Interim government and Maoists hail UN mission

Nepal's interim government and the Maoists have thanked the United Nations for sending a high-level team of experts to help at a crucial time in the peace process. The government, formed from seven parties following the end of King Gyanendra's direct rule in April, and the Maoists are in peace talks to end the country's decade-long armed conflict. A seven-member team of experts led by Staffan de Mistura arrived in the country on 28 July to assess how the UN could help the peace process. They completed their mission on Thursday, concluding that both sides had to come up with a consensus and confidence-building measure on the management of weapons and armed forces. The interim government wants the Maoists to disarm first, saying it would provide the environment for achieving the goal of elections to the Constituent Assembly - a provisional governing body that would include the Maoists and frame a new constitution. But the Maoists object to the government’s demand that only their People’s Liberation Army (PLA) should be demobilised and disarmed. They want the government's army to follow suit, saying that a new national army should be formed. “There is so much homework we have to do to reach a political resolution. But we will reach a consensus as per our peace agreements,” Dev Gurung, a senior Maoist leader and one of the key negotiators, said. Gurung said the UN team's visit had provided significant encouragement to both sides. “We want the UN especially to play an active role in conducting impartial monitoring during the elections for the Constituent Assembly,” said Gurung. Government politicians said there were still many issues to be sorted. “There is a dire need for resettling the internally displaced families and recovering their properties seized by the Maoists in the past,” Ram Chandra Poudel, a member of the Nepalese parliament and senior leader of the country’s largest party, Nepali Congress, said. Poudel said the Maoists had not announced the return of any properties. “We still hope these kinds of issues will be sorted out and [that we will] reach a consensus and complete understanding between us.” Poudel said the UN mission's presence had helped speed up discussions on several issues related to the peace process.