Nepal: former Liberation fighters’ disappointing prospects in Nepal Army integration

[Years after the abandonment of the revolutionary people’s war, in exchange for false promises, the illusory “gains” have proven empty and are losing their remaining adherents. — Frontlines ed.]

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The Kathmandu Post:  “993 combatants choose integration in 3 days”

KATHMANDU, SEP 08 – Altogether 993 former Maoist combatants have filled up forms for integration in the seven main cantonments by Saturday. The selection process began on Thursday.
Many of the 3,123 ex-fighters, who were initially waiting for integration, have complained that the age criteria set by the Special Committee forced them to change their priority. The Special Committee has said only those combatants who were born before May 24, 1988 are eligible to opt for integration.
So far, 202 ex-combatants, including 12 females, have filled up integration forms at the Third Division based in Chitwan. Similarly, 171 have expressed desire to go for integration at the Fourth Division, Nawalparasi; 234 at the Sixth Division, Surkhet; 106 at the Fifth Division Rolpa; 99 at the Seventh Division, Kailali; 82 at the First Division, Ilam and 99 at the Second Division, Sindhuli, according to the Directorate of Public Relations of the Nepal Army. The former fighters willing to join in lower ranks can fill up integration forms until September 30 and the result will be announced on October 7, according to the Special Committee Secretariat. The selection for commanders eyeing the officer ranks in the Nepal Army will start on September 12 in Chitwan.

The incredible shrinking numbers of PLA enlistees in the national Nepal Army

REPUBLICA, April 20, 2012 3,129 for integration

KATHMANDU, April 20: Only 3,129 Maoist combatants have chosen integration into the Nepal Army by the time of completion of the voluntary retirement process in all the cantonments on Thursday. According to Balananda Sharma, coordinator of the Special Committee secretariat, altogether 6,576 combatants chose voluntary retirement and they have been released from the cantonments. There were 9,705 combatants who had opted for integration in the first phase of categorization last November. The Special Committee had carried out a second phase categorization as the number of combatants choosing integration was much higher than the allotted quota of 6,500.

Nepal: UCPN(Maoist) proposes to integrate 10,000 of its 19,000 PLA members into the Nepal Army and security forces, and ‘rehabilitate’ the rest

PLA soldier being discharged from a UN-supervised camp and offered "rehabilitation"

Himalayan News Service, 2010-12-02

Integrate half of combatants: Maoists

Kathmandu: Unified CPN-Maoist revealed on Thursday that the party had proposed to the Special Committee for Supervision, Integration and Rehabilitation of the Maoist combatants to integrate half of the total number of combatants living in the cantonments into different security forces.

Politburo member and deputy commander of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Janardan Sharma said his party had proposed to integrate only half of the UNMIN-verified combatants and rehabilitate the remaining. He was addressing an interaction.

Frontlines comment:

While UCPN(M) Vice-Chairman Mohan Baidya and other leaders and rank-and-file members have opposed integrating PLA soldiers into the former royalist Nepal Army, Party Chairman Prachanda has been a vocal advocate of the integration plan. Now the UCPN(Maoist) has announced that it will send 10,000 of the 19,000 PLA members to join the 96,000 member US and Indian-backed Nepal Army and other security forces. This is the same Nepal Army  that committed tens of thousands of atrocities against civilians in a futile attempt to stop the advance of the revolutionary people’s war from 1996 to 2006.

The other security agencies mentioned include the National Armed Police Force, the Border Patrol and the Forest Security Force.  The remaining PLA men and women would be given a “rehabilitation” package that includes education and job training. A number of PLA members interviewed by journalists have stated that they don’t need to be “rehabilitated” and  want to continue the revolutionary struggle.

Nepal Army says UN mission should leave

[The UCPN(M) leadership is locked into the pursuit of leading a coalition or consensus government with the bourgeois parties, an elusive prospect which requires making a deal to integrate a few thousand members of the Maoist People’s Liberation Army into the army.  The Nepal Army is resisting any integration of PLA soldiers as units into the army and seems to be calling the UCPN(M)’s bluff.  The UCPN(M) wants the UN to stay to help cobble together a deal on the army and to share power.-ed]

Nepal Army Chief Gen. Chatraman Singh Gurung

2010-08-21

Kathmandu – The Nepalese Army told the government not to extend the term of the UN Mission in Nepal (UNMIN), the first time the army has taken an official position over the political mission’s mandate, local media reported Saturday.

