KATHMANDU, SEP 28 -
Prime Minister Sushil K
oirala has said Nepal’s political parties
including the opposition UCPN (Maoist) are working together to
promulgate a democratic constitution from the Constituent Assembly.
Addressing the 69th session of the United Nations General Assembly on
Friday, Koirala said his government was committed to deliver a new
constitution by taking all the parties into confidence.
“My government is committed to take the parties both within and outside
the Assembly on board within the framework of constitutionalism,
political pluralism and rule of law, to put the country on the path of
peace, stability, development and democratic system of governance,” said
Koirala.
The second CA elected in November last year--following the dissolution
of the four-year-old body elected in 2008 to promulgate a new
constitution--is struggling to accomplish the mission. A section of
fringe parties led by Mohan Baidya of the CPN-Maoist are outside the
Assembly while major parties are sharply divided over the key issues.
“We greatly appreciate our neighbours, India and China, the United
Nations and friends and well-wishers in the international community at
large for their support and solidarity to the peace process and
development efforts,” Koirala said.
He highlighted Nepal’s contribution to the UN peacekeeping operations
in the troubled parts of the world. Nepal is the fifth largest troops
contributor to UN peacekeeping mission at present. “As a responsible
member of the international community, Nepal will continue to
participate in peacekeeping operations and promote gender equality
through increased participation of women in peacekeeping, with greater
commitment and dedication,” the PM said.
Koirala told the UN that the Nepal government is determined to bring a
dignified closure to the past dating from the armed conflict. “I want to
reassure the international community that there will be no blanket
amnesty for grave crimes,” he pledged.
The prime minister said the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the
Commission on Disappearances will help the government prevent
recurrence of grave cases of human rights violations. Over 1,700 people
were killed and hundreds went missing during the decade-long insurgency.
Koirala underlined the need for reforms at the UN including its
Security Council to reflect contemporary realities in order to make it
“more effective, representative, responsive and capable of handling the
increasingly complex global problems and expand membership of both
permanent and non-permanent categories”.
“Nepal reiterates its support to the desire of India, Japan, Germany
and Brazil to serve as permanent members in the expanded Security
Council,” said Koirala. He proposed for consideration the participation
of African countries and member states that have contributed to the
maintenance of international order in any expansion.
Stating that Nepal is constructively engaging with all UN human rights
mechanisms and the international community in the protection and
promotion of human rights, Koirala stressed the need to ensure the
rights and well-being of migrant workers.
Koirala urged the world body to allot a fair share of leadership
opportunities both at the headquarters and on the field commensurate
with member countries’ troops contribution.
Raising the concerns of the Least Develop Countries, the PM called for
immediate implementation of duty-free and quota-free market access for
their products to enable them to reap benefits from the global trading
system.
He urged the UN to effectively implement provisions of the global
counter-terrorism measures and focus on improving the public health
security system to address the symptoms and root causes of epidemics
including Ebola in a coordinated manner.
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