New recruiting standards will be set for PLA's entry into army: Defense Minister

Defense Minister and senior Maoist leader Ram Bahadur Thapa has said the members of People's Liberation Army (PLA) will join the national army not under the exiting recruiting standards of Nepal Army (NA) but under new standards set by the yet-to-be-formed special committee.

Speaking at the Reporters Club on Saturday, Thapa said the requirements for joining the national army for PLA men should be changed in view of the current "extraordinary political situation" in the country.

He said that since the modality of 'integration' between NA and PLA is yet to be agreed upon at the political level, his party is ready to discuss all the options involving this issue.

Apart from the national army, the PLA men could also be inducted in Armed Police Force, Nepal Police or the proposed Industrial Force, the minister said, adding that the Maoist party would not force any PLA member to join the army or any particular force.

Thapa also took the opportunity to lash out at the main opposition Nepali Congress and other parties for raising objection to what they describe as the Maoists' bid for a full-scale merger between the NA and PLA. "The views of the parties are against the peace agreement," Thapa said

Mohan Baidya, said there are no plans to change the party name

Photo Mohan Vaidya being welcomed after release from prision in India

Hours after Finance Minister and Maoist leader Dr Baburam Bhattarai told journalists that his party is mulling to change its name, another senior Maoist leader, Mohan Baidya, said there are no plans to change the party name, and that Bhattarai would have to furnish clarification regarding his statement.

Speaking at the Reporters Club Friday Baidya, of the Maoist party, claimed that the party is not going to shed its 'tag name' [Maoist] in near future.

Baidya said Bhattarai would be asked to clarify his remarks during the next party meeting. "Those were Bhattarai's personal views," he said, resenting Bhattarai's publicly statement "on an issue which has not been decided".

Stating that there are clearly two lines in the Maoist party, Baidya however refuted speculation that the internal dispute might lead to a split, and claimed that party would be further consolidated and united.

Meanwhile, talking to journalists in Nepalgunj today Prime Minister Prachanda revealed that he had proposed to change party's name two years back and that the issue is under discussion.

Prachanda also stressed the need to induct most Maoist combatants into Nepal Army and warned of "dire consequences" if obstacles were put in the process of army integration.

Similarly, Baidya mentioned that some PLA personnel would be inducted into
the national army while others will be taken into border security force or industrial security force.

Since the peace agreement has clearly mentioned about the modalities of army integration, it would not matter even if some parties take to streets against the process, he added.

While reiterating the party's line in favour of multi-party system, Baidya said the Maoists' ultimate goal is to establish People's Republic

Major changes in security and administrative bodies afoot: PM Prachanda

Prime Minister Prachanda has said that major changes are being made in administrative and security bodies within a few days.

Though the Prime Minister didn't divulge exactly what changes were being planned he hinted that massive transfers and promotions of senior officials would be made. Concerned agencies have already submitted their lists for such changes, he said.

The PM said this while giving instructions to senior administrative and security officials in Mahendranagar, Kanchanpur district, on Saturday. He said the changes are meant to make bureaucracy stronger and vibrant so it could deliver service promptly.

He also warned of stern action if the government employees failed to act in line with the changed political context and deliver service to the people without delay

Nepal Army ready to take in PLA combatants, says Prachanda

Speaking to a group of civil society activists Thursday, PM Prachanda said the government was working seriously to finalise the modality of integration and that discussions were going on with the army top brass on the matter.

According to him, the integration process will start very soon, after which the drafting of new constitution will begin.

What is the social character of Contemporary China ?

What is the social character of contemporary China ?
Is it capitalist, socialist or some new hybrid of the two?

speaker: Nickglais

Nickglais has visited China in 1983 and lived and worked there from 1992 to 2000 and have frequently visited China since.

Worked in the area of building financial and commodity trading systems. Member of the old CPGB in the 1960's and 1970's but left to join anti revisionist groups.

THURSDAY, 23 RD OCTOBER ,
7 PM BROCKWAY ROOM, CONWAY HALL,
HOLBORN, LONDON

Nickglais has various projects on INTERNET.

These include: Democracy and Class Struggle blog covering Nepalese Revolution. Political Economy Research blog covering Marxist Political Economy ,Democracy and Class Struggle Television on MOGULUS Internet

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Barburam Bhattarai speaks to Washington Times

Even as the onetime Maoist insurgent struggles to modernize the economy of his poor, landlocked Asian nation, the world's greatest champion of free markets and free enterprise is preparing a massive taxpayer bailout of its collapsing stock and credit markets.

"I think the U.S. is moving toward socialism and we are moving to capitalism," he joked in a luncheon interview with editors and reporters at The Washington Times this week.

Mr. Bhattarai, named finance minister in the communist-dominated government that took office in August, said Nepal's relative isolation from the global economy has been a blessing in disguise given the current world financial turmoil. More than two-thirds of Nepal's 29 million people work in agriculture and officials are still trying to rebuild the basics of the economy after a lengthy civil war that resulted in the abolition of the monarchy in April.

"The world economic crisis will affect everybody. Nobody is immune from this," said Mr. Bhattarai, in Washington for the annual meetings of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund.

But he added that the pain may be less for countries like Nepal.

"My own feeling is we are in a periphery economy. Our economy is mostly agricultural and non-monetary, so it is not as integrated with the world economy," he said.

In addition, India, which is by far Nepal's biggest trading partner, also appears to be relatively sheltered from the global economic unrest.

But Mr. Bhattarai said he is concerned that a possible global recession could mean a decline in financial assistance, both from international institutions like the IMF and from individual donors like the United States. The government is seeking nearly $400 million in donor aid to meet its budget plans, he told World Bank and IMF officials over the weekend.

