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.

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.

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.

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.

On 18 December 2020, AF organized an evaluation meeting on "16 Days Campaign against Gender Based Violence" in Ramechhap district. In the meeting 25 participants including representatives of District Bar Association, Aadibasi Janajati Mahasangh, journalists, women human rights defenders, Manthali Municipality, Manthali Municipality's campaigners of 16 days campaign against gender based violence, lawyers, NGO Federation, conflict victims etc. were present. Every year many organizations, government units and civil society organize campaigns and programs against the gender based violence but there is no evaluation of effectiveness and results of such campaigns and programs. So, AF organized an interaction program to discuss on successful campaigns, challenges and how to move forward in the days to come.

On 21 December 2020, Advocacy Forum Nepal visited Child Correction Home (CCH), Bhaktapur and handed over sports materials worth fifty thousand rupees to the management committee of the Correction Home. Handing over the sports materials, Om Prakash Sen Thakuri, Director of AF said that the main objective of distributing sports materials to the children kept in Correction Home is stengthen their psycial and metal well being. As the children are kept away from their parents and parents can’t visit them due to COVID-19, there are chances of mental harms like feeling loneliness, anxiety, feeling of exclusion, fear of COVID-19, detachment etc. on them. So, sports can make them engaged, active and keep them physically fit and mentally alert.

Kathmandu, 13 December 2020: On 12 December 2020, Advocacy Forum-Nepal (AF) organized a consultation meeting on "Transitional Justice and Existing Impunity: Way Forward” at Indreni Foodland, Baneshwor, Kathmandu. The program was attended by more than 40 participants including conflict victims and civil society members. Some of the participants joined the program through virtual media-Zoom. 

On 19 December 2020, Advocacy Forum-Nepal conducted a refresher meeting with 13 family members of enforced disappearance victims in Nepalunj, Banke disitrict. This meeting was a refresher and evaluation meeting of the trainings organized in 2019 and 2020 on “Psychosocial Accompaniment, Case Documentation and Submission." The objectives of these two trainings were to empower family members of disappearance victims in facilitation of program/seminars/trainings, how to recognize the mental status of victims and need of psychosocial accompaniment, how to provide psychosocial accompaniment, how to document cases of human rithts violations, show to manage tress, how to take self care etc. 

(New York/Kathmandu, November 20, 2020) – The authorities in Nepal are preventing police and prosecutors from pursuing conflict-era cases of human rights violations, undermining the rule of law and efforts for security sector reform, Human Rights Watch and Advocacy Forum said in a report released today. During the 10-year armed conflict between government forces and the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) that ended in 2006, thousands of people were forcibly disappeared, tortured, raped, or killed.

7 October 2020, Morang/Biratnagar: Amid the adverse situation of COVID-19 pandemic, on 7 October 2020, Advocacy Forum- Nepal organized a community level Transitional Justice (TJ) meeting in Pathari-Sanischare Municipality. A total of 25 conflict victims from Morang District participated in the program. The program discussed on present development of TJ or lack thereof, situation and concerns of conflict victims, roles and responsibility of the Local Government and existing hardship being faced by the conflict victims, because of the pandemic. Advocate Rukmina Dahal from AF- Nepal had facilitated the program together with the victims’ local leadership.