Nepal: minister says police delayed response — Kathmandu Post
In Nepal, Minister for Agriculture and Livestock Development and Minister for Forests and Environment Geeta Chaudhary said there is a need to strengthen police accountability and review legislation following the murder of a three-year-old child in Jeetpur-Simara. In an interview with The Kathmandu Post, she said the family filed a missing-child report with local police on Sunday, but the case was given appropriate urgency only two days later.
Review of police actions
According to Chaudhary, police officers who responded to the family’s initial report have already been questioned about the reasons for the delay. She noted that some law enforcement officers acknowledged that a faster response at the outset could have changed the course of events. The minister said the authorities are examining how to ensure swifter and stricter consequences for improper responses to such reports.
Chaudhary also criticized the practice of blaming victims and their families. According to her, society often shifts blame onto girls, their behavior, or their clothing, while in the case of the three-year-old child, some commentators began blaming the parents. She stressed that legal changes are insufficient without changing attitudes toward women and girls.
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Changes to legislation
The minister said authorities are considering introducing expedited court procedures and tougher penalties. At the same time, she spoke out against the death penalty, despite public demands following the tragedy. Chaudhary explained this position by citing Nepal’s international human rights obligations and the criminal justice system’s focus on rehabilitating convicted offenders rather than only punishing them.
She separately drew attention to informal out-of-court settlements in rape cases. According to her, such arrangements have no legal force under criminal law, but occur because of the stigmatization of victims, the difficulty of proving the crime, and insufficient state compensation. The minister also linked dismissive attitudes toward victims to the low number of women in police leadership positions.
The working group established to prepare recommendations on amendments to rape legislation was to submit its report to the government one week after its formation. According to Chaudhary, floods significantly diverted the authorities’ attention, but the group’s work continued, and the report was expected on Monday.
