The Challenges and Opportunities for Peace and Justice in Nepal

The Challenges and Opportunities for Peace and Justice in Nepal

Invest in Peace-For Everyone, Everywhere, Every Day,

Govind Prasad Thapa, PhD
Additional IGP (Retd), Nepal Police

Introduction

Peace is often misunderstood as simply the absence of war. In reality, it is the foundation for human dignity, cooperation, and sustainable development. Without the peace, societies struggle to address poverty, inequality, and climate change. The peace ensures that children can attend school safely, communities can thrive economically, and individuals can live without fear of discrimination or violence. Nepali people feel proud of having over one hundred different ethnic groups living together with over a hundred languages and cultures, and most of the world’s highest mountains; sadly, Nepal’s history is replete with treason, rebellions, bloodshed, and scandals.

The most dreadful bloodshed in the past were Bhandarkhal Parba, Kot Parba, and Alau Parba, amongst many others. The last instances of bloodshed were the Maoist insurgency and the murder of King Birendra Bir Bikram Shah and his family members. The intra-ethnic hostilities among the different indigenous ethnic people and other castes, like Hindu, Muslim, Sikh, Aadibasi, and Janjati, are illustrations of the threats to peace and harmony in Nepal.

Nepal is ranked as one of the world’s poorest countries. Nepali people are dealing with the problems of societal discrimination, violence due to marginalization, and gender issues marked by human rights violations. The worsening political, justice, and economic status of the country is shattering the spirits of the peace-loving Nepali people. The untamed poverty, job scarcity, high taxes, inflation, food and water scarcity, including systemic corruption, rising impunity to politicians and their henchmen for their crimes, ever-rising human rights violations, and failures of the governments to address these social criminalities are stark examples of challenges and problems for durable peace and justice in Nepal.

The Past Tragedies

Maoists started protests for political renovation with 40-point socio-economic, political, and cultural demands. Of the 40-point demands, seven were related to nationalism, 13 were political, 13 were economic, and seven were socio-cultural. Among them, five demands, viz, ethnic autonomy, devolution, secular state, end of ethnic oppression, and equality of languages, had aligned with the Adibasi and Janjati agendas.  The government had turned a deaf ear towards those demands. As a result, the armed conflict began on 13 February 1996, when the CPN (Maoist) initiated an insurgency with the stated purpose of overthrowing the Nepalese monarchy and establishing a people’s republic. It ended with the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Accord on 21 November 2006. Consecutively, parliament proclaimed Nepal to be a federal democratic republic, ending the 240-year-old Hindu monarchy.

The execution of the CPA has been stalled without any efforts to date. The victims of the civil war continue to suffer without any justice. This writer’s house was bombed in Butwal without any compensation so far. It is interesting that Puspa Kamal Dahal (Prachanda) is now heading the government and has forgotten all those demands made by his party. The immediate priorities should have been the prosecution of the most serious crimes, the investigation of disappearances, and action to vet state and Maoist security force members. It appears now that no political party is raising demands for these humanitarian issues. Nepal has indeed failed to address the systematic crimes committed during Nepal’s ten-year civil war. There has not been a single prosecution in civilian courts for any abuses on the part of Maoists or security forces. Now the impunity is threatening the peace of the country again.

The Present State

The poor public security, the naturalization of violence as a political tool, the inability of watchdog institutions to monitor effectively, and the failure of the government to take legal action have all contributed to growing impunity. The cultures of impunity that enabled the crimes in the first place have remained intact, further increasing public distrust and incentives to resort to violence. The impunity of the politicians and their henchmen, the public distrust of the politicians, and the instability of the governments are some of the challenges and problems of peace and justice in Nepal. It appears, now, that the root cause of the Maoist conflict in Nepal had been the lust for power only. Even ancient history details the most barbaric facts of an insidious tug-of-war for political power.

Today, social discrimination, exclusion, and marginalization, besides poverty, unemployment, and illiteracy, are the primary causes of suffering of Nepali people. Women and marginalized ethnic communities, Dalits, Muslims, and other minorities have been worst hit by the current political, social, and economic situations. Social conflicts are provoked by different religions and cultures, different languages, socio-economic reasons, unfair access to resources, and contradictions between society and government structures.  Women are particularly susceptible to poverty and suffering, as well as experiencing direct physical violence. The failure of the government to solve its multi-dimensional problems is like boiling lava–unsure of its time, but sure to explode one day.

Opportunities for Peace and Justice in Nepal

We have seen some changes in the state structure and system. However, the fact is that we have not been able to change the character and mindset of the ruling party. It is evident through the caste discrimination, exclusion, injustice, and atrocities on Dalits and other minor ethnic groups of Nepal. This kind of mindset has been responsible for igniting violence in Nepal in the past. The latest example of the Koshi Pradesh incident of protest for the naming of the province with the spirit of identity was met with stern state reactions. Consequently, one person was killed in the event of protest. The problems have not been solved but have been exacerbated. Unfortunately, the violent incident was repeated in Sunsari district a few weeks ago.

Successful peacebuilding activities create an environment supportive of self-sustaining, durable peace; reconcile opponents; prevent conflict from restarting; integrate civil society; create rule of law mechanisms; and address underlying structural and societal issues. Inclusivity in the political structure supports the integrative aspect. Inequity, exclusion, and marginalization foster insecurity and conflict. Excessive inequality and weak institutions may be the motive for crime, violence, political instability, and conflicts.

