided to throw stones on Hillary was
NOT funny....and I still fail to udnerstand the purpose behind your
saying
Top Ten Reasons
given b Top Ten Reasons
given by the United People's Front (UPF) on why
they hurled stones at Hillary Clinton's motorcade in Kathmandu
seems to me that you meant it to be a joke
Many people got arrested...many people take this incident serioulsy
and some people were trying to voice their opinion by throwing stones
at Hillary . Given: it was an inappropriate way of expression.
but to maake a joke out of the whole issue and cite it directly from
UPF [while I am postiive that those ten reasons don't ahve any
factual connection iwht the UPF motives]......
i don't know..
I jstu requst you to give this sensitive issue due seriousness
and thought.......and not jsut creat one of your "top ten jokes"
and hvaee you realized for soemone who is new to TNDD or Nepali
politics, your article might appear as facts, rather than a joke?
that is all.....i hope , no offense...
please do not hesitate to educate in this matter if you think i
am missssing some point..
Umanga
***************************************************************
Date: Thu, 13 Apr 1995 16:59:00 EDT
To: A10RJS1@cs.niu.edu
From: DGURUNG@CLEMSON.EDU
Subject: PM ADHIKARY DEMANDS TO BUY ARMS FROM CHINA (31 LINES)
NEW DELHI, April 11 (Reuter) - Nepal's Prime Minister Man Mohan Adhikary
on Tuesday demanded the right to import arms from China, pressing India to
change a treaty with Kathmandu that effectively opposes such a deal.
"It is the right of every country to import arms which are cheaper,"
Adhikary, who arrived here on his first foreign visit on Monday, told a news
conference following official talks with Indian Prime Minister P.V. Narasimha
Rao.
Adhikary, Hindu kingdom Nepal's first communist premier, said he would
seek closer cross-border ties with Tibet during his talks with Chinese
leaders in Beijing during a five-day visit from April 17. He goes to Mongolia
on April 21.
"We want to integrate our economy closer with Tibet," he said. "That's
an outstanding issue and we will raise it with the Chinese leadership."
He said Rao had expressed appreciation of Nepal's arms position but
admitted their talks stopped short of agreement.
"You reach consent after appreciation," Adhikary said.
Indian defence officials said Nepal's import of two dozen anti-aircraft
guns from China in 1988 had triggered a showdown between New Delhi and
Kathmandu resulting in a crippling trade blockade of the landlocked country
by India.
Adhikary became Nepal's prime minister when his pro-China United Marxist
Leninist party defeated a pro-India Nepali Congress party.
"The elections are over and that chapter is closed," he said on Monday.
"As they say, all is fair in love and war."
*****************************************************************
Date: Fri, 14 Apr 1995 07:10:00 EDT
To: a10rjs1@cs.niu.edu
From: DGURUNG@CLEMSON.EDU
Subject: NEPAL CRACKS DOWN ON EXILES (TIBETIAN AND KASHMIRI)(35 LINES)
Voice of America, April 12, 1995
New Delhi: The Nepalese prime minister says he has cracked down on activities
by Tibetan exiles and Kashmiri separatists so as not to antagonize Nepal's
giant neighbors, China and India. Correspondent Michael Drudge has
interviewed the Nepalese leader in New Delhi.
The Prime Minister of Nepal, manmohan Adhikary, says he has forbidden a March
by Tibetan exiles and a meeting by Kashmiri separatists in order to avoid
problems with China and India.
Tibetans based in India had wanted to March last month through Nepal to Lhasa
to protest China's occupation of their homeland. And Kashmiris who want to
split their territory away from India had intended to meet this month in the
Nepalese capital, Kathmandu.
But Prime Minister Adhikary says he will not let Nepal be used for
anti-Indian or anti-Chinese activities because, in his words, "we cannot
afford it."
Nepal is a landlocked Himalayan nation and one of the poorest countries on
earth.
The Nepalese Prime Minister led his United Marxist-Leninist party to victory
in elections last year, the first time communists have ruled in the Hindu
Kingdom.
Mr. Adhikary spoke with V-O-A news at the presidential house Rashtrapati
Bhavan in New Delhi as he wound up an official visit Wednesday.
He says India has agreed in principle to revise a 1950 treaty with Nepal that
gives New Delhi veto power over Nepalese defense policy and arms purchases.
But he says more discussions are needed.
Mr. Adhikary will visit Beijing next week. He says he is looking for joint
ventures with China in banking, investment and tourism and he will promote
Nepal as a gateway for western visitors headed to Tibet.
***************************************************************
Date: Fri, 14 Apr 1995 13:13:53 +0200
To: nepal-request@cs.niu.edu
From: e9227511@student.tuwien.ac.at (Reema Bista)
Subject: Information about Nepalese in Singapore
Hello people!!
