The agreement between the government and the Nepal Federation of Indigenous Nationalities (NFIN) sets a precedent for finding a peaceful solution to all demands for fair political representation to Nepal's diverse communities. The agreement sets an example for madhesis and other groups who have been using violence to draw the attention of the state. They should all learn from NFIN.

Political ethnification or ethnic politicisation are debatable concepts. But there can be no two opinions about the need to give political representation to minorities. The agreement on making the election to the constituent assembly more inclusive and proportional is a welcome development. NFIN has given up its demand of full proportional electoral system. But it is likely raise the issue of a broad agreement with the parties to ensure that all indigenous nationalities are given their share of seats by the parties. It isn't clear whether the federation has postponed this demand, yet.

In the beginning it seemed as if there was coordination between the MJF and the federation, though the two groups had different styles. The federation was more constructive, whereas the forum seemed destructive. Extreme pressure is often counterproductive and the forum should learn lessons from NFIN. The main characteristic of democracy is finding amicable resolution to all problems.

Democracy has obviously raised the expectations of the people and this is as it should be. The unitary state ignored the multicultural realities of Nepal for a long time. Now the country needs to be unified, but in a different way. The quest for justice to the past discrimination isn't wrong, but the motive shouldn't be to settle scores. The agreement with NFIN has opened new possibilities and has shown that amicable resolution is possible.