Whose Action Plan? An Analysis of the UN Security Council Resolution 1612 Action Plan and Monitoring and Reporting Mechanism in Nepal

Abstract

This article places a detailed analysis of the implementation of the monitoring and reporting mechanism (MRM) established under Security Council 1612 (2005) in Nepal within the broader framework of the United Nations (UN) children and armed conflict agenda. It focuses on the Action Plan established under the MRM and signed by representatives of the Government of Nepal, the Unified Communist Party Nepal–Maoist (UCPN–M) and the UN in December 2009 and offers a critical perspective on its implementation in the Nepali context. The article puts forward that the arbitrary application of the mechanism has ultimately had a negative impact on the lives of many of those it was established to protect, and emphasizes the necessity of closer monitoring of the 1612 MRM in all countries where it has been rolled out in order to maximize efficacy and ensure greater protection for all conflict-affected children.