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FEATURES
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Written by Administrator
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Tuesday, 21 December 2010 06:12 |
AsiaViews, Edition: 28/III/Jul/2006
Category: INTERVIEW
-- RAJENDRA KUMAR KHETAN
RAJENDRA KUMAR KHETAN is a noted industrialist. Vice president of Confederation of Nepalese Industries (CNI), Khetan spoke with SPOTLIGHT on issues related to recent budget and the overall economic condition. Excerpts:
In brief, how do you assess the recent budget from the perspective of business community leader? Does the budget lack anything?
Budget has tried to cover all aspects of development of society. It is like a regular budget. It, however, lacks policy issues. It also depends on a number of things as politically we are in transition period. Besides, the rebel force has not accepted it. However, the country needs resources to meet expenses. The country and administration has to go on come what may. If the budget has been formulated for the full year and if it had to be compatible with five year plan, then, yes, it lacks a lot of issues, which could have brought rapid growth.
Many experts say the budget has ?scattered resources? and, therefore, not implementable. What do you say?
I agree with this assessment. That's why, I have been saying that this budget is ?Jack of all and master of none.? It tries to address each and every issue but manages to do so in only few cases. It also suffers from the problem of fluid political situation.
Did the budget meet the expectations of business community?
Not at all. For us there is nothing new in this budget. Instead of stopping leakage on revenue front, it has rather imposed tax on domestic products. There are a few mistakes like imposing more tax on low-alcohol-based beverages and less tax on high-alcohol-based beverages, which seems like an institutional corruption committed by revenue administrators.
Do you think the budget is over- ambitious regarding revenue target and foreign aid expectations?
In the revenue front, it is ambitious as business environment is still down. Foreign aid may come but it also depends on where and how we want to use it. Amount expected on aid front is not ambitious.
Do you think this budget can be implemented given the uncertain political course?
The manner in which the CPN (Maoists) has reacted against the budget, it seems the government would face difficulties to implement the same. But if this can become seven party's proposal and could add what Maoists want on economic front, probably it can become a common document and, therefore, be able to implement.
What is your most important suggestion to the Finance Minister?
I want to suggest the Finance Minister to establish Special Economic Zones (SEZs); develop more sectors for investment, allow export houses to work for SMEs and develop Nepal as SAARC hub, among others.
Would the Minister achieve growth target of 5 percent that he has set?
It is not a difficult target. But morale of business community is down as trade union movement is picking up on the one hand, and new and more taxes are being imposed, on the other hand. If industry's morale couldn't be boosted, it may be difficult to attain 5 percent growth.
The Minister claims that this budget will help rural areas. Do you agree?
Yes and No. Yes, because it touches upon subjects like rural road access and agriculture development. No, because until the political settlement at VDC level is achieved, the fund can't be used.
?Priority To Rural Development Is A Plus Point?
-- DR. SHANKAR SHARMA
DR. SHANKAR SHARMA , former vice chairman of National Planning Commission (NPC), is a renowned economist. He spoke to SPOTLIGHT about the current budget and its implications to the economy. Excerpts:
What are the plus points of the budget?
The increased allocation to villages in an attempt to distribute peace dividend is a plus point. Likewise, the security expenses, which had been increasing for the past few years, have now been decreased. There is palpable feeling about reconstruction and rehabilitation.
What are minus points, then?
The major minus point is the uncertainty of its implementation. Amid usual bureaucratic problems and weak mechanisms, it will be difficult to implement the budget programs.
Do you think this budget has made ambitious expectation regarding foreign aid?
Indeed. Apart from India , none of the donors have yet made commitment for budgetary support. They are only implementing ongoing projects and programs. The government has not formulated its strategy and priority to convince the budget yet. Given this situation, the expectation for foreign aid is ambitious.
What about financial sector reforms?
The budget has made some commitments on issues like addressing bank loan default, petro price fixing, labor laws and service sector.
The budget is silent about developing Nepal as transit corridor. What do you say?
Well, it may not have stated about transit economy but it has committed to build Syaphrubesi road, which would be crucial for developing North-South corridor.
?Budget Cannot Be Implemented Without Minimum Understanding?
