Govt questions UN rights body's 'Nepal conflict report'

The Nepal government has questioned the 'legitimacy' of an extensive report made public on Monday by the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) on Nepal's ten-year long conflict that lists as many as 9000 incidents of serious violations of human rights.

"The Government of Nepal is concerned about the recently published ‘Nepal Conflict Report’ by the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Geneva. As the report has been prepared without the prior consent of the Government and proper consultation with all the stakeholders, the process itself is not compatible with general international practice. Therefore, legitimacy of the report itself is called into question," a press statement issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) on Monday said.

The MoFA further said the OHCHR did not prepare the report as per the cooperation modality with the Government. Therefore, the Government of Nepal has strong reservation on the process and content of the report and does not own the report.

The report, published at a time when Nepal is in transition of completing the peace process and drafting the new constitution, does not contain any positive aspects of the achievements made so far in Nepal’s peace process and constitution writing, the statement said.

"Nepal always cherishes the strong bond of relationship with the United Nations, its agencies and the entire international community and wants the ever strengthening relationship to continue in the future as well," the statement read, "The Government of Nepal has appreciated the concerns and worries of the international community, expressed on various occasions, for the overall development of the country including the issues of the promotion and protection of human rights, the rule of law and ending impunity."

It further said, "It is our firm conviction that the Government of Nepal, all the political parties, the people and the civil society are the ones who should work to achieve the lofty ideals of human rights, the rule of law and democracy."

The UN rights body released the 233-page report from Geneva despite the Nepal government's suggestion to not to do so.

The report lists cases of gross violations of human rights by both the Maoists and the state's security forces during the conflict while ruing the delay in setting up a transitional justice mechanism which is part of the comprehensive peace agreement. nepalnews.com