THE NATIONAL CONSULTATION ON
WOMEN HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS IN NEPAL
3-4 MARCH 2006, KATHMANDU

The National Consultation on Women Human Rights Defenders was held in Kathmandu, Nepal between 3rd and 4th March 2006. 450 women human rights defenders from 64 districts of Nepal took part in the consultation. These participants included women who work to protect and promote human rights of others particularly women and also, men defending women's human rights.

Women human rights defenders are those women active in human rights defence who are targeted for who they are as well as those active in defence of women's rights who are targeted for why they do. Women human rights activists as well as other activists such as male, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or any other sexes who defend the rights of women fall as women human rights defenders.

The consultation had five specific objectives:
The first objective was to nationalize the issue of women human rights defenders and to make visible the work they do.  The major national and international human rights organizations working in Nepal attended and contributed to the meeting. Similarly, a significant number of government officials particularly officials of the women development office were present as participants who actively participated in all the workshops. OHCHR Nepal office and other UN agencies were also present. Three senior women human rights defenders- Sahana Pradhan, Sneha Lata Shrestha and Dev Devi Sharma were recognized during the event. They all highlighted their commitment towards women rights and women human rights defenders and stressed on their own marginalization during the course of their work. Extensive national media coverage made the issue even more public as major women journalists of all the major dailies attended the meeting. The event also received recognition internationally as the coordinator of the international women human rights defenders campaign- Mary Jane Real- attended and immensely contributed in the event as well as a statement on the consultation to WOREC by Ms. Hina Jilani, the special representative of the UN Secretary general on Human Rights Defenders stressed the importance and the need of such event.

 The second objective was to create a safe space for WHRDs to break the silence on abuses they and their colleagues and friends face.  The abuses that WHRDs in Nepal face include torture and murder by both state and non state actors, isolation by mainstream human rights organizations, harassment and intimidation by family, community and the state as well as sexual and sexuality based attacks against activists particularly those working in the LGBT rights areas. This was achieved through various workshops held during the consultation where there was significant interaction among the participants where they shared, compared and analysed the violations they face.

The third objective was to identify and discuss strategies for tackling abuses committed against women human rights defenders and to develop protection mechanisms to support WHRDs. The legal protection instruments discussed in depth during the meeting were the UN human rights defenders declaration, the EU guidelines for the protection of human rights defenders, the filing complaints with the UN special rapporteur on violence against women, the special representative on human rights defenders and mechanisms such as the International Criminal Court. The participants during the workshops stressed the need to have a declaration specifically on women human rights defenders as the "neutral" declaration on human rights defenders has not been effective enough to address the violations WHRDs face. Also, it was pointed out that on the specific issue of domestic violence where men usually are the perpetrators, the human rights defenders who also are usually men have not been able to effectively address the issue. Therefore, there is a further need of recognition of women human rights defenders, their work and a declaration that specifies these necessities for their protection. Also, WHRDs were provided with skills on documenting women human rights violations through a skills workshop on documentation. This workshop added to building capacity of WHRDs to work locally.

The fourth objective was to link WHRDs more effectively at the national level in order to build solidarity among them by forming district level and regional networks of WHRDs. The consultation was able to bring together grassroots women from 64 districts who although with similar experience and commitment never had a chance to come together in such a forum. This was a rare opportunity for all the participants and they appreciated this and made full use of it to build networks and connections. The participants themselves pointed out a need for a district level and regional networks for their own protection as well as to link up with the international WHRD movement. They have committed themselves to taking their realization into reality and building networks once they are back in their local communities. The national campaign has now been opened up for membership and women defenders can personally or organizationally be part of it.  

The fifth objective was to widely disseminate the Nepali translation of the UN declaration on human rights defenders along with other important documents on the need to focus on the issue of WHRDs in Nepal. This has been done through WOREC's quarterly newsletter which this month has been dedicated on the issue of women human rights defenders, adoption and translation of protection guidelines on human rights defenders developed by International Service for Human Rights (ISHR), adoption and translation of the concept paper on WHRDs developed for the International Consultation on WHRDs held in Colombo, Sri Lanka 29 November -2 December 2005. Finally, a document on the Nepali campaign on WHRDs has been produced and circulated that details how WHRDs can become part of the national campaign and proposes future strategies and work of the campaign. The proceedings of the International Consultation on WHRDs was also disseminated during the consultation for people to become familiar with the international movement on WHRDs at present. 

Lastly, a Nepal declaration on women human rights defenders that captures all the discussions, demands and issues raised at the consultation has come out as a result of the consultation which is in the process of being translated in English.

Women's Rehabilitation Center (WOREC), Nepal