" Nepal Hindus in secular protest "

By Charles Haviland , BBC News

Thousands of people in southern Nepal have been protesting against a parliamentary decision to declare Nepal a secular, rather than a Hindu kingdom.
The mainly Hindu protestors in the southern town of Birgunj have declared a general strike in their area.

Eyewitnesses in Birgunj say the town has been closed down by an alliance of local Hindu groups, with some 6,000 marching in protest.

The country has been officially a Hindu kingdom for the last 40 years.

Divided opinions

With the symbolism associated with Hinduism, people are waving saffron-coloured flags, wielding tridents and shouting the name of the popular deity Ram.

They have also burned copies of a newspaper they accuse of favouring secularism.

Birgunj lies on the Indian border and local journalists say the protests have taken on the flavour of Hindu nationalist rallies more common in India.

Nepal is at least 80% Hindu. It has a tradition of religious tolerance and mixing, but also strong discrimination along caste lines.

Last week's declaration that it be secular is dividing opinion.

Organisations representing indigenous ethnic groups, many of whom are Buddhist, have welcomed it, so has a body speaking for the tiny Christian minority.

But some Hindu groups have expressed outrage, while others have questioned why change is necessary, given the country's general lack of inter-communal violence.

In a separate development, doctors across Nepal have gone on strike, protesting at the severe vandalising of two hospitals in different parts of the country.

In each case, large crowds alleged that doctors negligence had caused the deaths of patients.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/south_asia/5015456.stm

Whatever King Midas touched turned to gold.

Whatever the palace touches turns to "goo".

No wonder Pashupati Nath temple has become a posterboy of greed, chakribad, fraud
and mismanagement.

We must pressure the government to force the palace to pull out its "sticky fingers" from every pie in the land - from Pashupati Nath to KMTNC to royalized National Parks of Nepal and countless other NGOs that serve as breeding grounds of royalists or employment agencies for royalist sycophants or even palacewallahs!!!

Karmapa - you are a gurumappa.

JUST cut the carp Kamapa, u are hindu hater thats it.
my agument holds water or not we will see when people drown in water 21 people or 2100 time will show.

Karmapa, Mahatma Gandhi was a devoted (to a fault almost) follower of Gita and not Budhism per se!!

Few things:

1) Pahadi as "Ha" sound in it
2) "goo" as in S$!T has "n" sound in it...

People, as you are wrong about the 2 items I mentioned above, you are alos wrong about your other ideas. I am all for democracy - "Freedom, justice and equality are the foundation of a democratic society." However, when will we realize that that is not what we achieved in the recent "aandolan" - though it served to "kick" the royals out of power --- this is a good thing. But we have not achieved a TRUE democracy. I am all for removing Hindu Kingdom label from Nepal but you have to do a cost benefit analysis... believe it or not, that TAG brought us a lot of recognition around the world and a lot of TOURIST dollars. With that said, that is not the only thing I am worried about ...

WE WILL NOT HAVE DEMOCRACY IN NEPAL UNTILL THE MAOIST ARE OBLITERATED FROM THE FACE OF THE EARTH.

Those of you who support the Maoist are nothing but an autocratic minded wannabe royals who abhor democracy and free society. You want to GIVE me things rather than allowing me to EARN those things. Those, like some of the poster here who are satisfied with taking what's given to them and simile away at the fact that they have something now -- are not for democracy!!! Wakeup and stop fooling yourselves.

Nepal will not have FULL democracy with " Freedom, justice and equality" where hundreds of thousands of people did and the Maoist will be more than willing to oblige!!!

Chettri and Bahuns against true Nepali Democracy.......

Dear Educated (mostly western based I believe),

Well, being Nepali, it is not the time to keep on discussing same old crap about Hinduism, Caste system, King, Racism, Discrimination etc. etc. all the time which leads us nowhere and gaining nothing.

It is good that finally we almost got rid of King at least for now, it is beginning of new Era for each and every Nepalis from all the nook and corners and all races and tribes to be true diginified Nepali. Religion and custom is for individuals and their own family and community to keep in social harmony. Being Secular Nepal is the most suited at this juncture of Nepal, the far and foremost requirment is the NEED OF INCLUSIVE DEMOCRATIC SYSTEM where all could take part and have a saying in decision making for the benefit to alll being Nepali first.

