KATHMANDU: The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has urged the government to conclude transitional justice by winning the trust of conflict victims.

The status of many people who were enforced disappeared during the 10-year-long armed conflict is still unknown, which needs to be taken seriously by the government while concluding the peace process, NHRC reminded. Issuing a press statement on the occasion of the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances (Aug 30), NHRC Spokesperson Dr Tikaram Pokharel, demanded the government that it made public the status of those enforced disappeared persons.

“The transitional justice mechanism must win the trust of the victims’ sides and investigate the disappeared persons in a fair and credible manner. NHRC’s recommendations in this regard must be taken into account,” the statement read, directing Nepal government and all other concerned to ensure justice and reparation to the victim families, thereby bringing to book those involved in making people disappeared.

It is worrying that the status of the enforced disappeared persons is still unknown and the conflict-hit people are awaiting for justice while 19 years passed since the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Accord. The rights of the victim families to be informed about the facts on their disappeared relatives are violated, NHRC argued in the press statement. The cultural rights and right to relief and compensation are equally violated, Spokesperson Pokharel added.

The NHRC has informed that it made as many as 226 recommendations to the government on the investigation on the enforced disappeared persons. It wondered why the governments became apathetic to implement the recommendations.

The human rights watch body further worried over the not working fully irrespective of repeated formations of the commission on transitional justice.