Dear NRN-Canada Members!
Namaste!
The Government of Nepal, through its foreign resident Embassies/Missions in respective countries, has asked NRNs to provide suggestions for incorporation of NRN related issues into the new Constitution of Nepal. This is an ideal and timely opportunity to gather perspectives of the people of Nepali origin living in Canada, collate and develop them into a set of our recommendations for inclusion by the Constituent Assembly into the new Constitution of Nepal.
NRN-Canada National Coordinating Council requests all people of Nepali origin living in Canada for their input to the process. For this purpose, a suggestion box (Leave a Reply) has been provided below for interested individuals to submit inputs by 21 February 2009. You can also discuss your suggestions with your local Council member in person or send suggestions by email to <nrn.canada@gmail.com>
. NRN-Canada National Council will also consider/discuss suggestions and ideas brought forward during the various interaction programs held across the country. Based on the inputs collated, a formal set of NRN-Canada’s recommendations will be prepared by a national level Special Task Force led by Dr. Shiva Giri, which will then be presented to the NRNA-ICC and the Constituent Assembly of Nepal (with copies to local resident missions of Nepal).
Thank you in advance for participating in this epoch making process, by providing suggestions with respect to NRN related issues as well as general issues to be addressed in the new Constitution.
Sincerely,
Naba Raj Gurung
President
NRN-Canada National Coordinating Council
Website: http://www.nrn-canada.org/
P.S.: Please do not bother about the Possibly Related Items (automatically generated) below, as we have no control over them. Please goto the Leave a Reply box at the bottom directly.
NRN-Canada Annual General Meeting & Convention-2014 
The New Constitution of Nepal shall have following provisions of a dual Citizenship to accommodate Canadian NRNs:
1) Nepali dual citizenship should be defined in the new Constitution of Nepal as a Nepali citizenship received along with the concurrent possession of a valid citizenship of another country outside SAARC region.
2) If a person first received Nepali citizenship and later became Canadian citizen, her/his Nepali citizenship should continue as a Nepali dual citizenship along with her/his Canadian citizenship.
3) If a person is qualified to receive Nepali citizenship based on her/his inheritance or birth, and has already received Canadian citizenship first, s/he shall be illigible for receiving a Nepali dual citizenship.
The New Constitution of Nepal shall have the following provisions to protect the property rights of NRNs in Nepal:
1) If a NRN possesses legally earned or inherited movable or immovable property, investment, earnings or pensions in Nepal, her/his rights on all those properties shall be protected as equal to any other citizen of Nepal under the provision of a Nepali dual citizenship.
I endorse the proposal for dual citizenship for NRNs.
In addition to issues directly affecting NRNs, we should also provide inputs on issues related to Nepalese residing in Nepal to make sure that we also help positively contribute to laying a strong foundation for building New Nepal. For example, transformation of education system- change in curriculum, & provision to make high school (10+2) education more practical and skill oriented; so high school graduates can shape their future based on their practical learning experience.
No doubt, dual citizenship is our emphasis.
NRNs should be able to offer help to lay the groundwork for meaningful change by stimulating strategic thinking and focusing on activities that help bring awareness, enthusiasm and possibilities. There should be provision to include NRNs in knowledge sharing, innovation support, co-operation in mobilizing resources and communication for development of New Nepal. We should be able to create a united community comprising of Residents, Non-Resident Nepalese and Well-Wishers of Nepal committed to participate and contribute in the development activities in Nepal and collectively care for Nepal.
Dual citizenship is our first priority.
Nepal should have easy mechanism and process for receiving dual citizenship, no hassle and not like India.
Dual citizenship obviously will be the main priority, I believe, of all regular NRNs, with regular I mean not considering any special status of any individual living abroad:
1. Not relate to any financial investment pecularities;
2. Be treated equally in terms of gender even if our Society is
Patriarchal – meaning if needed Father’s name be not questioned
while obtaining citizenship;
3. The new constitution should create positive atmosphere to experts
willing to return back to Motherland with intention to further serve her;
4. Should be some provision for children born for both NRN parents
outside Nepal.
The concept and ramification of duel citizenship is complex and arduous especially in our case as Nepal is one of the poorest countries of the world. Our demand for duel citizenship should be an output of a tradeoff between maximum benefits that mass of the Nepalese living across the world can reap and the burden of sacrifice that our motherland can tolerate. In a real time scenario the benefits as well as the sacrifices are heavily influenced by economical, social, political and other factors. At the same, it is also important to make a study of the current practices exercised by SAARC countries. In a nutshell, attention can be attached to the following facets in order to beget a congenial modality:
1.Countries to be identified for the purpose of not providing Duel Citizenship status
2.The levels of generation that needs to be taken care of- in our case up to third level could be an excellent idea
3.The cut off date for filing duel citizenship (for example OCI goes back to 1947 under specific circumstance)
4.The clear cut terms and conditions for citizenship card and alternatives for citizenship card. These terms and conditions must define the procedures to file duel citizenship, cost, minimum years to live/lived in Nepal. Economic capacity to file an application for duel citizenship differs from region to region and countries to countries of the world. So tariff for this purpose could be decided based on the foreign exchange parity of the countries or region concerned.
5.Criteria for a child holding foreign birth certificate/passport and whose one of the parents at least hold Nepali citizenship/passport or holds a duel citizenship
6.Right to the property transfer/purchase i. e., clear identification of assets/property that a duel citizenship holder can buy/sale
7.Generating a “post duel citizenship classification of activities” that NRN can undertake and are not allowed to undertake ( For instance, one of the SAARC countries does not allow mountaineering)
I have the following suggestions:
1. Dual citizenship right is a must
2. The right of obtaining the Nepalese citizenship by the descendants of dual citizens must be addressed in the new constitution. It must be always open and not bound by time.
I would like to see radical changes in education system. We have seen how many times we explained about Nepal’s education system( 10 years high school, 2- years Bachelor sucks…).
New Constitution should include strongly and clearly following things about Education:
1. High with 12 years of education with Free and mandatory to all.
2. All bachelor program must be 4 years, with 2 years Diploma options for early graduate seekers.
3. And, I give my vote of thanks to DUAL citizenship to NRNs.
4. Finally, the most talked and sensitive FEDERALISM should not be based on Caste (JAT/JATI), Pahad/Terai(Madhesh)/Himal. It should be practical, realistic and optimistic with proper distribution of resources in term of water, fertile land and touristic places.
Dual citizenship is the vital tool for us Nepalese diaspora. I strongly endorse this proposal for all NRNs in the new constitution. We all have strong ties back home and it would be nice to retire in New Nepal.
Suggestions;
1. Dual Citizenship: dual citizenship is the most vital issues in terms of diaspora. New Nepal would definitely look to experience the benefit of it, but while defining the citizenship, it should not be discriminated by gender, enthnicity, locality and duration living outside Nepal.
