English - Support to Participatory Constitution Building in Nepal ...
English - Support to Participatory Constitution Building in Nepal ...
English - Support to Participatory Constitution Building in Nepal ...
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The Remake of a Stateac<strong>to</strong>rs currently <strong>in</strong>volved <strong>in</strong> <strong>Nepal</strong> can pay more careful attention <strong>to</strong> whenplann<strong>in</strong>g their engagement. There are, of course, many other ways the<strong>in</strong>ternational ac<strong>to</strong>rs can make an impact <strong>in</strong> this transition.5. Role of <strong>in</strong>ternational ac<strong>to</strong>rsCountries <strong>in</strong> post-conflict situation, by def<strong>in</strong>ition, are <strong>in</strong> an unstableenvironment. They are usually divided, as can be seen <strong>in</strong> the cases of<strong>to</strong>day’s Sri-Lanka and <strong>Nepal</strong>, or South Africa <strong>in</strong> the aftermath of end ofapartheid regime. More than often, <strong>in</strong>ternational ac<strong>to</strong>rs get <strong>in</strong>volved <strong>in</strong>these countries, sometimes facilitat<strong>in</strong>g the peace process, and sometimesfurther complicat<strong>in</strong>g it! But assum<strong>in</strong>g the <strong>in</strong>ternational ac<strong>to</strong>rs are therewith good <strong>in</strong>tentions, they will have <strong>to</strong> recognise that different domesticstate ac<strong>to</strong>rs will have different pathways <strong>to</strong> stability, some more compatiblethan others with <strong>in</strong>ternationally accepted standards of human rights anddemocratic values. Whichever the pathway, however, it is likely <strong>to</strong> beshaped, at least partly, by economic performance. International ac<strong>to</strong>rstherefore are likely <strong>to</strong> be more effective <strong>in</strong> their missions if they also haveeconomic <strong>in</strong>centives <strong>in</strong> their agenda that work <strong>to</strong>wards economic capacitydevelopment of the country, that cont<strong>in</strong>ue even after three <strong>to</strong> four yearsof end of conflict, as argued above. This sort of <strong>in</strong>centive is still limited <strong>in</strong><strong>Nepal</strong>, as most of the <strong>in</strong>volvement is gett<strong>in</strong>g, it appears, more and morepolitical lately.Successful state build<strong>in</strong>g will almost always be the product of domesticaction, though it can be significantly enabled by well-targeted, responsive<strong>in</strong>ternational assistance. Ultimately, it is the local leaders who drivenational political processes. International <strong>in</strong>tervention can providetechnical assistance <strong>to</strong> such processes. New entities such as the Mediation<strong>Support</strong> Unit at the UN Department of Political Affairs are recognis<strong>in</strong>g theimportance of this assistance. In case of <strong>Nepal</strong>, a special mission calledUNMIN was created <strong>to</strong> support the peace process. It was established<strong>in</strong> response <strong>to</strong> the letter <strong>to</strong> the Secretary-General sent <strong>in</strong> August 2006,<strong>in</strong> which the then Seven-Party Alliance Government and the then CPN(Maoist) requested United Nations’ assistance <strong>in</strong> creat<strong>in</strong>g a free andfair atmosphere for the election <strong>to</strong> the CA and the entire peace process.However, now <strong>in</strong> its fourth year <strong>in</strong> <strong>Nepal</strong>, the role of UNMIN has not beenwithout controversies. It has been more than once criticised for lack ofimpartiality and <strong>in</strong>dependence on some sensitive issues of peace process.But it has <strong>in</strong> many ways played a commendable role <strong>in</strong> mediation andfacilitation <strong>in</strong> this process. This k<strong>in</strong>d of third-party mediation has attracted309