Media-savvy Maoists took journalists last week to their mountain hideout at Kami Danda four hours walk from the Banepa highway to show off their military preparedness. The all-women unit of the 'people's liberation army' go through their paces amidst lush monsoon scenery, drilling, taking up mock battle positions, crawling and crouching along the grass.
The fighters in the front hold the prize weapons, a Heckler & Koch G36 captured from the army, an AK-47 and an assortment of SLRs and INSAS rifles. But at the back most have bolt-action .303s and some have no guns at all. The Maoist intention with this photo-op was obviously a bit of sabre-rattling to remind Kathmandu that they are still around and battleready.
It was meant to impress, and it worked. Kathmandu-based photojournalists couldn't get enough of the guns on display even posing with a G36. Somewhere along the line the whole thing transformed itself from an insurgency into a tourist attraction.
PRETEND GUN: Towards the rear of the drilling formation, the women guerrillas have .303s but this one doesn't even have that.
STAND UP: Kantipur Television reporter Ganga BC speaks into his camera while a Maoist propaganda cadre also shoots the talking head.
SHOOTING EACH OTHER: With guns pointed at cameras and cameras pointed at guns, Maoists mingle with the media up on Kami Danda in Kabhre on Friday. A Singaporean student is allowed to fondle a Heckler & Koch G36 captured from the army. Nepal Tourism Board take note: we can sell this as the next big tourist attraction.
LET THE SHOW BEGIN: With their big guns lining up the front rows, a female company of the PLA displays its disciplined drilling. A young Kabhre mother watches with her child in tow.
WATCH YOUR BACK: A Maoist cameraman records the media visit to the rebel training site while a guerrillas with an AK47 puts up a striking pose.
