Round-up of regional news

REGION
Rice connectivity
Over the past couple of months, nearly every country in the region has undergone its own, unique crisis under the rubric of the ongoing food crisis. First it was Afghanistan and Pakistan, which laboured under drastic wheat shortages over the winter. Then it was Bangladesh, where an increasingly dire rice shortage was brought about following summer flooding and November's Cyclone Sidr. Finally, the whole situation was further exacerbated when India, foreseeing its own shortages, banned the export of most types of rice early this year.   Following the Indian ban, the region's countries recently began to look to Burma for supplies. Bangladesh was the first to get a Burmese rice shipment, followed by a Sri Lankan order for 50,000 tonnes. Although this was initially delayed due to bad weather, by mid-May the Rangoon junta had astoundingly agreed to go forward with the consignment. This despite the fact that Cyclone Nargis's effect on Burma succeeded in pushing global rice prices to record highs – and, of course, leading to widespread reports of an outright humanitarian crisis brought about in part due to the destruction of food storage in the wake of the cyclone. Bangladeshis and Sri Lankans may now be eating, but undoubtedly little more rice will be coming from the direction of the Irrawaddy delta in the near future.

Meanwhile, Nepal too is wondering what to do, given that up to half of its rice comes from India. It had hoped that the open border would allow it to escape the ban unscathed. Now, however, only the Maldives has been unaffected by the ban, thanks to a clause in a bilateral agreement that protects the atolls from Indian policy changes. Southasians are now casting around for another staple crop. In mid-May, the Bangladeshi government launched a campaign to encourage citizens to eat potatoes: Think potato, grow potato and eat potato, was Dhaka's hopeful encouragement. Some attempt at social engineering!

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TIBET
Made in Dharamsala
What to do when the very country you are asking more freedom from produces your symbol of freedom? In an ironic discovery, Chinese police recently found that the flag of the Tibetan government-in-exile was being mass produced for export in southern China. The owner of the factory told the authorities that the flags had been ordered from outside the country, and that he had not been aware of what the design represented. The factory workers themselves believed that they were simply producing colourful flags.   It was only after some of the workers saw pro-Tibet protestors waving the flags on television during recent the recent uprisings that the matter dawned on them. But more to the point, while a full round of embarrassment and recrimination is reportedly ongoing at the factory in question, there seems to be hardly any reaction in Dharamsala itself. If anything, there should certainly be embarrassment there as well!

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AFGHANISTAN
Old oils
Here is another Southasian first. French archaeologists recently discovered Buddhist oil paintings, dated to between the fifth and ninth centuries, in the now-gutted niches where two statues of the Buddha once stood in the Bamiyan Valley. The frescoes show thousands of red-robed Buddhas, as well as monkeys and various mythical beings, which evidently were painted with oils derived from walnuts and poppy seeds. Europeans, history has long documented, began working with oil-based paints only between the 13th and 16th centuries.

The discovery has turned the art history world on its head, though researchers say that the possibility remains that oil could have also been used in areas in modern-day Pakistan, India, Iran and China, potentially around the same period or even earlier. Either way, however, an important distinction remains: while the nascent technique went on to define Renaissance art in Europe, oil painting largely fell by the wayside in Southasia until modern times, at which point the technique came back home from the West.

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REGION
'India-locked' no more?
Trains, trains and more trains! If things go as planned, within five years one could chug between Lhasa and the town of Khasa, which lies along the Nepal-Tibet border around 80 km from Kathmandu. A high-level Chinese official recently met with Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala, to explain that the Chinese government had already started working to extend the Qinghai-Tibet Railway beyond Lhasa.   The hope is that a railway link through Tibet would eventually offer the possibility of significantly deepening both trade and travel between the two countries. In particular, many are hoping that Nepal would be able to directly benefit from China's rapidly growing economy.

All of this would also mean that there could be a dramatic decline in Nepal's longstanding economic dependence on India. Not to be excluded, New Delhi too is working on upgrading and developing railway lines along the Nepali border. Independently, there is talk of potentially linking the southern plains to the Kathmandu Valley via rail.   Indeed, Southasia has seen more train news recently than anyone knows what to do with. The Maitree Express is now (finally) up and running between Calcutta and Dhaka, and New Delhi says that is now planning to lay tracks in Bhutan as well. All aboard the Southasian Express!

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NEPAL/ INDIA
Where to go, soldier?
Given the recent election results, the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) has suddenly found itself with a lot of in-house rhetoric-related cleaning to do, as well as rethinking on foreign-policy matters. The anti-India speechifying has suddenly evaporated, and the Maoist leadership has been busy reassuring the business community, capitalists and the donor community on the government's continuing openness to the World Bank, IMF and all kinds of grants and credits.

