DWAIPAYAN REGMI, TON NEPAL

Just like the conflict-filled space that India and Pakistan hold regarding Kashmir, Lipu Lekh has been a conflict-filled space between India and Nepal. While Nepal has been claiming the land to be theirs, India has not made any clarification on it, creating confusion on it. In the press release note, published on May 9. 2020 by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Nepal, they clearly expressed their point of view regarding how the land belonged to Nepal as per the Sugauli Treaty (1816) where all the territories of east of Mahakali River including Lipu Lekh, Kalapani and Limpiyadhura belonged to Nepal. So, it was not fair for the Government of India to carry out any activity inside the territory of Nepal.
This Himalayan border holds a bigger set of disputes because the historical record clearly shows how in 1865 when the British shifted the border near Kalapani for the watershed, that belonged to Nepal. Even during National Citizens Conference, it was claimed by the NGOs Federation their support to bringing back the land within Nepalese territory from their side. The issue further got strong when Nepalese census counting bodies attempted to count people residing in those areas to include them within the population of Nepal through satellite.
General Elections in Nepal have been planned for 20 November 2022 for the election of 275 members in the House of Representatives. There will be two ballots for an election where one will be electing 165 members through single members, and the other will be electing the remaining members 110 in total through nationwide constituency through party-list proportional representation. This election will be held through provincial elections for seven provincial sets of assemblies. There have been alliances formed among parties where the previous Prime Minister has an alliance with Madhesi parties, and the other alliance with the current Prime Minister where the alliance is made with Nepali Congress, CPN Maoists, and separated CPN UML. The alliance which will be made and what seems practical and possible here is regarding the possibility that a Congress-associated alliance will be in the victory position there, with a high range of supporters or followers. This alliance which has been recognized or identified here will be looking into the major aspect of dissatisfaction. There had been big leaders who were away from direct election participation too. Former Prime Minister, Dr. Baburam Bhattarai had to stay away from direct election here.
Meanwhile, there has been a large number of independent and young participants in this election. Popular journalist Ravi Lamichhane is in the battle. Other young participants include Ranju Darshana, Manushi Yami Bhattarai, etc. The impact of Balen Shah, who independently won Kathmandu’s mayor, and Harka Sampang who won Dharan’s mayor influenced a large number of participants to be encouraged for independent candidacy. They certainly created a big impact in the process here.
However, the big set of influencing factors about the election practice here seems to be lagging where there will be a certain distance placed regarding Lipu Lekh. This issue has been ignored on a larger scale. It was the former Prime minister who increased the entire area of Nepal and got a massive set of hype regarding the Lipu Lekh region too, but the agenda hereby in the election does not seem under a priority here anyway. With all the aspects that had to be under consideration, it was assumed that the concern of Lipu Lekh would be with top priority, but in the race of winning, what appeared here was that there was a massive difference noted. The leaders seem much more concerned about their greed, and the issue might be under the shadow – there lies a bigger proportion of fear here.
Upon the self-battle that they will be going through, there will be a bigger set of fear and threat through which any momentum would overcome. This topic must gain enough space too, but there are no such aspects which would be considered. Hence, with the bigger space and chances – only if everyone gets united and makes the issue applicable in international presence, Nepal would be in a strong position. But, staying under the umbrella of India, with all the blessings there, ignoring this issue at this crucial time can be noted as a skeptical influence too. It is yet to be seen, how the winning party will take the entire momentum later thereafter.

