UN monitoring of arms and armies to begin

The United Nations will launch its first arms monitoring operation in Nepal beginning on 7 January to implement its support to the peace process as requested by the Maoists and the interim government of seven national parties, which signed a historic peace agreement in November ending the decade-long armed conflict that had killed over 14,000 Nepalese people.

The first group of UN arms monitors, six of them, arrived in the capital, Kathmandu, on Thursday from Canada, Guatemala, Indonesia, Jordan, Uruguay and Yemen, where they will join four military advisors from Finland, Norway and Switzerland, Ian Martin, personal representative of the UN Secretary-General, said.

Nine more would also arrive over the next few days, while an additional 20 monitors would soon arrive bringing the total of 35 as agreed by the UN Security Council on 1 December.

“A first task will be registration, initially of weapons and then of combatants,” said Martin, who added that they would be provided training and helicopters so as to maximise their access to the Maoist army cantonments and the Nepal Army barracks in the country.

Through the Joint Monitoring Coordination Committee (JMCC) that consists of representatives from the Maoists, Nepal Army and the UN, the UN monitors will be stationed in the seven main Maoist army cantonment sites in both rural and urban areas of the Himalayan nation.

According to the committee, the UN’s containers for the storage of Maoist weapons have been already placed in four of the cantonments. These storage containers will have a single lock provided by the UN, while a storage key will be issued to the main cantonment site commander. A 24-hour surveillance camera will cover the storage site and will be monitored from the UN office in the cantonment site, explained the committee members.

Meanwhile, the UN has agreed to the tripartite decision with the Maoists and government to the recruitment of an Interim Task Force (ITF) composed of Nepalese ex-servicemen from the Indian and British armies to enable a 24-hour presence at weapons storage sites.

The ITF - whose activities will be coordinated through the UN and the parties - will be phased out as soon as the deployment of the UN monitors reached the required strength, said Martin.

In addition, the UN would be making frequent visits and would remain responsible for the (army and arms) registration procedures, as well as for investigating any alleged violations of the agreement on the modalities of arms and armies, Martin noted.

NN/AT/DS