Amnesty International and Community Self Reliance Centre (CSRC) jointly launched a research report entitled Violations in the name of conservation “What crime had I committed by putting my feet on the land that I own?” amid a virtual press conference organized on 9 August, the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples.
The report documents the impact of Nepal’s conservation efforts on the human rights of people, in particular the Indigenous peoples, who live around the country’s conservation areas.
“The report, drawn out after over two years of field work and evidence gathering by both the organizations, unpacks the failures of the Government of Nepal to uphold the rights of the Indigenous peoples, focusing on Chitwan National Park and Bardiya National Park,” said Amnesty Nepal director Nirajan Thapaliya, who moderated the launching event.
Meanwhile, CSRC Director Jagat Basnet explained the context and methodologies applied for the study, including experiences of the indigenous peoples living around Chitwan and Bardiya National Parks. “The community people we spoke to during our field work narrated their experiences of being subjected to arbitrary arrest, torture, unlawful killings and forced evictions at the hand of park authorities,” he said.
During the event, a recorded video covering representative voices of the affected community was played. The people from the community shared their plights that ranged from being forced to remain in a state of continous threat of forced eviction to the loss of their farmlands, housing and livelihoods, and to the violations of their rights.
Dinushika Dissanayake, Deputy South Asia Director at Amnesty International dwelt on the recommendations made out to Nepal’s federal government and other agencies such as the Ministry of Forest and Environment, National Parks and Wildlife Department, the National Parks, National Human Rights Commission and the Land Commission to address the longstanding issues faced by Nepal’s indigenous people living around the periphery of Nepal’s protection areas including access to land, livelihood, and the right to a safe and dignified life as guaranteed by the country’s consitution.
“Nepal’s authorities must recognize indigenous peoples’ rights to their ancestral lands and allow them to return. This must be accompanied by legal amendments and an inclusive and participatory process to agree appropriate compensation for the wrongs inflicted by the authorities,” she said.
During the launch, the organizations also issued a press statement, which is available here in English and in Nepali. The report (in English and Nepali both languages) can be downloaded from here.
The virtual press conference was livestreamed and is available here.