In defense of land rights: A monitoring report on land conflicts in six Asian countries 96 Nepal Land Conflict Monitoring Report1 By Community Self-Reliance Centre (CSRC) INTRODUCTION L and has become one of the most contested natural resources in Nepal over the last few decades. Since it has high material value and is directly related to social, economic and political power, land is a common source of conflict within families, within and among communities, and between communities and the State. An escalation of land prices over the past few decades, population growth, combined with a lack of land use plans and the inheritance law (which makes children automatic heirs of parents, with each child getting a portion of the parental property), led to fragmentation of land. This has, in turn, put increased pressure on a fixed stock of land, leading to an increase in the number of land-related conflicts (IOM, 2016). Study objectives This study aims to answer the following three questions: n n What is the nature and context of land and land- related conflicts in Nepal? What are the drivers and outcomes of land conflict? 1 ANGOC This is an abridged version of the paper “Land Conflict Monitoring Report, Nepal” prepared by the Community Self-Reliance Centre (CRSC) for the project “Defending Land Rights and Human Rights Defenders.” For more details, contact deujaj@csrcnepal.org Citation: Community Self-Reliance Centre (CRSC). (2019). Nepal Land Conflict Monitoring Report. In ANGOC (Ed.) In defense of land rights: A monitoring report on land conflicts in six Asian countries (pp. 96-105). Quezon City: ANGOC.