Panel discussion on rising abuse cases in Nepal held

By TRN Online, Kathmandu, June 3: The students of St. Xavier’s College held an event entitled “ABHAYA” - a panel discussion on the situation regarding the rising abuse cases in our country.

The panelists included Dinesh Raj Mainali, Superintendent of Police, Kathmandu, Binda Pandey, Member of Parliament, Pradip Pariyar, Executive Chairperson of Samata Foundation, Dikshya Raut, Lawyer (Legal advocate specialized in Human Rights and Internet Law) and Bishwa Adhikari, Central Investigation Bureau, Nepal, according to a press release issued by St. Xavier's College.

Dinesh Raj Mainali, Superintendent of Police, Kathmandu discussed the reporting procedures after abuse and the role played by the police to ensure the safety of the victim while maintaining sensitivity towards such cases. He further claimed that if all of us worked together, we can arrest the suspect within 24 hours.

Bishwo Adhikari, Central Investigation Bureau, Nepal, talked about the “One Stop Crisis Management Center” which is being established in hospitals in different parts of the country that has been working to provide medical treatment, psycho-social counseling, legal protection, personal security and even temporary shelter. He also talked about the investigation process involved in rape cases.

Dikshya Raut, a Lawyer, pointed out the legal loopholes present in our constitutional laws regarding gender-based violence and sexual abuse. She emphasized the need for elimination of the statute of limitation for rape cases which is 1 year. She further highlighted the lack of inclusivity of LGBTQI+ and male in the constitutional laws regarding sexual abuse and violence.

Binda Pandey, a member of Parliament, put a strong emphasis on the need for a change of mindset when asked about the solution to these rising abuse cases. She urged the audience to reflect on their own mindset and ask themselves whether they themselves see all the gender as equal or not. She said that the constitution is slowly changing but not the society that has been deep-rooted in its patriarchal values. She talked about different methodologies that have already been presented in the parliament, still waiting for approval and proposed some other methodologies that can be carried out locally on a smaller scale.

Pradip Pariyar, Executive Chairperson of Samata Foundation believes that the lack of proactive government and police as well as the introduction of laws without recognizing its long-term effect is the main reason behind the failure of these policies. He also talked about the importance of individual effort in the prevention of such abuse cases.

When asked about their opinion on people’s demand of hanging the rapist, all the panelists were against it stating that hanging is not the solution and the solution to these cases is not to eliminate or ban certain things but rather to reform the existing laws. The panelist discussed the issue of law not favoring the minorities and different incidents where the law has been misused and victims have been further victimized. The panelist also answered a few questions of the audience regarding lack of inclusivity of LGBTQIA+, punishment of rapists, rising abuse cases among minorities, and constitutional laws.

In addition to the panel discussion, the students are also conducting street dramas, different awareness programs and podcast sessions in collaboration with various organizations to raise awareness of abuse. Likewise, the students are working on creating a secure and confidential mobile application platform for users to report gender-based violence, according to the press release.

The objective of this event held on June 2 was to hold a structured conversation among the speakers and the audience to address methodological difficulties relating to the system’s loopholes.

The event began with an opening session with the presence of Fr. Jiju Varghese, S.J., Director of St. Xavier’s College Loyola Campus who stated that these programs are an invitation to look at our mindset, reflect on it and criticize it. “Such programs and interactions are needed to transform the mindset and attitude which are the root cause of gender-based abuse and violence”, he added.