Supreme Court directs government to ensure autonomy of Baram Indigenous peoples, says Shankar Limbu On Janasawal Epi - 92

Supreme Court of Nepal directs Nepal government to devise necessary law and ensure autonomy of Baram Indigenous Peoples of Nepal, says advocate Shankar Limbu echoing the landmark judgement of Supreme Court talking to Shree Krishna Maharjan, at Janasawal, ‘public concern’ the daily live-shows of Indigenous Television.  

On 32 December 2018, Joint bench of Justice Kedar Prasad Chalise and Purusatam Bhandari directed government of Nepal, as per Nepal’s New Constitution 295 (3), to form a special, protected and autonomous regions for Baram Indigenous Peoples in Gorkha in orter to protect their distinct identity, including culture, devising a necessary laws, while the full-text of the judgement was delivered in July, 2019.

Lawyer’s Association for Human Rights of Indigenous Peoples (LAHURNIP) had provided a pro-bono service in litigation at supreme Court to ensure autonomy and self-determination of Baram Indigenous Peoples. The Supreme Court’s judgement is landmark for ensuring right to self-determination and autonomy for Indigenous Peoples.

‘There is no provision to guarantee autonomy and self-governance with right to self-determination of Indigenous Peoples in the Constitution of Nepal, 2015. However, the Special, Protected or Autonomous Region can be set by the Federal law for social, cultural protection or economic development (Art.56 (5) without any political power.

In accordance with Art. 295(3) of the Constitution, 2015, a Commission to restructure local bodies, was commissioned with clear mandate of determination of numbers and boundaries of Village bodies, Municipalities and Special, Protected or Autonomous Regions determined numbers of local bodies and their names. The commission formed 753 Village Bodies and Municipalities but not the Special, Protected and Autonomous Regions, however indigenous peoples were not taken into account while determining the numbers and boundaries of local bodies.

Following the submission of the report of the Commission, Indigenous peoples, including Baram and Tajpuria Indigenous Peoples had submitted the memorandums to the Commission to respect the cluster of their populations and also had filed case at Supreme Court challenging the report of the Commission, but their case was declared the case inadmissible and then an appeal was filed against the Supreme Court’s move of declaring inadmissible case.

 

Shankar Limbu On Janasawal Epi - 92