They also complained that political party leaders had not paid due heed to their suggestions to work on transitional justice mechanisms in the past to address the concerns of the conflict victims. [break]"This is a testimony of the fact that the failure of our rulers to understand transitional justice mechanism has put the country in a humiliating situation," said Subodh Raj Pyakurel, who is also chairman of Insec, a human rights NGO.
Pyakurel added that delay in forming the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the government decision to revoke criminal cases, at times flouting court order, against the party cadres had put question over judicial competence of Nepal. "This has made the victims to seek justice under universal jurisdiction," he added.
Likewise, another human rights activist Charan Prasain said the arrest of Colonel Lama is the consequence of the failure of the government to create transitional justice mechanisms.
While welcoming the move of UK government, Prasain also reacted strongly against the government´s objection to the arrest. "This is unfortunate to see the government objecting to the move. It would have been justifiable had the government announced it would make Lama accountable over human rights violation he committed on its own," he further said.
Meanwhile, Human Rights Watch said on Saturday the arrest sent a warning to those accused of serious crimes that they cannot hide from the law. "The UK´s move to arrest a Nepali army officer for torture during Nepal´s brutal civil war is an important step in enforcing the UN Convention against Torture," Brad Adams, Asia director of Human Rights Watch, said in a statement.
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