This talk considers the different techniques Nepali student activists employ to circumvent the political limits they face. Student activists scale both laterally and horizontally to garner support from national, international, and expatriate communities to leverage their position in party politics. Nevertheless, scalar politics is not new. Nepali activists have historically mobilized external support to challenge the autocratic orders of the Rana regime (1846–1951), the Panchayat government (1960–90), and King Gyanendra’s takeover (2002–6). Examining the history of establishing multi-party democracy in Nepal from the optic of scalar politics reveals a dialogical relationship between external and internal political values, demonstrating political regeneration (Cole and Durham 2007) rather than vernacularization (Merry 2006). Nepali political actors are not merely translating universal concepts into a local vernacular but mediating Nepal’s sociopolitical heritage while crafting a political horizon for their fellow citizens to invest in.

THO 317
4:30 pm, Feb 27