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Former Maoist rebels in a camp for former combatants in 2011. Their rehabilitation and reintegration into society was one of the most protracted processes and points of contention in the peace process. <\/p>\n
Keystone \/ AP <\/p>\n
The civil war between Nepal\u2019s government and Maoist rebels ended in 2006. Switzerland played a key role in the ten-year peace process that followed.\n<\/p>\n
This content was published on <\/p>\n
April 22, 2026 – 09:00\n<\/p>\n
The new Nepali prime minister was barely 16 years old when the Maoist rebels and the government agreed on a peace deal in 2006. Yet, by the time Nepal adopted a permanent constitution in 2015, Balendra Shah had already made a name for himself as a popular rapper.<\/p>\n
Finding the right path to peace and democracy takes time. Swissinfo spoke to former key players and observers to piece together what it took for the country to unite.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt the time, we were convinced that peace would pave the way for democracy and that democracy would ensure lasting peace,\u201d says G\u00fcnther B\u00e4chler, who, in 2005, became the first special adviser for peace building in Nepal. Before he took on that position, he was the head of the Swiss peace foundation Swisspeace.<\/p>\n
In 2006, there was both an international and local push for state building and democratisation [in Nepal], according to B\u00e4chler. \u201cBack then, the idea of mediation was not as overused as it is today.\u201d<\/p>\n
The conflict lasted ten years. In 1996, Maoist rebels started a guerrilla war by attacking several districts. The Nepalese government first relied on the police to combat them before deploying the army. Ceasefires failed repeatedly. The conflict intensified from 2002 onwards. Around 17,000 people died in the civil war, and well over 1,000 are still missing today.<\/p>\n
\u201cI still remember how the uprising continued to escalate. A state of emergency was declared in 2003. That was an exciting and sad time to start working in the field,\u201d Bishnu Sapkota tells Swissinfo.<\/p>\n
The cost of war<\/p>\n
Sapkota started his career as a human rights advisor for the United Nations. \u201cA state of strategic equilibrium emerged. The war could have gone on for years, but the government and the Maoists realised that perhaps no one would win,\u201d Sapkota remembers.<\/p>\n
In 2004, his study The Cost of War in Nepal was published. \u201cPeople were, of course, aware of how many people had died. But what about the costs to human rights for all, to education and health care?\u201d he continues. He was appointed secretary-general of the National Peace Campaign and later became programme manager for the Transition to Peace Initiative (NTTP).<\/p>\n
\u201cAt that time, the international community created an environment that insisted on dialogue as a solution. All representatives of civil society and human rights defenders were also pushing for this: dialogue, dialogue, dialogue,\u201d says Sapkota.<\/p>\n
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Maoist rebels take a break in the village of Sailungeshwari in eastern Nepal, in July 2001. <\/p>\n
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Demonstrators from the People\u2019s Movement for Democracy clash with police in Kathmandu on 20 April 2006. The Alliance of Seven Democratic Parties had called for a mass demonstration against the king on 21 April. <\/p>\n
AFP <\/p>\n
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Thousands gathered in Kathmandu on 25 April 2006 to celebrate the reinstatement of the Nepalese Parliament. This marked the end of King Gyanendra\u2019s 14-month absolute rule. <\/p>\n
AFP <\/p>\n
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Maoist rebels cross a river in the Siti Mahakali region in late April 2006, whilst the ceasefire was in force. <\/p>\n
AFP <\/p>\n
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Former child soldiers of the rebels left the detention camp in 2010 to start a new life as civilians. Around 3,000 children and young people were associated with the Maoist rebels. <\/p>\n
Keystone \/ AP <\/p>\n
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The search for missing persons: On International Day of the Disappeared 2010, people look at portraits of missing persons. Around 1,350 people went missing during the ten-year uprising. <\/p>\n
AFP <\/p>\n
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In August 2015, Nepalese women activists demonstrated in Kathmandu for equal rights in the new constitution. This was one of the provisions of the 2006 peace agreement that brought the civil war to an end. The negotiations dragged on because of disagreements over issues such as the structure of the state and women\u2019s rights. <\/p>\n
Keystone \/ EPA <\/p>\n
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On 10 September 2025, clouds of smoke shrouded the city of Kathmandu, a day after demonstrators had set fire to several buildings. The day before, demonstrators had already set fire to the parliament building, prompting the long-serving prime minister to resign. A protest movement led by Generation Z, sparked by a ban on social media, swept across the country. Dozens died as a result of the authorities\u2019 bloody crackdown on the demonstrations, which further fuelled the anger and protests. <\/p>\n
Keystone \/ AFP <\/p>\n
