Democracy in Trouble? Political Elite’s Attitude and Behaviour and Regime Instability in Nepal
Mahendra Lawoti This paper investigates the attitudes of Nepali parliamentarians toward democratic values during Nepal's second democratic interregnum (1990-2002). Was the elite attitude favourable for the consolidation of democracy in Nepal? Elites play significant roles in democratization of a country. Investigations of elite attitude becomes important when democracy does not consolidate, and even more so when the general public and scholars blame the elite for it. Empirical study of democratic values elite hold not only help us determine whether they are responsible for the lack of consolidation, but can identify variables that can be targeted for addressing the problems. The study is based on structured interviews of 101 (out of 265) legislators in 2000. The random sample was stratified based on political party, ethnicity/caste, gender, and regions. The survey employed…