-- PROFESSOR DR. BISHWAMBHER PYAKURYAL
PROF. DR. BISHWAMBHER PYAKURYAL is the president of Nepal Economic Association. A well-known economist, Dr. Pyakuryal spoke to SPOTLIGHT about economic situation and budget. Excerpts:
Since there are talks about forming interim government and interim parliament. How do you see this uncertainty hitting the budget?
There will be problem in its implementation. In fact, the Finance Minister should have consulted with the Maoists during pre-formulation phase because they will have increasing stake in the decision-making process in the days to come. Even now he should reach minimum understanding to implement the budget.
Do you think the budget is ambitious?
Well, in a similarly war-torn country, budget (in post-conflict) period tend to be much larger. In Afghanistan , budget for reconstruction was three times more than regular budget. From that logic, this budget is small. But here we have big problem regarding absorption capacity. Last year, only 20 percent of resources allocated to VDCs could be spent. Likewise, only 40 percent of resources allocated to education and 35 percent of that allocated to health could be spent.
What kind of budget is this?
This is a ?sure to please every one? kind of budget. It has scattered resources. Unfortunately, it has also increased discretionary spending, which would have inflationary pressure on the economy.
What about its target of foreign aid?
Till now, only India has come forth with Rs 1.6 billion of budgetary support. Others have not done so. Therefore, it appears as ambitious target to raise Rs 40 billion of foreign assistance.
Nepalnews.com 21 July 2006
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 21 December 2010 06:12 )
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FEATURES
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Written by Administrator
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Tuesday, 21 December 2010 06:12 |
AsiaViews, Edition: 28/III/Jul/2006
Category: LEGAL WATCH
PHNOM PENH?Ta Mok, the 82-year-old former Khmer Rouge commander whose actions earned him the nickname ?The Butcher,? has died at a military hospital in the Cambodian capital.
Ta Mok, who died Friday, was being treated for high blood pressure, tuberculosis, and breathing complications, his lawyer, Benson Samay, said.
Widely known as a ruthless enforcer for Khmer Rouge leader Pol Pot, Ta Mok remained powerful for years after Vietnam toppled the Khmer Rouge. He controlled northern areas of the Khmer Rouge's remaining territory from his base at Anlong Veng.
One of two defendants in custody
After a split in the party, he declared himself supreme commander in 1997 and was detaining Pol Pot when he died.
Earlier this month, officials were sworn in for a long-awaited trial of those blamed for the deaths of an estimated 1.7 million people under the Khmer Rouge from 1975-79. Ta Mok could have provided key testimony against other defendants.
Only Ta Mok and former prison commander Kaing Khek Iev, also known as Duch, were in custody ahead of the trial, and many people fear that more defendants?all of whom are elderly?may die before they can be tried.
On July 13, his lawyer summoned the media to report that Ta Mok had lapsed into a coma.
His illness did ?not coincide with the operations of the Khmer Rouge tribunal,? he said, adding that his client suffered ?a long, chronic, old-age disease, because he was already 82 years old.?
Candidate for prosecution
He also blamed ?the carelessness of those responsible who let Ta Mok become so severely ill,? local media reported. Ta Mok was a top commander of the army of Democratic Kampuchea, generally known as the Khmer Rouge regime.
He was arrested March 6, 1999 in Anlong Veng district in the northwestern part of Cambodia and detained at the Military Prison in Phnom Penh awaiting trial by a unique tribunal.
The tribunal, formally called Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia, is described as a "hybrid court" operating according to Cambodian laws but staffed by judges, prosecutors, and others from a number of countries in addition to Cambodians.
Ta Mok is one of the Khmer Rouge leaders profiled in Seven Candidates for Prosecution by Steve Heder, which lays out the cases against seven top leaders.
Heder cites "significant evidence that Ta Mok?played a central role in implementing the Communist Party?s execution policies.?
Khmer Rouge family links
According to research documents published by the Documentation Center of Cambodia (DC-CAM), Ta Mok was born with the original name of Ung Choeun.
Ta Mok has also been known by other names: Ta 15, Chhit Choeun, Ek Choeun, A?cha Choeun, and Nguon Kang.
Ta Mok was born in 1926, the Year of the Tiger in the local horoscope, in Prokeab village, Southern Trapaing Thom commune, Tramkak district, Takeo province, which was also known as Region 33 in the Southwest Region.
