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Nepal in Crisis 2006: Human Rights
IDMC:
IDP return still a trickle despite ceasefire
October 2006
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IDP return still a trickle despite ceasefire
16 October 2006 (IDCM)

Nearly six months after nationwide protests forced the king to end 14 months of absolute rule and the Maoists rebels called a ceasefire, only a few thousand people have reportedly returned to their homes, the majority of the internally displaced persons (IDPs) preferring to wait for better security guarantees and more assistance to make the journey home. Although no reliable figures exist, it is estimated that up to 200,000 people have been internally displaced in Nepal by ten years of war, which has claimed more than 13,000 lives and affected all districts of the country. Caught between two evils, abuses by the Maoists and repression by the security forces, most people have also fled the general deterioration of the socio-economic conditions in the countryside and sought refuge in district headquarters or in the main urban centres. The war has also thrown hundreds of thousands of people onto the road to India - a traditional migration route for Nepalese.

A 12-point agreement signed in November 2005 between the CPN-Maoist and the Seven Party Alliance had already encouraged some timid return movements of IDPs to their homes. The ending of the armed conflict and repeated commitments by the rebels to respect the rights of IDPs paved the way for more returns, in particular in the eastern and mid-western regions. However, continued human rights abuses by the Maoists, including killings, abductions and torture, have so far prevented largerscale return movements. These are also hampered by the absence of government representatives at the village level, these having been displaced themselves, as well as by the lack of a government return plan.
The government issued a national IDP Policy in March 2006, but as with previous IDP plans, the latest failed to comply with international standards as it only recognised as IDPs those displaced by the actions of Maoists. Although initially slow to move from the development into the humanitarian gear, the response of the international community is now taking shape, spearheaded by UNHCR and OHCHR as lead agencies for IDP protection. While peace talks are now ongoing and many IDPs are on the verge of returning, both the government and the Maoists should do more to live up to their commitment to provide assistance to all categories of displaced and ensure that their return can take place in a safe and sustainable manner.
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Internally displaced people
Background and main causes of displacement
The "People's War" was launched by the Maoists (CPN-M) in 1996 with the aim of overthrowing the constitutional monarchy and establishing a socialist republic. Despite the reinstatement of a multiparty democracy in 1990 and a new constitution, which followed three decades of panchayat (nonparty) system of government, Nepal's political order continued to be dominated by the same elite who demonstrated little inclination to improving the lives and livelihoods of the majority of the rural poor and largely failed to address the systemic inequality of Nepalese society.
The insurgency started in the districts of the mid-western region when Maoists began attacking the police, the main landowners, members of other political parties, teachers and local government officials. Forced to leave their land and property or threatened because of their association with the monarchist regime, many people targeted by the Maoists started moving to district headquarters where many chose to settle. Using guerrilla tactics and virtually unchallenged by the government during the first five years, the Maoists gradually gained ground in other districts of the country. It was not until the deployment of the army and the declaration of a state of emergency in late 2001 that the conflict escalated. By then, displacement had also started to affect other poorer strata of the population who fled fighting between the rebels and the army, forced recruitment into Maoist ranks and also the more general effects of war.

In many areas, the conflict led to the breakdown of education, closure of businesses, weakening of local economies and interruption of public services. Insecurity and blockades further reduced the availability of food and exacerbated a long-standing trend toward rural exodus (SAFHR, March 2005, p. 36). Particularly after November 2001, when security deteriorated markedly in rural areas, many people started fleeing to urban district centres, large cities like Kathmandu, Biratnagar and Nepalgunj, and across the border to India.

In 2001, Prince Gyanendra was crowned king after most of The Former Royal Family was killed in a bizarre shooting incident in the palace. A year later he suspended the elected Parliament, installed a prime minister of his choosing and indefinitely postponed elections, effectively assuming full executive powers with the support of the army. Although a seven-month ceasefire provided some respite in 2003, fullscale fighting soon resumed, even gaining in intensity, while the conflict rapidly spread to all 75 districts of the country. A pattern emerged, with the rebels more or less controlling the rural areas and the government's presence mainly restricted to district headquarters and urban centres. In a desperate effort to regain some control of the rural areas, the government started encouraging the creation of "village defence committees" in various districts of the country (ICG, 17 February 2004). Often created by local landlords with the tacit support of the army, these militias constituted an inflammatory development in the conflict.

In February 2005, an anti-Maoist rampage in Kapilvastu district resulted in the displacement of between 20,000 and 30,000 people to the Indian border (Bell, Thomas, 12 March 2005; BBC, 14 March 2005; Kathmandu Post, 19 March 2005). On 1 February 2005, the king dismissed the government and declared a state of emergency giving him absolute power and effectively suspending all civil liberties (AI, 15 June 2005, p. 4).

In the wake of the coup, fighting and subsequent human rights abuses increased significantly throughout the country. While the king gained less understanding for his coup from the international community than he had hoped for, he also miscalculated the repercussions at the domestic level. By the end of the year, the Maoists and the main political parties had reached a common understanding in the form of a 12-point agreement where they approved a common platform of action for ending the king's absolute rule and restoring sovereignty to the people through the reinstatement of Parliament, the formation of an allparty government and elections to a constituent assembly.

On 24 April 2006, following weeks of nationwide protests, the king ended his direct rule and reinstated parliament (IRIN, 25 April 2006). At the end of May, a new interim government and the Maoist leadership agreed on a 25-point Code of Conduct to end the conflict and pave the way for the election of a constituent assembly, whose task would be to draw up a new Constitution and lay down the foundation of a new political system to govern the country. Both sides met for a second round of formal peace talks in early October and agreed to hold elections for a constituent assembly by June 2007. No agreement was reached on the main bones of contentions, which include the future of the monarchy and the disarmament of the rebels (IRIN, 10 October 2006).

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Credit: Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC) and Norwegian Refugee Council 2006
Source: IDMC
Nepal: IDP return still a trickle despite ceasefire
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Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC)
Internal Displacement
Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC)
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