MAOIST DEPUTY: NO SURRENDER OF ARMS BEFORE

C O N F I D E N T I A L KATHMANDU 001806 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/11/2016 TAGS: PGOV PTER NP SUBJECT: MAOIST DEPUTY: NO SURRENDER OF ARMS BEFORE ELECTIONS REF: A. KATHMANDU 1757 ¶B. KATHMANDU 1794 Classified By: Charge d'Affaires Nicholas Dean. Reasons 1.4 (b/d). MAOISTS CLAIM THEY WILL KEEP WEAPONS UNTIL ELECTIONS -------------- -------------- ¶1. (U) The Maoists are publicly emphasizing their opposition to decommissioning their weapons before constituent assembly elections, despite increasing public pressure to do so. During a July 10 media interview, Maoist number two in command Baburam Bhattarai stated, "let everybody be clear -- we'll never surrender our arms" before constituent assembly elections, which are expected within a year. Since the end of the pro-democracy uprisings, Maoist leaders have continued to stress this point. Supremo Prachanda declared June 5 that the Maoists were not ready to lay down their arms ahead of constituent assembly elections because they did not trust the Nepal Army. On June 21, Maoist spokesperson Krisha Bahadur Mahara told the press "we are not going to disarm, but to create a conducive environment for constituent assembly elections we are willing to neutralize our weapons and our army under UN monitoring." In a July 3 interview, Prachanda stressed that the Maoist People's Liberation Army (PLA) would not decommission its arms before an interim government was formed (ref A). COMMENT -------------- ¶2. (C) After nearly a week of waffling, Foreign Minister Oli finally reported to Parliament the gist of the GON's letter requesting assistance from the UN to decommission - as opposed to just "manage" - Maoist arms (ref B). Political leaders, opinion shapers and the public at large have increasingly demanded that Maoists give up arms before elections or joining an interim government. The Maoists have given no indication of bending on this point. U.S. interest in a stable Nepal continues to be best served by actively supporting the GON and political parties to resist Maoist pressure to give on the critical issue of laying down their arms. DEAN