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Asia
IRIN-AS Weekly Round-Up 104
23 - 29 December 2006


CONTENTS:

CENTRAL ASIA: Weekly news wrap
NEPAL: Neglect over the issue of female combatants in the arms
management process
NEPAL: Maoists continue to violate peace agreement - activists
NEPAL: Government steps in to stop Nepalganj violence
NEPAL: UN monitoring of arms and armies to begin
PAKISTAN: UN prepares to feed thousands of malnourished children in
Balochistan
PAKISTAN: Humanitarian groups condemn landmine plan
PAKISTAN: Afghan registration deadline extended until 19 January


CENTRAL ASIA: Weekly news wrap

This week opened with the funeral of Turkmen president Saparmurat Niyazov 
on Sunday, one of the region's most authoritarian leaders, who 
single-handedly ruled the Central Asian state following the collapse of 
the former Soviet Union in 1991. Niyazov - who styled himself as the 
Father of All Turkmen or Turkmenbashi - died on 21 December of heart 
failure, leaving many outside observers worried over possible political 
instability in the largely desert, but energy-rich nation.


NEPAL: Neglect over the issue of female combatants in the arms management 
process

In the remote village of Dasrathpur in Surkhet district, nearly 700 km 
west of the capital, Kathmandu, senior Maoist commander Dipak has the 
tough task of ensuring the well-being of his battle-hardened soldiers 
confined in the cantonment camps. Since November, following the signing of 
a historic peace agreement to end a decade-long conflict between the 
Maoist rebels and the Nepalese government, the process for the management 
of the Maoist combatants and their weapons has been under way.


NEPAL: Maoists continue to violate peace agreement - activists

The Maoists' continued violation of Nepal's peace agreement is a serious 
concern, say human rights groups. In November, the Maoist rebels and 
interim government signed a historic peace agreement to end a decade-long 
conflict that had killed more than 14,000 people. The agreement, which 
took five months to negotiate, followed a mass uprising that ended King 
Gyanendra's direct rule in April.


NEPAL: Government steps in to stop Nepalganj violence

Nepal's government has stepped in to help ease tensions after two days of 
violent clashes between rival groups in the western city of Nepalganj. 
Nepalganj, nearly 600 km from the capital, Kathmandu, has seen violent 
clashes between the Madhesi and Pahadiyas people. The Madhesi are the 
original inhabitants of Nepal 's southern Terai plains, while the 
Pahadiyas migrated there from the hills 50 years ago to earn a better 
living.


NEPAL: UN monitoring of arms and armies to begin

The United Nations will launch its firs t arms monitoring operation in 
Nepal beginning on 7 January to implement its support to the peace process 
as requested by the Maoists and the interim government of seven national 
parties, which signed a historic peace agreement in November ending the 
decade-long armed conflict that had killed over 14,000 Nepalese people. 
The first group of UN arms monitors, six of them, arrived in the capital, 
Kathmandu, on Thursday from Canada, Guatemala, Indonesia, Jordan, Uruguay 
and Yemen, where they will join four military advisors from Finland, 
Norway and Switzerland, Ian Martin, personal representative of the UN 
Secretary-General, said.


PAKISTAN: UN prepares to feed thousands of malnourished children in 
Balochistan

The United Nations (UN) is launching an operation to help improve the 
nutrition of thousands of women and children in the southern province of 
Balochistan, officials said on Wednesday. The child nutrition programme, 
set to start in January, would initially cover communities in the 
districts of Quetta, Naseerabad and Ja'afarabad, where 30,000 children had 
so far been identified as malnourished. It would later spread to Kharan, 
Awaran, Musakhel and Chaghai.


PAKISTAN: Humanitarian groups condemn landmine plan

The Pakistani government's plan to lay landmines and build a fence along 
its border with Afghanistan has been condemned by humanitarian groups. It 
follows criticism from Kabul and the US that Pakistan has not been doing 
enough to stop pro-Taliban militia from crossing into Afghanistan. 
Pakistan's military has been ordered to survey what is need ed to lay 
landmines in "selected places" and build the fence along the 2,400 km 
border.


PAKISTAN: Afghan registration deadline extended until 19 January

Following a heavy turnout, Pakistani authorities on Friday announced they 
would be extending a nationwide Afghan registration campaign for another 
three weeks to register as many eligible Afghans as possible. The US $6 
million exercise, which began on 15 October, was scheduled to conclude by 
the end of December, will now continue until 19 January. The drive is 
aimed at providing millions of Afghan refugees living in the country with 
official identification for a three-year period validating their stay in 
exile.


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