2. Investment: Investment opportunities by diaspora must be defined and maximised opportunities of investment without mentioning certain sectors; and security and protection be defined/provided.
policy
3. Embassy: Today, Nepalese live every corner of the world and there’re hundreds of places, wherie we need Nepali Embassy/consulate, hence, the previous policy be revised and new nepal should be able to provide require services to all nepalese living abroad.
4.
So far great suggestions… At the same time, we should be careful not to overwhelm the authorities. Conceivably, there will be a large number of letters pouring in from NRNs in many countries making hundreds of suggestions to the Constitution Assembly. We should concentrate on what matters us as NRNs. The number one and conceivably the only agenda is going to be the issue of duel citizenship.
Here are my two cents for the principles under which the Letter could be drafted:
1. Put utmost focus on the benefits to Nepal. Obviously, this is where we will score the most- in terms of the favour NRNs need from the CA.
2. Ask for more- more than what we think we will get. Why not even ask for ‘unconditional’ dual citizenship. After all, the whole idea is driven by the good cause- love for and betterment of the motherland!
3. Limit or entirely eliminate any detail in terms of the specifics. We must try and secure the general rights as citizens of a country. However, we should remember to ask for an opportunity at a later time to review and comment on the details that might affect various wishes of NRNs.
Thanks, Nabaji for the opportunity!
I also support dual citizenship as many Nepalese living outside Nepal knows and feels strong ties to Nepal. During NRN meetings, many Nepalese living outside Nepal has expressed their desire to improve Nepal if they are given the opportunity to hold dual citizenship. So, new Nepal should accept this and work towards providing dual citizenship but with proper and documented way. It should have clear rules and regulations such as property rights, trading rights, government and public should all be able to view these information, information should be accessible to anyone not just to few administration person.
Secondly, to truly improve Nepal education is the top priority. Without literate citizens, a country cannot survive or be advance. So, education is very important and I suggest government should invest on opening government schools where students receive free education just like Canadian education system. Students are given mandatory free education up to grade 10 or 12 that way everyone has knowledge of how the world and society works and all are given equal opportunity to succeed in life. For higher education government should provide loans to students etc. Government should also focus on creating jobs for students and open up skill training schools like sewing classes, computer classes, handcraft etc.
The issue of dual citizenship for the NRNs is paramount. This is not only for the first generation Nepalis who left Nepal in the last 10-20 years, but also for several future generations of Nepali parents who will be born outside of Nepal. Nepal will benefit tremendously by such flexibility, currently from those Nepalis who are competent in international job market in all possible fields that can be named-such as those employed by various Government ministries in Canada, as well as those working in reputed NGOs, hospitality industry, banking, finance and private sector. There is a potentiality of hugh knowledge and skill transfer to Nepal by these NRNs. Secondly, the future generation of Nepalis who are born and raised in Canada possess high potential of contributing for the ovreall development of Nepal.
I gathered that NRN-Canada organized a number of community interaction programs from October through February in various cities across Canada and the issue of dual citizenship was top on the priority of the community members. Therefore, I request NRN-Canada to immediatele write to the Constituent assembly of Nepal, basing on the information gathered from the Interaction program as an evidence, a recommendation letter with demand and elaboration of dual citizenship. I believe that this letter should go within the deadline set by the Constituent assembly, which is Falgun 2. When we write, we should write with broad demands, not worrying about intricacies at this point.
NRN-Canada should also touch on other pertinent issues such as universal healthcare, universal education and federalism. These are three key issues the Canadians can contribute significantly based on Canada’s unique experience. However, these needs a bit of analysis, and the recommendation should be sent at a later date to the high level task force headed by Prof Surya Subedi, with all 45 Presidents included as members of that task force.
In New Nepali constitution, some points must be address…
(1) Dual-Citizenship for Nepalese living overseas is necessary. It is win-win situation for Nepalese people and country. But dual citizenship must be given or design with very carefully.
(2) To grand dual citizenship, Nepali person or family must be present or prove investment in motherland Nepal. Citizenship must have meaningful but not free for troublemakers. Nepalese must show and prove some minimum contribution toward country.
(3) In the case of criminal activities, constitution must control or full power to arrest, prosecute and punishment people who hold dual citizenship of Nepal. Law must be above all. Nepal should not be safe heave for Criminals.
Suggestion for Dual or Multiple Citizenship of Nepal:
In the New Constitution it should be mentioned – “The person who is citizen of Nepal in the beginning of this constitution or at any time there after will be eligible for Overseas Citizen of Nepal under the limitation and provision of the Citizenship Act of Nepal”
In the Citizenship Act of Nepal, these provisions should be included:
“According to the provision of the constitution the Overseas Citizen of Nepal should not enjoy the following rights even if resident in Nepal –the right to hold the office of President, Vice-President, the Prime Minister and member of council of ministers, the Judge of the Supreme Court, the member of parliament and the member of constitutional council. Similarly, in the provincial(state) level – the Governor ( Pradesh Pramukha), the Chief Minister, member of the council of state ministers, member of state assembly/ council and the judge of high court (appeal court).Excluding above restrictions the Overseas Nepalese Citizen can have overseas-country’s passport simultaneously with an Nepali one and can enjoy all the privileges of the Nepalese constitution and laws as other Nepalese citizens.
THIS IS DEFINITELY WIN WIN SITUATION FOR NEPAL AND NEPALEASE
LIVING OVERSEAS.
Dual Citizenship is the most important issue for the NRNs. It will definitely benefit NRNs and Our Motherland. Education system should be under Provincial government making it more scientific, practical and must have opportunity for everyone. Education, Health Care, information and economical rights must be written as a fundamental rights in new constitution of Nepal. State must be responsible for disable and senior citizens.
New Constitution of Nepal should address “Dual Citizenship” for NRNs:
1. living outside SAARC region.
2. Should have some connection; for example, property, investments, social or community support and/or family relationship.
3. should have citizenship before this New Constitution
4. for children of NRNs, one of the parents should be NRN.
5. Should have rights, privilege, obligation, responsibility as equal as the Nepalese Citizen with some restrictions such as security and/or, Federal Government service.
6. Should have constitutional power to control as Nepalese Citizen (prosecution and punishment for criminal activities).
Main Suggestions for New Constitution:
In the new constitution the following main provisions should be mentioned:
In the preamble:
……We the sovereign people of Democratic Republic Nepal …expressing full commitments towards fundamental rights and human rights, full press freedom, independent judiciary, periodic election based on adult franchise, to fulfil basic needs of the Nepalese people through the competitive multiparty and inclusive political system, …keeping prosperity and peace ,sovereignty and integrity, independence and dignity of the secular country… etc.
