Nepal in Transition : A Study on the State of Democracy

Contents: Foreword. Preface. Acknowledgements. Abbreviations. 1. Introduction. 2. Methodology. 3. Democracy, Jana Andolan II and political participation. 4. Transition and expectation. 5. Ethnicity and inclusion. 6. Conclusion. References. Major political events in Nepal. Index. Appendices.

"In 2004, International IDEA and the Nepal Chapter of the State of Democracy in South Asia carried out a survey on the state of democracy in Nepal. Three years later, they conducted another survey to determine how much the Nepali people\'s understanding of democracy and other issues had changed after the April 2006 Jana Andolan (People\'s Movement), which put an end to the armed conflict and ushered in the process of conflict transformation.

This publication presents the major findings of the survey, which was complemented by interviews with the representatives of Nepali elites and an additional survey among members of the legislature.

These findings, which herald a shift in the People\'s perspective, a perspective that will shape Nepal\'s new political course, include:

The people\'s remarkable adherence to democracy is in conformity with the building up of social capital.
The envisioning of a new Nepali state in which three major transformations will have taken place--the kingdom transformed into a republic, the milieu of armed conflict transformed into one of peaceful politics and the non-inclusive state ruled by the high castes transformed into an inclusively democratic Nepal.
The overlap of ethnic identity and national identity, since people are proud of both, ensures that the rise of ethnicity will not prove detrimental to national integration.
The significance of the role that the international community is playing: it is considered as pivotal for conflict transformation, and the people believe that international supervision would ensure free and fair elections to the Constituent Assembly."