Ta Mok was married to his cousin Ouk Khim. He was the eldest in a family of seven children.
He is survived by a brother, Ouk Chok, or Chong, who was a district governor and Party secretary for Prey Kabas district in Takeo province.
Ta Mok: A brief chronology
He is also survived by a sister, Ung Poun, 64, who was married to another district governor, and still lives in Takeo province, and three younger sisters.
Ta Mok was raised by his grandmother and spent the first 18 years of his life attending schools in his home district, Trapaing Thom.
* 1949. Ta Mok became the leader of a resistance group called ?Issarak? for Takeo province?s Tramkak district. He joined the Kampuchean Communist Party in 1963, serving as a member of the Party?s central committee.
* 1968-69. Ta Mok was appointed Party secretary for the Southwest Region during which he and his comrade Hu Nim had a political row.
* Early 1970s. Ta Mok was Party secretary for the Southwest Region.
* June 1971. Attended a two-day congress of the Kampuchean Communist Party, which was held at Pol Pot?s office in the Northern Region.
* 1972. Held a meeting in Kampong Chhnang province in which he called on some 3,000 monks in attendance to join the army.
* 1972-73. Became leader of the Khmer Rouge movement in the region.
* 1973. Put in command of the army in the Southwest Region. Started to kill ?betrayers? in Kampong Speu province and Hanoi-backed comrades in the Southwest Region.
* 1974. Together with another Khmer Rouge Commander Ke Pok, attacked and occupied Udong district and Kampong Chhnang province.
* September 1975. Ta Mok sat on the Party?s Standing Committee.
* March 30, 1976. Appointed by the Party?s Central Committee as Second Vice Chairman of the Standing Committee of the Democratic Kampuchean parliament.
* 1977. Commander-in-chief of the army.
* 1978. Appointed secretary-general of the Kampuchean Communist Party for the Southwest Region. At this time Ta Mok?s group was accused of being responsible for the killing of 30,000 people in Angkor Chey district, Kampot province.
* November 1978. Appointed vice secretary general of the Kampuchean Communist Party.
* 1979. Commander of a military division in Kampong Tralach district, Kampong Chhnang province. Continued to hold an important position in the Khmer Rouge until he was arrested
* March 6, 1999. Arrested in Anlong Veng district in the northwestern part of Cambodia and detained at the Military Prison in Phnom Penh awaiting trial.
When he was 19, Ta Mok studied in a Buddhist pagoda-based school and became a monk in Wat Mohamontrey pagoda until graduation. Once past 30, Ta Mok abandoned his monkhood and married a woman from the same village.
Ta Mok fled into the jungle in the territory of Kampot Province to join a resistance movement. Later, his wife went to live in the Leach district of Pursat province.
RFA 21 July 2006
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 21 December 2010 06:12 )
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FEATURES
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Written by Administrator
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Tuesday, 21 December 2010 06:12 |
AsiaViews, Edition: 28/III/Jul/2006
Category: CULTURE
The Ministry of Culture and Tourism Wednesday said that it has designated 100 national and cultural symbols, including hangul, the Korean alphabet, kimchi, Korean traditional side dishes and street football cheering, to better promote the nation's cultural heritage and tourism.
The selection of the national symbols in six categories _ national, natural, historical, social, folk belief, and the language-arts _was made from last year through a survey of more than 3,000 people by experts and advisors.
``The 100 cultural symbols ranging from the traditional to the modern culture have been designated depending on whether they can be used as cultural and artistic contents representing the national ethos and can contribute to the globalization of the nation's cultural heritage through international recognition, such as registration with UNESCO,'' a ministry official said.
Included among the symbols was street cheering by football supporters, which started as a cultural phenomenon during the 2002 Korea-Japan World Cup.
The practice contributed to many foreigners changing their perception of Koreans, from seeing them in a rather passive light, based on the image of ``morning calm,'' to being highly active and engaged.
The symbols also contain internationally disputable items such as Dokdo (Tokdo), or easternmost rocky islets in the East Sea and tomb mural paintings of Koguryo Kingdom (B.C. 37-A.D. 668).
The symbols have ``chajangmyon'' which is originally Chinese black-bean noodles, but has been localized as one of Koreans' favorite foods for a long time, ``ondol,'' or Korean traditional floor heating system, and ``chunhyangjon,'' the Korean folk tale involving the son of an 18th century nobleman and the daughter of a humble family.