Being Hindu, Buddhists, Christian, Muslim or whatever other religion one choose to follow it is matter of personel perception, we should respect that individualism. MAKE SYSTEM CREATE THE ENVIRNMENT FOR AND WORK HARD, GENERATE PROPER TAX SYSTEM TO SUSTAIN ECONOMY SOTHAT EVERYBODY HAS THE FAIR CHANCE OF SURVIVAL AND UPLIFTMENT AND DEVELOPMENT OF INDIVIDUAL, SOCIETY AND NEPAL AS WHOLE.

We should from now on distance the State with Religion and first check the mal practices, corruption of the whole Government System through new Constitutional Assembly to check each and every tyrant, undemocratic, criminal elements including all political parties now specially Security Aparatus and Maobadis.

Regarding the moving Capital and establish elsewhere it will not be so easy to do but I agree in this respect. Once should gradually make proper INFRASTRUCTURES in phase wise in all other GEOGRAPHICAL SECTORS specially MID WEST AND WESTERN PART OF NEPAL. Then gradually in phase we should indeed shift the Capital or Administrative Centre for experiment or decentralise the power into Federal Government representing in respective region and development sectors looking into local and regional requirements. Kathmandu is too crowded, polluted and too elite power centric, we need to change this SECENARIO ONCE AND FOR ALL. But it will not be as easy as some friends want to see without proper developmental assessement and build up.

Perharps English should be made the lingua franca as in India for all Government and judicial and administrative purpose in PHASE and uplift NATIVE AND REGIONAL LANGUAGES PRIORITY so that there won't be any domination of few percentage of people whos mother tongue HAPPENS TO BE KHAS NEPALI and will AUTOMATICALLY CREATE SENSE of belongingness as well as competence.

Well rest I believe FRIENDS know better to add further necessary steps which will benefit all FIRST AS NEPALI.

JAI NEPAL AND NEPALI

Dear Educated (mostly western based I believe),

Well, being Nepali, it is not the time to keep on discussing same old crap about Hinduism, Caste system, King, Racism, Discrimination etc. etc. all the time which leads us nowhere and gaining nothing.

It is good that finally we almost got rid of King at least for now, it is beginning of new Era for each and every Nepalis from all the nook and corners and all races and tribes to be true diginified Nepali. Religion and custom is for individuals and their own family and community to keep in social harmony. Being Secular Nepal is the most suited at this juncture of Nepal, the far and foremost requirment is the NEED OF INCLUSIVE DEMOCRATIC SYSTEM where all could take part and have a saying in decision making for the benefit to alll being Nepali first.

Being Hindu, Buddhists, Christian, Muslim or whatever other religion one choose to follow it is matter of personel perception, we should respect that individualism. MAKE SYSTEM CREATE THE ENVIRNMENT FOR AND WORK HARD, GENERATE PROPER TAX SYSTEM TO SUSTAIN ECONOMY SOTHAT EVERYBODY HAS THE FAIR CHANCE OF SURVIVAL AND UPLIFTMENT AND DEVELOPMENT OF INDIVIDUAL, SOCIETY AND NEPAL AS WHOLE.

We should from now on distance the State with Religion and first check the mal practices, corruption of the whole Government System through new Constitutional Assembly to check each and every tyrant, undemocratic, criminal elements including all political parties now specially Security Aparatus and Maobadis.

Regarding the moving Capital and establish elsewhere it will not be so easy to do but I agree in this respect. Once should gradually make proper INFRASTRUCTURES in phase wise in all other GEOGRAPHICAL SECTORS specially MID WEST AND WESTERN PART OF NEPAL. Then gradually in phase we should indeed shift the Capital or Administrative Centre for experiment or decentralise the power into Federal Government representing in respective region and development sectors looking into local and regional requirements. Kathmandu is too crowded, polluted and too elite power centric, we need to change this SECENARIO ONCE AND FOR ALL. But it will not be as easy as some friends want to see without proper developmental assessement and build up.

Perharps English should be made the lingua franca as in India for all Government and judicial and administrative purpose in PHASE and uplift NATIVE AND REGIONAL LANGUAGES PRIORITY so that there won't be any domination of few percentage of people whos mother tongue HAPPENS TO BE KHAS NEPALI and will AUTOMATICALLY CREATE SENSE of belongingness as well as competence.

Well rest I believe FRIENDS know better to add further necessary steps which will benefit all FIRST AS NEPALI.

JAI NEPAL AND NEPALI