On 11 August, a delegation from Amnesty International Nepal (AI Nepal) and Community Self Reliance Centre (CSRC) submitted a report entitled “Violations in the name of conservation” to the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC).
AI Nepal’s Director Nirajan Thapaliya and CSRC’s Director Jagat Basnet handed over the copy of the report to the NHRC’s acting Secretary Murari Prasad Kharel.
AI and CSRC had jointly launched the report through a virtual press conference on 9 August, which also marked the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples.
In the meeting with NHRC’s Secretary Murari Prasad Kharel, AI Nepal’s Director Thapaliya read out the recommendations made out to the NHRC in the report. The recommendations listed to the NHRC are as below:
- Launch a national inquiry in relation to the adverse effects of conservation laws on Indigenous peoples’ rights especially in the context of national parks;
- Conduct proactive monitoring of the rights of Indigenous peoples to land, livelihoods and natural resources including in the context of national parks and protected areas;
- Review conservation-related laws and make recommendations to the government for their amendments in line with human rights standards;
- Launch a national inquiry on the bataiya system and make recommendations to the government to ensure full compliance with the right against exploitation guaranteed under Nepal’s Constitution.
“We urge NHRC to implement the recommendations in an effective manner,” CSRC Director Basnet told NHRC secretary Kharel. “We look forward to collaborating with NHRC for addressing the issues.”
In response, NHRC secretary Kharel said, “We will study the report and try and to our best to implement the recommendations made to us.” He also assured the NHRC was prepared to increase its collaboration with the civil society organizations in resolving these as well as other critical human rights issues in the country.