Hon. Forum Councilors,
It is my pleasure to be here in this gathering of our Asia-Pacific Forum Councilors to update on the human rights situation in Nepal and its implications for the Commission. I understand that many APF member institutions had contacted the Secretariat to offer their support and assistance to the Nepalese Commission, following the declaration of a state of emergency in Nepal on February 1 2005. We sincerely thank you for your calls of support. The Secretariat had also been in contact with our Commission to determine what APF assistance we would require, including the possibility of a visit by an APF delegation to meet with key decision-makers to stress the importance of the Commission's independence and autonomy. We felt that we would be in a better position to discuss at length with all APF delegates in Geneva, primarily because we would be able to meet all of you and at the same time, it would also be an excellent opportunity for us to appreciate as a whole, the concern and support expressed by the entire international human rights community and APF in particular, about the role, functions and independence of our Commission. After the declaration of the state of emergency and the suspension of fundamental rights, the preventive detention and mass arrests of political leaders, human rights activists, journalists, and other people as well as restriction on the movement of several people including two NHRC Commissioners, created a difficult situation for our Commission. This was in addition to the human rights violation issues such as disappearances, illegal detention, killings, abduction, recruitment of child soldiers and blockades etc. that the Commission was already dealing with. On 3rd February, the Commission called upon the government to be conscious of the responsibility under all circumstances, even at a time of emergency, towards multi-party democracy and human rights protection, as per the essence of the Constitution of the Kingdom of Nepal 1990 and fulfill its responsibility to protect human rights of the Nepalese people as a state party to all major human rights treaties and conventions. It also requested the Government to create a situation to allow for the exercise of the constitutional right to participate in peaceful political activities and ensure the safety of human rights workers.
The obstacles we are encountering in our work are being dealt with through extensive discussions with the Government, on a case by case basis. The restriction on the movement of the Commissioners was subsequently lifted and we are at present observing a gradual relaxation in the restrictions and are hopeful that an early end to the state of emergency will facilitate our work further.
In the changed context, the Commission has responded by intensifying its monitoring and investigation works and I would like to inform the Forum Councilors that we are continuing with our activities as per our mandate. Soon after February 1, our attention was drawn to reports and statements from various international organizations that called upon the APF to recognize the NHRC of Nepal only in its present form until such a time that a democratic government is restored and a new commission mandated in accordance with the law, and other reports which stated that the Commission had become ineffective and raised doubts about the future of the Commission. Such statements, we believe are at best, were preemptive and premature that could only create problems for the Commission to function smoothly. It seemed to us that such statements and reports were not well founded, as they did not take into account our ongoing work. While we certainly appreciate the concerns expressed by our friends and well-wishers inside and outside of Nepal about our Commission, I would like to emphasize that NHRC has continued to function in accordance with its mandate amidst the challenging environment.
Our attention was also drawn to a number of reports and statements from various national and international organizations that have called for international intervention in Nepal. With regard to such interventions towards addressing the human rights situation in Nepal, I would like to draw the attention of Hon. Forum Councilors to the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed only a few months ago in December 2004 by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and His Majesty's Government of Nepal, on providing technical assistance to NHRC to enhance its monitoring and investigating capacity. With the enhanced capacity, we believe that effective monitoring of the human rights situation can best be done through the efforts of NHRC and the vibrant human rights community in Nepal.
The Commission has been in the forefront not only in continuing its efforts to carry out its mandate in light of the present situation but has also increased its tempo by intensifying its monitoring and investigation works. As part of increasing our outreach throughout Nepal, our first regional office was opened in mid-western Nepal in November last year. Our second regional office was established in eastern Nepal only a week after the declaration of the state of emergency and the third regional office is going to be established in western Nepal very soon. We also intensified our work with more investigation and monitoring work covering not only in the capital, but also outside by visiting places of detention including military barracks, ascertaining the fate of the detainees and political leaders and interacting with all sectors of civil society.
In the past six months, we have conducted 42 human rights monitoring and investigation missions covering 29 districts, including visits to detention centers and military barracks even without prior notice. In fact, after February 1, we have already conducted twice the number of monitoring and investigation missions to date, in comparison to the number of such missions between September 2004 and January 2005. Based on our monitoring and investigation reports, we have already submitted to His Majesty's Government our recommendations to provide victims with compensation in 37 cases after September related to victims of torture, injuries and killings.
We are also at present monitoring the implementation of the 25-point commitment of His Majesty's Government of 26 March 2004, and from our preliminary assessment, we have found that the commitment has not been fulfilled satisfactorily. We are hopeful that the Government will work towards the full implementation of its commitment. The recent establishment of the Committee for the Protection of Human Rights by His Majesty's Government has also raised some questions about its impact on the functioning of NHRC. Based on the government's statement regarding the functions of the Committee and our discussions with the Attorney General who heads the Committee, we believe the Committee will have no adverse impact on NHRC.
Instead, we are hopeful that this Committee will not only strive to implement the Government's commitment to human rights but also facilitate the Commission by implementing the recommendations put forward by the Commission to the Government.
The Nepalese Commission as an independent and autonomous institution has not only spearheaded efforts to protect the rights of the Nepalese people, but has also undertaken several initiatives for a peaceful resolution of the conflict. The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights visited Nepal in late January this year and strongly supported the NHRC's endeavor to call upon the parties to sign on a Human Rights Accord as a first step towards the resolution of the conflict. We were greatly encouraged by the visit of the High Commissioner, who not only lauded our efforts but also pledged continued support of the Office of the High Commissioner to NHRCNepal. Hon. Forum Councilors,
Due to its independent character, the Commission has evolved as a credible national human rights institution by addressing human rights violations and abuses and assisting the victims in their search for justice. The ongoing investigation and monitoring work of the Commission may have been obscured by the magnitude of the situation, but our work has no doubt brought to light the human rights violations and in some cases even brought the perpetrators to justice.
International support is vital for the Commission to stand as an independent and autonomous institution to carry out the crucial task of monitoring and investigating human rights violations. The Commission believes that more than ever, the international community should support initiatives of the Commission as ultimately, the monitoring and evaluation of human rights is only possible if internal mechanisms such as national human rights institutions are strengthened to do so. I would therefore like to take this opportunity to express my sincere appreciation to our esteemed NHRI colleagues of the Asia-Pacific region and the Forum Secretariat in particular for your continued support and assistance to the Commission in its activities.
Thank You