Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: King GYANENDRA Bir Bikram Shah (succeeded to the
throne 4 June 2001 following the death of his nephew, King DIPENDRA
Bir Bikram Shah)
head of government: Prime Minister Sher Bahadur DEUBA; note - the
Prime Minister resigned in Februrary 2005
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the monarch on the recommendation of
the prime minister; note - the King dissolved the Cabinet in
February 2005
elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; following legislative
elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority
coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the monarch
note: King BIRENDRA Bir Bikram Shah Dev died in a bloody shooting at
the royal palace on 1 June 2001 that also claimed the lives of most
of the royal family; King BIRENDRA's son, Crown Price DIPENDRA, is
believed to have been responsible for the shootings before fatally
wounding himself; immediately following the shootings and while
still clinging to life, DIPENDRA was crowned king; he died three
days later and was succeeded by his uncle
Legislative branch:
: bicameral Parliament consists of the National Council (60 seats; 35 appointed by the House of Representatives, 10 by the king, and 15 elected by an electoral college; one-third of the members elected every two years to serve six-year terms) and the House of Representatives (205 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: House of Representatives - last held 3 and 17 May 1999 (next election NA); note - Nepal's Parliament was dissolved on 22 May 2002 election results: House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NC 37.3%, CPN/UML 31.6%, NDP 10.4%, NSP 3.2%, Rastriya Jana Morcha 1.4%, Samyukta Janmorcha Nepal 0.8%, NWPP 0.5%, others 14.8%; seats by party - NC 113, CPN/UML 69, NDP 11, NSP 5, Rastriya Jana Morcha 5, Samyukta Janmorcha Nepal 1, NWPP 1
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court or Sarbochha Adalat (chief justice is appointed by
the monarch on recommendation of the Constitutional Council; the
other judges are appointed by the monarch on the recommendation of
the Judicial Council)
Political parties and leaders:
Communist Party of Nepal/United Marxist-Leninist or CPN/UML [Madhav
Kumar NEPAL, general secretary]; National Democratic Party or NDP
(also called Rastriya Prajantra Party or RPP) [Surya Bahadur THAPA,
chairman]; People's Front Nepal (Rastriya Jana Morcha) [Chitra
BAHADUR, chairman]; Nepali Congress-Democratic [Sher Bahadur DEUBA,
president]; Nepali Congress or NC [Girija Prasad KOIRALA, party
president; Sushil KOIRALA, general secretary]; Nepal Sadbhavana
(Goodwill) Party or NSP [Bhadri Prasad MANDAL, acting party
president]; Nepal Workers and Peasants Party or NWPP [Narayan Man
BIJUKCHHE, party chairman]; Samyukta Janmorcha Nepal [leader NA]
Political pressure groups and leaders: Maoist guerrilla-based insurgency [Pushpa Kamal DAHAL, also known as PRAHANDA, chairman; Dr. Baburam BHATTARAI, from Communist Party of Nepal/Maoist, chief negotiator]; numerous small, left-leaning student groups in the capital; several small, radical Nepalese antimonarchist groups
International organization participation:
AsDB, CP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC,
IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO
(correspondent), ITU, MICAH, MIGA, MONUC, NAM, ONUB, OPCW, SAARC,
SACEP, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIK,
UNMIL, UNMISET, UNOCI, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO,
WToO, WTO (observer)
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Kedar Bhakta SHRESTHA
chancery: 2131 Leroy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 667-4550
FAX: [1] (202) 667-5534
consulate(s) general: New York
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador James F. MORIARTY
embassy: Panipokhari, Kathmandu
mailing address: use embassy street address
telephone: [977] (1) 411179
FAX: [977] (1) 419963