In the Preliminary:
…Constitution is the Fundamental Law of Nepal and all law inconsistent with this constitution shall, to the extent of such inconsistency, be void. It shall be the duty of every person to uphold this constitution and the sovereignty and state authority shall be vested in Nepalese people…all the languages spoken as the mother tongue in Nepal are the national languages of Nepal and the Nepali language in Devanagari script shall be the official language. And other provisions should include as the present Interim Constitution.
In the Citizenship:
All provisions of the present Interim Constitution should be include and Overseas Nepalese Citizenship provision, as I have above already suggested, should be mentioned.
In the Fundamental and Human Rights:
All provisions of present Interim Constitution are Ok, the restriction for “Nepal Banda” should include in the Fundamental Duties. If any political party or any Trade Union calls for “Nepal Banda” the responsible persons will be members of the central committee of the political party and the central executive members of the trade union. If any death and damage occurs through this illegal activity the victim can sue the concerning person including the above mentioned persons.
In the Directive Principle of State policy:
Top priority for employment, food and security of citizens should be given by the central and provincial governments. And the monthly salary and other expenses from the state- fund for President, Vice President, Prime Minister and Member of Council of Ministers, Member of Parliament should not be over than basic needs. These provisions should be included in the Directive Principle of State Policy.
Structure of the State, Government and Parliament:
It should be federal type of government with some features of unitary type of one. Central, Provincial State(Pradesh), District, Sub-District (including few V.D.C / Municipality) V.D.C/ Municipality and Ward will be the administrative units of the government.
In Central level, the President and the Vice-President should be elected for 5 years through the indirect voting system. The voters will be the members of Parliament, Provincial state( Pradesh), District, Sub-District, Municipality ,V.D.Cand Ward. If one voter holds more than one position of the above he/she can cast only one vote in this election.
The Prime Minister should be the elected by House of Representative (Pratinidhi Sabha).If any Political party has not majority in House of Representative and if the parties can not form the government as a coalition government the President can nominate the leader of the the largest party of the House of Representative. If the minority government can not get vote of confidence from House of Representative and if other coalition government cannot form the minority government can call the re-election for the member House of Representative by dissolving it.
The National Council and House of Representative will be the Parliament( Rastriya Byabasthapika) Member of the House of Representative will be elected from different constituencies. The voter will be 18 Years old Nepalese Citizens. But the National Council will be formed different system. This will form under the proportional representative election. According to numbers of 18 years old ethnic group-Dalit( in Pahadiya Dalit and Madesi Dalit will get one quota one Cast group(e.g. Bishwokarma group will have one quota at least) Limbu, Rai, Gurung,Magar, Tamang, Sherpa, Newar,Tharu,Yadav, Purbiya Bahun, Kumai Bahun, Kshetri, Madhesi Bramhan , Madesi Kshetri( Rajput.,Rajbansi etc.) Raute, Chepang ,Kusnuda,etc. For hundred thousand Voter can have one seat- quota for National Council and for 50 thousand one quota for State council .The above ethnic groups will elect their representative for 5 years according to the quota. In Provincial level same system will be follow for State Council ( Rajya Parisadh). And the State Assembly ( Rajya Sabha ) will elected by 18 years old citizen residing in relating province and constituency. The chief Minister will be elected from the members of State Assembly and State Council under the secret ballot voting system. The President can nominate few persons from the reputed and learned persons of the nation .The quota will be 3persent of the elected members of the National assembly and State Assembly. The State Assembly can not the power to stop the Financial Bill recommended by House of Representative, in other bills both houses have equal power. The Vice President will be the Chairperson of the National Assembly. The Speaker will be elected by Members of house of Representative. And the duration of member of House of Representative will be four Years.
The Present C.D.O. will be the under the Governor (Pradesh Pramukh) and the Governor will be nominated by the President under the recommendation of Prime Minister. he Chief Minister will elected by the 18 years old citizen of the provincial state through the direct voting system.
Judiciary
The Supreme Court, High Court( Appeal Court) District Court, Small Claimed Court, Special court will be in different level. If the impeachment passed by the two third majority of both house’s joint session ( Rastriya Sabha and Pratinidhi Sabha) the Supreme Court Judge will be removed from the post. The President and Vice- President also will removed the same process.
Name of the Provincial State (Pradesh):
If we need give the name based on the name of ethnic group it will be win- win solution if we give the name as follows:
Limbu-Arya Pradesh , Khumbu- Arya Pradesh, Mithila Arya -Pradesh, Tamsaling-Arya Pradesh, Gurung-Arya Pradesh,Newa –Arya Pradesh, Tharu-Arya Pradesh, Magar Arya Pradesh etc. as required. In Nepal, mixed ethnic groups are living together. So, it is better to be inclusive
(” Arya” word includes, Bramhan, Kshetry, Baishya and Shudra Actually, these were not cast of people. These were the divisions of working groups based on efficiency and ability in the ancient time .Such as who had knowledge to make instruments/ goods from metal they were called ” Bishwakarma”( like a mechanical engineer). Now a days every cast can work different job and all are equal too. we can find ,still the division of working groups based on occupation in different society including Madhesi society and Newari society.In Sanskrt Language “Bramhan” means ” Ya Brmha Janati , Sa Bramhan”. The meaning is that person who knows the knowledge of all planets (Bishwo – Bramhand) he/she is called Bramhan.So,every body me be called Bramhan if he/she has knowledge of Bishwo-Bramhand.) So, all human being are equal.
Power of the Central ( Federal )Government:
The Federal government can make the police and implement it including about about foreign affairs, currency, security ( Army and Armed police force, hiring and firing of Government employees, natural resources and 50 percent income from all the districts .
Inclusive Constitutional council:
To appoint the member of different constitutional council like Loksewa Ayoga, Nirbachan Ayoga will be inclusive including Prime Minister and opposition leader from both level ( Central and Provincial State level ) etc.
Due to the limitation of time I could not mention in details. I apologise for this.
Due to pressure of time, there are repetition and omisstion of words and grammatical mistakes in my above mentioned suggestions.I realize it and request to reader to correct them and to understand the sense.
Suggestions for New Constitution in Nepal
1. There should be ceremonial president system and the president should be elected by the parliament for a term of 5 years
2. Prime minister should work as a chief executive of the country. Number of ministers/ assistant ministers should not exceed 10% of the total parliamentary members.
3. President should be the supreme commander of the Nepal Army.
4. Local government should be given full autonomy in terms of powers and authority regarding revenue collection and mobilizing local resources.
5. There should be one Member of Parliament for every two hundred thousand population (2 Lakh). The total no of representative in the house should not exceed 200.
6. One upper house permanent parliament should be established for 6 years term not exceeding 45 members in total. Fifteen members should receive termination at each two year’s term.
