17 February 2012. Participants in a program jointly organized by different human rights organizations including Advocacy Forum stressed the need to address prevailing impunity in the country and to provide justice to victims of conflict. On the occasion of the eighth anniversary of the arrest and killing of Maina Sunuwar, 15, speakers raised concern about state’s reluctance in addressing victims’ problems.
Devi Sunuwar, Maina’s mother, welcomed the participants and expressed her worries about delays on getting justice for her daughter. Even if the court has charged army men as guilty none of the perpetrators have been brought to justice, she informed. Advocate Govinda Bandi excoriated political parties for delaying the formation of truth commission and he also pointed out the sorry state of criminal justice system in Nepal wherein the courts are unable to enforce their decisions.
Political leaders from major political parties, UCPN (Maoist), NCP (UML), NC and Madhesi Janadhikar Forum unanimously repeated their commitment to address victims’ plights but failed to tell concretely when the commissions would be formed. Answering the questions raised by victims in the program, all political leaders blamed Maoist-led government for obstructing the formation of truth commission and for sheltering perpetrators of human rights violations during conflict.
Mohana Ansari of Women’s Commission and Bishal Khanal of National Human Rights Commission appealed the victim to keep fighting for justice. Khanal urged victims to change their sorrows into power and keep on pressing the state to provide them with truth, justice and reparation. In the same program Yashoda Sharma, wife of a disappearance victim Surya Prasad Sharma, unveiled a report about her struggle in getting justice for her husband. The report, published by Advocacy Forum, in both English and Nepali can be accessed here. Yashoda Sharma: A Wife’s Fight for Justice (English: Nepali)
