Today’s Kathmandu Post has an interesting analysis of the controversy surrounding the possible “integration” of Maoist PLAs into National army.
By Damakant Jayshi
Of late, the integration of Maoist combatants (into Nepal Army) seems to be snow-balling into a major controversy and if not nipped in the bud, may develop into a major crisis. What has not helped matters is political party leaders – including very senior ones – joining the debate through public forums in various parts of the country. The latest round started when Chief of Army Staff Rookmangud Katawal said (on Jan 5) that the army should be kept free from any isms, ideology and political motivation.
Various agreements between the then seven-party alliance/government with the CPN (Maoist) right since the 12-point agreement in New Delhi in November 2005 are conspicuously silent whether Maoist combatants should be integrated into the army.
As per the Comprehensive Peace Accord (CPA) and the Interim Constitution of April last year, a high-level special committee (comprising four ministers) has to supervise, integrate and rehabilitate Maoist forces. As for Nepal Army, the government – in consultation with political parties and the Legislature-Parliament – is to formulate a plan to democratize Nepal Army, determine its right number and make it inclusive.
“The spirit of our agreements with the then SPA and later the government is that there should be restructuring of state security forces, which will lead to formation of a national army,” Dr Baburam Bhattarai of CPN (Maoist) who had been involved in discussion and signing of all documents, told the Kathmandu Post. He added that now the Maoists have agreed that the issue should not be raised before constituent assembly elections are held.
However, both K P Oli and Pradip Gyawali of CPN (UML) – who have been part of negotiating teams for such agreements – said no such understanding was reached. Gyawali said the situation was so fluid then – before and after Jana Andolan II – that it was not possible to reach any concrete plan. “But we did agree to carry out serious homework on this issue.”
Dr Shekhar Koirala of Nepali Congress – who had been very closely involved in past negotiations – said the NC being a democratic party would follow the interim constitution “religiously”. “Some token number of verified Maoist combatants can be taken in the army as well as in police and Armed Police Force as well as in the created border security force and industrial security force.”
UNMIN has already verified Maoist combatants in seven main cantonments and 21 satellite ones. Of the originally registered 31,318, the UN special mission found 19,602 to be legitimate combatants.
A political party source who is privy to discussion on the issue of integration said that some agreement has already been reached. “Maoist Chairman Prachanda has proposed integrating at least 6,000 of his men in the army but Prime Minister (Girija Prasad) Koirala has asked them to be satisfied with 3,000,” he revealed, “and negotiations are centered on this.”
The Nepal Army, too, is prepared if it indeed has to take in combatants, although they would prefer not to. An internal document prepared by the army points out various measures that need to be put into place before combatants can join the force.
The army’s major reasons for not integrating Maoist fighters – politically motivated personnel disrupting discipline, risk of revolt, armed gangs in tarai demanding the same – does appear to have some currency. The NA also strongly opposes the CPN (Maoist) pushing for security sector reform (SSR), interpreting the move as the Maoists’ attempt to portray Nepal as a failed state.
But it also has left a door open for any possible integration of Maoist fighters, from integration into various work sectors, to security forces as per the organizations’ selection criteria. The army has a condition it wants the Maoists to meet before their fighters can be inducted into government forces: one weapon, one guerrilla. Home-made guns or ‘socket bombs’, however, won’t count as weapons, and neither will deserters be taken, it says.
As per these criteria, the NA proposes that those combatants who hand over .303 rifles would be inducted into police, those with SLR and SMG into Armed Police Force (APF) and those submitting high quality automatic weapons like M16 assault rifles into the army. “If they don’t hand a weapon per combatant, I don’t see how the army or the government can agree to their integration?” an NA general told the Post. (keep reading it here)
United We Blog 
Comments
30 responses to “The Great Integration Controversy (Maoists into National Army?)”
no comments because the maoists are good and koirala clan destroys peace process again and again and we have to live.
