Nepal (all areas)

The Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist (CPN-M) was founded to replace Nepal's parliamentary democracy. The party envisioned a purge of the nation's elite class, a state takeover of private industry and the collectivization of agriculture. The "People's War" aimed to establish a "New Democracy" in Nepal that would represent a "historical revolt against feudalism, imperialism and so-called reformists."

In mid-2008 elections, CPN-M won a plurality in the constitutional assembly and began forming a leftist coalition. Nepal's monarchy was abolished and work has begun on a new constitution.

There is a wide range of estimates concerning CPN-M's strength. Some hold that the number of CPN-M members participating in armed cadres is between 10,000 and 20,000 nationwide. In 2003, the government estimated that CPN-M had approximately 5,500 combatants, 8,000 militia, 4,500 cadres, 33,000 active members and 200,000 sympathizers.

Nepal's Maoists are most actively connected with similar groups in India for two major reasons. One is philosophical, centering on shared views of communist and collectivist approaches to national organization. The second reason is more practical, taking into account the presence of an estimated 8 million Nepalese in several Indian states.

CPN-M's major linkages are with Indian left-wing extremist organizations, including the People’s War Group (PWG) and the Maoist Communist Center (MCC), which have joined to form the Communist Party of India-Maoist. Initial contacts took place around 1990, presumably to collaborate in spreading communist and Maoist doctrines. The groups established the so-called Revolutionary Corridor (RC) from Nepal through the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh and Orissa. Maoists refer to the area as the Compact Revolutionary Zone (CRZ). The zone was established by Indian and Nepalese representatives of the Naxalite movement, an extreme left-wing group with its origins in the Naxalbari area of West Bengal.

The CPN-M also reportedly has developed ties to Pakistan's Inter Services Intelligence agency. Nepalese Maoists also have affiliated with the Revolutionary Internationalist Movement (RIM) operating throughout South Asia. Maoist groups in the region formed the Coordination Committee of Maoist Parties and Organizations of South Asia (CCOMPOSA) in 2001. There are indications that CPN-M may have had contacts with other Indian groups such as the Gurkha National Liberation Front (GNLF), Kamtapur Liberation Organization and the United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA). CPN-M has also received funds from Nepalese living in India.

The CPN-M's activities are patterned after Maoist guerrilla tactics. In opposing the government, CPN-M has targeted members of the parliament, the office of the prime minister, other ministries and educational institutions. The group appears to focus on disrupting local order in various districts by concentrating on attacking police stations. CPN-M has also turned its attention to international organizations within Nepal, including guards at the U.S. Embassy, whom the Maoists have accused of spying. In addition CPN-M has attacked foreign commercial interests including Coca-Cola and Pepsi-Cola facilities. CPN-M has used propaganda to promote its activities and publicizes both its political and insurgent activities. The Maoists on several occasions have kidnapped large groups of people in rural villages for several days to put them through indoctrination training.

The group has supported itself in part through bank robberies and various extortion schemes.

The group has also forcibly recruited large numbers of children to fill its ranks. The U.S. State Dept.'s 2006 Human Rights Report stated that as many as 30 percent of the Maoist guerrillas could be under the age of 18.

The Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist (CPN-M) was founded in 1995 and has been largely responsible for major changes in the national government. More than 1,600 separate incidents involving the group between 2004 and 2005 alone undercut stability in the country.

In 1990, as a result of widespread demonstrations, Nepal's King Birendra established a constitutional monarchy. The country's new constitution provided for elections in 1991, and 20 parties submitted candidates. One party, the United People's Front (UPF), represented a coalition of leftist interests. The CPN-M, the UPF's Maoist wing, fared poorly in the elections. As a result, the CPN-M was excluded from the 1994 round of elections, and turned to insurgency to promote its objective of overthrowing the parliamentary democracy.

CPN-M styled itself along the lines of many communist organizations. A standing committee heads the organization, followed by a politburo, a central committee, regional bureaus, sub-regional bureaus, district committees, area committees and cells. Directives are issued by the politburo. The armed wing consists of six guerrilla battalions. The immediate reason given by the Maoists for declaring the "People's War" was the failure of the Nepalese government to respond to a memorandum that called for the abolition of royal privileges, the promulgation of a new constitution and the abrogation of the Mahakali treaty with India on the distribution of water and electricity and the delineation of the border between the two countries.

Under Nepal's then-King Gyanendra, the Royal Nepalese Army tried aggressively to suppress the insurgency. Still, the CPN-M reportedly established control over more than 60 percent of the countryside. In 2006, both sides began moving towards a political dialogue.

A new splinter group, the Janatantrik Terai Muktai Morcha (JTMM), has emerged from the Maoist group. Its aim is to achieve the secession of the Terai plains in southern Nepal. The group is believed to be responsible for the assassination of a Nepalese legislator in 2006.

The Maoists joined an interim government in April 2007. CPN-M members walked out in September, only to return in December of that year.

