Arbour appeals for consolidating the change through durable peace, social justice and democracy

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour has said that the remarkable change, which the Nepalese people have achieved, should now be consolidated into durable peace, social justice and democracy.

Addressing the conference on “Exhuming Accountability: Conference on Transitional Justice in South Asia”, organised by Himal Southasian Magazine and the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) in Kathmandu on Sunday, Arbour said that the efforts towards addressing issues concerning accountability often pose significant political and technical challenges and might even encounter resistance on the part of key actors.

“The temptation to leave the past alone can therefore be great. But international experience is sobering and its lessons should not be forgotten – the potential risks of “selective amnesia” can seriously threaten the democratic gains achieved and profoundly jeopardise the sustainability of peace,” she said stressing on the need to end the culture of impunity by bringing the serious rights violators to book.

Arbour highlighted that since societies in transition often lack strong, independent, and impartial institutions to do justice to the citizens, many countries have therefore made use of transitional justice mechanisms, drawing where necessary on international assistance and expertise, in order to create a historical record of violations, to address impunity through prosecution, to provide reparation to victims, to safe-guard against a repetition of violent events and eventually to embark on necessary institutional reforms to address often deeply rooted inequalities and protect all human rights.

The visiting chief of UN Human Rights Commission, Arbour said the proposed Truth and Reconciliation Commission must be accompanied by unambiguous political support in order to be fully effective. “Such political will must go beyond merely permitting a notional truth-seeking process and must include support for the effective implementation,” she said.

On the issue of prosecutions of human rights violators, Arbour said that “they are often the logical outcome of a truth commission and an obligation upon States under international law whether explicitly spelt out in the peace accord or not.” She said that some Nepalese human rights NGOs are reporting zero convictions for conflict-related human rights violations and are calling for a so-called “hybrid court”, which would use Nepalese and international judges and a mix of national and international law. “Short of such an initiative, international support to domestic prosecutions could certainly be considered,” she said.

She underscored the role played by civil society, particularly victims’ groups and human rights NGOs in the whole process of transitional justice. “All these efforts can be supported by the international community, when needed and appropriate,” she said.

Arbour is on a six-day visit to Nepal. She had arrived on Friday, January 19. This is her second visit to Nepal. She had earlier visited Nepal in January of 2005.