7. Provision of an independent constitutional body like public service commission, election commission, anti-corruptions, auditor general including a high level human rights commission in the constitution. The role of the government should be supportive and collaborative rather than directive.
8. Impartial, professional and service oriented civil services should be maintained in the country. The constitution should guarantee protection and promotion of its civil servants.
9. Democratic rights and freedom (of press/opinion etc.) should be guaranteed by the constitution.
10. There should provision of equality rights, the right to be treated equal before the law and the right be free from favoritism or discrimination irrespective of religion, region, caste, color and politics.
11. Independent judiciary system should be stated in the constitution and this should be free from any political interferences. Professional legal experts should be appointed from within the appeal court judges.
12. Realizing the role of NRN in Nepal’s overall development, provision of dual citizenship is a must in the constitution.
Another Perspective
Dear Readers,
A Nepali Diaspora has been created around the world over the decades and centuries. However the exodus of good number of Nepalis from Nepal has taken place in the last twenty to forty years. For most Nepalis who have come to Canada or gone to other countries and have taken citizenship within the last two to four decades their soul is totally attached to Nepal, our mother/ancestral land, therefore they do desire immensely the provision of dual citizenship. If that is possible, dual citizenship (D.C) should be the foremost NRN request the Government of Nepal should take into consideration while writing ‘The New Nepali Constitution.’
However, the same constitution should not overlook all other NRNs who have crossed the boundary of Nepal over the decades and centuries to explore the world and test waters of unknown lands making way for many others to follow. These NRNs have always kept the Nepaliness in their hearts by traveling back to Nepal frequently, keeping the Nepali cultural heritage and language alive and intact, and maintaining the connection of Nepali Diaspora across the world.
What if these NRNs want to be connected with Nepal legally/formally with their ancestral land: Would they also get dual citizenship? If not, what then? Do we have a cut off date from the time one gets a D.C and the other doesn’t? Until how many generations down the future can a family hold on to the D.C? Will there be a cut off date in future? If there is a cut off date then what happens for the ones who don’t fall in that category? If there are arbitrary cut off dates then the privileged few NRNs within the artificial era might enjoy D.C and others might dangle high and dry. There are many questions many of us have which haven’t been asked here.
Keeping in mind the history of the NRNs, Nepali constitution should have a place to honour hundreds and thousand of NRNs who doesn’t fall within the artificial era (if there is one). We should honour them because the past generations have risked their lives to protect Nepaliness across the world, and have demonstrated courage and valour, and everywhere they went spread the existence of Nepal as a Nation and not a province or territory of another country around the globe. Just for a minute think of the recent Bombay terrorist attack when a white lady was under the terror, she saw many people running up and down but did not trust any one of them until she saw a Gorkha and said to herself that now she was safe in the protection of a Gorkha. In the world, the Nepalis are prominently known more for their courage, valour and hard work.
For now, I can think of a Nepali Heritage Card (NHC) for all NRNs who have ancestral Nepali Lineage and fall under an appropriate definition.
An NHC can give every NRN of today and distant future a legal tool to be proud of their Nepali Lineage. The NHC can be called by any other suitable name. The proud owner of this document might have legal rights as defined by the law, for examples: can own property, own business, enter into Nepal and travel freely without visa, work in any appropriate field….
A Heritage Card is not a new concept. We all Canadians know very well of the heritage card proudly owned by the Aboriginal people of Canada, and it holds their identity.
As for the submission of suggestions and appeal, it is time bound; however, I would like to point out that an important submission of this nature should have much more time for debate and discussions. May be we should request for permission to submit new ideas continuously for few more months.
In conclusion, I we would like to submit the following suggestions:
A) A provision be made for dual citizenship
B) A provision be made for a Heritage Card
C) Time to time prominent NRNs be honoured by Nepal with awards, recognitions…….
D) A permanent ministry may be established to look after the interests of NRNs.
E) An NRN High Commission should be established in Nepal to look after the interests of NRNs.
There are more issues to be discussed which might surface in other discussions.
We need to have small groups of open brainstorming conferences to debate and discuss NRN issues which need to be submitted to the higher authorities. Such a process can bring out hidden issues to the surface so that we can be surer that we have spoken for all- rich and poor, educated and others, all genders, all ethnic groups, professionals and non-professionals, able and disabled, current and future generations….. Our debates should be governed by good ethics and clear conscience and not by individual vested interests. It has to be for ‘THE GREATER GOOD,’ that is good for Nepal and all NRNs.
I hope many will sincerely read and think about the issues I have raised. I would also like to invite comments on the issues raised.
Cheers
Chitra Pradhan
Winnipeg, MB
President should be semi ceremonial to share and reduce the work load of the Prime Minister who will be really busy and surrounded by conflict and tension of country.
The qualification of the President should be at least Bachelor Degree in any subject and age should be not less than 45 years old. If we elect the President through indirect voting system and the voters will be the members of all level of people’s representative (from V.D.C. to M.P then we can save expenses and avoid the abuse money and fear of weapon in election. The President should be chief of Army. He/she should have power to appoint the Commander in Chief under the recommendation of Council of Ministers. To appoint the head of the constitutional bodies among the recommendation list of the constitutional council in which at least the oppositional leaders and chief persons of the both houses.
The Upper House should be made Ethnic house elected by different ethnic group on the basis proportional representation and the lower House should be formed on the basis of popular adult franchise election.
Amendment of the Constitution:
The constitution should be amended from the decision of two third majority of both houses of the National Legislative ( Rastriya Byabasthapika ).In the amendment the
provisions of fundamental and human rights, democratic norms and value and the integrity and sovereignty of the country cannot be amended.
Inclusive Provision : In the screening test , based on popular measures, if any persons from any ethnic group pass test then he/she should be nominated or hired.
The guiding principle should encourage the government to fulfil the basic needs of people and create the maximum opportunities of employment. The nation should be move on the path of socialist democratic society.
________________________________________
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Namaste Everybody!
All ethic Nepalese cherish the concept of being Nepali in all respect (language, culture, dress, outlook) and that remains a defining character among those living in different countries’ Diasporas. The political parties and leaders in Nepal may like to think much broadly to encompass this mass sentiment that resides in Nepali people that living around the world. The constitution making is an opportunity for Nepal to look beyond the box and be inclusive of all Nepalese in its manifestations and dialogue.
We live in a globalized world facilitated by rich information technology that makes it possible to discuss and reach all within seconds. The Nepaliness among the Nepalese in the Diaspora is even greater and it is not confined to only current and former citizens of Nepal.
