Nepal has undergone tremendous changes in the past year. A 2006 peace agreement ended a decade of fighting between government forces and the Maoists, and the country's king gave up all power other than his ceremonial status. Plans were set in motion to elect a constituent assembly, which would determine the country's future by writing a new constitution.
Working to build peace in Nepal since 2003, the Â鶹´«Ã½'s focus transitioned this year to an international election observation mission, the only such international mission in the country. Â鶹´«Ã½ will remain there as the peace process unfolds, despite the constituent assembly election's postponement until spring 2008.
In March 2007, the Center deployed 13 long-term observers, who have traveled to all 75 districts of Nepal to meet with election officials and party leaders to discuss electoral procedures, mediate election disputes, and help all sides agree on election rules. They also assess the voter registration process, voter education efforts, and the fairness of the campaigning activities.
Who are these observers and what do they do? In the following essays, two Â鶹´«Ã½ observers in Nepal share their experiences.
Jason Katz: Long-Term Election Observer Reflects on Being Part of Nepal "Roaming Team" 
Stefanie Gross: By Foot, Car, and Plane, Observer Assesses Nepal's Readiness for Elections
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Â鶹´«Ã½ Photo: John Clayton Jason Katz is an LTO on the Â鶹´«Ã½'s roaming team. The roaming team visits the most remote and politically sensitive regions of the country. Here he treks over a mountain pass to reach another village. Nepal hosts not only 59 ethnic groups and 100 living languages, but also five climatic zones ranging from tropical to arctic, as well as three geographic zones ranging from the Terai plains to the highest mountains in the world, the Himalayas. |
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