An international human rights watchdog has said Nepal made further backslide in protecting human rights in the year 2011 with the political parties not being able to speed up peace process and maintain accountability for human rights abuses.

"The government and political parties consistently failed to establish accountability for serious abuses during the conflict with Maoist insurgents, which ended in 2006. Instead, they further weakened an already dysfunctional justice system by ignoring court orders and appointing people allegedly guilty of serious rights violations to senior government positions," ," the US-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in its global report 2011.

“Successive governments since the peace agreement of 2006 have demonstrated no political will toward tackling these difficult but important issues,” said Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch. “Neither the previous government nor the new Maoist-led government have kept their promises to ensure justice for tens of thousands of victims of the conflict. Justice and reconciliation have become catchphrases that parties use when it suits them while in opposition, but then conveniently forget when in power.”

In the 676-page World Report 2012, rights agency assessed progress on human rights during the past year in more than 90 countries, including popular uprisings in the Arab world that few would have imagined.

In Nepal, no one from the security forces or among the Maoists has been held criminally responsible for abuses during the conflict, and many of the accused have been protected by the security forces or political parties, HRW said.

Referring to the proposed withdrawal of court cases against the Maoist cadres, the HRW said such a move is prohibited under international law and standards if the amnesties concern crimes under international law such as war crimes, crimes against humanity, enforced disappearances, torture, and ill-treatment.

"The agreement between UCPN-M and its coalition partners, if applied, would also violate Supreme Court directives. The prime minister sought to back away from the fury that this agreement generated by saying he only intended to withdraw “politically motivated” cases, but he didn’t say what exactly that would mean or who would make that determination, the rights group said.

The HRW also expressed dismay over the government's refusal to extend the tenure of the United Nations Office of the Rights Commissioner for Human Rights in Nepal (OHCHR Nepal).

“The refusal to extend the mandate of the UN human rights field office is a major step backward and calls into question the commitment of the main political parties in the government and opposition to protect the rights of Nepalis,” Adams said. “Nepalis know firsthand what the army and Maoists are capable of. The government should reverse this decision and show the Nepali people that they welcome the additional safeguards a UN presence offers.” nepalnews.com