UNMIN BRIEFING TO THE SECURITY COUNCIL - JANUARY

C O N F I D E N T I A L USUN NEW YORK 000032 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/19/2019 TAGS: PREL PGOV PHUM NP SUBJECT: UNMIN BRIEFING TO THE SECURITY COUNCIL - JANUARY 2010 REF: CLASSIFIED BY: AMBASSADOR ALEJANDRO D. WOLFF FOR REASONS 1.4(B) AND (D) ¶1. SUMMARY: The Representative of the Secretary-General to Nepal and head of UNMIN, Karin Lundgren, briefed the Security Council on the activities of UNMIN and the latest developments in Nepal on January 15. Lundgren highlighted a number of new, positive developments which have recently occurred: the discharge of more than 200 Maoists from a cantonment site and the expectation for continued discharges, the creation of the High Level Political Mechanism, and the reported agreement between the Government of Nepal and the Maoists on a 112-day program for the integration and rehabilitation of Maoist combatants. The new Permanent Representative of Nepal, Gyan Chandra Acharya, addressed the Council confirming the recent request from the Government of Nepal to the Secretary-General to extend the UNMIN mandate until May 15, 2010. Acharya also underscored the recent commitment by all parties to draft the constitution by May ¶2010. All Council members, with the exception of Gabon, made interventions during closed consultations, welcoming the recent discharges, the action plan and the High Level Political Mechanism, but noting that UNMIN cannot remain in Nepal indefinitely. End Summary. ¶2. (U) On January 15, the Representative of the Secretary-General to Nepal and head of UNMIN, Karin Lundgren, briefed the Security Council on the activities of UNMIN and the latest developments in Nepal. In contrast to the UN report on Nepal released on January 8 which underscored the largely stalled peace process in Nepal, Lundgren highlighted a number of new, positive developments which have recently occurred: the discharge of more than 200 Maoists from a cantonment site and the expectation for continued discharges, the creation of the High Level Political Mechanism, and the reported agreement between the Government of Nepal and the Maoists on a 112-day program for the integration and rehabilitation of Maoist combatants. Lundgren highlighted recent violence, including the December 20-22 strikes and the on-going attacks on journalists as worrisome. Lundgren stated she had "cautious optimism," but noted that some speak of fresh conflict as inevitable. ¶3. (U) The new Permanent Representative of Nepal, Gyan Chandra Acharya, addressed the Council following Lundgren's statement. Acharya referenced the recent request from the Government of Nepal to the Secretary-General to extend the UNMIN mandate until May 15, 2010. He underscored the progress of Nepal's "political transformation" and committed to institutionalize the reforms together with social and economic transformation. Acharya stated that writing a constitution in a timely fashion is essential and underscored the commitment by all parties to writing the constitution by May 2010. He also referenced the recently established High Level Political Consultative Mechanism as a vehicle to "narrow down the political differences among the major political parties on key national issues." Regarding integration and rehabilitation, Acharya noted that the process is expected to be complete before the promulgation of the new Constitution. Acharya briefly mentioned other important initiatives of the Nepal Government, including: a draft bill submitted to Parliament on the establishment of the Commission on Disappearances and efforts to establish a Truth and Reconciliation Commission "consistent with international standards and national aspirations." He called Nepal's commitment to human rights "unflinching" and noted the Government is "determined to ensure that there is no impunity in the country through effective enforcement of law and major institutional reforms." ¶4. (C) Following Lundgren and Acharya's briefings, the Council moved to closed consultations, where Lundgren underscored that while recent efforts have been "commendable" a number of critical details are still in need of agreement and that the 112-day integration and rehabilitation program timeline is unrealistic. She remains concerned that tensions have continued to mount within parties and that rifts have deepened. ¶5. (C) All Council members, with the exception of Gabon, made interventions during closed consultations, welcoming the recent discharges, the action plan and the High Level Political Mechanism. The U.S., UK, Japan, France, underscored that UNMIN was established more than three years ago as a temporary mission and that UNMIN cannot remain in Nepal indefinitely. Mexico, Bosnia, Austria, Lebanon, and France urged the Government of Nepal to end impunity with regard to human rights violations. Most Council members noted their support for the UNMIN draft mandate extension as circulated by the UK. RICE