This will be new Maoist Slogan:
NO NA-PLA INTEGRATION NO ELECTION
,,,We must commend the Prime Minister and finance minister, Mr.Deuba and the army chief for finally saying, “No” to Army integration. The Maoists have penetrated every aspect of the state of Nepal. If their Militia is integrated with the Nepalese Army it will destroy the integrity of professional national army replacing it instead with factionalism and indoctrinated “isms”, thereby allowing for the Maoist party to do what they want. And this is exactly what the Maoist want.
There is no doubt thathe Nepal Army and the Royal Palace were closely interlinked but the new Army act changed all that. There was almost a “divorce” between the two entities, to put it in simpler terms. The institution of the army is free of Royal shackles and it must not be doubted in terms of its commitment to multi-party democracy. This lack of trust in the Army is why there are those calling for integration, but the Army is there to protect the system if anything goes wrong. What if tomorrow the Maoists decide the election was not to their favor, if they are already integrated who will protect us, the people, then.
The Maoist dream is to capture the state through all possible means. Integration of PLA in NA means the maoist are successful in infiltration in all aspects of Nepalese life. This means that they will then go on to capture the state. This can not be allowed.
The Maoist militia should never be made a ‘legitimate’ force, even if Ian Martin and the UN Security Council votes for it. The NA should cut off whatever ties it has with the royal palace, and only then the Nepali populace will feel secure that there is a force which will look after Nepalese at times of need.
Do we need dacoits in the Nepal Army?
“the maoists are good ”
May I ask, dear Sir, what planet you are from?
We can send the army people out of the country from that party we disagreed with.
definitely, you can find related videos to this at http://nepalnews.tk
we will chop off TTT Prachande’s tongue and both hands after April for what he said to our Chief Katuwal.
The whole political game is ; Koirala is blackmailing Dahal (Prachanda) and Dahal is blackmailing Koirala, and Makune Nepal is in between to take opportunity. The general people are stupid to go after them.
dear wagleg i want to see the powel’s question and her reply to become ambassdor of nepal.
“Do we need dacoits in the Nepal Army? ”
No we don’t. We already have enough of them in the Nepal Army.
Scope:
there are sufficient nationalists in the Nepal Army who are bold enough to f’ck your and your master terroist Prachande’s ass. It sounds like your are one of the YCL thugs born at one of the maoist camps. I doubt your mother can tell the identity of your father because she was forced to sleep with a number of maoist cadres at such camps, right?
I think stability in Nepal is more important. Let us use the PLA combatants for some constructive work for our country.
I think stability in Nepal is more important. Let us use the PLA combatants for some constructive work for our country.
OK, use them for border patrol so they can extort from smugglers and people encroaching on our territory.
I think stability in Nepal is more important. Let us use the PLA combatants for some constructive work for our country.
OK, use them for border patrol so they can kipnap, murder and extort from smugglers and people encroaching on our territory.
I think stability in Nepal is more important. Let us use the PLA combatants for some constructive work for our country.
OK, use them for border patrol so they can kidnap, murder and extort from smugglers and people encroaching on our territory.
There is also a phychological factor at play here, should not reject integration out right.Cadre politics within the Maoist just would not allow is leaders to be seen to accept the role of a defeated PLA senior commaders will probably drift into politics any way, and some battle -hardend warriors could be useful to the national army.
The best compromise could be to set up a seperate rapid development force made up of both armies for border patrols,industrial security and to guard the national parks.
Pusp Prasad Luintel
President
Green Nepal Party [Hariyali]
Boston, USA.
I am writing again to correct my typing errors.. just making sure the debate is about content, not English language skills!
Who the fuck is this Puspa Prasad Luitel? Anyway, here’s my view, we should reject the threats of Puspa Kamal Dahal. This man will be on his knees , surrendering to brave Nepalese people, just like once mighty Gyanenendra is doing. This man must, and will be defeated by Nepalese people. If this asshole thiks, his shitheads are equivalent of professional Nepalese Army solders, I would be glad to see him and Dr Bhattarai demonstrate 5 puss ups!
