AsiaNews.it
Nepal says no to Beijing’s mega tourism project for the birthplace of Buddha
by Kalpit Parajuli
According to Kathmandu the Chinese have drawn up a development plan for Lumbini without notifying authorities, who learned the news from newspapers. The project amounts to three billion dollars and was organized together with United Nations Industrial Development Agency. Out of respect for the place to date there are no hotels or tourist attractions.
Kathmandu (AsiaNews) - The government of Nepal has blocked a joint China-UN project amounting to three billion dollars to transform Lumbini, the birthplace of Buddha, into a mega tourist attraction. According to Mod Raj Dotel, secretary of the Nepali Ministry of Culture, Beijing acted without notifying the appropriate government offices and has no right to interfere in the religious traditions of Nepal.
Discovered by archaeologists in 1897, the site of Lumbini has become one of the most important places of Buddhism and was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Each year millions of pilgrims make the pilgrimage to the small village. To date the area is surrounded only by monasteries and no other major constructions are allowed. In recent days, the Asia Pacific Exchange and Cooperation Foundation signed a memorandum of understanding with the UN Industrial Development Organization to develop the area creating hotels, restaurants and an airport.
Dotel, told AsiaNews that he had learned of the existence of the project from the newspapers. "The two organizations - he says - have no relationship to Lumbini. How can a foreign country draw up a development plan in another state, leaving its government in the dark? ".
Gnaga Lal Tuladhar, government spokesman, said that Nepal is a sovereign and independent country and no one can operate on its soil without notifying authorities. "If China intervenes in the Buddhist holy places - he explains - then India will want to exploit the sites of Hindu traditions. If that happens how can we call them good neighbours? ". The politicians emphasizes that Nepal became a secular state and all are free and are entitled to practice their religion without any foreign intervention. "
After the abolition of the monarchy in 2006 and rise to power and communist Maoist formations Nepal has changed course, abandoning its historic ally India and establishing close relations with China. In exchange for economic aid, Beijing has called for the closure of borders with Tibet and the repression of any anti-Chinese protest. The good relations between the two countries have allowed the immigration of Chinese entrepreneurs to the Terai region, increasing the economic interests associated with pilgrimages to the birthplace of Bhudda.