KATHMANDU, June 23: Human rights activist Sushil Pyakurel has rejected the position of Ambassador of Nepal to South Korea.

On Friday, the Cabinet recommended ambassadors for eight countries, including Pyakurel for South Korea. However, he filed a petition at the Prime Minister's Office on Sunday, requesting the withdrawal of his nomination.

He said that he was not contacted, nor were there any indication by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs or the Cabinet Secretariat before recommending him for the post. "I am surprised by the government's practice of not consulting the relevant person's background, performance, interest, knowledge of the political, economic and social situation of the respective country before assigning him the ambassadorial responsibility for that country," he said in his statement.

He said that there is a need for a serious discussion on the criteria set by the government in the past regarding the appointment of ambassadors and the justification of parliamentary hearings and the tenure of ambassadors. Pyakurel submitted a letter to the Prime Minister's Office to formally withdraw his nomination for the ambassadorial post.

Pyakurel, an active human rights activist, previously served as an expert advisor to former President Bidya Devi Bhandari. He resigned from his position when the then Nepal Communist Party (NCP) decided to appoint Agni Sapkota as the Speaker.

This is not the first time Pyakurel has declined an ambassadorial position. In 1994, Prime Minister Manmohan Adhikari offered him the post of ambassador to Denmark, which he declined, stating it was beyond his area of expertise.