Nepal PM admits ‘ delays’ in justice for Maoist war

Nepal Sunday marked the 10th anniversary of the peace deal that ended a bloody Maoist insurgency, as the prime minister admitted that justice for its victims has been delayed.

In a TV show late Saturday, Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal – who led the guerrillas in the decade- long war –- blamed political turmoil for delaying justice over wartime abuses.

“It would have been better if we were able to conclude it on time ... but political difficulties of the transitional period delayed the process,” Dahal said.

More than 16,000 died, 1,300 disappeared and thousands more were displaced during the conflict that ended in 2006.

The agreement brought the Maoist rebels into mainstream politics, hastened the end of a 240- year- old Hindu monarchy and transformed Nepal into a secular republic.

But the impoverished Himalayan nation has since cycled through nine governments as fractious political parties have traded blame over failures to draft a new constitution and to secure justice for victims of wartime abuses by both sides.

The peace pact included plans to establish two commissions to investigate crimes committed during the conflict – but they were only set up in 2014 after years of political infighting.

“Since I became the prime minister, I have been pushing for legal amendments and a positive environment for the [ war crimes] commissions to speed up their work,” said Dahal, who was elected prime minister for the second time in August.