Meanwhile, as politicos in Kathmandu hammer out the details of the structure of a new government, the future of the approximately 20,000 combatants of the Maoists' People's Liberation Army remains a particularly crucial and divisive issue. Currently, these cadres are housed in 28 UN-monitored cantonments across the country. But they cannot remain there once the Maoists are considered to have transformed into a mainstream political party.   Into this situation has sallied the Indian government. Officials from New Delhi recently offered to step in, as they did in 2005 when India facilitated the signing of the 12-point agreement that led to the Maoists joining mainstream politics. A newspaper leak from New Delhi indicates that India has offered a golden handshake to provide vocational training to the former fighters currently in cantonments.

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BHUTAN
Thollywood conundrum!
The Bhutani film industry, which had become relatively prolific and extremely popular over the last few years, now suddenly appears to be floundering. While 22 films were released in 2006, the number dropped to 18 in 2007. Only seven films are projected to be released this year.   Part of the problem appears to be infrastructure. Bhutan has a total of seven cinema halls, all of which are allowed to only screen movies in the national language, Dzongkha. Just one of these, the Luger Theatre, is in Thimphu. So high has been the demand for local movies that, in 2006, producers had to book the Luger nine months in advance.

In addition to a lack of movie halls, Bhutani filmmakers also point to the difficulty of getting loans to produce films. Filmmakers are now asking that credit be made more easily available, that production equipment be tax exempt, and that more cinema halls be built to save the industry.   Rather than being alarmist regarding the imminent demise of Thollywood, the proper analysis might be as follows: too many films got made in relation to the number of cinema halls. The answer would seem to be in building more halls, rather than making fewer films.

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INDIA
Normalising sex work
Despite the fact that sex trafficking and poverty-induced prostitution are pervasive in many parts of Southasia, there is almost no protection, legal or otherwise, afforded to sex workers. Recently, however, female sex workers in Calcutta, which includes one of the largest red-light districts in all of Asia, found themselves one step closer to the goal of legalising their profession.

In May, the state-owned Life Insurance Corporation gave approximately 250 female sex workers in Calcutta life-insurance coverage, which will include old-age benefits, among others. This follows on moves in recent years, initiated by sex workers in both Calcutta and Bombay, to start up cooperative banks, where they can deposit their earnings.

Despite the fuzzy legality of prostitution in India, there are over 1000 red-light areas, involving an estimated two million sex-workers, all over the country's urban landscape. India is also the destination of many who are trafficked from other Southasian countries, especially Bangladesh and Nepal.   "The policy won't change much in our life," said one former prostitute. "But this is a small step in our struggle for legal recognition of our work."

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INDIA/ BURMA
Game of politics
Amidst the hubbub about the 'dastardliness' of politicising the Olympic Games, some seem to have taken inspiration. Indeed, Bengalis seem to have taken it upon themselves to turn sporting fiestas into political opportunities. First, it was the Indo-Bangla Games, designed to cement ties across the India-Bangladesh frontier. Now, a Bengali-Burmese Friendship Football match was held to "show solidarity with the Burmese people".   The game, between the famous Indian club Kingfisher's East Bengal and a team made up of Burmese refugees, took place in late April, organised by the West Bengal Sports Department. "The purpose of organising this event is to expose to the people of Bengal about the dictatorship in Burma, and for the release of the 34 Burmese victims who are currently detained in Presidency Jail in Kolkata," said a spokesperson for the Sports Department.

The 34 in question were accused of arms trafficking, and arrested on Nicobar Island in 1998. They were held without trial until 2006, when the Indian Supreme Court instructed that they be moved to Calcutta and tried. Although they have been transferred to Calcutta, little has happened since on the legal front, including the levelling of charges.   Although the Burmese team lost to East Bengal by a score of 3-1, the real point of the match seems nonetheless to have been achieved. Indeed, the excitement surrounding the game even led the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and several high-level officials to call for a speedy end to the prisoners' plight (pic shows Left Front Chairman Biman Bose greeting the Burmese team).

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AFGHANISTAN/ PAKISTAN
A unified voice
The Afghan and Pakistani governments talk a lot about forging stronger bilateral relations. The need for such rhetoric, of course, comes from what are currently weaker relations, and many of these comradely agreements have tended to end eventually in recrimination. Now, the two neighbours have announced that they will "speak with one voice" at the upcoming Paris Conference on Afghanistan, scheduled for June. The conference will bring together a host of international donors, where the Kabul government hopes to raise as much as USD 50 billion for a variety of reconstruction needs.

