Disappointed with abysmal performance of the transitional justice bodies in the past 14 months, conflict victims have demanded the government streamline legal provisions, establish administrative and physical infrastructure at local levels as minimum condition for filing their complaints.

The Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) and the Commission of Investigation on Enforced Disappeared Persons (CIEDP), set to start registering files from next week, have decided to register cases through Local Peace Committees across the country.

However, the government has not streamlined legal provisions as directed by the Supreme Court. Besides, the act of torture and disappearances is not criminalised despite the draft regulations being forwarded by the authorities concerned.

On Monday, the Conflict Victims Common Platform, an alliance of 15 organisations representing the victims who suffered at the hands of rebels and the state, submitted a 21-point charter of suggestions to make the transitional justice process a success. The memorandum has pin-pointed legal provisions to be streamlined, which includes clarity in provisions regarding ‘serious crime’, ‘serious human rights violation’ and ‘other crimes of serious nature’, removal of statute limitation to register incident of rape and criminalising disappearances.

It has also suggested the TRC and CIEDP collaborate with the authorities concerned to win conflict victims’ trust. The memorandum has listed a way out to ensure participation of victims to make the process victim-centric.

“We are not against the transitional justice process,” said Platform Chair Suman Adhikari.

“In fact, we need it the most. It is the responsibility of the government and the commissions to win over the victim community by giving us solid reason to believe in the process.”

The memorandum has been also forwarded to Parliament, National Human Rights Commission, Parliamentary Committee on Social Justice and Human Rights, Peace Ministry, Law Ministry, TRC and CIEDP.