Consolidating the
Peace
Ajit Kumar Singh
Research Fellow, Institute for Conflict Management
Ajit Kumar Singh
Research Fellow, Institute for Conflict Management
The peace accord signed on November 21,
2006, appears to be approaching a logical culmination, with the Nepal Army (NA)
taking final control over the Peoples Liberation Army (PLA), the armed wing of
the Unified Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist (UCPN-M), on April 10, 2012. The
dismantling of the PLA has brought the process of Army integration, the major
stumbling block to the implementation of the 2006 Agreement, to its final phase.
Prime Minister (PM) Baburam
Bhattarai, who also heads the constitutionally mandated Army Integration Special
Committee (AISC), told the Committee on April 10, 2012, that the NA was going to
move into all 15 PLA cantonments, take full control, and seize more than 3,000
weapons locked in containers lying there. He added that the process would be
completed by the evening of April 12. However, following reports of clashes in
the cantonments, the PM met the NA chief, Chhattra Man Singh Gurung, in the
evening of April 10, and directed him to implement the decisions of the AISC. NA
troops took charge of the cantonments and the weapons’ containers the same day.
Significantly, the second phase of
the regrouping process, which had begun on April 8, 2012, had vitiated the
environment in the cantonments. Consequently, the process was halted on April 10
at the request of the Maoist leadership. It was, however, restarted on April 13,
and, as of April 19, 2012, when it was finally concluded, there were only 3,129
former PLA combatants left for integration into the NA. A total of 6,576
combatants chose the Voluntary Retirement Scheme (VRS), and will be provided
with cheques in the range of NPR 500,000 to NPR 800,000, depending on their
ranks. On April 10, 2012, moreover, the AISC reiterated that the VRS option
would be kept open for combatants as long as the integration process was not
concluded.
In the first phase (November 18 to
December 1, 2011) of regrouping, 9,705 former combatants had chosen integration
into the NA. In a landmark achievement, the AISC had initiated the process of
integration following a November 1, 2011, seven-point deal signed by three major
political parties – UCPN-M, Communist Party of Nepal-Unified Marxist Leninist
(CPN-UML) and Nepali Congress (NC) – and the umbrella formation of several
Madheshi groups, the United Democratic Madheshi Front (UDMF). The deal provided
three options to former PLA combatants – integration, voluntary retirement and
rehabilitation. A total of 16,997 PLA combatants were subsequently ‘regrouped’.
While 9,705 combatants opted for integration, 7,286 chose voluntary discharge,
and six combatants registered their names for rehabilitation packages. The
United Nations Mission in Nepal (UNMIN) had registered 19,602 combatants in the
second verification conducted on May 26, 2007.
The PLA was founded in 2002 in the
midst of the Civil War initiated by the Maoists in 1996, and was led by UCPN-M
chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal aka Prachanda. In September 2008, Nanda
Kishor Pun was appointed new ‘chief commander’ of the PLA, after Prachanda
became Nepal's Prime Minister.
The two phases of regrouping exposed
Maoist attempts to inflate the number of PLA combatants, and also deflated the
Maoist demand for the integration of more than the stipulated 6,500 combatants
in the Army. Worried by their weakening political control and by intra-party
feuds, the Maoists had sought to increase their barraging power in negotiations
by inflating the size of their combat forces.
Apprehensions of violence by restive
combatants held in the cantonments for well over five years, forced the Maoist
leadership to a resolution that was marked by some recent haste. Prachanda, for
instance, on April 11, termed the move to hand over Maoist combatants, their
arms, and the cantonments to the NA, a “bold decision” and observed,
“Yesterday’s decision [to hand over combatants and weapons] was made after
activities aimed at disrupting integration were intensified.” Reacting on Vice
Chairman Mohan Baidya’s opposition to the decision and simultaneous protests, he
added, “The protests by the faction of Kiran ji [Baidya] was part of their
responsibility. This [protest] is like their regular job. But, now petty issues
should not be bickered over… Peace process has almost concluded, only certain
technical issues remain. Now, we need to move forward on the Constitution
writing process.” Earlier, opposing the integration process, Baidya, who
according to Maoist assessments, controlled 30 per cent of the Maoist
combatants, had termed the integration deal a “sell-out” and had reportedly
encouraged dissent within the camps. Clashes had erupted at several Maoist camps
after combatants accused party leaders and commanders of ‘corruption’ and bias
in the integration process.
An April 14, 2012, AISC decision
laid down that the ranks of the integrated combatants would be determined
according to the NA’s, and not the PLA’s, standards. A Selection Committee would
be headed by the Chairman of Nepal’s Public Service Commission (PSC) or by a
member appointed by him, and a General Directorate would be created under the
NA, headed by a Lieutenant General, to absorb the integrated combatants. The
combatants will have to undergo between three and nine months of training,
depending on their ranks. The Directorate would only be deployed for
disaster relief, industrial security, development, and forest and environment
conservation. On April 17, moreover, the NA stated that it could not start the
recruitment process of former Maoist combatants until the structure—leadership
and size—of the General Directorate had been finalised at the political level.
