Strengthening the Capacity of the National Human Rights Commission (SCNHRC)

Phase 1 achievements

The five-year-long Phase 1 helped the commission establish itself as a force for protecting and promoting human rights. The project helped it set up its basic infrastructure, its management and IT systems, and a network of four regional offices and five district contact offices for monitoring the human rights situation across the country. This included setting up a system for the commission’s core task of handling complaints and monitoring human rights violations. The project supported the commission to develop and formulate the policies, guidelines and procedures for the investigation, monitoring and management of the cases. In addition, the project also assisted the commission to expand its outreach to increase the access to general people to the commission. As a result of the systems developed by the project, the  commission now deaIs with hundreds of cases a year and in the first 11 months of 2008 investigated a total of 207 cases.

Amongst its many other achievements, the project assisted the commission to: map out its priorities and future activities in strategic plans; host discussions and report on the human rights situation; produce human rights education materials, including Nepali versions of the international human rights instruments; review the human rights orientation of the secondary school curriculum and media and security related laws, and finalise the draft bill for the commission’s new upgraded status.

A major landmark was passed in 2007 when the Interim Constitution recognised the commission as an independent constitutional body.

Phase 2 objectives

The commission has a very important role to play in taking forwards the peace process and heightening respect for all citizens’ rights. This is a challenging task as the human rights situation remains precarious and a culture of impunity continues with many serious human rights cases waiting to be investigated.

The focus of Phase 2 will shift to enabling the commission to promote and protect socioeconomic, political and civil rights, including opposing caste, gender, ethnic and religion-based discrimination.

Phase 2 will work with the commission to strengthen its abilities to:

• collect and process human rights cases, hold public hearings and implement case-wise recommendations;
• develop the human rights audit plan and establish the treaty monitoring system;
• monitor and investigate the human rights violations;
• build the coordination with different human rights institutions;
• review discriminatory laws and monitor the implementation of Nepal’s international human rights treaty obligations; and
• help build a national network for human rights protection.

The project will proceed by training the commission’s staff and by improving systems, with inputs and advice from the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Nepal (OHCHR). The project will also train human rights NGOs.