11/1/2008
Senior UN Official Arrives In Nepal To Visit Mission Supporting Peace Accord

A senior United Nations political official arrived in Nepal this week for a four-day visit to the UN mission supporting the peace process in the South Asian country after a decade-long civil conflict between the Government and Maoists claimed some 13,000 lives.

Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs Angela Kane will also assess preparations for the election of a Constituent Assembly, already delayed from last year, which is to be held in April to draft a new constitution.

The UN Mission in Nepal (UNMIN) was set up a year ago to support the peace process after the Seven-Party Alliance and the Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist (CPN-M) signed a peace accord in 2006.

In addition to working meetings with UNMIN, Ms. Kane will hold discussions with Government officials and political leaders and travel to the country’s eastern region, where she will meet with the UNMIN team based in Biratnagar and visit the Maoist cantonment site in Ilam.

Last month Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon welcomed the decision by the CPN-M to rejoin the Interim Government and urged all parties “to swiftly move forward in the implementation of the agreements reached and lay the grounds for a peaceful, inclusive, and credible Constituent Assembly election.”