Round-up of regional news

REGION
South Indians for Nepal, tourists for Southasia

The Nepal Tourism Board (NTB), eager to benefit from the thus-far little-tapped market of South India, recently mobilised a promotional campaign targeting tour operators and the press in Madras. Aimed at significantly increasing the number of Indian tourists in Nepal, the campaign, called Naturally Nepal – once is not enough, is focused in particular on "religiously-inclined" potential travelers from South India. In 2006, Indian tourists accounted for 33 percent of Nepal's arrivals. Actually, there are many more who do not get counted, as they come by land over the unregulated Nepal-India border.

Separately, a recent report by the United Nation's World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) found that Southasia saw a 10 percent increase in tourist arrivals in 2006. Most of this increase is credited to the Subcontinent's largest country – India experienced a growth in arrivals of around 13 percent, with 4.43 million tourists arriving through the year. The UNWTO noted that 2006 was a record of sorts for tourism the world over, with the number of tourist travels increasing by 4.5 percent to 842 million globally.

Southasia as a whole is expected to attract 11 million visitors by 2010 and a whopping 19 million by 2020, almost doubling its share of global arrivals from 0.7 percent in 1995 to 1.2 percent by 2020. Although undoubtedly good for the region's economies, this still strikes us as fantastically low.

INDIA
Three happy, one angry

A century-old dispute was resolved in mid-February by a tribunal that worked for 17 years, but the number of satisfied parties appears to be countable on one hand. Water from the Kaveri River, labelled an 'interstate' river by the Indian Constitution, will now be distributed among four states. Tamil Nadu is to get 419 billion cubic feet of water a year, while Kerala will receive 30 billion, and Pondicherry seven billion. An unhappy upper-riverine Karnataka, set to receive 270 billion cubic feet – less than half of what it says it needs – declared it would appeal the verdict. Around 16,000 security personnel in Bangalore were placed on high alert surrounding the announcement, hoping to prevent a repeat of the 1991 anti-Tamil riots that claimed 18 casualties. Days before the decision was announced, police had already arrested 700 people in order to quell possibilities of chaos. The atmosphere remained tense, however, with many schools across Bangalore choosing to remain closed, and the Karnataka Tamils Federation writing to New Delhi and local officials asking for security.

If Tamil Nadu and Karnataka were independent states, there would probably be war. Here, one sees the advantage, perhaps, of the subsumation of various identities into the Indian Union. But there are others who disagree vehemently with this notion.

REGION
Regional sage

Using the bump and clarity that only a Nobel Prize can afford, recently anointed laureate Muhammad Yunus has been waxing eloquent for the good of Southasia as a whole. He recently encouraged Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to push forward plans to establish a common passport for the people of Southasia. "Fighting poverty in Southasia is the biggest challenge," Yunus said. "This region has great potential to emerge as the world's strongest economy, particularly in human resources. If there is a common passport for the region, it would help greatly in fostering people-to-people cooperation."

Weeks later, Yunus gave rise to several more regional visions: of a highway network connecting India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, and of the establishment of 'SAARC scholarships' for the region's universities. He also offered an explanation for the waning interest in and influence of SAARC. "The future of SAARC hinges on improved relations between India and Pakistan," he noted. "As there is no amicable resolution to the disputes between these two countries, our work as SAARC members is not complete." Now that Prof Yunus has decided to form a new political party in Bangladesh, might we suggest that he not give up his love for Southasia?

PAKISTAN
Destination Balochistan

Visit Pakistan Year' got off to a grand start last month, as Tourism Minister Nilofar Bakhtiar declared that the country was opening its doors to more tourists by relaxing its visa policy for 24 countries, including India. "The government wishes to show a positive image of the country, where visitors from abroad are welcomed with open arms," she declared.

Referring to the 23-27 February 'Sibi Festival' in Balochistan, Bakhtiar said that the province could become a major tourist hub. She noted that Islamabad was determined to promote tourism in Balochistan, and had prepared financial packages to do so. "There are scores of beautiful and historical places in the country that can be of great interest to foreigners," she said. "Balochistan's geographical diversity and extremely rich culture makes it a unique and picturesque destination for foreigners."

What Minister Bakhtiar did not mention is that Sibi is the hottest region of Pakistan, without a beach in sight. Well, it might be hot, but at least there is no humidity!

THE MALDIVES
Governance referendum set?