By Abmareen Afshain

Nepal is a secular state under the Constitution of Nepal 2015, where “secular” means religious, cultural freedoms, including protection of religion and culture handed down from time immemorial. The Constitution provides for freedom to practice one’s religion. The Constitution also specifically denies the right to convert another person or forcefully pushing someone into a particular religion. Since Nepal was described the country as a “Hindu Kingdom” by using conspirational moves in the constitution of 1990, which effected until 15 January 2007. The Government generally did not interfere with the practice of other religious groups but it was India with Hindu nationalism who kept eye on Nepal, under which religious tolerance was broadly observed which further posed restrictions on religion other than Hinduism.
Adherents of the country’s many religious groups generally coexisted peacefully before the involvement of India and imposing its Hindutva ideology. Nepal was viewed as a religiously harmonious place for its state of development. As Nepal’s new constitution adopted on 2015 doesn’t give anyone the right to convert anyone person to another religion furthermore Nepal also passed more stringent anti-conversion law on 2017.
So the ripping seeds of hindutva showed that the country has an area of 147,516 square kilometers (56,956 sq mi) and a population of 28 million which reflected that Hinduism is reported to be the religion of 81.34% of the population followed by Buddhism (9.04%), Islam(4.38%), Kirant (an indigenous animist religion)(3.04%), and Christianity (1.41%). Moreover there are adherents to many other religious groups as well, whose proportion is small. Twenty thousand Tibetan Buddhist refugees reside in the country.
The ideology of Hindutva has been present in the project of state formation in Nepal since the very beginning. The first monarch of this small Himalayan nation, Prithivi Narayan Shah (PNS), was believed to have unified all the smaller kingdoms that existed prior to the 18th century as a strategic ploy to counter the increasing power of the British in colonial India. Many are not aware how central Hindutva was to this project. PNS repeatedly mentioned in his writings how he wanted to establish Nepal as the “asal Hindustan” (the true land of the Hindus). His campaign of unification was also an attempt to establish a Hindu bulwark against Muslim hegemony in Mughal India and the rising Christian presence from the British.The presence of Hindutva can be observed in the monarchy more recently as well. Towards the end of the 20th century, the monarchs actively used Hindutva to retain popular legitimacy and power over increasing calls to democratize. Undercounting other religions and their merits is not unusual for Hindutva. One of the major criticisms of Hindutva is how it denigrates the contribution of other religions that also originate in South Asia, like Buddhism, Jainism, and Kirant. It also externalizes Islam and Christianity as invader religions. By propagating Islam phobia and false accusations of Christian proselytization, Hindutva deems the native followers of these minority religions as outsiders in their own homeland.
The harms of Hindutva have not been limited to the non-Hindu population of Nepal. One of the most notorious ways in which it subjugates Hindu populations is via the caste system. The Hindu caste system has been used as a central tool of division and oppression in many Hindu kingdoms in South Asia for the last 3500 years. Nepal has been no exception. The most detrimental effects of the caste system have been experienced by Dalits—communities denigrated to the bottom of the caste hierarchy. The ancient Hindu tradition of caste-based marginalization has continued under the direct supervision of every ruler since the founding of Nepal. Dalits have been denied both the necessary land to survive and their deserved social respect in Nepali society since its inception. This continues to this day as Dalit teenagers are lynched for falling in love with those from the upper-caste, and Dalit individuals are denied access to public spaces and commercial holdings because of their identity. One of the good example of this caste system is discriminatory behavior with Rupa Sunar who made headlines in Nepal when she was denied a rental room in the capital city of Kathmandu because of her caste.
For RPP-Nepal, the issue goes to the heart of its political philosophy. Oli used Hindu nationalism instrumentally, though he does not have much affinity for a “secular” state. He used the religious-nationalist card to burnish his credentials when his back was against the wall due to deep divisions within his party, the Nepal Communist Party.Many people have been disappointed by the performance and conduct of the mainstream political parties over the last decade-and-a-half and harken back to the previous monarchical era. Hindu nationalism has also surged as a counter to the rise in ethnic and linguistic nationalism as well as in response to the increased presence of Christian missionaries in the Nepali hinterlands.
The hindutva ideology of BJP which is the mainstream used by Prime minister Modi in his government which is the concept of “akhand bharat” that reflected to make whole region as Hindustan. This Hindu nationalism has also hit the Nepal with such strong stroke that according to the constitution of 2015, Nepal was declared as secular state but now with the passage of time the Hindu nationalism elements have been found immensely threatening the other religions and minorities to restore Nepal as “asal Hindustan” according to the constitution of 1990.

