Kathmandu: Nepal’s fragile peace process could be in jeopardy after a fresh Maoist demand for integration of additional 2,500 combatants in the Army, a move outrightly rejected by Nepali Congress, the main opposition.
As the process of categorisation of the Maoist combatants in all the seven cantonments across the country completed on Thursday, a majority of the Maoist’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) personnel or 60 per cent of them have chosen for integration in the Nepal army while 40 per cent opted for voluntary retirement with cash incentives.
Meanwhile, Maoist chief Prachanda, who recently met Nepali Congress president Sushil Koirala has sought his support to increase the number of combatants to be integrated to 9,000 instead of the earlier agreed figure of 6,500. Nepali Congress has rejected the proposal forwarded by the Maoists. “We cannot agree on increasing the number of Maoist combatants to be integrated,” said Nepali Congress general secretary Krishna Sitaula. “It makes no sense to sign an agreement if it were to be increased.”
That would make impossible to achieve the target of completing the peace process by December 15, he pointed out. The political parties have agreed to a maximum number of 6,500 for integration of the combatants. Out of 19,602 PLA members who were verified by the United Nations Mission in Nepal, 2,795 have already left the camps during the verification process, according to officials. The major political parties including the ruling UCPN- Maoist and the main opposition NC had reached an agreement to allow a maximum of 6,500 former PLA members to be integrated in the national army out of the 19,000 former rebels.(PTI)