ABSTRACT
After a long period of instability, Nepal adopted a new Constitution in 2015, creating a multiparty federal republic. Previously Nepal had been a unitary state, albeit with a long period of political instability and insurgencies. In 2017 the two competing communist parties merged to form the ruling Nepal Communist Party (NCP), which operated with a 2/3rd majority in the House of Representatives. The implementation of federalism has been slow and uneven. Despite assurances to the contrary, the government's response to the COVID-19 pandemic has been lacking, with Constitutional obligations ignored. The machinations of the then Prime Minister have exacerbated this, apparently supported by the President to overcome constitutional norms to keep the Prime Minister in power. The paper analyses the devolution of powers to the provincial and local levels described in the constitution. There have been successes and failures. There appeared to be a concerted effort from the federal parliament and some in the bureaucracy to continue to centralize power. This early inaction has hindered its response to the pandemic. Of even more concern is the then prime minister's role as he sought to maintain his hold on power by ignoring the provisions of the Constitution. © 2022, Universitas Negeri Semarang. All rights reserved.
ABSTRACT
Whilst fake news has been around since the time of Aesop and, COVID-19 has been around for over two millennia less, they joined ranks in 2020. This paper looks at the interface between fake news and governments’ responses to the COVID-19. It compares the approaches of Australia, Singapore and Thailand. Australia relies on a non-legislative approach, where the major digital service providers sign an industry code of practice that must meet the Australian Communications and Media Authority guidelines. As of mid-2021, Twitter, Google, Facebook, Microsoft, Redbubble, TikTok, Adobe, and Apple have signed the industry code of practice. In addition, online advertising that does comply with the requirements of the Therapeutic Drugs Administration can result in sanctions and financial penalties. Australians need to check for the required information on the appropriate government website. Singapore is one of a small number of countries that has specific anti-fake news legislation. Its fact-checking site does not appear to be widely used. Thailand uses its more overarching cybercrime legislation, which does not define fake news. It has developed a comprehensive social media monitoring organization to identify fake news. In addition, it has a website that citizens can check whether news on social media is correct or not. This site has proven extremely popular with several million hits since it commenced operation in late 2019. The paper examines the efficacy of each of the approaches in controlling the twin pandemics. © 2022 Kasetsart University.