I am looking forward to go to nepal through Singapore in September.I
know nobody (nepali) there. I would like to have some informations before I go
there. Moreover it is very expensive to buy a ticket here (from Singapore to
Kathmandu with return).I want to stay in Singapore for few days.I would like
to request you whether it is possible to find someone (living in Singapore)
who kann help me to reserve a ticket because it may cost cheaper there.
I would be very pleased to hear from someone as soon as possible.
thanking you.
*****************************************************************
Date: Sat, 15 Apr 1995 16:04:45 +0200
To: nepal-request@cs.niu.edu
From: bpant@mcai.med.hiroshima-u.ac.jp (Basant Pant)
Subject: Feel your responsibility.
I came to know about Mr. Padma Ratna Tuladhar resignation from his health
minister's post because of Sanskrit language. Is it really true ?. I don't
want to discuss on the plus or minus of having Sanskrit news but I am
surprised how Mr.Tuladhar can even think of resigning because of this
issue. People of Nepal have not given him that post to defend or support
any particular language. His responsibility is to deliver proper health
care to the people of our country. He has all the right to have his
personal opinion but he has no right to leave the post for the sake of
discussion on language. I would have admired him had he started hunger
strike or a strong protest for the improvement of infant mortality rate,
maternal mortality rate, accessibility of health care system to all the
people etc. Now once he has resigned, who will look after different
programs he started or that he does not care what happens to the health
care delivery system of Nepal. I am sure there will be people who will
support Shanshkrit news and people who will oppose it. But both of them get
sick and Mr.Tuladhar's responsibility is to look after both otherwise he
will just become the health minister of Shanshkrit news opposing group.
I think Mr. Tuladhar should not resign, and should give his opinion
only after he finishes his term as minister of health and concentrate to
the work given to him by the people. It is becoming the habit of
intellectuals of our country to poke their nose in any bit of conflict that
arises, no matter whether they are directly concerned or not. When can we
call ourselves Nepali and nothing else, when can we stick to the
responsibility given to us and make the best out of if, when can we have
lesser intelligence and more courage and drive to work.
I feel embarrassed when people in a foreign country tell me that
"you have a very bad cast system in your country". I do not know exactly
what they mean by that. Do they mean "touchable Vs untouchable" or do they
mean people speaking certain language, or do they actually mean "class"
rather than class. In whatever form it exists, discrimination is the bad,
we must work against it, we are the people who some how or other had the
privilege of being one of the few "Educated Nepali", this is our
responsibility to work against such system which makes discrimination
between us. Unless we can become Nepali first and "something else" next we
will not have unity and unless we have unity we will not have the privilege
of group power or a nationalistic drive. Lets utilize this excellent
opportunity of TND to up bring love, brotherhood, and unity among Nepali
not hatred, distrust and argument for the sake of argument only. Thank you
and a Happy New year.
Basant
Hiroshima
**************************************************************
Date: Mon, 17 Apr 1995 17:14:50 -0400 (EDT)
From: Nirmal Ghimirez <NGH42799Q236@DAFFY.MILLERSV.EDU>
To: nepal@cs.niu.edu
Subject: Language is to unite not to divide
This is in response to Nuru Lama's thoughts about Sanskrit language.
As far as I am aware the language either it be of pahadiyas or janajatis were
essentially derived from the Sanskrit language. Sanskrit language was not
solely meant for only the pahadiyas. It was for everyone, that is based on
historical facts. It was unfortunate that later on it was used by some
caste only. But that however does not say that Sanskrit belongs to one
caste only.
The country where Sanskrit has had a great effect is Germany. This language was
quiet popular in Germany and was taught there a long time before.
In Nuru's words'Sanskrit has been the language of Hinduism.Its promotion
will be understoodas trying to promote Hinduism and Hindu nationalism in Nepal.
I think he has pushed this meaning quiet too much. First of all Sankrit
language is declining and realizing this fact the government is trying to push
it up. If his statement were to be correct then why didn't they focus on making
it a national language. I would like to say that promoting a language is not
for this purpose. Then promoting English language should be seen as promotion
of Christanity if the former statement were true. Since English was a
international language it was promoted throughout the world. Realizing the
important role Sanskrit language could play the government tried to uplift it.
Essentially all religion are for the same purpose.
I would not mind if a Christan father would say" May Jesues bless you"
or a Sufi would say " May Allah bless you". Since they have understood god
in that manner they sai so. Similarly the king says"Pashupatinathle sabiko
Kalyan garoon" because he is a Hindu and he views is that way.
There would have been a problem if he would have said, Hindumatrako kalyan
garoon or a Christian would say ,"Only christians be blessed".
But the blessing is for all. It is just that they say it from there point of
view.So, I do not think it is a point of objection.
As far as text books go I remember studying god and goddess about Hinduism and
the life about Buddha in my Mahendramala or some other book during my class
days. Since these two religon were dominant in the country so it was designed
like that. It would be great to read about great people of different culture
be it Christ, Muhammad, Buddha or Krishna.
