Nepal: Federalism for lasting peace

Shiv Raj Bhatt¹ and Syed Mansoob Murshed²*

¹ISS under MICROCON Project and National Programme Manager (a.i.)/Trade Policy Analyst, Enhancing Nepal’s Trade-related Capacity Programme, UNDP/Ministry of Commerce and Supplies, Government of Nepal, Kathmandu, Nepal.

²Institute of Social Studies (ISS), PO Box 29776, 2502 LT, The Hague, The Netherlands and the Birmingham Business School, University of Birmingham, UK, PRIO, Oslo.

*Corresponding author. E-mail: murshed@iss.nl.  Tel: +3170 4260591. Fax: +3170 4260507.

Accepted 7 September, 2009

   Abstract

Many studies have been conducted on the causes and consequences of Nepal’s conflict. Given the current peace, proposals on federal restructuring, mostly based on ethnic sub-divisions of the country, are rife. Federal restructuring of the country, it is believed, will be instrumental in power sharing and peace in the long run. It is also believed that federalism will promote inclusive development by granting political autonomy to states (regions) and assuring proportional and fair representation of all ethnic/sub-cultural groups in future governments and other decision-making organs of the state. However, it is not yet clear what kind of federalism this multi-ethnic country will have. Many analysts see federal restructuring of the country as an over-ambitious and challenging task for Nepal. There is also a fear that any hurried decision in this direction may further intensify the underlying conflict and ultimately cause the disintegration of the country. Furthermore, economic issues like revenue and expenditure sharing and resource mobilization are not fully spelled out by the proponents of federalism. This paper suggests an alternative basis for federal restructuring of the nation, which promotes long-term development and sustainable peace.

Key words: Nepal, post-conflict reconstruction, federal reconstruction.