Recommendations for support to peace building, social inclusion and human rights including Economic Cultural and Social Rights in Nepal

Overall Context: A Brief Overview

Despite commitments made in the Comprehensive Peace Accord and the subsequent Interim Constitution, the Government of Nepal has failed to address issues of marginalization and exclusion. Women, young people, ethnic groups, Madhesi, Dalits, sexual minorities and persons with disabilities1 continue to be discriminated against despite legal provisions, Supreme Court rulings and agreements set in place to redress this imbalance. There is little evidence of any political will to implement previous agreements or recommendations made by either state human rights bodies or civil society, highlighted by the recent 23 Point Agreement between the Seven Party Alliance and the CPN-Maoist which still remains to be implemented. The consequences of this lack of political will, can only be further socio-political tensions and in extreme cases, further violence.

As the human rights situation deteriorates in the country, many human rights defenders both men and women -particularly journalists- have been victims of attacks, arbitrary detentions, abductions, threats and politically motivated killings. State security forces and illegal armed groups have shown little respect for human rights as tensions between the State and the ethnic groups, especially in the southern regions of Nepal (the Terai), begin to mount.

The killings, abductions and extortion carried out by the illegal armed groups in the south have been well documented, as has been the consistent excessive use of force by state agents, in an attempt to control often otherwise peaceful demonstrations. What is not being documented, nor widely publicized, is the recent dramatic increase in reported cases of torture being carried out against ethnic groups in the south, nor the increase in reported incidents in which state security forces enter communities at night under the pretext of looking for members of Madhesi activists, but in the process employing strategies that target women including pregnant women and destroying stoves and cooking utensils. Other incidents such as the recent peaceful demonstrations in Kathmandu in favour of respecting human rights in Tibet were met with similar excesses and violations of Nepal’s obligations under international human rights law. The culture of impunity that surrounds these actions does nothing to protect either Nepal’s human rights community, or ordinary citizens from further violations and abuses. Rather, the response from the state has lead to an increased polarization along ethnic and minority lines.

With only 11 days remaining before the Constituent Assembly (CA) elections, violence throughout the country has intensified. The seeming lack of will of the major political parties to abide by the election code of conduct and control the violent activities of their cadres, has lead to a further deterioration of the human rights situation in Nepal. To date, one candidate has been killed and cadres participating in election activities have been physically attacked and killed, while others have been abducted and prevented from organizing campaign activities by party militias and illegal armed groups.

Furthermore, rampant vote buying, feudalism and the ongoing violence in the build up to the elections raise serious questions over the credibility of the CA elections. This is compounded by the overall lack of understanding among the general public as to the process and the intended outcome and the fear that the elections will not take place effectively truncating the Peace Process.

The situation of human rights and political instability is greatly aggravated by the Government’s failure to address the dire economic situation in the Country. Nepal is a country that relies heavily on international budgetary support and the remittances sent from migrant workers abroad. The decline in national production both industrial and agricultural is forcing a situation where Nepal is ever more dependent on the transfer of funds from those Nepalese abroad often working in insecure and exploitative conditions. The decline of the rural economy is creating ever more reasons for the rural poor to migrate to the cities putting pressure on urban centres and service provision. An increase in human trafficking directly correlates with the decline of the economy.

In light of this situation, we the undersigned organisations would like to make the following recommendations as to the improvement of the human rights situation and, by extension, the establishment of a sustainable and lasting peace in Nepal.

Civil ,Political, Economic, Social and Cultural Rights

1.The German Government along with its European Partners should urge the Nepalese Government to extend open invitations to all UN Special Mechanisms. We also ask the German Government to support the renewal of UN Special Mechanisms’ mandates as they come up for discussion.

2.As a current member of the UN Human Rights Council, Germany should use its influence to ensure Nepal’s compliance, signature to and ratification of all outstanding international conventions and optional protocols, encouraging full incorporation of international standards into national laws.

3.The German Government should urge the Nepalese Government to comply with the recommendations made by OHCHR and other UN Human rights mechanisms. Particular reference should be made to the recommendations made in the December 2007 report “One year after the comprehensive peace agreement”.