In my view, harnessing this sentiment in the cause of nation building would be the right approach and the emerging constitution should take this broader encompassing definition of Nepali that includes all those residents in the west and even more so those that live with the SAARC region. I do not think the constitution should exclude the Nepali Diaspora in the region. Nepalese all over the world can contribute in nation building not only through investment of dollars but much more strongly in preserving and celebrating the Nepali cultural heritage and spreading the message of peace that all Nepalese would like to promote beyond Nepal at the international level. In order to do this the constitution should move beyond parochial, party and sectarian definition of Nepali people and culture. It should also move beyond gender and ethnic divide and look at all Nepalese as one member of the same family that the Monarchy had preserved for generations. In this sense I feel that Nepalese residing in all countries deserve to be called Nepalese for the fact that their lineage is the same.
We are all quiet but permanent ambassadors of Nepali cultural heritage and need to be saluted for promoting the lineage and heritage. The constitution might like to debate on this issue and give a much broader definition and include as large section of Nepalese living outside as possible. Nepal is not going to loose by broadening this definition but enrich by extending its unpaid volunteers around the world. It is question of touching on the Nepali sentiment that all Nepalese carry. In reciprocating what ethnic Nepalese are doing by promoting the cultural heritage in other countries they should be encouraged to retain and cherish their identity and return to Nepal as any Nepali citizen. We are Nepalese citizens by inheritance of the race.
I appreciate the opportunity provided to share some of these thoughts and I hope these ideas can be considered.
Please see my suggestions above and I would like the city that I live in to be added in it which is Winnipeg, Canada.
Concerning Dear All,
Some answers and explanations are needed from the supporters of who want to propose the following provisions:
About Heritage Card :
1,What are the differences between Canadian Heritage Card- provisions and proposed
heritage card from Nepal?
2, If the context are same and there is no differences between them what will be negative impact to the country (Nepal), if the country start to issue this card ?-population will increase or not in the country , it will effect the economy or not , it will open the door for all Nepalese-Indian, Burmese- Nepalese etc. or not ?)
3,What are the advantages for the country and for the card holder from this Heritage Card provision in the Nepalese constitution ? Please explain these !!
……………………………………………………………………………………..
About Dual Citizenship;
1, How can we make the unconditional provision of dual citizenship ?
Let us think, if a Nepalese –Canadian ,being a citizen of Canada wins the election and
be the minister Canada and the same person at the same time as a citizen holds the
position of Nepalese Minister by fulfilling the legal requirement in Nepal , how is
his/her position or how can he/she fulfill the responsibilities ?
2, If we are thinking to provide dual citizenship of Nepal to the passport holder Nepalese
language speakers of India, Myanmar( Burma), Bhutan, Thailand etc., is it possible ?
3, How many Nepalese language speakers are living in the different parts of India as a
citizen ?
4, Is it possible to a small and poor country, like Nepal?
About Ceremonial President:
Why we need Rubber Stamped President with economic burden (remuneration, allowance, housing, pension etc.)?
Please explain about the questions if you have any vision about the issues?
At last ,we request to response and submit your reactions / suggestions about the on going movement of “Jatiya –Rajya” or “Bhatiya-Rajya” for mentioning the provision in the new constitution of Nepal, if you are conscious and knowledgeable about the motherland –facing problems ! Thanks !!
Suggestions for New Constitution:
I do not like to name the Pradesi k-Rajya on the basis of any particular cast or ethnic group. If we decide to name on the basis of cast or ethnic group , it will be better to name the Pradesik-Rajya on the basis of common ethnic group’s name. Including about Dual Citizenship , structure of the country, political system, fundamental and human rights , provision s I agree with the above mentioned suggestions of Prasai’s .
In the constitution, the provision of food, house,clothesand rights of people need to include. In other things I agree with Mr. Prasai’s above mentioned suggestions.
Gentle Reminder:
We have thousands of NRNs in Canada, and yet so few suggestions! The NRN Canada blog is for you to have your say. Please put forward a variety of ideas and suggestions which might be simmering in your head. This is like a brainstorming page. There are no wrong suggestions as long as your statements are to create ideological debate and not personal attacks.
Who knows, a simple idea might become a headline statement in the Nepali Constitution. WE DO NOT HAVE TO BE ROCKET SCIENTISTS to put forward ideas. Please do not wait for the vocal few to have your ‘say,’ rather you say your say.
If your friends do not know about this blog, please help them to find it. Your ideas and suggestions will be the strength of the NRN recomendation letter to the Constituent Assembly.
Chitra Pradhan, Winnipeg
Citizenship and Nepal’s Innovation Systems
The concept of citizenship is changing with increasing transnational mobility of human beings and greater concerns for our planet earth. his urges us to redefine citizenship in new ways, and subsequently challenging the conventional view of citizens as residents of a particular country. In its simplest meaning, citizenship is the state of being a member of a particular country or a group of countries and having rights and responsibilities because of it. For example, dual citizenship provides membership of two countries at a time, joint citizenship presents association of an individual with two or more countries, and global citizenship relates to self-declared responsibility to our planet earth. Indeed, we are global citizens.
Dual or joint citizenship has become a genuine demand of time, not an option in the 21st century. Global citizenship is not only necessary to find new ways of addressing global problems, such as climate change, food crisis and financial crisis but also local problems, such as poverty, hunger, malnutrition, social exclusion, having global implications. The more we interact as global citizens, the better solutions can emerge.
International migration is one way to facilitate human interaction as global citizens. In this process, both sending and receiving countries can benefit from transnational act of learning and innovation, the former can benefit more than the latter, specifically if the sending country is less developed. Dual citizenship is one way to facilitate this process. But how is the country like Nepal that sends immigrants benefits more than a receiving country?
Based on a study of the World Bank Institute, in an earlier guest column I discussed five major ways diaspora can contribute the building of national innovation systems of a sending country, with specific example of Nepal: remittance, donation, investment, learning and innovation, and institutional reforms. How does a provision of dual citizenship to Nepalese diaspora can facilitate these ways of building new Nepal, and what implications would it have for a receiving country like Canada where dual citizenship is a long tradition? Why should sending countries like Nepal keep on bothering about dual citizenship if they are gainers in this global exchange of knowledge and skills?
Within the economic realm, sending countries need to change their preoccupation that diaspora are simply the source of remittance. Remittance flow can continue without the provision of dual citizenship as long as individuals hold loyalties based on privately held identities, such as religion, race, ethnicity, kinship and ideology.
Similarly, human beings as global citizens are free to donate money irrespective of citizenship. Official grants for international development come through the tax payers, the citizens of developed countries who may not have traveled to developing countries. Moreover, an individual citizen in a developed country like Canada sponsors a child in developing countries irrespective of his or her citizenship. However, citizenship matters for investment, innovation and institutional reforms.
Then how joint or dual citizenship facilitates innovation and growth in a low-income country? Individuals are more likely to invest in a country where they have continuous connection and belongingness, let alone a citizenship. It is a way to give back.
