CANADA FORUM FOR NEPAL
Canada Forum for Nepal was active in organizing program for Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist). leader Hisila Yami. The following press release was sent by Pramod Dhakal who was also kind enough to make possible the visit of Yami to Montreal on August 29 to address a meeting organized by INSAF Bulletin and Alternatives.
‘Changes will not sustain without economic revolution’ says Hisila Yami
August 25, 2008, Toronto, Canada: Hisila Yami, the former Minister of Physical Planning and Works at Government of Nepal, spoke at the University of Toronto, Canada, as a keynote speaker in a talk program titled “The Rise of the Maoists: Future of Federalism, Representation and Inclusion in New Nepal.” She was visiting Toronto in the invitation of Non-Resident Nepalis Association – Canada (NRN-Canada) as a keynote speaker of its first national convention.
Speaking in the program in University of Toronto Hisila Yami said, “The ten years of people’s war and the 19 days of people’s movement have brought political changes in Nepal that are at par or better than western democracies. We have constitutional guarantee for rights to education, healthcare, and employment; fair and inclusive representation of women, minorities, and oppressed communities; and federalism as everyone’s agenda. However, in the ground people’s lives are still filled with same old pains and will remain so without an economic revolution.”
Speaking on the question of Maoist’s ability to steer people’s agendas, Hisila Yami said, “Before, the issues raised by CPN (Maoist) were perceived as “Maoist’s” but today they have become the voice of all people and all political parties. Therefore, politically speaking, Nepal has substantially changed already. The main challenge now is in making them durable.”
“The biggest hurdle thus far had been the lack of convergence between the leadership and the policies. The agendas and policies were coming from one party and the leadership of government was with different party. And, this was not helpful. This gap has been rectified by the election of Chairman Prachanda as the Prime Minister.”
Minister Yami was welcomed by Dr. Pramod Dhakal, Executive Director, Canada Forum for Nepal. In the program, Dr. Dhakal said, “The basic ingredients of growing the fruits of systems, innovation, prosperity, and equality are found in education, organization, and discipline. Today’s challenge is in making those fundamentals right.”
Attended by an audience of wide interest, this program was jointly organized by Canada Forum for Nepal, University of Toronto Nepal Group, Asia Institute at Munk Centre for International Studies of University of Toronto, and South Asian Peoples Forum of Canada. Having come to Toronto as a Keynote Speaker at NRN-Canada convention, Hisila Yami is visiting well-known institutes and meeting with well-known personalities in Canada.
Press Release Aug 25, 2008)