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Maoists bare fangs at ‘rat’
- Ex-kid soldier had told UNSC of her war travails
KATHMANDU, JUL 04 -
Half-a-dozen Maoist cadres on Sunday threatened Sita Tamang—former child soldier who last month told the UN Security Council (UNSC) of the hardships she faced after her forceful enlistment as a guerrilla five years ago.
“Maoist cadres from the Shaktikhor cantonment in Chitwan visited my house and warned me of any consequence,’’ 18-year-old Sita told the Post. She was, however, identified by the UN as Manju Gurung on June 16 when she shared with an open Council meeting her days in the Maoist army. Shaktikhor is among seven cantonments monitored by the United Nations. Sita said the Maoist fighters also asked the names of journalists who wrote news about her. “I am full of fear after the threat and don’t know what will happen tomorrow,” said Sita, who was forced to join the Maoist army at a tender age of 13.
Sita told an UNSC meeting on ‘protecting children in armed conflict’ that she represented all youngsters who faced and survived the atrocities of war. She had described how the Maoists came to her village in September 2005 and demanded that each family send one member to join a programme the Maoist party was conducting for seven days. During the war, she reportedly helped dig roads, survived 14-hour jungle walks, learned to fire an AK-47 and became a commander but was demoted to a cook after she fainted.
She had described how “sad and painful” her life with the Maoists had been, how she went home briefly but was “terrified” by the rebel group’s threats and was recruited again. Six months later, she returned to her village but reportedly rejoined the Maoists because “villagers treated me badly, bullied me”.
“Luckily, after I was trained and they were planning to send me to the next round of active fighting, the peace agreement was signed and I did not have to fight,” she told the UNSC.
Posted on: 2010-07-05 08:24
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