Japanese mountaineer Ken Noguchi (right) collects garbage from the base camp of the 8,163-metre Mount Manaslu on Thursday. Noguchi brought down some five tonnes of garbage. (Reuters)

Kathmandu, May 27 (Reuters): The Nepali government and Maoist rebels today agreed to end attacks on each other’s bases and vowed to work for peace in the Himalayan nation where a civil war has killed thousands.

Ending the opening round of their first peace talks since 2003 late yesterday, they also agreed to a 25-point code of conduct which commits both sides to cease provocations and stop showing and using arms to intimidate people.

They also promised early elections for a special assembly to draw up a new constitution and map out what the future political system of one of the world’s poorest nations will look like.

Analysts said today they expected the planned process to bring in fundamental changes in Nepal’s polity and raise hopes of lasting peace in a nation wracked by a decade of violence. No date for the assembly vote has been fixed but the rebels hope for the body to be in place within six months.

Nepal has gone from being a centuries-old absolute monarchy to a constitutional one but the country was thrown into disarray when King Gyanendra dissolved parliament 15 months ago. The Maoists want to abolish the monarchy altogether.

“We have already agreed on our main political agenda,” chief rebel negotiator Krishna Bahadur Mahara said yesterday, referring to the assembly. He was speaking after a six-hour meeting with the government team at a luxury resort outside the capital.

“Now, we have only one-point agenda left (and that is) to quickly elect the constituent assembly,” Mahara said. Chief government negotiator home minister Krishna Prasad Sitaula, sitting by his side, agreed. “We are convinced that there will be no more bloodshed,” Sitaula said.

Today, more than 100,000 people attended a peaceful rally organised by the Maoists in the southeastern temple town of Janakpur to publicise their political agenda.

“This is the biggest public meeting I have ever seen since 1990,” local journalist Ajit Tiwari said referring to the 1990 pro-democracy rallies that ended absolute monarchy.