The first generation diaspora are more obliged to give back because the sending country invested a lot on them. The subsequent generations of diaspora would also consider giving back to their ancestral land provided enough connections are maintained. This is why the first generation diaspora are seriously concerned to raise their kids in between two cultures, teaching values of both sending and receiving countries. Joint or dual citizenship can facilitate this process.
Regardless of the provision of dual citizenship in sending countries, receiving countries like Canada have substantial investments for developing language and culture of people with diverse cultural heritage. This is an expression of tolerance in a receiving country. It would be ironic if a sending country fails to express similar tolerance against her diaspora community. Professor Richard Florida writes that technology, talent and tolerance (3T) are three key ingredients for the prosperity of an economy.
In the 21st century, if nation states are competing for anything, it is mainly for talents. The new source of international competence lies on learning and innovation. Specifically, English speaking countries, such as Canada, the US, the UK, Australia and New Zealand, encourage their international graduate students to stay after graduation. Joint or dual citizenship can be a way to retain or attract talented people. While people are inherently on the move, a provision of joint citizenship of sending and receiving country is very important to maintain two-way human mobility and to facilitate transnational learning and innovation. But how can we increase our tolerance in terms of citizenship?
Citizenships are either based on jus sanguinis (based on blood or race as in Germany) or jus soli (based on birth right as in most other countries). If Nepal’s new constitution adopts a mixed approach to define Nepalese citizenship integrating these two bases, Nepalese diaspora would automatically fall under the new definition of Nepalese citizenship.
Wherever people travel for whatever reasons, they are recognized based on the cultural heritage of sending countries, such as Nepalese Canadian, Nepalese American, Nepalese German and so on, ever after several generations irrespective of their specific citizenship status. Citizenship is just a piece of legal document and our outlook and value systems matter in everyday life. For example, the US president Barack Obama has become first African American president although he was born and brought up by a white American mother. One of the sources of tolerance in the 21st century is to acknowledge mixed identities, and one way to recognize this is through joint or dual citizenship.
Naturalization of immigrants in receiving countries is equally beneficial for sending countries. For example, Canada grants dual citizenships to her landed immigrants after three years of residence, and this is one way to express tolerance to multiculturalism. Moreover, Canadian citizens and immigrants exercise equal rights and responsibilities except their participation in political processes and federal employment. This is facilitates naturalization of immigrants speeding up their integration into to Canadian society.
In Canada, once an immigrant becomes a citizen, he or she can unconditionally participate in political processes, federal government including military service no matter whether one carries the citizenship of sending country or not. Since professionally established immigrants are more likely to facilitate learning and innovation is their ancestral land, constitutional activists ask that why sending countries hesitate to grant dual citizenship to their diaspora.
In Canada there is no realized threat of the constitutional provision of dual citizenship to her immigrants from all over the world. Since immigrants are loyal to both sending and receiving countries, unconditional citizenship of two or more countries does not provide a threat to national sovereignty of neither receiving nor sending country as well.
There are also evidences that federal services including military service, can be offered to foreign citizens even before foreigners are granted citizenship. For example, Gurkhas have been serving in the British Army for decades and it is an excellent example of how British sovereignty is maintained despite the recruitment of Nepalese citizens in the military service. Only recently they have been offered permanent resident in the UK. Any kind of restriction to Nepalese diaspora to serve their ancestral land is ironic and will be against the demand of time.
Research finds that when sending countries like Nepal do not have a provision of dual citizenship, immigrants hesitate to denounce citizenship of his or her country of origin and subsequently delays or never becomes a citizen of a receiving country. For example, there are instances that one of the spouses remains citizen of the receiving country even after decades of residence in a receiving country simply to maintain legal attachment to their country of origin. This practice can have several negative implications including ones involvement political processes, institutional reforms and gender equity.
Since the sending countries are usually the winner of the provision of an unconditional dual citizenship than the receiving countries, the constitutional provision of Nepal should meet the genuine demand of Nepalese diaspora worldwide for a provision of unconditional dual citizenship. Diaspora should be allowed to involve in political processes, policy formulations and government employment including military services. One way to attract the pool of talents among diaspora is to remove the age limit to recruit in government services and facilitate lateral entries based on educational qualification and experience. This helps transnational learning and innovation.
In addition to the provision of unconditional dual citizenship, low-income countries should attract the worldwide pool of talents thorough various other means. Ghana, one of the countries of Sub-Sarahan Africa, not only passed Dual Citizenship Act (2000) but also the former president Jerry Rawlings is in favour of allowing African diaspora the rights to apply for Ghanaian citizenship while maintaining their foreign citizenship recognizing their potential to invest and innovate in Ghana. This was a call to grant citizenship to all African diaspora based on race and blood, not just Ghanaian diaspora.
In Nepal, there can be constitutional provision to grant permanent residency to people of not only Nepalese heritage living in developed countries, but also to citizens of the industrialized countries as some of them may choose Nepal as their destination.
Who knows Nepal can regain the name of Himalayan Shangri-La through charismatic political leadership. Constitutional provisions need to be strategic and far sighted without any potential compromises in the future. Let us think beyond what is obvious in the present time. The new constitution of Nepal may include a provision of global citizenship to our fellow human beings, not just dual or joint citizenship to Nepalese diaspora.
I think we need to make our constitution just like UA, where MPs can’t be ministers, which helps to reduce corruption and qualified people only can be in policy level.
Duel Citizenship is not required, but we need a ID which is just like PR type, & not requie any visa to visit Nepal.
You must have a reason to that way. I was thinking possible reasons and not yet reached a conclusion.
I appreciate if you can help me.
Laxmi
Two good Examples:
Recently, the government of Nepal has nominated Dr. Sukhadev Shah as an ambassador of US/Canada, if we see his past history, he has been in US almost 40 years and he is one of well educated handful professional, took Nepalese scholarship and did not return to Nepal and after 40 years he has been rewarded as an ambassador, how do we see this type of scenario, sometime in future some of we may be in the same situation. The upcoming constitution should clearly mention this type of situation. One more information Dr. Narayan Khadka was in Canada for many years, and we do not know whether he had Canadian citizen or not but he claimed his Nepalese citizen and now he is enjoying a good position in Nepalese politics (vice-chair of national planning commission, & one of 601 constitutional assemble members), this type of case may repeat again and again. Think about it.
The rights of minorities who live in the particular areas such as in the any ethnic- majority’s areas should be protected. And even in the emergency period of the state the Fundamental Rights of the Nepali people should be protected. Excluding these two provisions I like to mention in the constitution all the suggestions which were already mentioned by Mr. Prasai.
Who gets dual citizenship in Nepal?
