The victims from the decade-long Maoist insurgency (1996-2006) and human rights defenders have demanded that the government and major political forces immediately resume the process to select office bearers for transitional justice commissions.

Through public statements and in-person meetings, they warned the political leadership that the selection process would only get complicated with further delays.

Issuing a statement, representatives of around two dozen organisations of conflict victims appealed to the government and the political parties to be serious about their responsibility to address the suffering and injustice endured by victims, and to immediately form a recommendation committee in a manner that ensures meaningful consultation with victims and guarantees their representation in the process.

“We strongly demand the government, major political parties, and top leadership promptly establish a credible and autonomous recommendation committee,” reads their statement. They also presented a letter to Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba, asking him to contribute to constituting a committee capable of recommending right persons to head the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the Commission of Investigation on Enforced Disappeared Persons.

“He [Deuba] said he also wants the commissions to have office bearers at the earliest,” Gopal Bahadur Shah, chairperson of the Conflict Victims National Network told the Post. “We will submit a copy of the letter to Prime Minister and CPN-UML chair KP Sharma Oli and CPN (Maoist Centre) chief Pushpa Kamal Dahal.”

On Monday, the committee formed to nominate office bearers for the two commissions exhausted its two-month tenure without making the nominations due to disagreements over candidates for the truth commission.

The former chief justice Om Prakash Mishra-led panel refused to recommend Sudip Pathak, a former member of the National Human Rights Commission, and Sher Bahadur KC, former President of the Nepal Bar Association, and resisted the push from the Congress.

“The recommendation committee couldn’t trust that the individuals who were allegedly projected by the political parties could win the trust [of the stakeholders] and give solutions [conclude the transitional justice process],” reads the statement.

Similarly, another group of the victims organised under the National Network of the Victims of Serious Violations of Human Rights has said the failure of the Mishra-led panel to recommend candidates has fuelled disappointment, distrust and rage among victims’ families.

Issuing a statement on Thursday, it claimed that the failure was a result “of the reluctance of the major political parties to build a common position on the transitional justice process for their petty political interests”. Undersigned by its coordinator Ram Kumar Bhandari, it has demanded immediate formation of a recommendation committee.

As uncertainty looms over the appointment process, a group of human rights activists has been meeting top leaders from major parties, urging them not to delay the selection process under any pretext. “We have warned Oli and Deuba that delaying the selection will only make the process more complicated. We found a sense of urgency in both leaders,” said an activist present in the meeting. They are also meeting Dahal soon, he said.

Those who have closely followed the developments say there are two options: form a new recommendation committee or give the Mishra-led committee more time to find the right persons.

“The government, using its authority to remove the difficulties, can extend the committee’s mandate to select best suited candidates for the commissions. If not, a new committee can also be formed, but the decision should be prompt,” Tika Dhakal, a human rights activist who also served as an adviser to former President Bidya Devi Bhandari, told the Post.

Officials at the constitutional human rights commision also say delays in forming the committee would ultimately delay the victims’ quest for justice. “The Mishra-led committee couldn’t recommend the names for various reasons. However, it shouldn’t be the reason to hold the selection process hostage,” Surya Dhungel, a commissioner at the commission, told the Post.

International human rights organisations have already taken a serious note of the failure in the selection. Issuing a joint statement on Wednesday, the Human Rights Watch, the Amnesty International and the International Commission of Jurists said: “We urge, without delay, the government should form a new committee to revisit this approach, addressing the concerns raised by victims, survivors, Nepali civil society, and international organisations.”

With two prior failed attempts at transitional justice, the risk of a third failure looms large, they warned. They also said such a failure could signal Nepal’s unwillingness or inability to ensure accountability for grave human rights violations, including crimes under international law.

“To advance truth, justice, and reparations within Nepal, we strongly urge the honourable prime minister and all stakeholders to take decisive action to appoint and empower a new recommendation committee to complete the work of selecting commissioners, ensure a transparent process including wider consultations with stakeholders, and enable a process that leads to the appointment of independent, impartial and competent people to the commissions,” they said.