News

A tragic tale of two girls in the land of Buddha

A Nepali mother displays courage and persistence in finding truth and justice for her child

It has been nearly two years since I last visited Nepal, one of the countries of the Himalayas, where Buddha, a preacher of peace and non-violence, was born.

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Patan High Court, Hetauda Bench Summons Witnesses and Appellant on Krishna Prasad Adhikari Case

14 February 2021, Kathmandu: Concerning Krishna Prasad Adhikari’s killing, on 14 February 2021, the Joint- Bench of Justices Shesh Raj Shiwakoti and Chandi Raj Dhakal of Patan High Court, Hetauda Bench issued an order to take a statement from the Government witnesses, Rupa Regmi, Thakur Prasad Adhikari, Loknath Dahal, Gauri Maya Adhikari along with the appellant Sanjay Raut and Buddhi Chaudhary.

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AF and CVSJ organized psychosocial counselling and stress management training for conflict victims in Pokhara

2 February 2021, Pokhara: Advocacy Forum-Nepal and Conflict Victims Society for Justice (CVSJ) -Nepal jointly organized a three-day long psychosocial and stress management workshop on 30 January-1 February 2021 in Pokhara, Nepal with an objective of healing psychological pains and sufferings and stress management. For over more than twenty years, conflict-victims have been forced to suffer alone. Although conflict-victims are determined in their persistent fight for truth and justice, they have faced multi-layer hardships. Of all issues, psychological trauma and stress are one of the most prominent. The mired transitional justice process, the uncertainties of truth and justice caused by a deepening culture of impunity, and the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has compounded their wounds and sufferings.

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AF organized a Discussion Meeting on Transitional Justice with Conflict Victims in Kailali

On 24 December 2020, Advocacy Forum-Nepal organized a discussion meeting on the Transitional Justice (TJ) at Hotel Namaste, Attariya, Kailali District. The program focused on the discussion of the report “No Law, No Justice, No State for Victims- The Culture of Impunity in Post-Conflict Nepal” jointly published by AF-Nepal and Human Rights Watch. The program was attended by victims and members of civil societies from Kailali and Kanchanpur. Altogether, 34 participants-22 female and 12 male attended the program.

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Case Updates

Emblematic Cases

Among the hundreds of cases documented, Advocacy Forum has selected altogether 15 representative cases that show an endemic pattern of obstruction of justice, brazen abuse or total disregard of the law and deliberate attempts to escape accountability. The cases are also selected on the basis of their availability of evidence and wider public appeal. AF launches campaigns with other national and international organizations to establish accountability in those cases with a view to opening the door of justice to thousands of other similar cases.

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First Information Reports

First Information Report (FIR) is a formal complaint lodged with the police or District Administration Office by the victim of a cognizable offence or by someone on his/her behalf. As per the existing legal system in Nepal, victims or their representatives do not have direct access to the courts. In criminal cases, police have exclusive jurisdiction to investigate and process evidence to the public prosecutors who then register the cases in court. However, the police authorities not only dillydally to register FIRs but also fail to carry out effective investigations. AF has been helping victims and their families to file FIRs and seeking mandamus orders for the effective investigations on the cases.

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Human Rights Committee Submissions

Advocacy Forum is the first organization in Nepal to use individual complaint mechanism under the First Optional Protocol of International Covenant for Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). According to the said protocol, individuals, whose countries are party to the ICCPR and the protocol, who claim their rights guaranteed by the ICCPR have been breached, and who have exhausted existing domestic legal remedies in the pursuit of justice, can submit written communications to the UN Human Rights Committee (HRC). This particular effort of AF has opened the space of Nepali lawyers to international litigation.

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Torture Compensation Cases

Advocacy Forum legally intervenes on behalf of detainees who claimed to have been tortured by police and forest officers in government detention facilities. Upon consent by victims, AF attorneys register suits, and represent victims in court seeking for torture compensation under the Torture Compensation Act -1996 and necessary action against the perpetrators.

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Initiatives

Case Communication

Advocacy Forum reports urgent cases of human rights violations to UN-OHCHR, AHRC and to some specific organizations such as Amnesty International, Asian Human Rights Commission, OMCT, Human Rights Watch, International Commission of Jurists, diplomatic communities, UN Special Rapporteur on Torture, the UN Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial, Summary or Arbitrary Execution and the UN Working Group on Enforced and Involuntary Disappearances. These international organizations/bodies give due importance to our communications and have been regularly issuing urgent appeals to pressure the concerned authorities and the government. AF also regularly reports cases to Human Rights Cell of Nepal Police, Office of Attorney General and National Human Rights Commission requesting investigation and necessary action against the perpetrators and timely redress to victims.

Setting the Precedents

Important judicial rulings by courts in the cases represented by AF on behalf of victims have been instrumental in establishing case law in Nepal. The efforts of AF have been immensely important in setting standards vis-à-vis the cases of human rights violations and ensuring fair trial standards in Nepal and thereby creating a solid body of jurisprudence. AF also files Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking various directive orders for the implementation of existing legal provisions and challenging those provisions that expressly contradict with the accepted international standards.

Capacity Building Measures

AF has developed a comprehensive framework to strengthen capacities of its staffers, stakeholders, institutions, communities and target groups for the effective realization of its vision, mission and goals. The framework is set at the systemic, institutional and individual levels. Key areas that require capacity building are identified as per the needs of relevant stakeholders or when AF feels necessary during the implementation of its various activities. AF is also committed to increasing its functionality by supplementing the expertise of staff wherever possible, both by educational workshops and by exposure to the international human rights community.

Advocacy and Lobbying

Advocacy Forum works to influence the Nepali government's policies and laws by holding regular lobby meetings with lawmakers, officials from ministries concerned, members of the civil society and other relevant stakeholders. Via various activities, campaigns and submissions, it also tries to lobby both national and international bodies to ensure human rights are upheld. It has also been continuously seeking to establish strong lines of communication and effective working partnerships with the international and domestic human rights community. AF recognizes the necessity of international co-operation in overturning the culture of impunity that sustains a climate conducive to human rights abuse in Nepal.