Nepalis are currently experiencing an unprecedented natural calamity, caused by the global heating effect and worsening climate change—serious human rights and climate justice issues. The devastating August 26 Bhotekoshi–Trisuli ‘Himalayan Tsunami’ swept away business hubs, villages, hydropower stations, roads, bridges, and schools, resulting in the deaths of more than a thousand people. Over four thousand individuals remain missing, including tourists from nearly three dozen countries, while about one hundred thousand surviving residents are displaced. This disaster has not only inflicted profound shock and agony on the region but also left thousands of children orphaned, deprived of their families.
On August 30, amidst widespread devastation, Nepal observed the 16th International Day of Enforced Disappearances to remember missing individuals and to stand in solidarity with families seeking truth and justice under the global theme “Victims first. Action now.” Notably, during the ten-year violent conflict (1996–2006), thousands of individuals were subjected to enforced disappearance, and more than 1,350 remain unaccounted for. Seventeen thousand were killed, over one hundred thousand internally displaced, while countless others suffered gross human rights violations, including rape, torture, arbitrary killings, and forced recruitment of child soldiers. This day also reflected the anguish felt by surviving families of the missing, and the nation, in the wake of the August 26 devastation.
Nevertheless, on June 12, 2026, the apex court, in a landmark decision, directed government authorities to amend The Enforced Disappearances Enquiry, Truth and Reconciliation Commission Act, 2014 (TRC Act) by declaring the use of minors during the ten-year armed conflict as a punishable category of gross human rights violations. The ruling, which followed a case filed by former child soldiers, including Lenin Bista, not only provided long-awaited relief to those separated from their families in childhood but also broke through entrenched political barriers that had perpetuated injustice.
The court’s decision has ensured Nepal’s compliance with its treaty obligations under International Humanitarian Law (IHL), the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), and the Optional Protocol on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict. It also directed the government to remove the offensive term Ayogya (disqualified) from all official records, thereby safeguarding the dignity of former minor combatants. However, the third amendment of August 29, 2024, defined the use of minors merely as a human rights violation—a category entitled to compensation and reparation—recognizing them as armed conflict victims.
Truth and universe
Nonetheless, the third amendment categorized rape and grave sexual violations, intentional or arbitrary killing, acts of enforced disappearance, and inhuman or cruel torture targeting unarmed persons or civilian populations—or committed systematically—as gross violations of human rights. It also granted the Attorney General authority to claim twenty-five percent of the punishment, except in cases of rape and sexual violation. Although the amendment did not meet international standards and contained flaws and ambiguity, the victim community regarded it as a workable document, contingent upon the appointment of officials who are trustworthy, competent, and friendly.
However, this expectation was not fulfilled. The appointment process failed to gain the trust and ownership of victims at large, neglecting their meaningful engagement. It followed the traditional practice of political quota-sharing, orchestrated by the then three top political leaders, thereby creating a conflict of interest. As a result, major victim community groups boycotted the process and demanded the reconstitution of credible commissions. Three hundred thirty-four victims from sixty-seven districts and all seven provinces filed a writ petition seeking further amendments and dismissal of officials appointed without due process on August 25, 2025. However, the Rastriya Swatantra Party’s (RSP) newly elected government relieved the officials through an ordinance, but the reappointment process remains uncertain.
Primarily, Nepal has witnessed a persistent tug of war between political elites and victims during the transitional justice (TJ) process—the unfinished segment of the peace accord for two decades since the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) on November 21, 2006, which ended the ten-year conflict. The top leaders consistently sought to obstruct it, disregarding victims’ rights and harboring impunity. In response, civil society, led by victim groups, resisted through peaceful demonstrations and legal battles to keep the process on track. The CPA also explicitly committed to upholding the principles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948), International Humanitarian Law (IHL), and fundamental human rights norms as guiding tools of the peace process.
The 12-point Understanding, an unofficial initiation of the peace process, was signed on November 22, 2005, between the Maoists and seven ousted political parties during the King’s authoritarian rule—committing to fully respect human rights norms and values while advancing the peace process. With broad public support, the 2006 People’s Movement marked success and forced the King to reinstate parliament. Subsequent governments promulgated the interim constitution, held Constituent Assembly (CA) elections, and declared Nepal a republic state. Integration of Maoist combatants into the Nepal Army and restructuring of the state were also completed. However, transitional justice—one of the major pillars of the peace process, ensuring truth, justice, reparation, and non-occurrence, the exclusive rights of victims and sustainable peace—fell into the political trap.
The TRC Act envisages the establishment of two high-level transitional justice mechanisms, namely, the Commission of Inquiry on Enforced Disappeared Persons (CIEDP) and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC). These bodies are mandated to uncover the truth behind incidents of gross and other human rights violations, foster reconciliation between perpetrators and victims, recommend legal action against offenders, and ensure reparation for victims. However, three consecutive bodies formed after eight years of the CPA failed to deliver—merely wasting time, resources, and substantial state funds. They were either highly politicized or incapable of fulfilling their mandate.
Prime Minister Shah is scheduled to address the 81st UNGA on September 24, 2026, with climate justice as his immediate priority following the devastating Bhotekoshi–Trisuli flash flood. At the same time, he is equally obliged to update the international community on the progress of transitional justice—the unfinished segment of Nepal’s peace process that has remained pending for two decades. With his party now holding nearly two-thirds of the majority in the House of Representatives and unburdened by conflict-era baggage, the government is in a strong position to assure the world it will criminalize child soldier recruitment as directed by the Supreme Court, appoint officials transparently and credibly to the vacant posts since the promulgation of the ordinance, and ensure meaningful engagement of victims from the outset.
Finally, the effective functioning of transitional justice depends not only on appropriate amendments to the Act but, more importantly, on the timely establishment of reliable and dynamic institutions, namely the TRC and CIEDP—which are the backbone of the process and place victims at the center. In this context, the selection of the recommendation (search) committee requires reconsideration. In addition to the Act’s provision for a former chief justice of the Supreme Court to serve as chairperson and for the chairperson of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) or a designated member to participate, the inclusion of victim representatives would significantly enhance both the effectiveness and fairness of the process. Ultimately, earning the trust of victims—the major stakeholders—remains an essential precondition for the legitimacy and success of transitional justice.
[The writer is an immediate past coordinator of the Accountability Watch Committee (AWC), former chairperson of Amnesty International Nepal (AIN), and former president of the Human Rights Organization of Nepal (HURON). He can be reached at cprasai@gmail.com]