TThe Maldives' Elections Commissioner K D Ahmed Maniku announced in late January that appropriate changes would be made to referendum procedures so that the People's Special Majlis (Constituent Assembly) could finally conduct a country-wide referendum on a future government system. The government hopes that handing over such power to the Majlis will take care of accusations of a lack of neutrality in the electoral process. "We made the guidelines on their request. We have forwarded it to them. They will now know where to proceed from here," Maniku said.

Some members of the Majlis, however, who had earlier criticised the commissioner's actions for lacking transparency, claimed that they had not actually received the guidelines. The Maldivian referendum, originally slated for September 2006, was postponed after spats among political parties delayed the process of amending the Constitution. The ruling Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party is pitching for a presidential system, while the main opposition Maldivian Democratic Party wants a Westminster-style parliamentary democracy.

SRI LANKA/PAKISTA
N Arduous armoury

Sri Lanka's recent decision to employ Pakistani help in building an armoured brigade for its army has ruffled more than a few feathers in New Delhi, especially as it comes in the wake of Chinese forays into Sri Lankan affairs. Others, meanwhile, feel that the development implies that the Colombo government has no intention of forging a lasting peace with the LTTE.

But their view is contradicted by the fact that several Sri Lankan generals have argued that, even if Sri Lanka did need a full-scale armed brigade, the tanks being bought from Islamabad would be useless in the marshy, jungled north and east of the country, where the LTTE is most active. It has also been noted that the Al Zarar tanks on offer are over 50 years old and most likely damaged, making the USD 100 million price tag appear rather steep.

SRI LANKA/INDIA

Lankan oil up for grabs

As part of its plan to be extracting oil within the next three years, Colombo has asked for an advance of USD 100 million each from India and China to secure blocks for exploration off Sri Lanka's northeastern coast. The island's government says that seismic data shows the presence of more than a billion barrels of oil in the area. Colombo paid USD 10 million for seismic surveys last year, a year after it set up its new Petroleum Resource Development Ministry.

China and India will also have to pay a USD 10 million security deposit, and refrain from competitive bidding, the Sri Lankan Petroleum Minister A H M Fowzie said. "Out of the eight identified oil blocks, we have given one each to India and China on a 'nomination basis' due to the close friendship between the nations," he noted.

Reports recently surfaced that India was buying an oil block in Mannar in Sri Lanka in return for building a 160-km-long railway route from Colombo to Matara in the south. It has been confirmed that India's state-run Oil and Natural Gas Corp Ltd (ONGC) has been awarded that block. As of now, we have not heard of the LTTE laying claim to the undersea oil and gas off the northeastern coast. But it shouldn't be far off.

BURMA
Christianity watch

A report claiming that the Burmese junta is scheming to drive all Christians from the country was released at a late-January meeting of the United Kingdom All-Party Parliamentary Group on Burma. The findings cite an official document leaked from Burma's Ministry of Religious Affairs that reportedly bears the brazen title, "Programme to Destroy the Christian Religion in Burma."

The document allegedly describes 17 systematic procedures aimed at the elimination of Christianity from the country. Among other things, it orders the imprisonment of anyone who espouses or preaches Christianity within Burma's borders. Critics have warned that the policy appears to be part of a country-wide scheme to create a homogenised Buddhist, Burmese-speaking populace. "Citizens who do not conform to the regime's version of these," the report says, "face potentially serious consequences."

An estimated 27,000 members of the Karen tribe, the majority of whom is Christian, were driven out of eastern Burma in 2006. Burma is currently ranked 18th on the UK-based Open Doors World Watch, an index that ranks countries according to the level of persecution experienced by Christians. Other Southasian countries ranked highly on the list are the Maldives (at number five), Bhutan (six), Afghanistan (11) and Pakistan (16).

PAKISTAN/AFGHANISTAN
Afghan camps to close

As part of the ongoing project to repatriate around 2.5 million Afghans living in Pakistan within three years, Islamabad announced in early February that by August it would close four Afghan refugee camps in Balochistan and NWFP. Perceived by the Pakistani government as security threats, the three-decade-old camps are home to around 300,000 people.

While the camps of Katchagari and Jungle Pir Alizai are to be shut down by 15 June, Jalozai and Girdi Jungle in NWFP have until 31 August. The decision was made by a commission that included representatives of the Kabul government and of the UN refugee agency, UNHCR. The commission stated that the refugees would be given assistance either to return to Afghanistan or to relocate to other camps.

Promises of help have not allayed the fears of many refugees, however, who speak of lack of property, shelter and jobs in Afghan-istan. Still, Islamabad is intent on its goal of removing all Afghans from its soil, especially since both Afghanistan and Western countries have accused it of sheltering Taliban insurgents.

