Organised by the Indian Ministry of External Affairs as an outreach activity on Indo-Nepal relations, the seminar was inaugurated by the Minister of External Affairs of India and its five working sessions focused on The Way Forward, Processes for Rehabilitation in Post Conflict Situation, Federal Structure and Inclusiveness, Making of a New Constitution and Open Border ? Opportunity and Responsibilty.

Participants included prominent politicians and leaders of civil society, past and present members of armed forces and security establishments, academics and analysts. There was consensus that Nepal's peaceful transition from a country racked by violence and insurgency to a democratic republic was an unique event in global annals.

Speakers stressed that it was imperative that the aspirations of the people which had been both expressed and aroused needs must be fulfilled if the peace process was to reach its logical culmination. It was agreed that the root cause of the problem lay in poverty and deprivation. If visible and effective steps were not taken to move forward then protests could again spill over.

There was concern that there may continue to be elements in the polity who had not fully appreciated the necessity of discarding old mind sets. While the overall feeling was one of optimism, it was regretted that the extent of mutual co-operation among the political parties which had made it possible to undertake the journey to peace, seemed to have somewhat diminished recently. The importance of keeping faith with the people was emphasised.

The earlier commitment to the induction of CPN (Maoist) cadres into the Nepal Army was recognised. Some speakers underlined the need for an apolitical army, while others pointed out that elements of the present army presumably carried over earlier political affiliations. There were suggestions that screening could be done for future entrants as well for existing members of the forces to ensure their neutrality. Meanwhile, several speakers felt that the re-organisation of the army cannot be limited to the induction of Maoist cadres, but must simultaneously address past regional imbalances in recruitment.

The importance as also the sensitivity of the issue was appreciated by several participants. In the context of the need to reduce the size of the army with the end of the insurgency, speakers also felt that there should be comprehensive review in the light of a national security policy and Nepal's future requirements. There was a view that rehabilitation of the cadres need not be confined to the army, but could include other forces. While expressing divergent views, speakers recognized the need for statesmanship in moving forward.

Lively discussions on the future federal structure and the making of the constitution brought out the intensity of views on various aspects. It was said that in the past the state had followed an unitary policy, destroying identity. Several speakers felt that the basic question was providing space to the people and fulfilling their basic needs and aspirations and that these issues could be addressed in any kind of state structure.

While acknowledging this, most speakers felt that there could be no going back on the question of a federal structure for Nepal. What needed to be addressed by the Constituent Assembly was the basis of the federal structure and ensuring that the larger economic or developmental requirements of Nepal as a state did not suffer. Perceptive comments also emerged on how the interests of smaller groups within a federating unit could be adequately preserved. The importance of appropriate division of power between the centre and federating units and a "resilient federation" were underlined. It was necessary to speak not only of diversities but also of commonalities.

It was recalled that this would be the first time that the people of Nepal would give themselves a constitution. The new constitution should not be a compilation of political slogans, but lay the foundation for the future. It was essential to respect the views of others and the primary objective of nation building would have to be based on a spirit of compromise.

There was frank and constructive discussion on the open border between Nepal and India, dealing with the two aspects of security and the needs of the trans-border populations. There would be a need to harmonise the interests of the state with those of the people. Speakers felt that the border should not be seen in the extremes of being open or closed, but should be regulated. It was underlined that Nepal was not land-locked, but land-linked with India. Borders tended to be seen as marginal to development and this needs to be rectified. There could be a case development work carried out jointly.

In his concluding remarks, Mr Durgesh Man Singh, Nepal's ambassador to India, said, "Never in India-Nepal relations has there been such positive interaction between all sections of society, or such a congenial atmosphere".

Deb Mukharji was the Indian ambassador to Nepal 2000-2002.

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