In 2008, Nepal formed a representative government headed by a member of CPN-M. The monarchy was dissolved and work began on a new constitution. With the CPN-M's new position as a legitimate part of the government, the U.S. is reviewing its status on the terror watch list. Despite the new government, some violence continues across the country. U.N. observers have repeatedly called on the government to eliminate abusive and undemocratic practices, most recently in March 2009.

September: The United Nations High Commission on Human Rights called on CPN-M to refrain from abuses.

Nov. 21: The parliamentary government and the CPN-M signed an agreement providing for elections in June 2007 to decide whether the country would remain a monarchy. For an interim period, the CPN-M was invited to participate in the existing government. In return, the Maoists agreed to place thousands of fighters in camps where they would disarm and be monitored by the United Nations.

February: A member of a local government was allegedly kidnapped by CPN-M rebels.

Feb. 25: The U.N. reported that 30,852 CPN-M members were registered in 28 holding camps and that 3,428 weapons had been surrendered to United Nations monitors.

April 1: Six former Maoist rebels took seats in the Cabinet of the interim government. Elections for a new parliament to re-write the constitution were scheduled for June.

August: Rebels believed to be CPN-M attacked a police station and stole their weapons. The local Maoist commander denied his men were involved.

September: The CPN-M threatened to leave the government unless a list of 22 demands was met by the members of the governing coalition. CPN-M sought, among other demands, the abolition of the monarchy and the establishment of a republic prior to the upcoming elections. A series of bombing occurred in Kathmandu. The Nepalese army blamed Maoist rebels, who denied the allegations. The bombs may have been intended to disrupt the upcoming November elections.

Sept. 14: The U.N. Mission in Nepal (UNMIN) reported the movement of large numbers of Maoist personnel outside the main cantonment site in Nawalparasi and its satellite sites, violating commitments regarding the management of arms made by the Maoists in 2006 with the interim government.

Sept. 18: Five Maoist ministers who had assumed Cabinet positions in April 2007 resigned over the issue of declaring Nepal a republic and the use of proportional representation voting methods. The communists maintained that they were not abrogating the cease-fire with the government.

October: Elections in Nepal were indefinitely postponed after the seven main parties were unable to come to a compromise regarding the electoral system and the monarchy. Possible fractures in the CPN-M developed. A splinter party, CPN-M (United Rebel Front), emerged.

November: The United Nations called on the CPN-M to abide by its commitments concerning child soldiers under the age of 18. The U.N. High Commissioner for Human-Rights (Nepal) said the Maoists had violated the rights of children by forcing them to return to CPN-M after the youths had voluntarily left.

December 30: The CPN-M ended its 3.5-month separation from the government as Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala appointed five party members to ministerial positions in the interim Cabinet. The boycott ended after compromises were reached over the establishment of the constituent assembly.

Numerous attacks and kidnappings throughout 2007 were attributed to CPN-M members.

March 12: Members of the CPN-Maoist group attacked a political meeting of the Communist Party of Nepal-United Marxist-Leninist (CPN-UML). Twelve persons were injured.

April 4: The CPN-M temporarily detained a journalist from a Kantipur publication in Manang, accusing him of unauthorized entry of a "base area." Police were able to obtain his release.

April 10: After several delays, elections were held. The CPN-M unexpectedly won 218 seats in the constituent assembly. While no party gained a majority within the 575-seat body, CPN-M won a plurality. The second largest bloc went to the Nepali Congress Party with 110 seats, followed by the Communist Party of Nepal-United Marxist-Leninist Party with 103 seats.

April 27: The armed wing of CPN-M abducted, tortured and killed a businessman accused of theft at the Shakti Khor barracks in Chitwan.

May 28: At the first meeting of the constituent assembly, the country was declared a republic and Nepal's monarchy was dissolved. King Gyanendra became a private citizen. Efforts were initiated to organize a new government.

Aug. 30: Journalist Siddharaj Rai was physically attacked, reportedly by members of the Young Communist League (YCL), the militant youth wing of the CPN-M.

Aug. 31: CPN-M Chairman Puspa Kamal Dahal was voted the first prime minister of the republic of Nepal and became the head of a multi-party coalition government. The CPN-M coalition included the CPN-UML and other smaller parties. The Nepali Congress Party formed an opposition group within the assembly. The constituent assembly convened to draft a new constitution.

Dec. 21: Militant members of two trade unions affiliated with CPN-M attacked journalists at the offices of Himalmedia in Lalitpur, injuring about 12 people. The attack was said to have been prompted by articles critical of Maoist trade unions.

Jan. 27: A CPN-M affiliated trade union in Sankhuwasabha began "taxing" passenger buses, trucks and other vehicles. Drivers who failed to comply were threatened with beatings. Critics said the government looked the other way.

Feb. 12: In light of the functioning constituent assembly and the emergence of the new government, the U.S. said it would review the CPN-M's presence on its terrorist watch list.

March 23: After a five-day visit, a U.N. human-rights official observed that unless there was justice for the victims of abuse during the decade-long civil war, the peace process was in jeopardy. U.N. official Navi Pillay also expressed concern about detentions and "arbitrary" attacks on journalists.