Nepalese Government, Maoist rebels urged by UN official to respect human rights

The top United Nations human rights official today called on the Nepalese Government and Maoist rebels to do more to tackle the grave human rights abuses that were taking place in the Himalayan kingdom.

At the start of an official visit to the country, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour took part in the Conference on Peace and Human Rights, which is being organized by the National Human Rights Commission of Nepal.

During her three-day trip she will meet with senior officials of the Government, the judiciary and the military as well as non-governmental organizations (NGOs), human rights defenders and journalists.

On Wednesday, she is scheduled to take part in the launching of a report on children in the Nepal conflict issued by Watchlist – a New York-based NGO network.

In December, the UN Commission on Human Rights' Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances called on the Government to institute such measures as a total ban on incommunicado detention and full protection for human rights workers. Although the group's mandate is restricted to the obligations of state authorities, it also called on the Maoists to respect human rights.