Civil War in Nepal, History
By the year 1996, the Maoist party had rallied most of the rural areas in Nepal to join them in their revolutionary war. They were generally seen as rebels and the King of Nepal and his government were scrambling to defuse the situation. The threats of the Moaists were confirmed when they started to attack factories and police outposts, ransacking and destroying property and setting off explosives that took the lives of many innocents. And Kathmandu, was their first target.
But is was in the year 2001, that events started to unfold that led to a
full fledged Nepalese Civil War. The government of Nepal
took the first step in fighting off the Maoists by deploying the newly
created Armed Police Force. On the 1st of June 2001, the entire country of
Nepal was rocked as news of the palace massacre spread. Prince Dipendra had
shot his father, King Birendra and most of the royal family, before turning
the gun on himself. This lead to King Gyanendra being crowned in the midst
of a civil war in Nepal. Towards the end of the year, the
government and the Maoists had started engaging in peace talks, which soon
collapsed. In retaliation, the rebels attacked military posts and police
outposts across forty-two districts. This led to a state of emergency being
declared in Nepal.
Peace talks were again laid on the table in 2002, but as expected they
once again collapsed. Both sides started importing arms and ammunition and
as another year of civil war in Nepal drew to a close, King Gyanendra
canceled the 2002 elections and appointed a new prime minister and
dismissed the government. In the following years of 2003, 2004 and 2005, the
Nepalese Civil War continued. Many died at the hands of the Nepali
military forces and the Maoist rebels. Homes were lost, many more
cease-fires and peace talks failed and by 2006, there would yet again be
a new Prime Minister.
Uprisings, curfews and clashes with police in cities such as Kathmandu
had become the norm. In May of 2006, the new Nepali cabinet announced that
the Maoist rebels would not be considered terrorists if they would be open
to trying another round of peace talks. This time, however, the talks ended
on 21 November 2006 with the signing of deal between the rebels and the
cabinet. Maoists leaders would be able to join the government, but the UN
would be monitoring and supervising their weapons.
The Civil War in Nepal lasted from 1996 until 2006. A ten-year war that
cost many lives and resuled in massive damage to structures, the economy and the daily
lives of citizens. It can only be hoped that Nepal will never have to suffer
another turbulent period like this, and that their future can be decided on
and molded together.
