Maoists' new stance on arms brings optimism to Nepal peace talks

NEPAL: Nepal's Maoist rebels said Monday they would place their weapons under United Nations supervision if the army does the same to revive peace talks and pave the way for elections next year.

"Chairman Prachanda in his informal meeting with Prime Minister (Girija Prasad) Koirala Sunday proposed that our party was ready to lock up all our weapons in a single place under UN monitoring, provided the Nepal Army does the same," Ananta, the deputy commander of the rebel army, told AFP.

Ananta said the proposal by rebel leader Prachanda would leave the rebels unarmed ahead of planned national elections next year.

Issues such as arms management and the role of the monarchy had prevented the peace process from moving ahead, but the rebels' proposal has provided a boost, officials from both sides said.

On Sunday, the rebels extended a six-month ceasefire, saying they were "confident of a peaceful solution with the government".

A government peace negotiator said it was reviewing the proposal on arms.

"The government is considering the Maoist proposal," Labour Minister Ramesh Lekhak, the government peace negotiator, said Monday. "The proposal means that the rebels would separate their weapons and soldiers. Earlier this was unacceptable to the Maoists. A meeting point should be found soon," Lekhak said.

Previously, the rebels had said that they would keep their arms and soldiers together in United Nation's supervised camps, but the multi-party government had said that the rebels must disarm before entering government.

Arms management is essential for elections to take place as planned before May 2007 for a body that will rewrite the constitution, an analyst said.

"The new proposal could be a solution to end the current deadlock," said Krishna Khanal, a political scientist from Nepal's Tribhuvan University.

"The government and the Maoists need to ensure that people will get opportunity to exercise their rights to vote in an environment without intimidation," Khanal told AFP.

Gunaraj Luitel, a senior news editor with the Kantipur media group, said the rebel proposal was a significant step forward in the peace process.

"I have seen flexibility on their (the rebels') stance on weapons," said Luitel, who interviewed Prachanda on Sunday.

"The peace process appears to be back on track and is now closer to a conclusion."

Since declaring a ceasefire in May, the two sides have held two rounds of high-level peace talks. This is the third time the rebels and government have tried to hammer out a peace deal to end the conflict that has killed at least 12,500 people since the rebels declared their "people's war" in 1996.

Two previous attempts, in 2001 and 2003, failed, plunging the impoverished country back into conflict.

Kathmandu, Tuesday, AFP