Conspicuously, despite reports of
strong opposition from some sections of former PLA combatants and resultant
clashes, as well as a degree of ambiguity on the mode of integration, the
integration process now appears to have become irreversible. An unnamed NC
leader thus noted, “The trigger may have been negative, but with this step, the
peace process is now irreversible. For its own interest, the Maoist leadership
will push through the integration process.”
Ram Chandra Poudel, leader of the NC
Parliamentary Party, observed, further, “It (PLA’s integration into the NA) is a
very important step towards the transformation of the Maoist party into a
civilian party.” The peace process is now expected to be expedited, as the main
demand of the two major non-Maoist political formations – CPN-UML and NC – has
now been met. Parties also believe that the Maoists, minus the combatants, will
have to be more flexible about contentious issues that have blocked the drafting
of the constitution.
Indeed, on April 19, 2012, the three
major political parties agreed to merge two separate proposed commissions on
Truth and Reconciliation, and on Disappearances, into one. Bills for the
formation of both of the Commissions are still under consideration in
Parliament. The appointment of such Commissions was one of the components of the
peace process, and was also part of the Comprehensive Peace Accord.
Earlier, on April 18, 2012, the
Government inked a six-point agreement with Samyukta Krantikari Terai Madhesh
Mukti Morcha (SKTMMM), an underground armed outfit active in Terai, bringing
another armed group into the peace process. According to the agreement, the
SKTMMM expressed commitment to embrace peaceful politics and to give up violence
and armed activities; to work towards ensuring peace; and to hand over all arms
to the Government. In return, the Government agreed to treat the outfit as a
political group rather than as a terrorist organization; guarantee security to
the Morcha Coordinator and Joint Coordinator during the talks; withdraw criminal
cases lodged against the Morcha's cadres; and release those in the Government's
custody, with due procedure.
On the draft Constitution, in an
interview with The Hindu, published on April 16, 2012, Prachanda stated
that an all-party taskforce had submitted a proposal that there should be a
directly elected President, and a PM elected by the Parliament — with power
sharing between the two. This, he clarified, was the meeting point between
divergent perspectives articulated by the parties. He also stated that, in
principle, there was agreement that identity and capability should be the basis
for federalism. Meanwhile, the major political parties, on April 22, reached an
understanding to adopt a mixed system of governance in which executive powers
would be shared between a directly-elected President and a Parliament-elected
Prime Minister. The leaders also agreed on a directly-elected Vice President.
“The executive powers will be shared between the popularly-elected head of State
and the Prime Minister elected by Parliament,” Minister for Physical Planning
Hridayesh Tripathi stated.
There are, nevertheless, several
issues, including federalism, the judiciary, the electoral system and
investigation of human rights violations during the conflict years, on which
consensus is yet to be reached. Further, the issue of returning of properties
confiscated by the Maoists from individual citizens during the conflict remains
unresolved. The political rift within the Maoist party has, moreover, translated
into operational disunity within the group. Sources indicate that the Baidya
faction commands the loyalty of some 80 of 240 Maoist Members of Parliament
(MPs) in the Constituent Assembly, and has the support of some 50 of 147 members
of the party’s Central Committee.
In another divisive development, the
Bhattarai Government unilaterally withdrew cases of human rights violation,
including those of murder and abductions, against party leaders and cadres. On
April 1, 2012, the Supreme Court (SC) issued an interim order, ordering the
Government not to implement this decision, in response to a petition filed by
Rupaiya Devi Kairin of Rautahat District. A two-judge bench issued the order
regarding the February 27, 2012, Government decision to withdraw murder cases
against six persons. The case was filed at the District Court on September 30,
2009, on the charge of the murder of Dev Sharan Mahato.
Given the exigencies of the
situation and rising popular pressure to wrap up the unending ‘transition’, the
Government is now trying to intensify the peace process. On April 22, 2012, it
registered a bill in the Parliament Secretariat to amend Article 70 of the
Interim Constitution in order to shorten the procedure for the promulgation of
the new Constitution, which, at present, is somewhat protracted, so that the
stipulated deadline of May 27, 2012, can be met. The term of the Constituent
Assembly (CA) has already been extended four times beyond its original two-year
term, and will expire on this date according to a SC declaration that the
current extension would be final. If the Constitution is not promulgated,
another election or referendum would have to be held, an option none of the
parties is eager to embrace.
Finally, the possibility of
installing a Constitution and Constitutional Government in this fractious nation
now appears to be within grasp.
