Kathmandu, Dec 17: The committee formed to recommend officials for the Commission for the Investigation of Enforced Disappearances and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission has failed to nominate their Chairpersons and Members. The committee’s mandate to submit recommendations by December 16 expired without completing the task.
Advocate and transitional justice expert Raju Prasad Chapagain criticized the committee for not utilizing available options to overcome obstacles. “The recommendation committee failed to grasp the gravity of transitional justice. It should have been able to select competent individuals,” he remarked. “Even though the law provides mechanisms to address challenges, the committee failed to exercise them, rendering itself ineffective.”
Chapagain noted that a consensus could have been reached by recommending members first and then agreeing on Chairpersons. Similarly, Suman Adhikari, Chairperson of the Conflict Victims Common Platform, expressed disappointment, saying the committee’s inability to fulfill its responsibility had deepened uncertainty. “The officials failed to understand their authority. They should have risen above individual interests to complete their responsibility, but that did not happen. This has left conflict victims waiting for justice even more disheartened,” Adhikari stated.
The government had formed the recommendation committee on Kartik 2 under the leadership of former Chief Justice Om Prakash Mishra. Other members included National Human Rights Commission Commissioner Manoj Dawadi, Arjun Bahadur Karki, founding president of the Indigenous Women’s Federation Stella Tamang, and former Attorney General Khamba Bahadur Khati. The committee was given a two-month term.
The failure to reach consensus among committee members resulted in the inability to recommend candidates. In a statement issued Monday, the committee stated, “Due to a lack of consensus on certain matters, any decision based on majority and minority votes might have long-term consequences. To make the appointment process of chairpersons and members more credible and acceptable, we have requested the Government and the Cabinet to restart the process by conducting a broader and more effective search for suitable candidates.”
Human rights activist Charan Prasai highlighted that the situation should be seen as an opportunity to select capable officials. “The committee should have fulfilled its responsibility, but it failed. Now the process must move forward by entrusting the task to individuals who understand transitional justice,” Prasai emphasized.
The committee had shortlisted eight candidates for Chairperson and 32 for members out of 156 applicants. The shortlisted names for Chairpersons included Dilli Ram Acharya, Achyut Prasad Bhandari, Bijay Sijapati, Bishwaraj Koirala, Sudeep Pathak, Mahesh Thapa, Sher Bahadur KC, and Kashi Raj Dahal. #nepal #trc #transitional #justice