Army chief Chatraman Singh Gurung met Peace and Reconstruction Minister Rakam Chemjong late Friday to convey the army’s stand on the mission, which was created to support the peace process after the government and Maoist rebels signed a peace agreement in 2006, The Kathmandu Post said.

“UNMIN’s term should not be extended anymore,” Gurung said. “There is no conflict in the country, and the premise that there are two sides to the conflict no longer exists.”

Chemjong said the government had yet to make a decision on the mission, whose term was due to expire September 15, and would do so after consultations with political parties were finished.

Prachanda Interview Full of Illusions and Promises to Play by the Rules of Bourgeois Politics

[This interview with Prachanda in the June 2010 Red Star continues to promote the illusion that the Nepal Army can be “democratized” by a new Maoist-led government.  He says the party leadership will press to include the People’s Liberation Army as a “separate force” in the army, when in fact he has been engaged in intensive negotiations with the reactionary Nepali Congress and UML parties to integrate 3000-5000 PLA members (out of 19,000) into the army. He reaffirms that the party is not restoring the people’s governments in the countryside, and states that the main task is to take the peace process to the end.  This is in direct opposition to the need to re-establish the people’s war and re-launch the new democratic revolution in Nepal-ed.].

“The Government Must Be Formed Under the Leadership of Our Party”

By Prachanda, Chairman, Unified Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist

The Politburo meeting that was held for the long time has decided that it will lead the national united government. If it’s sure that the national united government will be formed, who will be the prime minister?

The politburo meeting has decided that national unity government must be formed under the leadership of UCPN (M). When the time comes to form that government our part will finalise about the leadership. We didn’t discuss it this time. The main focus is that the government must be formed under the leadership of our party. It’s the party that counts not the person.

Your party has been demanding the formation of national united government. There are talks of majority government too. Are both the options open?

Both of the options are open. But, we also discussed about the possibility of the national unity government in the politburo meeting. We came to the conclusion that the possibility of a national unity government is getting weaker. Taking this situation into account, we have decided to remain prepared for both options.

Biplap on the Revolution in Nepal: Can We Go Ahead?

[This is an important article by Biplap, a member of the Secretariat and Political Bureau of the UCPN(Maoist), and is most likely a disguised polemic against rightist forces in the party.  He stresses the issue of  the internal and international situations for the advance of the revolution–though he underestimates the danger of an Indian economic blockade and military intervention in the event of a Maoist victory or major Maoist advances through re-establishing the People’s War.

Biplap also discusses the key role of the reactionary, ex-royalist Nepal Army.  However he puts forth two different positions on the army.  First, he writes that “we will have to fight with army if we want to complete revolution” and speaks of the need to foster splits in the army. On the other hand, he writes that the army is a nationalist force and  that a “front between Maoist and Nepal Army is possible for national independence”–a position which leads away from the necessity to re-estabish the People’s War in order to complete the new democratic revolution.–ed.]

Can We Go Ahead?

by Netra Bikram Chanda “Biplap”

The Red Star Vol 3 issue 16

The debate in Nepal is on whether revolution is possible or not. The debate is not only ideological and general assumption; rather, it is centered on the question whether there is possibility to increase intervention in the central power state or not. Two sharp analyses have emerged on the issue. They are for and against.

The analytical perspective that sees revolution as impossible:

One of the analytical perspectives is that the revolt is impossible. Yes, it seems so from that side of perspective. This analysis has emerged mainly from the side of some leftist intellectual politicians and analysts. They have given the following reasons to justify this logic.

Unfavorable international situation-

Favorable international situation is needed for the completion of revolution. For that, there should be a crisis in the centre of capitalism and unfavorable situation should have created against them. Moreover, there should be crisis in India, America and China for the completion of revolution in a small and poor country like Nepal. Otherwise, these power centres interfere over Nepal and revolution can not succeed.