Explore: Peace And Famine

The villages of remote and rural Humla, where fear would creep in with every sunset during the Maoist's people's war, are slowly returning to normalcy after the Maoists joined the peace process.

The famine-struck Humlese claim that their lives have become relatively easier compared to the hardships of the past.

Already faced with the prospect of a deadly famine in the wake of three years of relentless drought that has rendered the land unable to sustain crops, the Maoist tax and diktats, including compulsory participation in the CPN-Maoists from every home and permission papers, had further made their lives a living hell.

"Then, we had to ask their permission even to move from one place to another. We had to feed them when they wanted," 56-year old Haru Budha of Srinagar said, adding, "Such provisions have now been removed. We can now move from one place to another as we wish."

The Maoists have declared five VDCs of the Shrinagar area "model areas." For the last four years, outsiders were denied entry while permission papers were introduced for the villagers to move from one place to another.

The Maoists had also imposed a "one permanent member from each house" rule in the area.

From the Shreenagar area alone, the Maoists conscripted 132 youths into their PLA of which the Maoists admit 27 were killed in action.

"In those days, we needed their permission, even to forage for food for our hungry families," Chavi Lal Kunwar of Mail said, adding, "We had to be home by the time they had designated."

On days when they had to leave home, the locals had to furnish details like their destination and the purpose of their visit to the Maoists.

Locals of the region comprising the Shreenagar, Maila, Madana and Jairi VDCs have little knowledge of the government-Maoist talks and peace process back in Kathmandu.

And yet, they are experiencing subtle changes in their lives all the same.

"What, we know little? Why, we know that we will have peace now, the Maoists say so and the few that have radios float such news in the village," one of the only three to pass the SLC exams from Sheenegar, Bikram Budha said. "But, we are at ease."

The direct effect of the peace process can most clearly be seen from the children joining the local school. Suryodaya Secondary School--the only one for all five VDCs--has seen student enrollment double since last year. According to school principle Hari Gorkhali, while there were only 84 students last year, this year, the number has risen to 181.

"After the Maoists issued their compulsory membership decree, there was a drastic decrease in the number of students," Gorkhali said, adding, "Since the situation has eased in the village, enrollment has increased."

For all its worth, Shreenagar is the centre of the region. Besides the school and sub-health post, the food depot is a stark reminder of government presence in the area.

The village peon doubles as the health officer and will only dispense advice owing to the absence of medicines. The food depot was shutdown after the Maoists' presence in the area intensified.

Meanwhile, the locals have urged authorities to reopen the defunct food depot. Local leaders have also stressed the reopening of the sub-health post. Although out of bounds to outsiders in the past, the World Food Programme (WFP), in association with local NGOs, is providing food assistance.

It takes four days to reach the district headquarters and four more to reach the nearby bazaar of Sanfebagar.

"I had contemplated giving up my job," said maths and science teacher at Surodaya School, Rudra Siwakoti. "But now, things are better. I am thinking of not leaving after all." Other teachers echo Siwakoti.

In the past, it was mandatory for teachers and government officers to submit up to seven percent of their income to the Maoists. Likewise, development projects too had to cough up a minimum of seven percent to the Maoists. These days, individuals aren't taxed, but taxes for "development works" continue to be levied on the people of Humla.

"These days, we don't levy taxes.... we did in the past," the CPN-M regional in-charge Lalkesh Joshi said. Stating that the people's government and people's court remained, Joshi said that those too would be dissolved once the Maoists join the interim government.

"Things have become easier for political activism as well," former Nepal Student's Union central member Lokendra Bhandary said. Apart from the Maoists, he seemed to be the only one who was willing to spell out his political leanings.

Even now, it is only the Maoists who openly state their political affiliations. Other party representatives have not gone public.

"We aren't stopping them," Lalkesh said, "We have no idea why they don't carry out their activities in the open."

asscio. with sinchewdaily.
Khim Ghale//

Thailand: Study: Everest Climbers 3 Times More Likely To Die If They're Over 60
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BANGKOK, THAILAND: Climbers over age 60 are three times more likely to die on Mount Everest than the average mountaineer, according to study results released Wednesday (August 15th), as increasing numbers of older people try scaling the world's highest peak.

The age of the typical Everest climber is creeping higher, with records quickly being broken.

In May, retired schoolteacher Katsusuke Yanagisawa became the oldest person to make the 8,850-meter (29,035-foot) summit _ at 71 years, 2 months and 2 days old. He beat the previous record set last year by Japanese compatriot Takao Arayama, who was 70 years, 7 months and 13 days old.