The answer is straight forward. Any person who has already acquired a certificate of Nepali citizenship or is qualified to receive it and also has acquired a citizenship of any designated foreign country (such as Canada in our case) or is qualified to receive it, shall retain his status of dual citizenship in the new constitution of Nepal.
The Law of Rule: Recommendations for Nepalese Constitution
Dr Pramod Dhakal
International Affairs Coordinator
NRN-Canada
(Prepared for NRN-Canada Constitution Recommendation Task Force)
2009 February 19
Following a long drawn armed conflict, a huge popular uprising of 2006, and a democratic election of 2008, Nepal peacefully entered into the league of democratic republics by overthrowing a reigning monarch. Nepal has subsequently undertaken a complicated task of formulating a new constitution through a 600 member constitution assembly (CA). In this backdrop, many views are contending in Nepal for their supremacy. To add extra substance to this national debate, the government has formally requested all Nepalese living around the world to send their suggestions for the new constitution. This article is written to propose some ideas into that important debate.
The Rule of Law and the Law of Rule
We come to hear so much about the “rule of law”, which generally implies that no one is above the law; even head of state, government, and law enforcement authorities are subjected to the same laws as ordinary citizens. A citizen is neither permitted to circumvent nor be deprived of, “due process”. “In free countries the law ought to be king,” proclaimed Thomas Paine, a British born American revolutionary intellectual.
The “rule of law” has permeated the lives of people in the “civilized world” to such an extent that we have long forgotten to ask, “What is the purpose of having a rule in the first place?” I believe that the purpose of ruling is to ensure comfort and happiness in people that dwell in the dominion. Laws can themselves violate the “law of rule” if they make people suffocated, distraught, and unhappy. A rule is worthy only when it can treat people equally, eliminate dynastic disposition of power, or lead to harmony in the society.
In my view, the constitution of a country is the “law of rule” or the “law of law”, reflecting the political principles and values of the people of an independent country. This determines which laws are “just laws” and which are “unjust laws”. A just constitution lets us weed out “unlawful laws” in the first place but a flawed one can bring far reaching negative implications to the people. A constitution defines the principles, values, rights and responsibilities of both the government and the people, and structures and mechanisms for upholding those principles.
The core tenant of democracy is that a state should treat all its citizens as equal and hear the voice of citizens with equal weight. Therefore, role of democracy is to bring power to the people and the government closest to them. However, power of an average citizen to influence a collection of people is inversely proportional to the number of people present in the group. Therefore, smaller the unit of government more responsive it will be to the citizen’s plights. One of the most successful rulers of China, Kublai Khan had chosen 50 households as a unit of governance. Today, empowered with modern means of communication, we may be poised to make the unit larger but not too large. Pokhara would be as remote as Kathmandu for a poor farmer in the village in Baglung. Let it be possible for the poor farmer to participate in governance without threatening his or her livelihood.
Suggestions for the Law of Rule
Incorporating United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) in a constitution has been a common place in newer constitutions written in the world and I leave this work to more knowledgeable people. Here, it may be sufficient to quote UDHR, which says, “All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.” In this document, some specific recommendations are proposed for steering our societies towards that ideal. Some suggestions are supported by separate articles but such supporting articles for all suggested points could not be written due to shortage of time.
1. There must be a set of ethical values and a set of inspirational values of an aspiring nation:
a. Five ethical values: Equality, non-discrimination, honesty, commitment, and respect.
b. Five inspirational values: Learning, creating, collaborating, passing, serving.
2. There must be four faculties in the system of governance: Executive, Legislative, Judicial, and Innovative.
a. Executive faculty: does day to day governance of the country.
b. Legislative faculty: makes the law to govern the country.
c. Judicial faculty: resolves disputes and administers justice.
d. Innovative faculty: keeps the flame of reasoning and invention burning; it produces knowledge useful for the all around progress of the country. It questions the rationale of the existing norms and rules, and prevents society from cyclic-fall into dark ages.
3. The innovative faculty is governed by following norms:
a. All inventions and discoveries are rewarded and recognized even if they cannot be used for economic purpose immediately.
b. All inventions and novel thoughts are owned by the country and international patenting is sought by the country.
c. All inventions are publicly defended and scrutinized.
d. Merit of an invention is judged by open criteria and public process.
e. Reward to inventor is proportional to a publicly awarded invention-score.
f. Innovative faculty shall be permitted to bring top brains in the country from around the world for promoting innovation through public proposal and voting process. Such immigrants shall be allowed to take citizenship in three years of permanent residence. (This clause is repeated below.)
4. The nature and election process of the four faculties should be as follows:
a. All: Elected, representative, ceiling of how long one individual can be in a representative position, periodic renewal, intransitive–relationship between one another, protocol driven interrelationship
b. Executive: Stability, efficiency, agility: presidential
c. Legislative: Empathy, accommodation, incorruptibility: proportional by population
d. Judicial: Impartiality, presumption of innocence, legal equality: mixed- geographically proportional
e. Innovative: Conscience, questioning, innovation: mixed-professionally proportional with element of randomness
5. The relationship between executing, regulating, enforcing, and innovating faculties in any substantive agency (including in the federation and the states) shall be in-transitive. For example, doctor’s association should not be able to regulate how many other doctors are going to be produced in the country or who can be trained as a doctor.
a. Professional body executes the professional work but cannot self-regulate, self-enforce, and control innovation.
b. Regulating body develops rules and regulations but does not practice, enforce or reward invention.
c. Enforcing body enforces the rules and regulations but does not practice, regulate and take charge of innovation.
d. Innovative body promotes and rewards research, discoveries, inventions and innovations. It does not practice, regulate and enforce.
6. There shall be no more than two layers of governments (state and central). State government should be as small as possible so as to maximally address the local aspiration of the people. It should be synonymous to local government. States must ensure that ordinary individuals can maximally participate in governance. Education, healthcare, local development, policing, local law-and-order fall in its jurisdiction. The central government should be handling national and international issues including treaties, sovereignty, and maintenance of army, central police, and jails. The role of central government is to make protocols and standards by which humans, goods, and services can flow freely and fairly within the whole country. It also collects tax and distributes equitably. Any undefined domain should remain in the jurisdiction of the state.
a. Central: National-interest, standardization, protocol
b. State: Development, human-empowerment, social justice, education, health, economy
c. All undefined powers shall remain in the jurisdiction of the states,
d. With the approval of two third states, a role of a state may be transferred from the state jurisdiction to the federal jurisdiction or from federal to the state jurisdiction.
