CA election first priority: PM
KATHMANDU, SEP 02 -
Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai has said holding the Constituent Assembly (CA) elections to write the new constitution is the first priority of the government.
Upon his return from the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) summit in Tehran on Saturday night, the PM said the assembly dissolved in May 27 could be reinstated as a second option if there is an agreement between the parties. Bhattarai said he briefed the efforts aimed to forge political consensus on Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and UN Secretary General Ban ki-Moon on the sidelines of the two-day summit.
“Both Indian prime minister and the UN Secretary General expressed concern over political situation of Nepal. I told them that drafting the constitution through the Constituent Assembly is our bottom line,” Bhattarai told reporters.
The PM said he held discussion with Indian PM Singh on bilateral issues, mainly guaranteeing Indian investment in Nepal and purchasing 200 MW electricity from the southern neighbour. He said the government would soon carry out power development agreement (PDA) of India-invested projects, including Arun, Karnali and Marshyangdi.
Discussions with the UN Secretary General focused on peace process, however, no discussions took place regarding government’s effort to form transitional justice mechanisms through ordinances, said Bhattarai. The UN and the international community have expressed concern over the proposed ordinance, saying that the provisions in it could undermine the victims’ access to justice.
Bhattarai, however, defended the ordinance saying that there was already a political consensus on its contents. “We are trying to follow the South African model by focusing on reconciliation,” he said.
Bhattarai said that he had fruitful discussion with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina during the visit. Iran has accepted a request to supply Nepal with petroleum products and positively responded to explore the possibility to link the pipelines being constructed for India and China to Nepal, according to Bhattarai. The PM said Bangladesh is very keen on investing in the hydropower sector.
Source: The Kathmandu Post
