Reuters AlertNet Lite - FACTBOX-Key facts about Nepal's Madhesh region

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FACTBOX-Key facts about Nepal's Madhesh region

23 Jan 2007 13:18:41 GMT
Source: Reuters

Jan 23 (Reuters) - Following are some key facts about Nepal's Madhesh region, which has been hit by political turmoil and violent anti-government protests in the past week.

- The area is a narrow strip of fertile plain in the south of landlocked Nepal, wedged in the Himalayas between China and India. It occupies 23 percent of the country's area of 147,000 sq km (57,000 sq miles).

- The region accounts for nearly half of the nation's 26 million people.

- The ethnic Madhesi people have closer cultural links with the people of India than with Nepalis living in the high mountains. They speak Hindi, Maithili and Bhojpuri as in neighbouring Indian states of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh.

- Historically, ethnic Madhesis complained that Kathmandu stopped them from obtaining the citizenship papers needed for jobs, education and business because of their marriages with Indians. The new government has recently send out hundreds of teams to distribute the documents as part of a peace deal with Maoists.

- Madhesh is a term used by the Nepalis for the region. It literally means the "central or middle country".

- The region's main crops are rice, wheat and maize and it is considered Nepal's bread basket. The region accounts for 76 percent of government revenue, according to the Madhesi People's Rights Forum, which organised the latest anti-government protests. Independent figures were not immediately available,

- Madhesis want proportional representation in government jobs and in parliament.

- Two factions of Janatantrik Terai Mukti Morcha, a breakaway Maoist group, have separately launched violent campaigns to seek autonomy for the region.

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Last updated:Tue Jan 23 13:19:30 2007