Int’l rights groups urge Nepal govt to respect NHRC's independence

Apr 15, 2016- International Human Rights Organisations have asked Nepal Government to immediately stop the intimidation of National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) and its independence in line with international standard.

They were responding to Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli’s recent move to summon the NHRC commissioners for questioning them over the statement delivered by Commissioner Mohna Ansari during the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of the human rights situation in Human Rights Council.

In a press statement on Thursday, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and the International Commission of Jurists said that the attempts to intimidate the NHRC are a direct contradiction of the United Nation's Paris Principles as well as the Constitution of Nepal.

Prime Minister Oli on April 3 summoned Chief Commissioner Anup Raj Sharma, and other to seek clarification on its statement during the UPR in Geneva in mid-March, in which the commission raised the issues of citizenship, fundamental rights and the use of excessive force by the state.

“As the principal independent constitutional body mandated to promote and protect human rights in the country, the NHRC plays a vital role in ensuring governmental accountability, and was well within its authority under both the Nepali Constitution and international standards when it delivered its submission to the UN Human Rights Council during the UPR,” the statement quoted Nikhil Narayan, ICJ’s South Asia senior legal adviser as saying.

Published: 15-04-2016 16:20