The Maoist former rebel group in Nepal, the Peoples Liberation Army (PLA), says it has begun recruiting thousands of young people, BBC online reports Wednesday.
The announcement comes just days after the Himalayan countrys regular army said it had filled 3.000 vacancies, a move that the former rebels say is a violation of the peace deal that ended their insurgency.
The Maoists came to power last year after a landslide poll win but the role of the army is an unresolved issue. Nevertheless, most observers do not believe the Maoists seriously intend to go back to war.
The head of the PLA, Nanda Kishore Pun, told the BBC that his organisation would take on more than 11.000 fighters, bringing the size of his Maoist-army up to more than 31.000.
A committee is trying to work out how to combine the former rebel force with the Nepalese army, which opposes any large-scale addition of “politically indoctrinated” Maoists to its ranks.
The army and the Maoists fought each other for 10 years until 2006. General Katuwal, the head of the army, recently went on a recruitment drive which the Maoists and the UN said was a breach of peace accords signed between the two sides.
Mr Pun said that the Maoists want to change the army and bring it under civilian control so that it obeys government orders.
