Peace In Nepal Research Articles

Impact of the Peace Agreement 2005 in Nepal

This study is related to the significance and importance of Nepal's peace agreement. The peace agreement and the interim constitution led politics from a precarious situation to the constituent assembly. The constituent assembly had appeared as a base to take on dialogue whether the state was trying to search for a solution to the boorish problem. The peace agreement that followed the Maoist war is very important in the politics of Nepal. The study has tried to find out whether the government has been able to operate after that time according to the comprehensive peace agreement in Nepal. This paper examines the impact of the peace agreement on Nepalese politics and its significance. The conclusion has been derived by using secondary data only.

Dichotomies in Understanding of Peace in Nepal

In Nepal, the decade long armed conflict between 1996 and 2006 has become the buzz word in most social sciences literatures. Since 2007, ‘peace’ has emerged as essential component of the academic courses and training manuals. Against this backdrop, this paper focuses on the understanding of “Peace” in local context of Nepal. This paper compares the various definitions of peace from western and eastern intellectual perspectives, examines the literatures on how they depict Nepal’s peace process, and includes a brief history of peace studies as discipline in Nepal. Methodologically, this is a reflection based paper evolved from qualitative eclectic approach. The researcher has used axial coding and domain analysis. This paper concludes that the epistemological roots of conflict and peace studies are under-researched in Nepali context. The influence of Maoist armed conflict is very dominant in peace studies literatures which have missed to produce the comparative-historic indigenous writings on Nepal.

Challenges of Local Ownership: Understanding the Outcomes of the International Community’s ‘Light Footprint’ Approach to the Nepal Peace Process

ABSTRACT This article investigates whether a ‘light footprint’ approach to peacekeeping and peacebuilding by the international community more effectively addresses local drivers of conflict than the dominant model of large, multidimensional peace operations. It considers international engagement in the Nepalese peace process through the United Nations Mission in Nepal (UNMIN), and argues that the international community’s approach to local ownership became more focused on non-imposition and therefore less politically engaged over time as a result of both local and international factors. This facilitated local elite ownership of the process, which fundamentally undermined the international community’s capacity to support peace consolidation as elites moved away from key transformational pledges of the peace settlement.

Blessing or Burden? The Impact of Peace Services on Peace and Violence in Nepal

Recent literature highlights the potential of infrastructures for peace for peacebuilding and violence prevention. An increasing number of studies examine cases of infrastructures for peace, yet little is known about the services individuals actually use when facing conflict. This study investigates local agency in the context of infrastructures for peace in Nepal. Adopting a quantitative approach, we explore the relationship between use of third party support for dealing with conflict (‘peace services’) and individual experiences of peace and violence. Results show that the more respondents reported use of services that actively engage their recipients in dealing with their conflicts, such as mediation, the more peace they experienced in different dimensions of their lives and the lower their propensity for violence was. In contrast, the more respondents reported use of services that require only passive involvement and do not directly focus on the conflict at hand, such as sharing information, the less intrapersonal and intercommunity peace they experienced and the higher their propensity for violence was. Encouraging the use of active peace services could allow more people to enjoy their benefits and ultimately prevent violence and strengthen peace. Future research could further explore the linkages between everyday use of third party support and people's experience of peace and violent behaviour, including direction of effect.

School leadership during violent conflict: rethinking education for peace in Nepal and beyond

ABSTRACTThis paper outlines the impact and professional tensions created by the decade-long armed conflict (1996–2006) on school leadership in Nepal. Drawing on qualitative interviews and discussions with school heads and teachers (n = 92), the study reveals that the onerous pressure of pupils’ safety during crisis ultimately fell upon teachers and school leaders who faced direct violence on school grounds and communities they lived in. It was found that school heads were traumatised by consistent pressures, as manifested in the form of financial extortion, physical threats and abductions by the Maoists while the security forces frequently harassed them as Maoist sympathisers or confederates. Maintaining relational equilibrium with warring parties in order to ensure their personal and school survival was a traumatic experience. Despite the enormity of effects on education during conflict, the post-conflict educational debates largely undermine the voice of those who were at the frontlines during crisis. These findings provide useful insights into the ‘experiential dimension’ of civil conflict at schools in conflict zones and implications for educational programming.

“Pro‐Peace Entrepreneur” or “Conflict Profiteer”? Critical Perspective on the Private Sector and Peacebuilding in Nepal

Focusing on a case study from Nepal, this article argues that as the private sector is a heterogeneous constituency consisting of a variety of actors who can perform in favor of or against peace, generalizing the entire sector as either a builder or spoiler of peace can be deeply misleading. Instead, this article proposes an alternative approach that may help to understand the personal and structural dimensions that make up a business response to peace and conflict. These two dimensions, which can be better understood in terms of a business actor's self‐interests, motivations, and the economic incentive structures and mechanisms, are central in shaping businesses' attitudes and responses toward peace and conflict. The personal and structural dimensions may provide an analytical framework that distinguishes between business actors who might want to benefit from political instability and conflict and those who may want to support peace initiatives. In this article, these two categories of the private sector are referred to as “conflict profiteers” and “pro˗peace entrepreneurs” respectively. While the business activities of a conflict profiteer may exacerbate conflict dynamics, by contrast a pro‐peace entrepreneur can contribute to building peace in Nepal.

