20 February, 2020
Amnesty International Nepal in collaboration with Forum for Women, Law and Development (FWLD) and Justice and Rights Institute Nepal (JuRI-Nepal) on Thursday organised a panel discussion about the role of the State and civil society in combating acid and other forms of violence against women.
Panelists included acid violence survivor-turned-activist Sangita Magar, Joint Secretary at the Ministry of Home Affairs, Kedarnath Sharma, Executive Director of FWLD, Sabin Shrestha, and Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Krishna Chand. The session was moderated by advocate Sashi Basnet.
Before the panel discussion started, journalist Janakraj Sapkota of Kantipur daily gave a short presentation, describing the state of acid violence in the country.
The panel discussion was followed by a screening of the short film Underneath Section 193 by Sajana Shrestha about the journey of two acid violence survivors.
At the program, Amnesty Nepal Chair Bikram Dhukuchhu also handed over 33,000 petitions demanding the government implement a Supreme Court order to regulate sale and distribution of acids to Secretary Sharma. These petitions were collected by Amnesty members and supporters as part of Amnesty’s annual Write for Rights Campaign.