INDIA/BANGLADESH
Taslima wants to stay  

Writer Taslima Nasrin, who fled from her native Bangladesh in 1994 following death threats from Islamic fundamentalists, recently appealed to the Indian government for Indian citizenship or permanent-resident status. Nasrin, who was given a six-month residential permit last year that expired in January, said of India and especially West Bengal: "I feel at home here and have received the love of the people."

Nasrin left Bangladesh amidst much controversy, and to date her books are banned in the country. Asked whether she wished to return to her homeland, Nasrin lamented having the right to visit taken from her, and added: "My parents have passed away. So the persons closest to me in Bangladesh are no more. It is more of having my rights to visit the country where I was born and grew up rather than purely emotional reasons."

Nasrin's appeal to the Foreigners' Registration Office was supported by the likes of writer Mahasweta Devi, litterateurs Sunil Gangapadhyay and Dibyendu Palit, and economist Amlan Datta, who pointed out in a statement that, "to have to live far away from the people who speak the language of her heart, the language in which she thinks and writes, is like death to a creative writer." While the Indian government might be wary of disapproval by conservative politics in Dhaka, the current turmoil in Bangladesh would seem to allow New Delhi to do the humane thing and allow Nasrin at least a permanent-resident status.

TIBET/NEPAL
'Normal' border management

News released in February detailed how Chinese authorities had systematically tortured and abused Tibetans detained after a high-visibility shootout on the Tibet-Nepal border in September 2006. That encounter, which was widely reported on by the international press, ended with one casualty and at least 25 Tibetans being taken into custody by the Chinese authorities, including more than ten children aged 10 to 15.

According to the follow-up, what was supposed to have been a detention period of a few days extended to months. One of the detained recalled that the older prisoners were continuously beaten, while some of the children suffered abuse in prison for more than three months. Chinese officials have denied the accusations, claiming also that all the children were treated properly and immediately released. They also called the opening of fire on unarmed Tibetans trying to cross Nanga Pass into Nepal a part of "normal border management."

BURMA/INDIA
Crackdown as appeasement

A week after Indian Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee visited Rangoon in mid-January asking for help in wiping out rebels in India's Northeast, the junta began an offensive against the insurgents stationed east of the border. The Burmese military is said to have burned down the general headquarters and two camps of the separatist National Socialist Council of Nagaland-Khaplang (NSCN-K).

The NSCN-K, which reportedly has at least 50 camps and 5000 soldiers in Burma's Sagaing District, confirmed on 31 January that at least three of its cadre and about a dozen Burmese soldiers had been killed. NSCN-K leader A Z Jami said: "Heavy fighting is going on with a brigade [of about 3000 soldiers] of the Myanmarese army using mortars and rocket launchers, launching a massive assault on our cadres since the weekend."

Although Rangoon has yet to acknowledge the crackdown, another NSCN-K leader insists that it is a deliberate plan to appease India. "The offensive by the military junta has the backing of the Indian government, with most of the weapons used in the operation supplied by New Delhi," he said.

INDIA/PAKISTAN
Jinnah House settled

The controversial question of the ownership of the Jinnah House, the Bombay residence of Mohammad Ali Jinnah, has finally been settled. Neither the state of Pakistan, nor Dina Wadia, Jinnah's daughter, will now own the historic building. Instead, the villa and its 2.5-acre property overlooking the Arabian Sea will be turned into an art and cultural centre for SAARC.

Sanjeev Kohli, deputy director of the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR), said, "We expect the centre to be thrown open to the public on 15 August this year, to coincide with India's 60th anniversary celebrations." Currently held by the ICCR and previously the official residence of the British deputy high commissioner, the house will be renovated to resemble its original state. It is slated to have exhibition spaces, an audio-visual library, a concert hall, an open air performance area, a seminar room and a café.

We might add: if it is to be a SAARC cultural centre, then it would be more appropriate to open the doors on SAARC Day, 8 December.

PAKISTAN/INDIA
Pakistan puja

On 16 February, the first ceremony of worship since Partition in the famous Katasraj temple complex in Pakistani Punjab was attended by Indian Hindus as special guests of the Islamabad government. The renovation of the Shiva temple was started in 2000, when the foundation stone was laid by Bhartiya Janata Party leader L K Advani during a visit to Pakistan. Thereafter, General Pervez Musharraf sought India's help for the reconstruction, and a team was dispatched to the site by the Archaeological Survey of India.