Finally I would like to say that no language can progress by pulling another
language or by stopping the progress of another language. That is not a
positive approach. Why not promote other languages too. Let us promote other
various languages and many if we can. But not by stopping another language
from moving forward. Language is for unity and not for partion. Thanks.
TAMASOMA JYOTIR GAMAYA. Nirmal
***********************************************************************
Date: Mon, 17 Apr 1995 19:39:24 -0400 (EDT)
From: SUSHAN ACHARYA <sushan@educ.umass.edu>
Subject: Re: RNAC
To: NEPAL@cs.niu.edu
This is a brief reaction to the comment on RNAC. I agree that the service
in RNAC is detorirating. However, regarding the flight
attendants (the word airhostesses is as far as I know people do not use
in professional level) I have few things to say. I usually fly North West
and I have seen fkight attendants probably above 35or 36 let along 32.
Which was not a problem to me. Sencod is the use of language regarding a
women's body and appearance was really offensive. I can not imagine
anyone in TND could make such a sexist remark. I am a bulky short woman
does any one have a right to put a level on me? ABSOLUTELY NOT. Please
keep such a primitive remark away at least from the TND circle.
Sushan
***************************************************************
Date: Tue, 18 Apr 1995 00:11:07 -0400
From: rshresth@black.clarku.edu (RaJesh B. Shrestha)
To: nepal@cs.niu.edu
Subject: nepal to delhi
Cross-posted from SCN:
---------------------
To be honest I don't think that much hitchhiking goes on in India.
I would reccomend bussing to the nepal border and then using the
brilliant Indian rail network. Admittedly it is pretty damn slow
but it is also an experience in itself and a great way to meet other
travellers. It is also incredibly cheap (a couple of quid for journies
that literally span continents)On the way Varanasi is a well known spot
and should not be missed.
I'm dead envious of anyone going travelling while I'm here but if there's
anything else you want to know I'd be happy to help.
HAPPY TRAVELS TO YOUR FRIEND!
PADDY
*****************************************************************************
From: ponta@sas.upenn.edu (Pratyoush R. Onta)
Subject: (fwd) Info on No.of school students
To: NEPAL@cs.niu.edu (tnd)
Date: Tue, 18 Apr 1995 00:40:49 -0400 (EDT)
I am trying to figure out how many students passed through grades four
and five in Nepali schools between roughly 1967 and 1990. Sources I have
consulted do not help me to arrive at this cumulative no. If anyone
knows of any statistical data that would be useful for me, I would
appreciate if s/he would write to me directly at ponta@sas.upenn.edu
Also if anyone knows specific details regarding how school textbooks were
written and compiled in Nepal during the 1960s and the
1970s, I would appreciate your contacting me at the above address.
Thanks,
Pratyoush
****************************************************************
Date: 18 Apr 1995 08:30:08 GMT
From: "Shakya-Parish-Rita" <MSMAIL.SHAKYAPR@TSOD.LMIG.COM>
Subject: Out of the Office
To: NEPAL@cs.niu.edu
Comment: MEMO
I am in a seminar. I'll be back around April 21, 1995.
If this note is about ARTS, NPC, DOPS or Informed questions, please forward
them to Admin Sys Help Desk; somebody will get back to you at earliest possible
time. Thanks.
(This is a pre-recorded message.)
*******************************************************************************
Date: Tue, 18 Apr 1995 09:31:09 -0400
To: nepal@cs.niu.edu
Subject: Nepal expert, volunteer needed
From: aaciep@aol.com (AAC IEP)
America Online's Academic Assistance Center is providing
free academic assistance by Internet e-mail throughout the world.
Our teachers and professional experts will assist students with
their assignments. Our more than 600 volunteers assist over
10,000 students a month. Send questions to Homework24@aol.com.
The Academic Assistance Center's International Educational
Program (IEP) is also looking for experts from around the world
to assist answering inquiries about their COUNTRY. The IEP would
list the country as a participating area. Questions are gathered,
edited, and submitted about once a week. Replies are sent out
as an educational newsletter and posted in our library.
If you have expertise concerning any country in the world and
are interested in participating as a volunteer please send a short
biography/resume with your qualifications to:
or if you have any questions about the International
Educational Program (IEP), please contact the same address.
Thank you.
**************************************************************
Date: Tue, 18 Apr 1995 09:32:13 -0400
To: nepal@cs.niu.edu
Subject: need B/W photos of Nepalese temples
From: cbj@ix.netcom.com (Charles Jones)
I am arranging an art installation on Nepali culture at the University
of Colorado at Denver and need B/W photographs of Nepalese temples. For
this project, I am recreating a composite temple (assembled from
individual photographs) and need detailed shots of doorways, windows,
carved beams, brickwork, pagoda roof structure, stone statuary and
temple steps. Copies of actual B/W negatives would be best, prints
would do if they are of high quality. Please contact me by E-mail.
Charles B. Jones
cbj@ix.netcom.com
******************************************************************************
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