About Article

This paper examines the global ‘war on terror’ (WOT) and the case of Nepal. Nepal shifted in its identity from being neutral and uninvolved in global affairs prior to 2001, to being part of the global WOT. Nepal’s enactment of anti-terrorism legislation in 2001 helped establish its new ‘counterterrorist’ identity, while affixing the ‘terrorist’ label to Maoist rebels that the state was f ighting. This allowed regional and global actors to view the Nepali state’s actions against Maoist rebels as ‘counterterrorist’. The period of November 2001 when the first Nepali anti terrorism legislation was established and the February 2005 takeover of the state by the (then) king are the main focus of this paper. The goal here is not to discuss whether the Maoists were (or were not) ‘really’ terrorist; instead, the task is to note how the label of ‘terrorism’ was used in Nepal to legitimate ‘counterterrorism’ operations by the state. The article argues that the state’s use of the ‘war on terror’ rhetoric specifically during these two events legitimated repressive actions against its own citizens as countering ‘terrorism’. This had the effect of legit imating different types of states– an elected democracy and a monarchist state. At the same time, however, the use of ‘terrorism’ rhetoric by the state in 2005 was challenged by local actors, thus indicating the instability of the meanings of ‘terrorism’ and ‘counterterrorism’.