"We have an agenda to develop our industrial economy that we are focusing on," he said. But he said the country wants to promote small enterprise and rural development, a mixed strategy he called "walking with two legs."

He added that Nepal, home to eight of the world's 10 highest mountains, including Mount Everest, is banking on a revival of tourism now that it has achieved political stability.

He noted that even during the worst of the fighting between the government and the Maoist insurgency, "there was not a single foreign national who was harmed."

The IMF last week forecast economic growth of 5.5 percent for Nepal in 2009, far below the double-digit growth rates of other Asian tigers in recent years, but above the estimated 3 percent to 4 percent growth for 2007 and 2008 as Nepal emerged from more than a decade of civil strife.

Mr. Bhattarai said the government's new budget has established six development priorities: agriculture, hydro- power, infrastructure, education, health and industry.

He acknowledged the government still had reservations about economic globalization and the danger that small, poor countries like Nepal could be dominated by large multinational companies.

"On this issue, we do have reservations, but we need investment, we need capital," he said. "So there has to be a balance."

Located between Asia's two booming superpowers, China and India, Mr. Bhattarai said Nepal was watching closely the strengthening of ties between Washington and New Delhi, including the just-approved U.S.-India civilian nuclear agreement. He said Katmandu has long looked to the United States to counter the pressure it receives from its giant neighbors.

"When the U.S. moves closer to India, it tends to be a bad thing for Nepal," he said. "India's policy [for the region] will be the U.S. policy, and the result will not be a balanced package."

CPN Maoist Name Change

Dr. Bhattarai says CPN Maoist is discussing to drop their party name Dr. Baburam Bhattarai has said that his party is discussing to change their name from Communist Party of Nepal-Maoists.

According to Kantipur daily, he said so when talking with an editor of Washington Times in Washington DC.

When the editor asked if the time had come to change the name of CPN-M as Mao was becoming ‘old’ even in China, Dr. Bhattarai replied in affirmative, and, added, “We are discussing this within the party since past one year. The general convention will make a decision on that.”

He also said that they coined the name CPN-M as it was quite revolutionary when fighting against monarchy.

The Finance Minister is in America to attend the annual meeting of the board of governors of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund.

SOURCES WASHINGTON TIMES AND NEPAL NEWS

Democracy and Class Struggle is aware that as a result of merger talks with other Communist Parties in Nepal there has been discussion of a new name for the merged Communist Party.

However we are of the view that the Communist Party of Nepal Maoist should retain its current name.

Parties have already reached agreement on army integration: NA chief

The chief of the Nepal Army (NA) General Rookmangud Katawal has said that the political parties have already reached agreement on army integration.

"The parties have already reached agreement. Debates and discussions are a part of democratic exercise," he told reporters when asked about his comment on the army integration.

As per the peace pact and other understandings among the parties, the army integration will be carried out through a special cabinet committee, which has not yet been formed.

Different party leaders have differently interpreted the understandings. Parties other than the Maoists have ruled out the "wholesale" integration of Maoist combatants into the national army.

They have said that only those combatants meeting the army standards should be integrated into NA.

Meanwhile, General Katawal said that NA will abide by the law formulated by representatives elected by Nepalese people.

Entrepreneurs warn of industry closedown

BIRATNAGAR, Oct 14 - Business entrepreneurs in Morang on Tuesday threatened that they will shut down industries if the government increases minimum wages to the industrial labourers.

Organising a press conference in Biratnagar today, the Morang Chamber of Commerce said that it will have to take to shut down of the Sunsari-Morang industrial corridor if the government overlooks their suggestions and fixes the minimum wages one-sidedly.

The industrial labourers are getting Rs 125 per day at the recent time.

The entrepreneurs have accused the government of ignoring their suggestion as the latter has decided to increase the wage to Rs 190.

Earlier, the Federation of Nepal Chamber of Commerce and Industries and the Trade Union had suggested the government to increase the wage from Rs 125 to Rs 160.

Some 500 industries are running in the corridor.

Poudel’s no to army integration

A senior leader of the main opposition party has said that the Maoist combatants cannot be integrated into national army.

Ram Chandra Poudel, vice president of Nepali Congress (NC), said that they can only be rehabilitated.

“The Maoists are only talking about army integration and not about rehabilitation,” he said pointing at the words ‘integration’ and ‘rehabilitation’ used in the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA).

“The meaning of rehabilitation is to send the combatants to their families and homes in villages – it does not mean providing jobs in the national army,” he said, speaking at a party program in Tanahun district, Sunday.

“One must not do politics by weakening the faith of Nepali Army,” he added.

He also dismissed appeals made by some Maoist leaders that NC should join the government.

Finance Minister Bhattarai requests for Rs 34 billion assistance from World Bank

Finance Minister Dr. Baburam Bhattarai has urged the World Bank to provide Rs 34 billion worth of assistance to Nepal for the next three years.

According to Kantipur daily, Dr. Bhattarai, during his meeting with managing director and vice president of South Asian region of the World Bank, in Washington DC, Saturday, appealed for such support to be invested in education and health sector.

In reply, the WB officials said they would provide the support only if Nepal government fulfills half a dozen conditions.

The major condition includes corruption control and good governance. It has also asked the government to improve the standard of service delivery to the people and create environment conducive for private sector investment and business. For that purpose, the bank officials said that reforms in Labour Act and simplification in provisions related with registration and liquidation of companies were necessary.

The daily quotes a participant at the meeting as saying that WB officials also questioned the government’s commitment toward privatisation. They also raised the issue of the new budget being inflated in size