No complacency

Terminology is a most important hurdle for the writing of a constitution that has a long term impact. No allowance can be given when the words have to fit in to the slot in a predetermined manner. This arises from the need to minimise varied interpretations as far as possible. This makes the Constitutional Committee (CC) of the Constituent Assembly (CA) one with onerous responsibilities. Now, at least some flurry of CC activity is being heard in that the title for the statute being framed has received the go-ahead to be proposed through the CC meeting on Friday. There were various other contentious issues basically revolving around the terminology aspect that were decided. It would all be included in the preliminary concept paper that the CC will present to the full CA meeting for discussion and approval. The present going has proved that drafting the statute is fraught with not only technical snags but with specific details that have to receive meticulous attention. It is all a quest for making the upcoming constitution as inclusive as possible. But, in the meanwhile, it has to be borne in mind that a mere five months remain for the new statute to be promulgated, as per the adhered schedule. This can make everyone realise that the drafting task is a race against time when a great length of discussions are yet to emerge in the coming days. Whatever that may be, a sense of urgency seems to have prevailed with all parties represented in the CA trying to prove their seriousness and earnestness to get the statute drafted in line with the deadline.

Though the Legislature Parliament’s smooth functioning had been obstructed for over seven months, apart for the presentation of the fiscal budget 2009/10 and the approval for the same, it now has regained normalcy. That fact itself had slowed down the process of the statute drafting considerably. Being the largest party in the House, the UCPN (M) had been playing its cards on its terms. But, now they have relented allowing the House to conduct its regular business, The intensions of suddenly making a U-turn to let the House function, right after the conclusion of the Maoists’ third phase protests, may sound like a populist move in a bid to undo the damages of the past. There are hidden agendas that have to unearthed to arrive at the recent change of strategy to get the demands met. However, the rumour mongers are doing their job in this direction.

At this juncture, what is of uppermost interest is that the concept paper that the CC will present to the CA still has a long terrain to cover all because of the sensitivity of the proposals it will contain. In this context, it may be worthwhile mentioning that only a simple majority of the CC members decided on the fate of a number of contentious issues but it will require two-thirds CA majority to decide on the draft statute for approval. Even the “defeated” ones can be registered in the form of opinions to remain in contention during the full CA meeting on the initial CC concept paper. The people will also have a say on what the CA forwards, even going to the referendum stage. This itself shows how much time had been wasted on trivialities, particularly by the House and street protests of the UCPN (M).

Sounding warning

Kathmandu is reported to be one of the most vulnerable cities to climate change. The International Institute for Environment and Development based in London report lists the Nepalese capital among 15 such cities. Incidentally, all these cities are in the least developed countries. The greenhouse effect will have drastic impacts on these cities, and according to the report, Kathmandu’s major concern will be flooding. Although the greenhouse gas emissions from the LDCs account for only a small fraction, it is these countries that will be affected the most by global warming. So as to lessen the impact of such future disasters, it is in the interest of these countries to identify the patterns of risk. Furthermore, there should be strategies for adaptation work since climate change to some degree is inevitable.

The changing pattern of rainfall and temperature is already perceptible in Kathmandu. Rainfall this year had been delayed and was sparser than in previous years. Since it is the developed countries responsible for most of the emissions it is only fair that they support activities to mitigate the adverse effects of global warming in the most vulnerable cities.