4.The German Parliament should urge the German Government to continue its current support for the mandate and continued presence of OHCHR in Nepal.

5.The German Parliament should urge the German Foreign Ministry as part of its ongoing human rights policy in Nepal to support civil society’s demands for all measures to end impunity to be drawn up through extensive and thorough consultation. Mechanisms should be developed to ensure the full participation of victims including those directly related to victims’ protection.

6.In line with the Bundestag Resolution on Protection of human rights defenders (2003), the EU Guidelines on Human Rights Defenders (2004), the local implementation strategy for the EU Guidelines (2007), support the protection and the promotion of human rights through capacity building of human rights defenders, focusing on their security and protection. Initiatives that aim at developing gender specific guidelines on women human rights defenders should be supported.

7.The German Parliament should urge the EU missions in Nepal to carry out broad consultations at both the capital and regional levels during the preparation of HoM reports. The findings of these consultations should be made accessible to all interested parties.

8.The Government of Nepal needs to be held accountable for violations of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, ESCR and bring those found guilty of these rights to justice. As a State party to the International Covenant on ESCR, Nepal should be urged to implement the recommendations made in the 2007 ESCR Committee report. A debate as to Nepal’s Compliance should be held in both the German and European Parliaments to ensure effective international monitoring.

9.The German Parliament should urge the Government of Nepal to implement national laws aimed at ending discrimination and in the process ensure access to justice to victims/ survivors of gender based violence, child labour, disabilities, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and inter-sexed (LGBTI). Discriminatory practices are also placing obstacles in the path to full enjoyment of fundamental rights such as the rights to food, water, housing, health and education.

10.Undertake programmes to strengthen the capacities of the most vulnerable, grassroots level actors, such as small-scale farmers, especially those who lack the adequate resources necessary to carry out their daily activities via protection and empowerment activities.

11. The State in collaboration with civil society and private enterprises should develop programmes to arrest economic decline and strengthen rural capacity to sustain present standards of living and improve rural livelihoods.

Peace Process

1.If the current process moves towards peace in Nepal, then equal participation of all Nepal’s citizens needs to be ensured irrespective of gender, caste, ethnicity, minority status, age or ability. We urge the German Parliament to encourage the Government of Nepal to ensure full inclusion of all marginalised groups in the decision-making process and underline the necessity for a comprehensive gender sensitive perspective throughout.

2.German bilateral and EU development aid should make full inclusion in the Peace process a reality. Excluded groups should be consulted and incorporated into the design of development programmes. These programmes should include: strengthening local governance in a way that will contribute to confidence-building and service-delivery to local and marginalised communities, particularly through the maintenance of secure and protected living and working environments.

3.The reform of State Institutions, the Security Sector and reconstruction of Nepal should follow a similar fully participatory model, ensuring that contributions from those sectors of society most affected by impunity, corruption and a lack of good governance are actively sought.

4.Reparations programmes, whether based on individual or collective rights, should aim at reconstructing the social fabric of Nepal. The Government of Nepal should be urged to develop inter-sectarian committees including conflict victims’ groups in order to develop its reparations’ programme. Special attention should be paid to the internally displaced persons (IDPs), female victims of the conflict and particularly victims of forced disappearance, and young people.

5.The German Parliament should remind political parties that democratic principles are non-negotiable. Principles of transparency, accountability etc. are essential to restoring confidence in the democratic processes especially during the run up to and beyond the Constituent Assembly Elections. This is especially true if the political parties plan to ensure the participation of women, Dalits, ethnic and other marginalised groups in political processes.

Signed:

Advocacy Forum (AF), Caritas Nepal Collective Campaign for Peace (COCAP), Federation of Sexual and Gender Minority Nepal Feminist Dalit Organisation (FEDO), Informal Service Sector (INSEC), Nepal Federation of Indigenous Nationalities (NEFIN), Organization Development Centre (ODC), Protection Desk-Nepal, Protection International, Sansthagat Bikas Sanjal , Women’s Rehabilitation Centre (WOREC),

Observers

Peace Brigades International-Nepal Project