KATHMANDU, August 14: In an interaction program organized by the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), stakeholders have held discussions on effective measures to stop crimes and violence against children. The NHRC stressed the need for efforts from the authorities concerned and every citizen to put an end to the increasing cases of violence against children. The stakeholders agreed that the end of violence against children can only be achieved through coordination among all sectors concerned.

In Nepal, crimes related to violence against children have increased in recent years. Acts like child marriage, rape, and anything that leads to the lack of children’s mental and physical growth are regarded as crimes related to violence against children. 

Anyone under the age of 18 is regarded as a child in Nepal’s law. The law also states that any criminal activities committed by children should be investigated in a child-friendly manner. If found guilty, the law requires them to be put in a juvenile detention center. However, experts working in the field say that many of the young victims and perpetrators have not been able to get child-friendly assistance, investigation and prosecution. 

According to Krishna Bhakta Pokhrel, chairperson of the Law, Justice and Human Rights Committee, although there are policies against crimes related to violence against children, they have not been implemented properly.

Although there are adequate structures for law against violence, many people are not aware of them. Pokhrel said, “There are many cases of violence against children by their own family members. In such cases, there is no one to file a complaint for the victims,” he said. There are many works that need to be done by the government and non-government bodies in terms of public awareness. The authorities should also provide justice to victims in order to win the trust of citizens.

Speaking at the program, Chairman of NHRC, Top Bahadur Magar expressed the need for support from all authorities concerned to provide justice to the victims. He also emphasized the importance of confidentiality regarding the details of the children related to violent cases and that the judges should also consider the cases accordingly during court hearings. 

According to experts, problems are seen as there are no Juvenile courts, even though there is a provision for it in the Child Rights Act. Manoj Duwadi, a member of the NHRC said that proper investigation into a case as soon as it occurs can also help to achieve justice for the victim. Justice can be served in time if the private lawyers can help government lawyers in investigations, he said. 

Former member of the NHRC, Gauri Pradhan said that there is a need for collaboration and coordination between different authorities. Citing a report, he said that as many as 10 million children around the world and 3.9 million children in Nepal fall victims to cases related violence. He also opined that multi-sector collaboration is the best solution for child-friendly justice.

Similarly, Murari Kharel, Secretary of NHRC, Program director of the Children as Zone of Peace campaign, Madhu Dawadi, among others, expressed the need for strengthening the coordination between agencies and sectors to end violence against children.

 
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