24 March 2025, Kathmandu: Conflict victims and human rights defenders in Banke, Lumbini Province, have emphasized the need to ensure the victims’ right to truth and justice.
Speaking at an event organized by Advocacy Forum-Nepal (AF), in collaboration with the Conflict Victim Women National Network (CVWN), on the occasion of the International Day for the Right to the Truth Concerning Gross Human Rights Violations and for the Dignity of Victims, conflict victims and activists called for their rights to be upheld.
The event, chaired by Chandrakala Upreti, Treasurer of CVWN, featured discussions on the current state of transitional justice and the role of stakeholders in ensuring justice for victims. Participants included conflict victims, local representatives, the Chief District Officer, and human rights activists.
Basanta Gautam, Senior Coordinator of AF for Lumbini Province, highlighted the significance of Right to Truth Day. He stressed that victims of human rights violations have the right to know the truth and seek justice, urging the state to ensure these rights. Addressing the current state of transitional justice, he emphasized the need to bring the stalled process to a logical conclusion.
Gyanendra Kumar Chaudhary, Chairperson of the District Coordination Committee Banke, asserted that victims have the right to know the truth and that the state must take responsibility for their justice. Likewise, Sita Karki, Deputy Chief of the Coordination Committee, expressed solidarity with victims and stressed the need for them to know the truth about past incidents.
Chief District Officer Dharma Raj Joshi reiterated that victims have the right to know the truth and assured that the justice system would play a supportive role in addressing their concerns.
Similarly, Dwarika Adhikari, Chief of the National Human Rights Commission’s Nepalgunj Office, affirmed that the commission is working in favour of victims’ justice.
Bhola Mahat, Lumbini Province Coordinator of INSEC, pointed out that even after 18 years since the Comprehensive Peace Agreement, victims have yet to know the truth about past incidents. He called for the resumption of the stalled transitional justice process to ensure justice for victims.
Prabhat Kumar Thakuri, Central Member of the Human Rights Alliance, also emphasized the need to advance the transitional justice process to deliver justice to conflict victims.
Several victims, including Devisara BK, Kaushila Karki, Parbati Budha, Dev Bahadur DC, Dhansara Budha, and Chandrakala Adhikari, expressed frustration over not knowing the truth about their loved ones even after many years of enforced disappearance. They urged the government to ensure swift justice.
The speakers at the event also stressed that local governments should listen to the victims’ grievances and introduce skill-based income-generating programmes targeted at them.
CVWN Treasurer Chandrakala Upreti lamented that families of the disappeared still do not know whether their loved ones are alive or dead. She called for the right to truth, justice, and reparations for victims.
Conflict victims also highlighted the need for social security arrangements for the spouses of the disappeared, access to healthcare, and addressing the concerns of women affected by sexual violence during the conflict.
In a related development, conflict victims and human rights activists in Banke district have urged the government to expedite the stalled transitional justice process and ensure justice for victims. In a public appeal published on the occasion of the International Day for the Right to the Truth Concerning Gross Human Rights Violations and for the Dignity of Victims, they stressed the need for justice and accountability.
Prominent human rights activists and legal professionals from Banke, including Senior Advocate Sunil Kumar Shrestha, Advocates Lok Bahadur Shah and Basanta Gautam, INSEC’s Lumbini Province Coordinator Bhola Mahat, and other legal professionals and activists, have drawn the government’s attention toward ensuring the right to truth, justice, and dignified living for conflict victims.
They have called for the immediate formation of a recommendation committee for appointing officials to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the Commission on the Investigation of Enforced Disappeared Persons. They emphasized that these commissions should be led by capable, qualified, and victim-friendly officials with experience in transitional justice.
Additionally, conflict victims and activists in Banke have urged the government to ensure reparations that uphold the dignity and justice of victims.