By F.F Mushfika

Ever since the start of the fall of Sri Lanka due to economic crisis many incidents have happened. Mass protestors demanded the resignation of Gotabaya Rajapaksa which resulted a political turmoil and a power crisis as well. Today Ranil Wickremasinghe runs the country as the current President to bring back Sri Lanka from its dire state.
As of the background, Sri Lanka ran out of fuel and suffered its worst economic default with many deaths and sufferings in long and extended queues. However, the situation is escalating for better and today we are able to see no to minimal queues as a QR code system was initiated to obtain the essential crude oil. However, the measures taken were short term. The island nation is also losing its currency’s value and it is said that the exchange rate is rather unbelievable. According to the official news the Central Bank of Sri Lanka reported on 14th October 2022 that the selling rate of the US dollar as 370.71. This is in fact has increased from the 13th of October – a day prior which has been 370.42. Sadly, the rupee has only appreciated against the Chinese Yuan, Swiss Franc, and Japanese Yen. It has massively declined against the major currencies like dollars of Australia, Canada and Singapore, Euro, and Sterling Pound. Thus, the only bailout as a long-term solution is to obtain help and assistance from the International Monetary Fund which is commonly addressed as IMF.
Sri Lanka has achieved the initial stage of the agreement and several staff level discussions took place attempting to draft the perfect plan. The nation has requested a sum of $2.9 billion as a loan. It was stated by the IMF that the “debt relief from Sri Lanka’s creditors and additional financing from multilateral partners will be required to help ensure debt sustainability and close financing gaps.” Verily, Sri Lanka is on the run of a long journey to obtain IMF which is the last practical hope to bring back a stability into the country for a smooth function. Besides, it will not be an easy run as well.
The major focus of the IMF is to rebuild the country with an increase in foreign reserves which will come as an outcome of raising government revenue and escalating prices for fuel and hydropower. These are few examples of their targets. In fact, this will introduce an immense tax reform within the country. It was stated that “these reforms include making personal income tax more progressive and broadening the tax base for corporate income tax and VAT.” Further, they also mentioned a target of a primary surplus of 2.3 percent of GDP by the year of 2024.
However, IMF is yet to be arrived regardless of the fact that Sri Lanka needs it immediately. The basic formalities have been fulfilled and IMF is still processing. The authorities of the Sri Lankan government are also at a mutual communication with the IMF holders for better outcome. Recently, it was stated by the Governor of the Central Bank, Dr Nandalal Weerasinghe that, “next week, the state Finance Minister, Treasury Secretary and CBSL staff will meet the IMF for talks, and we hope to continue with the discussions with creditor nations, and commercial creditors. We hope progress can be achieved.” This was announced on Thursday the 6th of October to the reporters.
Nonetheless, IMF appears to be unsatisfied at the proposed mechanism of debt restructuring and resolution. According to the current bulletin, it was narrated by the IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva about their expectancy as follows. She aired that “we want the common Framework to become more predictable with guidelines and able to bring equality of treatment for all creditors, public and private.” She also reinstated that, “it is so important that we understand the urgency to act, and we understand that acting together makes a difference to the lives of hundreds of millions of people.”
Although, the IMF is looking into every viable way to help Sri Lanka outwardly, it is inevitable that this will take time. This is also because their major concern is on the creditors. Bilateral creditors are also on the track with equal support and negotiation but still the final destination is an extended pathway.
According to Anne-Marie Gulde-Wolf who is the deputy director, Asia and Pacific Department at IMF mentioned that “I want to say also very importantly that the policies under the other multilateral lenders in their areas of expertise will be important to resolve Sri Lanka’s longer term growth problems.”
Hence, Sri Lanka is about to travel with IMF with the hope that it will finally happen, someday for good. The procedure looks like infinity, yet it gives a hope to achieve stability in macroeconomics and sustain debt with assurance to finance while also protecting the marginalized with a structural reform to address any corruption. Thus, it assures the capacity for the Sri Lanka to advance and develop from its fall, once again.

By Farzana Tamannur (TON Bangladesh)

Bombardment from Myanmar into the Bangladeshi side of the border has augmented in recent weeks, resultant in death and wounds to Rohingya.
Acting Foreign Secretary Rear Admiral (Rtd) Md. Khorshed Alam briefs the Heads of Mission from South East Asian countries in Dhaka on September 19, 2022, on the fundamental condition in the regions along the Bangladesh-Myanmar border.
On September 16, an 18-year-old Rohingya boy was slayed, and five others wounded when mortar bombs fired from Myanmar fell and blasted in the no-man’s land nearby Bandarban’s Tumbru Bazar border part. Around 4,000 Rohingyas are conveyed to be living in this region.
Bombs have been landing on the Bangladeshi side of the border over the previous few weeks and so far, Bangladesh’s reply has been somewhat mild. Soon afterward the decease of the Rohingya teenager in the bombardment, Bangladesh’s Foreign Ministry summoned Myanmar’s Ambassador in Dhaka Aung Kyaw Moe to protest against the bombardment and the violation of Bangladesh’s territory.
Myanmar’s ambassador accused the Arakan Army for firing bullets and bombs into the Bangladeshi side of the border.  He evaded taking queries from the Bangladeshi media.
Fighting between the Myanmar military as well as the Arakan Army is reported to have worsened in Northern Rakhine and Chin states from early August.
“We lodged a strong protest note against the violations of air and land space and cautioned Myanmar that such actions must not be repeated,” Rear Admiral (retired) Khurshed Alam, secretary of the Maritime Affairs Unit of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said. Indicating that “the conflict between Arakan Army and Myanmar military” is an “internal matter” of Myanmar and how Myanmar selected to “solve it” was up to that country, he stressed that shells falling into Bangladesh was not tolerable.
“No mortar shells or bullets would land on our side. You have to take accountability for that,” he said.
“If even a brickbat lands on the Bangladesh side [of the border], it is a defilement of international guidelines. Myanmar has to accept the accountability,” said Major General (retired) Abdur Rashid, executive director at the Institution of Conflict, Law and Development Studies.
“As we do not want clash, our efforts are happening to find a peaceful solution with Myanmar. We will do the whole lot,” said Bangladesh’s Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal. “We have recurrently cautioned Myanmar over the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, but they did not heed the cautions.” He said that Bangladesh would notify the United Nations if Myanmar did not stop the firing adjacent the Bangladesh border.
This increase in tension along its border with Myanmar will effect Bangladesh and the area in several ways.
First, it will affect the deportation of Rohingya refugees. Bangladesh is sheltering 1.2 million Rohingya who run-away the genocidal violence unleashed on them by the Myanmar army. This refugee people has become a main concern for Bangladesh. Dhaka has been engaging in meetings with Myanmar to find techniques to deport Rohingya back to Myanmar. Though, the return procedure has not yet started as Myanmar’s army regime has laid down circumstances for repatriation, signifying reluctance on its part to take the Rohingya back.
The existing border tension will effect repatriation efforts. As Professor Imtiaz Ahmed, an international relations professional based in Dhaka, has debated, Myanmar might be aiming to generate a disordered situation along the Bangladesh-Myanmar border so that deportation will be postponed and forgotten.
Second, Bangladesh-Myanmar tensions will effect sub regional collaboration in BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation), an association of member states including Bangladesh, Myanmar, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Thailand, which are Bay of Bengal coasts. BIMSTEC came into being in 1997 on the other hand it was only in 2022 that member-states accepted a long-overdue contract. At a time while SAARC is not working due to the antagonistic India-Pakistan relationship, countries in the area were looking to BIMSTEC to attain the benefits of collaboration. Such hopes might be dashed if the Bangladesh-Myanmar tension along the border intensifies.
Experts are also indicating that China’s geopolitical pressures might be behind the increasing tensions along the Bangladesh-Myanmar border.  With India and the U.S. pushing Bangladesh to join the Quad, China is keen that Bangladesh stays unbiased and has asked Dhaka to join its promising Global Development Initiative (GDI) as well as the Global Security Initiative (GSI).
Throughout his visit to Dhaka in the first week of August, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi had wide-ranging discussions with Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. Geopolitical problems are said to have been the foremost item on the agenda of the discussions.
A foremost Bangladeshi political expert told The Diplomat that there are robust links between China also the Myanmar junta and China wields substantial effect over the regime. It is possible that China is behindhand the latest tensions along the Bangladesh border, the expert said, adding that over the shelling into Bangladesh China is indicating that it can make trouble for Bangladesh if it wants through the Myanmar border.

