Kathmandu, July 26:

Ever wondered why the government has not made public the list and data of people missing in the 11-year conflict despite mounting national and international pressure? Here’s why. It has no actual data of such people.

The government is, however, making efforts to find out the actual number of people who went missing, Minister for Peace and Reconstruction Ram Chandra Poudel today told the parliamentary Peace Accord Monitoring Special Committee. Poudel was clever enough to share the responsibility for the disappearances with the CPN-Maoist. “Both the sides have made people disappear,” he said.

He also informed the committee of the government’s plan to set up a ‘truth commission.’ “The draft for the same is being prepared and it will be widely discussed in all the five development zones before it is finalised,” he said.

This commission, Poudel said, would identify war criminals and take necessary action against them. “The basic purpose of the truth commission, however, would be reconciliation,” he added.

Poudel defends security for Maoists

KATHMANDU: Minister Poudel on Thursday said that ministers are never given prior inofrmation on the security being provided to them. “This is the practice, and this has been followed this time also,” Poudel told MPs. He was referring to the ‘controversial’ security that was given to Maoist ministers recently. Replying to queries at the Peace Accord Monitoring Special Committee, Poudel said also said that the government is yet to receive the report (on nationalising the king’s property) of the team that was formed under the coordination of Nepali Congress (Democratic) leader Gopal Man Shrestha by the previous government. — HNS