UN-backed pilot disarmament under way in Paktia

Spingul, an ex-combatant, together with several of his friends, performed the traditional Paktyawal dance following the disarmament ceremony in the southeastern city of Gardez, the capital of Paktia Province, on Monday. "I am happy that I delivered my gun voluntarily. As there is no war now, there is no need for a gun," the 35-year-old participating in the disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration (DDR) process of Afghanistan’s New Beginning Programme (ANBP) told IRIN in Gardez. "I hope I will not have to rejoin this tough world," the ex-combatant, who had been a fighter for over 15 years, said. He now dreamed of becoming a carpenter once he had been demobilised and reintegrated, Spingul said. "At least we will know the real taste of life," he said, smiling towards his friends, who nodded approvingly. The Paktia disarmament was the second pilot phase of the DDR effort after the northeastern province of Konduz on 21 October, where 1,000 ex-combatants had been disarmed, demobilised and were now being reintegrated into society through the multi-million dollar Japanese-funded, UN-backed campaign. The arms collection had started in Gardez on 9 November, and a total of 595 soldiers of the Afghan military forces were disarmed as of Monday, the UN said. "So far, we have processed disarmed soldiers from [Gardez] military corps No 3, 12th division, plus groups of other generals [commanders of military contingents in Gardez]. It will continue over the next couple of days," Jim Ociti, an ANBP spokesman, told IRIN in Gardez. In addition to the provinces of Konduz and Paktia, another four pilot projects would be undertaken before the main phase - the disarming of 100,000 ex-combatants - scheduled to start early next summer, Ociti said. "Six thousand people will be disarmed in the pilot projects in six provinces, comprising Konduz, Gardez [Paktia], Mazar-e Sharif [Balkh], Parvan [Kabul], Kandahar and Bamian provinces," he said, adding that the next target would the troubled northern city of Mazar-e Sharif, set to begin some time next month. Gardez’s third-corps commander, Gen Monir Mohammad Ludin, the top military figure in the province, told IRIN that Paktia had already proven more secure than the other southeastern provinces, and the disarmament would further guarantee that. "I don’t think there will be further conflicts in this province. People are too tired of war," the three-star general said, asserting that the people’s jirgas [councils] had ensured security, and there had been no fear of a security vacuum once the military contingents had been discharged.

The disarmament process is key to the country's future stability

"There are 4,200 people in the framework of the third corps, which has four divisions and other small contingents in it. All will be disarmed and reintegrated through the main phase of the DDR," the general said, adding that the Afghan National Army, which was now being set up, might replace all the contingents in future. According to ANBP, on Tuesday, the disarmed soldiers will begin the demobilisation process, during which each will receive food, civilian clothes and some financial assistance to help him with the transition back to civilian life. Thereafter, the former soldiers will begin to be reintegrated into society, when they will choose from a list of options. "We work on particular sets of packages. We have packages in agriculture, demining, business and other sectors like wage labour, training, and [there is] also [the option for] those who want to join the Afghan National Army or National Police," Ociti explained. As part of Monday's ceremony, soldiers attended a parade in Gardez, which was attended by Defence Minister Mohammad Qasem Fahim, several generals from the defence ministry, as well as the military attaches of Japan and Canada - the major donors to the DDR effort - and senior officials of the ANBP. The ANBP said several types of heavy and light weapons, including tanks, anti-aircraft missiles, rocket-propelled grenades, AK-47 assault rifles and sub-machine-guns, had been collected from the soldiers in Gardez.