KATHMANDU, JUN 07 -
A civil society organisation has urged the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) in Nepal not to sign an agreement prepared by the government for the extension of its mandate by a year.

In a statement issued here on Monday, Citizen’s Taskforce Against Impunity said the government decision to extend the term of the UN rights body goes against the Comprehensive Peace Agreement, in that it proposed “curtailing” the rights body’s mandate.

“The OHCHR should stay in Nepal until a logical conclusion to the peace process is had,” read the statement signed by Nutan Thapaliya of the organisation.

“The government decision to limit the OHCHR’s mandate at a time when impunity is on the rise and the process of writing the constitution has become uncertain is sad.” The government on Sunday decided to extend OHCHR’s term by one year with a revised mandate. It also decided to gradually shut down the rights body’s regional offices.

The organisation said any agreement that fails to confer with the mandate as spelled out in the CPA would be meaningless. “We request OHCHR not to sign any agreement that curtails the mandate stated in the CPA,” the statement said.

Posted on: 2010-06-08 07:43

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