A mounting political crisis came to a head this week in Nepal, when the prime minister, a former Maoist rebel fighter, resigned after the president overruled his firing of the army chief. Some observers are concerned that Nepal’s historic peace process, which began three years ago after a decade of civil war that killed about 13,000 people, is at risk. We asked Kroc visiting research fellow Manish Thapa about the prospects for sustaining peace in Nepal.
What changed after the government and the Maoist rebels signed the 2006 peace agreement?
The first two years were a remarkable time of achievement. A 250-year monarchy ended, and Nepal was declared a federal republic. Millions of Nepalis voted, which led to a Constituent Assembly that was inclusive of gender and ethnicity. The former Maoist rebels were brought into the political mainstream. But now things are much more complicated. At first, all the political parties were glued together by their opposition to a common enemy — the monarch. But after the elections, the consensus collapsed. Now every community has its own ethnic, religious, or political agenda.
What does the firing of the army chief have to do with the peace process?
Nepal has two armies – one is the conventional army, which is highly professional. The other is the 19,000 former Maoist rebels, the People’s Liberation Army. The peace agreement called for the former rebels to be integrated into Nepal’s army. But the army opposes this because it fears that uneducated and politically indoctrinated soldiers will diminish the army’s standards and destabilize the country. The prime minister, who heads the Maoist party, dismissed the army chief to clear the way for someone who would push for integration of the forces. When the president overruled this decision, the prime minister resigned. This has become a dramatic symbol of the polarization of the political parties.
Will these divisions derail the peace?
Not if Nepal can renew dialogue between the main political actors. Many of us are optimistic that this will happen. The Maoists are protesting the government’s refusal to integrate the army, but they are political insiders now. There’s no way they are going back to the jungle. They are committed to the process. But even dialogue will succeed only if it addresses the root causes of conflict. More than 42% of people in Nepal live below the poverty line. There is a devastating lack of basic services and high unemployment. Human rights violations and atrocities that occurred during the insurgency must be prosecuted. The fragile peace will not last long if the needs of the people are not addressed.
Manish Thapa’s comments may be used in whole or in part. He can be reached at (574) 631-0997 or mthapa@nd.edu.
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