United Nations Mission in Nepal has expressed its dissatisfaction over the progress in Nepal’s peace process. Presenting UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon’s latest mid-term report on Nepal’s peace process, UNMIN chief Karin Landgren told the UN Security Council Friday, the peace process in Nepal faced a protracted deadlock with added risk of confrontation and violence.

The impasse that emerged following the events of May – when the President revoked the Army Chief’s dismissal, and consequently the UCPN (Maoist) stepped down from the Government – remains unresolved, Landgren reported.

“Despite continuing efforts, the level of trust among the major parties has continued to dwindle,” she stated.

Citing recent clashes between the youth wings of Unified CPN (Maoist) and CPN (UML) in some eastern districts including Dhankuta and Bhojpur, Landgren said, in the current climate, these protest actions carry a significant risk of confrontation and violence.

There is an urgent need to de-escalate the tensions and to find a framework for taking the peace process forward, she added.

Landgren also accused Nepal’s political parties of not being consistent with the commitments expressed in the peace agreements.

The dissatisfaction expressed by UNSG’s top envoy in Nepal less than three months before UNMIN’s term ends in January has raised questions on UNMIN’s future.

The mandate of UNMIN – originally designed for supporting the election of the Constituent Assembly, and due to expire in less than three months time – cannot go on indefinitely, said Landgren.

Landgren called the parties to “arrest the loss of momentum, and invest goodwill, realism and rigour” in their pursuit of sustainable peace in Nepal, during the next 11 weeks of UNMIN’s remaining tenure.

“Until the parties establish a clearer framework for cooperation, and find ways of moving forward on major elements of the peace process, it is difficult to plot a structured exit for UNMIN,” she added

Meanwhile, UN has also clarified UNSG’s suggestion for a national unity government is not an intervention in Nepal’s internal politics.

Talking to reporters in New York, UN spokesperson Michele Montas said, Ban’s observations are consistent with his repeated calls for unity and consensus among the political parties to ensure the success of the peace process.

“The report is intended to encourage Nepal’s political parties to achieve what they themselves have expressed about the desirability of a unity Government and does not in any way represent a form of interference,” said Montas.

The clarification comes one day after 22 political parties supporting the government concluded Ban’s statement as an intervention in Nepal’s internal politics and decided to alert UNMIN about it. Nepalnews.com

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