7. There should be hundreds of states in the federation and not three, five, or fifteen. These large numbers of states should form a distributed system of governance by binding them with transitive protocols binding the states among one another. Principles of building distributed systems would be applied in developing the federal system.
a. Objective of a federation is to empower a human who would otherwise be subjugated, exploited or marginalized by the powerful. Only when the size of the government is small and carries special formula for people of all spectrums of social and economic standings to be proportionately present in the government, there would be some real chance for the marginalized citizens to break the cycle of marginalization.
b. When states are smaller but numerous, not only they are more agile but also they are less prone to breakup. The 800 districts proposed by the Minister of Culture and State Restructuring could each be treated as states to provide a basis for starting this national debate. There should neither a government below the state nor they be further amalgamated to create 14 middle powers to come in between the grassroots and the centre.
c. Whereas having large size of a state was an advantage in the protectionist manufacturing economy of the past, small size will prove to be the source of swiftness, adaptability, resilience and fault-tolerance in the knowledge economy of the future. Nepal should plan to jump straight from agrarian economy to knowledge economy.
d. Large and centralized states are useful for war times but least useful for peacetime because they are inherently prone to corruption (be it General Motors, Soviet Union, or now defunct British Empire). As US federal government gained much power after WW II, it has become more aggressive and unjust.
e. In a protectionist society, larger the size of a state better the economy because of the economy of scale. However, in an open and connected society, large size is often a liability. In protectionist times Britain, Germany and France were more prosperous and in the advent of EU, Ireland is better off. Future economies should be adaptive than big.
f. Every state must have two or more states bordering with it, which is easier to realize when the states are numerous.
g. The greatest tool to make small and numerous states successful is a protocol that allows flow of people, goods, and information freely. That is the way it had become possible to create a union of the 50 states in the USA. The protocols unburden the people and the commerce.
h. Water resources should be treated such that people sharing common water resource belong to one state; watershed should help people be connected rather than disconnecting them; mountains sharing one watershed would have easier time developing a shared wireless telecommunication infrastructure.
8. Governments must have instruments for iteratively minimizing corruption and maximizing transparency.
a. Power is the primary source of corruption in humans. Checking of power is most important in minimizing corruption.
b. Absolute minimum need of human – food, shelter and education – must be addressed by the collective will of a society. Only such society can contain corruption. (Example: Today boarding schools fees are higher than the salary of parents. People are justifying corruption on the name of innocent children’s basic needs and uncertain looming in their future. Private schooling has been one of the prime motivator of corruption.)
c. Making all public endeavors transparent should be an explicit goal of the country.
d. Public money is never transacted in private. For every public individual that receives money, there must be witnesses in transactions. All public accounting must be public and everybody must know.
e. Solicitation for public fund and formulation of public fund dispersal mechanisms should be done through public deliberations.
f. Bulk of the country’s public fund must be spent through local (state) governments through wide public consultations. Federal government should not spend more that 20% of total tax base of the country.
g. No person shall be allowed to take same public office for more than 10 years.
h. Transparency is the key in curtailing corruption. Public meetings should not be held in private. Maximum number of people should be involved in decision making.
i. Separate sets of people should carry evaluation and collection of tax, fine, fees, and so on, so that power cannot be concentrated in one person.
j. The difference of salaries and compensation should not be out of range from the scale of 1 to 5 in any organizations.
9. Inclusion and empowerment of the marginalized groups:
a. The greatest renewable resource of the country is human resource. Producing the most capable people should be stated aim of the country.
b. Equity in education, proportionality in representation, equal access to tools of empowerment would be used as fundamental principle for instilling inclusion of marginalized people in the mainstream. Everyone must have equal access to education, health, nutrition and tools of entrepreneurship (doable where the will and the technology converge).
c. Inclusion of citizens must be achieved in three fronts: social, political and economic. Participation of citizens in making social, economic, and political decisions pertaining to their lives must be maximized.
d. Most equities in a highly discriminative society may not come in an evolutionary manner; some revolutionary measures are required such as one time readjustment on means of production such as land, severe punishment to those who practice discrimination of other humans.
e. People who are involved in production should have provision of building ownership on the production unit (e.g. land, factory, bank, and service-industry) in which he is contributing.
f. Local development must be done by local people and all local (state) governments must be democratic and consensus driven.
g. Maximal participation of women in development should be ensured as warranted by their population size.
h. Proportionality of representation in government must be guaranteed based on person’s economic standings and not the caste, religion, and ethnicity. This will give greater voice not only to the marginalized people of today but also to those who may become marginalized in the future.
i. Everybody should be allowed equal access to high quality education until age 25.
j. Everyone should be allowed to have compulsory and equitable work experience until age 30 in the field of his/her maximal competence. At age from 25 to 35, whoever had completed 5 years of work or post graduate studies, and had formed a group of 5 people should each get a sum of money equivalent to annual GDP per capita per person to start their own entrepreneurial lives (with minimal interest rate). They would also be allowed to save all their earned money tax free until the age of 30 for the purpose of entrepreneurship.
k. There should be no room for building dynastic wealth and dynastic power. Any money transferred beyond a defined level from parents or someone else should be heavily taxed.
l. This system must be free of geography, ethnic, racial, religious, or any other discriminatory lines.
10. Environmental sustainability, population stability, and self-sufficiency in food, energy, and primary-technology (basic technology for human survival derived from tradition know-how) should be constitutionally mandated aims of the country.
a. Each law that passes should be tested against these aims.
b. If the proposed-law is detrimental to those aims, it should be rejected by a constitutional tribunal.
c. If quantitative measurement could be made scientifically, the score of positive contributor to the aim should be twice as high as the score of negative contribution to the aim, for the law to be passed.
d. Per year consumption of non-renewal resources should not exceed one hundredth of known reserve of the country.
11. Citizenship, NRNs, Immigration, and rights and responsibilities:
a. Citizens of any country who can contribute significantly in uplifting the people through knowledge, skills, technology, or trade shall be granted permanent resident cards in the recommendation of the innovative or the executive faculty of a state.
b. Upon three years of living as permanent residents, such people may become citizens of Nepal.
c. All Nepalese should be allowed to retain Nepali citizenship with limited rights even when they take citizenship of other countries.
d. All people of Nepalese origin should be allowed to retain Nepalese Origin card which allows them to travel to Nepal, own commercial property, live, and do business in Nepal freely like other citizens of Nepal.
e. People of Nepalese Origin should be allowed to obtain full citizenship if they permanently live in Nepal for a minimum of three years.
f. There should be representation of diasporas Nepalese in parliament through direct voting among diasporas, one candidate per continent (North America, South America, Africa, Europe, Oceania) if more than 50,000 officially registered people live in the continent. From countries in Asia there would be 5 seats in total.
g. Salaries and benefits of diasporas representatives must come from diasporas resources and not from internal resource of Nepal.
Conclusions
I have attempted to provide suggestions in eleven independent areas of the constitution. These recommendations are written in a free form without using any legal language, which is the domain of others who have specialized in such fields. It is my sincere hope that these suggestions will receive room for debate in the CA and among the general public of Nepal.