- Says it will abide by any decision taken by parties
POST REPORT
The Nepal Army (NA) has said it is not against the integration of former Maoist fighters into the national army, adding that the Army has conveyed its willingness to abide by any decision taken by the parties for concluding the peace process.
The NA position, expressed during a press conference on Friday, comes at a time when the three major political parties are holding serious negotiations that will last some days on the integration and rehabilitation modality of over 19,000 PLA combatants. This is the first policy statement in regard to the integration made by NA after the departure of UNMIN on Jan. 15.
During his meeting with UN Under-Secretary General of Political Affairs B Lynn Pascoe last year, Chief of Army Staff Gen. Chhatra Man Singh Gurung had said NA was ready to accept the integration of combatants so long as the entries were on an individual basis. Opposing bulk integration of combatants, Gen. Gurung had then stated that the time-honoured “honesty, impartiality and organisational integrity” of NA could be compromised by “politically motivated individuals.”
“We don’t have an independent position on the issue of integration. The Nepal Army, as common citizens, desires peace in the country. So, we will always stand for anything to resolve the issue,” said NA Spokesman Ramindra Chhetri at the press conference organised by the Army Headquarters. He said the handover of Maoist combatants to the prime minister-headed Special Committee was an important step in the integration process.
When asked to offer NA’s position on the standards that should be considered while determining modality, Gen. Chhetri said the NA won’t take any stand that might evince that it is trying to influence the authorised institutions. He said the Army is committed to the provisions of the Interim Constitution, the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), the Agreement on Management of the Arms and Armies (AMMAA) and other documents signed by the parties during the peace process.
“These legitimate documents themselves have defined the benchmark of the integration process,” he said. “We want to let the Special Committee and its secretariat to take a call on this issue.”
Gen. Chhetri said the concept of bulk integration was beyond the scope of the Interim Constitution and the peace agreements.
He said a “consensus model” determined by the parties would be the basis to conclude the peace process.
Commenting on the democratisation of NA, as committed in the CPA and the Interim Constitution, Gen. Chhetri said it will support the Action Plan on Democratisation of Nepal Army proposed by the cabinet committee headed by Defence Minister Bidhya Bhandari. The plan, now under discussion at the State Affairs Committee of the Parliament, proposes a three-year programme for the democratisation of the Army.
The plan covers eight areas including civilian supremacy, government control, organisational restructuring, enhancing civil military relationship, amendment in law, transparency and accountability, promotion of human rights, coordination between Ministry of Defence and the Army and inclusiveness. “The Nepal Army is one of the most inclusive institutions of the country,” he claimed, adding that the recruitment process is voluntary and recently 45 percent of the total vacancies were reserved for Madhesis, Dalits, women, Janajatis and other minority groups.
Army officers in barracks, not jailed NA’s legal department Head Maj. Gen. B A Kumar Sharma said nine officers currently facing court martial for their alleged involvement in political lobbying are being held in the Army barracks and not jailed. He said they have been kept there for security reasons and are allowed to meet relatives.
A Summary Military Court has been formed to look into the charges against Brig. Gen. Kiran Barjracharya and eight other officers who allegedly lobbied against the term extension of Maj. Gen. Naresh Basnyat. Sharma said the punishment for the offence could vary from a warning to seven years imprisonment.
http://www.ekantipur.com/the-kathmandu-post/2011/01/28/top-story/pla-integration-not-against-pla-integration-army/217768.html
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