Islamabad and Kabul now say that they will let "complete mutual trust and understanding" guide their relationship. But as promising as these bytes sound, they are not enough to alter the situation on the ground. Suicide bombings, murders and kidnappings by the Taliban, who easily cross the porous border, are on the rise on both sides. Paradoxically, the ceasefire between Pakistani security forces and the Taliban on their side of the border has opened up an influx of Pakistanis crossing into Afghanistan to fight the "real jihad" – that is, against NATO forces. Up to 60 percent of fighters in Garmser, in southern Afghanistan, are currently estimated to be coming from Pakistan.

Against such a backdrop, Afghanistan and Pakistan will need to speak in one voice against American and NATO belligerence, as well, from which many Afghans and Pakistanis suffer. For long-lasting peace and stability in the region, communities on both sides need to feel that their governments represent their interests and security, and not that of NATO and America.

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THE MALDIVES
Elections!(?)
While Nepal has surged head with elections to the Constituent Assembly, the Maldives' own beleaguered Special Majlis (constituent assembly) has for the past three years been inching forward. There has been a great deal of bickering, but nonetheless the body has been moving towards setting a date for the country's first multi-party presidential elections. In early May, the government finally scheduled tentative election dates for either 9 or 10 August. This timeframe would allow for a second round of polling – required by the new constitution if no candidate receives over 50 percent of the votes – by the end of August.

Time is certainly of the essence. The new constitution states that the polls must be held by 10 October 2008, and Ramadan this year falls between 2 September and 2 October. But opposition voices are now saying that the new date leaves inadequate time to set up an independent commission that would be tasked with ensuring free and fair polls. The opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) had previously advocated a caretaker government and a delay in the polls, but that proposal was defeated. The MDP is now hinting that it might not participate in the elections – which could well mean that the polls, finally announced, could be deferred again.

Other problems loom on the horizon with the constitution itself, the writing of which is still incomplete. Disagreements have produced stalemate after stalemate. The attorney general's office has outlined some 200 challenges to the draft document's current wording. One of these days, Southasia should have a contest on which country has made do the longest without a constitution.

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PAKISTAN/ INDIA
Different faiths, one belief
Most Indians who visit Pakistan – or, rather, those who are actually given visas – come with the intention of visiting their old hometowns or ancestral places. But the Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation (PTDC) is now hoping to rope in Hindu pilgrims for religious tourism, as well.

The PTDC recently unveiled a new campaign, entitled 'Different Faiths, One Belief', for this purpose. Under its auspices, three places in Pakistan have been identified for potentially attracting the most Hindu pilgrims – the Shiva temple at Katas Raj in Chakwal District (Punjab), Hinglaj Mata (see pic) in Lasbela District (Balochistan) and Sadh Belo Temple in Sukkur (Sindh).

"Groups from Kolkata and Varanasi have visited these holy places," said Tayyab Nisar Mir, the PTDC spokesperson. "There is definitely a growing interest. Twenty percent of the 70,000 Indian tourists to Pakistan come for religious purposes." Hindus will thus be adding to the thousands of Sikhs from India who annually undertake pilgrimages to Pakistan to places like Nankana Sahib and Panja Sahib.

It could just be that religion, even more than trade and treaties, will allow the two countries to come closer together. And we are not even talking about the reverse flow of Muslim/Sufi pilgrims in India.

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REGION
Follow the water
Those living in Nepal are used to having candlelight dinners – largely due to the incessant loadshedding. And so, a recent high-level suggestion to emulate Bhutan's example of selling power to India might even have appealed to some of the Nepalis present.

Inaugurating an early-May conference in Patna on Nepal-India relations, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar told the Nepali delegation to follow in Bhutan's footsteps where water resources are concerned. Bhutan and Nepal are two of the world's most hydro-rich countries, but while the former has done much to tap this resource, the latter has barely begun. Of course, Bhutan has been able to do so almost entirely on the back of Indian assistance, and the vast majority of the country's subsequent hydro export goes straight to India – what they call a 'monoposony' situation.

In Nepal, electricity demands are currently increasing by up to 10 percent per year. But thus far, the country has only been able to harness around one percent of its hydroelectric potential. "Nepal has the potential to produce about 85,000 megawatts of hydroelectric energy," intoned the chief minister, adding, "which it could sell to India after meeting its own requirements." This suggestion has been on the table for years, of course. And it is not as if Nepalis do not know about selling electricity to India. But the fact is that India's unwillingness to be transparent in past hydropower negotiations has collided with the ultra-nationalisms in Nepal, which wear an anti-India garb and do not allow the country to consider India's growing demands.   Seen in this light, while the chief minister was right in almost chiding the Nepali delegation, he was telling only half of the story. He might also have asked New Delhi to consider paying market value for Nepal's water.