By Usman Khalil

The ongoing inflationary tendency which poised to hit a blistering point. According to the data released by the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) the inflation hit a decade high in August. Generally, inflation raised to 9.52 percent in August and dropped to a still-high 9.10 percent in September. The BBS figures to shows how badly prices have been spiraling out of control in recent months. The daily suffering stands as an existing evidence of that. Therefore, the government has to think the dropping energy charges at the earliest possible time, since it has had a falling effect on prices of all other merchandises.
Price rises, which has been ongoing since the eruption of the pandemic in Bangladesh, has been out of control for the past several months due to upper food prices during the global supply disturbances and trade uncertainties arising from the Russia-Ukraine war. Figures shows that food inflation soared to 9.94 percent in August the highest since April 2012 and decreased slightly to 9.08 percent in September.
Non-food inflation, on the other hand, was 8.85 percent in August, but increased to 9.13 percent in September, representing that the inflationary impetus is hitherto to dispel. Another major concern is that inflation in rural areas has been worse than in urban areas – 9.70 percent in August, as contrasting to 9.18 percent in urban areas during the similar month. Food inflation in rural areas was likewise higher, since markets there incline to be more unstable than those in urban regions.
Moreover, while exterior shocks are certainly big issues that are driving inflation, the current fuel price hike in the country has, as anticipated, only made things worse. Therefore, the government to ponder lowering fuel prices at the earliest possible time, since it has had a dropping effect on prices of all other commodities. The government also urgently needs to control corruption and wastage in the energy sector, which have gone totally out of control, leading to the frequent load-shedding that is only increasing production costs and commodity prices for end consumers.
Since there is no single policy intervention that can solve the current crisis, the government needs to try and to solve it on manifold fronts. Initially, the government needs to gauge up its subsidized food aid programme for the poor. It requires to decrease fraud and misconduct across all sectors, which seems to have become identical with governance these days. And lastly, it needs to actively observe the supply of vital commodities, such as many food items in a bid to make sure to properly deliver to the poor masses of the Bangladesh. It is a preemptive measure in addressing any artificial supply shortage. In that regard, regular market watching by relevant government agencies is vital to root out any malpractices by influential trade associations.
The present crisis has, though, exposed the country’s susceptibility to exterior market shocks, which could sluggish economic growth in the average term. After being hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, Bangladesh’s budget happening to show some signs of life in 2021 amid the facilitation of lockdown events. Nonetheless, the fallout from the ongoing war in Ukraine has plunged Bangladesh back into crisis in recent months. Rising global prices for food and energy of which Bangladesh is a net trader have quickly plagued into the country’s foreign exchange reserves and have augmented its current account deficit, compelling the government to implement various severity actions to reinforce its declining finances. Growing fears of a looming global recession have also reduced demand for Bangladesh’s garment trades.