Push ups!
in the co called peace agreement and ther est of the documents that were all done by the warlords SPAM by only their own cosent with NO consutlations with other consitutional bodies and the people, the very corrupt thugs and the terrorists without consulting the Nepal army talked about re-integration of the terrorist militia- but it doesn’t categorically talk in ANY document how and where this reintigration. Teacher Turned Terrorist Pushapa Kamal Dahal, with aspirations to become the next Junga Bahadur, is hoping that the skills of his terrorist militia to intimidate, extort, use locals as human shields, kill innocent teachers, bomb local buses can we used in the Nepal Army. This is absurd. They do need to be re-integrated but not in Nepal Army. It is good to see that Nepal Army is sticking to a stnace because Giddey Koirala in his rush to become and stay the Prime MInister, NEVER ever consulted and got the consent of the Nepal army regarding this re-integration. ANd no none of the docuents prepared by these same syndicate called the SPAM does it categorially mention that these militia and terrorists should be integrated into the Nepal army. It was sad to see that the terrorist party is run by a luncatic like TTT PUshpa Kamal who was losing it at in the Khula Manch last week- if the nation is to be run by crazy cracks like him who don’t even know how to use a public forum and how to talk about a respectable institution, then GOd save Nepal from re-itegration into India.
Nation first…
Out nation should be our first priority. The leaders should focus on strengthening our nation and then thinking about other secondary issues.
There is going to be great tussle between failure SPAM and other parties. The ethnic parties, RPP, royalist and other political parties are joining hands together to kick out the spam warlords and misrulers. Pashupati Shamsher Rana already given the interview that he joing hands with the ethnic parties. Many leaders of NC are also given hints to join hands with them. The meeting in Gachhedar house provides the sufficient proof about it. In this situation, NA definately prefer to go against the misrule of spam. Either accept it or not, there are two faction in Nepal now.
1. spam warlords
2. others
Girija, Sitaula, Paudel might be the remaining leaders who stick with spam in future from NC. Regarding UML, they will tilt wherever they find comfortable.
It is a mistery why does Prachanda have to see Ramesh Nath Pandey numerous times! Is he playing Royal’s game as it was suspected at the onset of Maoists’ movement back in 1990s? Then again, he is voicing for a need for a new Jang Bahadur. Is it for himself or for the King Gyanendra as an autocratic ruler who recently tried to be one.
Surprises are on the offing. Buckle up!
Hello PK Dahal:
Your guess is right. Your are the main target, and you can’t save yourself this time regardless of how much security you are provided by your YCL thugs. Let us see!!
Mr Rajendra pokharel, Jermany
==========================
If you dont like some body’s idia attack the idia, not the person. This is the social way of debating. Remember your not in Jangle anymore.
You are not in the jungle anymore.
Question of reintegration
This refers to Maoist into Army. This important issue of reintegration of Maoist combatants into National Army should be handled properly. Other wise this will emerge as another problem after some years. But there is also the dilemma on the situation, a state of limbo. On the one hand, the size of SPA is already so big that it will be a burden for the nation to support another 19000 people. And On the other hand, it will create another social turbulence if not worked out properly. The idea of reintegrating disqualified into society with some works, 5000 females into UN peacekeeping force and other 14000 to foreign or national employment seems pleasing. We simply have no point keeping such a big useless army with a big budget from poor people’s taxes. They should also be readjusted in social works and constructions rather than playing sports in barrack. The best solutions are to open foreign employment as in Korea and Israel through diplomacy. Besides, foreign investment should also be encouraged in Nepal which will tremendously help the economy. Hope this issue again won’t hamper the CA polls announced for the third time!
Samyam Wagle
Bungkot, Gorkha
(Published in TKP on 19th Jan 2008)
just curious, why is there only talk about integrating the maoists into the NA? is anyone thinking bigger? what happens if the only option (army integration) doesn’t work out? what happens then? where will people go if they can’t join the army? they can’t stay in the camps forever…
king will survive and come to power and blady maoist will be sucking blady asshole. i think the king regime was better than SPA and fucking YCL