Nepal army takes charge 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 yesterday, 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.