Chief of the United Nations Mission in Nepal (UNMIN) Ian Martin has defended UNMIN's role in Nepal's peace process as being impartial, refuting the allegation from senior leaders of Nepali Congress (NC) that his mission is siding with the Maoists.
Chief of United Nations Mission in Nepal (UNMIN), Ian Martin, speaks at
the Reporters Club Thursday, Oct 16 08. nepalnews.com/NPA
Speaking at the Reporters' Club Thursday, Martin said the UNMIN always sought to play impartial role and was committed to work fairly in the peace process.
He said the UNMIN was not new to accusations like these, and added that even the Maoists had at times accused it of being biased towards them.
Martin said he had been emphasising that the parties to conflict must fulfill the commitments they made regarding the fate of those disappeared, internally displaced people and ending impunity.
He also made it clear that the UN could not take the Maoist People's Liberation Army (PLA) in the UN peacekeeping missions as they have not been recognised as state's army.
NC president Girija Prasad Korala had commented on Wednesday that the PLA could not be integrated with the Nepal Army (NA) as Martin rejected the idea of sending the PLA in UN's peace keeping operations.
Martin said that the UNMIN had no opinion regarding if issue of integration between NA and PLA. "It is the question that should be decided by political parties of Nepal," Martin said.
He also said the UN was ready to share its experiences on army integration and rehabilitation to the special committee to be formed soon if the committee sought the UN's assistance in this regard.
When asked if the UNMIN was willing to broker the proposed talks between the government and Terai's armed groups, Martin said the mission ready to play such a role if the government asked. He made it clear that the UNMIN officials had established no contact and it had never expressed the desire of mediating in the dialogue with armed groups of Terai.
He also termed Nepal's peace process as a success story. nepalnews.com ps Oct 16 08
