The ruling party has pressed the prime minister at a time when the Ministry for Forests and Soil Conservation (MoFSC) has said that the user groups are misusing their rights and resorting to deforestation. The amendment has proposed drastic curtailment of the rights of forest user groups.[break]
Submitting a memorandum to the prime minister on Monday, the UML has strongly raised concerns of the Federation of Community Forest Users, Nepal (FECOFUN) and its objection to the amendment proposal.
The party´s natural resources management department´s letter stated that the MoFSC is attempting to hide its own corruption by shifting the blame on forest user groups. The party has also demanded action against the Ministry officials involved in deforestation in the Tarai as per the findings of the National Vigilance Center and the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority.
The letter signed by head of the department, Pradeep Nepal, further stated that the issue does not lie within the priority of cabinet given the fragile political situation facing the country.
It further said that the proposal to increase the tax amount from 15 to 50 percent is an attempt to weaken the groups. The party demanded that all works relating to extension of national parks and wildlife conservation should be stopped immediately.
MoFSC, on the other hand, has already sent the amendment proposal to the Ministry of Law on Monday, Forest Minister Deepak Bohara said.
FECOFUN had earlier issued a press release making the same demand.
Former general secretary of FECOFUN, Bhola Bhattarai, said, “This is an example of politicization in FECOFUN,” adding, “The organization could have gone to the prime minister himself, but it chose to send the letter through UML.”
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