We have been pleased to receive some positive commitments from the government authorities during the course of our visit. WE were told by the Prime Minister that the National Human Rights Commission would be established immediately, a long overdue addition to human rights protection in Nepal. The special committee to nominate the members of the Commission will meet tomorrow morning and pass its recommendations to the King. The leaders of both major political parties confirmed their support for the prompt establishment of this body. There has not been a single case of any police officer being charged, let alone prosecuted, in relation to excesses committed in the context of the insurgency.
Bodies are cremated and evidence lost before investigation can take place.
Chief District Officers, prosecutors and district courts turn a blind eye as case after case of killings in disputed circumstances get reported. Home Minister and police authorities have undermined the authority of the courts, failing to comply with habeas corpus orders to produce the detainees held under the Public Security Act or rearresting them after the courts orders their release. Evidence continues to emerge of police holding detainees in secret places of detention, such as the Armed Police Training Centre at Maharajgunj Police Academy. In particular, we encouraged the authorities to invited the UN Working Group on Disappearances to visit Nepal to assist them in dealing with the alarming problem. The Maoist problem should not be allowed to eclipse other longstanding human rights issues rooted in discrimination and poverty such as violence against women and dalits .