By TON Sri Lanka

As tourism is a vector of development and influence so the governments of the state try to coordinate planning with national development objectives. Similarly in Sri Lanka, a post-war country, tourism has been perceived as a tool for post-war reconstruction and reconciliation. According to a blueprint document; the ‘Sri Lankan Tourism Development Strategy 2011-2016’, whose objectives are to distribute national economic benefits through tourism to economic development and national social cohesion, is guiding tourism development and conciliation in Sri-Lanka.
Sri Lanka is an island country Located close to the Southern part of India, blessed with natural beauty consisting of tropical forests, fine biodiversity and varied landscapes, culture and heritage, making it a compact tourism destination. Sri Lanka is also a multicultural island of many ethnicities, religions and languages. The ethnic distribution of Sri Lanka as per census (2011) consists of Buddhist Singhalese majority (82%), a large minority of Sri Lankan Tamils (4.3%), Indian Tamil (5.1%), Muslim Moors (7.9%) and smaller communities of Malays (0.3 %), Burghers (0.2%) and others (0.2%).
Two years, after the war ended in 2009, a Blueprint document was published by the government in 2011. The ‘Sri Lankan Tourism Development Strategy 2011 – 2016’, a five year master plan, wherein the following key areas have been identified and approved by the cabinet as necessary for tourism development: the policy framework, the Zilmiyah Kamble and Frederic Bouchon / Procedia – Social and Behavioral Sciences 144 (2014) 229 – 236 231 infrastructure, service standards, right market segments and the potential of cultural, medical and agro tourism or in words diverse niche tourism. The tourism development strategy document stressed the need to attract the right kind of tourists and poverty alleviation through equal distribution spatially, socially and ethnically. The document derives from vision and philosophy of the larger national development strategy vision developed by the controversial president (President Mahinda Rajapaksha) and called the ‘Mahinda Chintana’ literally meaning Mahinda’s Vision in the Singhalese Language. However, according to Sri Lankan Tourism Development Strategy, 2011, Sri Lanka observed 8% economic growth in 2010 and increased tourist arrivals, prompting the identification and recognition of the tourism Sector as one of the main sectors driving the country’s economic progress.
The close neighbor of Sri-Lanka is India which has great interests in Sri-Lanka and further it is assisting Sri-lanka in trade activities and tourism enhancement. Indian tourists had been the largest source of income for the Sri Lankan market in the first eight months of 2022. In July, 6,031 Indian citizens travelled to Sri Lanka, which dipped to 5,340 in August. . Meanwhile, recently India has extended $4 billion in soft loans and currency swaps to keep the Sri Lankan economy afloat. At the same time, Sri Lanka has to undertake delicate negotiations with China for restructuring its debt as part of discussions with all its foreign creditors. This agreement on debt restructuring is essential before the International Monetary Fund starts to disburse its $2.9 billion loan to Colombo.
Indians topped the list of foreign arrivals to the country even in July – a month which saw mass protests over the economy reach their climax with President Gotabaya Rajapaksa dramatically fleeing the country after the storming of the presidential palace. Prime Minister Ranil Wickreme singh replaced him as president after getting support from ruling party members.
After the July 18 incident, the Indian high commission tweeted advice for Indian nationals in Sri Lanka to remain “aware of latest developments and accordingly plan their movements and activities”.in a report of an article in a Sri Lankan newspaper it was stated that speculation that the assault may have been due to rumors that India had tried to help former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to leave the country. India had categorically denied facilitating Rajapaksa’s travel after he left for the Maldives on a military aircraft on July 13. Whereas, The 20% drop in tourists to the cash-strapped country has functioned as a quick demonstration of New Delhi’s use of economic leverage to express unhappiness over Sri Lanka’s handling of the Chinese vessel’s docking There have been no other public reports of any other incidents of harassment of Indian nationals, whether residents or tourists. Moreover Sri Lanka planed to tap Indian tourists to revive the South Asian Island’s battered tourism sector and shore up its depleted foreign exchange reserves.
In addition to the incident of july 18, the new crisis that hit tourism however are not just security issues unlike before. It is a national economic problem with non-availability of essentials such as food, fuel, gas, medicines etc. that was disrupting everything. Hotel operations were immensely difficult to sustain, and the quality of product and service offering was also deteriorating. So with the relative easing of some of the ground issues such as the availability of fuel and gas supplies, most of the concerns that visitors had about Sri Lanka, are now fast diminishing. Many adverse travel advisories by countries have also now been relaxed. Consequently occupancies in most hotels are showing a marked upward trend. Up to July this year arrivals have reached almost 459,000 up from 194,495 last year at this time.
Besides this, all was only causing inconvenience to tourists. There are absolutely no issues with security in Sri-Lanka Actually the few tourists who are around, only felt sorry for Sri Lankans, but enjoyed their holidays all the same. With strong interest and new bookings filtering in, it is expected that the winter 2022 season will be reasonably good for Sri Lanka, and it is estimated that we will reach about 1 m visitors by the end of the year.
Sri-Lankan authorities for the development of tourism and reconciliation, will hold road shows starting next month in five Indian cities to attract travelers seeking “wellness, leisure, and Ramayana-trail,” tours, corporate functions and destination weddings, said Harin Fernando, the South Asian Island’s tourism minister. Ramayana is the mythological life story of the Hindu god Ram.
Sri-Lanka is an important state in the south Asian region in context to tourism. The tourism spot is hihly important for the GDPP growth for Sri-Lanka and well off for the country. Initially it has been remained a great point of attraction for the tourists and foreigners as well. It has earned much more and raised its economy before it was pushed into the economic crises. Arrivals dropped to very low levels due to the ongoing economic and political crisis. But, in the contemporary, Sri-Lankan authorities are doing their best for restoring their old values. It is expected that Sri-Lanka will reach about 1 m visitors by the end of the year which is very positive gesture for the Sri-Lankan tourism restoration.

