Fighters' perks to resume 'soon'

KATHMANDU: Member of the Special Committee for Supervision, Integration and Rehabilitation of Maoist combatants, Barshaman Pun ‘Ananta’, today demanded

the government explain the

discontinuation of salary to Maoist combatants in cantonments and camps.

In a meeting of the special committee held at the Prime Minister’s office at Singha Durbar this afternoon, Minister for Peace and Reconstruction Rakam Chemjong, however, clarified that the government will resume the perks as soon as the United Nations Mission in Nepal (UNMIN) provides updated details of cantonments and camps.

The government says almost half the UNMIN-rejected combatants still remained in the camps on the day when they were released. It has been claiming that many of the combatants were absent that day, but the UCPN-Maoist leadership has been receiving the salary meant for all combatants.

Of the total of 4,008 disqualified combatants, only 2,400 were

in the camps when they were

released.

Claiming that the constitution drafting process was delayed due to the delay in the integration of the Maoist fighters, chairman of the special committee Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal, in the meeting, proposed the members decide on the number of combatants to be integrated into the security forces.

However, Ananta claimed that taking forward the process of integration will be difficult until the government resumed the salary of the combatants.

Spokesperson of the Special Committee and chief secretary Madhav Sharma said the meeting also discussed directives to bring the Maoist combatants directly under the Special Committee