The Associated Press
Friday, February 2, 2007
KATMANDU, Nepal
Nepal's former communist rebels continue to recruit child soldiers, Human Rights Watch said, despite signing a peace deal with the government that ended 10 years of fighting.
The Maoists also have not released thousands of children in their ranks used to fight the Nepalese government in the 1996-2006 civil war that killed more than 13,000 people, HRW said in a statement to The Associated Press received late Thursday.
"The Maoists should let the children go," HRW's Asia research director Sam Zarifi said. "The peace agreement explicitly forbids the use of child soldiers, and complying with this will be a key test of the Maoists' good faith to uphold the accord."
The former rebels "should immediately begin releasing the thousands of child soldiers in their ranks and cease recruiting more children," the statement said.
The rights group said its information was based on interviews with former child soldiers and Nepali and international monitors. Children as young as 14 received weapons training and carried out crucial military and logistical support duties, it said.
The Maoists, however, denied the allegations saying all of their fighters were over the age of 18.
"U.N. monitors have registered our armies in two camps in south Nepal, and none of them have been found to be under 18 years of age," Maoist leader Prachanda said at a press conference Thursday.
U.N. officials monitoring the disarmament of the former rebels were not immediately available for comment Friday.
Prachanda, whose real name is Pushpa Kamal Dahal, warned Thursday the former rebels may "return to the path of revolt." He stressed, however, that any protests would be peaceful.
The Maoists say Nepal's current coalition government has been slow in implementing aspects of the peace accord, such as releasing jailed fighters.
They are scheduled to join an interim government that will conduct upcoming elections, but this has been delayed by months, also angering the former guerrillas.
The Maoists began peace talks last year and signed the peace deal with the government in November.
____
1 comment:
From
http://www.anju.page.tl
Dear Bhupal,
Do you blelieve after the latest address of Priminister Girija Parshad Koiral will solve the current voilance in tarai?. It seems the issues raised by Sadbhawana Party Anandi Devi has come to be resolved. Do nepal be a peaceful country ever after? Almost all developing countries have political crisis. Is it there phenomenam or leadership problem.
These are the issues conforting the Nepalese People. They want peace at any cost? Then why there is such problem in Nepal and what is it sulution?
Post a Comment