Team leader of UN assessment team to Nepal, Staffan de Mistura offering ?Nameste? , the Nepali version of greeting to the Nepali journalists upon his arrival at Kathmandu Airport , Thursday, July 27 06. nepalnews.com/rh

Team leader of UN assessment team to Nepal, Staffan de Mistura (File photo)
Staffan de Mistura, the head of the visiting assessment mission of the United Nations, Tuesday said his team would not extend its stay in Nepal but expressed optimism that the concerned sides would be able to resolve their differences before the mission’s departure.

Responding to a query by reporters after a meeting with Nepali Congress Democratic president and former Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba today, Mistura said, “I really don’t see the need [to extend the stay]. We have seven days and I have a feeling there is a lot of very constructive work.”

“When you are working for peace, seven days is a long time and the people of Nepal are waiting for that,” added he.

During a meeting this week, Deputy Prime Minister Amik Sherchan had personally requested the UN team to extend its stay here, saying that the parties and the Maoists were yet to arrive at a consensus on the issue of management of arms and armies of the government and the rebels.

Talking to reporters, Mistura said he told Deuba that the UN was not setting any kind of ultimatum to the Nepali sides at the moment.

“There were two questions (the Former Prime Minister) raised with me and which I found very current at the moment. The first one is whether the UN and the UN Mission is setting any type of ultimatum at the moment. I explained to his Excellency that ultimatum is not in the U.N. culture. We don’t use that word. We don’t use that type of approach,” he said, adding, “But we do have, certainly, this mission has a timetable that is clear and that timetable remains a timetable.”

He further said, “The Secretary-General set seven days for this mission and within those seven days we are looking forward to coming back – if the Nepalese side is in a position to do so – with a clear understanding. That’s a normal way to proceed but also a clear way to proceed.”

The UN delegation also met with CPN (UML) general secretary Madhav Kumar Nepal today and discussed the issue of management of arms and armies, the world body’s role in Nepal’s peace process as well as the need for consensus among the concerned parties on key issues.

The UN delegate said he was optimistic that all sides in Nepal’s peace process would be able to reconcile their differences before the departure of the UN team on Thursday.

“We are optimistic. We are hopeful that this possibility – of having a very simple message from all sides before our departure regarding the way to go forward on arms management and therefore to engage the U.N. to become practically, operationally assisting that – is there.”

“A window of opportunity is there. The light in the tunnel is there and now we have to put more light there, so that before we leave the tunnel disappears and the light remains with us so that we can bring it to New York,” he commented.

UML sources, meanwhile, said that general secretary Nepal suggested the UN team that the Maoist army and their weapons should be separated and the arms should be placed under the monitoring of the UN.

The UML also suggested that if the Maoists disagree to do so, the Maoists, along with their weapons, should be kept in temporary camps under the UN supervision.

Mistura’s team that left for Nepalgung to assess the situation there in the afternoon will depart on Thursday, a statement issued by the UN office in Kathmandu said.

A press release issued by the UN Centre in Kathmandu said the team intends to meet with both the Nepalese Army and the People’s Liberation Army and also to receive briefings from UN staff working in the region.

The team will return to the capital Wednesday afternoon.

”This field visit will help the Mission to get a fuller picture of the situation in the country as it looks at how the United Nations might assist in the peace process,” the statement said.

The team has already met with Prime Minister GP Koirala, ministers, leaders of the seven political parties and the CPN (Maoist) and the foreign missions based in Nepal regarding the UN role in Nepal’s peace process.