New York: Nepal has taken significant steps to tackle discrimination and marginalisation of certain communities yet more needs to be done to ensure fundamental rights of the citizens, a UN human rights official said in Kathmandu. The Himalayan nation has come a long way to address some of the worst examples of discrimination in the world, including caste based, however, much more should and can be done, Representative of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Richard Bennett said at the launch of Achhut, a film on human rights violations in the country s Terai region.
The Legislature s declaration of the elimination of untouchability in 2006 and the election of a large number of Dalits and members of other marginalised communities to the Constituent Assembly, which will be tasked with drafting a new constitution, are the signals that Nepal s peace process is moving ahead in the right direction, Bennett said. The research done by UN found that law enforcement agencies must effectively enforce existing legislation by filing FIRs and educating citizens about their existing rights to justice and non discrimination. But he cautioned that while strong laws are necessary, they are on their own insufficient to end the discrimination. We at OHCHR look forward to seeing the new Government rise to the challenge of effectively addressing long standing marginalisation of certain communities such as Dalits living in the Terai, Bennett said.
