Foreign, indeed

Foreign policy has been the most neglected aspect of our governance. Although it was widely expected that the chief of Foreign Affairs Department of CPN-Maoist, CP Gajurel, would become the new foreign minister, the role has been entrusted to MJF leader Upendra Yadav, a novice in the field. Yadav’s failure to deliver might spell an end to his budding career as a politician.

The biggest foreign policy failure in recent times has been the Bhutanese refugee crisis, with well over one hundred thousand refugees still languishing in refugee camps in eastern Nepal. As India has been emphasising, this is indeed a bilateral issue between Bhutan and Nepal. Either the PM or the finance minister should visit Bhutan to resolve the crisis once and for all.

Adarsha Tuladhar, via e-mail

You wish

Senior Maoist leader and new finance minister Dr Baburam Bhattarai, during a programme in the capital recently, said no one had the power to topple the Maoist-led government. It is stupid to think that the government cannot be brought down simply because the Maoists have come to power on the back of a decade-long armed struggle. Before delivering such hollow speeches, our honourable finance minister should have contemplated the fate of Parvez Musharraf who failed to respect popular aspirations. The Maoists should focus on winning the hearts and minds of Nepalis to prove their democratic credentials.

Tilak Poudel, CA, US

Give us more

Though THT is interesting and informative, there is plenty of room for improvement. The

newspaper lacks articles on social and development issues and fails to raise the voice of the deprived segments of Nepali society. There could also be more on social unrest like bandhs and chakkajams.

Manohar Karki, Lalitpur

A joke

CPN-UML has made itself a target of ridicule by asking for the position of second rank for its minister in the Cabinet hierarchy.

CPN-UML, which was virtually swept aside in CA polls, didn’t even deserve the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Ministry of Local Development, which they eventually got thanks to the Maoists. Jhalanath Khanal should stop making a fool of himself and put the welfare of the country before the interests of his party.

Sparsh Dutta, Biratnagar

Zero and out

No one was surprised that Nepal failed to win any medal at the Olympics. What was sad though was to see all our eight athletes look like they didn’t belong there. And God only knows how much money the jamboree of officials, who far outnumbered the athletes, spent in Beijing and at what burden to the taxpayers?

It is a shame that sportpersons of Afghanistan, a country now at war and with virutally no sports infrastructure, can bag an Olympic medal and beat Nepali football and cricket teams, the only two sports widely played in Nepal. This goes to show that sport is as much about the desire to win and guts and determination as it is about adequate sports facilities. Though it may sound rude, the truth is that Nepali athletes lack the killer instinct to make it to the top of any sport.

Ravi Budathoki, via e-mail