Government committed to bringing those responsible for grave human rights violations to justice: PM Dahal

Kathmandu, Sept 4: Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ has expressed the government’s commitment to establishing a credible transitional justice process to uncover the truth, providing reparations to the survivors. In his address to the National Conference on Sentencing Regime in the Context of Transitional Justice Process in Nepal here today, the Prime Minister pledged to bring those responsible for grave human rights violations to justice and move towards establishing reconciliation in society.

“In this endeavor, we will be guided by the Comprehensive Peace Accord, the directives of the Supreme Court of Nepal, and relevant international commitments, as well as the concerns of the victims.” In the event was organised by Advocacy Forum and International Commission on Jurists (ICJ) here today, the Prime Minister called for a strong support from all walks of the society including survivors, civil societies, political parties and international community to conclude the process successfully.

Stating that though the Bill to amend the Enforced Disappearance and Truth and Reconciliation Commission Act 2014 was tabled in the Parliament in July 2022, the document could not be passed because the expiry of the tenure of the parliament, the Prime Minister said,” After the commencement of the new parliament, the bill has been registered with some reform and now is under consideration in the parliamentary committee. We hope that the Committee will resolved some of the issues that have been raised by the stakeholders.” As he said, if the Bill is endorsed by the House, it will open a space for the development of a comprehensive and coherent transitional justice strategy that will allow Nepal to achieve both the greatest possible satisfaction of the rights of survivors and a lasting peace.

“The new constitution itself is the product of the peace agreement which incorporates almost all human rights enshrined in the international human rights law. The immediate enforceability of the economic social and cultural rights in the constitution, can be marked as the major achievement which was a key agenda of the conflict,” the Prime Minister said. Also speaking the at the programme, former Chief Justice, Kalyan Shrestha, said it would not take much time to conclude the transitional justice process if ‘justice’ was prioritised through the whole process. “We are in the course of a sustainable peace in the nation and the goal is achievable if the essence of justice is prioritised.”

He was of the opinion of making the Bill relating to the transitional justice widely-acceptable and concluding the peace process without any further delay. Hanaa Singer-Hamdy, the United Nations resident coordinator of Nepal, underscored the importance of involving stakeholders and survivors in the transitional justice process to ensure its effectiveness. Santiago A Canton, the secretary general of ICJ, echoed the need to prioritize the concerns of survivors in the transitional justice process. Suman Adhikari, a representative from the survivors’ community, urged the Prime Minister and political leaders to pay special attention to conclude the process, ensuring justice for survivors.