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A woman holds a portrait of her relative, who was killed in clashes with security forces, whilst waiting for the body to be handed over outside Tribhuvan University Hospital in Kathmandu in mid-September 2025. On 13 September 2025, Interim Prime Minister Sushila Karki took office. <\/p>\n
Keystone \/ AFP <\/p>\n
On top of that, Nepal\u2019s last king \u201cimposed a full autocracy in February 2005\u201d, Sapkota explains. This move suddenly gave parliamentary parties and the Maoists a common goal \u2013 to stop the king from seizing power.<\/p>\n
To India in an official Swiss vehicle<\/p>\n
The king\u2019s crackdown against civil society, B\u00e4chler recalls, also forced Switzerland to take a position, at least behind the scenes. \u201cSome critics of the regime escaped arrest by jumping over garden walls at night. We were then able to hide some of them in official Swiss vehicles and take them past military checkpoints to India.\u201d Even though the soldiers did not dare open the doors, the passengers inside the car were sweating blood and tears, he recounts.<\/p>\n
B\u00e4chler goes on: \u201cThe king overplayed his hand. That\u2019s why we offered the political parties our support to help get the key foundational document off the ground.\u201d<\/p>\n
For Sapkota, the signing of this 12-point document in November 2005 was a \u201chistoric\u201d moment. It marked the beginning of the cooperation between the Maoists and an alliance of seven parliamentary parties.<\/p>\n
The 12-point understanding between the Maoists and the democratic partiesExternal link<\/a> from November 2005 reads like an appeal to bring the monarchy to an end. It states that an \u201cunderstanding was reached to establish a full democracy with a nationwide democratic movement of all forces against the autocratic monarchy\u201d. According to B\u00e4chler, the democratic parties were concerned that the Maoists were only interested in creating a nominally democratic system. Yet, the 12-point understanding already stipulated that a democratic Nepal should adopt a \u201ccompetitive multiparty system\u201d.<\/p>\n \n More<\/p>\n More <\/p>\n Democracy\n <\/p>\n Our democracy newsletter <\/p>\n If you are a fan of democracy, then you\u2019ve come to the right place. We report on the latest democratic developments, debates and challenges. <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Read more: Our democracy newsletter The end of the monarchy<\/p>\n After large protests during Nepal\u2019s People\u2019s Movement, the king reconvened parliament in April 2006 which stripped him of most of his constitutional powers. In 2008, the Constituent Assembly declared Nepal a federal democratic republic.<\/p>\n Both democratic parties and representatives of the Maoist insurgents feared to be outmanoeuvred in the negotiations. And yet, the dialogue continued, B\u00e4chler says. Switzerland was seen as an actor supporting a democracy that aimed to \u201cbring society along and reshape it\u201d. The fact that Switzerland was already providing development aid to Nepal was a solid foundation for being taken seriously, B\u00e4chler argues. \u201cAll Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) programmes in rural areas were very participatory,\u201d he explains. At the local level, resource management was promoted, while at the higher level, the focus was on peacebuilding.<\/p>\n According to B\u00e4chler, both sides were optimistic about federalism, which, he emphasises, went hand in hand with the end of the monarchy \u2013 not least to break the \u201crule of the old families\u201d. \u201cIt was a highly centralised system in which the feudal elite around the king held much of the power,\u201d B\u00e4chler explains. \u201cWe did not push federalism, but the fact that Nepal wanted to pursue this path put Switzerland in a good position, both as a mediator and an expert.\u201d<\/p>\n Other international actors on the ground were in a less favourable position. \u201cThe Brits neither wanted to abolish the monarchy nor introduce federalism. I remember discussing this with the British ambassador while sitting in front of a portrait of Queen Elizabeth II,\u201d he explains. All international actors, he says, had their own agendas.<\/p>\n Agreement in Steckborn<\/p>\n The consensus on a federal system prompted B\u00e4chler and his successors to explain Switzerland\u2019s federal democracy. \u201cWe managed to bring participation, subsidiarity and our vertical government structure into the discussion. I invited the Maoists to Switzerland several times to make them understand that their federal concept should not be influenced by Stalinist ideas. In the end, they got it,\u201d says B\u00e4chler.<\/p>\n >>Read our article about Sri Lankan lawmakers who travelled to Switzerland last year to learn about direct democracy and federalism.<\/p>\n \n More<\/p>\n More <\/p>\n Global elections\n <\/p>\n Can Swiss-style federalism help power-sharing efforts in Sri Lanka? <\/p>\n This content was published on <\/p>\n Nov 13, 2025 <\/p>\n A delegation from Sri Lanka visited Switzerland to learn about direct democracy and federalism. They want to put some aspects into practice. <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Read more: Can Swiss-style federalism help power-sharing efforts in Sri Lanka? Sapkota recalls how things unfolded after the peace deal. \u201cAfter the Comprehensive Peace Agreement was signed in 2006, the two sides suddenly argued over the interpretation of every single point,\u201d he remembers.