WOMEN ACTIVISTS PREPARE BILL TO END DISCRIMINATION

December 7, 2002 – (The Rising Nepal) As Nepalese women continue to be victims of domestic violence, women rights activists today expressed concern over the fate of the draft bill that became invalid after the dissolution of the Parliament. The Domestic Violence (Prevention and Penalisation) Bill was presented in the 21st session of the Parliament.

The Forum for Women, Law and Development today disclosed a revised draft bill on domestic violence, control and punishment aiming at eliminating all forms of discrimination against women.

According to advocate Mira Dhungana, the bill presented in the 21st session of Parliament, despite efforts to encompass many issues related to women, was incomplete as far as empowering women was concerned. Therefore, the forum has prepared a new draft with necessary reforms and additions.

Pointing at the impact domestic violence has on society, Dhungana said, "On the one hand, we don't have adequate legal provisions for the rights of women, while on the other, the bill does not talk about economic and sexual violence occurring in the family. "The bill talked only about physical and mental violence," said Dhungana at a press conference today.

A number of provisions were missing in the former bill such as the definition of the family, rehabilitation and compensation for the victims, coordination and counselling committees and so on. "So we have proposed a new comprehensive bill including these missing points," said Sabin Shrestha, an advocate and women rights activist.

If this proposed bill is passed in the next parliamentary session, Nepalese women will have equal rights to that of their male counterparts. With this, they will be empowered in the right sense, said Shrestha.

The programme was organised on the occasion of the International Campaign for the Elimination of All Kinds of Discrimination against Women being observed from November 25 to December 10.

From: http://www.mahilaweb.org/footer/news/dec_02/rising_nepal.htm