History
For most of its known history,
Nepal was ruled by an hereditary king but, from the middle of the
19th century, hereditary prime ministers of the Rana family controlled
the country. In 1951 the Ranas were overthrown and the monarchy
restored under King Tribhuvan.
Four years later he was succeeded by his son, King Mahendra.
In 1959 Mahendra established a parliamentary
constitution, and the ensuing elections were won by the Nepali Congress
(led by B P Koirala) which had played a key role in the re-establishment
of the monarchy.
A year later, however, a royal coup led to the banning of all political
parties and the establishment of a constitution based on the traditional
village councils (the Panchayat system).
Mahendra ruled until his death
in 1972 when he was succeeded by his son Birendra, who is the current
ruler. Following a referendum, in which the Panchayat regime was
approved by a narrow majority, Birendra persevered with the system,
assisted by censorship and repression where necessary.
As serious opposition
to the regime gathered strength through the 1980s, the King wavered
in his response to the movement between more repressive measures
and cosmetic administrative reforms designed to defuse the situation.
In 1986, a member of the minority Newari community, Marich Man Singh
Shrestha, became Prime Minister for the first time, holding the
office until his dismissal and replacement by Lokendra Bahadur Chand
in 1990.
During 1990, growing
public unrest brought the underlying political tension to the surface,
and forced the King to make concessions on the introduction of representative
government. Following negotiations between the Government and the
newly legalised opposition parties, a draft constitution was promulgated
in November 1990 which allowed for direct elections to a bicameral
parliament.
The first poll under the new system was held in May 1991: the Congress
Party (linked to the Indian party of the same name) took 110 of
the 205 seats in the new parliament to become the largest single
party; the United Marxist-Leninist Party (UML) became the largest
opposition grouping.
Despite an overall majority,
Congress was unable to lead a stable government and the next election
was brought forward from its scheduled date in 1996 to take place
in November 1994.
The UML unexpectedly emerged as the largest party with 88 seats;
Congress came second with 85. The UML formed a minority government,
the first of six governments which held office over the next five
years (including three in the twelve months leading up to the latest
poll).
The most recent election, staggered over two weeks in May 1999,
returned Congress with 110 seats once again but given the faction-ridden
nature of the party (a feature it shares with the UML) the new government
is unlikely to prove any more stable than its various predecessors.
Culture
Nepal has always been a dividing
line between cultures and civilizations, and a cross-roads for the
commerce and culture. Here the plains of the subcontinent climb
up to the high plateau of Tibet, the languages and people of India
give way to those of China and the Hindu religion blends in to Buddhism.
Nepal is often a complex blend of the two influences
and this variation is further complicated by the diversity of ethnic
groups within the country.
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