<\/p>\n In 2011, his organisation succeeded in bringing the negotiators from both sides to the town of Steckborn in northeastern Switzerland for a week. The focus of the meeting was the complex and longstanding question of how the Maoist rebels could be rehabilitated and integrated into the Nepali army. But the negotiating parties also discussed different models of government systems which eventually led to a breakthrough. \u201cThe actual agreement for the subsequent constitution was reached informally in Steckborn,\u201d says Sapkota.<\/p>\n The civil war\u2019s unresolved legal legacy<\/p>\n In 2023, Bimala Rai Paudyal served as Nepal\u2019s foreign minister. From 2008 to 2014, she worked in the country for SDC which, Paudyal writes in response to Swissinfo, was a formative time for her identity and career. Not least, she says, because the SDC placed project beneficiaries at the centre of its work. The organisation also openly acknowledged that no project could benefit everyone equally. The politician and development scholar considers Nepal\u2019s peace as a \u201chomegrown, learning-by-doing process\u201d.<\/p>\n Yet, she stresses, the peace process is not yet complete and much remains to be done, particularly when it comes to legally addressing the war years. While laws and commissions have been established to uncover the truth and find missing persons, implementation is still lacking. According to Paudyal, the will among the political parties remains limited. \u201cThis has left those directly affected by conflict excluded in the peace process outcomes,\u201d she says. But still, she describes the process as \u201ca moderate success compared with other countries\u201d.<\/p>\n J\u00fcrg Merz is the current Asia coordinator for the Swiss development organisation Helvetas. Established in 1955, Helvetas was the first to launch projects in Nepal focusing on cheese production where it remains active to this day.<\/p>\n Nepal has also played a special role in Merz\u2019s life since he arrived there in 1998. \u201cI intended to stay for 20 months, but in the end, I stayed for almost 20 years.\u201d<\/p>\n Lack of federalism on a provincial level<\/p>\n The war years had a major impact on \u201chow people thought and what they were like,\u201d Merz recalls. Over time and through his projects, he realised how important it was for people from diverse backgrounds, perspectives and ethnic groups to work together. \u201cThis creates better cohesion, stronger roots and a more solid social fabric,\u201d Merz says.<\/p>\n Nepal is now a country of over 30 million people who belong to 140 different ethnic groups and castes. During his two decades in Nepal, Merz could observe how the country was turned into a federal state.<\/p>\n However, federalism in the Himalayan nation still has room for improvement. \u201cI think that at municipal level, federalism works pretty well, as it does at the central government level. However, it does not work so well at the intermediate level,\u201d says Merz adding that the provinces lacked lobbying, power and resources. \u201cThey depend on financial transfers from the central government.\u201d<\/p>\n For this reason, \u201cnot only the SDC but also Helvetas\u201d is increasingly working with the provinces rather than the central government. \u201cWe want to further strengthen federalism and believe that it can work,\u201c Merz explains.<\/p>\n 2025 \u2018Gen Z\u2019 protests<\/p>\n Many people see Nepal\u2019s peace process as an important example, but the country is still struggling with many challenges such as economic problems and emigration.<\/p>\n >>Read our article about the impact of migration on Nepali women:<\/p>\n \n More<\/p>\n More <\/p>\n Foreign Affairs\n <\/p>\n The good wife: Nepali migrants\u2019 wives struggle to fill in for husbands and the state <\/p>\n This content was published on <\/p>\n Oct 25, 2023 <\/p>\n The 2022 FIFA football world cup highlighted the plight of Nepali migrant workers in the Gulf, but the price paid by their wives goes unacknowledged. <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Read more: The good wife: Nepali migrants\u2019 wives struggle to fill in for husbands and the state In 2025, thousands of young people took to the streets to protest corruption and a government-imposed ban on social media. During the unrest, the parliament building also went up in flames.<\/p>\n More than 70 people lost their lives during the protests, and, as the BBC recently revealedExternal link<\/a>, a police order \u201cto deploy necessary force\u201d might have led to the killings.<\/p>\n On 9 September 2025, a fire raged at Singha Durbar in Kathmandu, the main administrative building of the Nepalese government. This occurred the day after police cracked down on anti-corruption demonstrations. <\/p>\n AFP <\/p>\n \u201cTen years of insurgency, ten years from the ceasefire to the new constitution in 2015 \u2013 and now in the ten years since then, there has been so much anger and frustration in society,\u201d Sapkota says.<\/p>\n In 2026, a millennial was elected president after politics had long been dominated by figures who had been involved in the peace process 20 years earlier.<\/p>\n![\"Newsletter](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/newsletter_teaser_cc_democracy.jpg\")
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