The 26th General Assembly of the Informal Sector Service Center (INSEC) has elected a seven-member working committee under the Chairpersonship of Dr.Kundal Aryal under the tenure of three years.
The General Assembly elected Rudra Bahadur Charamkar, Lata Pyakurel, Geeta Baral, Jyoti Baniya, Raghunath Adhikari, and Narnath Luitel as members of the working committee
In the statement issued on December 4, 20203, by Bijayraj Gautam, Executive Director of INSEC, it is mentioned that the newly elected working committee will decide on the office bearers of the organization within a few days.
The General Assembly passed six resolutions on various topical issues.
(Civil Liberties) The civil organizations of Nepal are facing multi-faceted and complex public administrative problems. It is necessary to radically improve the paper-based processes to make the non-governmental organization transparent and accountable. Non-Governmental organizations must be in alignment with the Constitution of Nepal and should amend any provisions contrary to the law. A simple one-door system should be implemented to ensure procedural dexterity. Nepal Government should be in charge of intergovernmental communication. The General Assembly has taken the initiative to coordinate with the relevant agencies, which include the NGO Federation, to find a solution regarding this issue.
(Transitional Justice) Currently, the issue of Transitional Justice is a complex problem in the field of human rights. The bill that sought to bring impunity to high-ranking political and security officials has always been controversial. INSEC’s stance on this issue highlights the truth, victim satisfaction, the nation’s dignity, and accountability during the Transitional Justice process. General Assembly has decided to advance the necessary civil dialogue and advocacy based on INSEC’s records to expose cases of impunity.
(Clean Elections). Periodical elections are the cornerstone of democracy. According to the interim order of the Supreme Court of Nepal, the voters living abroad have continuously been deprived of exercising their Right to Vote. The percentage of canceled votes has not decreased as expected. Polling stations are still not convenient for the voters. Voting has not been clean and without fear. The Election Commission has failed to discipline and oversee political parties. For this, the party and the government have not been able to recognize the legal authority and importance of the Election Commission. Nepal still has not been able to adopt an electronic voting system or implement a machine to count votes. The General Assembly has decided to take necessary initiatives, like ongoing election work throughout the year, effective election commission, meaningful cooperation with civic organizations, cooperative parties and candidates, and state-of-the-art voting processes and mechanisms to secure clean, fair, and modern elections.
(Good governance and human rights) People have high expectations for the recently elected parliament. In this election, 24 percent of voters were first-time voters, leading to the representation of youths. The main concern at present is related to the chaos of public administration. The productivity of State management depends on the compatibility of its activities with people’s needs. It is necessary to monitor and supervise the nation’s parliament, in the context of constitutional supremacy, fundamental rights, human rights, and directive principles of the constitution to draw attention to the topical issue of the state.
In addition, it is equally crucial to be vigilant to ensure an organized commitment toward the realization of the Sustainable Development Goals, The Right to Health, the National Action Plan for Human Rights, Nepal’s commitment to Human Rights, and The Global Periodic Review. Also, regarding the recommendation made by the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions (GANHRI) to reduce the rank of the National Human Rights Commission, the General Assembly has decided to cooperate with stakeholders to maintain the current rank status quo. Therefore, the General Assembly has decided to make an action plan so that INSEC takes necessary initiatives for Parliament Watch.
(Civil relations with the state) This General Assembly has drawn the attention of the stakeholders to take appropriate steps keeping in mind that the questions raised by the public to the newly elected government are related to the self-reliance, awareness, organization, leadership, and dignity of the people. Failure to adopt a culture of meaningful acceptance of the criticism by a citizen can lead democratic governments astray. Therefore, the general assembly has drawn the attention of the government and the parliament to create an environment in which independent citizens’ organizations, professional organizations, experts, and constitutional bodies can function as free, fair, autonomous, and accountable.
(World Situation) The world’s strategic power balance is becoming multipolar. The war in Ukraine is unjust. A strong nation has ignored past agreements to enter into a conflict with a weak nation for its vested interest. Nepal is also suffering from the global crisis caused by this conflict. The effects of polarization caused due to the conflict are affecting international cooperation as well. In addition, it is important to visualize justice related to climate change in the current scenario. The General Assembly is aware of the current world situation and is determined to find the necessary strategies to mitigate the issues.