Government needs to overhaul TJ bodies to break impunity: Advocacy Forum

Kathmandu, Nov 21: The interim government needs to rethink its approach to transitional justice, said Advocacy Forum-Nepal in its Impunity Report.

The report released today shared that as the country marks the 19th anniversary of the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement in November 2006 ending the armed conflict between the security forces and the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist), victims and the rest of the country are still waiting for truth, justice, and reparations.

“The recent Gen Z protests signal how much people, and especially the younger generation, want accountability and respect for the rule of law. Despite strong opposition from victims’ groups and civil society, the interim government has indicated its support for the current transitional justice commissions by agreeing to the policies governing the funding of these bodies,” mentioned the Advocacy Forum Nepal.

These commissioners were appointed by the previous government after a flawed selection process, bypassing the victims and undermining a transparent process, according to the Forum.

Many of those appointed lack expertise and are reported to be close to the mainstream political parties. The interim government, instead of reinitiating the selection process, has approved regulations to govern the commissions’ work and a budget for their activities, reads the report.

 “This risks impunity being further entrenched in our country”, said Bikash Basnet, Executive Director of Advocacy Forum, adding, “Our system is such that impunity is the norm. We had impunity before the armed conflict, during the conflict, and ever since. And if the transitional justice commissions don’t deliver truth, justice, and reparations, we will continue to have impunity in the future.”

 “A well-executed TJ process is essential to correcting the course of Nepal’s democratic journey and preventing the recurrence of violence, as witnessed in the past, including the very recent past,” he emphasized.

The Advocacy Forum opined, “There are concerns that the commission set up by the interim government to investigate what happened on 8 and 9 September may face the same fate as previous commissions. “Although it collects evidence, interviews members of the security forces, political parties, and invites them to give evidence, it analyses the chain of command and the role of security forces, including the Nepal Army.”

As seen time and again, the commissions should not be a vehicle to pacify the call for accountability and to entrench impunity, the report mentioned, adding it should contribute to ensuring that no one will remain above the law in the new regime.

The report makes a number of recommendations to the interim government, the international community, and to any new transitional justice bodies set up after a fully consultative process. Chiefly among them are the reconstitution of the transitional justice bodies after genuine consultation with victims, the vetting of alleged perpetrators, stopping them from leaving the country, establishing a comprehensive policy on reparations, and initiating a public debate around reform of the Nepal Police, Armed Police Force, Nepal Army, bureaucracy, and the judiciary.

Similarly, the Advocacy Forum calls upon the international community not to support or condone the flawed transitional justice process and other accountability processes that undermine human rights principles and risk entrenching impunity even further, repeating the cycle of violence in the country. (RSS)