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2008 Assessment

Nepal: Integrity Indicators Scorecard

Nepal: Integrity Scorecard Report > Sub-Category: Civil Society Organizations
Indicators		Score
1	Are anti-corruption/good governance CSOs legally protected?	100
2	Are good governance/anti-corruption CSOs able to operate freely?	75
3	Are civil society activists safe when working on corruption issues?	100
4	Can citizens organize into trade unions?	75

Indicator and sub-Indicator Details

Are anti-corruption/good governance CSOs legally protected?

1a: In law, citizens have a right to form civil society organizations (CSOs) focused on anti-corruption or good governance.

Score:

YES

Comments: Along with the constitutional guarantee, there are other statutory provisions that provide for the formation of civic society organizations (CSOs) in Nepal. The Assembly or Union Act is particularly important as it was the first statute that enabled CSOs to "peacefully organize and operate for criticizing and exerting pressure for a policy change and amending and repealing laws & based on the principle of integrity." (Section 4)

References: Comprehensive Peace Accord, 2006

Interim Constitution of Nepal, 2007

Assembly or Union Act, 1949

Citizens' Rights Act, 1955

National Directives Act, 1961 (4)

Institution Registration Act, 1977

The Cooperatives Act, 1992

Company Act, 2006

The Trade Union Act, 1992.

[ LINK ]

1b: In law, anti-corruption/good governance CSOs are free to accept funding from any foreign or domestic sources.

Score:

YES

Comments: Civil society organizations (CSOs) in Nepal can accept funds from foreign or domestic donors. The Social Welfare Council (SWC), a statutory body, is the oversight agency for nongovernmental-organization (NGO) resources: Pre-approval from SWC is mandatory for using received funds. Despite the regulatory provision, many NGOs in Nepal lack transparency, and they often flout legal provisions, as SWC lacks a monitoring and follow-up mechanism, and some "powerful" NGOs can easily influence SWC decisions.

References: Social Welfare Act 1992, Section 16

The Donation Act 1973, Section 3

1c: In law, anti-corruption/good governance CSOs are required to disclose their sources of funding.

Score:

YES

Comments: CSOs must disclose their funding source(s). The Office of the Chief District Officer (CDO) monitors this and has the authority to inspect nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) funding. In addition, NGOs must submit a financial disclosure each year in order to renew their ability to function in the country. However, NGOs may flout this provision of law by submitting fake documents, as no strict mechanism of effective scrutiny exists in Nepal.

References: Institution Registration Act 1977, Sections. 4, 9, 10

Peer Review Comments: In practice, this is difficult. Therefore, transparency is a big issue.

Are good governance/anti-corruption CSOs able to operate freely?

2a: In practice, the government does not create barriers to the organization of new anti-corruption/good governance CSOs.

Score:

100

Comments: The trend of forming civil society organizations (CSOs) started after the first peoples' movement in 1990. People from all the different backgrounds can easily organize into CSOs, be it laymen, persons with a political affiliation, professionals and even former bureaucrats. The formation of CSOs has been a lucrative business for those who used to have decision-making power and who can now easily establish connections with different donors by the virtue of their former position.

References: Visit assessment based on data available in the District Administration Office, Kathmandu

Peer Review Comments: Yes, the Constitution promulgated after the first people's movement in 1990 guaranteed the rights of people to form CSOs, and the interim Constitution 2007, unveiled after the success of the second people's movement in 2006, also gave continuity to the rights.

2b: In practice, anti-corruption/good governance CSOs actively engage in the political and policymaking process.

Score:

100

Comments: Many civil society organizations (CSOs) continuously pressure the government to reform different sectors, particularly the human rights situation and governance. One such organization, Pro-Public, has moved a couple of public interest litigations (PILs) relating to election integrity. The Supreme Court of Nepal has issued directives to successive governments to enact laws that address the issue of respect to human rights, governance reform and political party financing, including asset disclosure by candidates contesting elections.

Similarly, many CSOs are actively engaged in the ongoing peace process, constantly asking the government to show respect for the people's mandate expressed in the recent Constituent Assembly election.

Being only advocacy groups, CSOs have limitations: They have little or no input into decision-making at either the policy-making or political level.

References: [ LINK ]

[ LINK ]

Peer Review Comments: There are many CBOs and NGOs actively engaged in policy decisions. The government has adopted implementation of the Public Private Approach since 1990, but CBOs and NGOs are very controversial in regard to transparency and legitimacy. In addition, their annual organization conventions and decisions are controversial. Therefore, they have weak ethics and pressure the government.

2c: In practice, no anti-corruption/good governance CSOs have been shut down by the government for their work on corruption-related issues during the study period.

