Representatives from more than 100 countries took part in Nepal’s Universal Periodic Review in Geneva, lauding some of the government's steps to promote human rights while raising concerns over discrimination in transitional justice.

As many as 103 countries offered recommendations to Nepal during the fourth cycle of the UPR at the UN Human Rights Council, urging the government to end all forms of discrimination and ensure that its transitional justice process is fully aligned with international human rights standards.

The Universal Periodic Review (UPR) is a peer-review mechanism through which the human rights records of all UN member states are examined every five years.

Participating states acknowledged Nepal's progress in protecting and promoting human rights since its last review in 2021. At the same time, they pressed Kathmandu to translate commitments into concrete action, particularly in addressing structural discrimination and long-standing accountability gaps.

Ending constitutional and legal discrimination related to citizenship, eliminating harmful practices against women and children, such as child marriage, and intensifying efforts to end caste-based discrimination and untouchability are the major suggestions the UN members made.

During the third cycle of the review held in January 2021, Nepal supported 196 of the 233 recommendations and agreed to implement them. Presenting its progress report during the review, Nepal claimed that most of the recommendations made during the third cycle have been enforced.

Unlike in the past, when a minister had representation, the foreign secretary, Amrit Rai, led Nepal’s team this time. Nepal’s permanent representative to the UN in Geneva, Ram Prasad Subedi, among other officials, were present to defend Nepal’s progress.

“Nepal is ahead in adopting the recommendations relating to the promulgation of laws. Except for fully correcting the discriminatory provisions in the citizen law and adopting the Rome Statute, Nepal has largely implemented the recommendations for legal reforms,” Samjha Shrestha, the coordinator of the National Network of Nepali Non-Governmental Organisations for the UPR who attended the review, told the Post. “However, it lags behind in implementation.”

Shrestha said representatives of various nations also urged Nepal to strengthen protections for victims of trafficking in women and children, safeguard the rights of persons with disabilities, and ensure the protection of sexual minorities, including granting legal recognition to intersex marriage. Ending violence against women and concluding the stalled transitional justice process featured prominently among the concerns raised.

Several states further recommended that Nepal ensure free and compulsory education, improve access to safe drinking water, expand universal health services, and eliminate child labour.

While acknowledging recent developments in transitional justice, particularly the enactment of legislation aimed at reviving the process, some countries cautioned that the mechanisms must meet international standards to gain credibility among victims.

States including Czechia, Germany, and Norway specifically recommended that Nepal ensure the independence of transitional justice mechanisms and fully align its transitional justice framework with international human rights and humanitarian law.

Caste-based discrimination emerged as another major area of concern in the review. Countries such as Italy, Finland and Kiribati urged Nepal to intensify efforts to eliminate caste-based discrimination and ensure effective implementation of existing laws, noting continued reports of violence and exclusion facing Dalits.

Several delegations also called on Nepal to strengthen its international human rights commitments by signing and ratifying key treaties, including the Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance and the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.

Concerns were also raised about the functioning of constitutional bodies. States recommended that Nepal constitute the National Human Rights Commission in full compliance with the Paris Principles and ensure it is adequately resourced to carry out its mandate independently and effectively.

In its response, the Nepali delegation highlighted constitutional guarantees and recent legislative measures, reiterating the government’s commitment to human rights, inclusion and accountability. Officials said Nepal would study the recommendations carefully before presenting its formal position at the adoption stage.

The UN Human Rights Council will adopt the recommendations from the participating states. At the council’s session in May-June, Nepal will decide how many of them to accept. Nepal bears the responsibility of implementing those it accepts by the fifth review cycle in 2030.