Delay in info on status of missing dismays families
KATHMANDU, Aug 30: The families of individuals who disappeared during the decade-long Maoist insurgency have expressed serious dissatisfaction over the government's delay in clarifying the whereabouts of their missing loved ones.

During an interaction program organized by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) on the eve of the International Day of the Disappeared, family members of the disappeared urged the Commission of Investigation of Enforced Disappeared Persons to expedite its work on the complaints about disappearances registered at the commission and clarify the status of the disappeared as soon as possible.

“More than a decade has passed since the insurgency ended and we have been asking continuously to make public the fate of our disappeared kin," said Ranganath Pandey, whose son Lila is among the disappeared. "I do not know how much longer we will have to wait to learn about the fate of disappeared family,” Pandey added.

He urged the commission to delay no further in carrying out investigations on the complaints registered and make public the status of his missing son. “My family and I are already greatly traumatized by the absence of our son and the delay is only making things worse,” he said.

Jamuna Sedai of Chitwan, whose husband has gone missing for 16 years, likewise urged the commission to make known the status of her missing spouse as soon as possible. “We want to know about his whereabouts, we have already waited too long,” she said to Lokendra Malik, chairman of the commission, who was also present in the program.  

Ram Kumar Bhandari, president of the National Network of Families of the Disappeared (NEFAD), also criticized the government for not being able to make public the status of the missing. “The plight of families of the missing remains unchanged,” he said.

Bhandari asked the commission to show more sensitivity over the matter and carry out its investigations and prepare its report independently.

“It looks like the commission is answerable to the government whereas it should be acting independently. If its work is not carried out independently, we shall not accept its report no matter what,” he added.

He further asked the commission to make clear what will happen to the complaints registered with it if it is not able to carry out its investigations and prepare its report in the remaining five and half months of its tenure.

Commission Chairman Malik said the commission has started preliminary investigations into over 1,000 out of the total of 2,870 complaints filed with it. “The investigations will be expedited after October as the commission has not been able to send out its investigation officials during the monsoon,” he added.

He also said that the commission needs full cooperation from the victim families. “Likewise, the government's cooperation is equally vital," he said adding, "We will hold talks with the new government soon and manage the resources required for the investigations.”

Malik said that delay in the investigations was mainly due to delay by the government in endorsing the directives of the commission.  

Andre Pake of ICRC said the ICRC is hopeful the government of Nepal and the commission will ensure answers and support for the conflict victims and their families as demanded by International Humanitarian Law.  

 
• international committee of the red cross
 
• disappeared persons
 
• national network of families of the disappeared
 
• commission