As peace knocks, Nepal hopes for more tourists

By Staff
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Google Oneindia News

KATHMANDU, Jan 10 (Reuters) With lasting peace knocking at its door after a decade-old Maoist revolt, Nepal is hoping that tourists will return in big numbers this year to visit its snow-capped Himalayan mountains and ancient temples.

''We desperately need more visitors,'' Nepal Tourism Board chief Tek Bahadur Dangi said yesterday.

An insurgency against the impoverished nation's monarchy started in 1996. As a result tourist arrivals fell to around 280,000 in each of the past two years, sharply down from a peak of about half a million in 1999.

But a peace deal struck last November has the Maoist insurgents agreeing to lock up their arms under UN monitoring and join an interim government this year.

''We hope 2007 will be a better year for our tourism,'' said Madhav Om Shrestha of the independent Hotel Association Nepal.

An interim government will be formed in the run up to elections for a special assembly -- expected in June -- that will prepare a new constitution and decide the fate of the monarchy.

For tourism officials, peace can't come a moment too soon.

''Tourism immensely benefits our economy,'' Dangi said.

Accounting for about 4 percent of gross domestic product, tourism is Nepal's fourth largest foreign exchange earner.

The Himalayan country -- home to 26 million people -- has eight of the world's 14 highest mountains including Mount Everest, and attracts both backpackers and serious mountaineers.

But tour operators are cautious about the chances of a strong recovery as relations between the Maoist rebels and the government are still delicate.

''If the political situation completely settles down after the constituent assembly elections then the prospects for tourism are very bright,'' said Man Mohan Singh Chhetri, deputy general manager of Asian Trekking in Kathmandu's tourist hub of Thamel.

''We have good bookings for this year. But they can be cancelled through an email if there is trouble,'' Chhetri added.

Tourists, browsing for souvenirs or trekking gear in Thamel's small shops or wandering its mazy streets, were equally cautious.

''I think Nepal is peaceful now,'' said 27-year-old Scotty Brown, an outdoor guide from Minneapolis leading a group of Americans on his 17th visit to the country.

''(But) I think after what has happened with the Maoists in the past several years many people are still unsure that it will remain peaceful.'' Last week, Maoist chief Prachanda said the rebels would launch street protests if the peace process was delayed.

In December, hotels and restaurants in the resort town of Pokhara were hit by a Maoist-backed strike for higher wages.

''We are getting a lot of inquiries from tourists mainly about the security situation,'' said Bijay Shrestha, a senior official of Nirvana Garden Hotel in hill-ringed Kathmandu.

In the past, Maoist rebels have collected ''taxes'' from backpackers and mountaineers but did not target them.

No tourist has been killed in the revolt in which 13,000 Nepalis died. More than a third of tourists are from South Asia including India but most are Westerners.

REUTERS AKJ ND0952

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