Kathmandu, September 23, 2005

President of the Janamorcha Nepal, Amik Sherchan, said today that the seven-party alliance partners were working out a way to give “democratic republic” an institutional shape through the election to a constituent assembly if the dissolved parliament was not reinstated by the deadline to be set by the alliance. Addressing a public meeting organised by Bagmati zone of the Janamorcha Nepal at Patan Durbar Square, Sherchan said that the alliance was planning to give the King an ultimatum for the revival of the dissolved parliament. Sherchan said that once the deadline set for the revival of parliament expired, the alliance would press for a democratic system without the monarchy. He added that the alliance was not expected to stick to the demand of House revival forever. He claimed that the future political strategy of the alliance would depend on the outcome of its talks with the Maoists, which are taking place at different levels. Professor of political science, Krishna Khanal, told the gathering that the seven party movement should clearly identify its target of attack. “Why can’t you dare say no to the monarchy, which has always acted against democracy?” he asked. He said the last 50 years, since the fall of Rana regime, had shown that monarchy and democracy could not go hand-in-hand.

Bangladesh fair to boost bilateral trade ties

Kathmandu, September 23, 2005

Organisers of the forthcoming Bangladesh Single Country Fair have said that the fair would help explore business and economic activities between Nepal and Bangladesh. Encouraged by the past country fairs, Bangladesh embassy in Kathmandu is organising the Bangladesh Single Country Fair 2005 from September 29 to October 3 at Birendra International Convention Centre (BICC), ambassador of Bangladesh to Nepal, M Humayun Kabir informed a press meet at the Bangladeshi embassy in Kathmandu on Friday. The fair, according ambassador Kabir, would help catch a glimpse of the economic progress made by Bangladesh and get a taste of quality products at a competitive price from Bangladesh. One of the major objectives of the fair is to create awareness about the potential opportunities in trade, tourism and academic sectors between Bangladesh and Nepal. The Bangladesh embassy in Kathmandu has joined hands with the Export Promotion Bureau in Dhaka for organising the fair. During the fair, a business delegation from Bangladesh, is expected to visit Nepal. A seminar on ‘Bangladesh- Nepal Economic Relations: Prospects and Problems’ is also scheduled to be held. Talking to journalists, Kabir informed that past fairs have encouraged Bangladeshi investors to look to Nepal.