Back to Statements of
AFAD
Nepal
Country Resolution on the recent peace agreement between the
government of Nepal and the CPN Maoist rebels
Resolution
WHEREAS welcoming the recent peace agreement between the government of Nepal
and the CPN Maoist rebels which has opened rays of hope for the victims of
human rights violations, including the families of the disappeared;
WHEREAS welcoming the fact that the Nepali government invited the United
Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNHCHR) to establish an observer
mission in Nepal;
WHEREAS the practice of enforced or involuntary disappearance is considered
a crime against Humanity at the international level;
WHEREAS concerned with the lack of commitment of both parties in contesting
the deep-rooted culture of impunity as well as the total lack of
accountability of those involved in gross human rights violations and being
aware that the success of the ongoing peace process in Nepal depends on how
the country deals with its recent past;
WHEREAS stunned by learning about the fate of Maina Sunuwar who was arrested
by the military which made her "disappear" and tortured her to death, and
deeply concerned at the lack of military's support to the police to enable a
fair and impartial investigation into the case;
WHEREAS equally concerned with the fact that the appeal of Ms. Sunuwar's
mother to exhume the body of her daughter has been turned down by the
police, and that the military has so far not extended its support to the
OHCHR to provide expertise in properly exhuming the remains;
WHEREAS extremely saddened that Nepal topped the list of countries worldwide
in practicing enforced disappearances until very recently and that so far,
not a single perpetrator of this heinous crime has been brought to justice.
Therefore we, the participants of the Third Congress of the Asian Federation
Against Involuntary Disappearance, AFAD guided by the theme - "Coming
Together: Forging a Global Respect for the Right not to Be Disappeared" -
held in Kathmandu, Nepal, from December 16 to 18, 2006, hereby RESOLVE to
strongly urge both the seven parties alliance and the Maoists to undertake
the following measures:
-
To
publicly announce their honest commitment to change the prevailing culture
of impunity, thereby instructing all relevant state bodies such as the
police, the military and the prosecutors to conduct prompt, fair and
impartial investigations into cases like Maina Sunuwar.
-
To
immediately set up a high-level investigating body, as contemplated in the
peace agreement, and with due observation of a thorough consultative
procedure with the family members of the disappeared and Nepali civil
society organizations.
-
To
typify enforced or involuntary disappearance as a criminal act, including
it in the existing national penal code, and to build up an appropriate
justice system that can deal with human rights cases.
-
Since the country is currently in a period of transition, to provide for a
comprehensive transitional justice mechanism in consultation with civil
society, as an important step forward towards sustainable peace.
SIGNED BY THE DELEGATES Third AFAD Congress on
December 19, 2006 in Kathmandu, Nepal
