Asia and Oceania

Nepal
Last reviewed: 09 September 2009

Country information

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Politics

Recent political developments

On 26 May 2006 the Government and Maoist rebels began peace talks, the first in nearly three years, which culminated in the Comprehensive Peace Agreement in November 2006. Under the terms of the agreement the Nepali Army and Maoist cadres are confined to barracks and cantonments. Both sides agreed a permanent ceasefire and an arms management arrangement.

In August 2006 the Government of Nepal and the Maoists requested UN assistance in support of the peace process, including management of arms. In response, the UN Secretary-General appointed a Special Representative for Nepal in August 2006, with a UN mission (UNMIN) following in January 2007.

An interim parliament was formed in January 2007 and an interim government led by the Nepali Congress, but including Maoists Ministers, was formed on 1 April 2007. Following two cancellations, elections to a Constituent Assembly were finally held on 10 April 2008. Despite some violence and intimidation, these were considered to be largely free and fair. In a surprising result, the Maoists were confirmed as the largest party with 220 seats in a 601-seat assembly.

The first session of the Constituent Assembly was held on 28 May 2008 and declared Nepal a republic, thus ending a 240-year old monarchy.

Following protracted negotiations amongst the four largest parties represented in the Assembly, Dr Ram Baran Yadav of the Nepali Congress was elected President on 21 July 2008. The Assembly also elected Parmananda Jha of MPRF as Vice-President.

On 29 July, President Yadav invited the Chairman of CPN(M), Pushpa Kamal Dahal ('Prachanda'), as the leader of the largest party in the Assembly, to form a consensus government. However, disagreements over nominations and the election of the President continued to cause difficulties and, in the absence of consensus, the election of a prime minister moved to the Legislature-Parliament. As a result of the election, Pushpa Kamal Dahal was elected as Prime Minister.

On 4 May 2009 Pushpa Kamal Dahal resigned as Prime Minister over the President's decision to overturn his decision to sack the Chief of Army Staff. On 25 May, Madhay, Kumar Nepal, a leading figure in the Communist Party of Nepal - United Marxist Leninist (CPN-UML), was sworn in as Prime Minister. He leads a coalition government made up of 22 parties, but which does not include the Maoists, who declined to join.

Constituent Assembly

The Constituent Assembly (CA) is made up of 601 members, 240 directly voted, 335 through the Proportional Representation (PR) system and 26 nominated by the Cabinet. The Maoists are the biggest party with 38% followed by Nepali Congress with 19% and Unified ML with 18%. It is the youngest (average age 44) and most inclusive (33% women and the highest number of members from excluded groups) institution in Nepal's history, but it is also inexperienced with almost 1/3 illiterate and many from NGOs with no political or parliamentary experience.

The new government faces a number of significant challenges, including decisions over the future of former combatants (both the Maoist People’s Liberation Army and Nepal Army), federalism, and the need to tackle impunity.

Terai unrest

In December 2006, following widespread protests and rioting in the southern region (Terai), Madhesi People's Rights Forum (MJF), led by Upendra Yadav, signed an agreement with the then government. The uprising was pacified after the government amended the interim constitution.

In January 2008, the three Terai-based parties- Madhesi People's Rights Forum (MJF), Terai-Madhes Democratic Party (TMDP) and Sadbhavana Party SP - joined forces to create a coalition named the United Democratic Madhesi Front (UDMF) aiming to project a united front to negotiate with the Government. On 26 February 2008, an agreement was signed between the then Government and agitating UDMF, paving the way for the Constituent Assembly election. The UDMF coalition parties participated in the CA election and secured 13% of the seats in the CA. MJF and TMDP are the fourth and fifth largest political parties in the CA respectively. Currently MJF and SP are partners in the coalition government, while the TMDP has remained in opposition.

There are reportedly more than three dozen armed groups operating in the Terai region. In October 2008, the government of Nepal called for talks with the armed groups aimed at ending the violence. However, apart from holding talks with some smaller groups, there has not been any tangible progress. Public security continues to be poor with occasional killings, kidnappings and bombings.

Human rights

Impunity for human rights abuses continues to be a major issue in Nepal. The lack of political will to address human rights violations and abuses, exacerbated by the weak capacity of the state to provide public security, means that lack of respect for human rights is widespread. None of the major parties see tackling impunity as being in their interests; many political leaders (and senior Nepal Army officers) are themselves implicated in human rights violations and abuses. Continuing impunity also contributes to lack of rule of law. Maoist cadres are increasingly ignoring state structures and filling the vacuum left by the absence of the state. There are also abuses by violent armed groups operating mainly in the southern plains, bordering India. State security forces fail to deal adequately with crime due to political interference in cases.

UK action

Recognising that respect for human rights is a key component of sustainable peace, the UK consistently encourages all parties to respect human rights and to reduce human rights violations through diplomatic representation as well as through project funding. In addition, we regularly raise our concerns about the human rights situation, both in public and private, in coordination with OHCHR and with the EU – indeed human rights was one of the key priorities for our local EU Presidency in the second half of 2007.

We continue to engage with the Nepal army (NA) to encourage greater respect for human rights, including through training courses which have started to introduce an understanding of International Humanitarian Law into all levels of the NA. UK ministers have engaged in constructive dialogue with the Chief of Army Staff to stress that tackling impunity is in the army’s own interests and would send a clear signal that the NA is working for democracy.