ABSTRACT
Nepal has been characterised as a post-conflict country in a state of transition since the Maoists joined the peace process after a decade-long insurgency in 2006. 1 The democratic political formations teamed up with the Maoist guerillas to oust King Gyanendra who had seized power a year earlier. Pushpa Kamal Dahal (Prachanda), the leader of the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist), was to later describe this as a tactical ploy to get rid of monarchy in his party's quest to set up a single-party state. With such improbable alignments and unlikely agreements, Nepal set course on a peace process even as the security dynamic remained fragile and political stability elusive. The United Nations Mission in Nepal (UNMIN) was designated to play a limited role in monitoring the arms and armies of the two sides. Nepal watchers began to see a glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel.
