HUMILIATION
In response to Ratan Gazmere's answer to the question on how he evaluates the resettlement program ("Thimpu will not get away with expulsion," #436) I would like to add a further comment. No doubt the Internarional Organization for Migration (IOM), as an institution does a commendable job, but regrettably a good number of people that have been hired to work for the IOM have the wrong attitude. The escorts must have been hired according to the criteria of IOM rules and regulations, but there have been instances when refugees have been treated in a discourteous manner. IOM also has foreign staff that are stationed at the airport during departures. A number of Bhutani refugees have complained that they have suffered humiliation from them. I second Gazmere's comments when he says that the refugees' sense of dignity is affected. We came out of refugee camps, we were not living in concentration camps.

bove all, we never wanted to live like this in a foreign country. The IOM should hire staff with compassion for a job which entails looking after human beings in need.

P Risal,
USA

WAIT AND WATCH
Prashant Jha's Delhi dateline report ('Wait and watch', #436) was insightful. All the more so because the unnamed 'senior official' is quoted as saying: "?But we will not back any effort to topple the government right now." This opens up a number of questions: India is in the habit of toppling governments in Nepal, it could topple this government right now if it wanted, but it won't, it could topple this government any time in future if it so desired. This could have been a Freudian slip, but it has exposed India's colonial attitude towards Nepal loud and clear.

G RL Rana,
email

OXYMORONS
The Young Communist League changed their name to Young Communist Democratic League (Backside, #436) to incorporate the spirit of democracy that these youngsters stand by. Communist and Democratic-is that even possible? It's like being black and white. The YCDL sure displays Anarchy, so their real acronym should be YAM.

Praswas Shakya,
email

* While no one can challenge your backside Ass on satire, godssip and metaphysics, his (?) knowledge of nuclear physics, on the other hand, seems to be a bit rusty. In 'Ass-to-ass talk'(#436) the donkey says Nepal's 'communist parties are splitting faster than neutrons inside an atomic reactor'. You don't have to be Einstein to know that it's not the neutrons that split in a nuclear chain reaction but the nuclei of the Uranium 235 atom. Unless we get this cleared up, Nepal can never start a plutonium enrichment program in order to blackmail Indian expansionists and US imperialists.

Kiran Kulkarni,
Mumbai