We have witnessed the Madhesi agitation due to the unequal treatment of the people. In a country hosting multiethnic people and religions, the chances of erupting conflicts are high. Social inclusion in Nepal has become an agenda for state transformation. It is an accepted norm that there should be a contest among social groups for power-sharing, but there should not be systemic coercion, exclusion, marginalization, or hatred towards any race or ethnic group. Inclusion, respect for identity, and representation are essential elements for avoiding conflicts and fostering long-term peace.

After the war, the government established the Ministry of Peace and Reconstruction (MoPR) with a mandate to manage the peace process, including setting up peace mechanisms at both national and local levels. To support the MoPR, the government and donors established the Nepal Peace Trust Fund (NPTF) in January 2008. Alas! It did not have enough spirit to perform. The peace supporter Bishnu Sapkota has rightly commented, “One of the key weaknesses of Nepal’s peace structures is that they have often lacked a coherent approach for effective coordination. The absence of political will to create the National Peace and Rehabilitation Commission (NPRC) was a significant blow to the entire process since it undermined the role of the Local Peace Committees. The NPRC should have been a neutral and, hence, legitimate body to monitor the CPA, and even interpret it, if required. An inclusive Consultative Committee comprising political and civil society actors that had been formed to advise the MoPR also succumbed to political affiliation and was rendered similarly ineffective.”1 

What next steps for Nepal?

Nepal needs to concentrate on some important steps to prevent and neutralize conflicts in the days to come by addressing past inhumane activities. The following steps could be helpful to prevent and mitigate conflicts in society.

Implementation of Comprehensive Peace Agreement

The lack of interest in monitoring, non-implementation of the provisions of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement, non-execution of the agreements signed, failure in law and order situations, and indifference towards owning the peace process are the major weaknesses of the government. Institutionalizing peace and democracy through the meaningful conclusions of the peace process is still the call of the people and time.

Maintain Social Harmony

In a state where it is characterized by ‘Unity in Diversity’ because multiple religions and cultures are practiced, social harmony must be maintained in the society for peace and development. Often, the spirit of the Constitution is shattered at the public level. We have seen numerous people killed during Hindu-Muslim riots in Rauthat, Nepalgunj, and Kapilvastu over the issues of politics and religious practices. Such behavior of the public will ruin the atmosphere of coexistence and thus mar the unity and stability in society.

For social justice in a diverse society, the government should work with the spirit of the Constitution. Peace and justice can be obtained through combined efforts to improve the economic, social, and political status of all the castes and ethnic groups of Nepal. Justice and peace encourage individual and collective action by citizens as actors in society for the promotion of peace and justice in the world. It seeks to strengthen citizen responsibility and participation, both locally and globally.

End the Persistent Impunity

The crimes and human rights violations must be addressed to re-establish justice, public security, and law and order. This is a time for all political parties to show that they have the political will to bring justice to those responsible for human rights violations, and not intervene in the investigations as they are accustomed to, and protect their supporters. The political leaders and their henchmen are enjoying impunity. It should be stopped, and the rule of law should prevail. The crimes and human rights violations must be addressed to re-establish justice, public security, and law and order.

Education on Peace and Justice

Peace and justice are inseparable from social and economic growth. Currently, peace education remains marginalized in our education system; however, a united front can be formed, and powerful paradigms can empower educators to play a critical role in peacebuilding through scholarship, practice, and activism. Indeed, educators around the world are developing effective strategies to transform education into a powerful force for global peace.

Monitoring the Conflicts

Just because a solution has been identified and addressed doesn’t mean the conflicts will just go away. Regular follow-up is necessary. If the solution didn’t work or wasn’t the right resolution for the situation, make sure to be proactive in working with both parties to readjust expectations, identify alternative solutions, and continue their dialogue to create a positive and healthy work environment. Charles F. Dambach points out, “the growing pressure from expanding and migrating populations, as well as dramatic changes in climates and shrinking access to water, could trigger new waves of violence on a global scale. We must find ways to resolve these conflicts at the negotiating table. If not, the battlefields could expand, and death and destruction may become catastrophic.”2

Conclusion

The long transition from monarchy to federalism has yet to yield stable and cohesive governance with broad-based public support. The safety, security, and prosperity of all should be protected. The failure to adhere to the basic norms of democracy and non-violent conflict resolution continues to encourage hostility. The persistent lack of political stability and intermittent outbreaks of substantial violence have attracted the concern and attention of the international community. The increasing economic and scientific cooperation between the systems has an important role to play in this respect. To create the conditions for lasting peace, hostile class structures have to be stopped. The present National Security Council should not only concentrate on physical security but also devote full-time research to geopolitics, security from terrorism, social crime, economic security, energy security, environmental security, food security, water, cyber-security, and the governance of security agencies, etc.

References:

1.      Bishnu Sapkota comes from his article “Architecture of peace in Nepal” published in Accord Issue 26 (March 2017) by Conciliation Resources.

2.      Charles F. “Chic” Dambach’s memoir Exhaust the Limits: The Life and Times of a Global Peacebuilder, published by Apprentice House at Loyola University Maryland.