The conservation is nearing completion of its first three-year phase, and has cost the Islamabad government around PKR 60.3 million. "This is perhaps the first time an Islamic government has restored a non-Islamic religious monument," said BJP Secretary Balbir Punj during a recent visit to Katasraj. A three-member Pakistani delegation also recently toured India, analysing the architecture and customs of Hindu temples in Benaras, Pushkar and Ajanta Alora. During that visit, the delegation was also advised by Advani to urge Islamabad to conserve and renovate the historic Hinglaj temple in Balochistan, the Shiva temple in Karachi and the Lav temple inside the Lahore Fort.

INDIA/PAKISTAN
Baglihar win-win

Headway was finally made on the Baglihar dam controversy in February, when a 'neutral expert' appointed by the World Bank concluded that, contrary to Pakistani accusations, the dam was not in violation of the Indus Waters Treaty. With India also being asked to reduce the dam's height by a metre and a half, however, both countries eventually were able to claim "victory".

The Baglihar project on the Chenab River in India was designed to produce 900 MW of power for Jammu & Kashmir. Its resolution is the first Indo-Pakistani dispute to be settled through third-party mediation with the consensus of both parties. "We are happy overall. The dam structure is intact, the changes are only marginal," India's Water Resources Minister Saifuddin Soz said. Pakistan's Power and Water Minister, Liaqat Ali Jatoi, added: "This was a successful day for Pakistan, as the decision has come in its favour. The neutral expert clearly said the design was in violation, that India's calculation on free board was inaccurate."

The debate over the project began two years ago, when Islamabad complained to the World Bank that India could use the dam to flood Pakistani fields or hold back water at any time, and also that it violated the 1960 Indus Water Treaty, which otherwise had stood the test of time. That treaty had outlined that, while India would get water from the Ravi, Beas and Sutlej rivers, Pakistan was to have exclusive access to the Indus, Jhelum and the Chenab.

AFGHANISTAN
Rich Afghans, poor Afghans

New Delhi announced an aid package of USD 100 million to Afghanistan in late January, bringing its total assistance to the country's reconstruction effort to USD 750 million. India has also asked Pakistan to allow land-based transit facilities to Afghanistan, with an aim at bolstering trade and bilateral ties between the two countries. Around the same time, the New York-based Human Rights Watch announced that Afghanistan and its international backers had not made a significant difference in the lives of ordinary Afghans in 2006, having failed to secure basic needs like security, food and healthcare. Overall, more than 4400 Afghans died in conflict-related violence last year, twice as many as in 2005 and more than in any other year since the ousting of the Taliban in 2001. Meanwhile, recent reports of massive levels of corruption in Afghanistan are likely to influence the outcome of a pending agreement between the US and the EU to grant USD 13.7 billion to the country. According to US and British officials, almost half of the foreign aid given to Afghanistan thus far has been siphoned off by tribal leaders and corrupt police. This follows similar complaints on the part of the US State Department and the Pentagon that the Afghan police force was draining money from aid packages. At this pace, don't be surprised if Afghan tribal chieftains emerge as some of the biggest moneybags in Southasia – and start their own development projects!

INDIA/BURMA
To Burma, multimodally

India is preparing to set up a transportation project worth USD 1.1 billion in Burma, a move seen by many as part of New Delhi's continuing efforts to secure its influence in the face of China's growing presence in Burma. With New Delhi investing USD 100 million and Rangoon contributing USD 10 million and providing the real estate, points in eastern Mizoram are to be connected to the Sittwe Port by a shipping link, which will then be connected to Kaletwa in Burma through river transportation.

Such a multimodal transport scheme was first proposed in 2003 by New Delhi. The project will also include the construction of a road from Kaletwa to Mizoram. The plan has already been approved by the Planning Commission in New Delhi, and looks ready to be certified by the cabinet once issues of sustainability and commercial viability are cleared up. India has extended Burma a soft loan to contribute towards the USD 10 million that Rangoon with pitch in.

NEPAL/INDIA
Beware the babas

An mid-February Nepal's government mobilised security forces along its open border with India to restrict the influx of sadhus during the festival of Maha Shivaratri. The Home Ministry reportedly had dispatched a secret circular to district headquarters to thwart a possible 'ultra-Hindu' demonstration in Kathmandu, about which the government had reportedly received tips. Every year, the festival celebrated in honour of Shiva attracts thousands of sadhus from India. This year, authorities were concerned that they would congregate to rally for the reinstatement of Nepal as a Hindu kingdom, a plan that was allegedly hatched in the aftermath of the much-hyped World Hindu Conference held on 21 December in Lucknow.