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REGION
Knight in Chadha armour
No university is complete without its own mascot-like chief executive, the public face of the institution's place in the community – and the outstretched hand for fundraising activities. As such, all Southasians can be excited by the news that the Southasian University, long in limbo, has finally appointed such a figure. G S Chadha, former vice-chancellor of Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) and currently a member of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's Economic Advisory Council, is now set to head the university, due to open in 2010.   With an initial tenure of two years, Chadha's responsibilities will be to oversee the nascent university's development, both physical (in terms of construction) and 'ideological' (defining curricula, hiring professors and the like). Addressing his future fundraising attempts, Chadha noted that a significant part of the money for this ambitious undertaking would be coming from outside the SAARC countries themselves, particularly from development agencies.

The idea for a Southasian University, a world-class institution serving a student body from all over Southasia, was conceived in 2007 by SAARC leaders. India subsequently agreed to foot at least USD 2 billion of the initial bill, as well as pony up the land for the main campus (satellite campuses will also be included around the region). But the project is just now getting out from underneath significant bureaucratic inertia; while the campus land has yet to be purchased, 100 acres in south Delhi are currently being eyed.

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TIBET/ INDIA
Shugden lawsuit
The Tibetan community often appears fiercely united behind the figure of the Dalai Lama. But some schisms have shown themselves in recent weeks, with the filing of a lawsuit in New Delhi against both the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan government-in-exile. The Delhi-based Dorjee Shugden Devotee's Charitable and Religious Society, a sect of the dominant Gelug School, is accusing the Dalai Lama of violating the human rights and religious freedom of its members.

The sectarian conflict revolves around the organisation's worship of a deity known as Dorjee Shugden, seen as 'wrathful' by other Tibetan Buddhists, including Gelug sects. Some who look down on the Society claim that Shugden will act vengefully against all of the Gelug schools, 'polluting' Tibetan Buddhism by accepting the practices of other sects. But those who worship Shugden deny this charge, pointing to numerous scriptures that say that the deity protects all Buddhists and non-Buddhists alike. For his part, the Dalai Lama began to speak out against the worship of Dorjee Shugden in 1970, and has since continued to refuse to teach members of the sect. This is tantamount to a ban, and Shugden monks and nuns are technically not allowed in any monastery in Tibet or Dharamsala.

Some say that the Dalai Lama's ban on Shugden is a political move, pointing out that while the Dalai Lama is the most important person in the Gelug School, he is also the Tibetan head of state. Dalai Lamas succeeding the 5th Dalai Lama (in the early 17th century) incorporated the traditions of other schools of thought, most notably the second-largest Nyingma School, into Gelug practices. But now, Shugden's followers argue that the Dalai Lama is consciously promoting 'homogeneity' in religious belief, in order to maintain political power. Shugden devotees are contending that, as a result of the Dalai Lama's public criticism of the group, they are discriminated against. They say they have even experienced physical harm, and are being denied their religious freedoms. Hence, the lawsuit.   Tibetan groups have responded in force to the affront on their leader, releasing a statement accusing the group of working on behalf of Beijing to undermine the Tibetan movement at this politically crucial juncture.

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INDIA
Golfers' paradise
Mughals, who dubbed Kashmir as a 'paradise on earth', used to come to Jammu & Kashmir for its natural beauty. Now, golfers could soon be flocking to the state for its green pastures. At least, this is what the Indian authorities are hoping, in a bid to revive flagging tourism levels in the long-suffering area.   The Indian Tourism Department recently undertook to begin marketing J & K as a "golfers' paradise", spending USD 6.2 billion to build a new golf course in Jammu. With the continuing conflict classified as 'low-intensity' by security analysts, authorities are hopeful that wealthy golf enthusiasts will swarm the state. While the influx of such tourists would undoubtedly bring in much-needed revenue to the state, many are questioning the decision to invest such large amounts of money in promoting golf tourism, rather than spending it on helping Kashmiris themselves.

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REGION
Burma wants in
After last year's inclusion of Afghanistan, SAARC could soon be expanding in the opposite direction. Burma has now formally requested full membership to the body, with a formal application being dropped off at the secretariat in Kathmandu, and supporting letters being sent to all of the member countries.The issue is likely to be discussed in the next meeting of the SAARC standing committee, slated to take place in Colombo in July, a month before the 15th SAARC Summit convenes on the island.

Burma's chance of become SAARC's ninth member are currently considered very high, as India has already voiced strong support for the country's inclusion. Hopefully doing so would allow SAARC members greater say in Burma's human-rights and related record than has been shown in that other regional grouping, ASEAN