Kathmandu - More than 400 Maoist fighters failed the second
phase of verification conducted by the United Nations in eastern
Nepal, official reports said Saturday.
The official Nepalese news agency Rashtriya Samachar Samiti (RSS)
reported that the 400 plus fighters will have to leave the main
cantonment and three satellite camps at Chulachili of Ilam district,
about 400 kilometres east of the Nepalese capital Kathmandu.
Those disqualified were mainly minors under the age of 18 or
recruited by the Maoists after the cut off date of May 2006.
'The Maoist side tried to furnish evidence of age and recruitment
date after many were rejected from the verification in the starting
days but the United Nations Mission in Nepal (UNMIN) did not
recognize the fake documents,' RSS reported.
However, the news agency quoted unnamed sources as saying that
still more Maoists fighters, who did not meet the strict UN criteria,
were registered due to Maoist pressure. The agency could not provide
details.
UNMIN has said they could not carry out the verification as
expected because of Maoist obstruction, RSS reported.
Under the second phase of verification some 3,221 Maoist fighters
were registered at Chulachuli camp.
The verification process will now move to Sindhuli district in
south-central Nepal.
During the first phase of verification, the UN registered just
over 30,000 Maoist combatants, a figure many believe was inflated ny
recruitment following a ceasefire between the Nepalese government and
the Maoists.
US-based Human Rights Watch has previously said as many as 9,000
of the registered Maoist fighters are minors.
Under a peace agreement reached with the government, the Maoist
former rebels agreed to keep their fighters in seven cantonments and
21 satellite camps spread across the Himalayan nation.
Nearly 15,000 people have died in Nepal's conflict, which formally
ended with the signing of an agreement in November 2006.
© 2007 dpa - Deutsche Presse-Agentur 
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