I attended the talk by Reinhold Messner and read your review "'Messner: Don't mess with Everest', #147). His speech was politically correct and it seems that he spoke from his heart; feelings were genuine. But at the same time, he showed some "foreigner" approaches. The way he talked about corruption, for instance, gave the impression that it is a phenomenon that only exists in countries like Nepal. It's time to change the question. Instead of "what are the consequences of the conflict on tourism" the question should be: "what impact has tourism had on the insurgency?" The benefits of tourism have not filtered down to the people and this has helped create the conditions for 'Maoism' to grow. Nepal must also discuss other economic alternatives. Tourism is very sensitive to external factors and it is a strategic mistake to have the economy so dependent on this activity.

Luis Paulo Ferraz,
Kathmandu

. The Everest Golden Jubilee celebrations are over. The way in which the fragile environment of the region was neglected for the race-to-record by the climbers was disheartening. Why do we forget that the real beauty of Everest is not only its height but also its pristine surroundings which we have so cruelly neglected?

Bhumika Ghimire,
Kathmandu