KATHMANDU: Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal today said the role of the United Nations Mission in Nepal (UNMIN) could continue till the integration and rehabilitation process of UNMIN-verified Maoist combatants ends.

The government has already decided to extend its tenure till May 15.

“UNMIN can be given a farewell if we manage to bring the verified Maoist combatants under the command of the Special Committee on Supervision, Integration and Rehabilitation of Combatants,” PM Nepal told lawmakers of the parliamentary International Relations and Human Rights Committee (IRHRC).

The PM said UNMIN’s tenure could be further extended if the term of the Constituent Assembly is extended as the peace and constitution-writing processes were inter-related.

The IRHRC had summoned the PM to inquire whether

the government’s recent

stance on UNMIN would have any effect on the 55-year-old

relationship between the UN and Nepal.

“The Government of Nepal, the Nepali people and Nepal’s international friends have expected UNMIN’s neutral, impartial and effective role at this historical juncture,” the prime minister said in a written statement.

He said new Terms of Reference (ToR) could be worked out with UNMIN on assisting the government with the integration and rehabilitation of Maoist fighters.

He said talks should be held among political parties on UNMIN’s technical assistance if all stakeholders deemed it necessary.

He said the integration process could be completed by May 15 provided all the sides, especially the Maoists, were positive.

He told the committee that the council of ministers and the Special Committee had done homework on the integration process.

The SC, he said, had already prepared a code of conduct for the fighters, ToR for supervision, command and control of the fighters and action plan for the integration and rehabilitation of the fighters. These three issues are being discussed in the SC, he added.

PM Nepal, however, asked UNMIN to provide information on the exact number of fighters currently living in the camps and asked the world body to ensure that genuine combatants drew the monthly allowances.

“UNMIN and the Maoists should provide information on these two issues to the government,” Nepal said.

However, Maoist lawmakers such as Narayankaji Shrestha, CP Gajurel and Suresh Ale Magar said UNMIN’s tenure should be extended until the peace process is over.

They also demanded that the government immediately stop talking anything negative about UNMIN.

Navindra Raj Joshi, a Nepali Congress lawmaker, said the UN body should inform the government on the number of combatants. He said UNMIN had failed to maintain impartiality.

Former prime minister and lawmaker Lokendra Bahadur Chand suggested holding talks among the parties on extending the UN body’s tenure.