Constitutional Resiliency And Gen Z Movement 

Nepal's Constitution has reached 10 years old today, marking a milestone in deepening the culture of constitutionalism and democratic governance. Constitution Day offers a moment to reflect on its adaptive and resilient characteristics while evaluating its implementation status in the last decade. However, this time, the nation is observing the Constitution Day in a sombre mood. Ahead of Constitution Day, the country was rattled by the Gen Z movement on September 8 and 9. 

It witnessed a massive loss of lives and properties. The Gen Zeers had started their peaceful agitation with simple demands – a lift on a ban on social media, and an end to corruption 

 and nepotism in the sphere of politics. Their movement had exposed the deepening malaise that has been eating away at Nepali society for decades.

However, excessive use of force by the police made Gen Z's peaceful protests violent. The police gunned down around 19 people and injured hundreds of them on the first day of the movement, triggering nationwide vandalism, arson and looting. The death toll has already crossed 73. The country plunged into an unprecedented crisis, with security forces, Nepal Police and Armed Police Force surrendering to the protesters. At one point, there was no state to save its own citizens. Nepalis had never felt so insecure in their own life.

Sagacity 

The Gen Z movement effectively cornered the established political parties. Chaos, uncertainty and terror ruled the roost, impelling the citizens to raise a genuine question: Could the country survive this tragedy? The Nepal Army, the Office of the President and the protesting Gen Z showed their sagacity and restraint to give a logical outlet to the crisis. The House of Representatives (HoR) was dissolved, and the interim government, formed based on the Constitution, is mandated to conduct the general elections in March next year. President Ramchandra Paudel said he saved the Constitution with practical astuteness. This shows the resilience and strength of the national charter that has institutionalised the achievements of all political movements spanning more than 75 years. 

No doubt, the demands of Gen Zeers are valid and can be addressed within the framework of the present Constitution, which is considered the most comprehensive and progressive document that the nation has ever found. Its preamble mentions two terms – 'good governance' and 'full press freedom' – which provide a legal basis to fulfil the aspirations of the new generation. The statute has several provisions to control corruption and establish good governance. It has envisaged a strong anti-graft agency to investigate the abuse of authority by the officeholders – elected and selected – through due process and recommend action against those involved in siphoning off the taxpayers' money. 

For instance, Article 51 (b 4) of the Constitution, which spells out the policies of the State, states, "to guarantee good governance by ensuring the equal and easy access of the people to the services and facilities delivered by the State, while making public administration fair, competent, impartial, transparent, free from corruption, accountable and participatory." This constitutional provision responds to the call of young Nepalis who took to the streets with their humble agenda of building a prosperous Nepal where all citizens' futures are guaranteed and no one is compelled to leave their motherland in search of better jobs and education abroad. It emphasises 'equal and easy access for the people to the services and facilities the State delivers.' 

The very Clause deals with the concerns of the Gen Z protesters, who stood against the lavish lifestyle of 'Nepo Kids' that have climbed up the career ladder through the connections of their influential parents instead of hard work and their own merit. 

The Gen Z generation considers that families of 'Nepo Kids' thrive through personal aggrandisement of power, giving rise to corruption, inequality and imbalanced development.  The ban on social media was a trigger for the Gen Z youths to erupt against the government. The social networking sites have been vital 

platforms for people of all age groups to connect and communicate with their friends and families. 

For Gen Z, the social sites served as a lifeline to their identity, connection, financial earnings and career growth. Social media have been viable instruments to promote the knowledge industry and participatory democracy. As attempts were made to muzzle digital freedom, the youths' fury spilled onto the streets. It goes against the vision and spirit of the Constitution to suppress the people's right to exercise the internet-driven democracy in the 21st century.   Article 17 (2) lists six types of freedoms, including the freedom of opinion and expression, freedom to assemble peacefully and without arms, freedom to form political parties and freedom to form unions and associations.

Transformative content 

Promulgated in 2015, the Constitution envisions a federal, democratic, republican system of government to realise the citizens' aspirations for sustainable peace, good governance, development and prosperity. It spells out at least 31 fundamental rights related to health, education, food, employment, social security, culture and ecology. Implemented effectively, it can potentially uproot socio-economic inequality and structural injustice. As the Constitution bears many transformative contents, the Gen Zeers have shown their strong commitment to it; they disdain the idea of dismantling it.

But ten years on, the political parties failed to translate the Constitution's lofty objectives into action. The entrenched political syndicate, widespread corruption, instability, lack of inner-party democracy and intergenerational gap are essential factors hindering the nation's inclusive development. These maladies do not stem from the Constitution itself but from the greedy and gerontocratic leadership at the helm, virtually in all major and minor parties. Following the Gen Z revolt, the parties have an opportunity to do soul-searching for credible course correction. They must embrace constitutional character and conduct. Failure to do so will inevitably reduce them to irrelevance.

(The author is Deputy Executive Editor of this daily.)