By Sagar Prasai

Sagar Prasai is The Asia Foundation’s Deputy Country Representative in Nepal. He can be reached at sagar@taf.org.np.

When the first set of results started pouring in after the April 10 polls, it looked as if the Maoists were heading for a landslide victory. But when the counting came to an end, the Maoists ended up with 240 seats, or 39.9 percent of the Constituent Assembly, followed by the Nepali Congress (NC) at 120 seats, the Communist Party of Nepal (United Marxist-Leninist) at 113 seats, Madhesi Janadhikar Forum (MJF) at 52 seats, and smaller parties taking the rest. In the 601-member Assembly, according to the Interim Constitution, a two-thirds majority is required to form a government. Now that reality is sinking in, it’s clear no single party, or even two parties combined, can produce a governing majority. As a result, Nepal’s post-election government is likely to look and feel more or less similar to its pre-election government, except on one account: the Maoists will be heading this government.
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Lao citizens have a limited understanding of laws, citizen rights, the legal system, and the role of lawyers in their country, especially in remote areas and among ethnic populations. With a total of only about 70 laws currently on the books, the Lao government has given increased attention to improving the rule of law.

In response, The Asia Foundation recently launched a new effort to help the Lao Bar Association — a professional organization that represents lawyers throughout Laos — improve its services for poor and rural citizens and educate the public on laws and rights in Laos (click here to read more about this project).
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