June 6, 2002

Kathmandu:  It has been two years since the establishment of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) in Nepal.

The NHRC organised a press conference here today on the occasion of its second anniversary.

On the occasion, Commission Chairman Nayan Bahadur Khatri gave an account of all the activities carried out by the Commission since its establishment and also shed light on future programmes.

Chairman Khatri also released the human rights bulletin today.

At the press conference, he disclosed that a programme for enhancement of the overall capacity of the commission would be undertaken with the assistance of the United Nations Development Programme.

He said that research and follow-up action would be initiated for creation of the minimum necessary environment for protection of the victims of war between the Maoists and the government.

It is learnt that 221 complaints of human rights violation were registered at the Commission during 2058 Bikram Year.

On the occasion, Commission members Gauri Shankar Lal Das, Kapil Shrestha and Sushil Pyakurel said that the Commission had done significant work in terms of protection and promotion of human rights within a short time despite being constrained by limited means and resources.