The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), through a press release, informed that during the monitoring of the human rights situation in relation to the upcoming election of Members of the House of Representatives scheduled for March 5, it held discussions on February 5 with heads and representatives of various organizations engaged in election observation regarding the effectiveness of monitoring/observation.
The press release states that various findings have been obtained from monitoring conducted by NHRC offices, and participants in the discussion emphasized the need to make the election human-rights friendly.
According to the Commission, it was observed that some leaders and candidates of political parties used indecent language and hate speech against other parties, leaders, and candidates; materials undermining the dignity of individuals were produced and disseminated through digital technology; and voters were asked which party/leader they intended to vote for, with such responses recorded on video/audio and shared on social media, thereby violating voters’ right to secret ballot and privacy.
The press release further noted that the election code of conduct prepared by the Election Commission had been violated by some parties and candidates, that misleading news was produced predicting the victory of certain candidates even before the election, and that vandalism occurred at some political party offices.
Recalling that voter education has not been effective, the Commission urged all concerned not to engage in hateful accusations during the election process and not to misuse social media.
Similarly, the Commission advised that voters’ privacy rights should not be affected, that misleading news should not be published or broadcast, and that violent activities should cease. The press release, issued by NHRC Spokesperson and Joint Secretary Dr. Tikaram Pokharel, also urged all concerned stakeholders to make voter education effective and ensure full compliance with the election code of conduct to make the election human-rights friendly.