"Before we did this analysis, we didn't know whether age would be important. Younger climbers have a physical advantage, but probably have less experience than older climbers," said University of Washington Prof. Raymond Huey, one of the study's authors.

"We used to refer to this advantage of age as the 'Kareem Abdul-Jabbar effect,' he said, referring to a U.S. basketball star. "As he got older, his physical skills declined but he was so smart and experienced that he was able to compensate and still play professional basketball at the highest levels."

"Unfortunately for older climbers, that effect does not apply on the world's highest mountain," Huey said.

In contrast, Huey said there was very little difference between men and women's chances of summiting Everest or dying on the mountain.

The study met with some skepticism among the mountaineering community in Nepal's capital, Katmandu, where many climbers gather before attempting Everest. Some said the number of older climbers was too small to extrapolate any significant conclusions.

"In general, older people have better adaptation to the environment in high altitude than younger climbers," said Ang Karma of the Nepal Mountaineering Federation. "They seem to perform better, and most of them come with experience."

The study found that many more people in general are trying to climb Everest than 30 years ago, and that their average age is rising. Before 2000, the study found 18.7% of climbers were over 40 and only 0.3% over 60. From 2000 to 2005, 45.6% were over 40 and 3.6% over 60.

Huey attributed the phenomenon to a proliferation of guided expeditions, and to older climbers having more money to pay for such trips. He also said older adults are more fit than they were in the past.

The study, published in Britain's Royal Society online journal Biology Letters, examined data from 2,211 mountaineers during the 1990-2005 spring climbing seasons.

It found that a climber's overall chances of reaching the summit were nearly 31 percent _ but dropped to 13% for climbers in their 60s.

The chances of dying on the mountain were 1.5%, but they more than tripled to 5% for climbers 60 and older.

The findings run counter to a 2000 study in the Journal of Gerontology that found people in their 60s could safely climb peaks of about 26,300 feet. Mount Everest is about 29,030 feet.

Other authors of the study are Richard Salisbury, a database analyst and mountaineering historian in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and statisticians Jane-Ling Wang and Meng Mao at the University of California, Davis.

Huey said older climbers grapple not only with declining physical capacities, but also with a higher degree of caution.

"By the time you are 50 or 60, you've probably been banged up once or twice," he said.

"You know it hurts, and you've seen consequences of losing fingers or toes to frostbite," he said. "So older climbers are probably more cautious, but I can't determine whether it's greater caution, reduced fitness or a combination of the two that explains the lower success rate for older climbers."

Hundreds of climbers have scaled Everest since New Zealander Edmund Hillary and Sherpa Tenzing Norgay conquered the peak on May 29, 1953. More than 2,000 climbers have scaled the mountain. Some 205 people have died on its unpredictable slopes. (By MICHAEL CASEY/ AP)


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�� In this photo provided by Japanese mountain guide Hiroyuki Kuraoka, 71-year-old Japanese mountain climber Katsusuke Yanagisawa, left, looks from atop the summit of Mount Everest after becoming the oldest person to scale it, in this May 22nd, 2007 file photo. Climbers over age 60 are three times more likely to die on Mount Everest than the average mountaineer, according to study results released Wednesday, August 15th, 2007, as increasing numbers of older people try scaling the world's highest peak. (Photo courtesy: AP Photo/Hiroyuki Kuraoka,File) (Large)

- GetYour Own

Italian Man, 89, Sets Record With Mountain Climb

Cool Lifestyle Other Regions Record Sports Z-Show All 2007-07-09 09:22
ROME, ITALY: An 89-year-old Italian man set a record on Sunday (July 8th) when he became the oldest person to climb nearly 3,000-metres to the top of a mountain, a news agency reported.

Piero Paci, who turns 90 on October 6, reached the top of the Gran Sasso of Abruzzo, an altitude of 2,914 metres (9,560 feet), Ansa agency said.

He opted not to make the climb on his birthday because he would have had to deal with snow.

Paci, from Pesaro in central-eastern Italy, was accompanied on the climb by his son and a group of friends.

(AFP)

The North American Network for Democratic Republic of Nepal (NANDRON) is organizing a Town Hall meeting in Houston, Texas, to discuss current political developments with a view to encourage political leaders and other interest groups to have Nepal declared a Republic as soon as possible to that elections to Constituent Assembly could be conducted fairly in free environment.

Date: Monday, September 3, 2007
Time: 10 am till 3 pm
Location: 12801 Northwest Freeway
Houston,TX77040

Contact: Hari Paudel (281-469-7527)