Nepal army takes control of Maoist camps

Nepal's army has taken over camps where Maoist fighters have been stationed since the end of the civil war, an official said Wednesday, in a major step towards completing a troubled peace process.

The move follows a breakthrough deal signed in November last year by the Maoists and the three other major political parties, paving the way for the reintegration of 19,000 combatants, five years after the conflict ended.

More than 7,000 former fighters who have chosen retirement payoffs of 500,000 to 800,000 rupees ($6,300-$10,200) have already left the cantonments and have begun life as civilians.

The parties had agreed to integrate 6,500 fighters into the Nepalese Army but the peace plan has faltered, with almost 10,000 choosing to join the soldiers they fought in a bloody, ten-year war.

The remaining former fighters will have to accept retirement payoffs because the army has said it will not take more than agreed in the peace deal.

Balananda Sharma, a coordinator of the government committee overseeing the reintegration process, said 1,400 Nepal Army soldiers have been deployed in 15 former Maoist camps.

"The soldiers were warmly welcomed in all (the Maoist) camps. The former fighters have taken it as a normal process," he said.

But the army takeover, which took place late Tuesday, was two days earlier than expected, he said.

Sharma said the takeover was speeded up due to a deteriorating security situation in the Maoist camps in which "the former fighters' chain of command was broken."

"The government ordered the Nepalese Army to take control of weapons containers, cantonments and the physical infrastructure," Sharma said.

He said security was now under control in the former Maoist camps.