[van-announce] Vancouver Rally: India Hands off Nepal

[Ian Beeching]

India Hands off 
Nepal

 
Progressive Nepali Forum in Americas ( 
PNEFA) organizes
 
Vancouver 
Rally
 
Join Nepalis and friends of Nepal 
Around the Globe as part of a
 
Global Day of Action Against Indian Aggression in 
Nepal
 
Monday, 
June 15, 2009
 
At 
Noon
 
In front of Consulate General of 
India Office
325 Howe Street, Vancouver, 
Canada
  
 

The Indian Border Security Force (IBSF) last 
week encroached on Nepali lands and committed atrocities along the border areas 
of western district of Dang. These actions resulted in the displacement of more 
than 6000 people from their home villages. Cases of alleged rapes and 
disappearance have also been reported.  What lies behind this attack on Nepali 
sovereignty? In 1816 Nepal was forced to sign a treaty called The Sugauli Treaty 
(also known as the Anglo-Nepal Treaty) by the victorious British colonial 
power.  Due to the unequal terms of this treaty, Nepal lost about one third of 
its territory to the British Raj. The “Brown Sahibs” inherited the Raj in 1947, 
and since that time have grabbed Nepali lands at their will, violating not only 
the UN Charter but also even the 1950 Treaty of Peace and Friendship 1950, a 
treaty which heavily favours Indian domination in Nepal in the first place. Time 
and again, the IBSF has encroached Nepali territory and committed atrocities all 
along three sides of Nepali border: from Jhapa in the east all the way to 
Darchula in the west, where they even have set up a permanent military base. The 
same pattern -- border encroachment, forceful displacement of Nepali villagers, 
shifting of border markers -- into the encroached Nepali land in Susta and 
Maheshpur in the south, and now in the border villages of Dang, lays bare the 
expansionist policy of Indian rulers. India has already encroached about 59,970 
hectares of Nepali territory at 54 points in 21 districts. But if the areas 
affected by the unilateral activities of our southern neighbor such as 
construction of dams and irrigation projects are considered as encroachment, the 
number increases to 85 points. All these cases are well documented. This 
latest encroachment is part of that same policy of Indian expansionism. 
Interestingly, this blatant attack on the national sovereignty of Nepal took 
place soon after Madhav Kumar Nepal, a loser from two constituencies in last 
year's Constituent Assembly (CA) elections, was declared the prime minister of 
Nepal. It is no surprise that his government has been silent on these attacks: 
it is an India-installed puppet government formed from an unethical alliance 
between regressive forces and those unwilling to challenge the status quo. The 
newly installed foreign minister, Sujata Koirala – another loser in the 
democratic CA election – went so far as to claim that there is no issue of land 
encroachment. Her words parroted the press release of the Indian Embassy in 
Kathmandu, issued on the same day, that categorically denied any encroachments, 
calling the concerns of patriotic Nepalis mere fabricated rumors.  
Shame!
 
  
 

Join us at the protest rally, 
help say NO to blatant Indian expansionism in Nepal
 
For more 
information, please contact Abi Sharma (604)506-9259


      __________________________________________________________________
Looking for the perfect gift? Give the gift of Flickr! 

http://www.flickr.com/gift/