By Nasria Naffin

On Thursday, the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) passed the latest resolution promoting reconciliation in Sri Lanka by a vote of 20 to 7, with many countries close to the island nation’s ruling elite voting against the island nation’s wish.
The new resolution has also emphasized the effect of the economic crisis on human rights.
Twenty nations, including the United Arab Emirates, Indonesia, India, Malaysia, Japan, and Qatar, abstained from voting on a resolution requiring the island nation to investigate past human rights violations.
As several key conventions in trade concessions, such as Europe’s GSP Plus, are directly tied to human rights, the new resolution is the toughest Sri Lanka has faced till date, and is likely to reduce Sri Lanka’s ability to engage in international trade.
The European Union has already threatened to revoke the country’s trade concessions because it has failed to fulfill its commitments to implement a number of important international conventions.
The proposed resolution, which was sponsored by Germany, the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, North Macedonia, Malawi, and Montenegro, is titled “Promoting reconciliation, accountability, and human rights in Sri Lanka.”
It is the seventh UNHRC resolution against Sri Lanka’s human rights record since 2009, when a 26-year civil war ended. Sri Lanka only prevailed against the resolution in 2009, as there was no vote in 2015 because Sri Lanka chose to comply with the UNHRC resolution.
Sri Lanka is seeking the support of all foreign nations to find a way out of its unprecedented economic crisis, which has led to a political crisis and the removal of its former prime minister and president for economic mismanagement.
Corruption and the Economic Crisis
The draft also emphasizes the significance of addressing governance factors and root causes that have contributed to Sri Lanka’s unprecedented economic crisis. It also acknowledges that the promotion and protection of human rights, as well as the prevention and fight against corruption, mutually reinforce one another.
In a report, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights recommended reducing military spending significantly, combating corruption resolutely, increasing investments in health, social security, and education through international cooperation, and assessing the potential impact of international financial assistance programs on human rights and taking preventative measures to reduce it to a minimum.
Ambassador and Permanent Representative for the United Kingdom Mission to the WTO, UN, and Other International Organizations (Geneva), Simon Manley, stated that the resolution text is largely based on last year’s resolution, but has been updated to reflect some of the key developments over the past 18 months, such as an economic crisis, mass protests, and a change in government, all of which have had a significant impact on the human rights situation in the country.
He also said, “It reflects some of the more recent concerns outlined in the High Commissioner’s report, especially the human rights impact of the economic crisis,”
“This capacity was set up in response to the lack of progress made by Sri Lanka’s domestic legal mechanisms towards accountability for past alleged gross violations of human rights.”
The resolution’s primary requests seek to continue the work begun in last year’s resolution, which established the Office of the High Commissioner’s capacity to collect, consolidate, analyze, and preserve information to support judicial and other proceedings.
The new draft requests additional reporting from the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (UHCHR) and proposes extending the reporting period from 18 months to 2 years in an effort to provide sufficient time in light of the economic crisis.
International surveillance
Dinushika Dissanayake, Amnesty International’s Deputy Regional Director for South Asia, said, “The adoption of the UN Human Rights Council’s resolution reflects the need for continuing international scrutiny on Sri Lanka,”
“The Government of Sri Lanka should abide by the commitments it has made to the international community and ensure the effective operation of redressal bodies for human rights violations, such as the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka, the Office on Missing Persons, the Office on Reparations, and the National Authority for the protection of Victims of a Crime and Witnesses, among others.”
Human Rights Watch’s director for South Asia, Meenakshi Ganguly, stated that the Sri Lankan government must now act to uphold the economic, social, and political rights demanded by thousands through peaceful protests, end repression against protesters, and ensure accountability for abuses, including war crimes.
The Sri Lankan government has taken a few baby steps towards protecting human rights and addressing past violations. As successive Sri Lankan governments failed to hold anyone accountable for past violations, this drew severe criticism from the West and rights groups.
Ali Sabry, the foreign minister of Sri Lanka, has stated that the country will not support any external evidence-gathering mechanism because it violates the country’s constitution. Additionally, he has criticized the inclusion of the economic crisis in the most recent draft, arguing that the UNHRC lacks the authority to investigate economic crimes.
Sri Lanka is in the process of obtaining a $2.9 billion IMF loan, and some government officials are concerned about the most recent resolution, which includes economic crimes and corruption.
Central Bank governor Nandalal Weerasinghe told the reporters at the monetary policy rates briefing in Colombo “We have not been informed by the IMF if there could be an impact on the loan due to the UNHRC resolution,”