Like Yeast that Leavens the Dough? Community Mediation as Local Infrastructure for Peace in Nepal

Internationally, discussions between academics, practitioners, policy makers and others about the concept of Infrastructure for Peace (I4P) are ongoing. There seems to be general agreement that I4P...

India–Nepal Peace and Friendship Treaty (1950): Does it Require Revision?

The Treaty of Peace and Friendship signed between India and Nepal in 1950 has been a subject of debate within Nepal. The issue has been regularly featured in left parties' election manifestos in Nepal and become an agenda item in bilateral talks. India has agreed to review, adjust and update the treaty while giving due recognition to the special features of the bilateral relationship. Nepal's reservations to the treaty are based on the argument that the treaty compromises Nepal's ability to pursue an independent defence and foreign policy. The article examines the relevance of the treaty and prospects of India–Nepal relations in the changing international scenario. It argues that Nepal has benefited much more than India from the treaty. However, considering changes in strategic equations in the region, India–Nepal bilateral relations must be remodelled into a strategic partnership that seeks to promote security, modernisation and prosperity.

Nineteen Days in April: Urban Protest and Democracy in Nepal

For 19 days in April 2006, Nepal witnessed a popular uprising against the royal-military coup staged by King Gyanendra in February 2005. The Jana Andolan II (People’s Movement II) demanded a return to democracy, the establishment of a lasting peace in Nepal and more political and economic inclusion for the various ethnic and caste groups historically marginalised in Nepali society. Through an analysis of the Jana Andolan (particularly within the urban space of Nepal’s capital, Kathmandu) and the subsequent peace process that has unfolded in Nepal, this paper will consider how and why the city was a key terrain for the prosecution of conflict by the people’s movement, and how such protest entailed the articulation of particular democratic rights discourses. The paper will also consider the role of civil society within urban protest in order to reflect upon debates concerning liberal and radical democracy, and the ‘politics of the governed’.

Between War and Peace: Monitoring Guidelines for Child Soldiers in Nepal's Peace Process

Between War and Peace: Monitoring Guidelines for Child Soldiers in Nepal's Peace Process

Community Schooling in Nepal: A Genealogy of Education Reform since 1990

Community participation in schooling is seen by policy makers and practitioners alike as essential for the achievement of efficient, accountable, and sustainable education. The shift in many developing countries to policies promoting decentralized provision is emerging increasingly in the form of programs in which parents and local groups play prominent roles in decisions about school finance, staffing, and overall educational “quality.” While scholars acknowledge the complex and contested nature of “community” and accept that participatory activities take many different forms (e.g., Bray 2001), there is also broad agreement that educational reform must engage stakeholders if it is to have any chance of overturning historic patterns of underinvestment, low relevance, and marginal usefulness. Whether participation is “genuine” (i.e., stakeholders play a significant role in decision making and governance) or “pseudo” (i.e., citizens are kept informed, often for the purposes of contributing resources), a guiding principle of the “post-Washington consensus” (Stiglitz 2002, 20) has been to encourage processes that deal concurrently with concerns for democracy, poverty alleviation, and sustainability. Recent developments in Nepal are no exception to the global trend of elevating the role of local communities in education. In 2003, as part of a renewed drive by the government to shift service delivery to the local level, the World Bank was invited to support project work to prepare the country for large-scale “transfer” of schools to local community stakeholders (World Bank 2003, 2). Known as the Community School Support Project (CSSP), the initiative aimed to elevate the role of parents on school management committees (SMCs) and empowered these organizations to appoint and supervise teachers locally. To encourage school transfer, a substantial initial incentive allowance/payment was provided. Unlike unaided or private community school models, however, the approach implemented in Nepal trans-

Community Schooling in Nepal: A Genealogy of Education Reform since 1990

Community Schooling in Nepal: A Genealogy of Education Reform since 1990

A Deeper Justice: Economic and Social Justice as Transitional Justice in Nepal

Nepal's April 2008 election was a climactic end to a 12-year conflict. As the country transitions to peace, efforts are underway to ensure that perpetrators of killings, abductions and torture are held accountable. As valid as this goal might be, transitional justice mechanisms should not continue to neglect economic and social justice issues. This article begins by explaining economic and social injustice as both a root and a product of Nepal's conflict, and demonstrates the deep commitment reflected in Nepal's peace agreement to addressing this injustice. This is juxtaposed with international and local transitional justice efforts that concentrate overwhelmingly on civil and political rights. After addressing the possibility of relegating economic and social justice to the development and postconflict reconstruction fields, the article suggests ways in which Nepal's transitional justice efforts might pursue such justice.