Is it all over now or will the conflict over the constitution flare up again? Well, protesters have withdrawn from the barricades and curfews have been lifted. On Thursday, Madhesi and Tharu leaders even met with the “Big Three” – NC, UML, and the Maoists – to discuss terms for future talks. However, the Terai […]
How can the ongoing bandh and riots over the constitution benefit the people in Terai? Indeed, politics has its own calculations of “benefit” and “advantage” – securing “vote banks”, “positions” and “influence” may be part of it – but ordinary people may have a hard time seeing what they gain from it. Sure, party leaders […]
What does the constitution tabled at present entail for local Nepal? Well, it’s hard to cover it all – the draft document stands at 104 pages plus appendices – but essentially it looks like much will be different in the future, although much will also remain the same. The overarching issue is indeed the creation of a new sub-level of government: provinces. The draft constitution provides for eight…
Federalism has been on everybody’s lips for seven-eight years. A federal state structure – based on ethnicity – was indeed a popular idea back in 2008. But what about now? Well, ask the Kathmandu-based Interdisciplinary Analysts (IA), and they’ll say it’s all changed. Merely 26 percent of the population are in favour of federalism; and […]
There are many maps suggesting how to delineate future ethnically based federal states in Nepal. The “Tharu state”, the “Newari state”, the “Madeshi” state – all these names are on the table and more. Will it work to sub-divide the territory of a country, which has more than 60 ethnic groups, using the criterion of […]
