MAOIST EX-COMBATANTS

“Challenges and opportunities for the rehabilitation and reintegration of Maoist ex-combatants in the Nepal context”



“Challenges and opportunities for the rehabilitation and reintegration of Maoist ex-combatants in the Nepal context”

Introduction to the issue of Maoist ex-soldiers in the Nepal context

Recent discourses on Nepal's peace process reveal that noble yet ambitious undertaking by then Seven Party Alliance (SPA) and the Maoist Party to bring an end to the decade-long protracted conflict some five years ago. Now they have come to its critical juncture where the parties across the negotiating tables are consolidating themselves on ideological positioning and partisan interests. Critical agenda on the table for logical conclusion of the long-drawn peace endeavour has been the integration and rehabilitation of Maoist army soldiers. Rehabilitation of ex-soldiers, which demands greater commitment and coordination of much more resources and planning, has been unduly because of the political grandstanding and positioning over much talked about integration complexities; the norms, numbers and modality. 'Secretariat of the Special Committee for Supervision-Integration and Rehabilitation of Maoist Soldiers' has not been able to move ahead with its planned survey.

While there appears to be some superficial discussion on the value and content of the rehabilitation packages, any intelligent guess leads toward assumption that rehabilitation will be for and start at the eleventh hour through an ad-hoc process, unable to meet its intricate complexities and challenges. Literatures exemplify that when war's end, armed forces are downsized and armed groups disbanded and disarmed, as signs that peace has come; but more importantly because of the daunting costs of maintaining militaries. Rehabilitation of ex-soldiers within the purview of broader national recovery strategy from the post-conflict situation will undoubtedly underpin the restoration of political stability.

Lessons learned

If demobilization is poorly implemented, as is evident from the lessons learnt globally and personal observations, former soldiers will become a major source of lawlessness, posing in turn a significant obstacle to long run socio-economic recovery and more importantly restoration of the rule of law. It is even more relevant to keep in mind the possibility of the ex-soldiers being lured by the mushrooming armed groups in the Nepali context. Rehabilitation is time consuming and costly and for that reason is often neglected, but it is important to consider that successful outcomes will have significant implication on the sustainability of any peace endeavours and sought after post-conflict peace and prosperity. Based on the information in the media originating in particular from the Maoist quarter, it appears that the majority in the Maoist Army strive to be considered for integration.

Problems faced by the soldiers

Despite the fact that there is an option for voluntary retirement 'Golden Handshake' for soldiers not being integrated, studies and researches have shown that a significant number in the PLA, not just the war wounded and disabled. They will need rehabilitation support, the fact corroborated by general understanding that there will be a ceiling as to the number for integration; anything between 5-10,000 and Golden Handshake for all is neither the viable ...