Kathmandu: Dissident Maoist faction led by hardliner Mohan Vaidya ‘Kiran’ on Tuesday asked former rebel combatants to detach themselves from the army integration process, claiming that an agreement reached among key parties on the issue was “humiliating and anti-peace”.
“As the Seven-Point Agreement, specially the provisions relating to the integration of the Maoist army with security forces was humiliating and anti-peace, we call upon all the self-respected Maoist combatants and Commanders of the Maoists Peoples Liberation Army to fully detach themselves from this surrendering process,” a joint statement issued by Vaidya and party General Secretary Ram Bahadur Thapa said.
The agreement was against the party’s decision and sentiments of the people, claimed the two leaders, who represent the hardline faction of UCPN-Maoist.
Under the seven-point agreement reached among UCPN-Maoist, Nepali Congress, CPN-UML and the Joint Madhesi Democratic Front, a maximum of 6,500 Maoist combatants are to be integrated with the security forces by forming a separate unit which will be entrusted with the responsibility of protecting forests, industrial security, development activities and disaster relief works. Attractive cash packages ranging from Rs 6 lakh to Rs 9 lakh will be provided to those former Maoist combatants who wish to be rehabilitated into society.
As per the agreement, the Maoists would return the property they had seized during the insurgency to their rightful owners and dissolve their paramilitary organisation called the Young Communist League by November 29. PTI
Meanwhile, the Maoists’ Central Working Committee meeting, which was supposed to discuss the army integration, Constitution-drafting and growing rift within the party, has been postponed till Thursday, according to party sources.
Commenting on the statement by the dissident group, Maoist spokesman and Education Minister Dinanath Sharma told PTI that issuance of such a statement when the party’s Central Committee meeting was being called, is a sign of anarchism.
“A responsible leader of the party should not issue such an irresponsible statement, which also goes against party discipline,” he said. (PTI)