By Ali Hussan

The natural beauty of Bangladesh is abundant. It is surrounded by rivers, coasts, beaches, historical and sacred sites, hills, forests, waterfalls, and tea gardens. The Sundarban, the Old Mosque in Bagerhat, and the Buddhist Vihara Ruins at Paharpur are the three Bangladeshi World Heritage Sites, out of 1007. Numerous domestic and international tourists travel to the nation and its tourist destinations to take in the beauty of nature. Around six lakh (six hundred thousand) tourists visited Bangladesh in 2012 to take in the country’s beauty. In 2013, tourism contributed a total of 4.4% to the GDP, 3.8% to employment, and 1.5% to investors. Under the Ministry of Civil Aviation, Bangladesh Parjatan Corporation (BPC) oversees the nation of Bangladesh’s tourism industry.
According to Bangladesh’s tourist industry’s growth from 1995 to 2019 the number of tourists who are officially registered in Bangladesh each year is depicted in the graph below. A tourist is somebody who visits the nation for at least one night but does not stay for more than a year. Business excursions and other non-tourism travel reasons had previously been eliminated from the poll, to the extent that it asked about the purpose of the trip. Most nations do not classify crew members of ships or flights or other travelers passing through within the same day as tourists. Each visit counts again if the same person enters and exits more than once during the same calendar year.

Moreover, 25.00 million USD, or roughly 0.066 percent of the GDP, were generated by tourism in 1995. At the time, this amounted to around 156,000 tourists and 160 USD each individual. The nation’s reliance on tourism has notably expanded during the past 25 years. Sales accounted for $391.00 billion, or 0.11 percent of the GDP, prior to the Covid-19 pandemic’s breakout. As a result, each visitor to Bangladesh spent $1,211 on average throughout their trip. Tourism revenue fell precipitously in 2020 as a result of the Covid-19 outbreak. Only $217.90 billion ($2019) was left of the $391.00 billion ($2019). This represents a reduction in Bangladesh of 44%.

Beyond being neighbours, Bangladesh and the North East of India are much more than that. They are “natural marketplaces” for one another because they are close together geographically. At the moment, India and Bangladesh are collaborating to deepen and expand their relationship. They have advanced significantly in the area of security in recent years. They may now expand on their mutually beneficial relationship and get rid of the obstacles standing in the way of further connection and trade. Bangladesh can allow India to use its infrastructure for surface and maritime connectivity to convey people and materials to the Northeast while India can assist Bangladesh in improving its export and investment climate. Equally crucial are the removal of tariff and non-tariff barriers, the development and modernization of border infrastructure, and the promotion of connectivity on a bilateral basis as well as within the sub-region and beyond.
Despite all this yet Bangladesh need to improve in tourist sector as Bangladesh has failed to introduce itself as a tourist destination country Due to some limitations because they only offer slightly updated versions of the old stories about Bangladesh, the Rohingya crisis and other stories can’t shake off their outdated perception of the country. How will Bangladesh survive given its precarious situation is a recurring concern in the discourse on climate change. In Bangladesh, people’s lives still look empty and they continue to be passive victims. It is not surprising that the world likes to turn its gaze away from Bangladesh because, at its worst, Bangladesh illustrates the grim future of unbridled capitalism on a warming planet.
Bangladesh’s development success is less visible from the outside because it has been less about enabling the rich to live more cushioned lives than about change in the less visible economy of care. It is in the average Bangladeshi family, the place where Bangladeshis are made, that the true success lies: people now rear healthy families, eat well, learn and grow, and worry less about the next apocalyptic flood, fire or storm. It is a miraculous change in the most mundane parts of life, where women toil mostly invisibly and without reward. The capitalist gaze habitually turns away from women’s reproductive labor everywhere, so it is no surprise that women’s everyday role in Bangladesh’s development success is so easily ignored.
Although Bangladesh has earned much more from the tourism since 1995 to 2019 before the outbreak of covid-19 pandemic but yet it could not fulfill the requirements as Bangladesh required. The policy orientation focus of Bangladesh mostly remained on revenue generation and GDP growth but not on check and balance of foreign entries and activities in Bangladesh in the light of security prospect and the renovation for the future goals. Moreover the covid-19 pandemic created serious problems Bangladesh disturbing the tourism the most badly as Bangladesh’s image is still blur in the light of tourism. Bangladesh should also tend to solve these crises and issues like Rohingya crisis and other stories which can’t shake off their outdated perception of the country. Bangladesh should also analyze the external hegemonic natured entities such as India.