The ministry said that the symbols will be used for developing creative contents in artworks and tourism programs and be provided as education contents in studies of national culture.
By: Chung Ah-young
Korea Times 26 July 2006
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 21 December 2010 06:12 )
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FEATURES
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Written by Administrator
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Tuesday, 21 December 2010 06:12 |
AsiaViews, Edition: 28/III/Jul/2006
Category: ARTS
 Held at the Jakarta Art Center and Graha Bakti Budaya, the international dance festival was glorious. But we are yet to have strong choreography.
W.I.F.E. The word projected on the wall. At first, a dancer approached the projector placed on the stage. He scrambled the pieces of paper. The audience then saw blurry letters on the wall. There also was a piano onstage. A dancer punched the keys. Amidst the movements and piano tunes, suddenly somebody once again scrambled the letters on the projector.
The most beautiful part happened as they started to squirm on the papers scattered on the floor. Lying down, the performers then rolled together to the left, playing with the papers. Lifting the paper to their faces as if reading a letter, clasping the paper between their cheeks and shoulders. Or reaching for the paper by stretching their toes.
There have been many Japanese dancers who have come here, like Pappa Tarahumara, Kim Itoh, Min Tanaka. The performance by Yamada Un that night strengthened the impression that the main influence of Japanese contemporary dance is by absorbing more of jazz dance and butoh elements, as well as giving sizeable portion to daily movements.
The artwork seemed to be discussing a household problem. Yet the language it used as expression was relaxed, even humorous. There were motions like pushing their body or lying on their back with their feet kicking the air. In general, they were able to control the atmosphere, rhythm, and created surprises.
The Indonesian Dance Festival has been held eight times, and it can be used as an evaluation of our achievement in the world of dance. That is with a condition: that the attending guests came from the ?actual world dance map.?
Take the solo performance of an Indian dancer, Padmini Chettur, as an example; it was lackluster. The quality of the work was far beneath, for instance, the works of Daksha Seth, the Indian choreographer who performed at TIM several years ago. While Cambodian dancer Phon Sopheap?s dance that imitated monkey gestures was very trivial.
Two of our championed dancers were Mugiyono Kasido and Jecko Siampo. Mugiyono performed Mata Candi, which has reached international acclaim and was last performed at the Centre National De La Danse, France. Started with the choir of musicians of Rep sidhem bawana sidhem?swasana lerem?Mugiyono played two kayon (mountain-like figure placed in the middle of the screen before the beginning of an act in the shadow puppet play), creating exotic shadows.
Mugiyono is known as a dancer who has flexibility and the ability to balance his body. He combined the vocabulary of Javanese women dancers with masculine movements to enrich the idioms of his movement. Mata Candi was based on his response to the hieroglyphs on Central Javanese temples. Yet it appeared that his performance did not move far from his previous works. Excellent in his physical movements, yet poor in choreographic design, it caused him to struggle to perform in a lengthy duration.
The same happened to Jecko Siampo. The young artist who studied at the Fokwans Tans Studio, Germany, performed unique fracturing movements. The lack of choreographic adventure caused him to appear as if he was showing invariable movement at every performance.
The one who seemed to be on a continuous search is Fitri Setyaningsih. The stage was covered with red and there was a punch bag. The dancers carried clothes hangers. To and fro they covered it with red, black, and green clothes on to its head. Entitled Menstruasi Beras Merah (Brown Rice Menstruation), Fitri?s work appeared as a personal saga existing in her own head, but failed to be communicated to the audience.
The Indonesian Dance Festival also gave room to young choreographers with the installment of the Emerging Choreographers category. Six young choreographers showcased their works. ?The one from Singapore deserves the main stage,? whispered one of the audience. He was addressing dancer Ricky Sim from Singapore. Shirking under the light, he created a play of half-darkened, half-lightened body.
The large audience showed that the festival is something that is being awaited upon by our art society. A tighter selection to the performers would have made the festival sexier. Instead of the audience being more ?alluring? to watch than the choreographers.
By: Seno Joko Suyono
Tempo No. 47/VI/25-31 July 2006
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 21 December 2010 06:12 )
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