Nepal Day event organised in Bonn, Germany
Around 180 people, including academics, professionals and social workers, from different parts of Germany as well as NRNs based in Germany took part in the “Nepal Day” event organised in Bonn, Germany on Saturday.
Speaking on the occasion, Dr Stephan Eisel, member of parliament for the district of Bonn, spoke about the democratic experience of Germany over the last six decades and expressed hope that democratic process will be strengthened in Nepal.
Mayor of Bonn city, Peter Finger, said German people loved Nepal a lot and that thousands of German visit Nepal every year. Recalling his trek along Annapurna circuit, mayor Finger said also wished for reconciliation among major political forces in Nepal and restoration of sustainable peace.
Charge d' affaires at the Nepali embassy in Berlin, Ganesh Raj Dhakal, said Germany was a major development partner of Nepal and that Nepali people valued German assistance in various sectors of the country. He said the reconstruction and rebuilding were top priority of the government and that Nepal welcomed foreign investment in the areas including hydropower and tourism.
President of the German-Nepal Friendship Association and vice president of NRN Association Ram Pratap Thapa, said the event was aimed at promoting bilateral relations between the two countries and expanding people-to-people level contacts at various levels. Thapa, who is also the Honorary Consul of Nepal for NRW region of Germany, said Nepalis are looking for ‘peace dividend’ but that consensus among political parties was a must for it. He also urged the government to issue the NRN regulation as soon as possible saying that it will facilitate meaningful participation of the NRNs in Nepal’s socio-economic development.
The programme kicked off with a panel discussion on political situation in Nepal. President of NRN Germany Dil Bahadur Gurung, Jonchen Kenneweg and Dr Thomas Dohne took part in the discussion. Priya Eselborn, a journalist with Deutsche Welle radio, Germany, moderated the discussions. The panelists discussed about changes that took place after the elections last year and challenges ahead. They also discussed the situation of ethnic and minority groups, women and dalit, and challenges facing integration of ex-Maoist combatants, among others.
The panel discussion was followed by a number of presentations by academics and professionals. Dr Ulrike Muller, a professor of geography, from the University of Zurich spoke on the theme “Peace in Nepal: Chances of conflict in Nepal’s periphery” touching upon the issue of multi-ethnicity in Nepal and migration.
Prof Dr Niels Gutschow, an ethnologist at the University of Heidelberg, spoke about rituals among young Newar girls and attempts to restore Bhandarkhal and other baha in Patan with German assistance.
Jurist Dr Lukas Heckendorn, who works at the Institute of Comparing Rights System, in Lausanne, Switzerland, spoke about judicial system in Nepal. Recalling his two year-long stay in Nepal, he said Nepal should build its judiciary on what already exists within the country, not borrow directly from outside.
Dr Martina Shakya, from the University of Bochum, presented a paper on the impact of tourism on livelihoods in different parts of the country. She said though small towns and settlements had advantages due to tourism, events like Sep 11 attacks made income from tourism unpredictable. She, however, said families who utilised tourism when they had leisure time off farming had found tourism supplementing their incomes.
Dr Wolf Donner, 86, a former president of German-Nepal Friendship Association and editor of “Nepal Information,” spoke about pioneers of tourism in Nepal including first Japanese monk Ekai Kawaguchi who visited Nepal more than a century ago.
Prof Dr Dieter Pape, who worked as a medical director at the Sushma Koirala Memorial Hospital between 1998-99, spoke about how the hospital had helped poor Nepali children and families. A well-known reconstructive surgeon, Prof Pape said he still spent 8-10 weeks every year volunteering at the hospital.
On Sunday, 20th annual general meeting of the German-Nepal Friendship Association took place in which office bearers presented progress and financial report of the Association and also adopted plan of action for the next year. nepalnews.com 04 05 09
