Nepal govt, Maoists agree on rewriting constitution

The two sides decided that elections for a body that will hammer out a new constitution should be held by mid-2007. Further talks were also slated for Thursday on how to bring the communist insurgents into government.

"Today's talks discussed several political issues but we couldn't conclude a final agreement apart from holding constituent assembly elections by mid-June," Maoist number-two Baburam Bhatterai told AFP.

The communist rebels have long demanded new polls to elect a constituent assembly that will decide on the fate of the impoverished country's monarchy.

But the rebels, who insist they are committed to democracy after fighting for 10 years to install a communist republic, and the ruling coalition remain divided on a host of issues.

They include how to disarm the rebels, the future of the monarchy and the make-up of a proposed interim government.

"We still need agreement on several issues," said Ramesh Lekhak, a member of the government's negotiating team.

A ceasefire has been in effect for the past five months between the government and the rebels since massive street protests forced King Gyanendra to give up 14 months of absolute rule and restore parliament.

The rebels have declared they will put their arms and soldiers in UN-supervised camps when they join a new government. But the ruling seven-party coalition wants the rebels to disarm first.

"The main issue between the two sides now is the rebel arms," said a Western diplomat, who declined to be named.

This is the third time the two sides have tried to hammer out a peace deal to end the insurgency that has claimed more than 12,500 lives. The other two attempts ended in a return to fighting.

An analyst said the government would be unwise to push too hard on the issue of rebel weapons.

"The government should not force the Maoists to disarm before joining the interim government, as the rebels have already promised to put their weapons under UN supervision," said veteran Nepal political analyst Lok Raj Baral.

"It's going to take time for the two sides to sort out their differences," he added.