VOL. 27, NO. 25, February 29, 2007 (Falgun 17 2064 B.S.)

UNDP publishes a book on Interim Constitution in both English and Nepali language along with introductory materials

By A CORRESPONDENT

Promulgated just a year ago, the Interim Constitution of Nepal is a first constitutional document which was amended three times in the course of one year of its promulgation. As it was amended so quickly, its earlier copies have become incomplete.

In the constitutional history of Nepal, it took about three decades for third amendment in the previous constitution of Nepal which was abrogated in 1990 after the promulgation of the Constitution of Kingdom of Nepal 1990, which was not amended till it was abrogated by the announcement of this interim constitution.

This book not only provides the constitution, it also includes introductory materials in both language side by side.

“We have produced it in the form of bilingual version: in book form the Nepali appears on the right and the English on the left hand page. This will help readers of the English who also understand Nepal to be sure of the meaning. We hope it will also be helpful to translators of future constitutional document. The text of the Interim Constitution is preceded in this book by a brief introduction to the Interim Constitution, and also by a simple Guide to the Interim Constitution, intended for members of the public who want to understand something about the document but for whom the original text is too time-consuming to read. Maybe some people will be able to tackle the full document after reading the “Simple Guide,” writes the authors.

At a time when all the people have been talking about the need to have Constituent Assembly to make the new constitution for Nepal, this book will certainly give an idea about the evolutionary process of Nepal’s constitutional history.

In the last five decades of Nepal’s process of modernization, this interim constitution is the fifth constitution in the row. But, only a few people understand how frequently Nepal’s constitutions were victimized for political gains.

Although this is basically a book composed of Nepalese and English translated version of Interim Constitution of Nepal, it gives broader perspective on Nepal’s constitutional history and various political phases.

After the revolution of 1951, all the sides agreed to write the constitution through the elections of Constituent Assembly. However, three previous constitutions were drafted on the basis of political understanding between the King and political parties.

The final agreement between the political parties and the king was reached after the successful People’s Movement of 2006. The parties promulgated the interim constitution to go for elections for Constituent Assembly.

In the introductory chapter, the authors talk about Nepal’s history of constitution as well as the content analysis of the interim constitution and its article.

With the involvement of renowned persons having expertise on constitutions like Jill Cottrell and Surya Dhungel, this book is very different than others. For foreigners who like to know about Nepal’s five decades of history of constitution, this book gives insights.