By Nasriya Naffin

Sri Lanka is working on a four-year strategic plan to develop the tourism sector between (2022 to 2025). The plan identifies opportunities and gaps and provides a structured plan to work on. The goal  is to have a plan for recovery and to build a future resilient tourism sector. The tourism sector globally faces unprecedented challenges. For countries that rely on the tourism industry, it is recommended to focus on actions that will recover the sector.

The plan also supports the benefits of tourism across the Island. It also supports female economic empowerment which makes the industry more resilient to external shocks and thereby contributing positively towards the improvement of the macroeconomic indicators of Sri Lanka.

The data shows that the tourist sector in Sri Lanka has not been able to thrive for a prolonged period. This is even before the Easter Sunday attack and the pandemic. This is caused by many macro and micro level constraints and gaps. A gap analysis revealed four issues that constrain and underpin future sustainable and resilient tourism sector growth.

In order to overcome these gaps the following has to be fixed.

• Build a resilient tourism industry

Sri Lanka’s tourism industry has functioned on thin margins and is therefore susceptible to any decline in tourist demand. There is a need to improve the sector’s viability so that it is more resistant to external shocks. To provide higher quality services, the staff must be better qualified, and a social protection system would safeguard the livelihoods of workers during a recession. Industry and support organizations need to establish a more robust crisis management framework. Additionally, community support is required for industry activities.

• Positioning, branding and marketing has to be implemented

Destination branding requires more consistent and integrated marketing communications. This will be bolstered by a greater grasp of the segmented market, which will enable Sri Lanka to find its place on the international market. This will facilitate more efficient product planning and the creation of more diverse tourism products.

• Creating inclusivity and equal opportunity

Sustainable tourism must be a major component of Sri Lanka’s overall strategy. Supporting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the industry to gain access to capital and expand will increase inclusivity. Women’s engagement in the tourism workforce must improve.

• Institutional improvement with better coordination and regulation

Currently, the lack of cooperation between numerous public bodies impedes their ability to deliver an industry-friendly climate. This is detrimental to tourism planning and destination administration. It also impedes foreign direct investment in high-quality tourism infrastructure and products. This is an impediment to enhancing the service quality standards necessary to create a more valuable destination.

Three priorities have been strategically identified to overcome the challenges. They are:

Priority #1—Protect

Under the most optimistic scenario, the return to “normal” levels of tourism demand will not occur until late 2023 or early 2024. There is a need to preserve assets and individuals who have already suffered during the past three years of intermittent business and who face two more years before a return to normalcy. Permanent scarring must be minimized so that, when tourists come, there is still an industry to serve them.

Priority #2–Recover

Because we don’t know how international tourism will recover from the pandemic, a creative marketing campaign is planned to support this strategy. Some conventional source markets won’t provide many tourists for some time, thus new markets must be explored. Sri Lanka should increase digital communication with tourists in traditional source markets so long-haul leisure travel resumes. Prioritize tourists’ health.

Domestic tourism, which has kept the business alive for two years, will be promoted and grown. Sri Lanka’s positioning and branding will be improved throughout the recovery phase. A Global Communication Campaign will be launched to reposition Sri Lanka to coincide with its tourist vision and objectives.

Priority #3–Build back

Once demand is restored, the focus can move to establishing a resilient, inclusive, and sustainable tourism economy. This technique proposes dispersing tourists on multiple routes and to different destinations. This requires strengthening underserved tourist infrastructure and increasing tourism product investment. Effective environmental regulation will encourage retrofitting existing premises to create ‘green’ hotels.

Additionally, there will be a strong emphasis on improving the regulatory framework to allow tourist developments to facilitate the necessary increased investments in infrastructure and tourist products.

WASHINGTON, 24 October 2022, (TON): From the Pacific coast to the eastern seaboard, election denialism has seeped from US state capitols into village halls, bars and living rooms, sickening the US body politic and threatening democracy itself.
Two weeks ahead of the midterm election, Republicans up and down the ballot are embracing defeated president Donald Trump’s false assertion that the 2020 election was stolen and that voter fraud is rife.
The Washington-based Brookings Institution has identified 249 of these so-called “election deniers” all Republicans in the 567 races for the House, Senate and key statewide offices.
Mark Bayer, president of Bayer Strategic Consulting and a former chief of staff in the US Senate, told AFP that US democracy was at its “highest risk of unraveling” since World War II.