Score:

YES

$Scoring Criteria :: YES: A YES score is earned if there were no CSOs shut down by the government or forced to cease operations because of their work on corruption-related issues during the study period. YES is a positive score. NO: A NO score is earned if any CSO has been effectively shut down by the government or forced to cease operations because of its work on corruption-related issues during the study period. The causal relationship between the cessation of operations and the CSO\'s work may not be explicit, however the burden of proof here is low. If it seems likely that the CSO was forced to cease operations due to its work, then the indicator is scored as a NO. Corruption is defined broadly to include any abuses of power, not just the passing of bribes.$

Comments: There are no reported cases of civil society organizations (CSOs) being shut down. However, the so-called "activism" demonstrated by the Young Communist League (YCL), which is affiliated with the major ruling party -- the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoists) -- may have obstructed the activities of CSOs. Similarly, CSOs may have been affected in the Terai region by activities of the armed outfits of different Madhesi groups.

References: Media reports on different dates

Are civil society activists safe when working on corruption issues?

3a: In practice, in the past year, no civil society activists working on corruption issues have been imprisoned.

Score:

YES

$Scoring Criteria :: YES: A YES score is earned if there were no CSO activists imprisoned because of their work covering corruption. YES is a positive score. NO: A NO score is earned if any activist was jailed in relation to work covering corruption. The causal relationship between the official charges and the person\'s work may not be explicit, however the burden of proof here is low. If it seems likely that the person was imprisoned due to his or her work, then the indicator is scored as a NO. Corruption is defined broadly to include any abuses of power, not just the passing of bribes.$

Comments: There are no reported cases of formal imprisionment by the state. However, there may have been threats, intimidation and confinement by the different entities affiliated with the major political parties (the Young Communist League (YCL) and the Youth Force).

References: Interview with Krishna Bhandari, executive director, The Reform Forum

3b: In practice, in the past year, no civil society activists working on corruption issues have been physically harmed.

Score:

YES

$Scoring Criteria :: YES: A YES score is earned if there were no documented cases of CSO activists covering corruption being assaulted in the specific study period. A YES score can be earned if there was an attack but it was clearly unrelated to the activist\'s work. YES is a positive score. NO: A NO score is earned if there were any documented cases during the study period of assault to an activist who covers corruption. Corruption is defined broadly to include any abuses of power, not just the passing of bribes.$

Comments: There are no reported cases of the state arresting and physically harming anti-corruption activists. However, there may have been abductions, confinement and torture by the several armed groups operating in the Terai region.

References: Media reports on different dates

Peer Review Comments: The main reason is ineffective activities and programs.

3c: In practice, in the past year, no civil society activists working on corruption issues have been killed.

Score:

YES

$Scoring Criteria :: YES: A YES score is earned if there were no documented cases of CSO activists being killed because of their work covering corruption in the specific study period. YES is a positive score. NO: A NO score is earned if there were any documented cases during the study period where a person was killed related to a corruption trial, scandal or investigation. The relationship between a mysterious death and an individual\'s history may not be clear, however the burden of proof here is low. If it is reasonable that a person was killed in relation to his or her work on corruption issues, then the indicator is scored as a NO. Corruption is defined broadly to include any abuses of power, not just the passing of bribes.$

Comments: There are no reported cases of civil society organization (CSO) workers having been killed for their anti-corruption work. However, non-state armed forces may have been involved in high-handedness.

References: Interview with Mani Ram Neupane, an official working in the District Administration Office

Peer Review Comments: There are no ground-level activists, except for advocacy and study.

Can citizens organize into trade unions?

4a: In law, citizens have a right to organize into trade unions.

Score:

YES

Comments: Trade unions are allowed in Nepal. For the first time in Nepalese constitutional history, Article 30 (2) guarantees the right of labor : "Every employee and worker shall have the right to form trade unions, to organize themselves and to perform collective bargaining for the protection of their interest in accordance with law".

References: The Interim Constitution of Nepal 2007, Article 30 (2)

The National Directives Act 1949, Section 3

The Trade Union Act 1992, Chapter 2

4b: In practice, citizens are able to organize into trade unions.

Score:

100

Comments: In principle, the federation and confederation of trade unions, such as the General Federation of Nepalese Trade Unions (GEFONT) and the Democratic Confederation of Nepalese Trade Unions (DECONT) do exist. In practice, however, these organizations are part of political discourse. Because they represent themselves as sister organizations of major political parties, their orientation toward trade union rights is politically motivated.

References: [ LINK ]

Peer Review Comments: Concerned authorities, whether it is in the government or private sector, tend to discourage people from organizing trade unions.

Peer Review Comments: Yes, there is no doubt that trade union activities in Nepal are highly related to political parties and their agendas. But I think there is no barrier for any citizen to join trade unions based on his political faith. However, in some cases, citizens might have not been able to organize into trade unions due to the presence of strong political opposition.