The formal handover of Maoist combatants to the Special Committee Saturday as per an earlier understanding reached between the government and the UCPN (Maoist) is a significant development and is certain to have a positive effect in taking the peace process forward. The handover, which took place at one of the Maoist cantonments located in Shaktikor, Chitwan in the midst of high-profile politicians and diplomats, also in a way puts to rest the fears that the departure of United Nations Mission in Nepal (UNMIN) would be catastrophic for the country’s peace process. In fact, as we had always argued, it has compelled the parties to sit together, negotiate and find ways to narrow the divide between them.
The parties must now first of all cash in on the positive environment that this recent development has created and work toward the formation of a new government to replace the nearly seven-month-old caretaker government of Madhav Kumar Nepal. That the three major parties – UCPN (Maoist), Nepali Congress (NC) and CPN-UML – have sought a five-day extension for the formation of a consensus government after the deadline given by the president to form the same expired on Friday is in a way good news. It shows that the parties are hopeful about sorting out their differences and giving us a new government soon, and the handover of the combatants to the Special Committee is certainly going to help in this exercise.
But here’s the caveat: The number of Maoist combatants to be integrated into the security forces, a major bone of contention between the Maoist and the non-Maoist party, still remains to be agreed on. While the Maoists are certain to stick to their demand for leadership of the new government, something that the party claims to be their right by virtue of them being the largest party in the Constituent Assembly, the other parties might insist they first narrow down on the number of combatants to be integrated and this might once again play the spoilsport.
While we agree that the integration and rehabilitation of the Maoist army has remained unsolved for too long and that the party has to take initiatives to settle the issue sooner rather than later, we urge the parties to do that in a manner that does not spoil the positive environment created by Saturday’s handover of the combatants to the Special Committee. The tasks ahead – government formation, taking the peace process to a logical end and constitution-writing – are certainly not easy but it is also not impossible provided the Maoists and the non-Maoist parties henceforth display a high degree of maturity and responsibility.
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