National Consultation -21st September 2013
The official peace process has completed its seven years, but still lags behind in its commitment to establish sustainable peace in the country. It should be acknowledged that the political parties and the Government had endorsed it and showed its commitments by establishing Peace and Reconstruction Ministry, Peace Trust Fund. Similarly, the peace process had endorsed United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 and developed the National Plan of Action which was a positive step as it incorporated the gender dimensions and women’s rights aspect.
The Comprehensive Peace Agreement with its commitment aimed to establish a just society through complete transformation of nation’s social, economic, political and cultural aspects brought enthusiasm and eagerness to the Nepali people. Yet, the commitment of political parties remains only on papers.
The situation has not changed despite the Government’s National Action Plan on 1325 which was highly applauded by International community. The NAP on 1325 still has a long way to go before it gets applauded by all the women of Nepal in general and directly affected women in particular. Likewise, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and Commission on Disappearance which were /are part of transitional justice mechanisms and commitment in CPA are still being debated. Although, the Truth and Reconciliation ordinance was passed its provisions clearly shows that even if the commission gets established, it will be difficult for the conflict affected survivors to get justice. The provisions propagate Impunity.
Due to the lack of political will and inefficiency of the political leaders the peace process has been protracted and this has been taken as an excuse to deny justice to those affected by conflict. This applies to those affected in the transitional period as well. As a result at present country is going through pain of Impunity.
Transitional Justice from Women’s PerspectivesPresent situation:
Still after seven years of official beginning of the peace process there are thousands of family members waiting to know the whereabouts of their loved ones and thousands others who are still waiting for justice. Women who suffered from direct violence and discrimination before, during and after conflict still have a long way to go to get heard and become visible. Although some efforts have been made for justice, there is still a need for proper monitoring and analysis to ensure proper justice and remedies for women. The perpetrators of war crimes and violence are institutionalized as today’s leaders, body guards and supporters; jeopardizing the access to justice for the direct and indirect victims of conflict and violence.
Instead of healing scars, wounds have deepened by present modality of justice. Additionally, the protracted transitional period and slackened peace process perpetuated by weak and unstable government is leading the country towards organized crimes and increases VAW and children. Within three month (Baisakh, Jyestha and Ashadh, 2070), WOREC Nepal documented 613 cases of violence on women. Out of total, 279 cases were reported as domestic violence (battered by husband and in-laws, mental torture, abandoned from home, verbal abuse and physical violence), 63 cases were reported as social violence (alleged as witch, child marriage and verbal abuses), 149 cases were reported as rape (from intimate partner, neighbors, teachers and others), 14 cases were reported as attempt to rape, 40 cases were reported as killings, 10 cases reported as attempt to murder, 35cases were reported as sexual harassment, 9 cases reported as human trafficking and 14 cases were reported as other kinds (stranded, suicide and fraud) of violence. In almost all cases justice is impossible to achieve.
As the concept of justice is embedded within discriminatory laws and structures, and remains within the periphery of these structures, women fail to get justice even after the legal remedy. There are a number of cases in which the perpetrator gets punished legally but women do not feel they received real justice. Absence of victim protection mechanism and victim centric justice system compounded with patriarchal values and understanding within every system of governance makes women’s life difficult. This situation requires national level discussion with the affected people and requires urgent attention to further discuss what justice really means for women survivors and how this can be achieved? Without this the peace process can never get transformed in sustainable peace.
The activities and works done in the past:
To address the situation, every year WOREC Nepal draws attention to the issue related to women during violent political conflict on September 21st, International peace day, with an objective to advocate for justice. WOREC Nepal considers this as a base for sustainable peace in the country. The highlights of WOREC’s issues of advocacy delivered through events conducted in past four years (2009-12) are:
2013 Action:
As continuum and reminder, this year WOREC Nepal is organizing National Consultation on “Transitional Justice from Women’s Perspectives “on 21st September 2013, to advocate for Women Friendly transitional justice mechanism. This consultation will be conducted to highlight the issues on “what is justice for women in today’s context?”
Program Objectives:
Program Methodology:
Participants:
Expected Outcome:
A draft on module addressing transitional justice issues from women’s perspectives developed.